Monday, August 25, 2014

Sometimes simple just works.

1. Simple meal.
Rice boiled in liquid from poaching chicken breasts, green peas, and sauteed ground turkey.

SUNP0030

2. Emergency pot cover.


When the meal is pretty much cooked. Cut off the heat so the pot does not boil over when covered.  A good thick walled pot will allow the food to keep cooking for a while. 
Tear a large piece of thick aluminum foil to cover the pot. The pot will be extra hot so use oven mitts to wrap the foil around the pot. Let the pot cool till ready to store or use otherwise.

3. Kitchen chair

4 water purification


Sunday, August 24, 2014

No grease fries.

Baked fries

Cut potato in planks
Line pan with parchment
Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit (F)
Cook for 45 minutes, but turn potatoes after 20 minutes.
Serve with your favorite condiment.



Note: decided to use a rack, so that I did not have to use the parchment paper and less babysitting on the fries.

Tofunaise





Use tofu instead of eggs to make mayonnaise. Seemed to be more malleable after sitting in the fridge.


1 pkg Tofu (240g)  (Be sure to squeeze any extra water out)
2 tbsp cider or white vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp table  mustard
1 tsp honey or sugar (optional)
2 tbsp cooking or olive oil (optional)
Salt & pepper to taste
Garlic powder (optional)

Mix it all up good and fluffy.

Chips




These baked tortilla chips are soooo crunchy and so delish! Totally hits the spot when I get that savory munchies craving. They're also great for dips and salsas.

Admittedly they do take some time to make, but all the steps are simple and require little skills and no special tools. In fact, I don't even use a mixing bowl or rolling pin (you could if you like). Like with all my other recipes, the amount of washing & cleaning is minimal.

All details are in the recipe video above. Please check it out! Or follow the written instructions below.


Ingredients:

1 cup All-purpose (aka Plain) Flour

3/4 cup Cornmeal (aka Polenta) - I use fine cornmeal. I think coarse would also work.

1/4 teaspoon Baking Powder

Heaped 1/2 teaspoon Salt (adjust to personal liking)

Generous dash garlic salt  (You might also try black pepper)
4 fl oz Hot Water (not boiling)

2-3 teaspoon cooking oil

STEP 1 - MAKE THE DOUGH

Mix together the dry ingredients (flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt, garlic salt) in a mixing bowl. Add the hot water and oil. Mix into a dough, first I use a spatula then switch to hands. This is a very easy dough to handle. It's not too sticky and not too crumbly. Knead for just one minute. Form a dough ball, coat with a little oil, cover with plastic wrap. Let it rest for quarter of an hour.

STEP 2 - MAKE & COOK THE TORTILLAS

Divide into 6 dough balls. Coat them with a little oil (residual oil from the pan). Give the pan a quick wipe and heat on the stove top over medium heat. Press out the first dough ball. I use my hands. You can use a rolling pin if you prefer. Press it out to just under 8 inches diameter and 1/12 inch thick. Place in the heated pan and cook for about 2 minutes per side, until you get brown edges and spots. Place on a foil-lined baking tray. While one is cooking, I press out the next one.


Stacking the pieces makes it a step quicker.



STEP 3 - CRISPEN UP THE CHIPS

When I have finished cooking six tortillas, I break each up into 8 to 10 rustic-looking chips. If you want them neat, cut with kitchen scissors while warm.

Preheat the oven to 300 - 325F. Bake the tray of chips for 10-12 minutes.

 Tortilla soup, chip and dip, or maybe even nachos. (homemade baked tortilla chips).

Monday, August 11, 2014

Camp stove,

Made this parabolic reflector using one of my other blogs as a guide. All we have to do now is find the focal point and see how it does. The reflector folds easily to fit in a nap sack.


The focal point is too close, so I am making a new version.

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Server + touchpad = powerhouse.

One of the things I like about a home web server is the ability enhance the capabilities of a touchpad. You can use the server to do all the heavy lifting. In this case cookdojo recipe program is running from the server (where all the data is kept), but allows the touchpad as an interface or thin client. You can easily move the touchpad to another location for some other web based application such as home automation or even a game.