Random thoughts from the moose cave.

dys will roll over in his grave if I start eating tofu.

just so you know...

Exercise would hurt?

sounds painful...



mr snowplow just called. gonna go swap trucks. I kinda figgered he'd start getting jittery.

it's done, and the shop is puffing clouds of smoke out the chimbley as it warms up...

back in a bit...

ok. I lied.

I hadda crash. hard. 3 hours sleep caught me from behind and ripped me up pretty good, actually.

but I'm still kickin' and on the path to something...

I hate these kinda cold days. I got the stove too hot. now I gotta go outside and cool down. and then I will see something I needa do.

oh well.

Ima go see what smoky is up to, and mebbe make us a twofer dinner.

we are headed back for a week of normal Kansas winter, gonna stay under freezing for a while after tomorrow...

Didja get a bit more sleep?

Still kicking is definitely better than not.

eventually.

maybe had a nasty side effect from my new drugs. woke up wet about 5. pillow soaked through. shirt dripping...

then I put a log on the fire and slept again until noon.

figuring out how much I cook with milk.

no more mashed taters. Ima make some for skoky tonight anyways...gotta use my old milk up...

you can use chicken or veggie broth in place of milk in mashed potatoes. Not exactly the same, but rice bread/pasta isn't exactly like wheat bread/pasta either.

I'll try that at some point.

I bought an after 5 wally discounted roast chicken the other night. the end of it will make some soup. gonna try and keep some broth around...

I prefer mash with chicken or mushroom/veggie broth - extra scrumptious rich flavour. Then again, I often smush broth/gravy into roasted taters because I just love the flavour combo.

but I make world class mashed potatoes. light and fluffy and....

this is getting tougher all the time.

I brought smoky a basket o cheese and sour cream and...

(I've not relinquished my butter yet)

they can still be fluffy without milk

in fact, they might be fluffier (kinda like it works with eggs)

you might be able to continue to use hard cheese (like ancient cheddar - aged goat cheese) and some lower lactose yogurt - which is amazing in mash

I'd like to be able to do that.

I miss my yogurt too...

time will tell...

how about a non-dairy white sauce so I can make cream tuna on fake toast...?

I'm sitting here psyching myself up to have sardines for supper. with my squash and broccoli. (with a little butter )

what kind of man eats dry broccoli?

I usually make cheese sauce, so I am trying...

This one might work for you:

http://dairy-free.food.com/recipe/thick-rich-gluten-free-dairy-free-roux-white-sauce-134473

Thick , Rich Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free Roux/White Sauce

2 tablespoons non-hydrogenated margarine
1 -2 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons extra-fine rice flour (see note)
2 tablespoons garbanzo flour (chickpea, gram)
1 teaspoon potato starch
1 ¼ cups gluten-free chicken stock
1 ¼ cups rice milk
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
½ teaspoon dried basil (optional)
½ teaspoon dried oregano (optional)
¼ teaspoon garlic powder (optional)
¼ teaspoon onion powder (optional)
¼ teaspoon dried dill (optional)

Directions:

Note: The rice flour you usually find is rather gritty (Arrowhead Mills, etc), so it is best to get your rice flour at an Asian market, where you can find powdered rice flour--it has the same feel as cornstarch.

In a small bowl, mix flours and potato starch with a fork until mixed together.

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, melt margarine with oil over medium heat.

Whisk flour mixture into oil/butter mixture until it forms a paste.

Whisk in chicken stock and rice milk.

Add spices and Worcestershire.

Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, until thick.

If too thick, add more rice milk.

If too thin, mix 1 tsp of (the garbanzo flour thickens better, but has a stronger taste) more flour with 1 T of cold water, and then stir into the sauce.

Repeat if necessary.

Here's a site that could be helpful. It lists dairy-free/lactose-free cheese substitutes, the brands and websites where it can be ordered.

http://www.godairyfree.org/Food-to-Eat/Shopping-List/Cheese-Alternatives.html


On the same site is a list of recipes for cheese-substitute sauces:

http://www.godairyfree.org/Dairy-Substitutes/Other-Subs-Cheese/Cheese-Sauce-Substitutes.html

A long time ago, when I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, another IBD, I had to stay away from dairy products for long time. Now, I can have dairy in moderation. Everything in moderation! Then, both of our children were allergic to milk, as infants. Fortunately, they outgrew it, but I did learn, during that period about soy products.

About.com has some recipes for dairy-free substitutes. The replacements for milk probably would work for your creamed tuna. (I like creamed tuna, too.)

http://dairyfreecooking.about.com/od/techniquessubstitutions/tp/Cooking-Substitutions.htm

The kind that would eat quiche.

My goodness Tico. I thought that you were at the Taj Mahal. Rock's a real man, so he won't east that stuff.

Someone with his own teeth

that made me laugh...

I steam smoky's broccoli extry long so's he can chew it.

bubba is vacationing inside for a bit. Stinky is less than pleased with the arrangement. but non-violent about it so far...

got my leftover wally's roasted chicken in a pot of hot water. soon I hope it smells of soup. kinda hungry. got my schedule jacked up pretty good last night.

gonna just rest and recover today. bitter cold front hovering for the next coupla days. but nothing like the 17 below of a year ago...