Most Commented Food Blogs (316)

Nutmeg and mace. Pala in Indonesia.
Once these trees only grew on the Banda Islands in the Moluccas.
The dutch waged bloody wars for control of this spice and the Banda Islands, even exterminating the native population.
The profit range was about 600 times, when there was rumour in Europe that nutmeg would be the only remedy against the black death.
Nowadays Indonesia is still a main producer and a good nut costs about 1,40 Euro here.
No idea what the peasants get or what the price in Indo shops.

More common than we think. In the USA, some 30K cases yearly, with up to 10% being fatal ! Well, after a lunch at a street vendor's truck this week, it hit me hard. Cholera style watery stool trips to the crapper, head ache, mild fever, tiredness and belly discomfort. These usually resolve on their own with no treatment, other than rest and not eating. Gradual progression of diet to clear liquids, and so on. But on the good side of things, I've lost almost 10 pounds, and still have little appetite. Aa-V.

Instead of making a big song and dance about an outdated American tradition

You should consider a moments silence .....
And bow your head in shame


88% of Americans surveyed by the National Turkey Federation eat turkey on Thanksgiving. 46 million turkeys are eaten each Thanksgiving, 22 million on Christmas and 19 million turkeys on Easter.



That's 87 million lives taken


And you claim to be caring animal lovers

My friend stop eating all flesh.
Only veggies and fruits, nuts.

He says, 'yes, am feeling so darn strong and healthy'.
I don't need to see the doctor at all.
I know I don't have any illness, no diabetes, no hypertension.
My diet heals me. It is all I need. Its my antibiotics and all.

Yes in a way, that diet is very good.
But how can you know if you still have a bad disease unless you
go to your doctor for a complete check up, at least once a year ?

He feels he will live so long and sick free on such a diet only.
Not wise to me.

Look at hypertension- its called the silent killer, because you get no signs or symptoms
most times. You just drop.

I tell him if a certain diet was good enough to cure all ailments , why does scientists
make medications. He says aah its all about making money. Lol.
Could be true. But I rather get a full check up from a doc at least once a year while eating
right.

No matter what we eat though, bottom line is death will come.
But at least see your doctor so u can prolong life, even while eating right.

When I first moved to my little apartment in Bullhead City I was amazed by the fauna. I wrote a blog on it. But I did not mention "verdulagas". The English translation is parslane and that would be an edible weed that has bulbous leaves like a succulent plant. It webs out with several runners and it has little yellow flowers.

When I lived in Colorado it grew abundantly all over the ground. People would just cut it and throw it away. Mom didn't. She picked it, cleaned it (and like spinach) she made a delicious veggie dish out of it. She would add cheese and onions with little specks of tomato. It was a wonderful dish.

I have since thought over the years how Mom took care of us. The delicious meals she cooked. The laundry she did for us. The ironing. And the love she gave us. My siblings could be somewhat mean with us younger kids and sometimes even with Mom. But Mom just loved us forever and ever.

The verdulagas growing in my front yard reminded me of Mom's love. SO, I have decided that the love must live forever. My little verdulaga plants grow with no hindrance of other weeds. They get plenty of water in this 100+ degree weather and they shall live until they flower, wilt and produce their little seeds for the next generation of my Mothers memory!

I love my little verdulaga plants! And Mom, too!!!

Sometimes it's not so easy considering the same word has different meanings.

If a guy has a birth defect (as in a dark round often raised mark on his skin) it's called a mole. The same defect on a woman is called a beauty mark.
Gotta love those dual standards.
You cannot wipe those moles off your face and need to see a dermatologist for professional treatment.




Another mole is a rodent sized mammal with sharp paws that burrows underground. They leave a small opening with dirt around it when they come to the surface...
Don't consider touching any of those moles... you could get scratched in the process.



A third mole is the traditional Mexican sauce that often contains fruit, chili pepper, nuts, black pepper, onion, cinnamon, cumin and chocolate.



So get some mole sauce and pour it over your tacos, burritos or enchiladas.



When you're done, you can wipe this mole off your face!

Tap the tree in front of the Aaltarboy Mansion this time each year. 30 + quarts of sap, boiled down, yield 3-4 liters of the good stuff. We give most away. Yummy on crepes.

I exercise a lot of restraint on purchases from Amazon as it's too easy to buy 'things of convenience' as opposed to 'things of necessity'. So far I'm drawing the line with food purchases. I won't do it. The same rule applies with deliveries of food. I'll go out for pizza before I would call for delivery. Seriously, Jabba the Hut would call Domino's... I won't.
Actually, I wouldn't eat Domino's, but that's another story.

Now that the weather is cooler, I would consider something edible from Amazon... like chocolate as a gift for someone. I've heard horror stories from people who bought expensive confections that were melted into 'drops of sludge' when they came off a truck in the middle of a hot summer day!

The dollar stores, another weakness... there are several a few miles from me and Bagel chips with sea salt is a favorite of mine... They don't always have them, so when in stock, I'll get 5 or 6 bags. The same for a few caffeinated drinks without sugar.
I always go through the section with kitchen gadgets. I'm looking for a thin blade knife to replace one I used to curve so it perfectly cuts watermelon. My purchases this year were several 4 inch and 6 inch knives that were an amazing value. Also, I got a few paring knives. I'm guessing the blades on those are 3 inches long with a small moulded plastic handle. Although dollar store purchases, they have much thicker blades and better quality than the ones from a few years ago.
Tonight it was a pear on my list and the paring knife worked great!
paring a pear.

China is 13 hours ahead of the East coast USA and their festival started on the 10th. My plans Saturday were to go to Miami and shop at the huge Chinese market to get some Mooncakes, but a Celebration of Life for an old friend lasted longer than expected.
Instead, I went to a Chinese supermarket near my house, but I was surprised they didn't have any Mooncakes.


Some Mooncake history and legend:

I saw eggnog ice cream last year at Wal Mart. I didn't buy it but regretted not doing so all year since. A friend of mine's daughter was there last year when I saw it and today she brought me a quart of it she bought yesterday when she was shopping.

Total bliss when having it for desert today.