Forgetful Brewers

03/25/2020

With the shelter-in-place order, I decided to get a few projects going.

“Gardening:”
The overwintered ginger has been trimmed and readied for sprouting, a lot of pots and trays have been washed, and I’m experimenting* with migardner’s hydroponics and microgreens approaches.

This also includes taking some new cuttings from last years tomatoes (the originals are a bit out of control now), starting some Okinawan sweet potato slips, reporting and taking cuttings from the year-old dragonfruit, and trying to keep gogi plants alive.

Note: experimenting is a stretch, since I’ve taken no notes, didn’t measure worm-compost-to-soil-media ratio on the micros, and the hydroponics is a mix-and-match.

05/24/2019

Garden is *almost* ready ... At least the part inside the fence is

05/15/2019

05/12/2019

The old owner left a bunch of steel joists and studs in the yard, so I figured I’d use them. Now I just need to get dirt in this giant raised bed...

08/16/2017

As usual, serious eats delivered. Mortar-made purple basil was a success, despite using cheap olive oil and generic parm.

This pesto sauce, through rounds and rounds of testing, has been honed to the perfect ratio, ingredients, and method. And, while a mortar and pestle requires a bit of work, the superior sauce it produces compared to a food processor can't be argued with. This is the true, best pesto, but if you're u...

08/03/2017

Looks like some seafood dishes are in my future ... now I need some recipes

https://www.pepperscale.com/fish-pepper/

A lost regional staple is found once more. Scoville heat units (SHU): 5,000 – 30,000 Jalapeño reference point: Equal heat to 12 times hotter Origin: United States (via the Caribbean) Products and seeds: Fish pepper on Amazon There are few peppers as beautiful, and as rare, as the fish pepper. Along…

07/20/2017

That time when your "mild" basque guindillas peppers aren't so mild, and your corona isn't putting out the heat ...

Apparently they're supposed to pickled in mid summer.

07/03/2017

Some last minute projects before we hit the weekend. Here's hoping the one line Japanese Beatle wasn't a scout (time for some traps I guess).

06/23/2017

Have you heard about this? Not sure if all home made whip cream dispensers (the ones that use small nitrous cartridges) are dangerous, but you may want do research if you own one.

We do own one, but lost the piece that allows it to pressurize.

https://www.google.com/amp/www.nydailynews.com/amp/news/world/deadly-whipped-cream-dispensers-article-1.3269169

After a French blogger died, the whole world is wondering: Are these gizmos dangerous? The answer: Yes.

06/18/2017

Just released the first round of lady bugs and lacewings - some in the garden, and some around areas I've seen aphids.

Since I've got kale, I may buy these too. They love cabbage worms apparently.
https://www.planetnatural.com/product/trichogramma-wasps/

Trichogramma are a very efficient destroyer of the eggs of more than 200 species of moths and butterflies (Lepidoptera) which are leaf eaters in their caterpillar stage.

06/16/2017

"Aged" (read: forgotten until it turned orange) acorn squash roasted with coconut oil, pineapple juice, turmeric, minced onion, and a fresh Serrano pepper.

Good, even though it lacks both butter and brown sugar.

06/11/2017

I was looking at essential oils for a few projects - home made choji oil for my Japanese kitchen knives, bug repellant, potentially brewing ingredients, and I figured I'd see how long they last.

Apparently the average is 2-3 years of stored in a cool place out of direct sunlight. Good to know for those of you who consider bulk buying or oil hoarding.

http://www.usingeossafely.com/shelf-life-of-essential-oils-and-how-to-make-them-last-longer/

People are often surprised to find that essential oils have a shelf life. They may have been told essential oils never expire to justify a high price tag.