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Post by september on Oct 10, 2021 9:56:09 GMT -5
brownrexx , the best powdered milk I have found is the Mexican Nido brand. It's actually made by Nestle, comes in a yellow canister and I can find it at Walmart in the Mexican food section. I discovered it on a trip to Mexico years ago. It's whole milk instead of powdered skim milk, so has more flavor. We usually have skim milk in the fridge because my husband eats a lot of cold cereal when he wants a quick snack, and I like a glass of milk with my supper. If we run out, I can drink the Nido mixed with cold water and ice. I keep the Nido around for cooking too, if I run out of milk.
I also use the Nido to make a richer hot cocoa, it is almost like coffee creamer.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 10, 2021 10:56:28 GMT -5
brownrexx, september, I bought a bag of powdered milk at the start of this mess and I think it’s in the pantry. I also bought a box of buttermilk powder just for emergencies. We haven’t used it, but we could if things got bad. The shelf stable milk we buy lasts on the shelf for at least a year. It’s good to have on hand. I’ve heard good things about the Nido brand and I may pick up a can to see. Not to beat a dead horse, but I think food wise, things may get worse. All I have to go on is my gut, but I have a feeling we may see hard times ahead. I sure hope not, though. I don’t go crazy with putting food away, but I do like to keep a few jars of Jelly, a big jar of peanut butter, a container of oatmeal, canned milk, Flour, Cornmeal, ... stuff we like to eat. I don’t generally buy stuff we don’t like just because it’s shelf stable unless I think it can be used. Say like the powdered milk/buttermilk, I knew I could hide that in biscuits. I don’t like Spam or many canned meats, so I leave those for other folks. I like chicken noodle soup, so I always keep 3 cans on the shelf. Yes, I know it’s salty, but I really like it.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 10, 2021 11:15:29 GMT -5
september, Speaking of cocoa. Oh I love that stuff! I’m very picky about the brand though. I don’t buy those brands that have hydrogenated oils. Last winter I found a brand at our H-E-B that was rich and made from dark chocolate. 1 package of cocoa and a spoon of Instant Medaglia d'Oro Espresso Coffee. So Good!
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Post by september on Oct 10, 2021 11:30:46 GMT -5
hairymooseknuckles , I have some cocoa mixes, but they taste too sweet and pale for me, so I add a spoon of unsweetened cocoa powder and a dash of salt. Often I just make my own from scratch -- that was the first thing we learned to cook in Home Ec class in junior high school! Sometimes I add a bit of cinnamon or pumpkin spice, other times a titch of instant coffee crystals. I keep buying the buttermilk powder in a can, but it tends to get hard really fast once you open it, so I end up throwing away most of it because it's too hard to scrape out a usable amount. I always think I'm going to use buttermilk, and then it ends up sitting in my fridge for months. I know it keeps a long time after the expire date, but 4 months may be too much!
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Post by pepperhead212 on Oct 10, 2021 12:25:03 GMT -5
hairymooseknuckles, hubby asked if I didn't have any powdered milk on hand? Euuu, who has that? I have not tasted powdered milk since I was a kid and it was horrible. I should ty some of the shelf stable stuff. Though I don't use it often, I keep some in a mason jar, which I re-seal w/ my Foodsaver. The only thing that I use it for is when I make bread. I remember reading in a few of my bread books that dry milk is actually better in bread, as there are enzymes in the fresh milk that causes problems with the yeast, and a slightly lower rise. This is why, in many old recipes especially, we see the steps in it to scald the milk, then cool it; this deactivates the enzymes (this is also why milk is heated up before making yogurt), which is also done to the enzymes in dried milk. I rarely have milk around, except to make yogurt or buttermilk, so that's why I keep this in the pantry. And that's another use for dried milk - add a small amount to the milk for yogurt, to make it a little firmer - maybe a tb/pint of milk.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 10, 2021 12:30:00 GMT -5
september, I know Right? It gets hard as a brick! Once I open it, I put in a freezer bag and keep in the freezer. Wifypoo and I don’t drink buttermilk, but my Mom does. I like buttermilk pie, but gosh I only make one every couple years. Same goes for Jelly, we really don’t care for most store bought because it’s so sweet. Well, I can’t say we don’t like it, we just try not to eat a whole lot. We make our own so we can control what goes in it. Still, I keep a few store bought ones for emergencies. Something else that hardens up on me is bouillon. I like to have on hand, I just don’t use it fast enough.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Oct 10, 2021 12:32:37 GMT -5
Funny, I haven't had that problem with the buttermilk powder in a can getting hard, and it takes me quite a while to finish one. I keep it on hand for occasional baking use. But I don't use it often, so if I bought actual buttermilk I'd end up throwing most of it out.
Do you buy SACO or a different brand?
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Post by brownrexx on Oct 10, 2021 12:46:39 GMT -5
Darn, I just got back from the store and I forgot to check for that Nido milk september, but I did remember to pick up a bag of Tater Tots hairymooseknuckles, I bought some coconut crusted tilapia in the fish market and I am going to serve it with Tater Tots and a veggie of course.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 10, 2021 13:55:33 GMT -5
Laura_in_FL, I’ll have to look at what brand it is. I get it in the baking section.
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Post by september on Oct 10, 2021 15:12:53 GMT -5
Laura_in_FL , Saco is the dried brand of buttermilk that I get. Only one I've ever seen around here. hairymooseknuckles , I drank a lot of whole milk and some buttermilk growing up, my granny and parents had it around once in a while. I actually like cold buttermilk depending on what I am eating with it, comfort foods like boiled potatoes with meatballs and mushroom gravy or pork chops go good in the summertime. I only buy it by the pint for cooking, but then it gets pushed to the back of the fridge and never gets used. I drink skim milk now a days, even 2% tastes too fatty for me. But for some fish chowder recipes whole milk tastes better, so I buy some once in a while. brownrexx , I love coconut shrimp, I bet coconut tilapia will be good too! Will you bake or fry it?
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Post by brownrexx on Oct 10, 2021 15:18:43 GMT -5
september, I love coconut shrimp too. This is fresh tilapia filets that the fish market breads with some kind of crumbs, coconut and something that tastes like little mango pieces. I buy it frozen and then I bake it in the oven. It is really good. They also make it tortilla crusted, parmesan crusted or some kind of potato crusted but I have never tried any of those.
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Post by september on Oct 10, 2021 15:26:07 GMT -5
brownrexx , one of these days, I will have to try coconut on my fried crappie or sunfish fillets. They are so small and thin, that I am afraid they would dry out too much in the oven before the coconut could brown. I suppose it could be toasted before using in the oven. For frying I would just use the shredded white stuff out of the bag.
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Post by octave1 on Oct 10, 2021 17:26:36 GMT -5
brownrexx, I am sure mashed potatoes can be made with "alternative" kinds of milk, like coconut, or even without any milk at all. Google "Vegan mashed potatoes" and you'll find many recipes, some even tasty.
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Post by pepperhead212 on Oct 10, 2021 19:19:14 GMT -5
I made sort of a sambar today, with 3 dal, some barley, and some of the last veggies from my garden. I haven't made anything like this for a while, due to the experiment in my Instant Pot. But I do have other pots. I minced 6 cloves of garlic with 2 jalapeños in the FP, then coarsely chopped up 6 Numex chiles with one onion. All this was cooked slowly until soft, in just enough olive oil to coat them. Then the 3 tb sambar masala was cooked about a minute, then the water with a little turmeric, dal, barley, okra, bottle gourd, and a little turmeric. Salted to taste, rought it to a simmer and cooked about 35 minutes. Meanwhile, I made the tarka, and added this when it was ready. Served with some cilantro, and a toasted atta/jowar waffle. A sambar made with 3 dals, some okra, and a trimmed bottle gourd - about 2 c of cubes. by pepperhead212, on Flickr The usual tarka added to this - mustard seed, cumin seed, Thai peppers, asafoetida, and curry leaves by pepperhead212, on Flickr Finished dish, with some cilantro, plus a toasted waffle, broken up with it. by pepperhead212, on Flickr
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Post by brownrexx on Oct 11, 2021 7:38:12 GMT -5
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Post by september on Oct 11, 2021 10:51:52 GMT -5
Last night's supper was venison roast in the crockpot, I made gravy, microwaved yellow potatoes and bush Delicata squash, fresh greens beans boiled and buttered, and a side salad. My own cucumbers, peppers, onions and tomatoes for the salad, I probably should start using my fall lettuce as well. Heads are big enough now for one small head serving per person. Lots of rain the last two days, so I bet it has grown since the last time I saw it.
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Post by september on Oct 12, 2021 9:25:07 GMT -5
Next night -- made quick stove top venison stew with the remnants of the roast and gravy. I forgot I had no celery in the fridge, so I put in extra red and green sweet peppers of which I have too many, and some Italian type spices. Turned out very good, and enough stew for one more meal! Also managed to use up some green beans that had been in the fridge a few days.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Oct 13, 2021 7:43:36 GMT -5
We will probably have burgers and fries tonight. Son #2 likes grilling - and eating - burgers, so offering burger night is usually a good way to get him to come and visit.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 14, 2021 0:29:34 GMT -5
I had a Chicken Pot Pie from the freezer. Every now and then I get a hankering for comfort food. Pot Pie fit the Bill today.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Oct 14, 2021 7:39:35 GMT -5
Chicken enchiladas with green sauce (it will be made using store bought sauce and tortillas, so don't get too excited) is the plan for tonight. It's how I am tempting son #1 into coming over for a visit.
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Post by brownrexx on Oct 14, 2021 8:01:15 GMT -5
Laura_in_FL,I tried making my own tortillas a couple of times and they were never as good as store bought so I leave tortilla making to the professionals. Actually I think that a tortilla press would make a big difference but we don't eat tortillas often enough to make sense buying one.
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Post by Laura_in_FL on Oct 14, 2021 8:28:05 GMT -5
brownrexx, I did the same thing (tried making my own tortillas) years ago, and came to the same conclusion. Without a tortilla press, I had a hard time getting the tortillas thin and even without making them so thin that they fell apart when I tried to transfer them to the griddle. But if they aren't thin and even, they don't cook up properly.
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Post by brownrexx on Oct 14, 2021 9:17:58 GMT -5
Laura_in_FL, I couldn't get them thin or consistent either. I felt that mine were thick and seemed tough.
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 14, 2021 10:33:34 GMT -5
brownrexx, Laura_in_FL, Growing up, I had a friend, his Mom and Pop were both born In Mexico. His Mom was about the best tortilla maker I ever saw. She had 6 kids to feed and EVERY day she made a stack of tortillas. Oh, I remember her so well. She was the sweetest lady you ever saw. I don’t know how many tortillas they poor lady made, but I know it was a stack several inches tall. I ate my fair share that’s for sure! She rolled them out pretty flat, but she had a big, heavy rolling pin. I tried once, but that is a LOT of work! It’s easier to whip up a pan of biscuits!
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Post by pepperhead212 on Oct 14, 2021 10:50:30 GMT -5
brownrexx, I did the same thing (tried making my own tortillas) years ago, and came to the same conclusion. Without a tortilla press, I had a hard time getting the tortillas thin and even without making them so thin that they fell apart when I tried to transfer them to the griddle. But if they aren't thin and even, they don't cook up properly. Here's what I did, before I got a tortilla press: I have 2 strips of wood, from my workshop, of the thickness I wanted, and I'd put one on both sides, after getting the dough almost thin enough between thick plastic (usually I used a freezer ziploc for the plastic), then I would roll over the wood, making the tortilla thin and even. I also use this method for rolled out cookies, for cutting, with wood strips of 1/8", 3/16", 1/4", and 1/2".
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 14, 2021 12:15:19 GMT -5
pepperhead212, Dandy idea! I did the same trick using playing cards when I worked with precious metal clay years ago.
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Post by spike on Oct 14, 2021 12:39:53 GMT -5
OH SNAP! Take that you slimes! /flex I have a tortilla press! just sitting here gloating
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 14, 2021 14:33:27 GMT -5
OH SNAP! Take that you slimes! /flex I have a tortilla press! just sitting here gloating You got the press? I can see her her now jumping up and down on her press!!! Laughing!
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Post by hairymooseknuckles on Oct 14, 2021 14:35:07 GMT -5
I can make two at a time if I put one under each armpit.
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Post by september on Oct 14, 2021 14:38:26 GMT -5
I have a white plastic tortilla press, and it never worked that well, even with wax or plastic liners. Too hard to press down with enough force to make them thin, the taste was fine, but they were too thick to fold nicely without cracking, and the edges were uneven and lacy. What I really wanted was one of those big block of wood ones that they sold in the Mexican markets but they were too heavy and cumbersome to bring back on a plane. I've had my eye on a metal press on Amazon, but not sure I would make enough use of it, already too many unused gadgets in my limited cupboard space.
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