Mush.......any use?

[crazycanuck]

I've not visited Canada for about 4 yrs so i've forgotten what beef there tastes like Buffalo i can remember..mmmm

BTW Dianyla when are you going to tell us aboot your NZ trip??? I wanna hear about what you thought of Auckland's traffic and if it was expensive?

[Dianyla]

BTW Dianyla when are you going to tell us aboot your NZ trip??? I wanna hear about what you thought of Auckland's traffic and if it was expensive?

Whoops, I've been so busy since I got back I've forgotten to even mention it! It's definitely a more expensive country to visit than, say, South America. But the exchange rate is still somewhat favorable to even the weak US dollar. It also gets really expensive when you wander into an Icebreaker store.

We barely spent much time in Auckland and took transit the whole time. So I'm actually sure what their traffic is like. We spent most of our time down in the south, around Fiordlands and the South Coast. The Milford Track was absolutely beautiful and we were very very lucky to have clear fine weather for 4 straight days. We went kayaking in Doubtful Sound a few days later and got nearly hypothermic in the cold pouring rain, but fortunately that was just a daytrip and I had a hot bath waiting for me at the end of the day. Took a road trip along the scenic southern coast area. Oh, and we ate a lot of beef, lamb, and venison. Yummy!! I don't want to even think about my cholesterol right now, though.

I'm still in the process of trying to sort through the few trip photos that we were able to recover. We made a backup of them onto a DVD disc so that we could delete them from our memory cards and keep taking more pics... and then we lost the DVD. So we lost at least half of the photos we took. The experiences are more important than the photos, anyway. But still... ouch!

[crazycanuck]

D..when you get a min..start a new thread..

[three]

Eeek, I'm surprised no one has suggested this yet - my eyes actually got wide when I read your question and excited about what wonderful soups you could make.

Empty out a large juice container (like a big Tropicana OJ bottle, or a similarly large plastic juice container). Put the mush in there and refrigerate or freeze (depending on how much you put in there). Add new mush to the bottle each time you have some.

When you have the desired amount: make some soup.

Cook the vegetable mush at a low to medium heat in a stock pot, adding 1 cup of water for every 2 cups of mush, add seasonings (these can be flexible depending on your personal tastes...but certainly add salt).

The thickness of the stock is dependent on what type of soup you'd want to make (and soup is so easy to make and so yummy). Creamier soup = thicker stock (if you think it's too watery, add cream of tartar until it reaches desired consistency). Thinner broth soup = add water until desired consistency is reached.

Cook for at least one hour and skim/filter off any gunk that has risen to the top or any floating pieces of stuff you may have added (such as veggies, onions, or bones/meat if you wanted to turn it into a chicken broth or turkey broth, etc). Note: if you are turning it into a meat broth and have added meat/bones to the stock, you'll have to cook it much longer. Veggie broth only requires about an hour because there is already so much water in the veggies, it evaporates quicker.

Once you have your stock/broth all filtered and cooked - make your soup (which can be as simple as adding some freshly steamed veggies, or steamed tofu, or boiled chicken and veggies, or boiled/diced potatoes and oh..you get the idea). Any leftover stock can be put back in the previously mentioned plastic container and stuck in your freezer. It will keep for a LONG time (months and months) and you can thaw it out whenever you need broth or a base for gravy. There are tons of recipes for homemade stock online as well. It may take a lot more effort than store bought stock, but the soups it makes are noticeably more flavorful and delicious.

Or, you can get a saucepan - toss a bit of butter on there and some thinly diced onions, then the veggie mush, a protein source of your choice (chicken, beef, tofu, etc), some rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, and maybe a smidge of paprika or cayenne if you want some spice - cook and spread over rice. You could also add some curry to the mix if you wanted to turn it into a vegetable curry sauce.

Wordy - I know. I get excited about cooking.

[ClockworkOrange]

Eeek, I'm surprised no one has suggested this yet - my eyes actually got wide when I read your question and excited about what wonderful soups you could make.

Hey, three, you have been so helpful.

OK..............all my life I have never really eaten sensibly, or exercised but things are a changin'.

I am quite good now with riding, swimming once a week and about to go to the gym once a week (I know, not as good as all you guys out there). This has all come about when I realised I now only have 2 years until I retire..... So, although a bit late I am really trying to help me ol' body etc.

Since buying my juicer I am becoming quite obsessed, in fact I am going to a health food shop today to buy:

• Wheat grass powder
• Spirulina
• Acidophilus bacteria powder

Phew, bet that is going to cost a few bob (ooooops, cents, bucks, dollars)!!! I know nothing about these items but what the heck.

Thanks so much again.

Must dash, going to be late for work......again!

Clock

[velogirl]

clock, it's never too late to start changing your life. congratulations on the commitments you've made to improving your health!

Lorri

[ClockworkOrange]

clock, it's never too late to start changing your life. congratulations on the commitments you've made to improving your health!

Lorri

Cheers velogirl, thanks for the encouragement, it's something this site is so good for, encouragement!

Clock