Rotten tomatoes (pommes d'amour gone bad)
Rotten tomatoes (pommes d'amour gone bad)
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Post #31 - August 5th, 2005, 6:56 pmChoey wrote:That squirrel trap is beginning to look pretty enticing. I think I'll set one right next to the WSM and have the little guy ready to go in the pit by morning.
Antipasto di scoiattolo affumicato sounds good... Or perhaps a mixed assiette de rongeurs fumés... But I do recommend the fettucine al sugo di scoiattolo, pomodoro e salvia
Brown squirrel pieces in olive oil.
Add garlic.
Deglaze with dry white wine (e.g. Frascati).
Reduce wine
Add pomodori pelati.
Salt, pepper, optional touch of pepperoncino.
Several leaves of fresh sage.
Serve most of the sauce with the fettucine.
Serve the squirrel as a secondo with plenty of crusty bread and a salad of bitter greens and pomodori scappati.
AntoniusAlle Nerven exzitiert von dem gewürzten Wein -- Anwandlung von Todesahndungen -- Doppeltgänger --
- aus dem Tagebuch E.T.A. Hoffmanns, 6. Januar 1804.
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Na sir is na seachain an cath.
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Post #32 - August 5th, 2005, 7:10 pmm'th'su, toss some chestnuts in among your San Ms to fatten those garden raiders appropriately and I volunteer to cook Authentic Chicago Scoiattolone Vesuvio™ (with roasted potatoes, of course) for you, me, and Antonius (and other intrested and intrepid diners).
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Post #33 - August 5th, 2005, 7:23 pmChoey wrote:m'th'su, toss some chestnuts in among your San Ms to fatten those garden raiders appropriately and I volunteer to cook Authentic Chicago Scoiattolone Vesuvio™ (with roasted potatoes, of course) for you, me, and Antonius (and other intrested and intrepid diners).
Ma che!?!
Give me a break. That's a traditional dish from the old country: scoiattolo al forno con le patate e piselli in vino bianco. In dialect: 'E cciurle in casadiàvulë. The only innovation here is the name.
AAlle Nerven exzitiert von dem gewürzten Wein -- Anwandlung von Todesahndungen -- Doppeltgänger --
- aus dem Tagebuch E.T.A. Hoffmanns, 6. Januar 1804.
________
Na sir is na seachain an cath.
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Post #34 - August 5th, 2005, 9:52 pmThe squirrel population in Ravenswood Gardens seems higher than average this year. It appears that more pregnant females than average survived the winter. There was a bumper crop of silver maple seeds, which are a major food source shortly before and for a while after the first brood leaves the nest.
The water hypothesis is definitely not an issue here. We supply water to birds and other critters using a large plastic pot saucer. Birds actually prefer their water close to the ground. This container is easy to keep clean--dump and refill nearly every day and clean with brush and bleach every week or two. This approach eliminates any chance of mosquitoes breeding while keeping algae and bacterial slimes under control.
The portions of tomato eaten seem consistent with the likely capacity of a squirrel's stomach. Squirrels often seem to be trying to get the seeds more than the flesh.
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Post #35 - August 5th, 2005, 10:04 pmAntonius and m'thu'su:
Which one of you is going to stick his hand in their to get Mr. Squirrel?
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Post #36 - August 6th, 2005, 8:01 amIn an attempt to compromise with PETA, I say we follow the suggestion of my friend, whom I'll call The Hippie Woodsman. We ring down the curtain for Rocky J Squirrel to join the Choir Invisible the humane way: an overdose of Reds. We stuff a few caps of Seconal in some San Marzanos, drop them in the cage, and faster than you can say "un bel piatto di scoiattolo," we'll be eating Squirrel Boscaiolo. Te' fatto.
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Post #37 - August 8th, 2005, 7:56 pmIN the Chicago Tribune today:
Forest-preserve raccoons seeking food, water in city
Drought and a ruined berry crop are driving a new population into the neighborhood
By Kelly Kennedy
Tribune staff reporter
Published August 8, 2005
A combination of the drought and a late freeze has sent Chicago's raccoons foraging for food and water in unusual places.
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"There was a late freeze just when many of our wild fruity trees and bushes were budding," said Robert Frazee, a natural resources educator from the University of Illinois Extension service. "When the berries didn't set on, it became really hard to find food, so the raccoons have been raiding many of the towns and villages."
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Usually, these raccoons live in Chicago's forest preserves and eat what they're supposed to, with some Dumpster diving added in. But with natural sources of water drying up and no berries to supplement picnic leftovers, they are slipping out of the forests and into back yards.
Beyond being a nuisance, the change in habits may affect other animal populations. When raccoons can't find raspberries, they snack on turtle and songbird eggs, as well as little critters such as salamanders and mice.
The change isn't good for the raccoons, either.
"We've gotten far more calls this year than we have in the past 10 years," Frazee said. "And we're seeing a lot more road kill."
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The puddles and ponds in the natural settings of the preserves are drying up during the drought, and raccoons depend heavily on water, Gehrt said. Thousands of years ago, they lived in tropical climates. They use their paws to dig through muddy water for food.
"If you watch them, they're usually searching with their paws and looking around elsewhere," Gehrt said. "They still, even though they are very adaptable, have a high water requirement or they face dire consequences--especially when it gets hot."
Under normal conditions, raccoons spread out, said Gehrt, who tracked Chicago's raccoons using special collars. But during a drought, they concentrate around permanent water sources, such as retaining pools and birdbaths. They also change their eating habits.
"They usually eat berries and other vegetation. But they'll easily shift, when they're hungry, to salamanders and frogs," he said. "They've even been known to eat grasshoppers, snakes and turtles. And the turtle populations in Illinois are declining.
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This supports my guess the squirrels are greater nuisances this year due to thirst.
Regards,Cathy2
"You'll be remembered long after you're dead if you make good gravy, mashed potatoes and biscuits." -- Nathalie Dupree
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Post #38 - August 8th, 2005, 8:40 pmAfter trying to foil the tricks of the rabbit previously referred to, co-consumer of our tiny mountain garden, I would usually head under the cabin to turn on the faucet so as to water the (tiny) garden.
The faucet leaked. I rather liked going under the cabin to turn on the faucet, it was shady and cool. I had heard the story about Himself's grandmother seeing a six foot rattler under the porch, but that was just over by the stairs. The faucet was back by the kitchen door.
But one day Doc Husted, who was the first year-round resident up there, then in his early 70s, came across the road to warn us that because of the drought that year, the rattlers were coming down from Mt. Jefferson Park looking for moisture.
From then on we didn't water so much. When we did, Himself turned on the water. And I do believe the basil got better with all that dry sun and less water.
Since the rabbit had already eaten the lettuce, it didn't really matter. Sometimes you just have to make choices.