Re: Sweet Thing's Tomato Basil Soup
Dionysus
and have lousy politics, but your recipe here and for Crown Roast of Pork
look pretty good. I'll try them soon. For those, thanks and Happy New Year.
Dionysus
"Kickin' Ass and Takin' Names" <PopUl...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:t758j5d3vvcab9f4b...@4ax.com...
>
>
>
> SWEET THING'S TOMATO BASIL CRAB BISQUE
>
>
>
> 2 Tbsp. butter
> 10 oz. fresh crabmeat
> 1 med. tomato - seeded and chopped (1/2 cup)
> 1/3 cup fresh basil - chopped
> 2-3 cloves of garlic - minced
>
> Melt butter in large heavy pot over med-hi heat
> Add - crabmeat
> tomato
> basil
> garlic
> Saute 2 minutes - Watch carefully
>
> Whisk in -
> � c. all-purpose flour - stir 2 minutes
>
> Whisk in
> 1 � cup Clamato juice
> 1 c. heavy cream
> � c. ketchup
> � c. bottled clam juice
> 2 tsp. Old Bay Seasonings
> � tsp. hot pepper sauce
>
> Reduce heat to low - simmer until slightly thickened (10 min)
>
> Cool soup slightly
> Puree in blender until smooth - 2 or 3 batches
> Return to pot
>
> Stir in
> � c. water
> 2 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
> Season w salt and pepper
>
> Can be made 1 day ahead - chill uncovered until cool
> Cover - keep refrigerated
>
> Bring to simmer before serving
> Garnish with basil
Kickin' Ass and Takin' Names
<no.sur...@never.net> wrote:
>I'm an amateur chef as well as amateur astronomer. You are crude and vulgar,
>and have lousy politics, but your recipe here and for Crown Roast of Pork
>look pretty good. I'll try them soon. For those, thanks and Happy New Year.
>
>Dionysus
>
This tomato basil crab bisque is one of our favorites. Use fresh
basil if you have it, makes a lot of difference. We live at the
confluence of the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay and can get fresh
crab meat, which helps, too.
About the crown pork roast -- the recipe gives roasting times of 15 -
18 min per lb. Mine was 12 lbs so I figured 15 min X 12 lbs = 3
hours. I checked internal temp at 2:15 and it was done. In fact, the
internal temp was 170 deg -- pork is done at 160 deg. The roast was
excellent and was a big hit but it was slightly dry.
Of course, pork has a tendency to be dry but I wanted this one to be
more moist. Next time I cook one of these, I'll make some changes:
1. I'll watch the internal temp more closely and pull it out at 160.
2. Probably will cover it loosely with a big sheet of foil to hold
moisture in.
3. Will put 1 - 2 cups of half-and-half water and cheap white wine in
the bottom of the roasting pan, put the roast on a rack to keep it out
of the water, and baste the roast 2 - 3 time while roasting.
I have a good sized herb garden and all the herbs in these recipes
come fresh from the garden. Oregano, thyme, sage, tarragon, and
rosemary live through the winter, though I do harvest and dry them all
summer and fall, so, for those I have both fresh and dried varieties.
At the first frost, I dig up my largest basil plant and bring it
inside -- put it in a large pot on a rolling stand and park it in
Sweet Thing's bathroom (she has a big master bath to herself), where
it thrives during the winter -- gives us fresh basil all winter to
supplement the basil I have frozen through the summer and fall.
I'm fortunate to have built a new house last year in a good dark sky
location -- on the best nights here, Andromeda Galaxy and Orion nebula
are naked eye objects -- barely, but visible. I spend a few hours a
week outside with my Orion XT-12 Dob. Spent a lot of time this summer
observing the DSO's in Saggitarius. My project for 2010 is to check
off all the Messier objects -- starting with the winter objects next
week -- using the book "Deep Sky Companion: The Messier Objects," by
Stephen O'Meara as a guide.
Dionysus
Naw...spending months logging Messier objects is for wussies. Do a Messier
Marathon; see how many of the 110 you get in a single night. I got 63 one
November a few years ago at my astronomy club's observatory using our
Celestron 14" S-C.
I lived in McLean, VA when I was with a TV network's news bureau in D.C.
Used to go to Baltimore often for the raw bars. Good eating I still miss.
Thanks for the tips on the recipes...I'll adjust the wording on them.
Dionysus
Kickin' Ass and Takin' Names
<no.sur...@never.net> wrote:
>Naw...spending months logging Messier objects is for wussies. Do a Messier
>Marathon; see how many of the 110 you get in a single night. I got 63 one
>November a few years ago at my astronomy club's observatory using our
>Celestron 14" S-C.
>
>I lived in McLean, VA when I was with a TV network's news bureau in D.C.
>Used to go to Baltimore often for the raw bars. Good eating I still miss.
>
>Thanks for the tips on the recipes...I'll adjust the wording on them.
>
>Dionysus
>>
How did you plan a Messier Marathon?
Seems to me that I should make a list of Messier objects and when and
where they are visible throughout one night:
-- Open my planetarium software -- Starry Night Pro;
-- Set the time for after EENT at my location and see which Messier
objects are visible; note their locations
-- Bump the time ahead by an hour or so, see which objects become
visible then; note their locations
-- Do this until dawn; result would be a list of what to see, and,
when and where to look for it.
My XT-12 has the Intelliscope feature, though I rarely use it. It
make finding objects a snaps, assuming I aligned it carefully to
start.
Dionysus
That's the easy way...if you really want a challenge, go 'star hopping',
using charts.
Find the time of evening astronomical twilight for the date of your marathon
(one of three official "twilights"). Once twilight hits, quickly log as many
Messiers in the low eastern sky as you can; it's darker there than in the
west. They are easier to find.
Then quickly slew back to the western sky, log those nearest the horizon,
and work your way east until you come to those already logged. Skip over
those, and wait for the late arrivals to come up over the eastern horizon.
November-January is the best time...long dark nights, plus your latitude (if
near Baltimore) is about 39 degrees north, nearly half way between the
equator and north pole. You get a good look north and south provided you
have a far horizon.
Take a large thermos of tomato bisque for bone warming.
Dennis
Dionysus
"Dionysus" <no.sur...@never.net> wrote in message
news:292dnbRVvr-2JKrW...@giganews.com...
Did a bit of research on MM's for you. Learned that at our relative
lattidues, mid-March is actually best time. Read more below.
Dennis
Messier Marathon Tips
Here we will give some tips which will hopefully help to run an even more
successful Messier Marathon.
Be aware that a Messier Marathon is a major observational effort, and will
much more likely be a success if it is well prepared. So take enough time
for preparation.
Select a good site with free horizon especially to the west and to the
southeast. The success in this thread may give or take you several Messier
objects both in the evening (west) and morning (southeast).
If ever possible, get as much experience as you can in advance in locating
in particular the most critical objects: M74 and M77 in the evening and M30
as well as M55, M75, M72, and M73 in the morning. Also, try to get familiar
with your equipment, the night sky, and as many Messier objects as possible
in advance - this will probably increase your final score in the Marathon
significantly.
The night will be long, and unless you are in a very preferred location, it
will be cold. Get equipped with appropriate warm dressing and warm beverages
(coffee will be nice, also something to eat - again, this night will be
looong !) A nearby warm room may be a really good thing, as it will be
likely that you can take a break somewhen after midnight, when you will have
to wait that the remaining objects will rise in the east. For the same
reason, an alarm clock might be of value in case you would like to be
reminded, or waked up, when it is time to go out again for the rest.
Get prepared with a red light, some good charts, a check list, and some
observing aids - I'd recommend Astro Cards set 1 plus Machholz' Messier
Marathon Observers Guide, and/or one of the other observing aids listed in
the Messier Goodie List. If you are not exactly familiar with the night sky,
also have a planisphere handy and perhaps one of the constellation guides
with maps - the Audubon Society's Field Guide to the Night Sky, or
Peterson's Field Guide to the Stars and Planets are handy choices here. You
may like to print out our Messier Marathon Observer's Form to record your
observations. Don't forget to have a sufficiently good watch or clock handy
for recording times when you have seen the objects.
In any case, the present author would recommend to have an additional pair
of binoculars handy - 10x50 is a good choice. This may be of value for
locating some objects which may be difficult because of either a long optics
of your main instrument (e.g., for M33), help to find objects faster if your
finder is not exactly superb, or enable you to look from another place if
just this one tree or house is in way to see this or that object.
Get your equipment up and checked timely enough so that you are ready for
observing when the brightest stars just get visible. Be sure that you have
plenty of time to get everything prepared - you really won't like it to miss
some objects in the evening just because of bad timing, won't you ?
Moreover, there may be planets, comets, or other objects observable low in
the west shortly after sunset, and if you like you can combine the Messier
Marathon with a Solar System Marathon - these might just be good targets
before it is dark enough for deep sky objects.
The most critical objects in the evening are M74 and M77 - you have only a
short time chance to glimpse them, so try them as quick as possible. If you
lose one of them don't try too long, as the other might also get lost, and
there are others, like M33, which are also urgent.
For M74, look for 2nd mag Hamal (Alpha Arietis), which you should locate as
early as possible, below Andromeda (and Triangulum which you will probably
only see later). From here to the southwest, locate mag 2.64 Sharatan (Beta
Arietis) and its 4th mag binary neighbor Mesarthim (Gamma Arietis), and go
further in the same direction to mag 3.63 Eta Piscium. From this star, M74
is located 0.5 deg North and 1.3 deg East, near the stars 103 and 105
Piscium. Note: With magnitude 9.4, this galaxy is quite faint, and one of
the more difficult galaxies in Messier's catalog. This is the reason why
Machholz and some others recommend to look for easier M77 first.
M77 can be found 0.7 degrees southeast of 4th-mag Delta Ceti, which may be
located from Aldebaran going via the Hyades and a chain of moderately bright
stars in Taurus along the line over 2.5-mag Menkar (Alpha Ceti). This
galaxy, at magnitude 8.9, and with a conspicuous central region is much
easier to observe than M74.
Having located, or eventually failed to locate, these two galaxies, you are
still adviced to hurry, on to M33, which is considerably easier to locate in
Triangulum. Then comes M31 with M32 and M110, which should be easy, compared
to the previously observed objects. Still, time is short for observing M52,
M103, M76, M34, M45 and M79. When you are there, you have much more time and
won't probably lose any more evening object.
Take care not to overlook an object; carefully follow your checklist. Once
set, the object is lost for the night. With some exceptions: The objects
M52, M103, M31, M32, M110 and M76 may give you a second chance in the
morning if you miss them in the evening. If you miss any, note this
carefully in order to try this second time!
You will eventually come to a point when you have observed all Messier
objects which are currently observable for you, and have to wait that the
morning objects rise; it is sometimes recommended to take this after the
Virgo Cluster, M83, M68 and M102 (NGC 5866). At this point, you will have
observed all galaxies in Messier's catalog (unless you missed one which you
can get in the morning). Depending on experience and your observing
practice, this will occur somewhen around or after midnight. Now you can
take a break from the marathon, observe something else, return to certain
interesting objects for a more detailed study, or take some warm beverage
(the night, to now, was cool in every respect, wasn't it). You can even
sleep or do something else. Only take care to return timely so that you have
at least 2-3 hours for the remaining objects before morning twilight, so
return latest around 3 am.
If you have decided to observe more and other deep sky objects, here is a
list of objects from which you could select (also available with data).
These objects were selected because most of them should be observable even
with smaller Messier Marathon equipment, are situated in the neighborhood of
Messier objects, or are of particular interest due to some reason.
On tour again, as before, carefully follow your checklist not to overlook an
object ! You should have enough time for completing most of the list, and
will finally have to wait for the last objects to rise. One after the other
will come up, and then the time will come when you are waiting for the
last - M30, or if you are too much north, or it is too early in March, M72,
M73, or M2. This will be a gamble with patience - and it may happen that you
won't see it - but if it should finally show up - what a night !
>
Kickin' Ass and Takin' Names
<no.sur...@never.net> wrote:
THANK YOU!!!
I'll study these tips, try a few practice runs, then go for it!!
Dionysus
Okay, let me know how ya did.
Dennis
>
hal
<PopUl...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>This tomato basil crab bisque is one of our favorites. Use fresh
>basil if you have it, makes a lot of difference. We live at the
>confluence of the Potomac River and Chesapeake Bay and can get fresh
>crab meat, which helps, too.
>
>About the crown pork roast -- the recipe gives roasting times of 15 -
>18 min per lb. Mine was 12 lbs so I figured 15 min X 12 lbs = 3
>hours. I checked internal temp at 2:15 and it was done. In fact, the
>internal temp was 170 deg -- pork is done at 160 deg. The roast was
>excellent and was a big hit but it was slightly dry.
>
>Of course, pork has a tendency to be dry but I wanted this one to be
>more moist. Next time I cook one of these, I'll make some changes:
>
>1. I'll watch the internal temp more closely and pull it out at 160.
>
>2. Probably will cover it loosely with a big sheet of foil to hold
>moisture in.
>
>3. Will put 1 - 2 cups of half-and-half water and cheap white wine in
>the bottom of the roasting pan, put the roast on a rack to keep it out
>of the water, and baste the roast 2 - 3 time while roasting.
I do crown roast pork every Christmas Eve dinner. Have for years. I
do a nice moist sage/garlic/onion/sherry bread stuffing and fill the
cavity heaping as high as you can. Take a square of aluminum foil and
cover your stuffing and the top of the roast, everything except for
the very ends of the chops on the outside of the crown base. The
beauty to this method is all your choice meat is inside, surrounded by
bone, and now heaped with moist stuffing and covered with foil. Cook
according to standard roasting timetables. Take off foil last half
hour to dry your stuffing a little and brown it up. Comes out perfect
every time ! Makes a wonderful presentation at the table.
Love it.
Dionysus
"hal" wrote in message news:4b38b3b0...@news.newsguy.com...
All right, dammit, you two are making me real hungry...just hope PETA ain't
watchin'.
Happy New Year
Dennis
>
hal
<no.sur...@never.net> wrote:
>>
>> I do crown roast pork every Christmas Eve dinner. Have for years. I
>> do a nice moist sage/garlic/onion/sherry bread stuffing and fill the
>> cavity heaping as high as you can. Take a square of aluminum foil and
>> cover your stuffing and the top of the roast, everything except for
>> the very ends of the chops on the outside of the crown base. The
>> beauty to this method is all your choice meat is inside, surrounded by
>> bone, and now heaped with moist stuffing and covered with foil. Cook
>> according to standard roasting timetables. Take off foil last half
>> hour to dry your stuffing a little and brown it up. Comes out perfect
>> every time ! Makes a wonderful presentation at the table.
>>
>> Love it.
>**********
>All right, dammit, you two are making me real hungry...just hope PETA ain't
>watchin'.
you mean People Eating Tasty Animals?
>
>Happy New Year
yea, you too, you rightwing nutball... ;)
>
>Dennis
>>
>
Dionysus
"hal" wrote in message news:4b38e8e6...@news.newsguy.com...
I don't deny either...I am right wing, and I do enjoy eating tasty animals.
Made a very nice turkey breast tonight with a bit of cardonnay in the
roasting pan and two strips of bacon laid across the top of the beast.
Finished it off with a basting with duck fat and cranking up the oven to
broil for a crackly skin. Very tasty indeed.
Dennis
>>
>