You take my FRIDAY and I'll take yours too!

[JudgeDredd]

Ive been playing opening night of new business, there has been some stress DLC, meeting a whole pile of employees i now have DLC and my favourite taking home the cash at night DLC

Oi - where's my CM:BS turn? If you've thrown in the towel, I would just expect a polite mention  >:D

pffft, itll be tomorrow JD - havent switched PC on in 3 days, its been emotional

What did you open up, UCG?  I'm way too scared to open my own business but it must be just about the most liberating feeling in the world...something like not wearing underwear and having a beer with breakfast.

As for gaming, I lost all of my ARMA 3 profile with the hard drive crash I just had, and Skyrim isn't grabbing me.  I'm installing The Witcher 1 right now.  How long until Witcher 3 hits the bargain bin do you guys think?  I want to jump in, but I don't want to buy it a month before it goes on sale 50% off or more.

I waited out Alien Isolation and got the whole smack for $15 including DLC...I'm looking for that kind of deal.

A restaurant Toonces, nothing fancy, traditional fayre, need to get an alcohol licence sorted out and we're good to go

bugger - I had hoped you'd thrown in the towel!

It was a long shot, admittedly!

[Toonces]

That's pretty cool, UCG. 

[Gusington]

Awesome ucg! I am afraid to ask what 'traditional fair' means to you, though.

[Silent Disapproval Robot]

Stinky Nigel's Oxtail and Kidney puddin'!


Ingredients

For the braised oxtail

groundnut oil
    75 g    sliced celery
    175 g    leeks, washed and sliced
    175 g    carrots, peeled and sliced
    200 g    mushrooms, sliced
    300 g    onions, peeled and finely chopped
    1    star anise
    2.5 kg    oxtail, jointed
    250 ml    (1 cup) red wine
    100 ml    brandy
    250 g    tomatoes, halved
    1    bay leaf
    2     thyme sprigs
    10    black peppercorns
    750 ml    (3 cups) chicken stock
    750 ml    (3 cups) beef stock

For the kidney

    1    veal kidney, cleaned and chopped into approximately 1 cm pieces

For the suet pastry

    500 g    self-raising flour
    250 g    shredded suet
    1 tsp    salt
    15 g    baking powder
    300 ml    ice-cold water
    egg wash
    butter and plain flour to line 6 x 150 ml pudding basins



Instructions

Cooling time 1 hour

You will need a pressure cooker for this recipe.

Place a pressure cooker over medium heat and add enough oil to coat the bottom. Sweat the celery, leek and carrot for about 10 minutes or until soft. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Return the pan to the heat and add a bit more oil, cook the mushroom for approximately 10 minutes until caramelized. Set aside.

Place the pan back on the heat, add more oil and cook the onion and star anise. Cook for 10–15 minutes or until soft and caramelized. Add all of the cooked vegetables back in the pan and cook for an additional 5 minutes, remove from the pan.

Add a splash of water to de-glaze the base of the pan. Add the liquid to the cooked vegetables.

To braise the oxtail, place a deep pan over a medium-high heat. Once smoking hot, add enough oil to coat the base of the pan and brown the oxtail, in batches if necessary.

Once the oxtail pieces are well browned, tip any excess fat out of the pan, return to the heat and de-glaze by adding the red wine and brandy. Flame off the alcohol by setting fire to the fumes carefully with a match.

Once the flames have died, add the tomato, bay leaf, thyme, cooked vegetables as well as the browned oxtail, peppercorns and both chicken and beef stocks. Bring the pressure cooker to full pressure, reduce the heat and cook for 2 hours.

To make the pastry, mix the flour, suet, salt and baking powder together in a bowl. Sprinkle the ice-cold water over the mixture and, with clean hands, work into a smooth dough. Knead lightly and place in the fridge to rest for 10–15 minutes.

Divide the pastry into 6 x 100 g portions and roll out circles that are approximately 3 mm in thickness. Grease 6 x 150 ml capacity pudding basins with a little butter and line with the pastry circles.

After 2 hours, place the pressure cooker in a sink of iced water to cool completely before removing the lid. Once cool, remove the oxtails from the liquid and pick the meat from the bones. Strain and discard the vegetables and return the liquid to the pan. Place over a high heat to reduce by two-thirds or until a thick glaze is formed, removing any scum that comes to the surface with a ladle.

Remove the pan from the heat and save some sauce aside to pour over the pudding or inject just before serving. Add the picked meat, kidney pieces and some of the sauce and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir together before spooning into each pudding basin until they are full of meat.

With the remaining pastry, roll out lids to cover the basins (approximately 6 mm in thickness). Brush the edges with egg wash and press down firmly to seal, trim off the excess dough.

Place a small square of parchment paper on top of each pudding and secure with an elastic band. Place the puddings in a wide saucepan with enough water to come three-quarters of the way up the sides of the basins. Allow the water to come to a simmer and cook for 35 minutes. Carefully remove the puddings from the moulds.

Take some of the warm sauce and using a syringe inject into the pudding. Serve immediately.

[Gusington]

^You win! HAHAHA

[Sir Slash]

Way to go Geek. No shoes, no pants, no service. O0

[Bison]

Started up a pre-warp drive game of Distant Worlds.  Human monarchy that has no tolerance for bugs.   I forgot just how truly epic of a game this is.

[JudgeDredd]

Ive been playing opening night of new business, there has been some stress DLC, meeting a whole pile of employees i now have DLC and my favourite taking home the cash at night DLC

I didn't even pick up on this. So this is your own business? I remember you had a run in some months ago with someone at your work.

So you went alone? Very cool. What's the deal?

[JasonPratt]

Yay for Geek!

...wait, does this mean your AARs will start slipping behind?  >:D


Mostly I've been plinking along on MTG:Duels, with a growing itch that I wish I was playing the old Shandalar map campaign. Also feeling horribly old at seeing all the new cards I don't recognize (though very much enjoying seeing all the new cards I don't recognize) along with a few rule tweaks that have come along I need to get used to -- and then I see "Fog" and I think "YAY IT'S FOG A CARD I RECOGNIZE FOG IS STILL AROUND YAAAAY!"

And then I feel old-er.  :'( 

[JasonPratt]

Oh, and despite being allergic to 2 or 2.5D platformers, I bought Spider: Rite of the Shrouded Moon. Where you play a spider doing spidery things, and just happening to solve a cultic mystery or something along the way in an old abandoned manor. But it's a spider simulator. As a 2D platformer.

It's pretty different, is what I'm saying. (Also it features a simple location ping that matches the environmental gfx to my local weather, which is a nice if slightly invasive touch.)

[undercovergeek]

Thanks chaps

Turn today JD

Ive been playing opening night of new business, there has been some stress DLC, meeting a whole pile of employees i now have DLC and my favourite taking home the cash at night DLC

I didn't even pick up on this. So this is your own business? I remember you had a run in some months ago with someone at your work.

So you went alone? Very cool. What's the deal?

This year so far we're in the top 3 in the region, and last year the place came 24th out of 12000 entries for Best Fish and Chip restaurant in the UK

[JudgeDredd]

How cool. Good on ya.

Where's your chippy and what's it called? I do like a nice chip or two  :)

[panzerde]

When I go to visit Bawb again, how far will I have to ride in his clown car to eat at your chippy, UCG?  ;)


Having your own business is (usually) a great thing. Restaurants can be tough, though - a lot of hours, a lot of capital. At least all I have to deal with are business customers and engineers. Congrats on your venture UCG!



Getting back into the swing of PBEM with Tuna and Jim, now that Jim has returned from the Continent. Also playing some Pillars of Eternity because it's easy on my overtaxed brain.

[MengJiao]

Continuing my Vandal campaign in Attila TW - The Last Roman and also continuing to slice my way through Ryse: Son of Rome.

  I might possibly play some Attila.  I will be moving boardgaming out of the manloft into the manbasement.  There are some BIG TABLES down there and I'm getting tired of playing on the floor.

  In other news: playing RUS Gold.  I'm the Bolsheviks and life is hard.  I'm trying to build some industry while everybody attacks me from every possible direction.  I played RUS long ago and sort of forgot what a great game it is.  RUS Gold seems the same except that radios seem to help command capacity significantly.  Maybe I should rebuild the Red Air force and see if it works.  You just never know.

So what really happened?  All went as expected:  Boardgames and Bolsheviks.  It's Dec 1918 and the Bolsheviks are finally getting rolling after being beat up by the AI on all fronts for months.

[airboy]

Stinky Nigel's Oxtail and Kidney puddin'!


Ingredients

For the braised oxtail

groundnut oil
    75 g    sliced celery
    175 g    leeks, washed and sliced
    175 g    carrots, peeled and sliced
    200 g    mushrooms, sliced
    300 g    onions, peeled and finely chopped
    1    star anise
    2.5 kg    oxtail, jointed
    250 ml    (1 cup) red wine
    100 ml    brandy
    250 g    tomatoes, halved
    1    bay leaf
    2     thyme sprigs
    10    black peppercorns
    750 ml    (3 cups) chicken stock
    750 ml    (3 cups) beef stock

For the kidney

    1    veal kidney, cleaned and chopped into approximately 1 cm pieces

For the suet pastry

    500 g    self-raising flour
    250 g    shredded suet
    1 tsp    salt
    15 g    baking powder
    300 ml    ice-cold water
    egg wash
    butter and plain flour to line 6 x 150 ml pudding basins



Instructions

Cooling time 1 hour

You will need a pressure cooker for this recipe.

Place a pressure cooker over medium heat and add enough oil to coat the bottom. Sweat the celery, leek and carrot for about 10 minutes or until soft. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Return the pan to the heat and add a bit more oil, cook the mushroom for approximately 10 minutes until caramelized. Set aside.

Place the pan back on the heat, add more oil and cook the onion and star anise. Cook for 10–15 minutes or until soft and caramelized. Add all of the cooked vegetables back in the pan and cook for an additional 5 minutes, remove from the pan.

Add a splash of water to de-glaze the base of the pan. Add the liquid to the cooked vegetables.

To braise the oxtail, place a deep pan over a medium-high heat. Once smoking hot, add enough oil to coat the base of the pan and brown the oxtail, in batches if necessary.

Once the oxtail pieces are well browned, tip any excess fat out of the pan, return to the heat and de-glaze by adding the red wine and brandy. Flame off the alcohol by setting fire to the fumes carefully with a match.

Once the flames have died, add the tomato, bay leaf, thyme, cooked vegetables as well as the browned oxtail, peppercorns and both chicken and beef stocks. Bring the pressure cooker to full pressure, reduce the heat and cook for 2 hours.

To make the pastry, mix the flour, suet, salt and baking powder together in a bowl. Sprinkle the ice-cold water over the mixture and, with clean hands, work into a smooth dough. Knead lightly and place in the fridge to rest for 10–15 minutes.

Divide the pastry into 6 x 100 g portions and roll out circles that are approximately 3 mm in thickness. Grease 6 x 150 ml capacity pudding basins with a little butter and line with the pastry circles.

After 2 hours, place the pressure cooker in a sink of iced water to cool completely before removing the lid. Once cool, remove the oxtails from the liquid and pick the meat from the bones. Strain and discard the vegetables and return the liquid to the pan. Place over a high heat to reduce by two-thirds or until a thick glaze is formed, removing any scum that comes to the surface with a ladle.

Remove the pan from the heat and save some sauce aside to pour over the pudding or inject just before serving. Add the picked meat, kidney pieces and some of the sauce and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Stir together before spooning into each pudding basin until they are full of meat.

With the remaining pastry, roll out lids to cover the basins (approximately 6 mm in thickness). Brush the edges with egg wash and press down firmly to seal, trim off the excess dough.

Place a small square of parchment paper on top of each pudding and secure with an elastic band. Place the puddings in a wide saucepan with enough water to come three-quarters of the way up the sides of the basins. Allow the water to come to a simmer and cook for 35 minutes. Carefully remove the puddings from the moulds.

Take some of the warm sauce and using a syringe inject into the pudding. Serve immediately.

My wife makes Oxtail Stew and it is awesome.

This recipe is fatty as hell.  You take oxtails (pretty fatty cut) and add pure beef lard (suet).  I'm sure it tastes good - but fat almost always does.