Had to have some hot grilled Bif, so here we are. But, had to keep it healthy too & get those veggies. Now you have Red Potatoes, sweet corn, & green beans from the garden plus hot grilled crooked necked squash too. The squash & taters are seasoned with Walton’s Beer & Sriracha seasoning & it is good!

Well, I finally was able to squeeze in the 4th of July effort. We enjoyed these slow smoked ribs and shank (no crutch used, just slow smoke) that I made every effort to produce something halfway decent while writing reports & working at the same time thought the holiday. Of course it took us several days to chew through these delicious morsels that were paired up with smoked corn on the cob, potato salad, basic BBQ beans, & a tomato cucumber watermelon salad from the garden. No time nor any room left for Strawberry Ice Cream though this year.

Well, I finally had a chance to load a few photos from that Gumbo I made last week before hitting the road. I am still reeling from the road, but lots more work to do. So I won’t say much.
Some folks figure it is that Roux that makes the Gumbo. Here is a photo of it just before it is ready. No time for sure for picture taking when it gets ready. You gotta move fast.

All I know is Here’s the Gumbo & I like Gumbo. I wanted to do that nice display with the rice & cottage cheese & green onions & French Bread, but there was too much gobbling going on.

Smoked Turkey Breasts (Brined with Walton’s Turkey Brine & a little Waltons Maple Bacon Cure), Smoked stuffing (cornbread style with pecans, apples, cranberries, chorizo, etc.), Smoked Mashed Taters, Homemade Rosemary herb bread, gravy, & green beans in maple butter herb sauce.

Finally got a chance to get some photos in. First photo is March, next two are today after nearly a month with no significant rain then weeks of very heavy rain. Everything is a little sparse. The tomatoes are Better Boy I believe, German Queen, & San Marzano. We ate all the cabbages, carrots, asparagus & harvested most of the Elephant Garlic. Still getting a few green beans, tomatoes, peppers, chard, basil, onions, eggplants, mints, cucumbers, etc.

These beef ribs are really tasty. Just like eating prime rib eye, but not enough & just falls off the bone. Got some on sale last week at Piggly Wiggly for just under $2.00 a pound.

Then some folks say no, it is the Trinity that counts. Here is a little bit of Trinity for you, or more. Then maybe its just that ol stewing hen running around out back that does it. Whoops, where did them two cups of Red Wine go?

Snacks Welcome to the neighborhood & don’t forget the Blue. We are glad to have you & we know you will enjoy this community.
Yes, I have tried that too, a long, long time ago. Let me tell you though, aging, deboning, & making sausage & tasty delights for your family & friends on your own will not only save you lots of money in the long run, but it is fun, satisfying, & most importantly it is tasty. You will be able to experiment with flavors of your own, not to mention all the possibilities that Walton’s has for you to try. Then, there is the community here & we are her to help you in any way we can. Enjoy the Blue Life!

Austin Thank you for the two hats. Andrew & I have been on the road for the past few days & just got back. Margaret called the neighbors up the hill & they are coming to get the hats for their grandkids this weekend. We know they will thoroughly enjoy them & might I say, nice quality hats too. Should got a few for our gang.

Thanks,

Dave

Randie Nulph You probably have 240 VAC, you may just need to add a dedicated circuit for it, if there is sufficient availability. You would have to first find out if you have the electrical space & capacity, then decide if you want the expense of adding it, whether or not it is worth it.

johnsbrewhouse Wishing the very best. That is just about the way I feel too, but Margaret says no more house building & the house itself is not too bad, good bones, pretty good layout for something I did not design (just kidding). I would not mind being a little further out or at least more secluded. I learned a long, long, long time ago to stay away from those HOAs. I will not live in one period, now. First experience with one was about 40 years ago & I was excited about it & wanted to do good things & help. That is not what everyone one else involved in them wants & most of it borders on ridiculousness, in my humble opinion. The we did one that had one, but they assured us, it exists, but no one pays & everybody just works together. It was very private & secluded. Then after several years of being there & volunteering time & tractor work, etc. to help keep things up & do the right thing, someone got the wise idea & found he could legally do so, to revamp it & collect back dues from folks from years of not paying. You can just imagine. Well, I learned my lesson twice, that’s it, No More! Please pardon my rant, but I am passionate about it.

Chef I remember Ville Platte fondly.

processhead How in the devil did you come across that beautiful piece of furniture?

Chef It is sad. There are some good folks down there.

johnsbrewhouse We are in the exact same boat & I mean DITTO. Hang in there. I have pretty much come to accept it as we have been here about 20 years now & Margaret does not want to hear me talking about building another one. Now, she can get a little teed off with it, but we have looked & tried & there really is not anything better available. They try selling us something too, but then it is strange, when we tell them we might possibly be interested, they THEN CONFIRM our location & say, oh, we do not have that available where you are…

processhead If you like oysters, especially Apalachicola of course, you will like Oyster Dressing. The only problem is that they have gotten ridiculously expensive (what hasn’t, it seems) here lately all of the sudden. They first started going up bad after Hurricane Michael & of course, they promised they would go back down soon as everything settled down. Well, that was what, two years ago now, & they just got worse.

twilliams I am with you. Yes, the further into the future we seem to go, the less I like many of the new body designs. Call me what you want.

twilliams I just looked too. Wow, I don’t know what happened to them. Their inventory looks way down though & a lot of the trucks were only next year & this year, so it looks like they have sold everything but the latest. I saw the prices too. Believe me, I paid no where near that much, not even close, & could not afford it if I had to. That is crazy. I hope you are able to find something right. You would think by nearly October you would be able to. I got mine on September 1st of last year & it was perfect for the most part as I indicated. I don’t know if you talk to them if they might have something else or not. There used to be another one like them in Hempstead, Texas. However, I understand they went out of business. My brother said a NFL football player bought them out & drove the business into the ground with debt. Wishing you the very best.