Rex and Ty's Food Blog

         When I was growing up pancakes were a part of my Mother's breakfast repertoire along with cold cereal and occasionally bacon and eggs. We had a few varieties of cereals but certainly not the football field length aisles of choices today and especially at the small grocery near us. So to feed a large mob of boys, Mom would make pancakes.      Pancakes to us were poured dry from a box mixed with water and pan fried. If she really wanted to make them special she would dress them up with the optional egg. Now don't get me wrong this was living large! A warm breakfast of filling cakes satisfied four hungry boys. We would liberally butter these and try to drown them with a warm sugary watery substance that was supposed to simulate maple syrup.  Usually it was poured from a glass or later plastic bottle that was shaped like a lady. This "syrup" was sugary enough that we didn't mind the fact that it was only a simulation of maple syrup. ...

     I don't live on Sesame Street but I think Big Bird made an appearance here. Sometimes I order meat from a company called D'artagnan . Mostly duck but if they have something on sale or an item I can't get locally, I'll try it. This time when I ordered my duck they had Capons on sale.    I am more than a little embarrassed. I lived on a farm for many years and raised chickens for eggs and butchering.  I had heard of chickens called Capons and thought that they must be a different breed. My favorite breeds were Rhode Island Reds and Barred Rocks. They were good egg layers and were meaty enough to butcher. Occasionally we would buy a meat breed but we wanted chickens that were good for egg production as well as meat. So what about the Capons?     I did a little research and found out that the Capon I had ordered was a rooster that had been gelded or castrated at a young age. And according to the D'artagnan website they are fed a rich diet o...

     I distinctly remember The first time I ate duck. My brother was a raccoon hunter in our younger days. He had come home to go hunting with some friends. After dropping the dogs out to hunt they got separated and the dogs didn't return. Usually if this happens a hunter will leave his coat and lantern near the spot where they started their hunt. When you return in the morning the dog or dogs are usually curled up in the coat waiting for your return. Not this time. He soon got a call from the county sheriff's office. If he wanted his dogs he had to make restitution for some livestock that they had killed. With checkbook in hand he headed for the farm to meet a deputy.      It wasn't until he was at the farm that he realized that livestock meant ducks and geese. The officer asked the owner how many were killed. A few geese and many ducks totaling 37 birds. My brother asked how much and was given a price. He wrote the check and handed it to the officer with...

    So Lily and I are back to our culinary travels of our DNA destinations. She has three percent DNA from the African country of Mali. I of course knew nothing about this country so we had to do a little research. It is a land locked country in the north west section of Africa. Algeria is to the North, Niger to the East, Guinea to the South and Senegal and Mauritania to the West. I must admit a couple of countries near Mali I haven't heard of. Since my geography lessons many years ago it seems that many of the countries have changed names.       With the research I found out that there is a lot strife in the area at this time. Warring factions trying to gain control of areas and killing and displacing hundreds of thousands of people. It sort of disturbs me that I didn't know about this. I haven't seen anything on our news channels about this. This is not a political blog so I'll only say that I am glad to live in a country where our warring takes place in the ...

     When I was growing up my folks taught me that when you go to work for someone, no matter the situation, treat it like you are in a week to week contract. That way you would always be trying to prove yourself to that employer. They also taught me to be loyal to them and they will be loyal to you. My father worked for the same company for over 55 years and I saw the evidence of his and their loyalty. Unfortunately I do not believe that is the case with employers today. I believe loyalties have shifted from employees to investors and stock holders. Employees at all levels are just pawns in a corporate chess game. So the time came, I was downsized. Nothing personal. Let's just forget the 36 plus years I worked for the company, they needed to let me go. Their financial security depended upon it I'm sure.     I remember the first day I felt the impending doom coming. My lean manufacturing advisor told me to come up with a way that I could show that I plan each p...