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Recently, we found the
recipe in a popular outdoor magazine from the early 1990s. It was a
recipe for fried grasshoppers that was so good that we'd like to pass
it along. It seems that grasshoppers are plentiful enough that in a
pinch, they might be able to provide the protein portion of a survival
diet, if a person can get over any "insect as a food" prejudice from
which we, too, have been victim. We had been trying to work up to
eating an insect for years. Finally, we gave in to grasshoppers.
"Pretty good!" And they are certainly plentiful during a large part of
the year and fairly easy to catch--another advantage.
First,
catch a bunch of grasshoppers and leave them in a jar overnight to
purge (if you're finicky). Then boil them for ten minutes, after which
you can easily remove the large legs, and wings, too, if they are also
large.
Next, in a bowl, beat one or more eggs, depending on how many
grasshoppers you have, to which you add the little critters after
removing the legs and wings. Then put the beaten-egg-covered "hoppers"
in a paper sack or plastic bag which contains some yellow or white
cornmeal and shake. Next, place the egg and cornmeal-covered
grasshoppers one by-one into a small frying pan with an inch (2.54 cm)
of hot cooking oil and fry until golden brown. After cooking, remove
the hoppers from the skillet and place them on paper towels - to soak
up any excess oil. Our family experimented by eating them plain, and
dipped in mustard, catsup, horseradish, or honey. We could have tried
lots of other dips, too, I suppose. We liked them best with honey;
small wonder, we have heard that the "honey and locusts" that John, the
Baptist, ate, was really a mis-translation of "honey and grasshoppers,"
Can anyone verify that?
Anyway, eating them fried and without any honey or catsup, etc., they
tasted something like fried okra. We liked them well enough to have had
them several times now. In a survival situation, we suppose one might
want to just roast them on a rock next to a fire, unless you have some
cookware and oil along. We would be delighted to see more articles or
letters about abundant, easy to catch insects, or even more recipes for
grasshoppers. We think that in writing "insects as food" articles, it
is important to try to describe the taste of the various food items to
help people get over their fear of the unknown. Please feel free to
contact me: Charles Griffith; 8514 Beulahland Drive, Ozark, AR
72949-8810; phone: 479-667-9820.
From your research guy. The Hillbilly
All the downed trees and partially downed trees and limbs and trash are gone along with the stimulus check that came at the right time. We got a $3000 job done for $600. Thank God for good expert tree climbing friends. I am not going to post pictures of the lost and damaged garden projects. I only share the beauty. Now, since today is the first day of the rest of my life, I will move forward and take this opportunity to start new things in my garden.
Y'all have a great day and happy gardening. The Hillbilly
My grandmother gave a start to my mother in1929 and my mother gave me a start in 1957. I've given starts to my children as they became adults and some of them have given starts to their children, my grand children. Here is my start as of last year.
Here is a picture of it blooming last Christmas.
I hang it outside on the back screened in porch. It gets a little bit of morning sun through the screen. I water it heavily every ten days or so if the soil feels dry. It stays out there until the night time temperature reaches 40 degrees and after about a week of this temperature, it is brought inside and hung by the window. It will bloom around Christmas time.
You all have a great day and happy gardening. Bill Mitchell
I've been praying for rain for a couple of months. It has been going around us except for a couple of small showers. I could tell by the black clouds that we were finally going to get the rain I was praying for. We got it and then some. You will have to forgive the blur on the lens.
>
There was no damage to our house although the garden took a beating and the gourd trellis blew down. We were without electricity until this morning. I had a backup generator that supplied for the refrigerator and freezer. I still thanked God for the much needed rain.
You all have a great day and happy gardening. Bill Mitchell
Night blooming Cereus.
This is for you Carol from the Hillbilly.
It's been hot and the few showers we had last week hasn't changed my daily routine of watering in the early morning and in the evening. But this is the picture of my daily job of taking the dogs down to the lake. You can't feel too sorry for me after you get to see this.
Y'all have a great day and happy gardening. The Hillbilly
Kentucky Information!
For those of you who live in
Kentucky you
might find this interesting.
And for
those of you who don't, You might also find this
interesting.
Today's history lesson!
1792 - Kentucky was
the first state on the western frontier to join the
Union
1816 - (first promoted)
Mammoth
Cave,
with 336+ miles of mapped passages, is the world's longest
cave.
It
is 379 feet deep and contains at least 5 levels of
passages.
It's second only to
Niagara
Falls as
the most popular tourist attraction in the
US.. It
became a National Park on July 1,
1941.
1856 - The first enamel bathtub was made in
Louisville
Kentucky
1883 - The first electric light
bulb was shown in
Louisville
Kentucky
Thomas
Alva Edison introduced his invention to crowds at
the Southern Exposition.
1887 - Mother's Day was
first observed in Henderson by teacher Mary S. Wilson.
It
became a national holiday in 1916.
1893 - 'Happy
Birthday to You', probably the most sung song in the world, was
written by two Louisville sisters -
Mildred and Patricia Hill.
Late 19th century - Bibb
lettuce was first cultivated by Jack Bibb in Frankfort,
Kentucky
1896 - The first (known) set of all male quintuplets was born in
Paducah.
1934 - Cheeseburgers were first tasted at Kaelin's restaurant in
Louisville.
1937 - The first Wigwam Village Motel, with units in the shape of a
'teepee', was built by Frank A. Redford in Cave
City.
The world's largest baseball bat, a full one hundred twenty (120) feet
tall and weighing 68,000 pounds, can be seen at the Louisville
Slugger
Museum in Louisville (Jefferson
Co.).
Chevrolet Corvettes are manufactured only in
Bowling
Green Kentucky.
All of the
Toyata Camry's are made in Georgetown,
KY
Covington (St. Mary's
Cathedral- Basilica of the Assumption) is home to the world's largest
hand blown stained glass window in existence. It measures an
astounding 24 feet by 67 feet and contains 117
different
figures.
The world's largest crucifix,
standing at sixty (60) feet tall,is in Bardstown (Nelson
Co.).
Fort
Knox holds more
than $6 billion worth of gold - the largest amount stored anywhere in
the world.
The JIF plant in Lexington is the
world's largest peanut butter producing facility.
Kentucky has more
resort parks than any other
state
in the nation.
Middlesboro is the only
United
States city built
inside a meteor crater.
Newport is home to
The World Peace Bell, the world's largest free-swinging
bell.
Pike
County is the
world's largest producer of coal.
Pikeville annually
leads the nation (per capita) in consumption of
Pepsi-Cola.
Post-It Notes are made exclu sively in
Cynthiana,
Ky.
Shaker
Village
(Pleasant
Hill) is the
largest historic community of its kind in the United
States.
Christian
County is 'wet',
while Bourbon
County is
'dry'.
Barren
County has the most
fertile land in the state.
Lake
Cumberland in
Kentucky has
more miles of shoreline than the state of Florida.
Kentucky is best
known for its beautiful blue grass.
And, let us not
forget about the basketball and the Race Horses !!
'When
someone shares something of value and it benefits you, you
have a moral obligation to share it
with
other's.'
Chinese Proverb
------------------------------
------------------------------
------------------
If you don't
cuss and are nice to Mom & Dad, don't use drugs and eat all your
vegetables as you go through life,Then when you die we'll let you come
to 'KENTUCKY'
We had another nice rain shower this morning, and I said my thank you prayer. Every morning, I let my neighbors dogs out because they leave for work early. This morning they went to Somerset and called me to let the dogs out because they would be busy for some time. When I let them out, we all go down to the lake for their morning swim. They expect it, so I am always there for them and they love and love me. Here is a picture of Copper.
Here is a picture of Daisy.
Did I forget to mention how much I love them also.Here is picture of a butterfly on my coneflowers.
I was telling someone about the self made two for one sale at Lowes. These zinnias both for $4.95.
Now the star of the show, The Stargazer Lilies.
We're not finished yet, the Cannas are blooming.
Thes
e little flowers are small, but they stand out with color.The Angelonia and the red Salvia.
Last is my new container/string trellis for the just beginning Wild Purple Passion flower.
I hope everyone enjoyed the show and all of you have a great day and happy gardening. Bill Mitchell
I built this gourd trellis as an experiment up the road at my neighbors because they have sun and I don't have enough. It is made with pvc pipe and supported with nylon rope because of the wind. The gourd plants were started in my cold frame in peat pots. I planted the seeds the last week in April and planted the pots the last week of May. We enriched the soil with composted manure and earth worms. We have to water the plants every two days because we haven't had much rain for six weeks. The neighbor is a new member of Garden Guides and she and her husband are the best kind of neighbors anyone could hope for. koakes is her member name. Here are some pictures of the progress of the gourd experiment.
The vines are ten feet on the fourteen foot cross.
Sandy, my wife watering the vines.
A bottle gourd about eight inches long and growing every day.
Two apple gourds.
Some more apple gourds.
The way these things are growing, we can supply everyone in the county.
You all have a great day and happy gardening. Bill Mitchell
Here are some beautiful pictures I took today. Enjoy.
Butterflies love these wild milkweeds that I rescued from the road.
This bumblebee feast on the coneflower.
A pink stargazer lily.
A couple of yellow stargazer lilies.
Another pink stargazer.
Several yellow stargazers grouped together.
A view of the front, front garden.
A butterfly enjoys it's lunch on a coneflower.
Some daylilies and coneflowers.
Some coneflowers and daisies.
A beautiful yellow daylily.
Some pink and yellow dahlias.
Another view of the front, front garden.
The passion flower vines are climbing and have small buds forming.
Another
view of my rock garden that was built last fall.
I hope you enjoy these. I love you all and have a safe 4th of July. Bill Mitchell
I found this on the web and I want to share it with all of you.
Witt
Wittmann retired in 2006 from thirty years of teaching English. She is
now the editor for a small publisher, the poetry director for
SplashHall Poetry Community Boards, and co-editor for Rollin' Thunder
Poetry Blog. She is an accomplished artist and an award-winning writer.
Her art of tatting, a form of lace, is exhibited at the South Carolina
Artisan Center as well as The Pickens County Museum. She has been
published in the International Old Lacers magazine, The Bulletin, in
addition to having two books published: TatWitt: What I Learned When I
Learned to Tat (Union County Writers Press, 2002) and Musing at La
Poulaille (D-N P, 2003). Wittmann illustrated the books The Prince with
the Golden Hair by Irene Honeycutt (D-N P, 2006) and The Last Hurrah by
Robert W. Hinson (D-N P, 2005). Now that she has retired, Wittmann can
devote her time to the things that she loves best: art and writing, not
to mention gardening and chickens.
COMMENTS:
Poetry is like a flower garden. No two are alike. Some are formal
and pristine; others are wild with abandon. Take for example the
parterres. Be they designed as circular, rectangular, or in a diamond
shape, the formal garden is clipped to perfection, and every plant is
sited with exact symmetry. The borders are outlined with perhaps
germander precisely trimmed to a certain height. The circuitous paths
are orderly with not one pebble out of place?each stepping stone
specifically placed. Identical boxwoods are strategically positioned as
focal points. The pattern of the parterres is extremely particular in
its placement of shrubs and a modest display of a few flowers chosen to
be exhibited as specimens never in great profusion. In the center is
placed a fountain, statue, or topiary?every item is structured and
elaborate. These plants are chosen for their variance in hues of
greens, their textures, growing habits, and even aroma. The flowers
muted and tasteful were used to enhance the pattern. The beauty of the
design, and the care that it took to create this masterpiece at once
takes in the onlooker filling his soul with pleasure.
The cottage garden, on the other hand, has no formality. Flowers
are placed where there is room to put them. No structure binds the
gardener’s creativity. The borders of the garden are freeform and flow
freely. Flowers are chosen for their vibrant colors and not necessarily
flowers that complement one another. Volunteers are allowed to sprout
wherever they have the sunlight and the desire to grow causing the
heights to vary as well as the combinations of color. There is usually
an abundance of vegetation seeming to have a will of its own. These
types of gardens are fun and give the viewer joy as well causing
delight to the spirit and senses.
As in every garden, weeds do creep in destroying its beauty. The
gardener must try to pull out these aversions so that they do not sap
the energy away from the splendor. So, too, the poet should take great
care with the diction that he chooses so that he does not weaken his
own garden of words. A gardener would not deliberately foul his land
with briars and other disagreeable things. Why then should the poet?
Why do people create these forms of art? It could be simply because
they feel like it. It is a way to express their feelings and by
expressing their feelings, they feel better. The gardener may derive
enjoyment from the pure physical labor that he must endure to construct
his treasure?the poet, the mental exercise. Work and exercise is good
for us and makes us feel better. The happiness possibly comes from the
catharsis of pouring out his sweat through his effort then he can sit
back and relish his accomplishment. Perhaps he has the desire to please
others and savors what others appreciate about his interpretation.
Whatever the reason, parterres, cottage gardens, and poetry have been
around for centuries and will surely continue through the future. There
is a personal gratification for the one who produces and also for the
one who comprehends.
Poetry is like a flower garden no matter what the style or
structure may be. Sometimes the words are precise and laid out with a
particular pattern, and other times the words are thrown out like seeds
in the breeze. Either way, a poem may capture our hearts and touch us
deeply. A poem may bring a tear to our eye and conjure reminiscences
that we hold dear. At other times a poem can make us titter with glee
or even laugh out loud. Poems are our little private plots,
meaningfully scratched out, of an inherent need to be in touch and to
touch.
You all have a great day and happy gardening. Bill Mitchell
This is the cold frame I built in the winter.
After
I mounted the two old window frames, I set it in a sunny place.
The temperature inside during the day reached 85 to 90 degrees.
I started these nasturtium and four o'clocks from seed.
You all have a great day and happy gardening. Bill Mitchell
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