Amateurish photographer who wishes he were better at taking pictures.
Amateurish chef who wishes he were better at cooking.
Amateurish traveler who wishes he had more money and time to travel.
I have another blog at kentnickellphoto.wordpress.com
Follow on Instagram at knickell56 or #eatwithbigsurf
He was so ugly as a kid, we had to tie a pork chop around his neck to get the dog to play with him.—Saying from my youth
The above taunt was not directed at me, as far as I know. I may have used it a time or two, I confess.
I have a new love for the pig meat. My neighbor is a hog farmer…so endless supply. My son and his family live in a world where it is forbidden…so no supply. We load up on pork when they come to visit. There was more pork in this house than a congressional budget the last time they visited. This simple pork chop dish will be on the menu the next time they are here.
We had a left-over uncooked chop of decent size, so I wanted to use it for breakfast this morning. Now Mrs. Big Surf gets a little angst going whenever I ignore her Library of Congress-sized cookbook wing of the house. However I decided to make something simple because that is how my mind works best. This was not a ground-breaking culinary event here, just putting together simple ingredients for a good tasting dish, all the while knowing the missus could see there wasn’t an open cookbook.
I salted and peppered the pork chop and fried it in a skillet with a little olive oil. When almost done, I added some scallions to caramelize with it. In another skillet, I was frying two eggs, seasoned with EVERYTHING BUT THE BAGEL. The eggs should be over-light (or runny).
I divided the pork chop with the scallions between two plates and topped each with a slice of tomato. I placed the egg on top of the tomato with salt and pepper, topped the tomato with the egg and some green chopped scallions. To this I finished with some Maggi Hot and Sweet tomato chili sauce. This sauce is a favorite in the Big Surf house to eat with eggs.
Mrs. Big Surf was very pleased and so was I. She was so pleased in fact, that she is now in the mood for a dog. She thinks she has found a way to finally get a dog to like me.
I have two preferred locations. One of them is Portugal. —Cliff Richard
Falesia Beach in the Algarve area of Portugal on the southern coast is considered one of the best beaches in the world. Though I will not argue the accolades for this beautiful beach, I never really know how the powers that be come to that moniker. Is it location? Is it sunsets? Is it lack of crowds? Is it an exotic ambiance? Or…..is it the cliffs? Praia da Falesia has all of these.
Except for warm water, however it was early in the season, first week of May. This was the only drawback we experienced on this magnificent beach. Of course, the kids didn’t mind.
The grandchildren loved the large beach.
The high cliffs give this beach a hint of privacy.
The clay cliffs look like they could crumble from the attack of six small children with plastic shovels and buckets. But that is the allure of the cliffs, delicate but rugged.
I loved the shadow here. Since I am writing this on Christmas Day, it think it resembles Mary riding to Bethlehem.
The pink spiny thrift was in bloom.
There are beautiful sunsets.
“Out on praia de Falesia, I listen to the waves. Out on praia de Falesia, everyone behaves” Kent Nickell
Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life—Pablo Picasso
Lisbon, Portugal is a very easy city to navigate as a biped. We did it with six grandchildren, the oldest being eight. One thing that stood out for me was seeing the many colored tiles and murals imbedded in the walls of narrow streets. Also the brightly-colored doors being extra splashes of color in an already multi-hued city.
It didn’t take long to realize these little surprises were part of the visual culture of Lisbon. And I loved it. I’ve thought about these nuggets of art scattered about Lisbon since I have been home and I think you could create some kind of scavenger hunt if you are traveling with a large group of family or friends, especially with young children. I think it would help the children to appreciate the surroundings and be aware of the city they are exploring. I will leave the details and rules up to you.
Here are a few tiles, murals, and doors I saw in Lisbon:
Of course, you could buy your own and hire a stone mason or brick mason and insert it into your 800 yr-old exterior house walls and start a tradition here in Indiana.
I will loan you this tile of Mrs. Big Surf and me to get you started.
If there is one portion of Europe which was made by the sea more than the other, Portugal is that slice, that portion, that belt. Portugal was made by the Atlantic—Hillaire Beloc
In the spirit of Vasco da Gama, Portugal’s most famous explorer, my family headed to Lisbon in May of 2024. Of course da Gama had a crew of 170 sailors and four ships as he headed around Africa toward India, we on the other hand had six grandchildren in tow…who’s the real explorers here.
My son-in-law says, “All old European cities look alike, a small ancient part of the city with narrow streets that are hard to navigate, surrounding a large cathedral from medieval times, shops and cafes to draw in the tourists, an few smattering of plazas, and outer modern neighborhoods with large streets.” Now this is a rather simplistic view of European cities, but he is a realist and the dreamer in me refuses to give in to this view.
Granted we have seen a number of old cities in Europe and I would be hard pressed to immediately tell the difference if you dropped me blindfolded in the middle of one the ancient parts of Rome, Munich, Salzburg, Paris, London, Athens, Istanbul…You get the gist. Only the language and some surrounding vistas would give me a clue.
Be that as it may, I loved Lisbon. And yes it followed the pattern of the other cities, however the hills and the ocean and the river made this city different. Lisbon reminded me of San Francisco without the survivors of the Summer of Love. There are lots of vistas atop hills with views of the sea and the Tagus River, vibrant colors against a backdrop of bleached-white exteriors and redbrick tiled roofs that seem to come to life in the setting sun.
After writing many blogs, most of which involve traveling with small grandchildren and family, I have decided my blogs are not for you younger travelers or retired couples with more sense than me, moving about these cities, unfettered by the whims and needs and occassional temper tantrums of small children. After all, most of you are writing your own blogs. There are so many good travel blogs, that’s how I knew where to go in Lisbon. This is about how we handled Lisbon. We went to Portugal in early May so there were plenty of flowers in bloom to add to the beauty.
We stayed in the Alfama district of Lisbon. It’s old and an easy walk to see some of the popular sights, unless you have an aversion to walking uphill.
This is the gate to the Castle of Sao Jorge atop a large hill with a great view of Lisbon. We didn’t go in, just walked around a little, wearing out the kids. It is crowded, so get tickets before you go.
Our kids loved playing on these steps in Alfama they didn’t care about touristy stuff.
Well let’s see some touristy stuff…
The Lisbon Cathedral is located in the Alfama district of Lisbon. I loved walking through this Medieval cathedral and also going up to the top to see the views of Lisbon was special.
I love seeing the old baptistries of the cathedrals. This is the baptistry of the Lisbon Cathedral (Church of St. Mary Major).
A view from atop the Lisbon Cathedral. You can see Christ the King statue on the distant hill and the suspension bridge, 25 de Abril Bridge, connecting Lisbon to Almada spanning the Tagus River.
The famous 28 streetcar is a popular way to see the city. Of course if I knew this, many, many other people knew it too. Get in line…we didn’t. You remember… six grandchildren.
The Rua Augusta Arch was built in 1755 to commemorate the reconstruction after the 1755 earthquake. Going through this arch leads to the large Commerce Square (Praco do Comercio).
This is the Praco do Comercio. What is it about large open spaces that triggers kids to run wild, my grandkids anyway. I observed them from the top of the arch, they were easy to find, I just looked for movement.
You can go up top of the Rua Augusta Arch and stand by the sculpture.
The statue of St. Vincent, the patron saint of Lisbon, is in the Alfama district on a hill near the Lisbon Cathedral.
Iconic view of Lisbon on the Tagus River atop a hill in Alfama. It’s in a little garden behind the Santa Luzia church. Get there in late afternoon for the sun to hit the rooftops just right.
Another beautiful scene in late afternoon in Lisbon.
The Praca do Municipio, Lisbon’s city hall and public square with the spiral sculpture and octagonal platform make a great place to sit and watch people be annoyed by your grandchildren running amok.
The Pink Street with its hanging umbrellas is a quirky little surprise you may come upon.
This is a beautiful, serene little plaza outside St. Paul’s Church.
There are plenty of narrow streets that are colorful and have views of the sea and river. Notice the stone streets. Wear shoes with good tread because its get slick when they are wet.
The large Christ the King statue is worth the trip across the Tagus River to Almada.
It is a beautiful view looking back at Lisbon from the grounds of Christ the King statue.
Lisbon is a beautiful European city with wonderful views. The people are friendly and were never really intimidated by our horde of small marauders. If they could handle us, you will not be a problem.
Let food be thy medicine, and medicine be thy food—Hippocrates
Due to some good fortune or bad Karma (you be the judge), I was presented with a bag of Impossible Burger Patties last week.
Now those of you in the carnivorous camp who eat only red or white meat and think the only veggies to eat are the onions, mushrooms, or peppers on top of your steak, probably never heard of these plant-based burgers.
To be honest, I probably would have never bought them. I would be thinking “Why Impossible? Impossible to like…impossible to enjoy…impossible to convince me I’m eating meat…impossible to convince me I’m saving the planet?”
Ok, that last one may have been uncalled for.
These plant-based burgers are “not unfortunate” in taste, as my blue-eyed darlin’ would say. They have the texture and shape of a meat-burger, but definitely not the taste or the juice dripping down your chin.
If I am hosting a plant-based-diet human in my abode, I would gladly serve up one of these burgers, they are tasty. However, I would never prepare one for a meat-eater, no matter how much you try to pretty it up with cheese and fixins’. You would never fool a meat-lover with this. I would be as nervous as a cocaine runner approaching a drug-sniffing dog in Miami’s airport.
Pre-cooked it looks like a regular burger, but maybe a little too perfect.
The Missus wanted hers disguised with cheese, a lame attempt at covertness.
Pretty it up all you want, still a soy burger. Good flavor, none the less.
Incidentally, I wander just how much less carbon is used up in producing this product. Based on the ingredient list, it looks like a lot of factory work here.
But then ol’ gassy Bessie can stop looking over her shoulder in the field.
I’m strong to the finich ’cause I eats me spinach—Popeye
When Daphne responded to George Costanza’s query about her eggs with “Eggs are eggs”, I cringed at this particular Seinfeldism. I, for one, value the importance of this often, taken for granted, ovate protein source. As stated in previous writings (that sounds so pretentious doesn’t it?), I love eggs and I am always trying to elevate the taste of them.
If I say the egg is my “muse”, does that mean I have to be artistic? No one has ever accused me of this. It is safe to say I will never cut off my ear if I break a yolk.
This past Friday morning, there was a smidgeon of something resembling a creative spark deep within me that was crying to see the light of the range hood. So the dish above was created.
I’m sure some of you will turn your nose up at this, but it really was a tasteful breakfast dish. If you can get past some of the biases that imprison your morning food choices, you may find this worthy of an occasional alternate start to your day.
This started with some delicious sourdough bread my blue-eyed darlin’ baked. It makes for a delicious toast canvas for my masterpiece. I spread some zhug (https://eat-with-big-surf.blog/2023/11/18/zhug-zhoug-sahawiq-schug-skug-mabooj/) on the toast. I sauteed some spinach with some store-bought marinated, grilled artichoke halves. I topped with a poached egg, salt and pepper.
Now Mrs. Big Surf and I loved the dish, though the missus felt like I used too much zhug and it overpowered her taste buds. I was surprised by this and when I verbalized my surprise, she said, “Your eyeballs are sweating”.
So the moral here is to know your audience. Based on a small sample size, the zhug can be a bit overwhelming to German and Irish palates, so go easy on this Yemeni originated condiment.
Show a little restraint like Van Gogh. He only cut off part of his ear.
“Without my morning coffee, I’m just like a dried-up piece of roast goat.” – Johann Sebastian Bach
I must confess, elitism is an ugly trait in an individual, except for me and my coffee.
I do not like to drink coffee just because it’s coffee, I like good coffee. And I am always dreaming of the perfect cup with the perfect ambiance for which to drink that perfect cup. Therefore, the title of this little blog. I have never found the aforementioned combination, or either component of the aforementioned combination.
I enjoy buying beans to grind myself and I use a French press. I am always trying new coffees and have had much success. Much like Tiger Woods finding the perfect golf swing, Beethoven scoring the perfect concerto, the search continues. I think it may be out there somewhere. Maybe artificial intelligence can develop the perfect cup. However the relaxing aura has always eluded me and I don’t have much hope for the future. It seems George Jetson was always rushing around.
Pre-retirement Big Surf was always thinking about too many things during his morning coffee, usually “where are my shoes?”, “do my socks match?”, “can I make it to lunch without a meltdown?”, or my favorite “where in the week is my next nap?”
So in light of all of these queries to solve during my morning cup of coffee, I would just pour about three cups into my modern-day thermos, the Contigo. I would sip on this during the work morning when the opportunity arose. So…no relaxing coffee for 38 years.
Finally, finally when I decided to retire, I felt my coffee fantasies were about to come true. All those cups of coffee that were sipped in numerous countries, in cafes, on beaches, or looking at incredible scenery still did not provide what I was searching for…for me and my friend Joe. Surely now it would happen, the perfect blend of morning relaxation and java to start my day.
Alas, the start of my day is still filled with self cross-examination? “What am I doing today?” “Why don’t these contractors call me back?” “Will my money run out before I do?”, “The grandchildren are coming WHEN?” And the lovely blue-eyed darling sensually whispering in my ear, “Are you about done with that coffee?”
I am believing tranquility is an urban myth in this lifetime. Much like you-know-who in the title.
I was close to relaxing with my tasty coffee this morning until I felt the need to finish this humanity-saving blog.
Do you want to make a tamale with peanut butter and jelly? Go ahead! Somebody will eat it.—Bobby Flay
Antony and Cleopatra. Lennon and McCartney. Simon and Garfunkel. Abbot and Costello. Ben and Jerry. All are famous pairings. But nothing goes together like peanut butter and jelly.
Growing up I was a PB and J snob, for it had to be smooth peanut butter and grape jelly only. For a brief moment in the space-time continuum, my mom substituted jelly with bananas and that in itself was a wonderful duo for the tastebuds. However it was never a replacement for the original.
A couple of weeks ago, I lived out the above quote from Bobby Flay, except I substituted the tamale for a cheeseburger. Now I never would have ever thought of this, but due to some adolescent peer pressure (yes in a testosterone world, it still exists in your sixties), I succumbed to this immature baiting from co-workers. It is still confusing to me how the testosterone levels can reduce as you age but the level of immaturity stays the same.
I was coerced one day to eat this amalgamation of Americana food… hamburger with cheese, bacon, pickled jalapeno, peanut butter, and GRAPE jelly. Well at least they got the jelly flavor right.
This ostentatious sandwich was served by the innovators at Whiskey John’s Restobar in Shelbyville, Indiana. Some would think you need a few belts of some Kentucky bourbon to order this. I wanted to loathe this burger so bad that I would never, ever consider ordering it again.
However, against all things tasteful and sensical, I LOVED IT!!!
Don’t ask me how it works, like trying to figure out falling in love, leave it alone. It just works. I will treat this as a delicacy and only eat it a few times a year, otherwise I will regress to my 6-yr. old self and eat it everyday.
Ours is a country built more on people than on territory. The Jews will come from everywhere: from France, from Russia, from America, from Yemen…Their faith is their passport—David Ben Gurion
The above quote is historic and also timely.
As one who finds the Jewish people fascinating, living in a country surrounded by enemies, I love this quote. I know the circumstances surrounding Israel, as of November 2023, with their war against Hamas, is a serious geopolitical event. And I have no sensical analysis to make any further comment. So, I will leave it at that since my little blog is nothing more than musings about things not so important.
However the above quote concerning the Jews returning to their homeland after 1948 reminds me of the many people who left Appalachia and returned to their homeland after their exile to Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and all other points North to work in the factories. That also fascinates me.
This little jar of spice and heat in the title picture fascinated me when I found it in a recipe. Zhug (or pick any other name or spelling this condiment goes by) was brought to Israel by the Jews who migrated back from Yemen in the 1950’s. I wonder if the northern cities thank the Appalachian workers for bringing them soup beans and cornbread?
Zhug combines the warm spices of the Mediterranean region like cumin, cardamon, cilantro, parsley, with lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Heat in the sauce is from jalapeno and black pepper.
The jar says you can use this on anything…so I am trying it on anything.
This delicious dish was the reason I ordered Zhug. It is an ingredient in Yottam Ottolenghi’s Braised eggs with lamb, tahini, and sumac, from his JERUSALEM cookbook.
I also used Zhug in a Japanese omelette with cheese and spinach. In the photo is my last tomato of the season that I happened to find while pulling up the plant…an added bonus.
People groups moving to different locations bring us new foods to try and enjoy. If you don’t want to move out of the region where you currently reside, you can always order from Amazon. For me it was easier than moving to Israel or Yemen.
While your horse is strong, travel to see places—-Mongolian proverb
Well, this quote is my new mantra.
Mrs. Big Surf and I usually have this conversation about once a week, albeit we usually don’t use the horse reference. It’s usually about me being strong enough to navigate the streets of other countries whilst I can still move about in an upright position.
So we decided to compromise on this beautiful day in October and whilst our Honda Civic was strong, we made the short drive to Greenwood, Indiana and visited Mongolia…or at least the southern Indiana version of Mongolia, to Yummy Bowl.
Now I just didn’t fall off the turnip truck, so I figured the Mongolian cuisine I ate at Yummy Bowl was a blend of Americanized (fill up a bowl to defy the laws of physics) and Sino-American (lots of veggies with sauces and noodles and rice and shrimp). I deduced this since I didn’t see any yak milk or yak yogurt, traditional Mongolian staples. I also didn’t see any animal carcasses laying around in the open kitchen to prepare another traditional Mongolian dish, boodog (meat cooked in the carcass). Also good luck finding shrimp, broccoli, and mushrooms in the Gobi Desert.
Mongolia’s history goes back to Ghengis Khan in the early 1200’s after he united all of the Mongolian tribes, a feat that is remarkable considering the modern-day Republican party or the rebellious Democratic Squad . Then he conquered parts of northern China after a hankering for Peking Duck and dumpling take-out.
Nevertheless, Yummy Bowl is quickly becoming one of my favorite lunch spots. Whatever kind of food they advertise, it is delicious and served in a way that is fun to eat.
After filling your bowl as full as humanly possible and choosing your sauces, it awaits for the large grill and expert cooks too prepare your dish.
Can you smell the welcoming aroma and hear the sizzle?
The final product. I ordered the vegetarian bowl. The sauces add so much extra goodness.
I know Mr. Khan would have questioned my choice of Mongolian fare. However, since there was no goat, mutton, or camel on the menu, I may have had a good defense before he made a boodog out of me.
Go eat lunch at Yummy Bowl. The food and experience is wonderful, even though you may not be able to order yak milk for the young’uns.
Big Surf Daddy's Pix, Tix, and Licks 