11 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 121

Micah 6:8
Song of Solomon 4
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is Bowdlers Day. You may have heard of a text having been "bowdlerised" - generally censored or expurgated to remove offensive words or sections. It almost reminds one of things going on today, but let's leave that for now. The term comes from Thomas Bowdler, a Brit whose father read him the Bible and Shakespeare as a child, leaving out the parts he thought were inappropriate. Thomas went on to publish a bowdlerised version of Shakespeare, and his fame (infame?) was made certain.

While I didn't mention it then, yesterday was Clerihew Day.Edmund Clerihew Bentley was another Brit known for his four-line comic biographic poems, which became known as clerihews.
I think it might be fun to combine these two gents' celebrations, so ...

Here's an original clerihew:

Sir Humphry Davy
Abominated gravy.
He lived in the odium
Of having discovered sodium.

Now, along comes Thomas Bowdler, and his belief that abomination shouldn't be tolerated, nor should odium, thus:

Sir Humphry Davy
discovered sodium.

Much simpler, more direct and to the point, but it still seems to be missing something. Perhaps Bowdler didn't know everything about editing, eh?

Here's a bonus for you, if you're so inclined. Today is probably the ideal day for a frozen mojito. Why? Well simply because today is National Mojito Day, and it's also Free Slurpee Day. If your 7-11 is serving Mojito Slurpees, please let me know.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

10 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 120

Micah 6:8
Psalm 119:102-105
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Friday is a good day for dessert, no? If you didn't have a chance to make that beef tenderloin on the grill yesterday (you did read my post yesterday, didn't you?), then maybe today would be a good day to do that.
Why not fire up the grill, roast that nice tenderloin, maybe a few potatoes and some asparagus (those are both great on the grill, you know), and then you can whip up a quick dessert afterward on the residual coals.
What dessert can you make on the grill? I'm glad you asked. Have you ever had grilled angel food cake? If you have, you're ready to have it again. If you haven't, it's high time you joined the cool kids and get with the program, so to speak.
It's really quite simple. Take a store-bought angel food cake (I assume it's possible to make them at home, but I've never had the inclination, I guess) and cut it into eight (8) wedges. Spray them with a little cooking spray and place them on the grill cut side down. (Yes, there are two cut sides - we'll get to that shortly.)
Once the first side has toasted - don't let it char! - flip to the other cut side for a similar amount of time and toasted-ness. That's it - unless you want to toast one of the other sides, but that's probably more heat than that little piece of cake wants to take. Remove from the grill and serve on a dessert plate.
Ideally you'll have some homemade black raspberry sauce and whipped cream to adorn the cake, but any sauce (even chocolate syrup) will work. Once you've done this, you won't really want the original, un-grilled version anymore.
You're welcome.


Oh, and be careful not to step on a bee!

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

09 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 119

Micah 6:8
Psalm 50:7-15
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

What's that? You want another carnage du jour? Alright, then; how about beef tenderloin?
If you've followed my blog for more than just this plague time, you'll know that I oft wax poetic about the versatility of pork tenderloin. You probably also remember that I'm not-quite-equally enamored with it's bovine cousin - the beef tenderloin.
So, let's to it:
Take a beef tenderloin of about 5lb (they seem to run from 4.5 to ~6lb in my experience) that's been tied as a roast. That just means the thin tail-looking end has been rolled back on itself and tied with butcher's twine so it's all about the same thickness for the full length of the tenderloin.
Now, rub the beef with a liberal amount of salt, dry mustard, and dried thyme. Be sure you get it on all sides - and don't forget the ends, nobody likes one-sided tasting food, right, Emeril?
Now, roast it at 450F till done - that's around 45 minutes to an hour for a 4-6lb tenderloin.
If you can, this works at least as well on the grill as in the oven. I've used an old oven thermometer to check the temperature in my Weber grill - it's not that hard to regulate it a bit using the vents - and the added crust and grill flavor is worth the extra attention that's required.
In the past year or so, I've also taken to putting a little tray of wood chips in my grill to add a bit of smokiness to the result. I think the last one was done with a bit of mesquite.

You know (maybe you didn't), today is Fashion Day, so why not make a beef tenderloin and dress for dinner tonight? A nice Pinot Noir or perhaps a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo would round out the meal quite nicely I should think.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

08 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 118

(This is my 100th consecutive post, thanks(?) to the pandemic shelter-in-place situation.)
Micah 6:8
Genesis 25:27-34
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

It's been a long time since we had any carnages des jours, so I think I'll post a few in the upcoming days. To kick this off, here's one for your Summer enjoyment - a blast from the past - how to cook bratwurst, complete with the story of how I learned at the master's grill.

How to Cook Bratwurst

As promised, I'm going to expose the secrets to perfect brats. First, though, let me take you, if I may, on a journey - a journey back to how I first learned the basics of this highly-favoured endeavour.

Perhaps you already know that my wife and her family hail originally from Wisconsin. Moving from Sheboygan, Wisconsin - sausage capital of the US - to the Detroit area meant some significant lifestyle changes, not least of which was the basic lack of what they had come to know and love as bratwurst. What to do?
Well, my ever-resourceful then-future father-in-law found a way to have real Sheboygan brats flown into Detroit, and massive quantities were received each year to the delight of all and sundry.

When the time came for me to ask him for his daughter's hand, I had already been introduced to the glories of properly-prepared bratwurst. He and I sat down in the living room, where I told him that I had an important question for him. "I was wondering," I asked, "where you get the brats?" The cool thing is, he told me the whole story about getting them flown in via a perhaps-then-illegal interstate meat transaction. With that out of the way, I told him that I wanted to marry his daughter, and he averred that he thought that was a good idea.

Sadly, the Sheboygan Sausage Company of Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin is no more, but the recipe was (supposedly) purchased by the Johnsonville company, and that is now the brat of choice.

(An interesting side note here: we did find what we considered to be vastly superior brats on a trip through Sheboygan at the Miesfeld's Triangle Market - several times State Champions, in fact - but the cost of shipping so far outweighed the cost of the sausage that it will remain a "when we pass through we're buying a bunch" kind of thing. But I digress.)

It was at a family reunion here in town that I learned at the elbow of my father-in-law just how it was done. (Note the past tense there, it actually gets better!) The brats must be boiled a bit in a mix of beer and water before going on the grill. This lets them release some of their fat before hitting the fire, the which can be an exciting event.
A squirt bottle of water was the tool of the day for keeping down the flare-ups that did arise, although the beer held in the other hand would do quite nicely as well. Care should be taken to avoid stirring up too many ashes - they can stick to the brats and make for a grittier-than-desirable experience (and yes, that does mean that charcoal is the preferred heat source).
There you have the basics of brat grilling. Condiments and bunnage are best left to the individual's taste, but mustard, onions, Swiss cheese, and sauerkraut make up my starting point.

Now to reveal the secret to my enhanced bratwurst cooking process.
Into the pot of beer and water (I generally use Molson Canadian) I add an onion cut into wedges, and a healthy dose of nutmeg. These additions add just the right notes to the already-delicious flavour of the brats, and the kitchen smells glorious all the while too.

Now please, go and enjoy your bratwurst, but enjoy them responsibly.
Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

07 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 117

Micah 6:8
Matthew 11:16-19
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

While it is National Macaroni Day (so wear a nice hat with a big feather!), somehow it seems nigh unto impossible that today isn't National Highball Day.
7/7 - how could the highball industry miss that? It boggles the mind.
Perhaps whoever was supposed to register the holiday was drunk. If so, what a jerk.

Oh well. Have a great day anyway. 7&7 with mac and cheese while wearing a fancy hat. That sounds like a party to me!

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

06 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 116

Micah 6:8
2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

I'm sorry for the late notice (work wasn't at all what I expected today - who expects that on a Monday? oh, everyone? silly me), but today is International Kissing Day - yes, it's a day for Public Displays of Affection all over the world!

You may recall that just recently we celebrated Stay Out Of The Sun Day (and I even used some SPF 50+ sunblock that day!), so why not make your PDA slightly less public and do it under cover of an umbrella? After all, today is also Umbrella Cover Day. It will give you a bit of privacy, and it will keep you out of the sun.

Kissing? Under cover of an Umbrella? You're welcome.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

05 July 2020 - Plague Journal Day 115

Micah 6:8
John 4:23-24
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

It's Sunday, and we're back to church again. It looks to be a hot and steamy day in the Memorial Garden, but it's great to be together to worship God in the midst of His beautiful Creation. (If you'd like to join by livestream, this is the link to the stream on YouTube. The worship service begins at 9:30AM EDT.)


Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.