Food Flip - a Kitchen Shortcut

My husband and I teamed up in the kitchen yet again, this time to cure some beef jerky. I did all the knife work for starters while he made the marinade, then together we laid out the pieces on our dehydrator. After drying for several hours, it was baked a short time for food safety. He removed the two baking trays and found the meat too hot to lay out for the excess grease to drain.

Lime and liquid smoke infused, this tastes better than it looks.

Since our friend Phoenix arrived with his computer, I took over that final step. And at this point I discovered a new trick, preferable over painstakingly placing each individual piece. I placed paper towels on top.

Probably used more than I needed. Heh...

I patted them down well.

All tucked in...

Next comes foil...

Almost done.

Over that I inverted a clean baking sheet. Holding the trays together with a firm grip, I flipped them both over.

Sorry for the glare...

This is likely something other folks already knew from either personal experience or perhaps some cooking show, but I was tickled by my discover.

Do you own a dehydrator? Are you familiar with the many foods this process helps preserve?


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Knee of Fury

On Tuesday Pam Jackson’s post reminded me how, a long time ago in this very house, I shattered a Corningware plate across my knee. And I mean it shattered, it didn’t just break into pieces as did her artful mishap.

That afternoon, innocently loading the dishwasher, I heard the phone ring and walked toward a familiar voice on the answering machine. This incident, mind you, occurred way back in the era of telephone landlines (!) long before cell phones turned into smart A$$ snoops. At any rate, I stalked toward my husband to tell him not to answer the call.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Phoenix (our photo together is at bottom of the post). However, that particular weekend he kept calling and calling, pestering my husband for computer advice on a rare day off work. I raised both plate and knee in frustration, just wanting to smack that leg for emphasis. The results emphasized my point, for sure.

My husband, in awe, asked me to bow before the mess. As you can see below I acted an absolute fool posing for the camera. He fondly calls my feat the ‘Knee of Fury’ like some martial arts maneuver. Heh... I sure miss being that thin. ~sigh~ Ah, youth.

Hands up! Naw… we stayed calm and peaceful.
(I didn’t want my dirty hands soiling the couch)

Can you believe we still find the occasional shard along the baseboard? And that I didn't get so much as a scratch? How lucky is that?


Update:
This morning I learned that same said friend is coming over this afternoon with a computer issue. Define irony, right? Anyway, I'm tempted to confess what triggered my plate shattering mishap. After all, he intentionally startled my father on my wedding day (?!) in June of 1997, resulting in the cake Dad carried getting smashed into a wall. I learned the truth behind that little incident just a few years ago.

So, should I tell Phoenix the truth of why I smashed the plate? And can you guess why my father could possibly have been carrying said cake in the first place?

P.S. After reading Sandee's kind comment, I should add that Phoenix also returns favors when possible and even rescued someone from a burning car that wrecked outside his home. :)

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Fish Eye View

I wondered if any kind visitors spotted both spotfin gobies in the image I shared on Tuesday. Well, here it is again.

Did you find them both? Aren't these creatures delightful?

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Fun with Fish

I have really been enjoying my refurbished twenty-nine gallon aquarium. The sand is prettier, and the new liveliness brightens my day.

Can you spot the two gobies here?
If not, though you likely did,
please stop by tomorrow.
I will point them out.

Below you can watch one of my snails with the three gobies darting about. They move faster than you might think, crossing a good distance in little time.

 Have you ever visited an aquarium? Does aquatic life mesmerize you?

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Collision Course

Today I saw Jezebel limping. Distressed after the frightful incident last year, I did not panic. And my poor husband announced a probable cause. Early today she darted in front of him, running straight to his left as he turned that direction into a room off the hall.

I won't judge. Things happen. It's not like he would ever kick any living creature on purpose. I know this for a glorious, admirable fact. He has helped me relocate spiders, among other critters, countless times.

I'm a lucky gal. ~grin~ And so have been all our kitties.

Meanwhile, before we noticed Jezzy's limp he calmly mentioned a water leak wetting our hall bathroom floor. He soon discovered the source. That turned out to be from an old distilled water jug, which was weird. I'm grateful, because this house has seen countless damaging water leaks over the decades and it could have been much worse.

Have you ever seen a plastic water jug spring a leak? Do you have a decent supply of potable water on hand in case of emergency?

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