Totes Ma Goats? - Jamaican Curry Goat

Cray Cray Adorbs!

Totally.  Because this blog post is all about Jamaican curry goat.  Did you know goat is kosher?

Look at the price. Shhhh! Don't tell anyone, they'll all be cooking it.

3 pounds goat meat, cut into cubes
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse ground black pepper
4 tablespoons Jamaican-style curry powder (3 T. mild, 1 T. hot)
sugar, to taste
1 large onion, halved and sliced
6 or more cloves garlic, chopped
3 Scotch bonnet peppers, cut in half, seeds and veins removed 
4 tablespoons canola oil
4 cups boiling water, divided
1 large sprig thyme
1 medium onion, chopped

3 medium potatoes, peeled, each cut in 4 pieces
2-3 tablespoons ketchup (Heinz. The goat will thank you)
1-13.5 oz can Goya coconut milk

The inspiration for this recipe comes from a charming site called Cook Like a Jamaican. Any deviations are my own responsibility and if you don't like the taste, it's likely my doing, and not the nice Jamaican lady.  I do think you will like it, however, especially if you grew up eating and enjoying lamb, as I did.

Mix together the salt, black pepper, and curry powder.  In a very large bowl, place the goat, the sliced onion, the garlic, and the Scotch bonnet peppers. Sprinkle with a little sugar.  Toss to distribute the seasonings.  Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight to marinate.

Heat cooking oil in large deep skillet on high. Working in batches, remove the goat meat from the bowl, using tongs, and place carefully into the hot oil in and brown on all sides to seal in juices.  As each batch is done, move the goat to a large deep pot (you know, the 10 quart Farberware you got as an engagement present in 1974, and you can't live without it).

Put aside the bowl containing the marinated onions, garlic, and Scotch bonnet peppers.  Do not discard the oil in the skillet.  Add the thyme and 2 cups of boiling water to the goat in the pot.  Cover, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 1 hour.

Bring the remaining oil in the skillet back up to medium-high.   Add the chopped onion, the marinated sliced onion and 1 of the Scotch bonnet peppers to the skillet (You can add 1 or 2 of the remaining Scotch bonnet peppers if you have a death wish or no regard for the tender palates of your dining guests. You've been warned).  Cook the onions just so they soften, then add the second 2 cups of boiling water to the skillet and bring to a boil.  Scrape up any flavorful bits on the bottom of the skillet.  Stir in the ketchup, bring up to a boil for a few minutes, and then pour the contents of the skillet into the pot with the goat.  Add the potatoes and cook uncovered for another 30 minutes, until the potatoes are soft and the goat is falling off the bone.

With a slotted spoon, move the goat and potatoes into a deep baking dish.  Cook the sauce in the pot for 5 to 10 minutes, so that it reduces a bit.  Pour in the coconut milk and cook a few more minutes, then taste for seasoning.  I re-seasoned with curry powder, salt, black pepper, a touch more sugar, a small amount of granulated garlic, and some fresh thyme leave.  Ladle the finished sauce over the goat and potatoes.  I had extra sauce, whichh I ladled into a container.  Just in case the goat and potatoes soak up a lot of the sauce in the baking dish and/or I decide there is no reason not to eat rice with a dish that already includes potato.

Just a reminder

Oh crap, it's about to rain on my parade.  Here I am, sitting on the top step of my front porch, enjoying the cool breeze that also signifies a big rain storm heading in from the west, just in time for hundreds to pour out of the courthouse and into the street on their way home.  Except from my old courtroom, where everybody is serving permanent detention.

Other than my cool breeze interlude, it hasn't been what you would call a good day.  Let's hope it passes. I have begun the process of consulting with a disability attorney.  Maybe I can get it right the first time.  Maybe.

The Most Interesting Man in the World is ...? - Sprightly Stuffed Artichokes

Politics, Politics, Politics ... You gotta love when both groups of political commentators are pissed at the same candidate.  Yes, I am talking about The Donald.

Incidentally, I created this meme.  No copyright implied or intended.

He's getting more air time than the Kardashians. He's more interesting than The Most Interesting Man in the World. He's got better hair than Fabio, more money than God. He's from New York, and I can't help liking him.  So I am having a lot of fun watching the newsies' antics.  Here he is running as a Republican and Fox News is having a meltdown.  CNN is a bloody mess. Nobody there can think straight, much less speak straight under the best of circumstances. Oh Donald, you naughty, naughty candidate for President of the United States.  Give 'em hell.

There I was in Walmart's produce department, and I had an epiphany: one big artichoke could feed two people.  I was alone - Robert would rather have root canal than shop in Walmart.  I couldn't reach out to strangers because not one of them spoke English.  This is Osceola County, folks.  This would have been okay if my epiphany involved duck (pato) or rabbit (conejo) but I could not even begin to express joy over an artichoke (which, for future reference, is alcachofa en espanol).

If you have every prepared a stuffed artichoke, then you know that it is a royal pain in the culo to stuff each leaf.  It is even worse, however, to remove the choke, that feathery collection of inedible needles that stands between you and the tender, succulent heart.  My epiphany solved both of those problems, and I am quite happy to share it with everyone.

First, take a nice big artichoke, preferably with the stem still attached. Cut a thin slice from the very end of the stem.  Now cut the artichoke in half, right through the stem.  You can see in the photo how the tender meat of the choke actually extends all the way down the center of the stem.  Then, using a metal apple corer, or a tomato shark, remove the choke, and all of the purplish leaves.  Clean out anything inedible.  With kitchen scissors, snip the sharp tips off each leaf.  Rub all the cut edges with the halves of a fresh lemon.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Put the cleaned and trimmed artichoke halves leaf-side up in a baking pan.  Pour the Spite around and over the artichoke halves, and squeeze in any remaining lemon juice.  Cover with foil and place in the preheated oven for 30 minutes.  Remove and set aside, leaving the pan covered, while you prepare the stuffing.

1/2 cup small cooked shrimp, chopped finely
1 small jalapeño, minced
1 large clove garlic, minced
2 green onion, white part only, finely chopped
1/2 very small carrot, finely chopped
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh herbs, chopped fine (parsley, tarragon, lemon balm, or your preference)
4 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
Kosher salt, black pepper, granulated garlic, and sweet paprika, to taste

Melt the butter in a medium skillet.  Add the jalapeño, garlic, onion, and carrot.  Sauté briefly just to soften the vegetables.  Take off the heat, and add the remaining ingredients.  Set aside to cool, and prepare the béchamel (white sauce):

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
3/4 cup milk

Once the white sauce is thickened, fold in with the crumb mixture and let cool.  Spoon into a freezer bag, push the filling towards one corner, snip the tip, and pipe filling behind each leaf. Turn the artichoke half over and fill any empty spaces.  Place the stuffed artichokes cut side up in a baking pan and drizzle with some additional melted butter (about 1 tablespoon for each half) and sprinkle some grated Romano cheese.  Bake in a 350 degree oven, uncovered, for 15 minutes.

Enjoy immediately hot from the oven. Don't forget to eat the sweet artichoke flesh from the heart and stem.

PSA Video:

How to make a white sauce

Not Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood - Ichiban Caponata

THE TONGUE IS MIGHTIER THAN THE SWORD, AND BIGGER THAN THE DOG!

I am annoyed with the internet (and so is Chelsea), or maybe just the iCloud, but nonetheless I am annoyed because the last set of photos I took with my iPhone are not uploading to the iPad.  That means they are not making it to the appropriate blog post, and I am just OCD enough to be totally discombobulated by this minor fact.

Courthouse in the jungle, the mighty jungle

I do have some available photos from one of my neighborhood walks, however, and in keeping with my delight in the esoteric, I present to you the wackiest railroad crossings in Kissimmee, or maybe the world. What makes them wacky, you ask? Well, they are right next to each other.  A hairpin turn, like the one I had to navigate in total fog, in the dark, in the Shawangunk Mountains, with absolutely no help from my buddies Mark and Steve.  (Thanks, guys. So what if it was 1972, I was traumatized!)

It's a 5-point intersection of 3 different roads with 

a hairpin double railroad crossing, in a residential neighborhood.

First, the tracks encircle downtown Kissimmee like a half moon before heading further south.  So if I am washing dishes and looking out the window of my southern-exposure kitchen, I can see the above crossing.  If I happen to be standing on my northern-exposure facing front walk, and look towards the courthouse, I will hear, and possibly see, the same southbound train about to whoosh across the above intersection.

The car in the photo is coming from Lakeshore; if he wants

 to head south on Clyde, he's got to hang a hairpin, crossing the 

tracks twice in a 2-second period. In a residential neighborhood, oy ...

This is the same train that rumbles past my soon-to-be former office building. Talk about noisy - some genius thought it would be a great idea to build an 8-story, mixed purpose high-rise (well, for Kissimmee it's a high rise) with very pricey condos, right smack against the existing tracks, on the site of what used to be the old Graystone Hotel.  At some point the genius or his successors had to accept what a really stupid idea it was, and instead of four floors of lovely income-producing apartments, each one boasting a gorgeous view of Lake Toho, there are only 2 residential floors, and after all these years the occupancy rate is still low.  The remaining floors are all dedicated to commerce, and if I lived there I would be more than a little concerned.  With few exception, the vast majority of space is being used by social service agencies.  You know the old saying - if you have social service agencies, you're going to attract people who need social services - and while that hardly bothers me, some of those apartment/condo dwellers are gonna feel cheated.  Anyway, I blame it on the train.  The building is lovely, the nicest office I've ever had while working for the state.

There is a whole lot more to Osceola County than Disney. Old homesteads, older trees, cool architecture, interesting art work, really weird railroad crossings, fabulous lakefront.  I love it, I really do.                                                                                          

Khaki Sumo Wrestler in Front of Kissimmee City Hall

I can't take credit for the following recipe for this delicious Italian relish; all I did was adjust amounts because I was working with an ichiban eggplant from my garden, rather than a full sized globe eggplant.  THEE ichiban eggplant - the only one. The little Japanese eggplant weighed in at about 5 ounces, so what is printed here reflects that. I highly recommend that you check out THIS WEBSITE, known as Simply Recipes, where you will find the original recipe (which includes pine nuts!) plus a whole lot more.  If you like to cook, that is a very fine resource.

"Love grows where my rosemary goes."  My rosemary goes in the caponata.

My garden is doing some interesting stuff, and I am always more than happy to try a new recipe using produce I picked out of my yard a few minutes before.  That little eggplant was still warm from the sun when I snipped the stem and brought it into the kitchen, and me, being a city girl born and bred, was ridiculously thrilled by that.

Also, the two plants are now producing a whole bunch of little eggplants, and there are cherry tomatoes, a single plum tomato, and a jalapeño as well.  So I guess I really am Farmer Green Jeans.

Ichiban Caponata

1 Ichiban (Japanese) eggplant - about 5 oz., diced
kosher salt
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/2 small onion, minced
1/2 celery stalk, minced
1/4 sweet red bell pepper, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1-10 oz. can mild Ro-Tel tomatoes, drained
1/4 cup pimento-stuffed green olives, finely chopped
1 tablespoon small capers, drained
red pepper flakes, to taste
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2 tablespoons chopped basil (4 large leaves)

Toss the diced eggplant with about 2 teaspoons salt and put into a bowl.  Let this sit for 1 hour. Drain the eggplant, rinse with fresh water and pat dry with paper towels.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and celery, season with salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until the onion begins to soften - about 5 minutes. Add the garlic. Cook 1-2 minutes more. Remove from the skillet and set aside.

Wipe the pan with a paper towel, turn the heat to high and add the remaining olive oil. Let this heat until the oil is nearly smoking. Add the eggplant and spread it out in as thin a layer as you can in the skillet. Let this sizzle for 1-2 minutes before stirring, then let it sit for a full minute before stirring again. Cook like this for 5-6 minutes.

Add the onion-celery mixture, the tomatoes, olives, capers and red pepper flakes. Stir well. Add the vinegar, sugar and tomato paste and stir once more. Cook, stirring occasionally until eggplant is very soft, about 8 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Mix in the basil. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Caponata can be refrigerated, covered, up to 5 days.

My neighbors' sunflowers. We are a farm-to-camera neighborhood.

My cousin Cary had his surgery yesterday, and while he will need a more advanced procedure in the future, he had a good night's rest.  I am convinced that all the prayers helped, so from the bottom of my heart, and on behalf of my cousin and his family, I want to thank each and every one of you.

(If you continue to scroll down this page, there is nothing but excess white space, probably due to my copy and paste from another website.  Just ignore it, I'll be annoyed enough for all of us.)

The Cat-Cane and the Hat - Asian-Glazed Roasted Vegetables

I take a walk everyday, me and my cat-cane and a hat.  The whole idea of the hat kind of tickles me, because I was always of the strong opinion that hats did not look good on me, as I did not have a Hat Head. #spooniegotissues

Many years ago, when I was working for Alexander and Alexander in Melville, I admit to being somewhat envious of my supervisor, Denise Frobey, who always wore a hat with her power suit, and always looked frankly fabulous because she had been blessed with a genuine Hat Head. I wear them now for the utterly utilitarian purpose of keeping the sun off my face.  While Denise looked sharp and professional, I look like Farmer Green-Jeans.

Admit it, that's dreadful

Speaking of hats, I highly recommend you check this link to Primarily Art With Mrs. Depp.  Today's post is all about how Mrs. Depp, an elementary school art teacher and prolific blogger, created the fantastic hat she wore to the community theatre awards dinner.  I don't wear anything this amazing, ever, but then I don't have Mrs. Depp's talent.  

Mr. & Mrs. Depp, en costume

Mrs. Depp, who is my friend Sheryl and my cousin-by-marriage, is blessed with artistic and creative talent from both sides of her family.  Not only that, she's a natural redhead and she has a Hat Head. Quite the combo platter!

Sheryl's spouse, "Steampunk" Gary, and my son's partner in cosplay crime, is featured in the photo as well.  There must be a lot of good humor in that house.  God bless them, and their hats, and don't forget to check out Sheryl's blog.

The vegetable dish that is the subject of today's post is the result of more inspiration from another cooking blog, called Back To Her Roots. It's not always easy to know what to do with 2 pounds of Brussel sprouts and some leftover parsnips.  The idea for the glaze comes from Home Sweet Jones although the original has nothing to do with vegetables and everything to do with chicken. The idea for putting an Asian glaze on oven-roasted vegetables comes from my own fevered brain. The result was okay, maybe a smidge over okay.  Definitely serve over white rice or thin pasta.

Assembling the glaze ingredients 

Asian Glaze:

• 1/3 cup mild balsamic vinegar
• 1/3 cup dark soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon Sriracha hot sauce 
• 2 tablespoons orange blossom honey
• 1 tablespoon orange marmalade
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced (I used the chunky garlic in a tube)
• 1 tablespoon ginger, minced (I used ginger-in-a-tube)
• 2 teaspoons dried chives
• 1 teaspoon Asian sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds

Combine everything, except the sesame seeds, in a bowl and whisk together.  Set aside at room temperature while you prepare the vegetables.

Roasted Vegetables:

• 6 carrots, peeled, and cut into diagonal slices
• 3 large parsnips, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 pounds Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
• 12-15 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed, but not chopped
• 1 tablespoon rosemary leaves, rough chopped
• kosher salt and coarse ground pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 425°.  Combine the carrots and parsnips in a metal colander or steamer insert, and steam for 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are barely tender. Separate the carrots from the parsnips, and place in an aluminum baking dish.  Set aside.

Combine the parnsips and Brussels sprouts in an extra large aluminum pan.  Divide the garlic cloves and rosemary between the pans, and add salt and pepper to taste.  Pour the olive oil over both pans,  and toss to coat.  

Place the carrots in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.  Remove, stir just a little and return to the oven, along with the other pan of vegetables.  Roast for 15 minutes, then remove both pans from the oven. Divide the glaze between the two pans and return them to the oven for another 10 minutes.  Remove the pans again, drizzle the vegetables with some more honey, and sprinkle on the sesame seeds. Return to the oven one last time, about 10 minutes. Combine the contents of the two baking pans.

The color is waaay off, sorry

Taste and re-season as necessary.  I ended up adding more Sriracha and ginger, but your mileage may vary. To serve, spoon it on top of plain white rice or thin noodles; sprinkle with more sesame seed and finish with a dusting of the dried chives.  Not bad.

Color is accurate - and I served it on my fanciest china

So you were wondering what is a cat-cane? Well, since I have to walk with a cane most of the time, I wanted one that would occasionally make me smile.

An Ira cat is sitting just above the orange tabby, and that always makes me smile.  Thank goodness for Amazon.com.

I am sitting on the front steps,  a nervous wreck as my cousin undergoes surgery.  The Pan de Mico is in the oven, I'm drinking iced coffee, and it is late enough in the day that this is now officially a residential neighborhood.  I should be relaxed but I am worried.  Please keep those prayers coming, I know they will make a difference.

Still Hatin' Monday - Arroz Rojo con Chorizo, AKA "Havana Red Rice"

Ten years ago

I was looking through some family pictures, and picked these out because they featured Cary and me together at difference stages of our lives.

This picture is old - close to 30 years ...

Well, this post will be published on Monday, and Monday is the day my cousin Cary is having surgery. This isn't the first or even second surgery he has had to undergo the past few weeks.  Please keep him in your prayers; I know they will help.

... but not as old as this one.  Whoa ... (just ignore the annoying little brother in front)

Rob and I finally got to our little gardening chore before the skies opened this morning.  Our goal was to cage several tomato plants, along with a rogue cucumber.  

Ideally we would have done this a long time ago, but it's all part of the gardening learning curve.  The okra is going to have to stand on its own, I'm afraid.  At this point, no cage can contain it.  The cucumber is another matter, however.

That cucumber plant has a death wish.

My husband was snapping pictures of me while I was manipulating the recalcitrant tomatoes.  Keep in mind that these were not taken in the anarchist wilds of Holopaw, but one block from the courthouse, right outside my kitchen door.  Speaking of kitchens ...

Mi espanol is pretty stinky, despite the best efforts of my wonderful paralegal Brenda.  I've been studying Spanish since 1964, with choppy results.  Apparently I retained just enough to find a Spanish title for this dish.  This is the rice dish I pulled together to accompany those ridiculously easy tamales.  It is based on one of my favorite Paula Deen recipes, Savannah Red Rice.  Look folks, I still adore Paula Deen and both of her sons.  Her brother, not so much.  In my opinion, ol' Bubba started the chain of events that pulled his sister down to the seventh level of hell.  Gratitude, uh huh.  But that's just my opinion.

Because I have a twisted sense of humor, I initially called this Havana Red Rice, not because it has anything to do with Cuba, but because it's a Spanish-language city that rhymes with Savannah.  I know, it's weak, but so am I. Anyway that's how I ended up digging deep into my fractured Spanish memories and christened the dish "Arroz Rojo con Chorizo" - Red Rice with Chorizo.  A dull name, but a mouth-warming dish, and very easy to put together. Thank you Paula Deen, for the inspiration.

1 cup sliced green onion
1 cup chopped green bell pepper

4 cloves chopped garlic
2 tablespoons butter
1 - 4 oz. link chorizo fino (La Banderita brand) 
1 (14.5 oz) can crushed tomatoes, with juice
1 tablespoon Crystal hot sauce
1 cup Goya Tomato-Based Sofrito
1 cup water
2 Knorr chicken bouillon cubes

1 guajillo chili
kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
thyme, fresh or dried, to taste
1 cup uncooked white rice (Uncle Ben's converted)

honey (optional)

Preheat oven to 350°. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the chorizo until it browns and falls apart, then remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.  Sauté the onion and bell pepper in butter, then add the garlic. Add back the chorizo and heat until mixture is slightly browned. Add tomatoes, hot sauce, sofrito, water and bouillon cubes. Season with salt, pepper and thyme as needed. Remove the seeds from the guajillo pepper and place the whole pepper into the pan. Stir in the rice and drizzle over a very small amount of honey; stir again. Pour mixture into a greased casserole and bake for 45 minutes.