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Outside the dugout: What's cooking?

Discussion in 'Diamond Gators' started by GatorLurker, Jul 28, 2016.

  1. 74nole

    74nole GC Hall of Fame

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    We’ve had thunderstorms on and off pretty much all day today so we are planning an inside supper this evening.

    It will be fried cubed beef steak, fresh steamed yellow squash and onions, and white rice topped with Rotel tomatoes. Fried cornbread will also be on the table.

    Ice cold longnecks and chilled wine will again be outside on the back porch helping us wind down the day.

    Life is good in Gator Nation!
     
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  2. GatorLurker

    GatorLurker GC Hall of Fame

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    Yeah, the first "cool" front is coming. Today and tomorrow will be wet in Gainesville and then nice mowing weather to give my new mower a workout.

    Making Bolognese sauce today to server over orecchiette. And I will break out the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for this.

    Tomorrow will be celery soup (I have to do something with the rest of the head of celery that I bought for making the turkey and tuna salads) and caprese salad. I have LOTS of basil still doing well. My MIL found a source of a new strain that does well in our summer weather and I was skeptical. I thought that it might grow fine, but not taste very good. Surprisingly both the taste and texture are really good.
     
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  3. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    On another forum a thread was started about happiness and being grateful and someone posted this, which I thought was worth sharing:

    Man....truer words were never spoken! ;)
     
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  4. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    Lurk - when you lived in Gainsville, did you ever visit the Wilmot Gardens? I ask because of your comments about Camellias.

    I live in the cottage there my senior year along with another OH senior and we got free rent in exchange for watchmen duty at the department greenhouse complex. We also did things for some of the professors who were growing floral crops and needed black clothing and also sometimes extra watering on weekends.

    The manager's name of that complex was Phil, I think. He told us what to do when we were needed.
     
  5. GatorLurker

    GatorLurker GC Hall of Fame

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    Whoa.

    I not only visited them, I went around the gardens with a metal detector looking for metal tags for name tags on camellias that might have been lost from when the original planting where done.

    That was back in the 1980's.

    I do have an original "fish tail" camellia from there that I airlayered.
     
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  6. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    Nice!

    I have one photo of that cottage we lived in but the site is messed up right now for posting pics so will have to wait.

    I wish I had taken more photos during those years - and especially that last one when we lived there. Some of our labs were held out there and while all the other classmates rode their bikes to the complex (Archer Road as you know) Gary and I would just casually stroll right out our front door and join the class just before it started.

    Do you remember what was called the "Conservatory"? It was that huge and tall greenhouse with all the tropical specimens in it. All kinds of crazy stuff and spooky as hell after dark! Great place to take a date. Especially after burning one. ;)

    Getting back to the Camellias....I've always liked them but used them sparingly in my landscape work. Again - can't post pics because of the site issues but I have some nice photos you would like.

    There's a wholesale nursery in Deland, owned by a fellow Gator OH grad, I used to buy them from called Laurelwood Nursery - here's their latest listings:
    • Camellia 15G / 17" Assorted $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Blue Danube', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 36 x 18-20" $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Kramer's Supreme', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 36" x 18" $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Kramer's Supreme', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17"
      $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Laura Walker', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17"
      $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Professor Sargent', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 34-36" x 20", 3-3.5ft HT, 1.67-1.83ft Spr $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Professor Sargent', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17" 45-48" x 28-30" $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Rosea Plena', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 36-38" x 24" $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Rosea Plena', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17" 45-48" x 28-30" $50.00 each
    • Camellia sasanqua 'Kanjiro', Autumn Camellia 7G / 14" 36-40"" x 20_ $32.50 each
    • Camellia sasanqua 'Kanjiro', Autumn Camellia 15G / 17" 45-48" x 28-30" $50.00 each

    And of course Jon's Nursery in Eustis. Been there forever.

    Not sure the condition of the Wilmot Gardens was in when you got there. I left in the Spring of '77, but I loved it when we were living there. Loved seeing and reading the little metal ID tags! Good for you for trying to help out.
     
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  7. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    Just found the listings from Jon's Nursery:

    Jon's Nursery | Camellia Japonica

    Jon's Nursery | Camellia Sasanqua

    Quick story....I was hired to landscape part of a property owned by the founder of our local Sun Bank. He lived on Faulkner Street here - which is loaded with Oaks and other canopy trees so had some nice conditions for Azaleas and Camellias. I was able to buy some large stock Azalea plants from Jon's Nursery to line his driveway with. It was totally my idea and my client was so happy with the end result (we did other parts of his property as well) he asked me to be the landscaper for a new building in town - the women's garden club center, named after his late wife. It was a pretty big deal. Well before the construction had ended (it was close) my client ended up passing away - and this horrible lady who was president of the club went behind my back and hired another local landscaper to do that job. It turned out terrible because this guy they picked was more of a salesman than landscaper. Karma I guess but poor John had to be rolling over in his grave. I left town a year later and went to work for that millionaire in Naples who started Cablevision Industries and ended up buying the Woodstock grounds. I think I mentioned that story here.

    Those stock plant Azaleas had been pruned so many times from cuttings they were fat, full, and huge!
     
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  8. gatorfan5220

    gatorfan5220 VIP Member

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    Saw a steak recipe that involved Bearnaise sauce.

    How does the gang feel about this and how would you make Bearnaise?
     
  9. 74nole

    74nole GC Hall of Fame

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    LOL—5220, you’re going to have to get your answers from @GatorLurker on this one.....All I believe in for a great grilled steak is charcoal, coarse salt, and coarse black pepper.....

    For me the answer is simple about a marinaded steak—if you’ve got to use that you need to buy a better cut of steak......

    But that’s just me......
     
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  10. gatorfan5220

    gatorfan5220 VIP Member

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    Course salt = kosher salt?
     
  11. 74nole

    74nole GC Hall of Fame

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    That or sea salt.
     
  12. GatorLurker

    GatorLurker GC Hall of Fame

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    Grain size. I have many different salts that I use. Sometimes a coarse grain is what you need. I am making celery soup tonight and a light sprinkle of coarse sea salt is perfect for that.

    Kosher salt is essentially a salt without added iodine. The iodine gives a very slight, but noticeable "off" flavor so lots of recipies call for Kosher salt. I have always though that it was funny almost every pork shoulder rub recipe called for Kosher salt.

    But if you solely use Kosher salt in your cooking make sure that you eat enough seafood to get enough iodine in your diet.
     
  13. GatorLurker

    GatorLurker GC Hall of Fame

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    I don't like eggs so I don't ever use that sauce on meat.

    I have cooked some rib-eye steaks with a blue cheese, shallot, white wine vinegar, and Italian parsley based topping.
     
  14. gatorfan5220

    gatorfan5220 VIP Member

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    I feel the same about eggs and found some egg-less Bearnaise recipes.
     
  15. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    The last name of the facility manager at the Archer Road Greenhouse (research) facility popped into my head a little bit ago. Calvert. So it was Phil Calvert (I think).

    I did some Googling and then ran across the Wilmot Garden website and did some reading and found this:

    [​IMG]
    2018
    Initiation of the Camellia Relocation Project involving the transportation from Ocala, Florida, of over 300 camellias from the private collection of Drs. Clarence and Lillian Gordy to the Wilmot Botanical Gardens.

    [​IMG]
    2020
    Completion of the Mendenhall Family Camellia Walk, located in the southeast section of the gardens. This fine feature was made possible by a generous gift from Drs. William and Nancy Mendenhall in July 2020.

    [​IMG]
    2020
    Wilmot Botanical Gardens accepted to American Camellia Trail Gardens, a project of the American Camellia Society.
    ============

    Pretty cool! I hope they stay up on the upkeep this time.
     
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  16. GatorLurker

    GatorLurker GC Hall of Fame

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    [QUOTE="Bazza, post: 12006092, member: 12938"buy them from called Laurelwood Nursery - here's their latest listings:
    • Camellia 15G / 17" Assorted $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Blue Danube', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 36 x 18-20" $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Kramer's Supreme', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 36" x 18" $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Kramer's Supreme', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17"
      $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Laura Walker', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17"
      $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Professor Sargent', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 34-36" x 20", 3-3.5ft HT, 1.67-1.83ft Spr $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Professor Sargent', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17" 45-48" x 28-30" $50.00 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Rosea Plena', Japanese Camellia 7G / 14" 36-38" x 24" $32.50 each
    • Camellia japonica 'Rosea Plena', Japanese Camellia 15G / 17" 45-48" x 28-30" $50.00 each
    • Camellia sasanqua 'Kanjiro', Autumn Camellia 7G / 14" 36-40"" x 20_ $32.50 each
    • Camellia sasanqua 'Kanjiro', Autumn Camellia 15G / 17" 45-48" x 28-30" $50.00 each

    [/QUOTE]
    You want Kajiro, Prof Sargent, or Laura Walker? i will airlayer it for you and it will be free.

    The others are not that great.

    None of these are show quality blooms, but they are nice yard blooms.
     
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  17. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    You want Kajiro, Prof Sargent, or Laura Walker? i will airlayer it for you and it will be free.

    The others are not that great.

    None of these are show quality blooms, but they are nice yard blooms.[/QUOTE]

    Thanks for the generous offer, Lurk, but I'm good. I only have so much room here and already working on clearing space for other plants I have in pots.

    I'm a Croton and palm nut and have some new ones coming this week a buddy of mine is bringing up from south Florida.

    I haven't air layered in many years. I bet it would work on some of these Crotons. Because I do intend to propagate them at some point. I usually do cuttings but it gets tricky because of the large sized foliage they have.

    Thanks again! ;)
     
  18. GatorLurker

    GatorLurker GC Hall of Fame

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    Thanks for the generous offer, Lurk, but I'm good. I only have so much room here and already working on clearing space for other plants I have in pots.

    I'm a Croton and palm nut and have some new ones coming this week a buddy of mine is bringing up from south Florida.

    I haven't air layered in many years. I bet it would work on some of these Crotons. Because I do intend to propagate them at some point. I usually do cuttings but it gets tricky because of the large sized foliage they have.

    Thanks again! ;)[/QUOTE]
    Just don't get into cycads.

    I have a lot of them, but don't tell anybody. They might try and find my address and steal them.
     
  19. gatorfan5220

    gatorfan5220 VIP Member

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    Have any of you made pastrami?

    Saw a recipe and it seemed like a lot of work.

    Also, why is it so hard, outside of New York City, to find good, hot, juicy pastrami?
     
  20. Bazza

    Bazza Moderator

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    Most of mine are the average variety though so maybe not the specimens you have in your collection.

    Zamia, Dioone, Cycas, Macrozamia, etc.

    Wheeeee........66 degrees out! :) :) :)
     
    Last edited: Sep 30, 2020