MORE CHEEEEEEEEESE!

In a little forgotten village in northern Michigan, there is a secret place - a magical place!  It is the Amish store of damaged groceries, where food is practically free (and usually expired).  The A-man will put weeks of food on your table for a mere $20.  He will also relabel things like m&ms and try to pass them off as his own home-made "candy coated chocolate bits."  But nonetheless, this grand little group of Amish is near and dear to my heart because of the one food I could not live without:

Cheese.

From some mystical source, the Amish get deli-style logs of cheese (6-7 lbs) and resells them for $15 - a relative steal compared to grocery store cheeses.  If you want the cheddar, you have to be there on Friday or you might get stuck with a bland colby or colby jack.  Alas, I was only fortunate enough to find a colby during my last visit to the backwoods of Michigan.

After shipping my precious cheese back to NC, I set about preserving it in a way that would not take up a quarter of the already-full fridge.  That's right, friends, I waxed it.

Now, since I've already blogged about this I'm not going to repeat myself.  But I will tell you about some problems I encountered with the colby that cheddar did not present.  For one thing, the cheddar was rectangular block, whereas the colby was cylindrical.  When I cut my little serving-size cubes, they didn't fit in my tin can so I had to cut them a little more squarely as shown in the photo.

The second problem was that I was reusing the wax that I'd used on the cheddar.  That in itself is a common practice (the wax peels cleanly off the cheese), but under normal circumstances one is supposed to melt the wax and strain it through some cheesecloth to ensure cleanliness.  I didn't do that, and I should have.  That still worked out.  The bigger problem was that I had less wax, and so I didn't give the colby as many coats as I should have.  I still gave it three coats of wax but I would have preferred one more.

And lastly, the colby was full of air bubbles.  So the wax didn't stick as well on the first coat.  Then later when I peeled one open, the combination of trapped steam and these little air bubbles in the cheese made the exterior of the blocks a little bit spongy.   Still completely edible, but not the prettiest to look at.

So that's waxed cheese.  It doesn't need refrigeration, and after it is waxed it continues to age.  Store in a cool, dry place and turn the blocks every couple of weeks because cheese wax is slightly softer than paraffin and may start to "flow" if left in the same position, especially in a warmer area.

I love cooking with wine. Sometimes I even put it in the food...

I seem to have neglected to inform my favored readers of my acquisitions from the trip to Michigan.  While up north, I decided I wanted to go salmon fishing.  Sadly, the salmon didn't start running until a week or two after I returned to NC.  Happily, a good friend let me go "fishing" in his freezer for some of last year's catch.

After getting up at 4am on Saturday to open locker rooms for small children who were playing hockey at an ungodly hour, I came home and slept.  But when I woke up, I was ready for some gourmet fishes - something simple, like a nice lemon pepper recipe.  Here is how I find recipes:  I decide about what I want (in this case, "lemon pepper baked salmon") and then I do a Google image search and pick out the tastiest looking photos.  Then I read the recipes and choose the one that I like the best.  There is nothing scientific about it, if the picture is pretty then it has a good chance.

This recipe came from lifesambrosia:

Baked Salmon with White Wine Dill Sauce

• 2 (5 ounce) salmon fillets, bones removed
• fresh cracked pepper and kosher salt
• 1 lemon, sliced
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup white wine
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill

1. Preheat your oven to 450.
2. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with non-stick spray.
3. Place salmon fillets on the prepared baking sheet. Sprinkle fillets with kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper. Place 2 lemon slices on top of each fillet. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove and tent with aluminum foil for 10 more minutes. Fish will continue to cook during this time. It will flake easily when done.
4. While salmon is baking, melt butter in a skillet over medium heat. Once melted, add minced garlic and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Pour in wine. Cook for 5 minutes or until sauce reduces by 1/3. Stir in fresh dill and remove from heat.
5. Remove lemon slices from the top of the salmon and discard. Gently slide a turner or serving spatula between the skin and the flesh of the fillet to remove the skin, it should separate very easily. Transfer to a serving platter and spoon white wine dill sauce over the top.

I was a little confused about the tent but Kyle handled that one.  The result was by far one of the best fish recipes I have ever tasted. I love dill.  Kyle and I agreed that the mix of flavors was perfect - we could taste each ingredient, and nothing was overpoweringly flavorful.  Being the good Food Network fan that I am, any time I use lemons or lime I use the zest as well.  Adding the lemon zest and dill to the wine-butter sauce was fragrant and fabulous.  I cannot recommend this recipe enough.


Today I still had some dill left over to use, so I fried up a couple potatoes with mushrooms (and cumin, my all-time favorite spice) and then sprinkled them with dill and asiago.  I have to say, dill is a top contender for my favorite herb.  I have fond memories of spending my summers in the garden, where dill grew like a weed.  I would crush the leaves in my hand just to smell them.  Asiago is also one of my favorite cheeses.  I think it's pretty clear that lunch today was delicious.


In other news, if anyone wants a liveaboard chef, I'd be willing to try my hand at it.  Oh, also, I'm expecting visitors from Michigan this week - my mom and my cousin will be stopping here on their way south for a wedding.  AND my favorite boaters are gathering in Oriental, so it ought to be a nice social week.

Nicole, the Tropical Storm that Wasn't

Nicole was officially named as a tropical storm in the Caribbean, and fizzled out soon after.  So much more harmless than a Category 4 Hurricane Earl, right?  Wrong.  The fundamental difference between the storms was that Earl caused northern winds, which drove our water out.  Nicole cause south winds on top of four days straight of rain.  Water has been in places this week where water has never been seen before.

Nothing illustrates this better than photos, and lucky for you, there is nothing I love more than taking photos.  The first thing to go was the community dock.  It was underwater before the water made it near any other dock that I saw.

The wind was blowing all the pine needles in by our dock early Thursday morning.

Right before I left for work I noticed that a present had blown in from the main canal.  A log about half the size of a telephone pole.

Southern Cross was loving it.  Compare the Nicole photo to the Earl photo.  Look at the difference in water level!  

Then I had to leave for work.  I had a school bus testing the waters for me for a while.  The road I work on was about 2' under water when I left at 11pm (I found an alternate route).

The water was highest while I was at work, but I had my camera with me.  Kyle took some photos from last night, I'll see if I can get my hands on them.  It was still a scene this morning.  It's weird seeing the boat reflection above the dock.

Right now the sun is out, so I'm crossing my fingers that the drive to work won't involve crossing too many rivers.  The water has already gone down a few inches since this morning.  I can almost see the very tops of the posts on the community dock.  Hope everyone else is faring well!  Friends of ours have water in their garage and I saw a house that had turned into an island.  Also, Virginia Beach underpasses get pretty deep in rain like this - a semi ran right into one yesterday.  We're expecting a north wind this weekend that ought to bring our water levels back to normal.

Foodies - Stuffed Pretzel Bites

Awhile back (Fernandina Beach?), Kyle and I picked up a copy of Gourmet magazine that someone had donated to a boater's lounge.  It was filled with many delicious recipes, but there was one that really caught Kyle's eye.  Homemade stuffed pretzels and some jalapeno dijon mustard...it took me some time to come around to it, but Kyle really likes salty things so today I dove in.  

 I must be losing my touch, because I completely forgot to take photos of the first part.  I made some basic bread dough (this recipe called for brown sugar instead of white, and more milk than water) and let that rise.  Then I divided it into four parts.  Each part was rolled out to about 12"x4" and then I put some chicken, cheese and jalapenos on that and rolled it back up.  Then I cut the stuffed dough log into 12 pieces and sealed the stuffing in.  I did leave one log "unarmed," because Kyle's dad isn't a fan of jalapenos.  

The next step is boiling each pretzel guy in a solution of water and baking soda for about 20 seconds.  You can see how much they puff up in just a few seconds of being in the water.

Next, time to bake!  Fifteen minutes at 400 degrees F, they turn a nice golden brown and start smelling amazing.  Then brush with a little butter and top with some pretzel salt.  I'm not really sure what pretzel salt is, I'm assuming it is just a coarser table salt, so I think coarse sea salt works just fine.

Last but not least, the mustard.  It is just .5 c. dijon mustard (I used whole grain) with 1 jalapeno and a tbs of honey.  Very simple - very spicy.  Since the ratio of jalapeno to mustard is so high, I removed the membranes for the most part (the lighter green stuff inside).  Even so, it still had some decent heat.  Absolutely delicious.  I think it's more like bread than pretzel, but I've never tried making pretzels before.  The pretzel bites with the mustard, however...to die for.  You get the full flavor of all the ingredients, and then the pleasant burn starts to tingle on your tongue.

 In other news, I am now working part time at the ice rink in Chesapeake.  I retrieved my skates from Michigan, so Kyle and I went to go try out the ice a week ago, and while we were there I asked if they needed any help.  To my surprise, I started work on Wednesday.  It's only part time, but I get to skate for free :)  It still seems weird that there are ice rinks in the south though.  I suppose Virginia isn't that far south.  It was much more shocking when I lived down in New Bern.

Green Monsters and Hermit Crabs

Well, I finally took the plunge and started making Green Monster smoothies.  Rachel told me about them a while ago, but a blender takes up a little too much power to justify their use (although we do actually keep one on board).  Oh, plus there was a shortage of ice aboard the Southern Cross.  The thing that makes the monster green is spinach.  In my smoothie, there are an abundance of other healthy things, including coconut milk, a banana, kiwi or blueberry (but blueberries always overpower spinach in coloring the smoothie), and wheat germ or ground flax.  Rachel warned me early on that if I put in more than a handful of spinach, I would hate the smoothie, so I've been going easy on the spinach (the original recipe calls for two cups!).  And in Kyle's effort to eat healthier, he's been joining me in my smoothie consumption.

In addition to making food, we've also been attending various events in the Hampton Roads area (Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, etc).  I think I can safely say that the weirdest has been the hermit crab races.  Apparently this event is really for kids.  For some reason, I thought all of Virginia Beach would share my enthusiasm for this crazy event and there would be tents of activities everywhere.  Not so...

We arrived a little late and they were already crowning the queen of the beauty contest.  Or dress up contest.  Technically I believe it was a painted shell contest.  At any rate, I never did get to see what the winner was dressed as.  What I had really been curious about was how they were going to make the crabs race.  They started with all the crabs confined to a circle in the middle of the table, then the crabs "raced" (ambled, scampered, scooted, crawled) to the outer ring on the table.  Click the picture below for some hot action shots, I can't believe they're not blurry :P

The winner was Zeus, and Zeus's owner was obnoxiously exuberant.  Come on, man, it's for the kids!  He was pretty excited about his trophy though.

Then later in the day (I'd say about eight minutes later), I was attacked by a giant inflatable crab.  Once those pinchers get around your ankle...I was sure I was a goner.  You can see the extreme terror on my face.

A little disappointed by the whole event, Kyle and I started walking around town.  There are an obscene amount of tourist shops, and we went to every one of them.  We found these little gems in a store named "Useless Crap to Burn Your Vacation Money On."  Southern Cross is now an armed craft, pirates beware!

Hurricane Earl's Side Effects

Kyle and I spent all Wednesday night preparing for Earl's Thursday night arrival.  Southern Cross was streamlined; no sails, no boom, no solar panels, and about 8,000 fenders.  Then Earl turned out to be not much more than a whimper.

Of course, the thousands of tourists on the Outer Banks had to prepare for the worst.  And they started preparing right around the time I decided I needed some mushrooms to saute for the poached pike dinner I was planning for the evening.  Look at me bypass all the traffic on the way to the grocery store!  Wheeeeee!

The pike was delicious, poached in a white wine sauce with sauteed vegetables, served with a side of penne topped with stewed tomatoes, fresh basil and lemon zest.  Delicious!

But back to the hurricane....  Earl was maybe a whisper of wind in these parts.  The real issue was the next day when the water dropped three feet.  It is incredible how the geography of the outer banks and sounds allow the wind to have such an effect on the water level.  This picture hurts my heart.

It was not all a loss, however!  This weekend the water came back with a vengeance, rising above normal levels.  So, for the second time since arriving back in this area, we took Southern Cross out for a spin on the bay.  She was soooo happy to be out and about, even boom-less and sail-less.  And frankly, Kyle and I were slightly giddy about being "home" again.  We cleaned her up (on the outside at least).  Sitting under pine trees does her no favors.  I found every single spider web on deck yesterday.

The water is still high so maybe I will talk Kyle into taking her out for a quick jaunt tonight after work.

Day Two of Winemaking

The last post was rather tongue-in-cheek, but if (heaven forbid) you did actually try to start a batch of wine, you're going to need to know what to do on Day Two and onward.

Step 11.  Add some potassium metabisulphite or campden tablets.  These kill all the yeast that naturally is in the berries.  I believe this is done so that the winemaker controls the amount of yeast available.

12.  After giving that a few hours to work, add the yeast and stir it up!

 13.  Day 3+ stir it once a day.  You can see how foamy it gets when stirred.  The little yeast buddies are eating all the sugar and turning it into alcohol.  This process will be 7-10 days, then it will start to settle down again.  That is when you know you're ready for step 14.  All that hot pink juice dripping down the ALE PAIL means that the primary fermenter isn't big enough! 

14.  Rack it into a secondary fermenter (carboy, pictured below).  The work is done!  Now it just needs to be aged, and maybe racked one or two more times to get rid of the sediment.  There are other chemicals to add to the wine to enhance it, but they are not included in this crash course.  You can find some recipes at E. C. Kraus, and if you know where to look, you can even find some pretty good information on wine making.

So that concludes this crash course, unless I am able to find some of the photos I took of bottling wine.  In the meantime, check out my guest post over at Balance and Blueberries!