Evening. :D

I guess everyone's out partying. :P

yes quite wild

My neighbors are having a big party.

Hopefully, it won't disturb Ben.

He's in the closest room to the party and they're all outside.

oof yeah hope this is a sound sleeping night

It's all good so far.

@Catija is (was) it a special day, or just everyone out on a Saturday night?

Uff, I was stupid

First, when making my chicken for shredding in the pressure cooker, I looked on the Internet for suggestions how long to keep it in. I saw a top google result blog post on shredded chicken which was going on about how difficult it is to hit that sweet spot of juiciness in a pressure cooker. I used that one against my better judgement, and ended up with chicken which is cooked enough to eat, but not well shreddable, and the dark meat is still tough.

and because this is a pressure cooker, I had a bowl full of drippings

and what do you think I did? I simply threw them away

now I'll have to make the gravy with something else.

Aww that is unfortunate.

But! At least you have the chicken.

@Stephie no clue. The backyard is littered with red Solo cups, a keg, and other detritus. Based on the aftermath, it must have been a good party.

@Catija uh-oh...

@rumtscho what are you cooking?

@Stephie something enchilada-like

Jefromi mentioned them yesterday and I jumped on the idea, but I don't have all the ingredients. At least Aldi had wheat wraps.

gonna have to make you some next time you're in California

I did a cooking marathon yesterday. Batch-cooking for the next week & the freezer.

@rumtscho Special offer? Must have missed it.

@Catija so did Ben sleep, or were they too noisy?

Oh, I think it was a beer pong contest.

@Stephie no, surprisingly, they had it with the normal bread. I would also have thought it too exotic for them to carry it.

I think wraps are just getting more popular around here.

@Stephie He slept.

@Catija that is cute!

@rumtscho I have to check next time I’m there!

It could be a local thing. Although I mostly see such local variations in more upscale supermarkets like Rewe.

@Catija cute!

homesicktexan.com/2007/01/essence-of-tex-mex.html

this is the sauce I will be making for the enchiladas

but I don't know if I will find the cumin - the more rarely used items are still not sorted properly since the move

yesterday I also got Jeni's splendid ice creams book, and today I made her olive oil ice cream

it is an interesting base, never eggs, but with starch and a bit of cream cheese

I practically had the contents of a cabinet fall on me when I rummaged for starch :)

Is cumin hard to find?

@rumtscho <grins> sounds familiar!

@Catija in my pantry, yes!

Ah! I see. I was worried it was uncommon in Europe.

@Catija not too mainstream, but findable.

in the store, moderately. Discounter stores operate with a small inventory, so they might not have it. But midsized supermarkets and above, and ethnic grocery stores from the right parts of the world have it.

Or health-food stores!

It's a staple here. If you ever want some, let me know. The bulk section has awesome high-oil cumin. Very fragrant.

I buy organic. Incidentally the best quality available here.

The large “normal” brands here are sometimes a bit underwhelming.

you know this Indian guy who was asking about menthol? His questions led me to a spontaneous buy of pure mint essential oil

and the company who makes it also sells essential oil of cinnamon, oregano and such

And? Used it yet?

I am waiting for more experience with the mint oil before deciding whether to get the other ones too

once, for flavored yogurt

What kind of mint? You have to be really careful with wintergreen.

it is good, but it is the same taste as used in candy, etc.

so I connect it with "artificial" taste

no, actual mint

I think they are using some higher yield one, not simple peppermint

BTW this is a company who sells the essential oils for food purposes, so they are food safe, not extracted with hexane or similar.

happens to be from somewhere around Stephie's I think, but I got mine on Amazon.

@rumtscho huh?

amazon.de/gp/product/B00W1ZYKH6/…

wuerzteufel.de

@Stephie geographically - their Impressum says Nagold-Hochdorf.

@rumtscho cool! I must check whether they have a store...

I will probably experiment with the oil in a later ice cream batch.

it is somewhat disconcerting having the menthol flavor without the sugar - I guess it is a matter of habit, but will try getting at it gradually

Drat, I don't even have cumin. I have caraway and black caraway, but no cumin.

no cumin!

when I get home I can buy you a pound at the Indian store across the street, that'll take care of that problem

That's a lot!

Don't you find that the quality degrades with time?

At least the colour changes.

But I don't remember actually testing the difference in flavour.

yeah it doesn't last forever, I don't think she needs quite that much

I think they sell 4-6oz bags too

Me neither. I never had a batch go stale, but the usual baggie here is 40 or 50 grams. - and that gets used up quickly.

I need ginger tea: do you know that feeling of almost having a cold?

I think it’s the adrenaline wave I’m riding on these days that keeps me from getting really sick.

yeah, how does that work? I knew a swimmer in high school who seemed to never get sick during the season then off season would immediately get a cold or something

What would you call these containers?

Boxes?

Tubs?

Do they have lids?

Let's say they don't.

So I would be less likely to call them boxes.

They seem to be be too deep for trays.

And I associate tubs with liquid, but I'm not sure.

@Jefromi not sure. But I’m sure there is a biological mechanism based on the stress (or fight or flight) reaction. If the bear is breathing down your neck, you can’t stop running to blow your nose. But I’m pretty sure that it’s not sustainable. And once the adrenaline level drops, the pendulum swings the other way.

Adrenaline, or immunological overdrive?

Open container?

Haha is that the best term you have?

Sometimes English seems oddly deficient.

In Dutch, we have bak or bakje (smaller).

So I'm wondering what, say, your grandmother without any education whatsoever would call them.

@Cerberus not sure in general, but for me, pretty much simply adrenaline at the moment. My stress level is unhealthy atm. But that’s just a fact, nothing I could actively change. I at least try to sweat it off three times a week with Zumba.

Hmm.

I hope you'll find a way to lower your stress level soon!

Chances are slim. We just have to survive and hope to reach the other side with as little damage as possible. But we have a support system set up.

I'm sorry to hear that.

But at least you seem to have it under control.

I hope you at least get to relax a little bit at Christmas.

As much as the situation is controllable

Oh, dear.

I guess you saw that ^

So no, we have to just survive one bloody day after another.

@Stephie I'm here too. And you know already, but I'll still say it: if you can think of any way I can help, just call.

@Stephie That sounds very difficult.

Sorry, didn’t mean to kill the mood. Just a bit thin-skinned.

You didn't kill anything.

I'm glad to hear you have a support system.

If you are thin skinned, I think it is best for us to know it. You keeping the lid on it to save the mood doesn't help anybody.

I, for one, didn't see any thin-skinnedness.

For @Cerberus

A stroopwafel!

it just makes you more miserable if you keep it pent up, so, please feel free to share bad news, as long as it is OK for you privacy-wise.

And quite a large one at that!

Was it as good as it looks?

Delicious. Dutch apple pie.

Apple pie?

Or do you mean, in addition to the stroopwafels?

Essentially stroop, spiced applesauce and raisins.

Ah, they put all of that in the filling?

Why not!

Yep.

Although I would still call it a wafel and not a pie!

It was "Dutch apple pie" filling.

Ahh I see.

Well, it sounds good.

And no doubt very wholesome.

Hardly any sugar at all.

😇

Which is fine as long as you don't have any health issues.

@Stephie 💚💚💚So sorry. :( let me know if I can help.

@Catija thanks!

Just sorting through the mail:

Ugh... do they do "Black Friday" in Germany, too? I thought it was just a blight on the US. :(

First year. And makes absolutely no sense, we don’t celebrate Thanksgiving like in the US.

@Stephie and @ElendilTheTall, Jolene invites you to her room (the one to which she gave you access yesterday)

Yeah, that's why it was confusing to me.

But this year seems to have a huge wave of “imported” what-nots.

@rumtscho urgent?

I need to switch to my iPad then.

@Stephie now she suggested that she wants to wait for an hour so her ex husband can join.

ugh.

anyway, she says your presence is optional.

@rumtscho, I dialed in over there. Ping me, if necessary.

@Stephie OK. I am a bit torn between going to wash my hair and returning in an hour, or trying to engage her brother in small talk.

Up to you. But you realize that your last post could be out of a comedy play?

Like a modern Oscar Wilde piece.

<note to self: find a good play in a theatre nearby and book tickets>

Urgh. Stupid idea. I should have dumped the Christmas catalogue from the (rather expensive) department store instead of leafing through it. Now I found a few items for a wish list. >.<

I prefer my reality to mimic a comedy rather than a tragedy!

the hair is a logistic problem though, I never use a hair dryer so if that talk with her goes into the small hours of the night, I will either have to go around with dirty hair tomorrow, or go to bed with a wet head.

also, yes, these catalogues are dangerous.

One word: Breuninger.

Probably nothing that would count as necessary but lots of I wants.

ah, I didn't know of that one

So what’s the plan? Shampoo or not?

Small talk

gently

with both :)

@Jolenealaska I meant Rumi’s plans regarding her coiffure.

Shampoo.

I am sitting here, moving Jolene's messages with one hand and brushing my vlies with the other.

Another poetic image. Loreley, perhaps? Or Lady Godiva.

as long as you don't say Chewbacca, I'm cool.

Awwww, I’d never!

Probably.

So, I'm back online, scrubbed clean.

YAY! Showers are always nice.