Food Chit Chat

[annzeepark914]

The only really good supermarket salad bars around here were at Wegmans. They were shut down during the pandemic and only the Asian food bar returned (and I think it's $15/lb...at least that's what a friend said). So, instead of the once big, varied salad bar, they now sell packaged salads & make sandwiches (big woo 😏). I only go to the Asian bar and get those wonderful green beans, the fried chicken in a sauce, and the noodles. And pick up a package of California rolls. Yum!

[chessiegal]

Before I retired, I worked a few miles from a Wegmans. I usually went there for lunch at the salad bar, and often would bring something from the hot bar home for dinner. The nearest Wegmans to me now is not worth the drive. The Whole Foods near me is in a complex that has apartments and condos. If I lived in one of them, I'd be at the hot bar most nights for dinner. 😅

[isalicat]

19 hours ago, fairffaxx said:

Calif has "good Samaritan" laws to protect those who donate leftover food from liability & recently enacted laws that require certain large food providers to donate leftovers.  At least they're making an effort.

Yes, and if these laws had not been passed, the food pantry at which I work would be out of business! We are up to over 2800 people a month coming for basic groceries and we are spending about $4-5000 a month to buy food which is only covering about 1/3 of what we give - the rest is from the local grocery stores that donate because they get a tax break to not throw out food here in Cali now. During Covid we got lots of food from our main food bank - that is over and now we have to pay for the staple stuff (rice, beans, cans of tuna, cans of soup) so although I am not a big fan of everything our state legislature does, in this case they so got it right!

[annzeepark914]

On 3/31/2024 at 10:34 AM, chessiegal said:

Before I retired, I worked a few miles from a Wegmans. I usually went there for lunch at the salad bar, and often would bring something from the hot bar home for dinner. The nearest Wegmans to me now is not worth the drive. The Whole Foods near me is in a complex that has apartments and condos. If I lived in one of them, I'd be at the hot bar most nights for dinner. 😅

Unfortunately, after the pandemic Wegmans never reopened the big salad/hot bars. Only the (small) Asian bar returned. In place of the big salad/hot bars they now have ready made salads and sandwiches (which I haven't bothered trying). I need to check out the hot bar at Whole Foods. I usually just get the cornichons in that section. Now I'm hungry.

[Mittengirl]

I tried the Ken’s Steak House Blue Cheese dressing that that somethingwicked and Bastet recommended and I liked it.  Now my grocery store will probably have the Wishbone version in stock now that I don’t need it.

[PRgal]

My parents STILL don't understand (and are extremely critical) of how I eat.  They kept on telling me that my son's baby teeth aren't ready for raw carrots, but in reality, he gets baby carrots at school as part of his school meal plan (seriously, this kid will eat them plain, no hummus or (blech!) ranch).  He eats them.  I've seen him eat them.  I know that he doesn't eat it as much when my parents are around, probably because he's so influenced (fearful, maybe?) by the grands when they're here.  To them, I eat like a foreigner (or "hip white girl").  Well, I KIND OF AM a foreigner.  I mean, I was born in Canada.  To an immigrant family, yes, and yes, their cuisine very much influences my home cooking, but I'm not them.  Anyone else have this experience.  It's to the point that they stress me out, but I can't end our several times a week family dinners (they live in the same building and will eat with us).  They want my son to eat the food they bring and not my stuff.  I swear they think it's puke.

[isalicat]

6 hours ago, PRgal said:

It's to the point that they stress me out, but I can't end our several times a week family dinners (they live in the same building and will eat with us). 

Why can't you end eating with your parents several times a week? Do you know anyone else who does this? If it is stressing you out, they are interfering with your parenting decisions and influencing your son to think wrongly about what he can and cannot eat (and anyone with any teeth can eat carrots, for God's sake!), then just tell them its not working out to continue this situation and scale back to one or zero dinners a week with them. Seriously - you are going to teach your child that being a grown up includes being bullied by one's parents in addition to possibly gestating food disorders down the line for him with the tension around food at your dinner table. Protect yourself and your OWN family (son, husband) first. You don't need this - life is full of obstacles we can't anticipate, so why endure that which we can change?

[PRgal]

3 hours ago, isalicat said:

Why can't you end eating with your parents several times a week? Do you know anyone else who does this? If it is stressing you out, they are interfering with your parenting decisions and influencing your son to think wrongly about what he can and cannot eat (and anyone with any teeth can eat carrots, for God's sake!), then just tell them its not working out to continue this situation and scale back to one or zero dinners a week with them. Seriously - you are going to teach your child that being a grown up includes being bullied by one's parents in addition to possibly gestating food disorders down the line for him with the tension around food at your dinner table. Protect yourself and your OWN family (son, husband) first. You don't need this - life is full of obstacles we can't anticipate, so why endure that which we can change?

It's hard for me to set boundaries with them.  They feel that they will help encourage my son to eat more (they think he's too skinny, but that's just how he's built.  He's a bony kid.  And just because he's a bony kid at 5 1/2 doesn't mean he will when he's 15.  I don't know why they forget that).  If I told them they can't come more than once or twice a week, then they'll say that I'm disrespectful.  They have help cooking their meals.  I'm in the middle of putting together a recipe binder for her and since I'm involved with communicating with her as well, I'm going to be telling her which recipes to make each week once the binder is done.  In the mean time, I just have to deal.  

 

p.s. my dad claims that I'm anxious because I don't eat like he does/his idea of "balanced."  He also thinks I need to put on weight prior to my surgery (all my doctors tell me I should just be my normal).  Truthfully, my mom gives me more stress than my dad.  She's turning into my grandmother, who was the Queen of Fake News when she was in her 70s.  Now I'm worried I'd be that way 30 years from now.

[Bastet]

On 4/9/2024 at 5:25 PM, PRgal said:

If I told them they can't come more than once or twice a week, then they'll say that I'm disrespectful.

Just because they say it, doesn't make it so.  It's your home, you decide who's in it and when.  And they're the ones showing up to it with their own food, in which case they should have just stayed home and eaten it, but the real offense is they try to make your son eat it rather than what you, his parent, have prepared for him.  Talk about disrespectful. 

[annzeepark914]

Is there such a beverage as an orange creamsickle? Without alcohol in it? I'm looking for something similar to Starbucks Pink Drink, but is a creamy orange creation. It would taste like a liquid version of those Creamsickles I loved as a kid. I've been searching but everything has lemon-lime soda in it 🧐.

[chessiegal]

43 minutes ago, annzeepark914 said:

Is there such a beverage as an orange creamsickle? Without alcohol in it? I'm looking for something similar to Starbucks Pink Drink, but is a creamy orange creation. It would taste like a liquid version of those Creamsickles I loved as a kid. I've been searching but everything has lemon-lime soda in it 🧐.

Right now Wendys has an orange creamsicle frosty. 

[PRgal]

On 4/16/2024 at 7:02 PM, annzeepark914 said:

Is there such a beverage as an orange creamsickle? Without alcohol in it? I'm looking for something similar to Starbucks Pink Drink, but is a creamy orange creation. It would taste like a liquid version of those Creamsickles I loved as a kid. I've been searching but everything has lemon-lime soda in it 🧐.

Maybe an ice cream float with orange pop/soda?  Or blend orange juice and vanilla ice cream together?  Or do you want something that isn't thick?

 

This creamsicle mocktail recipe notes that either lemon/lime soda OR orange can be used.

Edited April 19 by PRgal

[annzeepark914]

23 minutes ago, PRgal said:

Maybe an ice cream float with orange pop/soda?  Or blend orange juice and vanilla ice cream together?  Or do you want something that isn't thick?

 

This creamsicle mocktail recipe notes that either lemon/lime soda OR orange can be used.

This sounds interesting! 

[RealityCheck]

On 4/16/2024 at 7:02 PM, annzeepark914 said:

Is there such a beverage as an orange creamsickle? Without alcohol in it? I'm looking for something similar to Starbucks Pink Drink, but is a creamy orange creation. It would taste like a liquid version of those Creamsickles I loved as a kid. I've been searching but everything has lemon-lime soda in it 🧐.

Many many years ago (late 1980s) on a trip to San Francisco, I had an Orange Julius that tasted like a liquid orange creamsicle.  At that time, it seemed like a healthy drink since it was made with freshly squeezed orange juice.  Google research says the Orange Julius franchise was purchased by Dairy Queen but comments say the Dairy Queen drink isn't the same as the original.  There are Orange Julius recipes online if you are inclined to try it.  Hope this helps.

[EtheltoTillie]

I hadn’t thought about Orange Julius for years, but yes that’s what it was like, a creamsicle drink. We used to have several franchise locations in NYC. 

Edited April 20 by EtheltoTillie

[chessiegal]

I love beets. I buy plain canned beet slices and pickle them along with hard boiled eggs to put on salads. I've seen several recipes for roast beet salads that look good. I've tried roasting fresh beets in the past with mixed results. Both Ina and ATK say to peel fresh beets before roasting. I'm thinking wearing disposable gloves while peeling will keep me from staining my hands. Putting parchment paper on a cutting board should keep from staining the board (maybe?) Any tips?

[annzeepark914]

I started roasting fresh beets after reading that Joanne Weir says that roasting gets rid of that earthy flavor. Yup...I finally got smart and started wearing gloves while working with beets. My cutting board is wood so I scrub it with Ajax and/or a Brillo pad, and that gets rid of the beet stains. Her beet soup is very good: Oven Roasted Beet Soup with Watercress.

[MicheleinPhilly]

On 4/16/2024 at 7:02 PM, annzeepark914 said:

Is there such a beverage as an orange creamsickle? Without alcohol in it? I'm looking for something similar to Starbucks Pink Drink, but is a creamy orange creation. It would taste like a liquid version of those Creamsickles I loved as a kid. I've been searching but everything has lemon-lime soda in it 🧐.

There is a beer/wine shop around the corner from me that has a slushie machine in the spring/summer months. The slushies themselves are non-alcoholic but they will add shots of alcohol if you want. The flavors rotate and one of them is orange creamsicle. I always ask the owner to text me when it comes up in the rotation because I love it so much. Takes me right back to summers in my childhood. Well, minus the vodka. 😉

[EtheltoTillie]

On 4/21/2024 at 11:16 AM, chessiegal said:

I love beets. I buy plain canned beet slices and pickle them along with hard boiled eggs to put on salads. I've seen several recipes for roast beet salads that look good. I've tried roasting fresh beets in the past with mixed results. Both Ina and ATK say to peel fresh beets before roasting. I'm thinking wearing disposable gloves while peeling will keep me from staining my hands. Putting parchment paper on a cutting board should keep from staining the board (maybe?) Any tips?

Absolutely use the disposable gloves. I learned it in a cooking class. (Facepalm emoji.). I use a white vinyl board and it doesn’t stain permanently. I can use a little comet if necessary. 

I chop raw beets for my favorite borscht recipe. 

Edited April 23 by EtheltoTillie

[Ancaster]

On 4/21/2024 at 8:16 AM, chessiegal said:

I love beets. I buy plain canned beet slices and pickle them along with hard boiled eggs to put on salads. I've seen several recipes for roast beet salads that look good. I've tried roasting fresh beets in the past with mixed results. Both Ina and ATK say to peel fresh beets before roasting. I'm thinking wearing disposable gloves while peeling will keep me from staining my hands. Putting parchment paper on a cutting board should keep from staining the board (maybe?) Any tips?

Just because Ina and ATK (whoever that is) say peel beets before roasting (or anything else for that matter) doesn't mean you have to!

[fairffaxx]

ATK is probably "America's Test Kitchen".

[chessiegal]

Yes, ATK is America's Test Kitchens. Some years ago, I found a recipe that said to roast them unpeeled, then rub the peel off with a cloth or paper towel. It was an unmitigated disaster. The peels did not come off easily. Not doing that again.

[Ancaster]

5 minutes ago, fairffaxx said:

ATK is probably "America's Test Kitchen".

Oh, thank you!

(As far as I'm concerned,  that just validates my comment since whenever I've seen/read anything from them and the insufferable Christopher Kimball it has always been way too fussy, complicated and time-consuming for me.)

[fairffaxx]

Fortunately (in my view), Kimball is no longer with "America's Test Kitchen".

 

[chessiegal]

ATK has never left me down. And yes, Kimball is gone, off to his new venture, Milkstreet.

Kimball's departure from ATK was very messy (read lawsuits). I notice when Kimball is doing a promo for cooking shows on Create, he never mentions ATK. 😉

[annzeepark914]

The first time I ever saw Kimball, my immediate reaction was, "This drip looks like a few miserable blind dates I was fixed up with".

[fairffaxx]

Kimball is a multi-millionaire who's on his 3rd marriage (she's 25 years younger than he) & in charge of an apparently successful new company.  I agree that he's a drip, but he seems to be doing OK with it.  

[Quof]

9 hours ago, fairffaxx said:

multi-millionaire who's on his 3rd marriage (she's 25 years younger than he

I'm guessing his winning personality wasn't the attraction.

I've watched a few episodes of Milk Street and all of the chefs/presenters appear to either kiss his ass or cower in fear.  

Edited April 24 by Quof

[chessiegal]

Every time I see Kimball in a foreign country on Milk Street, I think he created the show and company so he could jet set around the world on the company's dime. I obviously don't think well of him. 😄

[fairffaxx]

2 hours ago, Quof said:

I'm guessing his winning personality wasn't the attraction.

He was her boss.

[annzeepark914]

The discussion re: beets got me remembering this beet recipe that is very good.  I found it in a Middle Eastern cookbook several years ago:

Beets with Yogurt & Mint

3 beets (1/4-1/2 lb) roasted, cooled*

½ garlic clove, crushed

½ cup Greek yogurt

½ Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1-1/2 Tbsps light olive oil

Salt

Chopped mint

Peel** beets and cut into ½” or less slices, or half moon slices.

Beat garlic into yogurt and spread on a plate.  Arrange beet slices on top.

Beat lemon juice with oil and a little salt, stir in chopped mint, and spoon over beet slices.

*****************************************************************************

*Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Scrub beets; place on foil.  Drizzle beets with oil and sprinkle with salt.  Fold foil over and make it into a packet.  Crimp sides. Roast for 1 hour.

**Wear gloves while working with beets.

[chessiegal]

12 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

*Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Scrub beets; place on foil.  Drizzle beets with oil and sprinkle with salt.  Fold foil over and make it into a packet.  Crimp sides. Roast for 1 hour.

This is the part that was a disaster for me. I roasted oiled unpeeled beets in foil and the peels did not come off without a fight. It was a mess.

This is from Ina's recipe for roasted beets.

Quote

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Remove the tops and the roots of the beets and peel each one with a vegetable peeler. Cut the beets in 1 1/2-inch chunks. (Small beets can be halved, medium ones cut in quarters, and large beets cut in eighths.)

Place the cut beets on a baking sheet and toss with the olive oil, thyme leaves, salt, and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, turning once or twice with a spatula, until the beets are tender.

I'll be peeling beets prior to roasting from now on.

[davidtung]

braised chicken with mushrooms

I learned to cook some dishes at the website: https://cachnaumon.info/

Edited May 2 by davidtung

[chessiegal]

Roasted beet success. Thank you, Ina! Much to my surprise, The Fresh Market didn't have beets when I was there on Monday for their BOGO fish cakes. I got some at my regular store yesterday. I'd forgotten I have these flexible plastic cutting boards I bought when B cubed had brick and mortar stores. I wore gloves and used the flexible cutting board to prep. They came out great.

Edited April 26 by chessiegal

[chessiegal]

I was watching Girl Meets Farm this morning. Molly was making layered foods for a potluck. She made a powered drink mix that had peanut butter powder in it. I've never heard of that before.

She also made what she called magic bars that started with melted butter and ended up with 8 layers. My mom made "Seven Layer Cookies" that were similar and were more like candy bars than cookies. 😉

[Quof]

I put peanut butter powder in plain Greek yogurt and in overnight oats.  I can't imagine reconstituting it to make a spread.  

[chessiegal]

27 minutes ago, Quof said:

I put peanut butter powder in plain Greek yogurt and in overnight oats.  I can't imagine reconstituting it to make a spread.  

It wasn't a spread - she was making the dry ingredients for a chocolate milk drink.

[Anela]

I'm addicted to the kimchi I've been making. I need to find something else to snack on, so that it can properly ferment. 

[chessiegal]

My CSA basket today came with tomatoes - heirloom and cherry tomatoes that I've been eating like candy. I also got zucchini and eggplant. Ratatouille tomorrow

[Ancaster]

I bought tomatoes at the farmers' market the other day - I love tomatoes, in salads or by themselves with S+P, good olive oil and balsamic.  I made the latter and I was so disappointed - zero tomato flavour and poor texture.  Usually the farmers' market can be relied on for great quality produce (locally grown, which I like to support, and pretty much the only raw tomatoes I buy).

Edited July 20 by Ancaster

[chessiegal]

The heirloom tomatoes I got yesterday with my CSA basket are great. My husband said they taste very "tomaoey". I agree. I see from the farm's website that they do go to a farmers' market near me on Saturdays and Sundays.

[annzeepark914]

17 hours ago, Ancaster said:

I bought tomatoes at the farmers' market the other day - I love tomatoes, in salads or by themselves with S+P, good olive oil and balsamic.  I made the latter and I was so disappointed - zero tomato flavour and poor texture.  Usually the farmers' market can be relied on for great quality produce (locally grown, which I like to support, and pretty much the only raw tomatoes I buy).

This happened to me a few years ago and I gave up on Farmers Markets. Tomatoes, (even the bell peppers!) no taste whatsoever. It's basically the same in supermarkets except for Campari tomatoes and some brands of cherry tomatoes. They've bred the taste out in exchange for the tomatoes looking perfect.

[Ancaster]

1 hour ago, annzeepark914 said:

This happened to me a few years ago and I gave up on Farmers Markets. Tomatoes, (even the bell peppers!) no taste whatsoever. It's basically the same in supermarkets except for Campari tomatoes and some brands of cherry tomatoes. They've bred the taste out in exchange for the tomatoes looking perfect.

I'm not ready to give up yet, but I remember the vendor so I won't go back to him, and I'll ask for a sample if anyone else looks hopeful.  They're pretty good at giving samples, either unasked or asked. 

They were supposedly "heirloom" - they were certainly ugly enough. 😄

[Mountainair]

All of the tomato talk must have creeped into my subconsciousness. I awoke this morning really craving a tomato pie so I went to the store for ingredients to make one for dinner tonight. I ended up making two- one for us and one for my husband to take to work. Despite living in the south none of his coworkers has ever heard of tomato pie before. I have lived in the south all my life and never heard of it until my Yankee mother in law made one. 

[chessiegal]

I saw an ATK recently where they made a tomato tart. It reminded me of going to a friend's house when we were both getting CSA baskets from Clagett Farm (owned by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation). Their heirloom tomatoes were always good, but their pick-up locations were problematic. My friend had a recipe for tomato pie printed out on her kitchen table.

When I found another CSA source this year that has an easy pick-up place, I was hopeful for the tomatoes, and they did not disappoint. I haven't gotten enough to try a tomato pie.

[SoMuchTV]

1 hour ago, Mountainair said:

All of the tomato talk must have creeped into my subconsciousness. I awoke this morning really craving a tomato pie so I went to the store for ingredients to make one for dinner tonight. I ended up making two- one for us and one for my husband to take to work. Despite living in the south none of his coworkers has ever heard of tomato pie before. I have lived in the south all my life and never heard of it until my Yankee mother in law made one. 

Do share!  The first thing that came into my mind was something pizza-related, then possibly something quiche-related.  Not the exact recipe (necessarily) but what kind of dish is it?

[Mountainair]

There’s so many ways to make it. My tried and true is:

6 Roma tomatoes sliced and sprinkled with a bit of salt laid out on paper towels to get the moisture out. 
Premade frozen deep dish pie crust. Bake for 10 minutes. Take out of oven and add a layer of tomatoes seasoned with basil, garlic, salt and pepper, green onion and precooked bacon, add another layer of the seasoned tomatoes, bacon and green onion. 
Mix two cups of cheese (cheddar only or cheddar and mozzarella) with 3/4 cup mayo and spread on top. Bake for 30 minutes at 350. 
If you hate mayo this isn’t for you but we love mayo lol! 
 

[Bastet]

On 7/21/2024 at 2:24 PM, Mountainair said:

If you hate mayo this isn’t for you but we love mayo lol! 

I love mayo, but prefer tomatoes raw rather than cooked.  My parents would love that pie, though, and their tomato plants are exploding right now, so I'll make that for them this weekend and try a bit of it (there are a few baked tomato dishes I like; it's just that I prefer raw, not that I hate cooked).  Thanks for the recipe.

[Quof]

My grocery store had my favourite skyr yogurt on sale, so I grabbed three tubs.  Unfortunately, I picked up the full fat rather than the fat free.   The texture isn't really different, but I actually prefer the taste of the fat free.   I'm intent on using it all up so I can justify buying some fat free while the sale is still on.  I'll make a big batch of  chicken gyros, as well as a sauce for a baked haddock.  Oooh, maybe I'll make some tzatziki.   I'm set on the idea of making a yogurt cake, so went searching and decided, who best to make a dessert with full fat ingredients? 

 https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/lemon-yogurt-cake-recipe-1947092  

 

[chessiegal]

The farm I was getting my CSA baskets from is really struggling. Today they said this week will be the last week of summer offerings, while they should have 4 more weeks. Their offerings are garlic, spearmint, and lots and lots of potatoes. I opted out and asked my unused credits be applied to their fall offerings. /sigh.