A little care goes a long way

It's no secret that "I like to cook", and I've had a good deal of practice. It's like therapy for me. I just lose myself in the kitchen, and all my troubles seem far away. When I am done, I usually bring smiles to people's faces, my own included. It sure beats the heck out of driving to Micky D's, and shooting a few patrons, don't you think? When you cook, a little care goes a long way. For all the effort that I can put into a meal, the base ingredients that I use can mean the difference between great results or just good results. Over the years I have found myself favoring a line of products from a small, attention-oriented company by the name of "Bob's Red Mill".

Products from Bob's Red Mill.

About 2 months ago I was writing in my blog, sharing a recipe that uses a meat substitute called TVP. When I stepped back from my computer and looked at my article, and I thought, "I should write to this company and see if they would contribute in some small way to our cruising adventure." I mean, I am writing the article anyway, and I do use their products, anyway. Maybe we could both benefit from this relationship. No, what are the chances that they would even respond? They have bigger fish to fry, right (pardon the pun)? Aw, what the heck let me write them. And so, I looked up their web page, and shot them an email. Almost a week went by when I received a response from the folks at Bob's Red Mill saying they would love to send me some products to try. What a stand-up group they are!

Now don't get me wrong, it's not so much the value of the products that they sent me that matters. I could just go to the store and stock up as I wish, but it is just the fact that they show genuine care for what they do. This company has a "soul" if you will. They have shown interest in our travels, and would like to contribute a little. It is going to be my pleasure to go through the goody bag that they sent me, and share the results with you. And, if should just mess a recipe up, well then you won't hear about that one.

It is the morning after a long 48 hour sail, and the kids are hungry, I'm a little beat so let's start with an easy breakfast, "buttermilk pancakes".
The buttermilk pancake mix comes much like the national brands that we grew up using. You just need to add an egg, milk, shortening. The proportions are on the bag. One little tip, do not over mix the batter. Mix until all of the ingredients are well blended, and no more. The batter will be slightly lumpy, not a problem. It's kinda funny that my clothes may not have a brand name on them, but I will only use maple syrup, sorry Gucci. This reminds me of a friend I used to have, we would drive to the movie theater, we were teenagers. All the way there he would point out each article of clothing that he was wearing, and state the designer, and the price, "tie by Salvatore Such & Such, one hundred twenty bucks, shirt by Feliciano Ricci", and so on, all the way to theater, and later, at the theater he asked me for a little money! I told him to sell the tie. Yeah, we couldn't stay friends.

Hadrian and Eva enjoying pancakes and maple syrup, their idea of roughing it?

Oh yes, everybody loved the buttermilk pancakes!