iL Dottore

Didn’t Mommy Bear tell you about washing your fruit and veg before using? The really nasty pesticides (like DDT) are now pretty much banned and many of the new generation insecticides are harmless to humans - targeting enzyme pathways present only in the target insect species (a former classmate of mine did her PhD thesis on enzyme pathways uniquely found in the American cockroach) And as for those who are all aghast about pesticide use and using ethylene to ripen fruit and veg in store, you’d better take a good look at yourselves: if there wasn’t an demand from consumers for picture perfect fruit and veg,* agriculture and raw fruit and veg processing would be very different indeed. *Dutch aquaculture tomatoes are a perfect example: look beautiful have no taste and are watery as hell!

Fair points. But if you can pay, why suffer in pain with the prospect of worse outcomes when you finally do get seen (and - possibly - treated) in order to prove a political point. I am so glad that I am in Switzerland (I sat down and calculated that adding the yearly cost of the Krankenkasse Health Insurance to my yearly tax bill, the total I am paying - in percent of income - just slightly less than I would in taxes alone in the UK. But my KK premiums don't go into a general pot, they are ring fenced for healthcare).

It will come as no surprise to learn that I have quite a few "kitchen gadgets" all but one (the dinky doughnut maker) in regular use, although use tends to be episodic. For example, this week I have been having roast beef and Emmental Panini made with my one person sized pannini press (my hot breakfast of choice at the moment: vollkorn bread, roast beef trimings, hand sliced Emmental, seasoning, 7 minutes in the panini press. Beats cornflakes any day). I also have a few items that are rarely seen outside of professional (or serious amateur) kitchens - such as an infrared thermometer (accurate and hygienic), a sous-vide system, a chinoise and a passe-vite. But there again my culinary horizons and cooking techniques go beyond that of many posters on ER. I don't have an air fryer as I find the cost savings in both time and electricity to be pretty much non-existent given the sort of dishes I cook (besides you can't cook tempura, bhaji, tonkatsu or suppli in an air fryer). As for the usual suspects bemoaning that all this equipment is unneeded, I have but one question: would you limit your modelling tools to just one knife, one size of paintbrush, one type of glue and one straightedge? As always, you can bodge, but - as has been the case for centuries, nothing beats using the right tool for the right job.

You miss the point, anyone who has the talent can be cynical, curmudgeonly and grumpy - even at a young age (although it is rare to see CCG folk under the age of 30). But to become a Cynical, Curmudgeonly, Grumpy Old Git - well the secret is in the highlighted word: Old. Nothing can replace years of experience “on the tools“ (so to speak) and a fancy degree from a Russell Group University will not make you a CCGOG any faster! But keep on being cynical and curmudgeonly, we oldies like to see talent emerge and develop!

Isn’t it (wasn’t it?) against the dentists code of ethics to remove perfectly healthy teeth? I don’t see that as being acceptable dental practice in many other countries. But what price health? There seems an incredible reluctance to pay for medical & dental care amongst the British, even when they can afford to do so. It seems that many would rather wait in pain, slowly deteriorating rather than fork out for treatment. My maternal grandfather, a grand old chap (definitely traditional working class who, in the 1930s, went down the mines aged 12 to help feed the family), made a very very apposite comment about the NHS and government services in general. He said “appreciate what they give you, but never ever forget that if they give with the one hand they can (and will) take away with the other”. Wise words indeed. There are a lot of myths about the foundation of the NHS one of which was only the Tories voted against it. Nothing further from the truth, many groups and parties such as the LCC, various health charities and working class benevolent societies (such as the one my Grandfather was involved in) were against the NHS as they feared, quite rightly, that the NHS would come in, take over the clinics and cottage hospitals created by the charities and benevolent societies for their members, run everything from Whitehall whilst arrogantly ignoring and marginalising those who knew the local needs and local concerns. They had a point. But at least it’s free…..

It’s pretty much a bog-standard chocolate cake recipe, notable perhaps for using cups instead of grams/oz and the rather vague baking instructions. A moderate oven is 180°C to 190°C and I’d bake it at 180°C rather than 190°C and give it a few more minutes in the oven if necessary. Cup size is more of an enigma as I can think of three different cup sizes, you can use (no sniggering in the back): US cup, Australian cup and British/European cup, they are all slightly different; although I think now people have pretty much standardised a cup as 250 ml of volume. To elevate it from bog-standard you could slice it into two horizontally and fill it with a chocolate ganache (perhaps a white chocolate ganache as a contrast?) before sandwiching the halves together or you could add white chocolate chips to the batter mix before baking (or both). Neither icing nor buttercream would be appropriate here - you don’t want a chocolate cake to be sickly sweet (definitely a problem with bought supermarket chocolate cake, frequently far too sweet). Tomorrow’s “cake of the week bake” will be a rhubarb crumble cake.

Returning, for a moment, to the “joke“ box of medication, did anyone notice the words “ take extra care with dentures” in the top right corner? Why do people assume that anyone over 65 years of age is deaf, senile and edentulous? Although the United Kingdom is infamous (and justly so) for poor dentition and dental care, even in GB there are people 65 years of age or older who still have all their teeth (that’s original teeth, not “their own dentures [as opposed to shared dentures? The mind boggles]). I wonder if this ageist stereotype derives from our grandparents generation? They indeed suffered the consequences in older age of inadequate nutrition and medical care in early childhood, plus dealing with all the stresses of fighting a world war coupled with a generally lax attitude towards health and safety in the working environment. When they set up the state pension, they expected few people to make it past 70 or so once retired. Nowadays, notwithstanding the Traditional British Diet (fried carbohydrates with a side of order of carbohydrates, followed by sugary carbohydrates - all washed down by alcoholic carbohydrates) more people are living well past the mid-70s than ever before. This may not be sustainable.

There seems to be enough UPF there to keep any @polybear happy for as much two or three days. On a more serious note, do these have the same (or similar) amounts of stabilisers, emulsifiers, antioxidants and other processing chemicals that are routinely found in the UK’s UPF?

Indeed, Andy, indeed. And, I might say, a perfect example of the “medicalisation of the normal”; inventing (undoubtedly expensive) treatments for things that don’t need treating. Oldgiteritis is perfectly natural and comes from many years of world weary experience with the realities of life. There are actually three stages (or types if you will): Old Git (OG) Grumpy Old Git (GOG) Cynical Grumpy Old Git or Curmudgeonly Grumpy Old Git (CGOG) Some authorities believe that Cynical Grumpy Old Git and Curmudgeonly Grumpy Old Git are mutually exclusive conditions. However, recent research shows that there is a state of perfection beyond that of CGOG, which is CCGOG: Cynical and Curmudgeonly Grumpy Old Git. I am perfectly at ease with, and comfortable with, the (self) diagnosis of CCGOG and I’m most emphatically against any sort of treatment for my so-called “condition“. And I bitterly resent any young person (i.e. anyone under the age of 50), telling me what I should or shouldn’t be! That is definitely ageism hate speech!

Thinking about why fruit and veg packed for commercial users (restaurants, pizzerias, canteens) is so, so much better than that aimed at the consumer market, I suddenly came up with what must be THE answer! The trade supermarket supplies pizzerias; many pizzerias are owned by “men of honour“. Now, should these distinguished gentlemen learn that their profit margins are being eaten into by fruit and veg rapidly spoiling, the trade supermarket would undoubtedly get a visit from very large gentlemen with names like Guido spacca dito or Enzo rompi palle, who would proceed to educate the trade supermarket about good business practices! Either that or restaurants and pizzerias have Soo, Grabbit and Runne on speed-dial.

They probably aren’t as fresh as they’d like you to believe. Not too sure about the UK, but in one of the European consumer magazines - a number of years ago - there was a report about how (at that time) potatoes were dug up in Holland, sent by lorry down to Southern Italy for washing, then trucked back to Germany for packing and thence to the supermarket. I doubt that things have changed much since then. (this, of course, being subsidise by all kinds of special EU economic and agricultural grants. No matter what you might think about Brexit, you have to admit that some of the things the EU did/does is pretty &£#@#£ stupid). All this handling/washing/shipping certainly does Mr Spud no good. Returning, briefly, to the topic of supermarket fruit and veg; as a small company I have access to a supermarket that serves the trade (small to medium size restaurants, small to medium-sized businesses with canteens etc.), and I can buy the same fruit and veg bought by restaurants in canteens. The thing is, although they come in large quantities the quality is far superior to the small – domestic size – bags of the same fruit or vegetables (as the “trade” supermarket belongs to one of the big Swiss supermarket chains, you can also get at the trade supermarket the “aimed at consumers“ small bags of fruit and veg). So you end up with the rather odd situation of a 5 kg bag of onions (minimum commercial size) lasting for months, whilst a 1 kg bag of “domestic market” onions go bad within a week or so. Thus, one can conclude that one of my favourite sayings (used in regard to equipment): “when you gotta go, you’ve gotta go pro” is also applicable to purchasing food and drink.

Is that with or without the big stick with a nail in the end?

Winnie, dear boy, you'll be pleased to know that the "comparison of whiskey quality by region, distiller and age" is an ongoing scientific investigation sponsored by CCI GmbH (iL Dottore, principal investigator). Currently the team is trying to source a 70 year old aged in barrel single malt whiskey, with little success. Firstly they are rarely available and secondly, even the deep, deep pockets of CCI GmbH are finding the per unit cost a bit of a stretch (The Glen Grant 1952 70 Year Old Queen's Platinum Jubilee is £20,000 a bottle). p.s. WB. I'm looking for an assistant investigator, interested?

Paradoxically, plain frozen veg are frequently better than fresh (by "plain" I mean unseasoned/unspiced or otherwise altered). The reason being that within hours of being picked the veg have been washed, graded, lightly parboiled (to remove any surface nasties) and then flash frozen. "Fresh" vegetables in the supermarket may be anything but - having been stored - sometimes for months (e.g. apples) - in special warehouses. There are certain vegetables, such as potatoes and onions, that do store well; however, how they are stored is important. From personal experience (and experimentation) I can say that unwashed potatoes last a damn site longer than washed potatoes even if stored correctly. Presumably, the light dry dusting of earth left on unwashed potatoes form some sort of protective barrier (but don't ask me what). Many professional chefs swear by frozen peas as an acceptable substitute if you cannot get same day picked fresh peas Defining whisky as a UPF doesn't surprise me - although I think that's really stretching the definition of UPF. Granted the various processes of taking the raw materials and turning them into whiskey are indeed transformative, but (with the exception of the really cheap and nasty stuff) everything involved in the process is (or should be) traditional only relying on all natural ingredients. The addition of the sort of chemical stabilisers, emulsifiers, antioxidants and the like found in processed food is very much frowned upon. Wine, on the other hand, is a completely different kettle of fish. There seems to be periodically regular scandals involving adulteration of wine and the passing off of cheap wine as it's more expensive cousins. To claim that baked beans are merely cooked in a tomato sauce and tinned is, at best, disingenuous. If you look at the fine print on the label you will find the usual rogues gallery of emulsifiers, stabilisers, antioxidants, et cetera, et cetera. Although to be fair some brands are much much better than others. As for those ER miscreants who disdain that glorious beverage known as "the water of life" I think I must introduce them to my Hibernian friend who introduced me to the pleasures (and the correct way of) drinking whisky. A very large bearded gentleman, for whom tossing a cable is no more of an effort than tossing a used toothpick into an ashtray, would definitely be keen to "correct and re-educate" those people who deride that fine Scottish liquid from heaven.

Mainly because the Americans made damn sure the UK was down to its last few farthings before they handed over some clapped out ships in what became the first of the lend-lease programme. Whilst it is undeniably true that the US and the UK share much in common and frequently have the same geopolitical interests, America has never been (as much as some politicians wish it otherwise) Britain's "greatest friend" - the "Special Relationship", much championed by Churchill, has frequently been mostly one-way (in the US's favour). There was significant anti-British sentiment prior to WWII (probably fueled in part by the large Irish diaspora in the US) and even now there is a tendency towards anti British sentiment in some parts of US society (https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/columnists/2588075/why-is-irish-america-so-anti-british/, We should heed the words, spoken in a moment of unguardedness by Henry Kissinger "America has no permanent friends or enemies, only interests". The sooner the politicians in Westminster grasp the geopolitical realities of the world, the better.

Good Morning, A busy day awaits: paying work (😁) followed by some work on an Imbiss I’m building in O gauge for @bbishop of this parish. Today I’ll finish painting the chip fryer, seeing if I can turn the countertop griddle I made into a free standing one and finishing off the German style beer pumps. Then some Japanese language revision followed by - at about 6pm - a brief sojourn the kitchen to make dinner: a lightly spiced broccoli soup (note to PB: using only onions, garlic, a little olive oil, some vegetable stock, a dash of cream and a big chunk of fresh broccoli I can make in 40 minutes a superb - industrial additive free - broccoli soup. And of that 40 minutes only about ten is spent in the kitchen “cooking” [the prep and finishing the soup]). Returning to housing/accommodation. Why are we (i.e. us “old folks”) under so much pressure to “downsize” when we reach pensionable age? Even in the absence of sprogs (who presumably would want to get their grubby little protuberances on the family estate) there is pressure to give up a perfectly decent sized house. I see NO reason (except for physical limitations) to give up a perfectly serviceable dwelling. Plus, consider this: you have spent your entire life working your b*****ks off, looking forward to enjoying all your hobbies and activities when you retire; then along comes some clever clogs*, who “advises“ you to downsize! So, if you do, where the &#@# will you do all those activities and hobbies you were looking forward to doing in retirement? ION I’ll have to get a copy of the Frank Whittle biography mentioned in dispatches by @PupCam. I have read a bit about the history of Britain during this period and one thing does stand out. Is how the post war British governments (1st Labour and then Conservative) threw away all the technological advances and leadership in so many aerospace and other engineering areas. David Kynaston has written some interesting and unsentimental histories of the postwar years 1945-1951 *often in the position to trouser ££££ for his/her “advice” and subsequent sale of your property.

Tea? But where are the cucumber sandwiches, scones, clotted cream & jam, Victoria sponge and pot of Earl Grey? Looks like a splendid dinner to me…..

Harsh! Usually such utterances from future MILs do not bode well, so it's probably quite satisfying to have proven her wrong. p.s. trivial fact: Les Dawson, maestro of the MIL gag, apparently had a fantastic relationship with his MIL

swigging meths and verbally abusing passers-by.... ..... Yeah, right!

Basically, it's rough description of Schloss iD - although spread out a bit (the library/home cinema is on the first floor, the office/study is in the dachraum [which also doubles as a guest bedroom] and the snug - also on the first floor - has been turned over to storage for i) Mrs iD's wardrobe overflow and ii) my library overflow + guitar collection). Unfortunately, we have neither a boot room or a proper larder and the kitchen is tiny...

In Swiss houses the utility room and plant room are in the basement - together with the air raid shelter/wine cellar.

To continue on matters of accommodation. Mrs iD has been pressuring me to agree to sell Schloss iD and move to a flat - and for the longest time I have resisted. But you know how it is with a SWMBO: sooner or later they do get their way... Anyway, to make a long story short, I have capitulated, but NOT unconditionally: one of the key things was that the only type of flat that would be considered would be a dachwohnung, attikawohnung or - if a suitable ground plan can be found - a dach-maisonnettewohnung. But whilst there's plenty of flats out there, I have noted the following They don't specifically refer to living room, bedrooms etc. They are classified by "Zimmer" - so a 2.5 zimmer wohnung is likely to be just 1 bedroom and a living room/dining room (kitchen and bathrooms are not included in the room count) Most are terribly tiny (<100m2) - unless you go further out into the wilderness or pay serious money (see below). Open plan seems to be the norm rather than exception (I loathe open plan) In the Gemeinde that Mrs iD favours flats go for serious money - such as this one here: https://www.homegate.ch/kaufen/4000687429 a state of the art new building. Mrs iD and I are at an impasse as we have not resolved the thorny question of what is preferred "location. location, location" first, flat size and amenities second or the other way around. I fear that I'll be wandering around the ancestral pile for a bit....

Hmm. Receptions Rooms -----> house plans.... I'd say you need (ground floor) a living room (aka reception room), dining room, library/study. a snug (like a living room but smaller with comfy well worn [and worn-in] furniture), a decent sized entrance hall plus downstairs "guest" toilet (WC). The kitchen should be of a reasonable size with a "proper" walk in larder. If budget (and building footprint) permits - then a music room and/or a billiard/smoking room are very nice nice-to-haves. A proper "boot room" leading out into the garden/side entrance is a big must if you have dogs and/or a Percy Thrower in the family. It goes without saying that an adjacent garage and a decent sized shed should be mandatory outside fixtures. Upstairs: an appropriate number of bedrooms - preferably all en-suite. To keep SWMBO contended (as far as they can ever be) at least one bedroom should have an adjacent walk-in wardrobe/small dressing room. The attic can be converted into a "man cave" for when it's too cold for shedding.

A lot of people are now realising the environmental cost of eating out of season fruit and veg (and some of the more food savvy are also realising how disastrous for the environment vegan [incredibly UPF] meat, cheese and milk substitutes are). As for cost, the percentage households spent on food has dropped since the 1960s - driven by industrialisation and imports. With less UPF available in European shops, food costs are higher, but so is food quality. "Healthy Eating" is an absolute minefield - it wasn't that long ago that the Government was excoriating fat and promoting carbohydrates. Following a combination of the Mediterranean and the Japanese diet (as I do) will defintely increase the probability of live to an old age: fit, on few meds and in possession of all my teeth and my faculties. @Tony_S may be right, a single tin of beans won't do much more than temporarily mess with your blood sugar values, but overall? Public Health England thinks Britain ain't doing too well: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/health-profile-for-england/chapter-4-european-comparisons A rich country like the UK should really be doing better - health wise - than it is. And with 57% of the UKs diet being UPF - is it any wonder? But, hey, you've got all the advantages of cheap booze, frozen and tinned produce and microwaveable ready meals, right?

Ignorant bars***d!