Friday, August 29, 2008

Zombie Mosquitoes From Hell!

No it's not a B movie from the 1950s or another outrageous book by Australian children's author Andy Griffiths. It's really about mosquitoes, The Asian Tiger Mosquito to be exact or more formally Aedes albopictus.


These are not the brownish salt marsh and woodland pool mosquitoes I remember from my youth but a newer species to the US.

As their name implies, they are originally from Asia but are so invasive they are now found on every continent, excluding Antarctica! They were first found in the US in 1985, in a shipment of used tires in Houston, TX and now range over most of the South and as for north as Maine.

They are very aggressive and are outcompeting the native species of mosquitoes we are all used to. You know the little brown ones that usually only came out at dusk? They are also described as "fast biters" meaning they are done draining your blood before you have a chance to swat them. I don't even feel the bites, just the horrendous itch that comes afterwards.

These buggers are active throughout the day and don't seem to be put off by the smoke billowing from my cooker. I can't go out to my cooker or even sit and smoke a relaxing pipe without having to spray myself with bug spray.

Well this week when I placed another order for smoking wood from Lexington Outdoors of Maine, I checked out their anti-pest products. The world's greatest customer service rep, my friend Dorie, is sending some samples of Ole Time Woodsman Fly Dope for me and some NoSkeeto mosquito barrier for the yard.

It may be a little late in the season but hopefully by this time next week I will have reclaimed my backyard!

Sunday, August 17, 2008

The Best Thing About August?

In the otherwise oppressive, drab, dreary, dog days of August, there is something that makes it all worthwhile. Something golden and sunny that tastes like summer... peaches!


I've made two cobblers so far and they turned out very well but not quite what I'm looking for. (the great thing about this trial and error routine is that even the errors are pretty darn good!)


Admittedly, the ratio of peaches to crust was a little off here but no matter it was delicious!


I'm looking for a crust that is a little more crumbly than what I've come up with so far. So, if anyone would like to share their favorite cobbler recipe, I'd greatly appreciate it.

Now for some homemade peach ice cream!

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Dog Days of Summer



As most Retrievers have an affinity for water, this is one happy pup!




It also helps to keep his mind off the BBQ... at least temporarily.



How can you NOT, love that face?

Saturday, August 9, 2008

"I Find The Pastrami To Be The Most Sensual Of All The Salted Cured Meats"


At least according to Vivian, Geroge Constanza's short-lived girlfriend from the episode "The Blood" from the 9th season of Seinfeld. This is where George achieved the bedroom "Trifecta" of sex, television and food.


George: "I flew to close to the sun on wings of pastrami."

Jerry: "Yeah, that's what you did."


In my neverending quest to perfect my brisket -- which is a much less forgiving piece of meat than say a pork shoulder -- I came across some recipes for making pastrami on the Playing With Fire and Smoke blog.


I have yet to locate the necessary curing agent for starting from scratch so I picked up a couple of store-bought corned beef briskets and followed the instructions. One "dry" and one "wet."


Basically you need to soak the briskets in fresh water for 24-48 hours, changing the water as necessary to extract as much salt as you can from the corning process. Then apply the rub and let that "melt" in overnight, then cook the brisket(s) under a gentle smoke.



Due to some last-minute scheduling problems I ended up overcooking both briskets. They were by no means ruined or even bad but a bit overdone.

The "wet" style was very moist but crumbled when I tried to slice it. The "dry" sliced nicely but it was a tad too dry.




Anyway, they were good enough that I definately plan on doing this again!

Friday, July 25, 2008

My latest Addiction!

Smoked salmon! Man is this stuff good!

I made it for the first time about a month maybe six weeks ago but I can't get enough and neither can the SpecialEd Siblings.

I can't afford the good stuff (wild) so I get farm raised fillets of Atlantic Salmon from Costco.

The first step is to rinse it well in cold water, dry it with paper towels and apply the cure.
The cure consists of one part kosher or sea salt to two parts brown sugar plus a couple tablespoons of freshly cracked black pepper. For a 1.5 lb fillet, I use about a cup of sugar, a half cup of salt and a 1/4 cup of pepper.

Let that sit overnight and the next day the fillets will be sitting in a pool of liquid that the cure has pulled out of the salmon flesh.
Wash the cure off very well and if it's still overly salty you can soak it in cold, fresh water for a little while.

Now lay it out on a rack or cutting board to air dry until it is no longer tacky to the touch (about an hour or so). I use a small fan to help the process along.

Then dust it with your favorite spice rub--for salmon, I use Dizzy Pig's Raging River. Let that "melt" in to the salmon for say 30 minutes then put it on the smoker.

I smoke it at about 210-220 degrees until it reaches an internal temperature of 150 degrees. That's it! Chill it in the refrigerator, get some crackers and cream cheese and it don't get much better 'n that!

BTW, I have been using Sugar Maple and or Cedar from Lexington Outdoors of Maine but I just ordered a bag of Alder chunks from them so I can finally try the traditional salmon smoking wood. The ever helpful Dorie of LOofM also gave me some of her own recipes and ideas for recipes to try so check back soon.

Saturday, July 5, 2008

Off to a slow start...

All I managed to cook yesterday was some Fourth of July Fatties. I let the weather intimidate me and so I got off to a late start. (Boy I miss my deck canopy!)

Fresh on the grill.

Ready to come off.

Ready to go.

(Warning, not for the squeamish) Death on a plate!
The good thing about Fatties, is that they can be eaten hot, cold, room temperature, with crackers or toast or stuck on the end of a toothpick!

WARNING! Fatties are not for the very young or elderly. Women who are nursing or pregnant or who could become pregnant, should avoid Fatties. Vegetarians and those with weakened immune systems and compromised constitutions should not be in the same room as Fatties.

Thursday, July 3, 2008

In a world where... (movie trailer guys voice)

there's one man, one grill, and only ten days to clear the fridge, can he do it?

Mrs. SpecialEd and the two SpecialEd boys are flying out tomorrow morning (July 4th) for sunny, southern, California for ten days. That leaves me alone with the two SpecialEd dogs and the GrillDome for ten days!

I've already stocked up on ribs, lamb, chicken, the makings for "Fatties," BBQ beans and a tandoori, yogurt marinade for the chicken and lamb. I even have a commission for pulled pork for next week. All I need now is a little cooperation from the weather.

What am I going to do with all this food? What better way to bribe people into helping me getting a few things done around the house while the family is away!

BTW, "Fatties" has nothing to do with illegal substances, (though as deadly as they are, they should be!) Here is a recipe for Fatties from a great BBQ site by a fellow "Domer," Mike Stines of Cape Cod Barbecue.

Enjoy!

(I'll post pics as I go)