Elmer's Eggnog

Well, last night was the pre-Christmas gathering for our extended family. It was held at Shana's place - which seems to have become a tradition by now - and both of the brothers who live nearby. and most of their offspring and grandchildren, were in attendance. My own kids and grand kids didn't make it. They had further to come, and had other commitments.

Mariner's black bean soup

We've been thinking a lot lately about food. Of course, we always think a lot about food. The difference is, we've been thinking about how we'll eat when we're spending lots of time on the boat - at anchor, underway, or at a dock - because we still anticipate getting our cruising boat (soon) and spending a couple of years trying out the cruising lifestyle.

Skip to Recipe

In thinking about eating while afloat, one can't avoid the probability that certain staples - to wit: beans and rice - are going to form a substantial part of the every day diet. There are lots of reasons for this - chief among them, the dry ingredients don't require refrigeration, and you can easily make up small batches suitable for providing a meal for only two people. One first mate wrote some time back that she knew a thousand different ways to prepare beans and rice. I don't, but I do know that small amounts of additives can add a great variety of flavor to both of these staples.

I'm not going to talk about rice in this blog, because I'd rather talk about my successful experiment in creating black bean soup. Unlike most of my efforts, I didn't research the task beforehand, so the entire process came right out of Yours-Truly's own brain.

This recipe is for cooking in a 2 quart electric crock pot. Now you may think that using a crock pot aboard a boat is unlikely, but that isn't necessarily so. Electric power is often available at dock, and many boats have facilities for generating substantial power. So let's pretend that whatever boat we end up on will be able to support the use of a crock pot, at least occasionally.

Print Recipe

Suggested Equipment:

• Stock pot, 3 or 4 quart
  
• Electric slow cooker, 2 quart
  
• Common kitchen tools and measures
  

Ingredients:

1. I use Bird's Eye® brand - only 35% onions!
   
   
2. Optional
   
   
3. Monterey Jack cheese with hot peppers embedded
   
   

Item		Amount
Black beans	Dry	8	oz
Okra, Corn, & Tomato mix	Nominal 15 oz can	1	ea
Stir Fry Mix1	Frozen, Bell peppers & onions	1	cup
Pork	Smoked - Bacon, ham, or boneless hamhock	4	oz
Chives	Diced, dried or fresh	1	Tbs
Garlic	Dry, granulated	1	tsp
Salt	Common	1	tsp
Sauce	Hot pepper2	1	tsp
Cilantro	Dry, ground	¼	tsp
Cayenne	Dry, ground	⅛	tsp
Water		to	fill
Cheese2,3	Pepper-jack, sandwich slices	4	ea

Directions:

Begin preparations the evening before you plan to serve the soup.

1. Carefully look over the dry beans and pick out any debris you might find. Dry beans sometimes have some surprising bits in them. Wash the beans in plain water until the water you pour off runs clear.

2. Put the beans in the 2-or 4-quart stock pot. Cover with fresh water to twice or three times the depth of the dry beans alone. Don't be stingy with water. It's cheap, and the beans will soak up a lot! In doing so, they will expand a lot, too! Let the beans soak overnight.

3. The next morning, pour off the soak-water, and gently wash the beans again. Wash and pour off until the water you pour off runs clear again.

4. Drain the beans through a mesh sieve, and put the drained beans in your 2 quart crock pot.

5. Add all the remaining ingredients except water and cheese. Stir to distribute components evenly.

6. Add enough water to fill the pot and switch it on "high". When it reaches a boil, reduce heat to "low". Let it cook (covered) all day, stirring frequently. Add back any water lost to evaporation. It'll be ready for supper.

The soup is ready when the beans are done. The color of the beans will have changed from solid black to more of dark reddish color, and the bean will be soft enough to chew without any crunch. Ladle the finished soup into bowls, and garnish with slices of pepper jack cheese, if desired.

This recipe goes well with Mariner's Corn Bread on the side. Makes four large servings.

BBQ Ribs

Recently, I decided that I needed to figure out how to barbeque ribs.

Now, some "purists" (usually folks who don't have to do the cooking) will hold forth that true barbeque only happens when the meat is cooked on a grill - preferably fired with charcoal. For the rest of us, i.e., those who like to eat their meat with a knife and fork, rather than a hammer and chisel, there are modern electric ovens.

Mariner's Cornbread

One fact of life is that each of us is going to live a little longer than someone close to us. Another is that sometimes we will, for one reason or another think about the dearly departed, and eventually we'll realize that even though many years have passed, we still miss them.

Mariner's Chunky Tomato Soup

One of my favorite comfort foods is tomato soup, and this is an easy, quick and tasty variant on ordinary tomato soup. I came up with this recipe while trying to duplicate a similar soup I had tasted in one of those soup-and-salad-bar restaurants.

Mariner's Meatloaf

For those of you who don't know, my Honey started out married life as a real, honest-to-God, college-educated scientist. Yep, she got a job right out of college as a part-time hydrologic field assistant. If you don't know what that is, you're in good - well, at least acceptable - company.

Mariner's Salmon Croquettes

Like many others, my Honey and I are trying to put more fish into our diets. Seems that fish are one of the better sources of omega-3 fatty acids, which are apparently good for you in a lot of different ways. The best fish for getting these little wonders are the oily, marine, cold-water fishes, like tuna and salmon.

Mariner's Deviled Eggs

We were in the mood for a light, easy meal at suppertime Friday night, so I scrounged up a can of Campbell's won ton soup and some chopped asparagus spears. Kind of light on the animal protein, so I cast my mind about and decided "Hey! I'll just make some deviled eggs!" No problem right? We always keep boiled eggs in the 'fridge for quick easy meals. Thinking about it though, I realized that I had no idea where to begin. It couldn't be as simple as just mixing the yolks up with some mayo, could it?

Mariner's Cream of Asparagus Soup

My Honey and I really like asparagus. We like it whether it's right from the garden, or fresh frozen, or even from a can, but we like it best fresh. The problem is, if you buy it fresh (or even frozen, in most cases) you get really long spears, of which only a short section, near the top, is tender enough to cook and eat as spears. The rest of the stalk may still be edible, and even tasty, but is very fibrous and thus much less pleasant to eat.