Ruth Haffly wrote to Dave Drum <=-
Have to see how serious he is about doing a conversion. (G)
It's just double labour. So he'll have more "sweat equity" in the
deal.
We have a yard service for the mowing/edging so would have to get
them in on the change over, if there is to be one.
It (the Zoysia) will require some extra watering to help it get over
being transplanted - and to encourage it to begin spreading out. Mint,
as you have already got some, just needs room to spread.
And like mint (which spreads much the same way) you'll need metal or concrete/rock borders to keep it from places you don't want it to go.
Not a problem initially. Just planted an Easter lily today, courtesy of our preaching pastor's wife. We've a small area where a tree was taken down some years ago that we're working on breaking down the stump
remains by planting lilies and other flowers there.
Do they contribute to the stump removal like saltpeter would. Or are
they just pretty "screening" from the reality of the dead stump?
The stump is breaking down; the tree has been gone about 6 or 7 years. Steve made some cross cuts in the stump, also seeded (unsuccessfully)
with mushroom spoores once. All in an effort to encourage the stump to break down so a couple of years ago he turned the area into a small
flower bed.
Too bad the 'shrooms didn't work. If he's like to try again here's a
link to a primer on growing them on a stump:
https://zm.meridianfarmersmarket.org/7091-mushrooms-on-stumps.html
Nice pixtures and explanations.
MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06
Title: Rabbit Stew w/Mushrooms
Categories: Game, Mushrooms, Wine, Stews, Vegetables
Yield: 4 Servings
1 oz Dried porcini mushrooms
2 Heads of garlic
1 tb Olive oil
1 1/2 lb Mixed mushrooms
4 tb Butter
1 lg Rabbit; gutted, skinned, cut
- in serving pieces
+=OR=+
2 sm (to medium) rabbits; gutted,
- skinned, in serving pcs.
3 lg Shallots; chopped
1 c Sherry or white wine
1 c (to 2 c) mushroom soaking
- water
3 c Chicken stock
1 tb Fresh thyme
+=OR=+
2 ts Dried thyme
1 lg Parsnip; peeled, in lg pcs
Salt
2 tb Chopped fresh parsley
There is an optional step to making this stew taken from classic
French cooking (Antonin Careme) that transforms a good dish into
a great one. Mash the rabbit or chicken's liver, mix it with creme
fraiche or sour cream, then push it through a fine sieve. The result
is a pink slurry that will thicken and enrich your sauce. If you
choose to take this step, do not let your stew boil once the
liver-creme fraiche mixture is in it or it will curdle. If you want
to go halfway with this final step, mix in a large dollop of creme
fraiche or sour cream in at the end.
Soak the dried porcini mushrooms in 2 cups hot water.
Cut the rabbit into serving pieces and salt well. Let sit at room
temperature for 30 minutes. Use all of the rabbit in this dish - you
can fish out the ribs and other parts that have little or no meat on
them later; they will add vital flavor to your stew.
Optional Step If you are going to make the creme fraiche-liver
thickener, mince the rabbit liver finely and move it to a small bowl.
Vigorously mix in about 1 1/2 tablespoons creme fraiche or sour cream.
Now put the mixture into a fine-meshed sieve over a bowl and push it
through with a rubber spatula. Reserve in the fridge.
Set the oven to 375┬║F/190┬║C. Slice the top third off the heads of
garlic and drizzle the olive oil over them. Wrap the heads loosely in
foil and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, or until cloves are soft and
brown. Set aside to cool.
Chop off the tough ends of the mushroom stems and either discard or
save for stock. Roughly chop or slice the mushrooms and set aside.
Dice the rehydrated porcini. Pour the porcini soaking water though a
paper towel into another bowl. Reserve the liquid.
Heat a thick-bottomed large pot on high heat for 1 minute. Add the
mushrooms and shake the pot. Stirring continuously, dry sauté the
mushrooms until they release their water. Turn the heat down to
medium-high. Use a wooden spoon to scrape up any mushroom bits off the
bottom of the pan. Salt the mushrooms lightly. When the mushroom
liquid is mostly gone, remove them to a bowl.
Add the butter to the pot. When the butter melts, turn the heat down
to medium. Pat the rabbit pieces dry and place in the pan. Work in
batches if you need to, do not crowd the pan. Brown the pieces well
on all sides. Remove the rabbit pieces from the pot and set aside.
Increase the the heat to medium-high and add the shallots to the pot.
Saute until the shallots are nicely wilted, about 3 minutes. Stir
from time to time. Sprinkle salt over everything.
While the shallots are cooking, squeeze the roasted garlic into the
mushroom soaking water you have strained, then whisk it together.
Add the sherry or white wine to the shallots in the pot. Use a wooden
spoon to scrape off any browned bits on the bottom of the pot. Let the
sherry boil down by half. Add the mushroom-roasted garlic mixture and
the stock and stir to combine. Add the thyme, all the mushrooms, the
rabbit and the parsnips and bring everything to a bare simmer.
Simmer gently for 90 minutes. You want the meat to be close to falling
off the bone. Taste for salt right before you serve and add if needed.
Stir in the parsley.
If you are using the creme fraiche-liver mixture to thicken your stew,
turn off the heat. When the stew stops bubbling, add the mixture and
let it heat through for a minute before serving.
Serves 4.
From:
http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/rabbit_stew
Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives
MMMMM
... Always butter up the SYSOP, they taste better that way.
--- MultiMail/Win
* Origin: Outpost BBS * Johnson City, TN (1:18/200)