Punchin' Dough

Songs about food are always fun and it seems that most of them are rather silly things.  Here is great old tune that borrowed the melody from "Sweet Betsy From Pike".


Punchin' Dough


Come, all you young waddies, I'II sing you a song
Stand back from the wagon, stay where you belong
I've heard you observin' I'm fussy and slow,
While you're punchin' the cattle and I'm punchin' dough.


Now I reckon your stomach would grow to your back
If it wa'n't for the cook that keeps fillin' the slack
With the beans in the box and the pork in the tub
I'm a-wonderin' now, who would fill you with grub?


You think you're right handy with gun and with rope
But I've noticed you're bashful when usin' the soap
When you're rollin' your Bull for your brown cigarette
I been rollin' the dough for them biscuits you et.


When you're cuttin' stock, then I'm cuttin' a steak,
When you're wranglin' hosses, I'm wranglin' a cake.
When you're hazin' the dogies and battin' your eyes,
I'm hazin' dried apples that aim to be pies.


You brag about shootin' up windows and lights,
But try shootin' biscuits for twelve appetites;
When you crawl from your roll and the ground it is froze,
Then who biles the coffee that thaws out your nose?


In the old days the punchers took just what they got
It was sow-belly, beans, and the old coffee pot;
But now you come howlin' for pie and for cake,
Then you cuss at the cook for a good bellyache.


You say that I'm old, with my feet on the skids
Well, I'm tellin' you now that you're nothin' but kids
If you reckon your mounts are some snaky and raw,
Just try ridin herd on a stove that won't draw.


When you look at my apron, you're readin' my brand
Four-X, which is sign for the best in the land
On bottie or sack it sure stands for good luck,
So line up, you waddies, and wrangle your chuck.


No use to your snortin' and fightin' your head
If you like it with chili, just eat what I said:
For I aim to be boss of this end of the show
While you're punchin' cattle and I'm punchin' dough

The Universal Sigh

Today there was a special event for all Radiohead fans around the world. The band published today a fictitious newspaper with nspired poems and texts about their latest work, The King of Limbs. 

(The Universal Sigh here)

We only had a time; 12 p.m.; and a place; Plaza Universitat (Barcelona)... we, as all the other fans that were there, didn't know what to expect... and suddelly, a couple of persons appeared and began to distribute the ficticious newspaper. 

 

Iwent there with Cris and Ester; after waiting a while until twelve, we could get a copy of The Universal Sigh... and we met some cool people there, too!

 

Now we can only wait until the band returns to Spain to delight us with their new work... So, until that moment, we should listen to our hearts, as they said to us here in Barcelona.

 Yes, this was a very special monday!

Sourdough Starter

When we hear the word sourdough it brings to mind the delicious crispy crusted breads from San Francisco, or the hearty pancakes so loved in the Yukon, even a grouchy chuck wagon cook loading up a Dutch oven with biscuits during a cattle drive. More than likely, the word sourdough brings to mind the words “too complicated for me”. Sourdough is actually fairly easy to work with and nowhere near as fussy as people believe.The earliest accounts of sourdough can be traced back to Egypt around 3000 B.C. and it has been used continuously since then. Sourdough is the oldest form of leavening agent and consists of flour, water, a harmless bacteria (lactobacillus) and wild yeast. When combined and allowed to mature, the mixture will ferment and form a starter that can be used in a great variety of recipes. Because of the differences in wild yeasts in varied locations each sourdough culture is unique onto itself and will develop it's own distinct flavor. When properly taken care of, a sourdough culture can last for over a hundred years and can be used on a regular basis. Sourdough is known for it's slightly acidic or tangy flavor and can not be beat for making hearty sandwiches, biscuits and pancakes. This recipe may seem rather involved but it really only takes a few minutes a day.

Sourdough Starter


Fresh culture on day one.

On day one, Combine ½ cup bread flour in ½ cup of lukewarm, non chlorinated, water in a non metallic crock or bowl. Add 1/2 tsp. of honey and beat by hand to mix. Cover with a kitchen towel and place in a warm place, 65 -70 degrees, to sour for 2 to 3 days or until there is some evidence of activity in the way of little bubbles.

On day 3,
Discard half of the leaven culture and then add and mix in 1 cup of non chlorinated water and 1 cup of bread flour.
On day 4

Repeat the procedure for day 3



Culture has matured and is ready to use

  On day 5,You will notice that your sourdough will have become active and will be nearly ready to use as a starter sponge for bread recipes. It will have a mild beer like quality to its aroma. After the mixture has reached the desired sourness it can be kept in the refrigerator. If at any point in the life of your starter you notice that it has developed a pink color dispose the starter and begin again.

This sourdough starter can be used as a leavening agent in any sourdough recipe. When using the starter to create a sponge for a recipe simply replace the amount of starter used with equal amounts of flour and non chlorinated water. The consistency of the sourdough in the recipe will be comparable to a pudding after the first mixing. The starter will increase in mass as it ferments.
If your starter sits idle for a while you will notice that it will develop a clear, beer like liquid. This doesn't hurt anything and is part of the process. If your starter mixture seems dry the liquid can be incorporated back into the starter or the liquid can be poured out of the mixture. You be the judge.

My Windowsill Garden

It’s officially spring! I was rudely reminded of the fact when I woke up on Sunday to find that I had ‘lost’ one hour. I still don’t get daylight saving, isn’t it just a lie to yourself, but on a larger scale? Anyway. It’s spring! And spring is the time to get planting! You can’t get more cheap and local and organic than planting your own.

I wish I could do that Jamie Oliver/ Nigel Slater thing of popping out of their kitchen into the garden and picking all the herbs and vegetables and fruits they need and throwing them into their food. I can’t, of course, because I live on the 6^th floor, in a London flat half the size of my mum’s bedroom in Singapore. But also because I have the opposite of green fingers, or at least, I’ve never tried growing anything other than mung bean sprouts for primary school science.

But I have a brilliant gardener of a flatmate (: Who says there’s no reason why we can’t try that out with smaller plants which take very little space to grow and require little attention, most herbs for instance.

Those are the little pots on my windowsill. That’s purple basil, coriander, mint and chilli (of course).

Look at the coriander which was sown a bit earlier!

It’s a lot of fun rotating them so they face the sun and watching them grow from nothing to a little something to a bigger something. Go get planting too!

This is part of Simple Lives Thursday.

Food Writer’s Diary readers pick Girl & The Goat as best new restaurant

March 28

Despite a mid-week rally in favor of Torrisi after Grub Street alerted New Yorkers that the Nolita hot spot was losing in my poll for best new restaurant, Girl & The Goat in Chicago still won handily.

Granted, only 26 people voted, but 30 percent of them picked chef Stephanie Izard’s Chicago eatery. Benu in San Francisco came in second.

Next, I’d like you to vote on your choice of Rising Star Chef from among the Beard Award finalists. Please click on a name in the poll to your right, or feel free to make comments below.

Results from the last poll:

WHICH BEARD NOMINEE FOR BEST NEW RESTAURANT WOULD YOU VOTE FOR?

ABC Kitchen: 5 (19%)
Benu: 6 (23%)
Girl & The Goat: 8 (30%)
Menton: 2 (7%)
Torrisi: 5 (19%)