Fishing Opener

We went to Lake Vermillion for fishing opener. It is a nice lake and we stayed with nice people.
This is Nate, bundled up, it was a little chilly in the early morning.

Here is Nick, also chillin'. We all caught fish, but because of the slot limit we could only keep one. The rest were too big! Hah!
This is my fish. We could have kept him, he was a good eating size Northern Pike, but it was early in the day and we thought we could catch more. Sadly, we did not! We did eat the one walleye we could keep, and he was delicious. If you ever catch a good amount of northerns, you can pickle them. Then they keep in the refrigerator for a while and are nice with crackers. I like this recipe because the fish gets very firm. I eat pickled herring once a year (at Christmas) and the texture is always a little too floppy for me.

Al's Mom's pickled Northern

1 1/4 cup salt
3/4 gallon water

Cut fish in pieces (an inch or two square) (recipe does not specify amount of fish, but I'd say one or two big ones) and soak in salt water in refrigerator for 48 hours.

Drain and rinse fish.

Put in non-metal container and cover with white vinegar. Let sit in this in refrigerator for another48 hours.

2 cups sugar
2 cups white vinegar
2 cups White Satin wine (I don't know this wine, but with that much sugar and vinegar I think any white wine will do.)
2-3 large onions, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced (optional)
1 box pickling spice
extra bay leaves, if you have them

Dissolve sugar in vinegar, add other ingredients and drained fish. Wait 4 days to eat this. Keep refrigerated. Keeps 6-8 weeks.

Color me RED!

What you think when you see this video?




A. Oh, look, that nice lady is trying to show us that she is wearing the same T-shirt! Must be a fan of musical theater...

B. Oh my God, a crazy woman is chasing me across a parking lot, trying to show me her breasts! Run for your life!

Yes, well, I was going for "A", but the answer is apparently "B". I was at the grocery store and saw a woman with her husband in the parking lot. She was wearing her "Wicked" t-shirt and so was I. I made the above motion so as to (wordlessly) point out our shared taste in clothing and entertainment. The problem is, she didn't see me, only her husband did, and he had NO IDEA what I was doing. From the appalled and terrified look on his face, he thought I was coming on to him and (insanely) pointing out my rack.

When I realized this, I tried harder to get him to understand my innocent intentions, but he, um, started running. I didn't want to leave him with the wrong impression, so I yelled, "We are wearing the same t-shirt!", except he and I were not clad alike, so it didn't help. I slunk into the store, blushing from head to toe.

Sadly, this is not even my MOST embarrassing moment. I'll tell you that another time.

Blushing Breasts (Tandoori)

1 cup plain yogurt, divided
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp salt
1/2 tablespoon cinnamon
1 small jalapeno
6 cloves garlic
a little red food coloring
1 inch chunk of fresh ginger
1 small onion, roughly chopped

Puree 1/2 the yogurt and the rest in a blender, add the rest of the yogurt. Use this as a marinade for 2 lbs of chicken breasts. Marinate overnight. Grill until chicken is done.