I was making piloncillo syrup, which I have adopted as the main sweetener in my house. I use it in my morning tea and in place of honey, maple syrup, and corn syrup. With just the volume of tea I drink in the morning, I can go through a batch of syrup pretty quickly, so I decided to make an extra large batch, throwing an entire pack of four cones in a pot with some water and setting the stove on medium. I didn't have anything else to do in the kitchen, so I went back into the office to get a little work done.
The confluence of two related but distinct problems worked against me: 1. My kitchen is in the main house. The office is in the casita, across the courtyard. By the time I can smell something is amiss, it's usually beyond that and well into the terribly wrong category. 2. My trusty timer, which I set and carry with me whenever I leave the kitchen, is not so trusty anymore. It has developed a habit of turning itself off. (No. It is not the battery. I checked..)
My work can be utterly absorbing, even when I don't mean it to be. I lose track of time. Eventually, I started to smell sugar and looked down at my timer on my desk. It was off. I had no idea how long it had been since I left the sugar. I speed-walked through the courtyard and into the kitchen to discover that my stove – my brand-new stove – was the base of an 18 inch conflagration.
Hmmmm. Fire. I should put that out. What should I put it out with? I need to smother it. Towel. Yes, towel. No, not that towel – that one is new. Hmmmm...problem. The fire is originating under the grate, which is three inches above the flames. If I throw a towel on there, it will just catch fire, too. Ah. Wet the towel first. Grab towel, turn on faucet. Crap. No water pressure. Stand there whistling "Ring of Fire" while waiting for enough water to fall out of the tap to soak the towel. Take sopping towel and lay on stove. Get blinded by smoke screen. OK, fire mostly out. Oh, yeah, turn off stove.
Once the fire was out, I realized I needed to get the pot out of the house. It was full of molten sugar and continuing to smoke alarmingly. I grabbed the handle (surprisingly cool) and carried the burbling, pulsing, volcanic mass into the courtyard, belching smoke like a '71 Gremlin. I began another internal monologue.
I really need to put this down. Look at how the top expands and cracks, releasing smoke. That's kinda cool, like lava in the movies. Uh-oh. The dogs are now really interested in me. I need to keep this away from them. The cement is out. Hmmm....what else. Patio table? no. Sink? What is that sink really made out of anyway? I don't think its actually cement. Certainly not the washer or dryer. Hmmm...
Presently, Chuck noticed the billowing smoke and became aware of the situation. He came out into the courtyard, and, without knowing the circumstances, immediately identified the problem: his wife was holding a hot pot she really needed to set down somewhere. God bless him for not asking any questions. He immediately grabbed the hibatchi from its storage place and placed it high enough to be out of dog nose reach in a location where it was surrounded by heat-proof tile. Oh, how I love that man of mine.
Proving again why I am the luckiest girl in the world, Chuck went into the house and started opening doors and strategically placing fans, then grabbed all the implements he needed in order to get as much of the mystery substance safely out of my pot (my favorite pot) as he could in an attempt to rescue it – all without asking me any questions. In the meantime, I was attempting to remove as much of the carbonized sugar from the stovetop as I could before it set like cement.
After the smoke finally cleared, the real impact of the fire was evident: there were long, black, feathery strings of burned sugar on everything. I mean everything. The ceiling, the floor, the coffee maker, the fridge, all my pots and pans, the windows, the blinds....everything. Then I went into the living room. Everything. Then the bedroom. Yep. There too. Everywhere the smoke traveled, it carried the strings with it. Even on the car. And they were sticky. Trying to brush them away just caused gooey smears. I spent two days cleaning it up, and then, ever so valiantly, decided to leave the rest for the maid.
I have decided my pot is unsalvageable, but the stove, although discolored, still works like a champ. If anyone knows where I can get a hold of some rubbing compound or stainless steel polish, I would by truly grateful for the information. And any leads on a good, reliable, digital timer would be equally welcome.-
|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferBoy howdy did I dodge a bullet. Chuck and I keep talking about how glad were are that the house is cement and the area around the stove is tiled. And there are no curtains or anything in there. The fire was startling, but it could have been devastating.
Ha ha. Maybe I will surprise you all and have an entirely normal month or two!
-
|189.186.9.xxx |m-d-Y H:i:s TrishHow about sushi left in the bottom of the grocery bag for two weeks . . . yuk!!!!
How do you make your piloncillo syrup when not trying to decorate your home with sweet angel hair?
-
|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferoooooo...gross! I hope that didn't actually happen to you!
The piloncillo syrup is really easy. Just chop up the piloncillo and simmer it in a pan with 1/3 to 1/2 the volume of water and simmer until it looks like syrup. So, if you are using 16 ounces of piloncillo, add 5 to 8 ounces of water to the pan. The more water you add, the longer you have to simmer.
I have also taken an idea from the windshield washers. I heated a nail on the stove and drove it through the cap of a small soda bottle to make a hole in the middle of the cap. I pour the cooled syrup into the bottle, put on the cap, and have a squeeze bottle for dispensing the syrup.
-
|189.174.204.xxx |m-d-Y H:i:s Larry in MazatlanHey, don't make fun of Gremmies!! I owned one a long time ago and it was the best snow car I ever had. Hmmm, guess that doesn't matter much down here, does it.
Larry
-
|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferThey actually made great rally cars, too. But somehow all the ones I have seen have been old, unloved...and smoking.
-
|200.77.77.xxx |m-d-Y H:i:s ZoeHardly ever use a microwave, but after reading YOUR adventure, glad that I had. I made my syrup in the micro with water already added so no explosions, no out of season angel hair, and no volcanic eruption ash. It sits in an emptied blue agave syrup bottle ready for morning coffee.
Now STAY out of trouble!! But again, if you did that, your blogs wouldn't be nearly so interesting.
-
|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferMicrowave - that's a good solution. Especially since I am still looking for a new timer.
-
|187.149.31.xxx |m-d-Y H:i:s Susan Jessup - Okay, what is piloncillo?Hi Jennifer, funny post! What, may I ask, is piloncillo and where do you get it?
-
|SAdministrator |m-d-Y H:i:s jenniferHi Susan!
I did a longer post about piloncillo here:
http://www.mexscape.net/Food/piloncillo-perfection.html
But, essentially, piloncillo is sugar. It is made by crushing sugar cane and then boiling the resulting juice and then pouring it into molds. It is unrefined.
You see it in the markets around town and in the produce sections of the larger stores. It is medium to dark brown, hard, and is usually shaped like a one, although you may also find disks or blocks.
Be careful, I have noticed the blocks at Ley have peanuts in them.
Mostly Cloudy 64 oF • 18 oC
Maybe we should have a reader contest for what kind of crazy thing is going to happen to you next?
¿¿¿¿¿ A monkey might climb in the window and steal your computer monitor... or you forget a gallon of milk in the trunk of the car and it explodes in the sun... or ????
We'll stay tuned, don't worry.