Last night Nate & I went out to dinner for my birthday. Nate didn't really know what to get me so when I suggested he take me to dinner he jumped at the chance. We went to the Warrenside Tavern, out favorite local restaurant. It's an old (like 1700's old) tavern with a simple, tasty menu. It lives up to it's Tavern name in that the beer is plentiful and inexpensive. As I said to Nate, it's good it is not closer to my apartment or I'd be there way to often. Oddly, they don't have a website nor could I find pictures online. I'll try to get some and update this post.
Wednesday is Prime Rib night at the Warrenside, another reason I chose it for my birthday dinner. Every Wednesday, Prime Rib dinner is $12.97 - not 12.99 or 12.95, 12.97. We both got it medium (which was more like medium rare), french fries and bleu cheese dressing on our salads. We split an appetizer of fried calamari. I, of course, had a Sam Adams to start and then a glass of Cabernet with my steak - Nate stuck with the Coke. Not sure what got into me but I cleaned my plate, including sopping up the juices with a couple pieces of bread. We both had dessert - me, Kentucky Bourbon Pecan Pie and Nate, Confused Chocolate Cake.
I should work for the Warrenside - I recommend it to everyone I know. If you come visit, I'll take you there.
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Food. Show all posts
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Easiest Sausage Stuffing
I like turkey. I like stuffing. I like sausage. On holidays, when I cook I try to combine these by making sausage stuffing and cooking it in the bird. (Yes, Food Police, I check my temperatures so I don't kill myself or Nate). I have found easy and complicated, tasty and not so tasty recipes over the years. This year, Google coughed up what has to be the easiest recipe EVER.
I can hear the food purists out there gagging since not only is it prepared food, the recipe is from the Kraft website. I understand, but I'd rather hang out with Nate and rest up for Midnight Mass, than spend all day cooking on Christmas Eve. Besides, there will, as always be fresh bread.
- Cook 1 lb sausage
- Reserve 1/2 c. of the drippings
- Mix drippings, 1 1/2 c. hot water, sausage and stuffing
- Stuff in turkey & cook
I can hear the food purists out there gagging since not only is it prepared food, the recipe is from the Kraft website. I understand, but I'd rather hang out with Nate and rest up for Midnight Mass, than spend all day cooking on Christmas Eve. Besides, there will, as always be fresh bread.
Monday, December 22, 2008
A Christmas (Bread) Story
Yesterday, as often happens, I decided to make bread. I figured since Christmas was less than a week away, I'd see if I could find a recipe for a Christmas Bread. Most of what came up was recipes for Stollen, which is like fruit cake, or Panettone, which is kind of cake like and has to be cooked in a special pan or paper liner. After exhaustive searching (and by that I mean I actually went to page 5 of my Google search :)), I found a recipe for what was essentially a Christmas Challah. I like making braided bread and this recipe had brown sugar, butter and cinnamon rolled up in the braids.
My first mistake of the day was starting at about 1 PM when I had to be at Youth Group at 5:30 PM. Bread cannot be rushed (trust me I have tried and it never turns out well). Then the recipe called for vegetable shortening (aka Crisco) which I had read as vegetable oil. Luckily my neighbor Monica had Crisco so I could get the dough started and put up to rise. I knew I needed to go to ShopRite for more butter, brown sugar and confectioners sugar for the icing. ShopRite was a zoo - by the time I got back it was after 3 PM and I knew no way was this bread was getting made before I left for Yourh Group. So I let it rise (which was slow due to the eggs and shortening) and then punched it down a put it near a cold window before I left at 5 PM.
When I got back at almost 10 PM (we ran a little late since it was a Christmas party), I walked in to the house and thought "Monica must be baking". But no, what I smelled was dough and, as you can see in the picture, it was thinking of taking over the kitchen! I punched it down and divided it in 6 to make the braids. It was a bit tough to roll out - a little over rising will do that. The recipe said to make a rectangle, smear it with butter and add brown sugar and cinnamon. It was big on detail or quantities so I just guessed. I got everything rolled and braided and in the oven by about 10:45.
I guess my guessing about the filling wasn't quite right because at about 11 PM the smoke detector went off and the kitchen smelled of burned sugar and butter. I got the exhaust fan going and opened a window but about five minutes later Kenny was knocking on my door to see if everything was OK! I assured him it was fine, just me in the kitchen.
The bread survived fine and I iced it and topped it with crushed peppermint candy this morning. Monica got one of the loaves for the Crisco and the late night fire alarm. The bread tasted good too - maybe the crust was a little over done, but I can adjust that next time - which hopefully will be during daylight hours!
My first mistake of the day was starting at about 1 PM when I had to be at Youth Group at 5:30 PM. Bread cannot be rushed (trust me I have tried and it never turns out well). Then the recipe called for vegetable shortening (aka Crisco) which I had read as vegetable oil. Luckily my neighbor Monica had Crisco so I could get the dough started and put up to rise. I knew I needed to go to ShopRite for more butter, brown sugar and confectioners sugar for the icing. ShopRite was a zoo - by the time I got back it was after 3 PM and I knew no way was this bread was getting made before I left for Yourh Group. So I let it rise (which was slow due to the eggs and shortening) and then punched it down a put it near a cold window before I left at 5 PM.
When I got back at almost 10 PM (we ran a little late since it was a Christmas party), I walked in to the house and thought "Monica must be baking". But no, what I smelled was dough and, as you can see in the picture, it was thinking of taking over the kitchen! I punched it down and divided it in 6 to make the braids. It was a bit tough to roll out - a little over rising will do that. The recipe said to make a rectangle, smear it with butter and add brown sugar and cinnamon. It was big on detail or quantities so I just guessed. I got everything rolled and braided and in the oven by about 10:45.I guess my guessing about the filling wasn't quite right because at about 11 PM the smoke detector went off and the kitchen smelled of burned sugar and butter. I got the exhaust fan going and opened a window but about five minutes later Kenny was knocking on my door to see if everything was OK! I assured him it was fine, just me in the kitchen.
The bread survived fine and I iced it and topped it with crushed peppermint candy this morning. Monica got one of the loaves for the Crisco and the late night fire alarm. The bread tasted good too - maybe the crust was a little over done, but I can adjust that next time - which hopefully will be during daylight hours!
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Can I Eat the Stuff in My Fridge?
I often wonder as I look into my fridge whether that lunch meat I bought a week ago or that chicken that has been in the freezer for six months can still be eaten without making me sick. Amazingly, the FDA as published guidelines about this. They admit the guidelines are conservative, (which is fine with me and Nate) and give recommendations for both the fridge and freezer for many foods. They also give some common sense advice like "don't freeze whole eggs" - duh!
The list is put out by the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (part of the FDA) which is "responsible for promoting and protecting the public's health by ensuring that the nation's food supply is safe, sanitary, wholesome, and honestly labeled, and that cosmetic products are safe and properly labeled." I found the list on an FDA site (Science and Our Food Supply) on bringing food science into Middle and High School classrooms under an A-Z food safety guide. This is just the kind of information and education that my Mom would have loved with her degree and lifelong interest in Nutrition.
Who knew that our tax dollars could come up with such a good source of information. I may just post the Fridge/Freezer guidelines on the fridge. Now if I can just remember when the stuff went in the fridge......
The list is put out by the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (part of the FDA) which is "responsible for promoting and protecting the public's health by ensuring that the nation's food supply is safe, sanitary, wholesome, and honestly labeled, and that cosmetic products are safe and properly labeled." I found the list on an FDA site (Science and Our Food Supply) on bringing food science into Middle and High School classrooms under an A-Z food safety guide. This is just the kind of information and education that my Mom would have loved with her degree and lifelong interest in Nutrition.
Who knew that our tax dollars could come up with such a good source of information. I may just post the Fridge/Freezer guidelines on the fridge. Now if I can just remember when the stuff went in the fridge......
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Bubba Burgers
Yes, it has been a while since my last post and I really have no excuses. Sorry, Mitch that my first post in a month is about non-Kosher food, but the arrival of two new varieties of Bubba Burgers in my local ShopRite was too much to pass on. We always had regular and onion but now we also have the jalapeño and Angus. All the flavors have been around for a while, but the store just started carrying them.
For those of you not familiar with these tasty, 1/3 pound, patties of juicy goodness, Bubba Burgers are made from ground chuck. While not the lowest fat content, they seem to have the highest taste content. They come frozen, 6 to a pack and are a bit pricey at around $1 a piece ($1.25 for the Angus). They have very specific cooking instructions, which if followed, make one of the tastiest buggers around. They come in a bunch of varieties including, oddly, a low fat burger. It's all explained on the website, if you really need more info. You may have seen ads for Bubba burgers at a baseball game or, if you are a NASCAR fan, on the #21 Bush Baked Beans/Bubba Burger Truck.
On to my "new" varieties. The jalapeño is in a word spicy. I've had a lot of burgers or chicken that has claimed to have spice, but these have bits of jalapeño in them and need nothing more than some jack cheese, maybe a tomato and a sturdy bun. As for the Angus Bubba, I'm not sure words can do it justice. Picture a great Angus steak, crossed with the juiciest burger you can think of. This image probably best describes it:
We are still waiting for the Texas shaped burgers (1/2 lb. !), the "Natural" burgers and the Bubba Bacon, but I'm sure they will be worth the wait.
For those of you not familiar with these tasty, 1/3 pound, patties of juicy goodness, Bubba Burgers are made from ground chuck. While not the lowest fat content, they seem to have the highest taste content. They come frozen, 6 to a pack and are a bit pricey at around $1 a piece ($1.25 for the Angus). They have very specific cooking instructions, which if followed, make one of the tastiest buggers around. They come in a bunch of varieties including, oddly, a low fat burger. It's all explained on the website, if you really need more info. You may have seen ads for Bubba burgers at a baseball game or, if you are a NASCAR fan, on the #21 Bush Baked Beans/Bubba Burger Truck.
On to my "new" varieties. The jalapeño is in a word spicy. I've had a lot of burgers or chicken that has claimed to have spice, but these have bits of jalapeño in them and need nothing more than some jack cheese, maybe a tomato and a sturdy bun. As for the Angus Bubba, I'm not sure words can do it justice. Picture a great Angus steak, crossed with the juiciest burger you can think of. This image probably best describes it:
We are still waiting for the Texas shaped burgers (1/2 lb. !), the "Natural" burgers and the Bubba Bacon, but I'm sure they will be worth the wait.
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