Text 29242, 118 rader
Skriven 2012-09-05 06:38:00 av Dave Drum (61443.cooking)
  Kommentar till text 29214 av MICHAEL LOO (1:123/140)
Ärende: Flying to pieces
========================
-=> MICHAEL LOO wrote to GLEN JAMIESON <=-

 GJ> Their ability to make lightning decisions calmly and accurately
 GJ> resulted at least in part from their military experience and many
 GJ> years of flying giving them an innate feeling for the plane as part of
 GJ> themselves, so they could still fly it when most instruments and
 GJ> controls were dead or incorrect, and the flight manuals did not cover
 GJ> the situation.

 ML> Are you sure of this, or is it an educated guess? I find it
 ML> difficult to make the stretch of imagining that an expert
 ML> military aircraft pilot is going to transfer all that
 ML> innate feeling to a civilian craft. The planes are not
 ML> meant to do the same thing.

It has been my experience that the people I know who are *real* pilots (not
just airplane drivers) have a feel for whatever airplane they are piloting and
can coax things from it that the designers never knew or hoped were possible. I
have no trouble whatsoever imagining that an expert military pilot would also
be "in tune" with a civilian craft.

Top level racing drivers are much the same WRT equipment, often succeeding in
getting more out of their vehicle than was designed in -- which is why they are
"top level".

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06

      Title: Pilot Bread
 Categories: Breads
      Yield: 1 Batch

  1 1/2 c  Unbleached flour; unsifted
    1/2 c  Whole wheat or oat flour
      1 ts Salt
    1/4 ts Bicarbonate of soda
      1 tb Lard; melted
    3/4 c  Water
      1 ts Molasses

  Thoroughly mix dry ingredients; add melted shortening and
  molasses. 

  Slowly add water, kneading into a tough, firm, elastic
  ball on a floured surface until flour will no longer stick
  to it. Knock it onto or against a hard surface for a bit,
  turning it between whacks as a potter might do to a gob of
  clay to drive out any air bubbles. 

  Lay a clean linen, canvas or cotton duck cloth at least
  18"H X 24L" down on a strong, flat, steady table or
  counter and dust some flour over it. Schmoosh the dough
  ball into a "brick" and lay it in the middle of the cloth.

  Press down to flatten and turn over a couple of times.
  Then with an old-fashioned wooden roller, roll it out to a
  sort of rectangular shape, about 3/16" thick. Keep the
  cloth and roller floured up sufficiently so the dough does
  not stick to them as you roll in out. Try to maintain a
  consistent thickness over the sheet of dough. 

  Score the slab with a long ruler or similar device into
  aprox. 3 inch squares. They can be a little rectangular; 2
  3/4" or so on the short side. 

  Poke vent holes deeply into the dough in a pattern, like
  saltines. Many of the crackers had an even 4X4 array, but
  different contractors seem to have used different hole
  patterns. A block of wood can be fitted with a set of
  wooden "fingers", dulled nails etc. to "stamp" the hole
  arrays. Don't use a sharp poker; you want to displace some
  of the dough around the hole. Chopsticks work pretty well.
  The holes let the steam out as the crackers bake. If you
  don't pierce the sheet well enough, you will get crispy
  popovers instead of hardtack! 

  Trim off the uneven edges around the scored crackers and
  transfer the sheet to the baking pan. You can (and I often
  do) lift or slide the whole cloth and all into the pan and
  bake the slabs right on the cloth. It keeps the dough from
  distorting as it is handled and baked. If you'd rather,
  you can separate the crackers and transfer them with a
  spatula, leaving just a little space between them. 

  Bake in a 400øF/205øC oven (Pizza ovens work wonderfully)
  for about 20 minutes, or until browned. Turn over and DRY
  in open 150øF/65øC oven (or suitable area over oven etc.)
  for about an hour. 

  The crackers should thicken up to about 3/8" but not much
  more. 

  After the crackers cool enough to handle, pack the keepers
  as well as you can to keep them dry. (Waxed paper works
  well).

  When President "Teddy" Roosevelt sent the "Great White
  Fleet" around the World to conduct "Gunboat Diplomacy" in
  the early 1900's, Surplus hardtack left over from the War
  Between the States was apparently included in their
  larder. It was probably about 50 years old at the time. 

  "Pilot Crackers", available at most food markets today,
  (Nabisco makes 'em) is essentially a domesticated
  (thinner, and considerably more chewable) descendant of
  the stuff hardy New Englanders gnawed on while chasing
  whales, plying the China tea trade aboard tall clipper
  ships, or marching along the dusty road to Gettysburg.

  From: http://www.thirdmaine.org

  Uncle Dirty Dave's Archives

MMMMM

... Never give a party if you will be the most interesting person there.
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