The Cherokee Squaw Corn I'm growing has some variation in the size of kernels, though all are much larger and flatter than say, the corn one gets at the feed store. I'd say that it behaves a lot like flour corn when being ground. I'm pleased with how easy it is to shell and grind. After working with it, the contrast with Mesquakie is very noticeable. Mesquakie Indian corn has a lot more flint-like qualities. It even pops (poorly) when parched in the oven. When we lived in Hidalgo, Mexico my favorite corn for meal and grits was the really large kernel flour corn which one sometimes sees up here, sold as corn nuts. It came in either red or white. In Mexico they make it into hominy and use the kernels in a soup called Pozole. This flour corn was extremely easy to grind and we enjoyed it, both for grits and corn meal. So, I wouldn't want to discourage anyone from trying a flour corn. They are very nice. As an aside, let me tell you an anecdote on our life in Mexico. The first two years was characterized by frustration and hardship. We were grappling with the language and also with the environment. Our family suffered a good many illnesses until we adjusted to the new environment. After two years we were fluent. So the language problem was much relieved. Every six months to a year we'd go to Texas, for car parts and supplies, etc. While there, we'd stock up on some things we couldn't get in Mexico. Two items on our list were always grits and cornmeal. Mexico is the land of corn. But they hardly use cornmeal as we know it and grits are unheard of. So, we'd stock up and then ration until the next border trip. After 5 or 6 years in Mexico, I got to thinking about our love of these two items and the fact that we were surrounded by corn! That's how we learned to grind our own. We experimented! Suddenly we didn't need to ration these items! I often thought that this was taking adaptation to a new level! Blueflint, I'm going to try that recipe. It looks good! George

I make a lot of pasta with marinara, ragu bolognese, pesto etc. We just finished having a broccoli, bacon, onion and gruyere quiche for dinner that makes regular appearances around here. Another favorite is stir fry, I make that once a week or so. I also bbq throughout the year because our weather here is relatively mild. Other than that, tacos, nachos, salads, soups, stews and pot pies get made often around here depending on the weather. Based on the frequency of its appearance in this thread, I'm going to have to work on my roasted chicken method. When I tried Ann's high heat method the results were wonderful, but I spent more time cleaning the oven than I did cooking the bird. Note to self, when remodeling the kitchen get a self cleaning oven! :)

Aw, this thread had me cracking up right up until the deaths in the family. I'm sorry, John! Reality crashes down yet again. However, if you're still auditioning meatloaf recipes, this one might not touch the cheesy bacon versions, but it's the only meatloaf this non-meatloaf-eater has ever liked...and my meatloaf-loving, late FIL said it was the best he'd ever had (of course, he was probably just happy to have someone cooking for him). ;) I had to find this online since my DH packed up my cookbooks. My preference is for the mustard topping. Great flavor, good way to hide veggies (but not strongly flavored veggies like spinach), and still recognizable as meatloaf. Doesn't hold it's shape as well as some (possibly because I tend to over-process the veggies). S-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d Meatloaf from "Cheap, Fast, Good" Cookbook 2 large eggs 1/2 cup tomato juice (or tomato-vegetable juice such as V8) 1/4 cup ketchup 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon black pepper 1 cup dry bread crumbs (packaged or homemade) 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats (not instant) 6 cloves fresh garlic (or 2 tablespoons bottled minced garlic) 1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves, optional (or 2 tablespoons dried parsley) 1 medium-size carrot 2 ribs celery 1/2 medium-size green bell pepper 1 large onion 1 pound lean ground beef, defrosted if frozen (85 percent lean is recommended) Cooking oil spray Mustard-Brown Sugar Topping or Ketchup Topping Mustard-Brown Sugar Topping 2 tablespoons light or dark brown sugar, packed 1/4 cup prepared mustard Ketchup Topping 1/4 cup ketchup 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar Cooking Directions Preheat the oven to 350�F. Break the eggs into a large mixing bowl. Add the tomato juice, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and black pepper. Stir well. Stir in the bread crumbs and oats. Set aside. Peel the garlic cloves, if using fresh. Turn on a food processor and drop the garlic cloves, one at a time, through the feed tube. Process until finely minced. Then drop the fresh parsley leaves (if using) through the feed tube and finely mince. Peel the carrot and cut it into roughly two-inch pieces. Cut the celery into roughly two-inch pieces. Core and seed the bell pepper half and cut it into roughly two-inch pieces. Add the carrot, celery, and bell pepper pieces to the processor bowl and pulse until the vegetables are cut into very small pieces (but not soupy). Transfer the vegetable mixture to the mixing bowl, along with the bottled minced garlic and dried parsley (if using). Peel and quarter the onion and place the quarters in the processor bowl. Pulse until the onion is cut into very small pieces (but not soupy). Add the onions to the mixing bowl and stir to mix well. Add the beef to the bowl and, using your hands, thoroughly combine the meat with the vegetable mixture. Spray a large loaf pan (about 10 x 6 x 3 inches) with cooking oil spray. Spread the meat mixture evenly in the pan. Use the back of a spoon to spread the topping of choice evenly over the meat. Bake, uncovered, until cooked through, about one hour and 10 minutes. Let rest at room temperature for 10 minutes before slicing and serving. Mustard-Brown Sugar Topping Stir the brown sugar and mustard together in a small bowl until smooth. Ketchup Topping Pour the ketchup in a small bowl and add the vinegar. Stir until well blended.

Primer: Pre-ferment is a method by which a small dough is made of yeast, flour and water, to develop the activity and flavor of the yeast, usually overnight. "Ferment" refers to the yeast activity in the final bread dough. Biga (Italian) and levain (French) are pre-ferments. Usually, however not exclusively, bigas are made with commercial yeast, and levains are made with sourdough starter or saved levain starter. Those distinctions refer to the origins of the words. Many bakers use the words interchangeably. If you're not sure, just say "pre-ferment" and you're covered. Similarly, banneton, a woven basket, usually lined with cloth (French) and brotform, a coiled basket, less often lined with cloth (German) are used interchangeably for both types. In English, you can say "bread form" or "dough basket". Many people say "proofing basket", but I don't care for the word "proof" as a synonym for "rise". I'm not old, but I remember proving cake yeast before dry yeast was stable, but fresh yeast could have died. The yeast was proven (i.e., "proofed"), when the biga rose. The rises of the main dough were a given unless something really bad happened. Nowadays, people just toss in dried yeast and expect it to rise, and it does, so they proof in the baskets. This is a persnickety quibble that has no real meaning to anyone but me. :) Hydration refers to the weight of water in the dough based on the amount of flour, and is usually expressed as a percentage. The flour is always 100%. If there are different flours in the dough, then they have partial percentages, e.g., 95% unbleached white flour and 5% whole wheat (a substitute for European style bread flour). Add them up and they equal 100% because the flour is always 100%. This allows one to discuss, clearly, the amount of water in the dough, which can be more useful than adjectives such as loose, wet, sticky, tight, tacky, etc. If you have 1000g total of flour in your dough, and your recipe calls for 68% hydration, you would use 680g of water. If you have 650g of white flour, 120g of whole wheat, and 30g of rye flour, for a total of 800g flour, 68% hydration would mean 544g of water. These percentages really only apply to what's in the bowl. When you do your stretch and folds on additional flour, you're changing the percentage. When you wet your hands to do them, you're also changing the percentage. So they make it easier to talk about baking, but every baker is still going to have slightly different results. Factor in environment--flour absorbs humidity from the air, and also releases it and dries out. It also has a fat component, though much less with white flour, especially bleached. (Put your white flour in a half full, air tight container for a year (i.e., trapping in some air so oxidation will take place), and even the bleached stuff will smell rancid when you open it up (personal experience talking).) If you oil your surfaces, hands, etc., a trace of oil can also be added, mostly negligible, but sometimes a few drops can make a big difference. With all of those factors, as well, the percentages refer to the basic recipe, and the rest is whatever works for you. Like S&P to taste. Experience is king. Repetition is important. Getting a feel for it is crucial.