huffstuff
fully equipped rock polisher
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Post by huffstuff on Oct 9, 2007 18:18:44 GMT -5
OK, time for my first recipe. I really can't believe this hasn't shown up already. White Tree Moss Agate Dip (spinach dip) 1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained 1 cup sour cream 1/2 cup cottage cheese 1 Tablespoon dried onion flakes 1 teaspoon lemon juice salt and pepper to your taste I used a slab of jadeite to evenly squeeze all of the moisture from the spinach (clickable).  Directions: combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Chill for 2 hours. Bring to room temperature before serving. Serve with vegetable dippers, pita bread wedges, or crackers. The ingredients (clickable):  The final product:  And, of course, my inspiration. Originally posted by LapidaryDreams.  It's chilling right now - hope it turns out! Amy |
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adrian65
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Post by adrian65 on Oct 9, 2007 23:21:33 GMT -5
Awesome resembling, Amy! I really thougt first that the tree agate is the chilled spinach dip!
Adrian
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 10, 2007 2:00:20 GMT -5
Adrian, so did I! Amy that is a great recipe that I will have to try. And a PERFECT resemblance to the tree agate.
Shannon
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Post by LCARS on Oct 10, 2007 2:24:58 GMT -5
What a blast seeing all the creativity going into this one! ;D Like I said, I may be able to cook something resembling a chunk of that Princeton coal I have in my display case but I could not attest to it's edibility let alone it's palatability.  |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 10, 2007 2:30:49 GMT -5
Adrian, your rat recipe was THE BEST. And I love your little petrified rat photo.
Shannon
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adrian65
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Post by adrian65 on Oct 10, 2007 9:00:08 GMT -5
Adrian, your rat recipe was THE BEST. And I love your little petrified rat photo. Shannon Thank you Shannon, but how did you figure out it's THE BEST, did you cook it? Don't tell me you sacrificed the little guy in your avatar! ;D Adrian |
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karenfh
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Post by karenfh on Oct 10, 2007 15:31:01 GMT -5
Haha, Adrian, let's see who we can get to actually test cook that recipe! Any takers from the cooking panel?  ? And, if you rotate your rock 90 degrees counter-clockwise, I think it looks like a sitting cat. That's just an observation, not an invitatation.... Amy, your recipe looks great, and I loved the use of the rock! I think your rock looks more like spinach dip than the spinach dip! Thanks!!! |
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karenfh
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Post by karenfh on Oct 10, 2007 15:33:05 GMT -5
Oh, by the way, we now have an even more complete meal, with appetizer(s)!
LCARS, it's almost Halloween, black recipes are currently 'in style', so you just go for it!
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huffstuff
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Post by huffstuff on Oct 10, 2007 16:08:24 GMT -5
Karen,
I agree, the rock DOES look more like spinach dip than the spinach dip!
Oh, well!
Amy
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 10, 2007 19:11:32 GMT -5
Adrian,
I used to hunt squirrels and eat them..........this would be no different. Just smaller, less meat, and no bushy tail. I dont think my daughters would be too happy if I sacrificed our pet rats for your recipe though.
Shannon
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karenfh
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Post by karenfh on Oct 10, 2007 20:04:43 GMT -5
squirrels, rabbits, rats (the really cute 'wood rats' as opposed to the imported Norwegian rats with scaly tails)...possums, raccoons, porcupines, skunks, badgers, prairie dogs, coyotes, deer, elk, bear, rattlesnakes, bull snakes, salamanders (we did not mean to kill it!). Sorry, folks, but at one time or another they have all made a 'dead, or sorta dead' appearance in my home, yard or freezer, thanks to my dogs, brothers, sons, etc.
Scientific note: I did collect the rat specimens for scientific purposes. Bushy tailed wood rat specimens that I collected are in the archives at UNL.
I hesitate to post that, but it was for scientific purposes.
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adrian65
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Post by adrian65 on Oct 11, 2007 0:50:31 GMT -5
Adrian, I used to hunt squirrels and eat them..........this would be no different. Just smaller, less meat, and no bushy tail. I dont think my daughters would be too happy if I sacrificed our pet rats for your recipe though. Shannon Look, Shannon, there's a squirrel on the other side of the slab!   We could make a team for a new recipe, I bring the inspirational stone and you post the squirrel recipe! Adrian |
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Post by texaswoodie on Oct 11, 2007 7:09:18 GMT -5
Squirrels? You guys are eating squirrels? Have you no shame?  ;D In my younger days, I hunted also. Now I'm old and a softy. I would rather save them than hunt them.  Curt |
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Post by Deleted on Oct 11, 2007 11:50:59 GMT -5
I dont hunt squirrels any more Curt. The only thing I hunt is deer and elk and that is to put food on the table. I may be a hunter but I am also a softy......my husband says that one of his favorite things about me is that I am happy with the simplest things in life. The highlight of my trips with him usually consist of me sitting in a parking lot for an hour gleefully watching baby squirrels, or me squealing loudly because two bunnies just ran in front of me. We once went caving and when we came out of the cave and sat for lunch, a chipmunk sat right next to us staring us down, waiting for a snack. He obviously knew the routine. I have a soft spot for small rodent-like animals for sure.
Adrian, your rat/squirrel rock is priceless. One of my little games over on Shain's forum is the finding of bunnies in cabs or slabs. I can find a bunny in practically any pattern of rock so its become a joke now.
Shannon
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huffstuff
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Post by huffstuff on Oct 12, 2007 11:34:00 GMT -5
Here is the recipe you’ve been waiting for… my Brownie Trifle. ;D ;D This recipe is from Southern Living, but I’ve been making it for over 10 years. The tricky part was finding a rock picture!  The Recipe: 1 (19.8 ounce) package fudge brownie mix ¼ cup praline or coffee-flavored liqueur (optional) 1 (3.5 ounce) package instant chocolate mousse mix 8 (1.4 ounce) toffee-flavored candy bars, crushed 1 (12 ounce) container frozen whipped topping, thawed Garnish: chocolate curls Notes: -The ounce listings are guidelines. I don’t know exactly what sizes my store-bought mixes were. -Next time I’ll try to make cake-like brownies (3 eggs instead of 2) because these were really sticky and chewy – but good! -I’ve never added the liqueur, so I can’t attest to the taste. -I used to make my own mousse. I tried the instant this time, and I actually liked it better. Chocolate pudding would probably also work. -I use Heath toffee bars, I’ve also used Skor. -To make chocolate curls, scrape the edge of a room-temperature (or warmer?) chocolate bar with a vegetable peeler. Using a thicker bar will make nicer curls than mine. - Judges, keep in mind, I used eggs and oil for the brownies, and milk for the mousse, so I meet the ingredients criteria! ;D Instructions: Prepare brownie mix and bake according to package directions in a 13x9x2 inch pan. Prick top of warm brownies at 1-inch intervals, using a meat fork, and brush with liqueur, if desired. Let cool, and crumble. Prepare chocolate mousse according to package directions, omitting chilling. [Note from Amy: I think my layers would have been more distinct if I had chilled it first, but it would have been a little harder to spread] Place half of crumbled brownies in bottom of a 3-quart trifle dish. [Note: use any glass container that will let the layers show, even individual glasses] Top with half of mousse, crushed candy bars, and whipped topping. Repeat layers with remaining ingredients, ending with whipped topping. Garnish, if desired. Chill 8 hours .
I tried a few different rocks. A large piece of sodalite (thanks, pho) had a good heft to it, and the blunt end had an edge that cut the bars without too much damage to the bag. A wedge of crazy lace was too sharp. A green/white rock from my stepmom's collection was "just right" for my daughter (Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Cutiepie and the Three Rocks...). "Mommy, I did it better than you!"
Here are my photos of Amanda using the rock to smash the candy bars. It actually worked better than my chopper. We did have to be careful not to make a big hole in the plastic bag.
Here is the finished product. The "rock" side. 
Here is my rock picture. Capitol Reef National Park, Utah.
If you take the applicable part, crop it and “layer” it, voila!
I have a few other photos that apply, but I think I'm only allowed to use one. ;D
Thanks for looking. Give it a try, it only looks difficult!
Amy
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Post by Lady B on Oct 12, 2007 11:59:49 GMT -5
Amy,
I make this "trifle", too. In our family this is know as the Decadent Chocolate Trifle. I have watched grown men using their fingers to wipe the bowl clean. This is one incredibly DELICIOUS dessert. Sometimes I dot the top with maraschino cherries or with white chocolate morsels. Dang!! Now I want some!!! ;D
Kudos to you for finding the perfect photo to go with that yummy treat!
Lady B
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adrian65
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Post by adrian65 on Oct 12, 2007 14:49:28 GMT -5
Amy, what have you done! It's ten o'clock in the evening here, just decided to have a very light dinner, and then BANG! I was hit by that recipe! Now I HAVE to eat something sweet and yummy!
And you, Kate, just added a little more salt on the wound!
Many of us mention the drolling in some posts, but this time it's literally!
Perfect resembling between the decadent chocolate trifle and the rock, Way to go Amy! Great idea!
Bye now, heading to the kitchen...
Adrian
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karenfh
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Post by karenfh on Oct 12, 2007 22:51:47 GMT -5
Oh yeah, that's one I will test in MY kitchen! Thanks Amy!
And on a less tasty, probably totaly innappriate note, I would like to explain a little more about the critters I mentioned above.
To all my fellow softies, the only critters that were killed by actual hunting were deer, elk and bear. The dogs on the farm (Archie the basset hound, and Dusty the Chesapeake mix) brought me presents. The nice porcupine they brought me cost me about $150 (2 dogs, quill removal $87 the first time, and another $90 or so when they brought it back again). They would bring me skunks only after I had flowers actually blooming, then they would leave the skunk near the door and go roll in my petunias. The possum actually left under its own power, several hours after they 'killed' it. Talk about confused dogs! The badger was attacking my basset hound, so yes, we did give the dog a little help. (more vet bills!) The rattlesnake, I took care of. It was trying to get in my front door, it was late, the kids were tired.... I sprayed it with a hose and then 'ho'ed' it. We did cook it on the grill. I basted it with an herb butter. Not bad, but lots of bones. The kids saved the skin, and I have an 11-button rattle in my jewelry box.
We did kill a raccoon, because it would not leave the yard for several days, and we were worried it might be rabid. The kids could not go outside to play...I'm sorry, but a dog/raccoon fight in the sandbox would not have been safe for my young sons! We tried to scare it off! We did shoot 2 coyotes, after we lost a young steer to the pack one winter. We left the rest of the pack alone. We have killed a few bullsnakes, as a knee-jerk reaction, thinking they were rattlers, but mostly we made them move. The salamander.... well, he turned up in the laundry room, dead. No clue, had never seen a salamander around the place before. Of course, I had never seen a porcupine around, either...
So please, don't think we just go out and kill stuff! If you live in the country, you get critters.
And funny stories, and more memories.
And Herb Basted Rattler on the Barby.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Oct 13, 2007 19:06:14 GMT -5
Mmmm, the snake sounds yummy.
Shannon
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karenfh
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Post by karenfh on Oct 14, 2007 23:16:05 GMT -5
The rattler was actually pretty tasty, altho I think I did overcook it just a tad.
I made some kick a** potato soup tonight, with homemade bread.
The soup looks just like a slab I got back from Tony (catmandew), but....
OK, Music from someone, to the song "It's my party, I'll cry if I want to!
And the words: "It's my contest, so I caa-an't enter!"
Dad gum it all!!
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? And, if you rotate your rock 90 degrees counter-clockwise, I think it looks like a sitting cat. That's just an observation, not an invitatation....
