Grill Collection

Over the years, I have transitioned from an inexpensive Kenmore/Charbroil propane grill, through electric smokers by Brinkman and Cookshack, other propane smokers by Brinkman and Smokey Mountain, to Weber propane grills.  Last year, I was introduced to pellet grills and bought a Traeger XL.  I enjoyed the flavor of the food that was made on it, but did not like the swing in temperatures and its lack of versatility.  This year I bought a Memphis Elite to get tighter temperature controls and some flexibility to cook at higher temps, and a MAK 2 Star General to add flexility to higher temps and cold smoking.  Here they are.

The new patio extension east end filled with cooking equipment.

The pellet grill trio - Traeger XL, MAK 2 Star, and Memphis Elite.

The newest addition to the lineup - MAK 2 Star.

Leinenkugel's Thanksgiving

Yesterday, I gave thanks for the seasonal sampler 12 packs made by Leinenkugel's.  They have a bit of duplication so there were only 9 different beers to sample out of the 12 beers that were part of these three samplers.

Oktoberfest

Here are the final Oktoberfests that I had for this season.

Milwaukee Brewing Company Hoptoberfest
http://mkebrewing.com/beer/hoptoberfest/

New Belgium Brewing - Red Hoptober
http://www.newbelgium.com/beer/detail.aspx?id=b061cbb7-2d6d-4489-a655-8cfa40171596

Stevens Point Brewery Oktoberfest
http://www.pointbeer.com/point-oktoberfest/

Capital Brewery Oktoberfest
http://www.capital-brewery.com/

Samuel Adams Oktoberfest
http://www.samueladams.com/enjoy-our-beer/beer-detail.aspx?id=011e3e3f-52b1-4c55-9e05-0417800d7b23

Leinenkugel's Oktoberfest
https://leinie.com/Beers.aspx#oktoberfest

Spaten Oktoberfest
http://spatenbeer.com/biers-oktoberfest.html

Smoked Mac n Cheese

Someone posted this simple recipe on www.pelletheads.com.  I tried it this week, and thought it was pretty good.  And it was really easy which was what I was looking for in a recipe.

1 box of elbow macaroni
1/2 stick of butter
3 cups of milk
1 pint of heavy whipping cream
2 8oz bags of your favorite shredded cheese

Pour uncooked macaroni in 8x13 aluminum pan.  I used a stainless steel deep half pan that you can see in the pics.  Melt butter and pour over macaroni.  Pour in the remaining ingredients and stir.  You can add salt and pepper or other spices to taste.

Cook on grill at 250° for about 2 hours.  Sprinkle your favorite cheese over the top and brown the top in the broiler.

Oktoberfest

Oktoberfest

It is that time of year again when Oktoberfest beers are available.  I love this style of beer during the Fall and Winter.  Here are a few that I have tried this season.

Great Lakes Brewing Company
http://www.greatlakesbrewing.com/beer/an-exceptional-family-of-beers/seasonal/oktoberfest

 

Shiner

http://www.shiner.com/main.php?page=beer

 

Central Waters Brewing Company

http://centralwaters.com/beer/

 



Bell's Brewery
http://bellsbeer.com/brands/#Seasonal-10

Hinterland
http://www.hinterlandbeer.com/Oktoberfest.html

When I Left Home - My Story by Buddy Guy

When I Left Home - My Story by Buddy Guy with David Ritz

At age 75, Buddy Guy decided to release a book documenting his life with the primary focus on family, blues guitars, nature, cooking, and women.  The book is a very quick read and makes you feel like you are sitting at Legends across the table from Buddy as he tells you story after story for a few hours.  Buddy breaks the book down into 3 sections.

1. Before I Left Home: This section documents his life on the farm in Lettsworth, Louisiana, and the strong love of his family as cotton croppers.  It takes you through the fortunate experiences he had in receiving his first two guitars.  He talks about his desire to learn and play John Lee Hooker's "Boogie Chillen."  You listen to his stories about playing his first blues clubs on stage as part of a backing band.  His jobs working as a mechanic, a tow truck driver, and in the maintenance department at LSU while living in Baton Rouge with his sister.  He meets a family friend who has come back to Louisiana on vacation from Chicago and tells Buddy to save his money so he can move there to stay with him until he gets on his feet.  Two years and $600 saved, and Buddy finds himself on a train to Chicago.

2.  The Day I Left Home: September 25, 1957 was the day Buddy traveled from Louisiana to Chicago.  In this section, he talks about his train ride and his first day in the Windy City.

3.  After I Left Home: Buddy tells stories about how he was turned down from job after job and was a day away from spending all of the $600 he had saved.  He was about to call his father to request some money so he could get a train ride back to Louisiana.  He finally got his break playing guitar the night before and drove the crowd wild.  You hear stories of him meeting Willie Dixon, Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf, Little Walter, B.B. King, John Lee Hooker, and his "blues brother" Junior Wells.  Stories about his recordings as a backup player at Chess Records, his attempts at solo recordings, owning his first blues club, his children, etc.

This book could easily have been double in size as Buddy dedicated very few pages to the last 40 years of his life making it big as a blues musician.  I was disappointed there was not more.

This book is a must read for any blues fan out there.  If you are like me, you will have it finished before you lay it back down.  Hopefully, there is a second book in the works that tells us more stories about the second half of his life.