Redhorse Cafe -- the Food Truck

[OLChemist]

Goyo, have a Merry Christmas Eve with your family.

One of my colleagues was so sweet. He brought me tamales, posole, duros de harina and ponche Navideño. I'm a very happy camper, lol. Los Posadas treats without freezing my rear off in Santa Fe or Taos.

Now if I could just get a loaf of BA's beer bread, I'd have Christmas breakfast taken care of.

Wanikiya Tunpi Un Wowiyuskin (Merry Christmas) ya'll.

[OLChemist]

Here We Come A-wassailing.... Around the world. (Two kid safe and one adult recipe.)

Cider Wassail

Bring to a simmer:

2 quarts apple cider;
1.5 cups orange juice;
1 cup pineapple juice;
1 Tbsp brown sugar;

Add:

10 whole cloves;
5 cinnamon sticks;
0.5" nub of fresh ginger, peeled and grated or finely minced;
pinch of nutmeg;

Simmer for at least 30 mins.

Garnish with:

1/2 cup cranberries;
1 orange sliced;
1 apple seeded, cored and sliced.


Ponche Navideño (Yvette Marquez)

Bring to a roiling boil -
4 qt water;
2 cinnamon sticks;
10 cloves;
5 tamarind pods (husked and seeded);
1 cone piloncillo chopped (or 1 c dark brown sugar);

Add and reduce to a simmer for 10 minutes:

1/2 lb crab apples, seeded and cored;

Add:

2 red apples, cored, seeded and cut into chunks;
1 pear, cored, seeded and cut into chunks;
2-4 inches sugar cane, peeled and cut into chunks;
1 c pitted prunes;
1/2 cup rasins;
1 orange, cut in wedges.

Simmer 30 mins and discard cinnamon sticks and cloves.


Gluhwein

Over medium heat, bring to a boil:

1 c orange juice;
1/4 c brown sugar;
3 cardamom pods, bruised with a knife;
1/2 tsp allspice;
10 whole cloves;
2 stars anise;
2 sticks cinnamon;

Cook until reduced and starting to thicken. Lower heat to medium low and add:

1 bottle dry red wine

Bring to a near simmer for 15 mins.

Serve with an orange slice.

[Broken Arrow]

I think I take the cider wassail.

I pray that you all stay warm and get unharmed through the storm and cold.

[OLChemist]

[subeeds]

So far we are surviving this record cold. Second coldest Christmas on record. The temp was 20 Christmas morning and the wind chill 11. We have a hard freeze forecast for tonight and tomorrow night, then it's supposed to be back to our usual 40s at night. The coldest Christmas, back in 89, we had 5 inches of snow on the ground after getting several hours of freezing rain. We had a nice video chat with the son and grandkids Christmas Day and their wind chill was -30 outside Cincinnati. The cat has spent the last few days glued to the gas heater. We have to fight her for space when we ant to stand there. She knows a few words like "out" and when he asked her if she wanted to go out, she looked at him like he was nuts. I haven't ventured out too far to check on the outside plants we covered, but the ones in the mini greenhouse are doing well.

[OLChemist]

My cousin has a cat that practically sets his whiskers on fire sticking his nose up against the propane heater in her beach house. Most cats are heat seeking cockleburs.

Jet gave me the slip when I tried to catch him to board him through our pre-Christmas 9F snap. I can't put him in my house, he fights with my three legged cat and has a track record of breaking windows to get out. With my bad hips, all he had to do was walk a couple yards away and gaze over his shoulder, watching me hobble toward him. When I got close, he moseyed away. After doing this for 30 mins, I resorted to hiring my handyman to catch him.

Normally, Jet follows my handyman around supervising and begging for lunch leftovers. But this time my handyman was a subtle as overflowing septic tank. Jet looked up from his bowl of kitty kibble, saw him coming with the carrier in hand, jumped over the porch railing and ran for his life. My handyman chased him through three yards and returned with a black cat in the carrier. Thankfully I looked in the carrier before he drove off to the vet or I'd have paid to board a neighbor's cat.

I tried to lure Jet into the studio, with food, a heated bed and water. The heat would have been off, because the heat pump freezes up at 10F, but it would have been warmer than the outside. Jet has never been allowed in the studio so he was delighted with the opportunity to explore. The minute I moved to shut the door, he darted out. As far as he was concerned, the studio was just a 10' x 12' cat carrier.

Next, I tried the feral cat trap and tuna. Jet hasn't made it to the ripe age of 11 years old as an outdoor cat in the gentrifying barrio without being trap savvy. I caught Elizabeth Warren (the cat not the politician), Picasso, Bob, Not Bob, and Blondie -- 3 times. (No one has ever claimed Blondie was the brightest bulb on the kitty Christmas tree.) I was still trying to get him when the temperature dropped from 40F to 20F in a half hour.

Finally, I just plugged in the heated cat shelter and water bowl. No joy. Jet never set foot inside. At least this year, no opossum spent the cold snap inside. I have no clue where he went. I was expecting to never see him again. Every time the ASPCA ad with the shivering dogs came on the TV, I just about died of guilt. But as soon as the temperature went above 18F, he showed up scratching at the window for breakfast lol. Even Blondie doesn't come out for kitty kibble at that temperature.

[wardancer]

Cats are very resilient ! All of our herd is still around , even after 4 days of 35 below wind chills. There were a couple of days I wondered if any would survive it ! I fed every day and put out water every day and they all showed up most days. Now that it's warmer , all present and accounted for !

[Broken Arrow]

Weather, very odd. We are in the range between 50 and 60. Rain, dark low clouds and winds at 40 mph.
The dormers and the slates clatter.
The horse pasture some 250m away is all mud. Poor horses.

Avoid detonating fireworks. I am not sure what to expect this year.

I wihs you a good, happy and healthy new year 2023.

[OLChemist]

Happy New Year Eve, all!

I plan to have cheese and crackers and shrimp cocktail for dinner tonight. Then if we're low fireworks, I plan to be asleep by 11pm, lol.

Thankfully, I'm not home, so I will miss the pork roast and sauerkraut meal. My late father insisted we eat it for good luck. Mom still makes it. My dad would drive to the strip district to get his sauerkraut at the German butcher shop where he worked while in college. The owner makes it in barrels in the basement. But, what my mother does to sauerkraut is revenge for German immigration to Indian Country, lol. She thinks it has too much salt, so she carefully washes the brine off in endless batches of water. She mixes it with shredded carrots, chopped apples, V8 juice, brown sugar and caraway seeds. Then she throws the pork loin on top and bakes the whole mess until the pork was cooked just long enough to be well done and dry but not break down the fat and make it tender.

My cousins called the meal the New Year's fast. They refused to eat it. Their mother would take get McDonalds take out for them. I loathed the meal too. But, my parents' rules were you ate what was put before you. At least, my mom would serve me only a tiny spoonful of the sauerkraut and a bite of pork. I would sit there smelling my cousin's hamburgers and dreaming of next morning's toast, jam and tea, lol. (The wateca on this meal was hell. I swear the stuff bred in the fridge.)

I love my mom, but her cooking can be hit and miss. She makes fantastic baked goods, but some of her entrees didn't survive when she quit using butter, salt, pepper, garlic and cream of mushroom soup, lol.

Sauerkraut and pork roast was one of three fairly loathsome -- in my opinion -- meals that were traditional during the holidays. My mom's dad had to have his boiled tongue on the day after Christmas Day to celebrate his birthday. My wasicu blood would out on that meal. I have trouble with cuts of meat that can lick back. Topped with mustard and cream sauce with capers, it tasted just fine. But then, I'd think of great-uncle Chalmer's cows chewing their cud and I'd get the dry heaves, lol.

On Christmas Eve, mom had to have her oyster stew. I'm not exactly sure what oyster stew is supposed to contain, but I think half and half or whole milk not skimmed milk is supposed to be in there. My mom went super low-fat in 1973, from then on she made it with skimmed milk and omitted the butter for sautéing the onions and celery. And she always overcooked the oysters and omitted all spices, including salt. It was the Civil War meal -- blue milk and gray rubbery bits, lol. I fed her dogs many an oyster under the dining room table. (You will get caught if you try to slide the entire bowl under the table while mom and dad are in the kitchen. You have to surreptitiously drop the oysters from your spoon into the napkin in your lap; then feed them to the dog.)



Anyway... Our weather here is odd too. Last week we were in the teens and having natural gas shortages, this weekend we're going to be 72F today and just shy of 80F tomorrow. A front is coming through on Monday. We will be going back down more normal temperatures.

[wardancer]

A sad last day of this year ! My Old horse "Cisco" took his walk to his next adventure. 30 years and a lot of arthritis , all kinds of aches and pains are now done. I prayed he has an easy journey and although we're all sad to see him go , I know he's in a better place now. He was my good friend and trusted ally and my heart aches for him.

[OLChemist]

I'm sorry WD. My prayers are with you during this loss.

[Broken Arrow]

I am very sorry that you lost your good friend. Sigh, I am with you.

[OLChemist]

Happy New Year, all.

[subeeds]

Oh WD, I'm so sorry to hear about Cisco, I know you have a horse size empty spot in your heart about now.

We have thawed out, but you can't prove it by the cat. With the warmer temperatures, we have been having some serious sea fog and heaven forbid her highness gets a wet paw. LOL! Usually, once it's warm, she's ready to be out, but not now. We are in the upper 70s and in some places low 80s.

I've done some digital house cleaning. Thinned out my groups and friends list on FB. Would it count as a NY resolution since it's already done? LOL!

Since we started streaming I watched a series from ABC called Alaska Daily. It's about a reporter who ends up in Alaska from NYC, and the underlying thread is the missing and murdered Native women and how so little is done to find them or solve the cases. I'm going to see if I can find Dark Winds streaming, too and give that another chance. I watched a couple of episodes when it first came on and it just didn't appeal to me. I think it had to do with them speaking Navajo and having to read the translations while trying to watch what was going on.

Happy New Year!!

[OLChemist]

A wet paw! What are you thinking? Do you think the late Queen went about in the rain? No, her staff held an umbrella over her head. You are supposed to be out there throwing down fresh, DRY palm fonds for her to walk on. Cats remember their temples in Egypt. A little worship is all they ask.