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Space Cowboy KitchenWhere lazy chefs get together to discuss culinary theory
From Solid Cat: 59 - Titty Poppins REVIEW: Edward's Key Lime Pie Matt & Shasta from The Beaver Exhibit say this pie is so good, Jesus must have made it. Val's Take: It's not bad, which is high praise from me as I don't like key lime pies. It's tart, but not too tart, and I think I like it because it's not too limey. D-mo's Take: It's not limey enough. I had to break it to Matt & Shasta, but Jesus didn't make this pie. I like the creaminess, the crust is good, but I just wish there was "more." I hate to say it, but my key lime pie is better. Not worth the 80% of the recommended daily allowance of saturated fat per slice. Sorry guys. Review Verdict: (on a scale of 1-4 pies) 2 1/2 PIES! From Solid Cat: 58 - Sexytime Hot Chocolate so simple, it's right off the bottle of chocolate syrup Ingredients Directions 1. The recipe on the bottle would suggest to put milk and syrup together in a cup and microwave it all. The Space Cowboy's method suggests that you heat up the milk by itself for about 2 minutes. At which point, you add the syrup to your preferred intensity. See, so simple, you can do it anyway you want, really. From Solid Cat: 57 - Lionel Ritchie Naan It's the Summer of Mediterranea Ingredients Directions 1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand about 10 minutes, until frothy. Stir in sugar, milk, egg, salt, and enough flour to make a soft dough. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes on a lightly floured surface, or until smooth. Place dough in a well oiled bowl, cover with a damp cloth, and set aside to rise. Let it rise 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in volume. 2. Punch down dough, and knead in garlic. Pinch off small handfuls of dough about the size of a golf ball. Roll into balls, and place on a tray. Cover with a towel, and allow to rise until doubled in size, about 30 minutes. During the second rising, preheat grill to high heat. 3. At grill side, roll one ball of dough out into a thin circle. Lightly oil grill. Place dough on grill, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until puffy and lightly browned. Brush uncooked side with butter, and turn over. Brush cooked side with butter, and cook until browned, another 2 to 4 minutes. Remove from grill, and continue the process until all the naan has been prepared. From Solid Cat: 56 - Vegas REVIEW: Alien Fresh Jerky's Space Cowboy Pepper it's called "Space Cowboy Pepper," of course we had to get it Val's Take: This is what I want out of a jerky. A little toughness with a bite, and just the right amount of seasoning. Peppered jerky is my favorite in general, and this one hits all the right notes. Good amount of saltiness and pepper. It's like they made it just for me. D-mo's Take: Almost a little too peppery. Only major downside is that you've got to chew it so that you can moisten it up so it can slide down your gullet, as you're not really softening it. After I had it, my tongue seemed coated in salt and pepper. Not bad. Review Verdict: (on a scale of 1-4 jerks [or "tugs" as Val called them]) 3 JERKS! From Solid Cat: 55 - Burning Hulk of an Escort Tabouleh The Middle Eastern Classic Ingredients Optional Directions 1. Mix. Ya, that's it. From Solid Cat: 53 - So-Called Shandy BOOZE REVIEW: Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy Half-beer/half-lemonade Val's Take: I don't understand all I know about this. Overall, the beer is crisp, clean, and good. Good for a summer day, and easily paired with a grilled chicken. D-mo's Take: I was promised beer and lemonade. I taste no lemon. It's a good beer, but I almost wished I didn't know it was "half-lemonade" because I expect something that's not this. Remove the expectations and this is a solid beer choice. Booze Review Verdict: (on a scale of 1-4 shots) 3 SHOTS! From Solid Cat: 52 - One Year Anniversary The History of Bananas (abridged version) It was requested, and we have a foodie segment on the show. Archeologists have focused on the Kuk valley of New Guinea around 8,000 BCE (Before Common Era) as the area where humans first domesticated the banana. In general, however, it can be said that bananas originated in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific around 8,000 to 5,000 BCE. From New Guinea and the Philippines, bananas dispersed far and wide across the tropics, in all directions. It is probable that bananas arrived in India, Indonesia, Australia, and Malaysia, within the first two millennia after domestication. Plantains may have been grown in eastern Africa as early as 3000 BCE, and in Madagascar by 1000 BCE. Bananas were redistributed and rediscovered for a second time around the Indian Ocean world carried by the wave of Islam. By the 1200s, the banana had reached into North Africa and in Moorish-controlled Spain. It is also likely that Islamists carried the banana from eastern to western Africa. A third wave of banana diffusion occurred in both Asia and in Europe. By the 1200s, Japanese cultivators harvested specific banana varieties for their fibers, to forge into textiles for clothes and other fabrics. . In Europe, meanwhile, the Moorish invasions had likely brought the banana for the first time into the continent. By the 15th and 16th century, Portuguese sailors were establishing the crop throughout Brazil, where it likely spread to the sugar plantation economies of the New World and the Caribbean. For colonial plantations, plantains had two major uses. The first use was as shade for other crops and the second as a cheap food for the slaves. Individual merchants shipped plantains from the Caribbean to American and European markets in the early 1800s. In 1804, plantains reached New York, and sold as novelty fruit to curious consumers. From 1800 to 1830, red bananas of Cuban origin were sold in the port cities of New York and Boston, but never with any regularity. Englishman Charles Telfair, began a collection of plantain plants on the island Mauritius. In 1829, he shipped a couple of banana plants to an acquaintance in England, where they eventually passed into the hands of the 7th Duke of Devonshire, William Cavendish. Cavendish was able to cultivate the plants, and the Cavendish banana was formally recognized as a cultivar in 1836. From England, the cultivar was subsequently diffused back into the tropical zones, Bananas got cheaper and easier to get and in the early 20th c. In an era when there as a growing awareness of disease, especially bacteria and viruses, and disease transmission, The banana peel, with its ensured sterility, offered consumers a food that was both germ-free as well as nutritious. . Gradually, one breed of bananas began to stand out as a particularly profitable fruit, the Gros Michel or ñBig Mike.î The resilience of Big Mike offered the sweet fruit of the desert banana preferred by Westerners with better armor. By 1929, exports from the banana producing areas of tropical America reached a then world-record of 29 million bunches. By the 1930s, Panama disease had diffused to nearly all of the banana farms of the American tropics, and by the 1950s had annihilated the Gros Michel commercially. The plantations turned to the Cavendish varietal, a smaller, less flavorful version of the Big Mike, but with a greater resistance to Panama Disease. Today, the Cavendish banana remains the dominant banana varietal exported. However, it, too is in danger of commercial extinction. A strain of fusarium wilt, known as ñTropical Race Four,î is diffusing from Southeast Asia across the tropical band, spread by both anthropogenic and natural means. The Cavendish is vulnerable to this strain of Panama Disease, and its commercial extinction, like its predecessor, seems likely. From Solid Cat: 51 - Mo' with Zo Insects to Eat, as Urged by the UN If it's good enough for the United Nations, it's good enough for... ahem... Here are the eight critters most often ingested worldwide: 1. Beetles The most commonly eaten beetles are the long-horned, june, dung, and rhinoceros varieties. These are munched by people living in the Amazon basin, parts of Africa, and other heavily forested regions, both tropical and temperate, as diverse species are easily found in trees, fallen logs, and on the forest floor. (Native Americans, I've heard, would roast them over coals and eat them like popcorn.) They are efficient at turning cellulose from trees (indigestible to humans) into digestible fat. Beetles also have more protein than most other insects. 2. Butterflies and Moths They do more than look pretty fluttering across a meadow; these winged insects, during their larval and pupal stages, are succulent and full of protein and iron. They're very popular in African countries, and are an excellent supplement for children and pregnant women who may be deficient in these nutrients. In Central and South America, fat and fleshy agave worms, which live between the leaves of the agave plant and turn into butterflies, are highly sought after for food and as the famed worm dropped into mescal, a Mexican liquor. Cultivation of these worms could help protect them from overharvesting. 3. Bees and Wasps We love bees for their honey, but they have more to give. Indigenous people in Asia, Africa, Australia, South America, and Mexico commonly eat these insects when they are in their immature stages. Stingless bees are most commonly munched, with wasps a distant second. Bee brood (bees still in egg, larval, or pupal form tucked away in hive cells) taste like peanuts or almonds. Wasps, some say, have a pine-nutty flavor. 4. Ants You're probably thinking that it takes a lot of ants to make a meal. True. But they pack a punch: 100 grams of red ant (one of thousands of ant species) provide some 14 grams of protein (more than eggs), nearly 48 grams of calcium, and a nice hit of iron, among other nutrients. All that in less than 100 calories. Plus, they're low in carbs. 5. Grasshoppers, Crickets, and Locusts Grasshoppers and their ilk are the most consumed type of insect, probably because they're simply all over the place and they're easy to catch. There are a lot of different kinds, and they're a great protein source. The hoppers have a neutral flavor, so they pick up other flavors nicely. Cricket curry, anyone? Meanwhile, locusts move in swarms that devastate vegetation in countries where people are already struggling to eat„one of several reasons to turn them into dinner. (See video: Family prepares a cricket stir-fy.) 6. Flies and Mosquitoes Not as popular as some of the others, these insects„including edible termites and, yes, lice„still have a place at some tables. Flies that develop on various types of cheese take on the flavor of their host, and the species from water habitats may taste like duck or fish. 7. Water Boatmen and Backswimmers Easy to cultivate and harvest, these cosmopolitan little guys deposit eggs on the stems of aquatic plants, in both freshwater and saltwater environments„even in stagnant water. The eggs can be dried and shaken from the plants to make Mexican caviar (tastes like shrimp), or eaten fresh for their fishy flavor. 8. Stinkbugs If you can get past the funky smell, these insects apparently add an apple flavor to sauces and are a valuable source of iodine. They're also known to have anesthetic and analgesic properties. Who would have thought?
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