Smooth is Fast
While the weather was pretty cool, since it wasn't raining, I suggested cooking on the grill and eating outside on the terrace. With so few opportunities left before it is too cold, I am trying to take every chance we have to be outside and enjoy the garden. And since I cut and edged the grass a couple hours earlier, the garden was also looking pretty good from the patio with gin and cranberry in my hand.
I am trying to be more "normal" of late, just hanging about doing the things that need to be done around the house, without putting too much pressure on getting them done. It seems to be working, because I tend to get more done than I was getting done earlier. A quote from the F1 Movie.
Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.
I later found out it comes from the Navy Seals.
I don't think it applies to grilling onions.
But I love grilled onions on burgers. And I have to say, I grilled up some decent burgers, even though they were super simple. One day, I will have the money to experiment more with different kinds of meats on the grill, without having to fear wasting them. But, even if that never happens, a decent grilled burger is good enough for me.
And some toasted marshmallows.
One of the things we have wanted to get in the garden for a few years is a fire pit of some kind and I found one on sale a few weeks ago that I had already been looking at. It wasn't expensive, but getting an additional 40% off makes it better, considering that we will only get to use it occasionally probably. It was taking weeks to arrive with no word, so I emailed them and apparently there was a warehouse system error and it never got sent. Two days later (Friday) it was delivered to the local post office and we got to test it for the first time.
It is nice sitting around an open fire.
We have an open fireplace inside that we use in the winter a fair bit, but being outside around a campfire has a different feel to it again. Sure, we all ended up smelling pretty smoky, but I think it talks to something primal that has evolved in us since we lived in caves. I have heard that people with sleeping problems can change their patterns by heading out into the bush under the stars, and only have natural light for a week, and it resets the circadian rhythm.
Anyone tried?
The only "mistake" I made with the fire pit was I threw a normal sized piece of wood on it at some point, and it struggled in the cool air to burn all the way down easily. If it was in the fireplace, there is far more heat retained and the wood burns easily. Not a big issue, but next time I will split the birch with a hatchet a little more, but not quite to kindling. We have a lot of firewood from the birch we cut down in the yard and split last year, and it will be dry enough to use this winter. We don't use that much wood though, since we heat using an air-water exchange system that leverages the old pipes and batteries from the oil furnace we replaced five years ago.
As said, I am working through what is apparently an endless list of things that need to get done, with the next coming up being installing some kind of fence around parts of the yard to contain a potential ferocious beast. We have found out that we might be getting our dachshund puppy (if there is a boy puppy) toward the end of the year, and I assume it is going to test the boundaries like the velociraptors from Jurassic Park.
I suspect the fence doesn't have to be very high.
How was your weekend experience?
Taraz
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It is great how easy activities like grilling and relaxing by a fire can create so much happiness and peace. Nice to see that you are enjoying those times before winter arrives.
I have spent so much of my life working and now I am trying to live a little on the other side of the coin :)
It's actually good seeing you that actually did enjoy your weekend. Working in the garden and at the same time being able to enjoy the fresh air with some grill meat to back it up. Also, luckily for you, you were able to get your order delivered after the effort you made. I'm not seeing Smallsteps, I guess you are the only one enjoying the breeze.
Haven't had a lot of luck with deliveries of late - quite a few issues from different companies. Not sure what is going on.
There were inside cutting up some salad :)
At times, delivery could be like this, especially if there is a mix-up and, like you said, maybe government policy too.
Oh, okay! It is good to have the family together.
How fun to have a campfire! Did you sing songs?
A puppy! So much fun, and so much work! ❤️
No songs this time, but I think my daughter would enjoy it.
The work will be done by my wife and daughter on this one....
Who am I kidding.
we use that saying quite a bit in disc golf too. I spent a fair amount of time sitting around a campfire myself this past weekend. It was a lot of fun! I also did a fair bit of yardwork today when we came back from camping and I just fired up the grill myself. Trying to squeak out those last weeks of summer!
Were you staying somewhere?
What are you cooking up tonight?
Yeah, we were camping about an hour and a half away at one of the state parks in Michigan. We have a couple more trips before we put the trailer away for the winter. Chicken breast and potatoes on the grill tonight!
I like chicken on the grill. Just basic (because Smallsteps is lame when it comes to spice), grilled until there is some blackened edges. Haven't done much vegetables though. We often put corn and zucchini on, but that is about it. Do you do the potatoes on the grill itself, or in a pan?
My wife cuts the potatoes up and puts them in a foil packet with some olive oil seasoning and onions. Then I put it right over the coals for ten minutes, flip it and go another ten minutes. Then I move it over to the other side of the grill until the other stuff is done. We marinated the chicken breasts in salad dressing and then had some brussels sprouts cooked on the stove top.
I was all with you until this. I don't know what happened to me as a child, but just the mention of brussels sprouts makes my jaw clench! :D
Sorry! My wife says that potatoes are a starch, not a vegetable, so we still need to have something green with our meal. They are actually quite "nutty" and delicious when prepared properly. We cut them in half and then sauté them in a pan with some olive oil and garlic, then I add some balsamic vinegar to mine before I eat them.
Look. I eat plenty of green, but I haven't put a brussels sprout in my mouth for over thirty years! I probably should try again - who knows, maybe my taste buds have worn away enough to enjoy them now.
With enough garlic...
Look. I eat plenty of green, but I haven't put a brussels sprout in my mouth for over thirty years! I probably should try again - who knows, maybe my taste buds have worn away enough to enjoy them now.
With enough garlic...
Garlic makes everything better. I eat so many more veggies now than I did when I was a kid. I couldn't stand peppers or onions, but now I eat all of those plus broccoli, asparagus, brussels sprouts. You should at least try them once. Then if you never have them again you know for sure! Make sure they are prepared well though. Bad sprouts will turn anyone off!
My weekend is "drawing to an end"
Hehehe... See my #weekend-engagement post to get that joke.
@pooky-jax and I enjoyed your cookout right along with you. We had some simple (cheap & chewy) tuff to eat steaks. Cooked on the wood pellet grill.
One of your burgers would have been much better I know this for sure now. As when a steak needs A1 sauce it is not a good steak. I used a bunch of it.
I do want one of those metal fire pit thingy mo bobs. I looked for a name and it is called a chiminea over here. Kinda wood stovey looking tho. They are also just called fire pits
Sounds alright still! :D I am not very fussy with food though.
This one is called the Landmann Memphis. There are many different versions and this is a cheaper one. :)
Enjoying an outdoor experience is always relaxing. It is part of what I call “quality of life”. I love to grill meat and have a few beers with family and friends whenever I can. But I admit that for various reasons I haven't done it in a while.
I also like to prepare and eat burgers, and I'm not picky either, as you said as long as they're decent is enough for me. Nice post.
Make the time!
I actually invited friends over, but they had other plans . So it was just the three of us. Hopefully soon someone will visit! :D
I feel that we have created a kind of system where we complain even though what we have is pretty good.
Our weekend experience was great, we went to a zoo and swimming pool, sat I jacuzzi and went out to eat some sushi yesterday. Today we are going to wrap it up by going to a nice Italian place.
That zoo looks awesome. Is that near Seattle? It looks like a desert.
What are you planning on ordering?
I ordered black squid seafood pasta:
Man, I wish we had a backyard, but my fiancee and I currently live in a 1-BR apartment. Even with a decent-sized balcony, we are not allowed to have grills there (unless it's an electric grill).
Someday, when we move to a new place, preferably a house (whether we rent or buy), we will definitely require a backyard for our dog to play in and for us to do outdoor cooking or host small outdoor events!
I live grilled onions on burgers, too! Every opportunity I can have them, I add them!
We went to a cousin's house yesterday. One of my cousin's hosted a baby shower for his pregnant wife!
We held the event at their backyard, and even though it was hot (summertime in Southern California), we still had a great time!
Someday, I'll do fun things in my own backyard. :)
Enjoy your time before it gets too cold over there, wherever you're at! ;)
Fire has a very unique effect. Sometimes it feels like being with a friend, a familiar. When we used a stove at home, when I was alone, I felt like someone else was with me. After using natural gas, I started feeling lonelier than before.
What? You went out and paid a professional leg model for this post?
There's nothing like wood fire and using it for all its purposes:
Yep!! slow living. I gotta incorporate this much more in my life. 😉😎🤙
Wow! Your fire pit looks great! I love how you can enjoy the fire outside. And it’s great that you have lots of dry wood ready for winter. We always have wood ready too, so if the gas runs out on the stove, we can still cook using the wood.