Dateline: 22 July 2013
In all the years I've blogged here I don't remember ever having a book give-away.
I did, however, have a House Give-Away Contest back in July of 2008 (And The Winner Was...).
So I reckon I'm long overdue for something like this, and I've got a great book to give away to one fortunate reader. The "contest" I have in mind should be a lot of fun, but let me tell you about the book first....
This give-away has come about after Jane Bryan, over at Thy Hand Hath Provided blog, asked me to consider reviewing her Thy Hand Hath Provided cook book (pictured above), after I asked her to consider reviewing my Planet Whizbang Idea Book For Gardeners.
One good turn deserves another, and reviewing Jane's book is something I have no problem at all doing because it so happens that she has self-published a remarkably nice book.
Now, mind you, I am not much of a cook myself, but I have spent some time with Thy Hand Hath Provided, Recipes & Preserving, and I'm impressed with how well it is organized, presented, indexed, and cross referenced. As a self-publisher myself, I know something about how much work goes into producing a book, and I can tell you that Jane has done an excellent job with the overall composition and presentation. Fact is, her book is better "crafted" than most of my books.
As for the recipes, well, they are, of course, the best part. This excerpt from the book's Preface, gives you a general idea of what to expect...
"This collection of recipes is the result of seeking out meals that allow our family to eat from our garden, pantry and freezer without getting bored. In this cookbook, I will show you how to preserve many basic fruits and vegetables as well as provide suggestions as to what you can make with them, once they're chilling in your freezer or looking lovely on your pantry shelves. My hope is that this book will prove to be very useful as you harvest, preserve, plan and make delicious homemade and homegrown meals for your family."
Words like that appeal to the deliberate agrarian in me!
Thus far, Marlene (my wife) has made the Hummus and Tabouli recipes (we happen to love hummus and tabouli). Both were delicious, and I'm sure Marlene will make both recipes again.
The hummus recipe required tahini, which is made from sesame seeds, and the recipe for that is also in the book. We have never made tahini but followed the recipe ( I helped) and it came out perfectly. You can see and read Jane's blog post about making Tabouli and Hummus here: Tabouli and Hummus
By the way, Jane's book also has a recipe for Beet Hummus. Wow. That's something I'm looking forward to trying!
Being the pie-lover that I am (I'll take pie over cake any day) I was attracted to the "Pies" chapter. Jane gives her pie crust recipe and tells how she makes several crusts at a time and stores them in the freezer until needed. Strawberry pie. Red Raspberry pie. Ground Cherry Pie ("recipe from my Grandma"), Sweet Potato Pie, Grape Pie (!), and others all sound good to me. But over in the "Vegetarian Main Dishes" chapter there is a recipe for Tomato Pie. That's a powerfully appealing, mouth-watering food to consider as I am waiting for the still-green tomatoes in my garden to ripen.
If you are a pie-lover too, you'll want to read Jane's blog post titled, The Pie Party. I've never been to a pie party. I hope that, someday, before I depart this earthly realm, I can go to a pie party.
I could go on, but I'm sure you get the idea. This book presents a broad range of tried-and-true, down-home-cookin' recipes. It is the kind of cookbook that you'll have fun using, will use to for years, and will want to give as a gift to any friends who love to cook, and/or are learning to cook.
Only one person reading this is going to "win" a copy in this give-away. The rest of you will have to buy yourself a copy, but the book is reasonably priced (and worth every penny). You can learn a lot more about Thy Hand Hath Provided cookbook, and purchase a copy, at this link: The Cookbook
The Give-Away Contest
To be entered in this contest you need only to post a comment below. In the comment you need to tell about your most memorable food experience. It can be a good experience, or a bad experience. It can be about something you ate that was especially good, or bad. It could be about a cooking success, or failure. It could be about something unusual that you ate, or an unusual place where you ate something. The common denominator is food, and a memorable experience.
You can provide details, or not, but please try to keep it somewhat brief. One entry per person, please. Make sure you close your comment with a name. It doesn't have to be your actual name, but you need to identify yourself. That way, if you win, I can identify you.
On July 26 (this Friday) I will print out all the comments, cut them up, put them in a hat, and one will be chosen at random. I will announce the winner in a blog post here Friday evening (or Saturday morning). If you see that you are the winner, you will need to contact me by e-mail with your mailing address by Monday morning. If I don't hear from the winner by Monday morning, another winner will be chosen.
And them's the rules.
.
UPDATE: 27 July 2013
This contest has ended. Thanks, everyone, for your comments. Click Here to see who won the cookbook.
This contest has ended. Thanks, everyone, for your comments. Click Here to see who won the cookbook.
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78 comments:
Okay, I'll kick it off, though I need to make it clear that I'm not entering my own contest.
When Marlene and I were first married, she made a dish called sweet-and-sour Spam. It had chunks of Spam, in a sauce and was served on rice. We thought it was pretty good when we were eating it, but we got sick... real sick... later on.
Needless to say, she has never made that culinary delight again, and we have never eaten Spam again. It was a truly memorable experience.
I remember the first time I cooked Honey Chicken Mango for my family.
My daughter,Sarah, and I saw it on cooking show one morning, tho I can't remember the show. She said that looked good. I printed out the recipe, purchased the ingredients and my wife, Marilu, daughters Sarah and Emily, and I ate it up. They really enjoyed the Honey Chicken Mango recipe and I have been cooking it ever since.
Paul Walla, Lowell, AR
Back in the 80s, while I was working at a Christian camp in Colorado, our whole staff was taken to Aspen, CO for a day-trip. Surrounded by opulent wealth there was no place for a frugal young man to eat. The Big Macs were over $5!!! After walking quite a ways, a buddy and I found a grocery store. The prices there were crazy high too. That is when I was introduced to sardines. We bought a package of saltine crackers and a tin of sardines. I ate the first with trepidation but really enjoyed the remainder. I still enjoy a tin of sardines from time to time! My wife and daughters think I'm a bit disgusting! Oh well!!!
I just had a great experience making palm fruit jelly from our jelly palm trees for the first time. For years I wished there was something I could do with the fruit, but it never really dawned on me to research it. Lo and behold, I discovered that our palm trees were indeed jelly palms and were used to make jelly and wine. I made the first batch a few weeks ago and the jelly is wonderful! Now I do battle with the squirrels to get as much of the fruit as possible. Eating jelly from fruit already growing on our property and that used to just be wasted is absolutely memorable food experience!
--Ivy Mae
We have goats we milk and from that milk make cheese. Once I was successfully making Chevre, a soft cheese, I wanted to try making a cheesecake. For that I needed a graham cracker crust, but I didn't want to buy them at the store. So I needed a recipe for making graham crackers, which I found on the internet. The recipe for making the crackers and cheesecake are both fairly simple, just a little time consuming. But, you know what? They turned out great! We topped the cheesecake with homegrown blackberries and peaches from a local orchard. We are truly blessed.
Fern
I was in Mexico on a mission trip when I was 20 years old. The food was amazing until the pigs foot meal...I just couldn't bring myself to try it- and I will try about anything!!!
Faith G.
My most memorable food experience is making Yaki Mon Du with my mother. When my daddy was in the army their next door neighbor was Korean and taught my mother how to make some of her dishes that my parents particularly enjoyed. I always thought it was fun to make, and we REALLY enjoyed devouring those little pouches of deliciousness!
~Michelle
When I was about 12, I made bread for the first time. Not having bread pans, I used aluminum pie pans. Not sure what went wrong, but they were as hard as a rock. My brother was a naughty boy growing up, and he pulled those bread disks out of the trash and sailed them on to the neighbors roof like frisbees. They stayed there, uneaten by birds or anything for months and months till winter when the rains came and SLOWLY broke them down and washed them away.
Kathy :)
The first time I grew basil and made my own pesto. So good!
Stylinpiggies
My most recent memory is making strawberry jam with my daughter - it was so neat to see the process through her eyes and for her to know she created something delicious!
jksteelefam at gmail dot com
I've followed both you and Thy Hand for a few years now and it was so fun seeing a post including you both. Being a Wyoming cowgirl, I suppose I should include rocky mountain oysters in this list of interesting food experiences. For me, they are too much work for not much to eat. I'd rather have a steak. :)
Love reading Thy Hand! One of my favorite blogs. Most recent food experience is making apple sauce from our newly acquired apple orchard.
Judi :)
My most memorable meal was on a recent camping trip. I used a cast iron dutch oven. I placed a beef roast, potatoes, Celery, carrots and onions with a quart of home canned tomatoes and spices. I placed this in the campfire and covered it with coals. Shortly after this was placed a group of raccoons decided to raid our camp. Let's just say they were very hungry and had no fear. By the time when they moved on to the next camp and we remembered our dinner it was basically one big piece of charcoal. Even the raccoons would not have eaten it.
Kinisue
My memorable meal was something my dad cooked when we were younger. He was a single dad raising 3 kids alone. Not having any idea how to cook or what spices to use with certain foods, he made a tuna casserole, but added anise seed in it. Oh my was it horrible. To this day we still tease him about it. Glad to say that his cooking has got much much better.
~Heather D.
My favorite food memory involves chocolate cake! I was probably around 8 or 9 at the time. My dad did the baking, and later put the icing on. I've never devoured a piece of chocolate cake like I did that day. It was definitely the best piece of cake I've ever had!
-Britt T.
brtucker89(at)yahoo(dot)com
Thanks for this great give-away. I also follow Jane's blog and I have to say her Pesto torte is 'the bomb' I made one with all the ingredients from my garden, last fall...I got SOO many compliments. I will definitely be making more this fall. (Saralie)
My most memorable experience with food was in Israel eating St. Peter's fish with the head still on!!! I thought I would be more freaked out about it, but I wasn't and it was very good! I'm not usually adventurous with food, but you kind of have to be when you travel.
The first year I canned peaches, I had a pile of peach peels and pits which felt like a waste to throw out. I looked online and managed to find out how to make peach jelly from the skins/pits. It made a TON! (or at least it felt like it). My kids loved it and I didn't have to buy jelly for a year. :)
My most memorable experience in the kitchen is making and canning jelly with my grandmother. Now I preserve lots of things by canning.
I have lots of memorable food experiences, but none I enjoy more than the fruits, vegetables and recipes my mom used to make using products she grew in the garden. Pickles, pickled beets, pickled cabbage, canned peaches, strawberry jam, chow-chow, and of course, pies (I'm a pie guy, too!). I'm determined to preserve (see what I did there?) these recipes and memories by asking my mom to teach me how she does it. My discovery of blogs like yours and "Thy Hand" seems providential in light of my new interest in gardening, canning, and preserving.
My most memorable experience was when my Granddaddy made me try beef tongue--and I could feel the taste buds! It was like french kissing a cow. Never wished so hard in my life that I could barf all over the place just to say, hey--you shouldn't have made me eat that! :-)
Michele
Hi!
My most memorable food experience was with my Grandma. Whenever my family and I would visit she would make fried sweet potatoes. Ooohhh were they delicious! One time she asked me if I would like to fry the sweet potatoes. I felt honored and a bit scared. How could I fry them as well as Grandma? Needless to say I fried the sweet potatoes and they turned out wonderful.
Karina
Recently lost my job and have been following your Blogs about and trying to be self sufficient. Thanks ;)
My cousin and I were making cinnamon rolls for the first time on our own and did not realize you needed to leave room for them to expand as the dough raised. Since they were so crowded they "raised" straight up. When we baked them the tops burned but the rest turned out pretty good in spite of us.
--Sharrona
I want to follow suit and tell a story! Once while visiting my sister in SC, we were reminiscing about the days when a Big Mac tasted so good, but how we're both too smart to eat fast food. We set out to recreate the big mac...to make a long story short... we made our own secret sauce, and went back far enough to make the french dressing from scratch for the secret sauce....it was quite an adventure. Being a beginning homesteader...I'm really loving your blog..keep up the good work!
Ever since I was a child, If I smell the overpowering smell of mustard pickles cooking on a stove it throws me back to my mothers kitchen with the wood stove going, the windows open and the endless jars everywhere around her kitchen. I love how smells can do that.
John Lilly
My most memorable experiences with food are Sunday dinners (lunch) at my grandparents' house with the whole family gathered tightly around the table enjoying homemade fried chicken, collard greens, squash, cornbread and more made by the hands of my grandpa. A humble man, he would always start the meal by saying, "Dinner is ready...such as it is." In today's fast-paced world, I think most of us miss out on experiences around the dinner table far too often making memories like this even more special.
I started cooking as a teenager. I made fried chicken nuggets before they were even popular one night. My mom jokingly said to tell my brother that they were mountain oysters. I just laughed, I didn't know what that was so I said sure. We set the table, sat down, began to dig in and I said to my brother, "do you like this, it's called mountain oysters". He spit the chicken out and began to wipe out his mouth with his napkin. I really didn't know what had happened, I was 13 and it was around 1972, we were still pretty innocent back then. My mom explained it to me and I was very upset. I've never forgotten that!,
My grandmother loved to tend her garden and grow new things. One summer, she decided to grow and herb garden. It grew so well that she had an overabundance and didn't know what to do with it all. So when we went to her house, there were herbs in everything. Nothing was terribly bad, until she put rosemary in her lemon jello mold with pears. The grandkids still talk about that one to this day.
Learning to make jam without pectin...so liberating and I just love the texture of the soft set, and have been experimenting with mixing fruits. Yum!!
kim harvey
I'm thinking back to one of my first baking experiences as a teen ager. (many years ago!) Angel food cake was my favorite. After getting the instructions from a neighbor, I proudly made the batter, put it in the pan, and placed it in the oven. When the timer "dinged" it was time to remove my creation from the oven. How horrifying to see a huge mound of misshapen cake! I had forgotten to remove the upper rack and my cake rose, and baked through the rack. It had to be sawed off the top and pulled off from underneath. My skills have improved and I love to bake.
I remember visiting my dad’s family in Germany; we ate about 6 times a day most days. But they were small meals of wonderful cold cuts cheeses and breads and spreads for breakfast and the in-between meals. The main meals were plentiful and wonderful. All of them eaten around the table together.
M. Franz
My most favorite food memory is when I was a small girl, every sunday we would travel an hour to visit my great grandmother. Every sunday she put on a spread of delights and I got to be her special helper. Every sunday we had the same meal, Fried Chicken, Mashed Potatoes and gravy, green beans, Corn on the cob, fresh tomatoes, green onions from the garden as well as fresh cucumbers and homemade bread. Grandma would stand me on a chair by the table and would plug in her hand mixer into the ceiling light fixture, so I could mash the potatoes I always thought this was the neatest thing because we didn't have outlets in the ceiling and not only did I get to be her helper but I got to wear one of her aprons!! Sometimes on a whim we would have cucumbers and onions in a cold creamy sauce. Which I loved!!! I know I got my love of cooking from her. She was very much old fashioned and in her time all the men ate first then the women and children but we all sat down together while grandma would sit on a stool in the corner of her kitchen and talk to all of us while we ate then once we all had our fill she would make herself a plate and eat and no matter how much we begged her to join us, she always would wait to eat last. She was an amazing woman and I loved her very much!!
When my husband and I first started life together money was very tight. One late afternoon, we decided to stop by a roadside stand to purchase some tomatoes. Luckily for us, the gentleman was tired and wanted to go home and gave us the last of his unwanted tomatoes. I blanched, peeled and seeded the tomatoes and made a fabulous creole dish using fresh shrimp my husband caught with his cast net the day before. The shrimp creole was excellent!
I found a small sidewalk trattoria in Rome that served the BEST arrabbiata sauce EVER! I was staying in Rome for 4 nights and I seriously ate there every night and ordered that amazing arrabbiata sauce. YUM! This was 13 years ago now and just thinking of it makes my mouth water!
Janiene
http://bishopsfamilysite.blogspot.com/
I love to cook and bake so was thinking I don't even know where to begin with cooking experiences-lol and then this popped into my mind from the early 70s-wow long time ago I know-I was new at being on my own and had met these really neat "beach" people-so I said I want to cook for everyone-which was at least a dozen or so-so I made a pasta meal with homemade bread, fresh pasta sauce, fresh salad don't remember the dessert but I always would make a pie or my grandmas angle food cake-I remember I was so proud of myself-and enjoyed the whole experience-thanks for the chance to win Kathyinozarks
It was a very crowded gymnasium that was converted to a lunchroom when I was in 4th grade. Tables folded out from the walls and they managed to squeeze six kids in per side of the table. I was truly enjoying my homemade peanut butter and honey on last evening's baked crusty wheat bread. I put my sandwich down to turn around and face the kid who had just called my name. "Oh, him," I said to myself as I waved to my comrade who liked to eat paste. I turned back around in a flourish and picked up the sandwich, took a big bite and, "Whaaa!" I spit it out. I tried to wipe it out with my napkin. There were giggles all around me. "So what, you don't like anchovies?" Ellen smiled. I had mistakenly grabbed her anchovy and garlic paste sandwich. Not until I was much older did I appreciate the sophistication of her palate.
When my husband and I were first married, he asked me to make chicken and dumplings for supper, so I did. I'm from PA and he's from GA. Believe me these are two different culinary country's! I baked the chicken in a pan and then opened a can of chicken gravy and poured it in a large pot. Then I made the dumplings using Bisquick mix and dropped the dumplings into the boiling gravy to cook. When everything was ready I put it on the table. The chicken on a platter, the dumplings and gravy in a bowl and a vegetable in another bowl. My husband sat down at the table, looked at everything and laughed. He actually said "That's not the way Mama makes chicken and dumplings." It was 25 years before I made it again! Now I know how to make it the Southern way.
Kelly
Herrick,
I built a backyard brick oven this past year and we have made brick oven pizza twice this summer. We have been using "garden goodies" for toppings. A wonderful experience. Thanks for all the gardening tips and info. I have built a chicken plucker from your plans, purchased poultry bags from you, and this fall plan on buying your plans for the cider press. Congrats on your retirement from governmental work! - Jeff
"She's a Keeper"
I first met my wife in a coffee shop. It was located across the street from the university where I was in graduate school. I was a poor graduate student, she was a coffee shop owner. As an engineer, I had to first gather much "data" before asking her on a date. Several dates into our relationship she cooked for me - marinated flank steak, steamed asparagus, and some form of rice. It was all delicious. She also sent me home with leftovers! It was at this point I knew she was a keeper.
Around 1957-8 I shot a crow out on our farm and cooked it in a pot of water on the wood stove. Just boiled and no seasoning. After it cooled I tried a bite and it was awful. When my parents got home they told me it wouldn't be fit to eat and to throw it out. Stubborn me, I decide it had to be eaten so I made a dagwood sandwich out of it. Not much improvement but I did eat the crow. I have eaten crow many times since but never an actual crow!!!
BTW, my cooking has improved ever since.
Jerry in Texas
When I first got chicks, a little over a year ago, I was definitely hoping for all hens--I live in the city limits and roosters are not allowed. Of course, one of the 6 ended up a rooster. Once the crowing started, he had to go. That was my first experience with free range chicken. Being a laying breed, there was not a lot of meat, but it was the best thing I had ever had in my life!! I have since tried my hand at meat birds, and they have been meatier and just as good, but that first one was the most memorable. And for Ivy Mae and the jelly palm, I attended a cooking class put on by the Edible Plant Project a couple of weeks ago. We cooked Callaloo and Lambs Quarters, but one of the ladies brought a sorbet made from jelly palm fruit that was exquisite!!!
I tried to cook chocolate pudding. I burned it but was so embarrassed so I hid the pan in the cupboard. My mother was not amused. Liz M.
We decided to try the 'hot' version of our favourite Indian curry from the curry shop ( back when we lived in the city near such treats). Well we both spent the whole meal in tears it was so hot & let's just say that we were regretting that meal for the next day :)
We went to a friend's house after the funeral of her mother.Someone had made a cobbler, but hadn't baked it since it is better freshly cooked, our friend did not know to bake it & served it raw, my husband & I didn't say a word as our friend was already in enough pain from the loss of her mother.We just continued to eat our dish of uncooked peach cobbler in silence.
Donna Friend
Many moons ago, when I was a newlywed, I created a Chinese dish for a small dinner party. I carefully followed the directions and was so eager to prove that I could do it. However, I had no idea that a BULB of garlic was different from a CLOVE of garlic.
It was a little strong! LOL!
One evening last fall we dined on venison shot and butchered by my husband, Jeff. We cooked it in onions and garlic grown in our garden. As a side dish we had butternut squash and pickled beets, also grown in our garden. To top it off, we drank wine that Jeff made from grapes grown in our back yard. A very satisfying meal, both physically and emotionally.
Dayle
Our first trip to Hawaii we went to a fancy restaurant on our last night there. We'd looked online at the menu ahead of time and there was a scallop dish I wanted to try. When we got there it wasn't available but there was an appetizer with a scallop. it didn't sound all that good - a seared scallop on greens with a poached egg on top, but I had my heart set on a scallop. i think it was the best tasting thing I've ever eaten.
What a wonderful giveaway - haven't read it yet. I've eaten lots, from mountain lion to sushi, but my favorite was when I was little visiting my great grandmother. I have always been allergic to milk but love it. She would (always) fill the glass over the rim, and we had nilla wafers and milk. I'd be sick for a week, but I loved both her & milk so drank it.
Smiles,
Lady Locust
My most memorable cooking experience was when I was a newlywed, many years ago. I wanted to make some muffins for my husband, but didn't have a muffin pan, so I put the muffin papers on a cookie sheet and proudly filled them half full and put them in the oven to cook. I was horrified when I got them out and the muffin papers had collapsed and the muffins had spread all over the pan.
Josephina
I remember the first time I made pico de gallo and realized how much I truly love cilantro.
It was fun to read the comments left by others. :) I've had many memorable moments in the kitchen but I will definitely never forget preparing the cakes for my children's weddings. I do enjoy reading Jane's blog and have tried several of her recipes, which are wonderful!
I love to cook and bake, these are things taught to me by my grandmother and my mom. I remember my mom teaching me how to make sauerkraut for the holidays. It now falls to me to make it for all of our holiday celebrations.
When My Wife were married 45 yrs. ago, it was the middle of December. She made Turkey and Dressing { her first ever attempt }. The Dressing was Horrible. Naturally she was very disapointed. She decided to toss it outside so the birds could eat it,But NO animal came along to eat it..She laughs about it now. But at the time a lot of tears were shed,,She kept learning and over time is now a really good cook. My sisters call her and ask about how to prepare some of her dishes...I have your book and am enjoying the how to parts.My wife learned a lot by reading cookbooks an essential tool for the Kitchen.Thanks LW LW
One year for Thanksgiving my mom served rabbit. I knew it was rabbit but my sisters did not. They were making turkey noises and talking about how the turkey used to walk around. My mom and I could not control our laughter, my sisters were not amused. How they thought a rabbit looked like a turkey I will never figure out!
The first meal I ever cooked start to finish by myself when I moved out was lasagna. I remember thinking to myself, "Yeah! I'm going to be able to survive my own cooking!" when I took my first bite.
As a child growing up on home grown fruits and vegetables and raisin cow and chickens. Your blogs bring back such sweet memories. My fondest memories encircle fishing with me father and making jelly with my mother. Grand parents from South Carolina visit always a joyful time as well. Oh how I miss those times. Home sweet Home Florida where precious memories still rest and grow with each passing year. Like Canning, pickling and pea picking cakes. Hunting and fishing you know we can not wait. With hands to work and hearts to God it make a sweet home and a house full of love. That is the recipe for sweet memories.
I remember the first time a made homemade mac and cheese. It was 7th grade Home Ec. class. I caught the stove on fire and then someone yelled put salt on it and well we all know what happen there. Let’s just say I would image that teacher will remember me fondly!!!
One of my most memorable eating moments was at a restaurant in a small town....delicious pasta dish and served with a raspberry tea....i was very tired for we had been traveling all day. There was a huge moose head on the wall and I observed him as I was eating. The next time I glanced at him, he was looking the other direction. Gee, I thought, I must be really tired. After this happened two times I realized he was a some kind of motion detector. What fun....and the food there was delicious.
Diane in Alabama
Okay, trying this again...
The best food experience I've ever had was in the middle of the outback in Alice Springs, Australia. We went out to a pricey establishment and ordered crocodile, emu and water buffalo. It was incredibly yummy food.
Cyndi in Michigan
I've enjoyed reading so many interesting comments! One of our most memorable food experiences came when I stopped working outside the home and put in a huge garden with our 3 young (at the time)children. Every day they would moan about tending the veggies that they "hated" and just knew they would never eat. I tried everything to minimize the groan factor of working in the garden for them including turning the sprinkler on them to water the garden (and cool them off) while they weeded. We grew TONS of broccoli that year because a good friend gave me several flats of plants for free...the kids just knew they couldn't stand to eat the broccoli at all but were busy scheming ways to get rid of it, to include hiding it in neighbors' mailboxes and feeding it to the cows. Finally time to harvest it came and I made baked potatoes with broccoli and cheese sauce for lunch one afternoon...told the kids it was "mud flower" that I had harvested on a trip to the creek, it was magical and would make them wiser and stronger than they thought they could ever be if they only ate 2 servings a day. Every single one of the kids cleared their plates, asked for more and went on and on about how smart and strong they felt. I waited about a week to tell them that it was broccoli... but mud flower is still one of their favorite foods :)
We once had BBQ gaot, which for a city kid was crazy. A friend of the family planted 200 pine tree seedling on his property, then a herd of goats came in and ate them all, shortly after that we had BBQ goat. Coincidence??
Thanks,
Perry
My most memorable food experience is from when I was about 11 years old. My best friend and I decided to make an angel food from scratch with seven minute frosting. We wanted it a pretty spring green but got heavy handed with the green food coloring. It was the most awful green you can imagine. Then when we made the frosting we just put it in a pan, not knowing what a double boiler was and just reading ingredients and not instructions. It was the most awful gray sugary junk! To this day we still joke about getting together and making green cake. :)
Fortunately we have both turned out to be excellent cooks despite our early disaster.
When I go camping, I like to eat well. Tradition had it in highschool that my buddies would bring the roast, potato's, onions, etc and I would cook it over the fire. It always tasted awesome! Then when I got married, my wife tried to do the same in the oven while we were at church... it came out as charcoal. So I thought I would show her how it was done... it came out as charcoal as well. I recently tried it again for my growing family... well jr threw a fit in the middle of it... well it turned out as almost charcoal, but still nasty...
I'll get it right some day!
Great writting!
-Clinton Johnson
My first attempt at jelly making as a teenager was quite a disaster. I was very careful to follow the directions my mom had given. However, when I presented my grandparents a jar of grape jelly, my grandfather tasted it and replied, "Well, I think it will make good daubing for the barn!" It was several years before I attempted this venture again.
-Lori
I recently wanted to make croissants. The recipe I decided to try had so many good reviews so that I decided to make 3 times that much, deciding that 8 croissants wouldn't be enough and I could freeze some. Long story short, the croissants rose a little and then suddenly decided not to rise and fall again instead. I baked them anyway, hoping they would turn out after all. They didn't, still tasted fine though and then I made breadcrumbs from what we couldn't eat. I was very disappointed though, spending so much time making them.
okay, that's so typical of my, forgetting to say my name. I just told you about my croissant experience, never tried to make any again btw.
Anna-Maria
Snickerdoodles - they were the first cookie I ever made on my own. They weren't mom's, but they were close!
Diana
On the first Thursday, of every month, friends of ours hold a potluck dinner at their house.
There may be 2 or 20+ people that show up. There is always lots of good food and some that's, lets just say (different), but there is always good people and a good time had by all.
Hillbilly Heaven
I remember the first time my sister made gravy for me and my dad,It turned out so thick you could not lift the spoon without the pan coming. That was about 35 years ago and now she is one of the best cooks I know.
Ed
I have enjoyed everyone's comments, they bring out the memories - good and bad. My most recent memorable food experience was making Kiffles for Christmas. I could not find the hand mixer so I ended up blending one pound of butter into nine cups of flour with a pastry cutter. My yeast was too old (didn't check the date) and the instructions were incomplete. :) They didn't look like Kiffles, but, they tasted like Kiffles which in the end was the most important thing.
J in the burbs
One of my most memorable food experiences is the first time I cooked for my husband. We weren't even dating yet at the time, but he was over for dinner. I made a rice side dish, and for some reason the rice came out very crunchy. It was terrible, but he ate a whole helping and then went back for seconds. :)
Erin
I think my Most memorable food experience occured last year, when my family and I made apple cider for the first time at home with equipment that I made myself based on your whizbang cidering page, I didn't have the cash at the time for the plans, but being a fellow whizbanger I set to make my own press and grinder. The only thing had to buy was a few bolts. I didn't make the modification to the disposal motor yet, but I hope to this year. We used the cheese and disk method and it worked wonderfully, the 20 or so gallons of juice, cider syrup, cider and vinegar were not the best part spending an afternoon with my family teaching and my children a craft that they can pass down to their children was the real treat
In the late 80's/early 90's I was serving in the Air Force during Desert Storm in the Azore Islands. One day in our shop (which happened to be a no smoking area) I was eating a carrot when someone came up to me smoking a cigaret. I informed him that we were in a no smoking area, he laughed and blew smoke in my face. Well, I had a mouth full of chewed up carrot so I, in turn, blew that in his face. He didn't think THAT was very funny but we remained friends. That's my "food" story. :)
I dug 10 raspberry plants in my father's Connecticut back yard yesterday. I planted them with TLC on my Kentucky farm. They originated in my Grandmother's Maine kitchen garden many years ago. Since I can remember, I've relished the jam from these berries on toast from homemade bread. My mouth's watering in anticipation. Lloyd Rand
Best food memory...making jam with my very own strawberries.
Not sure if this is closed yet, but I'll give it a go.
My most memorable food experience was the first time I tried sushi. I'd been grossed out by it for a long time, but when I finally broke down and tried it at a family member's wedding, I was hooked.
Most memorable food experience was when I cooked my not yet fiancé shrimp etouffe and proposed to her. The shrimp was good; she said yes.
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