Primrose vs Harrier - Troll Challenges

Prim presents - For Recipe Raiders from Senegal: Poulet Yassa!

In June and July didn´t really felt an appetite for cooked foods and mostly enjoyed raw veggies or salads from my garden, baked some bread and that was pretty much it. But now, as it´s not so hot anymore the appetite for hot - and especially SPICY foods - is here! As I still suffer a little bit from mineral- and especially iron deficiency, I still CRAVE SPICY and SALTY foods big time!!! Not only the Chinese food which I had together with Harrier yesterday, was perfect but also this new recipe for Recipe Raiders. This one comes from far away, from Senegal Africa and it´s taken from the book Harrier gave me last summer, because it turned out that I´m a HUGE fan of the African cuisine. The recipe I raided today comes from this book:

and it´s a recipe which comes from Senegal: Poulet Yassa

It´s chicken with garlic, onion (still had some from the garden but also took some shallots which I had bought), African spices, chili (I took own grown Zimbabwe Bird´s Eye and Red Cherry Small) and palm oil (but I took olive oil). You dunk the chicken in the marinade for an hour and then you cook it (I used a clay pot and put it in the oven for an hour).

It´s served with rice:

I had it with cucumber salad (the cucumber from the garden was an urgent mussgo ):

Troll´s verdict: ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!!!! Five stars! Will make that again! That´s a guarantee!!
But next time, I will probably use Habaneros (not ready yet, still riping) and Red Cherry Small (the next ones are almost ripe) or Aij Charapita (still growing and riping), hopefully I can make that recipe with Carolina Reaper or Trinidad Moruga Scorpion (but still not flowering :facepalm::rage: ). For me, it could have been a bit more HOT and spicy.

Lovely stuff, Prim. I just had a look through that book myself to scout for ideas for African burger versions.

An entire mini vacation has passed (in my case, at least), and we didn't get to any poker challenges against each other? Well, that's just how it goes these days. Both of us are itching to get back to the tables, but as it is often the case during summer time, there are just so many other things to do, so none of us played a noteworthy amount of poker at all these days.

Other than that, we still have a challenge-packed schedule ahead of us. Looks like there won't really be any rest for me in fall after all, when the Trollympics are over and all that. A brand new sporting challenge that may start in October but would last well over a year is currently being considered, and I have been in talks with the people in charge about it. I will mostly have to see how well it will fit in my schedule by that point.

One thing is already largely cleared up, though. The Aquatic challenges will continue, and be taken to the next level, now that I have successfully collected the ultimate DLRG swimming badge - with Primrose's help. I have been in contact with another DLRG instructor over the weekend, and have now officially registered for a lifeguard course, starting in early September and lasting until early November.

Lifeguard training will also involve badges, so we will be starting all over with Bronze yet again. This time, however, it won't be such a walk in the park. With the regular swimming badges, I could prepare on my own time, take the exam whenever I feel ready, do my swimming and diving, and then quickly get quizzed by the pool attendant on theory. If I pass, I simply pay €5 for the paperwork, if not, I'll try again later. Not with the lifeguard badges. Aside from facing much more challenging physical tests and standardized questionnaires for the theory part, you can only participate by officially signing up for a course with over 12 hours of required training, an entry fee of €62 whether you pass or not, and a set day for your exam.

This should be quite an adventure... and this time, it may not be so easy to come out on top, I expect the course is quite failable. I am looking forward to it nonetheless. The exact requirements will be posted another time, we still have over a month until I am required to step up and hit the pool again.

So that's what we can expect in the near future. I will try to present some good cooking here next week too. I don't think we will see any poker yet, but who knows...

Troll Trivia of the Week

Primrose's gardening is progressing well, but the grindette has forgotten to plant one of her favorite herbs this year! Namely...

1) Oregano
2) Parsley
3) Curry Plant

A lot to do at home, so this is a slow trolling week for sure. I would love to present some new burgers or recipes at least, and I was really struggling to come up with something that can be prepared at short notice tomorrow. I may have found something, but still no new burgers, unfortunately. I had a look through that African cookbook, and while it gave me some ideas, there always seems to be this or that ingredient that is just out of reach...

If I can't present anything new, I hope Primrose will have me covered this weekend, at least.

Other than that, my participation in that lifeguard training starting in September has now been officially confirmed and the fee has been paid. Now all I need to do is show up and pass it. Still plenty of time, but we can have a look through the requirements in the next few days, at least.

Today's Dish: Chili Dogs
Cuisine: American
Recipe: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/256911/texas-chili-dog/

I have been using the above recipe for reference, but didn't follow it to the letter.

We will use some brioche hot dog buns. The ones at my store are pre-cut at the top. I have learned to accept it.

For the chili, I simply used about 250 grams of minced beef, around a tablespoon of tomato paste, and some chopped onions, chili-garlic powder, and paprika. I can't tell you how much, because I just eyeballed it. It was somewhere between 0.5 and 1 tablespoon, I believe, I used a little more of the chili-garlic powder.

The sausages were cooked in a pan, I know Prim much prefers the classic pot method with the warm water. I'm just glad she doesn't go bet the pot again.

Both pans have been cooking for a little over 10 minutes. let's fill the buns, starting with the plain sausages.

We will slap some mustard on it next. I don't usually even like mustard, but I wanted to try it here, as it is considered a common ingredient.

Next the chili. Oh dear, those 250 grams were way too much for those four hot dogs, it seems. I still had plenty left.

Then the other toppings: Grated cheddar and chopped onions.

Let's also add some jalapeño slices, at least on two of them. I also wanted to try some without them, to see what both versions are like.

That's it, then.

Looks good, doesn't it? It was pretty good too, but let me tell you... if this is street food, I would hate to be the one who is cleaning the streets. Those things were quite a mess to eat.

Here's what was left on the plate after dealing with those dogs:

And like I said, still plenty of chili left in the pan.

Oh well, that just means some extra chili as a side dish.

The jalapeños didn't add a lot, I believe. I think I preferred the version without them.

But yes, those were perfectly fine hot dogs. Thankfully, the mustard was not dominant at all either, I hardly even noticed it.

Oh, and I designed Vorpal as a Mii on my Wii U console the other day.

Now he can join the other Trolls when Prim and I are playing at home and we need some additional people on our team. Virtually, at least. Much more fun than using generic Miis to fill up the other slots.

I think the eyebrows are a little too thick, and I have no idea how Vorpal wears his hair by now, it has been a while since the last Twitch stream. Other than that, though, I think it's a cute representation, under the limitations of the Mii Maker. That was actually the longest beard version they had there, I believe.

And I have no idea about Vorpal's favorite color. I picked orange for now to compensate for the orange-colored glasses which didn't seem to be available.

UPAY4DINNER next? Our sports titles often come with games that feature four people on a team.

Originally posted by Harrier88

Originally posted by Saffo7
I'm not fit and I'm losing strokes! 😭

I'm sure you'll be back with the golden touch soon enough.

:club::diamond::heart::spade:

I asked my brother and in addition to looking at me strange, he asked me first why I asked him that question and between one speech and another to divert the reasons, his answer was first of all to change the meat into kangaroo or snake . I don't like the idea that snakes can be eaten even if in some cultures it is used, I would never do it. then he added fried or caramelized onion over low heat that can wilt and caramelize just right, with a barbecue sauce. he also added that the origins of a hamburger are not Australian and that they eat it exactly like us with the same variations that we can find here too without the addition of kangaroo meat, which is clearly unusual for us

Originally posted by Harrier88
Troll Trivia of the Week

Primrose's gardening is progressing well, but the grindette has forgotten to plant one of her favorite herbs this year! Namely...

1) Oregano
2) Parsley
3) Curry Plant

with us it is customary to say: parsley to someone who is or always wants to have their say in everything, precisely because of the use we make of it, parsley goes well with everything.
we freeze it in summer, mixing the leaves in the foil, creating a long tube, if necessary, after freezing it, we cut the part that covers it, a knife or by hand we break the tip to insert it into the dishes as necessary, without overcooking it, only with the heat that warms it.

instead we use rigorously dried oregano.
we grow it fresh, cut the branches and let it dry, an aroma that does not freeze. very fragrant that we use in bruschetta and some dishes

the curry is a mixture of spices and aromas, the English one is yellow and the green one is Indian, it changes and affects the cardamom

I dare say oregano even if it is more common to grow parsley

sorry if this time I was verbose in the answer

even if I make a mistake, I want to choose 1

♦

Originally posted by Saffo7
I asked my brother and in addition to looking at me strange, he asked me first why I asked him that question and between one speech and another to divert the reasons, his answer was first of all to change the meat into kangaroo or snake . I don't like the idea that snakes can be eaten even if in some cultures it is used, I would never do it. then he added fried or caramelized onion over low heat that can wilt and caramelize just right, with a barbecue sauce. he also added that the origins of a hamburger are not Australian and that they eat it exactly like us with the same variations that we can find here too without the addition of kangaroo meat, which is clearly unusual for us

Well, your brother wasn't familiar with our series, of course.

As I mentioned in my opening post last year, I'm aware that people from the countries that we portray do not really make burgers that way. One of my main inspirations for the series were the themed weeks that some fast food chains would often do, like the one in the video below, which I had also linked in the opening post.

I also remember some Mexican themed weeks over here.
I even remember once trying (and failing horribly) to sing the song from that commercial and recording it on audio cassette tapes when I was bored as a kid...

The Burgers Around the World series can in part be considered a parody of those themed weeks, but it is also supposed to be a genuine creative cooking challenge, to come up with burger variations that somehow represent a certain country or region - pretty much as if I had been tasked to design the products for such a week.

On a similar note, another inspiration were the themed frozen pizzas that be found at our local grocery stores, like these:

I briefly even considered following up with a similar "Pizza Around the World" series as a sequel in the future, which would give us even more opportunities, with pizza being a quite versatile dish. Partially due to my complete lack of experience when it comes to making pizza, however, I think I will instead do something else with burgers when we are done.

Using kangaroo meat for Australian-themed burgers was actually an idea that I had myself already, but that one can be tough to get, and I'm not sure how well it would work in patties.

Originally posted by Saffo7
with us it is customary to say: parsley to someone who is or always wants to have their say in everything, precisely because of the use we make of it, parsley goes well with everything.
we freeze it in summer, mixing the leaves in the foil, creating a long tube, if necessary, after freezing it, we cut the part that covers it, a knife or by hand we break the tip to insert it into the dishes as necessary, without overcooking it, only with the heat that warms it.

That's interesting, I didn't know that. I heard before, though, that people from Tasmania are said to love to put parsley on everything - even fries, in some cases. I have no idea if there is any truth behind that, but I know that we have an admin from Tasmania around here, maybe he can confirm or not if he happens to stop by.

That rumor was enough to make me consider a Tasmania version on that burger tour once, which could have featured generous amounts of parsley in that case. I'm having a hard enough time with Australia already, though.

To give an update about that, I just got some ideas for an Australian themed burger after all over here - and it seems as if they were going out of their way to create a burger that Primrose would find disgusting.

An Aussie burger isn't a true Aussie burger without an egg on top!

Well, if they say so...

I could combine elements from that recipe with some of my own ideas, but okay, I can include an egg, if they insist.

An Aussie burger isn't a true Aussie burger without an egg on top!

there is some communication problem because I didn't write it...
I'm taking a moment to re-read what I wrote and figure out where I went wrong, I didn't mention eggs in my post...
definitely my fault and my lack of expressing myself properly

I don't know what you mean by patties because to us they are small and definitely not suitable for a hamurger, their size can't fill a hamburger you would have to put more than one and it is inappropriate and not allowed for a "Burger"
meatballs and not hamburger , we make them fried or with sauce
to be clear, the true Neapolitan recipe for us is to throw them raw in boiling tomato sauce or fry them in boiling oil, even stuffed with cheese.

if by patties you mean ground beef prepared for a burger, we don't call it a patty for us.

instead pizza for us has a quite variable culture because you can make an open "bread" base with which you can stuff it as you like.
of course the Italian classic is based on tomato and mozzarella, but in reality it was not made even before dedicating it to a queen / empress, in Italy it was stuffed in various different ways even before the classic "margherita"
it was popular use with in territorial diversities

I have to re-read everything and try to figure out where the mistake is
I think it's more mine than yours, but I'll figure it out and try to rephrase
:transpire::sorry:

Originally posted by Saffo7
I have to re-read everything and try to figure out where the mistake is
I think it's more mine than yours, but I'll figure it out and try to rephrase
:transpire::sorry:

No worries, I got what you were saying, the bit about the egg was just a direct quote from the page I linked in my second post (this one). The recipe in that link insists on including eggs, and I just wanted to highlight that part because I know that Primrose considers eggs on burgers disgusting.

And yes, patties are just the flat meat pieces used in burgers. I meant to say that I wasn't sure how well kangaroo meat would work in that form.

Originally posted by Harrier88
Troll Trivia of the Week

Primrose's gardening is progressing well, but the grindette has forgotten to plant one of her favorite herbs this year! Namely...

1) Oregano
2) Parsley
3) Curry Plant

The Next Level - Getting Ready for the DLRG Bronze Lifeguard Badge

We got the swimming badges, now we're getting ready for the next steps. The DLRG Lifeguard Badges will put my swimming skills to the test for sure.

Let's review what I will be required to do for the Bronze Lifeguard Badge, for which I will start training in about a month. The exams should take place in early November, here is what I will be asked to do:

Theoretical part

- Passing a nationally standardized quiz about the following subjects: Respiration and blood circulation, hazards in and around water, assistance in case of bathing-, boating-, and ice-related accidents, avoiding strangleholds, assistance in case of injuries and drowning as well as heat exhaustion and cold injuries, and the tasks and activities of the DLRG.

Practical part

- Swimming 200 meters in less than 10 minutes, including 100 meters of leg whip kick back swimming without using the arms

- Swimming 100 meters in full clothing in less than 4 minutes, with subsequent unclothing inside the water

- Performing three different jumps from a height of 1 meter

- 15 meters of distance diving

- 50 meters of transport swimming - pushing or pulling

- Diving from the surface of the water twice - once heads first and once feet first - retrieving two 5 kg diving rings from the bottom of a 2-3 meters deep pool within 3 minutes

- Displaying abilities to avoid strangleholds and escaping neck chokeholds from behind

- 50 meters of transport swimming with an embracing technique (for people who may try to resist the rescuing)

- Demonstrating the ability bring people ashore

- Displaying the ability to perform CPR (Cardiopulmonary resuscitation) for 3 minutes

- A combined exercise involving the following steps without any breaks in this order: A 20 meter swimming approach, diving to retrieve a 5 kg diving ring halfway through, then dropping the ring and continuing the approach, followed by carrying a partner for 20 meters

Sounds like a mouthful? Well, it is - and this is only Bronze. We're getting ready to save lives, after all, you can't cut any corners when it comes to that.

Still, I think this one should be doable, especially with a bit of training, which I will get starting in about a month. This will be the venue:

I've never been to that pool before, let's see what it's like. And let's see how well I will do in my training. We still have a month, but wish me luck!

That's a nice challenge I think.

Thank you, I'll do my best.

Silver and Gold will be very tough, I already had a look, but first thing's first, as always. Getting any of those badges would be a great achievement.

Originally posted by Harrier88

Originally posted by Harrier88
Troll Trivia of the Week

Primrose's gardening is progressing well, but the grindette has forgotten to plant one of her favorite herbs this year! Namely...

1) Oregano
2) Parsley
3) Curry Plant

Spoiler

3) Curry Plant

Primrose loves her curry plants, and the way I understand it, she has made it a habit to purchase some of those plants for her own garden over the years. This time, she wanted to raise those plants from scratch, but she didn't - because she simply forgot.

It happens to the best of us. She got all of those other plants, now that she has that nice big gardening space to take care of, and may have gotten a bit carried away. She has plenty of other plants in there, some of which are making great progress, as you can read about on her own blog... but no curry plants...

Oh well, there's always next year. At least Prim has plenty of curry powder at home, so not all is lost. And plenty of oregano and parsley too.

Better luck next time, Saffo.

I didn't think it was called a curry plant, I know it as Helichrysum (elicriso)

pity I was wrong again ... however it is a beautiful plant never used

Originally posted by Saffo7
I didn't think it was called a curry plant, I know it as Helichrysum (elicriso)

Yes, this seems to be the proper name for it, but it is also sometimes called curry plant. I had to look up the English name myself.

I will try to remind Primrose to plant it next year. Maybe we can then follow the progress of this plant on her blog as well.

Curry plant is actually my favorite. But couldn´t manage to sow it, because the seeds are like dust. It´s sooo hard. So, I normally just buy a plant but this year, with the big garden, the small garden in front of the house and my plants on the terrace, I totally forgot to buy ANY plant! I sowed the seeds of all my plants and some veggies in the "freetime farmer" garden were already there, I just have to take care of them.

Troll Trivia of the Week

In early 2005, Harrier was an intern in the department of environmental affairs at his city's town hall. It went well for the most part, except for that one time when...

1) he was caught littering during a media interview
2) he wiped dog poop on the mayor's carpet
3) he activated a virus on his office computer