Turkey Triumph
If ever a food item was baked, boiled, crushed, crumbled, pulverized, parboiled, sliced, diced, fried and saut ed, it was Grandmother's own Thanksgiving turkey prepared in this year of our Lord, 2004.
Not that it was the best turkey Grandmother could purchase that day when I perused the offerings and the notation on my grocery list that Purdue turkeys were on sale @ .79 per pound. When right in front of my disbelieving eyes were turkeys from Jenn-O @.59 per pound.
I immediately became suspicious. Jenn-O (I think that's the spelling, my Google search for 'Jenn AND turkey' returned everyone named Jennifer into turkeys) is famous for those infamous turkey loaf type things stuffed into an aluminum pan and covered with gravy. But it did look like a regular turkey to my wise eyes. In fact, I compared it to the Purdue guys over in the other bin and the Jenn-O turkeys could have been twin turkey brothers.
The Jenn-O turkey was a disappointment. Its breast meat wasn't nearly as meaty and plump as I would have liked. In addition, the turkey seemed a bit drier than pleased me.
Still it worked fine though I'll stick to Purdue in the future, thank you.
First, the turkey was, of course, our Thanksgiving main meat.
The following day, as expected, there was a repeat of the Thanksgiving meal, complete with stuffing, potatoes, etc. After this, the remaining white meat was sliced and saved. The leftover gravy was thinned and re-constituted with a bit of milk and a hit in the microwave. Two pieces of lightly toasted white bread became envelope for some slices of white meat which were covered with the reconstituted gravy to make a fine hot turkey sandwich.
The rest of the white meat and some plump and pretty dark meat was collected. This turkey meat was fried in a bit of butter. A touch of hot sauce was added while frying along with a tiny pinch of rubbed sage. Served between two pieces of buttered toast, I was able to make two of these fine sandwiches providing two meals for hardworking husband.
Throughout the period while the turkey was refrigerated, six cats and two dogs greatly enjoyed bits and pieces tossed their way by friendly humans. At one point six cats gathered in one big circle, grabbing pieces of turkey from the air and growling at its colleague that tried to steal it. The dogs, as it turned out, also liked the pieces of turkey.
Finally the stripped carcass was placed in the pasta pot. Two onions were added, a teaspoon of sage, lots of salt, two bay leaves and a stick of butter. The carcass simmered for several hours until what was once an older, tougher Jenn-O living turkey was reduced to a pile of bones and meat in the pasta pot strainer.
I removed the strainer and the fine broth filled four old coffee tins which were properly labeled and stored in the freezer. This sort of poultry broth is a full-flavored base for almost any kind of soup, as a liquid to simmer vegetables, or as an addition to potatoes to add a soulful depth when mashed.
I ran my fingers through the turkey mish-mash in the pasta pot strainer and dutifully pulled out all bones. What was left was a huge pile of various types of turkey meat, dark, light and skin, that would feed the dogs for a week.
Not bad at all for .59 a pound.
Ten WORST Toys in 2004
It's been a while since Grandmother had to worry about children's toys, their many parts and possible damage to tiny tots, and all involved in such choices. With Kaitlyn Mae in mind, I came across this list featured on AOL's sign on screen and thought it appropriate to post at this toy buying time of year.
Just in time for the holidays, the consumer group WATCH announced its picks for the 10 worst toys of 2004.
The list includes toys the group says are so poorly designed or tested that they pose a serious safety or health risk to children, like the Parents Magazine Mirror Pound-a-Ball shown here.
Dangerous Toys ID'd TOYS TO AVOID
Happy Birthday Bear
Fun Slides Carpet Skates
Imaginarium Police Car Blocks
Megabuster Battle Weapon
Dress Me Paz
Parents Mag. Mirror Pound-a-Ball
Rocket Miniature Motorcycle
Air Burst Rockets
38" Playtime Trampoline
UZ-1 Commando Machine Gun
Some Household Hints
These crossed my ebox recently and thought some were worth the effort.
*Here is a great way to keep your lingerie and linen drawers smelling clean and fresh. Place your favorite bar of soap in the drawers. Works Great! Smells Awesome.
*Organizing your Bathroom....
An over-the-door pocket shoe rack gives you easy access to all your bathroom toiletries and keeps them neat and tidy.
*Disconnect and drain outdoor hoses and faucets. Disconnecting the hose allows water to drain from the pipe and prevent
freezing. A single over-night freeze can burst either the faucet or the pipes it is connected which can be very costly to repair.
*Coffee Burned on the Bottom of the Pot?
Pour table salt, along with a little hot water, into the pot and allow to stand for several minutes. The burned crust should come loose and you can then wash the pot as you usually do.
Home Remedies
Finally, from Doc, we have the following list of home remedies for humans, cats and dogs. Myself can speak specifically to the ear mite suggestion for cats. Pouring oil in the cat's ear does drown ear mites but, but, but...says this lady who's had cats with ear mites for over two years and still struggling to get rid of them, if you're going to do this, do it for AT LEAST six days straight. Especially if you have multiple cats. Better, administer the oil or medicine for ten straight days at the least.
Drinking two glasses of Gatorade can relieve headache pain almost
immediately -- without the unpleasant side effects caused by traditional
"pain relievers."
Did you know that Colgate toothpaste makes an excellent salve for burns?
Before you head to the drugstore for a high-priced inhaler filled with
mysterious chemicals, try chewing on a couple of curiously strong
Altoids peppermints. They'll clear up your stuffed nose.
Achy muscles from a bout of the flu? Mix 1 Tablespoon of horseradish in
cup of olive oil. Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes, then apply it as a
massage oil, for instant relief for aching muscles.
Sore Throat? Just mix 1/4 cup of vinegar with 1/4 cup of honey and take
1 tablespoon six times a day. The vinegar kills the bacteria.
Cure urinary tract infections with Alka-Seltzer. Just dissolve two
tablets in a glass of water and drink it at the onset of the symptoms.
Alka-Seltzer begins eliminating urinary tract infections almost
instantly -- even though the product was never been advertised for this
use.
Eliminate puffiness under your eyes..... All you need is a dab of
preparation H, carefully rubbed into the skin, avoiding the eyes. The
hemorrhoid ointment acts as a vasoconstrictor, relieving the swelling
instantly.
Honey remedy for skin blemishes... Cover the blemish with a dab of honey and place a band-aid over it. Honey kills the bacteria, keeps the skin, sterile, and speeds healing. Works overnight.
Listerine therapy for toenail fungus... Get rid of unsightly toenail
fungus by soaking your toes in Listerine mouthwash. The powerful
antiseptic leaves your toenails looking healthy again.
Easy eyeglass protection... To prevent the screws in eyeglasses from
loosening, apply a small drop of Maybelline Crystal Clear nail polish to
the threads of the screws before tightening them.
Coca-Cola cure for rust... Forget those expensive rust removers. Just
saturate an abrasive sponge with Coca Cola and scrub the rust stain.
The phosphoric acid in the coke is what gets the job done.
Cleaning liquid that doubles as bug killer... If menacing bees, wasps,
hornets, or yellow jackets get in your home and you can't find the
insecticide, try a spray of Formula 409. Insects drop to the ground
instantly.
Smart splinter remover... just pour a drop of Elmer's Glue all over the
splinter, let dry, and peel the dried glue off the skin. The splinter
sticks to the dried glue.
Hunt's tomato paste boil cure... cover the boil with Hunt's tomato paste
as a compress. The acids from the tomatoes soothe the pain and bring the
boil to a head.
Balm for broken blisters... To disinfect a broken blister, dab on a few
drops of Listerine... a powerful antiseptic.
White vinegar to heal bruises... Soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and
apply it to the bruise for 1 hour. The vinegar reduces the blueness and
speeds up the healing process.
Kills fleas instantly. Dawn dish washing liquid does the trick. Add a
few drops to your dog's bath and shampoo the animal thoroughly. Rinse
well to avoid skin irritations. Goodbye fleas.
Rainy day cure for dog odor... Next time your dog comes in from the
rain, simply wipe down the animal with Bounce or any dryer sheet,
instantly making your dog smell springtime fresh.
Eliminate ear mites... All it takes is a few drops of Wesson corn oil in
your cat's ear. Massage it in, then clean with a cotton ball.
Repeat daily for 3 days. The oil soothes the cat's skin, smothers the
mites, and accelerates healing.
Vaseline cure for hair balls..... To prevent troublesome hair balls,
apply a dollop of Vaseline petroleum jelly to your cat's nose. The cat
will lick off the jelly, lubricating any hair in its stomach so it can
pass easily through the digestive system.
Quaker Oats for fast pain relief.... It's not for breakfast anymore!
Mix 2 cups of Quaker Oats and 1 cup of water in a bowl and warm in the
microwave for 1 minute, cool slightly, and apply the mixture to your
hands for soothing relief from arthritis pain.
TOMORROW: It's a most fascinating "true crime" of the day, assuming that there was a crime. At least a crime of murder because in this missive I hone all of my speculating skills to arrive at a scenario that makes sense of the strange death of Jonathan P. Luna, assistant US district attorney. Who was found dead in a small creek in Pennsylvania, bleeding from 36 stab wounds until the creek waters filled his lungs.
What happened to Luna the night of 12/3/03 that had him driving the Delaware/Pennsylvania Interstate for over four hours? Was anyone with him that night? Who killed Jonathan Luna, and why?
There's no answers even now, a year after his strange death. For now we must speculate. And so I do.
In comments this week, we have a bit of sadness. Seems my Blog has been spammed by a liberal group I’d heard was mass posting conservative Blogs. Only it’s an interesting spam, indeed even sincere. Grandmother explains, a bit brutally, why many non-religious people are against gay marriage.
Also, the resident liberal of the newsgroup is back and he accuses Bush of being on psychotropic drugs.
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