Easter dinner...not like what my mother made.

Well, my mom is in Germany with my sister and brother-in-law, and the oldest son returned to Santa Cruz.  There was only the three of us for dinner, plus my cooking buddy Bill (the "donater" of the "manifest destiny" recliner I used during the pig roast), his wife Sue, and friend Katherine and her son, Clayton.  No one wanted ham, and I decided that whatever I made I would cook on the propane BBQ.  I decided to make tacos.

Yeah, I know...you probably never figured that I would have a propane grill (I did some fall cleaning/purging and now only have three charcoal grills), but propane does serve a purpose.   Did I mention the propane grill has six burners and has 2 propane tanks?

Bill (pictured above)  and I rescued this bad boy from the trash heap, rebuilt the leg supports, degreased the innards, and replaced all the rotted sheet metal inside. It is the perfect heat source for some 17" skillets.  Please note the ever-vigilant resident food thiefs Josie and Vlad waiting for a hand out, or the opportunity to steal some tasty bits from the grill.

 The skillet on the left has pork marinated in onions, spices, achiote paste, and pineapple.  The other dish is chicken.

Tortillas were heated on the griddle.

Next, the garlic Tilapia was cooked.

It was all good.  Please note that we are not  BBQ amateurs, and are not known for dropping food meat on the ground or randomly flinging edible bits about the yard or kitchen.   No snacks for the pups tonight.

Have you ever seen a more disappointed dog?  I guess I would look just as sad if I only had kibble 24-7, especially when it's taco time.

Happy Easter!

Meat.....a perfectly acceptable substitute for tofu.

-If we aren't supposed to eat animals, then why are they made out of meat? 

Meat's back on the menu.  Not that it ever went away on my menu, but I am proclaiming my love for animal parts.

Tasty. Animal. Parts.

I know, someone out there will be offended by my post, and start spouting off about how unhealthy meat is, that meat is "murder,"  that farmed animals live horrible lives, processing plants are cruel and torturous, etc, etc, wah wah wah, boo hoo...The reality is that I have made the decision not to clutter up my conscience with this issue.  If meat was good enough for the men who forged this great nation, then why would I, a mere sentient being in the great American lumpenproletariat, attempt to think that I know better than, let's say, the father of this great nation, George Washington.  Case in point:

 In the picture above, George is is freezing his cojones off in Valley Forge (my 6x great grandfather, Tobias Maybee, served with GW at Valley Forge).  You and I both know, they ate meat, and lots of it.  Battles were not won, and winters were not survived, by men who ate quinoa (pronounced keen-wah).

Come on, admit it.  You know that our patriot forefathers did not even contemplate eating a anything that remotely resembled the "harvest of shame" you see above.  And how do I know they ate meat? Let's take a look at the kitchen at Washington's Valley Forge headquarters:

Please note the roasted chicken, a ham, and what looks surprisingly like a bundt cake in the open oven door.  Sure, there are apples on the table, which are probably destined for fritters, apple pie, or distilled into applejack.  Oh yeah, there is a big ol' basket of taters on the floor. Taters are the perfect accompaniment to meat. 

You know, George was asked whether he wanted to the first king of America, but he wisely chose to be the President.  

Why? 

It's obvious to me.  He anticipated a future time when his progeny and those of our forefathers would live in a society wherein the tyranny of vegetarianism and the oppression of whole grains and other plant matter would be foisted on an unassuming public as an acceptable main dish, all in the name  of  "health" and "protecting our children."  Instead, he offered a subtle yet scathing rebuke of those individuals that emulated the dictatorial and paternalistic "European ruling elite,"  and, instead, founded a nation wherein the common individual could make choices and chart his or her own path to destiny, fueled on by carbs and animal flesh.  Despite the misguided beliefs of people that somehow think they know what is best for us (just look at NY and the ridiculousness of regulating sodas, etc), George's unwavering example of free will lives on to this day in buffets all across this great nation, where all-you-can-drink sodas, piles of fried chicken, and hundreds of variations of potato products remind us that we are a nation of free thinkers (and eaters).

And while we are talking about meat, the Hobart corporation makes some of the best meat friendly equipment around. Sure, you can buy all your meat prepared by the store, but if you read my first few posts, you will realize how I feel about dealing with the whole product, not just what a retailer puts on styrofoam and under Saran Wrap.   Below are photos of my Hobart 4212 grinder.  A stainless steel and bakelite Art Deco beauty that can grind 20 pounds of meat a minute. 

The "beast" weighs about 100 lbs.  Compare it to the largest Kitchen Aid mixer:

Another excellent product is the Hobart Steakmaster.  It tenderizes or "cubes"  beef, pork, or poultry (check out Josie, the sneaky-ass dog, looking for an opportunity to hork some beef):

These former chuck steaks are destined for fajitas, chicken fried steak, stir fry, and Swiss steak:

Although it was 10:30 p.m. when I started playing with the machine, I decided to make a cheese steak.  I sliced a cube steak into strips and sauteed it up with some Worcestershire sauce:

I added mushrooms and onions, put it on some dark rye with Swiss cheese, and grilled it in the pan until the cheese melted (ok, onions and mushrooms may be considered vegetables, but they are not a main dish, but rather, an accessory to the main dish).  



 MMMMMMMM...sure beats the pants off of a Brussels sprout sandwich:

I think George would agree, and that's good enough for me!