Toyomafia - The Clubhouse. Merry Christmas!

That sucks, man. Back problems are the worst. Hope you get some good sleep.

 

Thanks - it’ll probably happen during the day. Gonna watch an episode of the Penguin and try after that.

 

@Azblue

 

Ok, so for those of you that are into the whole Jack N Coke thing...

Yesterday evening I found myself in a holiday candy aisle

Picked up some...


...Queen Anne Cherry Cola Cordials and got an idea:



Jameson 18 (served neat).... w/Cherry Cola Cordial to make sort of a Jack n Coke pairing!!!!

Surprisingly those damn things tasted like cherry coke and paired nicely w/the Jameson

I'll try to get my Irish Whiskey posts finished up tonight folks... sorry for the delay (again)

 

annnnd for you folks that don't do Jack n Coke, but are game for a 'pickle back'...

I give to you, Claussen Pickle Gummies



Knock back some whiskey and chase it down w/a pickle gummy

 

HOLD ON!!!! ABORT ABORT...

Apparently, I seriously need to take my reading glass w/me when I go shopping

So, am half-way through the pickle-back (drank the whiskey part ), and I rip one of these open and nothing but artificial green apple scent wafting into my face

Apparently, the small writing, on the little red circle (off to the right of the center of the label) said 'green apple gummy candy'...


...the stupid things are just shaped like pickle spears and the packing looks like a pickle jar...

Now I'm forced to consume Jameson 18 w/no chaser; like some Heathen

 

It can if it hits that spot.

 

Thank you everyone that has served and for those that support our troops. So many have sacrificed a lot to keep the rest of the country/world safe and it is greatly appreciated.

 

X2

 

Happy armistice day, Veterans Day. Thanks too all who served.

 

To all my Veteran Brothers; Today is your day to seize.

 

Happy Veterans Day from Roosevelt Lake:

 

Neither


One more from the weekend:

 

Awesome setup

 

I got a few days off this week.
Worked Monday, wife had surgery today.
I'm taking off Wed and maybe Thursday to keep an eye on her.
She'll probably be sick of me being around and tell me to go to work Friday..

She is fine, just a little female stuff.
A couple of small incisions in her lower back.
She hasn't even taken a pain pill today since she hates to take them.
She needs me to help her get around, make whatever she wants to eat, and keep the dogs off of her.
They don't understand being in the kennel when one, or both, of us are home.

We're good though.
Very blessed to have the insurance we have and an employer that gives me time off without question.
I took FMLA for family member care but my employer said I didn't need to do that.

 

Hoping for a speedy recovery

 

love universal

 

what’s your FMLA care like?

Mine was awesome when I took it for my kids.

 

The Add-Ins and Toppings: Sugar, Bailey's, Other Sweeteners, and Whipped Cream...

Ok, so this should be my last post covering the final ingredients used in the 2 versions of this drink. After that, my final post will be the (2) recipes in final format.

In the 'traditional' Irish Coffee we have just two add-ins/toppings. Sugar, more specifically packed brown sugar and very lightly whipped cream, so we'll start w/those 2 items.

Brown Sugar: For the traditional Irish Coffee, I used 2 teaspoons of packed brown sugar. The reason for 'brown' sugar over while is two-fold... One, it provides more depth of flavor, and two the molasses used in making brown sugar is complimentary to both of the main ingredients of the drink (hot coffee and Irish Whiskey).

Brown sugar comes in light and dark versions if you're purchasing it outright. However, for our recipes, we used homemade brown sugar; which is simply white sugar that has been blended with molasses in the Kitchen Aid. Simply add sugar to the bowl start the Kitchen Aid, and then slowly add molasses to the bowl until you've reached your desired color and consistency. Ours landed somewhere between the light and dark versions of what you'd find commercially... Is there a difference in using homemade vs. store bought brown sugar?? Probably not, but since the wife always has homemade brown sugar on hand, it was an easy decision. Would I make home made brown sugar just for this drink?? No... store bought is fine.

Very Lightly Whipped Cream: NO, NO, NO!!! You SHOULD NOT use canned whipped cream, cool whip or any other commercially available versions of whipped cream. It's generally not fresh; they often contain preservatives; and finally consistency is the key here and the drink MUST have a lightly runny whip that you can basically spoon/pour into the drink.

The 'lightly whipped cream' should be firm enough to 'float' on top of the drink but 'soft' enough that each sip of the beverage results in a small amount of whipped cream touching your lips and leading the other components as they make their way to your palate. When you set the glass back down the drink, in its entirety, remains intact w/the whipped cream still floating on top and not combining with the other ingredients of the drink.

To accomplish this, I suggest you whip your own heavy cream into a near runny concoction (that contains no peaks, etc.). I'll use the photo I have from the V2 version of this drink to give you an idea of what the consisentcy will look like when added to the drink:



So, the whipping process can be done by hand or Kitchen Aid; both methods can produce the perfect 'lightly whipped cream' for the drink. If you over whip, either add some additional heavy cream back in or start over, but don't waste your other products w/a whip cream that isn't idea.

Just prior to your whipped cream reaching the desired consistency, we added a touch of fresh vanilla bean from vanilla bean pods for some aromatics and a little depth of flavor as you bring the cup to your face and beginning taking a sip. DO NOT use liquid imitation or real vanilla flavoring in your whip. It contains generally contains alcohol and will throw off the flavor your whip and possibly the entire drink; plus the added moisture makes it difficult to bring your heavy cream to an ideal consistency as it's being whipped.

Lastly, deploying the lightly whipped cream!!! The whipped cream should be the LAST ingredient added to the drink, and it should cover the top of the drink w/about a 1/2"-3/4" layer of decadent bliss!!! *** IMPORTANT NOTE: When you add the whipped cream it is very easy for the weight of it to want to sink to the bottom of the cup, so here's an easy way to get your whip to remain on the top as pictured above... Similar to the way you'd make a black and tan, take a large spoon and turn it upside down over the top of the glass; ideally, the spoon would just be slightly smaller than the circumference of the top of the cup. Now w/the upside down spoon in place, slowly add the whipped cream by spooning it over the back of the upside down spoon. As you add the whip to the drink, it should remain on top and float toward the center of the glass ***

Again, add just enough whip to get that nice white layer on top of the drink, and you're done... ENJOY!!!!


Ok, now let's move on to V2 of this drink which is incorporating Bailey's as another alcohol and sweetening component of the drink!

Bailey's: For the V2 recipe, we found that a 1:1 ratio of Bailey's and Irish Whiskey was about perfect, so in the V2 version of this drink we added 1 1/4 oz of Bailey's to the drink after mixing the hot coffee, sugar, and Irish Whiskey.

I really didn't care for Bailey's too much on its own. To me, Bailey's kinda had a non-specific, artificial flavor to it. But, since it's widely used in Irish Coffee recipes, I thought it would be important to create the best version of this drink while incorporating Bailey's as one of the main ingredients. However, as we treaded down this path, simply adding Bailey's to the traditional recipe really didn't bring anything to the table; in fact it kinda left that aritificial aftertaste in the mouth after each sip. So, I thought it would be prudent to turn to the wife's palate for guidance as we built the best version of this. Our goal was to find a way to have the Bailey's compliment the drink by providing more balance to it rather than having the Bailey's distract from its qualities. In doing so, after considerable experimentation, we found the drink needed to be a bit sweeter and have a more 'blended' appearance, mouthfeel and taste. So, here's how we got there...

Other Sweeteners: For the V2 recipie, and in conjunction with Bailey's, we added about 2 teaspoons of simple syrup and 1 teaspoon of the packed brown sugar to the drink for a more 'balanced' final product.

So at this point in the V2 version of the drink, we've added 1 teaspoon of packed brown sugar to the bottom of the cup; we've then added 4oz of very hot strong coffee and given it a light stir to incorporate the sugar; we've then added 1 1/4oz of Jameson Irish Whiskey (for some reason the TD did not hold up to the other ingredients and we found Jameson to be a better choice in this version of the drink); we've then added 1 1/4oz of Bailey's Irish Cream, and we will now add 2 teaspoons of simple syrup that you'd find at liquor stores (usually near the mixers and such). It will look like this:



Be advised the 'coffee syrups' used in making lattes and such are not the same; they are usually flavored and contain added ingredients. Simple syrup should just be water and sugar. Yes, you can make your own; it's not hard, but can turn into a sticky mess when it comes to transfer and storage. Much more econimical if you are using a bunch of it, if not use something like the above...

Now, for some reason adding more brown sugar to the drink did not really give us a good blend and flavor; and when we left out the brown sugar and just used more simple syrup the drink was sweet enough, but lacked depth. So, we found that the combination of 1 teaspoon of packed brown sugar and 2 teaspoons of simple syrup was perfect

However, if you find that the above recipe is too sweet or not sweet enough for your liking, simply make the adjustment via the amount simple syrup being used to suit your taste.

Once you've added the simple syrup, you're going to give you drink a gentle stir to incorporate the ingredients BEFORE adding the whipped cream.

*** Remember, in the traditional version, the only 'stirred' component is the brown sugar being stirred w/the hot coffee to melt and incorporate the sugar; the rest of the ingredients are just 'poured' into the cup and allowed to incorporate naturally which gives the traditional version a more 'raw' and darker appearance. To me, by not stirring the drink, we end up w/a drink that still allows the individual components to stand up and shine; strong coffee flavor; strong whiskey flavor; all softened slightly by the whipped cream floating on top ***

Once you've gently stirred the drink, then it's time for the final touch which is to add that 1/2"-3/4" layer of lightly whipped cream to the top of the drink using the inverted spoon method as described above.

THAT'S IT FOR THE INGREDIENTS!!!! Sorry for the overarticulation, but I thought it was important to explain the individual ingredients and the process of choosing each of those ingredients prior to just putting the recipes to paper (or screeen in this case)...


Next up will be my last post in the series... which will consist of the final recipes for both drinks!!!

 

It should be like yours.
I've never used it for family care, only for my own medical leave.
Although dealing with Hartford can be a PITA..

For those that don't know FMLA (Family Medical Leave) only holds our job position with the company.
It doesn't pay anything while you're off.
The company can't hold it against you that you didn't come to work like if you had an unexcused absence.
Most of the time they will work without, but if you're on management's shit list, they can start issuing warning letters and suspensions for excessive absence.

I'll be using it again in January when I get my left shoulder replaced.
I'll be out for 6 or 7 months getting each of them replaced, the right one after the left one heals enough.
FMLA is only 12 weeks (3 months) for each year, but that is 3 months of getting punches like if I'd gone to work.
We need a certain amount of punches, or hours worked, to earn our vacation time for the following year..

 

I thought you were making some profound statement like "LOVE UNIVERSAL!!" and I went and hugged my cat. It pissed her off.

 

Nice job - just an FYI. You can make your own Simple Syrup. It's equal amounts sugar and water, boil it up until the sugar melts then let it cool. You can store it in the fridge for a long time.

 

I've never been a fan of working for corporate entities but this makes me think different. This shows that they aren't all driven by greed and have some semblance of what it means to have an equitable relationship when it come to employee benefits. Reach out if you need anything in Jan when your recovery starts.

 

I'm very blessed to have the employment, income, and benefits I have had for the last 38 years with my high school education..
I didn't even realize much about FMLA until I was off 8 months with back issues a couple of years ago.
I was out so long I didn't think I was going to have any vacations for the following year, but the 3 months of FMLA made it look like I worked those 3 months and got my full 6 weeks..

Pretty sure we'll be Ok with the time off.
We made it 9 months last time so 6 or 7 months won't be a problem.
I'll get disability, but it's a fifth of my regular income.
That is what savings are for..

I appreciate your offer and concern..

 

I cannot wait until Feb... i am beyond ready to camp again!

 

Blessed with AZ weather to be able to do so year-round: higher elevation (6000'+) in the summer and closer to home in "winter". Our last trailer didn't have AC/heat but we managed.

Just once though, I want to wake up to snow outside the trailer...

 

I hear that one completely!

For me, we live in mostly a yearly camping paradise; less rain. With the baby, we decided not to camp anymore this year while we focus on routines and repairing the budget. The other consideration is our camper brings the Tundra to around 8 mpg, so we are conserving funds at the moment on that too.

Of course, we will see how the rest of the year goes.

Feb, we are camping in South Florida for a week. Its one of our yearly trips so I am very excited about it. If all goes well, we will be dragging it to SD next year too, which i am hopeful for at this point! We will see though. I have been debating doing a day trip to a nearby park while she is out of work, but time is flying right now. end ramble...

 

When my daughter was born, I took the time off allowed at the time. We decided to take a weekend and go to the beach before I went back to work; with the screen door closed and the slider to the balcony open (2002), listening to the ocean, it was the first time she slept completely through the night. Oddly enough, there were people at work that were spinning in circles because I took my family to the beach during FAMILY MEDICAL LEAVE. Some people’s kids, I swear.

 

I only asked, because it actually is different.

I work in NJ and live in PA.

When I took my leave periods (12 weeks) because I work in NJ, I was eligible for 80% of my base salary, weekly. It was paid every two weeks to me via a debit card.

Apparently this is a NJ thing (maybe other states do it, but PA does not).
It was considered “child bonding” time.

Because friends and neighbors of mine said they got zero pay for taking the time.

Paperwork was hell, but two kids later, I got paid 80% for six months to be home…