What I learned today (Take Two)

[Robin Garr]

Same deal: Let's switch over to this new thread and stop using the previous one except as an archive. It's tidy, and we HOPE it will help speed up the forum for a few years.

Does this mean I have to learn everything all over again?

Gosh, Uncle Robin!

[Robin Garr]

Does this mean I have to learn everything all over again?

Gosh, Uncle Robin!

Why, you lil whippersnapper!

Last year, two snowstorms, hail, and heavy winds destroyed blossoms on the Lisbon Lemon tree. So, I ordered a box of lemons from Pearson Ranch in Porterville CA. They arrived a few days prior, so yesterday, I gathered the electric juicer and ice cube trays from the workshop, laid out everything, cut the lemons in half, and began. The juicer would not work. I checked the plug, reset it, tried another plug, took the working pieces apart, and reset them, but nothing worked. I called a good friend in the neighborhood and asked if she had an electric juicer, she did but said it was cheesy. Not sure what that meant, so I decided I would wait a bit and see if it started. My neighbor showed up at my door with her "cheesy juicer" and announced that she would juice the lemons and I could assist. She decided to take a look at mine first and then said, "did you flip the power switch to on?" OMG!

Don't feel too badly, Karen. I once had a customer pay me for two months only to discover that they also had simply never switched the program on. (And I'm pretty sure my daily rate would cover a lot of lemons....)

That sort of thing happens all the time. Last winter there was an ice storm and after de-icing my car I found that the automatic windows wouldn't work. So I brought the car into the shop. The mechanic pressed the "lock windows" switch and the windows were working again. D'oh!

One of my summer internship jobs in college was to rewrite the accounts receivable transaction processing software for Boston College. The day after my program was installed I was called to the Bursar's office. Their transaction processing terminal wasn't displaying anything. I plugged it into the wall and it was working again. The night janitor had unplugged it so they could plug in the vacuum cleaner and forgot to plug it back in again. A couple of days later I got called to the Bursar's office again. They said, "The screen is blank. And yes, we did check that it's plugged into the wall and turned on." When I got there I noticed that the blinking cursor was in the proper place, but no text was displayed. So I turned up the contrast knob and there was the text.

-Paul W.

[Jenise]

Funny story, Karen!

Last year, two snowstorms, hail, and heavy winds destroyed blossoms on the Lisbon Lemon tree. So, I ordered a box of lemons from Pearson Ranch in Porterville CA. They arrived a few days prior, so yesterday, I gathered the electric juicer and ice cube trays from the workshop, laid out everything, cut the lemons in half, and began. The juicer would not work. I checked the plug, reset it, tried another plug, took the working pieces apart, and reset them, but nothing worked. I called a good friend in the neighborhood and asked if she had an electric juicer, she did but said it was cheesy. Not sure what that meant, so I decided I would wait a bit and see if it started. My neighbor showed up at my door with her "cheesy juicer" and announced that she would juice the lemons and I could assist. She decided to take a look at mine first and then said, "did you flip the power switch to on?" OMG!

I read this wrong at first. I think you mean it was the socket, not the plug.

[Jenise]

Yesterday I learned that I still don't like asparagus any way but steamed/boiled or just sauteed in butter. I even like it raw. What I don't care for is grilled or roasted (I roasted it last night). Roasting doesn't augment the natural flavor of asparagus, it replaces it. The result tastes bitter to me, and I much prefer the purity of the maillard-free versions. I'll never roast it again.

[Jenise]

And just now I learned that our local Whole Foods has a special citrus fruit called Dekopon. Never heard of it; looked it up. Well it turns out to be the same thing everyone else is and has for years called Sumo.

"Imagine the perfect citrus — super easy to peel, extra juicy and amazingly sweet. Enter dekopon citrus, a special variety available in our Produce department for a limited time only each year. This fan favorite was cultivated in Japan during the 1970s by a citrus grower on a mission to create the ultimate citrus — big, juicy-sweet and easy to peel. The result? A hybrid of the satsuma, navel and mandarin orange varieties known as dekopon citrus. The word "deko" translates to "bump," nodding to the fruit's characteristic topknot. After gaining a loyal following in Japan, dekopon citrus made its way to grocery stores in the United States by 2011."

Btw, this year so far has been the best year for citrus I can ever remember. Mandarines, clementines, Murcott tangerines--every one I've bought has been outstanding with perfect textures and sweet-tangy balance. I usually buy a bag or two that I end up throwing out, but this year I've been motoring through them and driving back for more days later.

[Jenise]

Yet another fun factoid learned today: the reason that there are so many egg yolk-intense desserts in Portugal is that the nuns in this heavily Catholic country used egg whites to starch the headgear on their habits, creating a surplus of yolks.

And just now I learned that our local Whole Foods has a special citrus fruit called Dekopon. Never heard of it; looked it up. Well it turns out to be the same thing everyone else is and has for years called Sumo.

Same in the WFs near me. For years they had been calling it Sumo, this year they switched to Dekopon. Not sure why, although Google says the two names have been interchangeable for years. Maybe 'Sumo' was too ethnic/sensitive?! (Although seemingly not offensive)

Yesterday I learned that I still don't like asparagus any way but steamed/boiled or just sauteed in butter. I even like it raw. What I don't care for is grilled or roasted (I roasted it last night). Roasting doesn't augment the natural flavor of asparagus, it replaces it. The result tastes bitter to me, and I much prefer the purity of the maillard-free versions. I'll never roast it again.

I agree that roasting brings up the bitterness. They will need a dressing of some kind, or, strangely enough, they'll be better if you serve them cold.

And just now I learned that our local Whole Foods has a special citrus fruit called Dekopon. Never heard of it; looked it up. Well it turns out to be the same thing everyone else is and has for years called Sumo.

Same in the WFs near me. For years they had been calling it Sumo, this year they switched to Dekopon. Not sure why, although Google says the two names have been interchangeable for years. Maybe 'Sumo' was too ethnic/sensitive?! (Although seemingly not offensive)

Oh, splork on all that. The stores around me charge way too much for fancy tangerines.

Sumo oranges showed up recently in my local supermarket (Market Basket). They look like navel oranges with an extra large navel.

-Paul W.

Around here we have Satsuma mandarins. They are my favorite and are grown locally by Happy Valley Farms. I wait anxiously every year for them to show up. When they are gone I resort to the Halo or Cuties. Not nearly as sweet, but still easily peeled and just the right size.

My local shop:

2024-03-01 19.00.16 sm.jpg

I'll buy the blood oranges but the others seem expensive to me. (The regular navels and juice oranges are in another part of the store.)

[Jenise]

Jeff, prices are slightly better here, but not by much. I think I paid $6 a bag for the Halos we're eating right now, and I know I paid $2.99/lb for litterally every other mandarine/tangerine/clementine I've bought. The sumos are running 4.99/lb here.

Considering all the fires and flooding in California, I actually think the prices are holding pretty good. What I wonder is, where in California are all these grown? There's no 'orange' in Orange County any more, that's for certain. When I was a kid, heading south on the I-5 after Disneyland everything was orange groves all the way to San Clemente where they stopped because 1) hills and 2) the Camp Pendleton Marine base. As I've driven around California in adulthood, I can't remember the last time I saw a citrus grove. Millions of almonds, olives and other nuts between Bakersfield and Stockton, and avocados around Ventura and Santa Barbara, and after that just grapes. But no oranges.

has anyone noticed that blood oranges are suddenly marketed/label raspberry oranges. Were dimwitted vegans reluctant to buy?

Shades of "kiwi fruit" vs. "Chinese gooseberries".

My local grocery chain, Market Basket, fine tunes the offerings in each store to suit the neighborhood it's located in. The Amherst NH store has more high-end and luxury items. The one I shop at has a lot of Latin-x, Brazillian, and Asian clientele and has an exceptionally strong produce department. Among the items sold in this store but not the others is Seville (sour) oranges. I have a few Latina recipes that call for the juice of sour oranges.

-Paul W.

Paul, if it’s something you like (I do) Seville Oranges make great marmalade

...and I know I paid $2.99/lb for litterally every other mandarine/tangerine/clementine I've bought...

Yes, hard to find good quality citrus below $2.99/lb at the places I shop. Maybe occasionally there will be something good and on sale.

Paul, if it’s something you like (I do) Seville Oranges make great marmalade

IMO any marmalade not made with Seville oranges is not marmalade, just orange jam.

There's a brief 2 or 3 weeks in February when Seville oranges are in the shops, and we buy a years supply, freezing them. Joan makes marmalade throughout the year, as needed, getting 8-9 jars from a bag of Sevilles. We have it on our breakfast toast

[Jenise]

has anyone noticed that blood oranges are suddenly marketed/label raspberry oranges. Were dimwitted vegans reluctant to buy?

Ha! Haven't seen that. But I will admit, my grandmother practically threw up when I tried to serve her a 'blood orange' when she visited me in England. Could not talk her into it; but she'd have been all over a 'raspberry orange'.