chompie's Profile
So Disappointed at Italian choices on North Shore
never been to zabagliones.. What particulars are you looking for in Italian? and what does Zabagliones have that others do not? Knowing what type of food, atmosphere etc would help in giving the right suggestions..(if they even exist around here!) FOr example, lots of people like Tre Monte but the one time we went, we didnt get why...)
Is there any Vegetarian Corned Beef product out there? Or any fake meat product that would work in Corned beef and cabbage?
I just had them and was going to start a post about them! They are no fat and tiny and 50 calories which all seems like an oxymoron for a hotdog. Dont know why they had to change them. THey have so much sodium that anyone looking for healthy alternatives isnt going to get these with that salt anyways. So why not keep the the same or even plumper? Grillers have bunch of fat for flavor. Hotdogs just seem like the wrong item to start making diet stuff with. THat said, they still have the best flavor of the veggie dogs. I dont like excess pepper and strong flavors of the Yves or TOfurky ones, or the rubberiness of the smart dogs, so at least these have a mild flavor and an okay texture, but they miss the juiciness of a more fatty dog. The texture is similar to Zoglovs. Thanks for the suggestion! I still didnt get to the ABC store for the Worthington Corned beef, so the hotdogs may work...
Please help me name my book themed cooking blog
Literate Vittles
Scribbles and Nibbles
Book 'n Cook
Page Turner on the Burner
Novella Mozzarella
Well Read and Well Fed
Stories and Sautes
Is anyone else addicted to Olde Cape Cod (Westminster) crackers?
I have a box of the oysters too, but the rounds are still way better to me. More flaky and a smoother flavor.. Hope you can find them! Actually this week I had to trade in for a box of Lightly Salted Tam Tam Passover Crackers. They are actually surprisingly good with some nice bubbles and mix of light and dark spots.. But i do miss my Westminster Rounds! BTW,I had called Westminster once and the guy said all three types have a different taste and his favorite is the third type, the Squares..He also said it is a small business so they are always working on consistancy, eg with salt and how long baking etc.. BUt I like that there is a home baked quality that makes them vary a bit from bag to bag..
Passover desserts question
I agree that cheesecake is great because it can be made with just creamcheese, sourcream, eggs and sugar and you can skip crust if you dont like matzo meal butter sugar and cinnamon. Also i think you can make mousse with just white chocolate or milk or dark melted, cooled and stirred into whipped cream.Google Jeff Nathans Matzo Napolean recipe because it has mousse in it and i think thats how he did it. Also, I too was shocked after a lifetime of Passover desserts to discoverlast year, some Manischewitz boxed cake mixes that were really good. The yellow or marble, both with chocolate frosing, and the coffee cake with cinnamon crumb topping really hit the mark for our sweet craving. We also piped the frosting in circles and put some cherry preserves in the middle of the 'nest' for a black forest cake feel. What box mixes did you try and not like? I was curious if the other brands werent as good... I would say the cake was comparable to an Entenmeanns, like their yellow fudge frosted..Also, this is pretty Passover-ish, but I just spread maple syrup on bothe sides of egg matzo and broiled it and flipped it til both sides were lightly golden, and when cool i broke it into pieces. Hubby who does not like anypassover desserts except the Manny's cake mix, liked it and said it tasted like cracker jacks and suggested adding peanuts to it next time. Also, i once found really good passover ice cream, and dont know if you can find any, or if you are not that Kosher, some brands dont have anything in them besides cream eggs, and sugar,
and you can make hot fudge from a passover chocolate bar or choc chips and make a sundae or banana split..
What Passover nibbles or snacks do you make up out of leftovers or what's hanging out in your kitchen?
We always end up not quite having everything we want to eat in our Passover supplies and end up making up things on the spot. Do you have any good ideas? For example today we wanted something sweet and I brushed some maple syrup on a sheet of egg matzoh on both sides and broiled it, flipping it once and let it cool and broke it into little pieces and it made great impromptu candy. Hubby said it tastedlike cracker jacks and to add peanuts next time. Also tried it with butter and brown sugar and that was good too, a bit salty kind of like buttered kettle corn. Also tonite, hubby took some leftover potato kugel and cubed it and browned it up in a pan to make "home fries" with a dollop of sour cream. We also do our matzo lasagna quickly in a pan rathen than bake it. Just layer matzoh, cottage cheese, mozzarella,sauce, any veggies and layer it in pan and cover til it all melts. Matzo quesadillas also work well too using cheese and veggies and flipping it so both sides get golden and crispy. For lasagna and quesadilla i think slightly dampened matzo puffs up a bit and browns nicely.
Matzo Ball DISASTER! Please help!
one other thing.. the soup cooked down quite a lot and got way too sweet and salty. Dont know if that can affect a matzo ball. We kept adding salt to the soup early on cuz the balls were bland. And we had more carrots than usual and used sweet onions instead of regular, so those are the only other factors.. I was also wondering if the lesser amount of oil DID make a difference. Does the oil maybe served to bind the egg to the meal, and with less oil, would the egg float off like egg drop soup??
Matzo Ball DISASTER! Please help!
we had disaster matzo balls tonite too and cant figure it out since we seem to do them the same each time and get totally different results. We use the recipe on the Manny's matzo meal container, and used peanut oil. Used to use canola oil.. They are usually very good, slight density in middle and fluffy around.
3 years ago they came out like rocks. We had made them huge so decided they needed more cooking and cut them in half, cooked them forever, and they turned lighter color and lighter texture. We also thought that maybe they had been overworked. We have made them fine since then, but now this year the matzo ball disaster resurfaced. This time we made them small, like an inch and rolled them no more than 3 secondsm, turned the boil down first and kept the cover on. Oh yeah, we also cooked them in the broth, which we never do. But we used a big pot and took the bulk of the carrots onion, and celery out. There was no chicken in our soup. They were still hard round and small and dark inside after 45 min or more, so i figured we could just cook them forever again. So we cooked them longer, at a bit stronger than a simmer this time, and then they looked all fluffy and irregular shaped, and good and felt much lighter on the spoon. We werent ready to eat at that point, so just left the soup to simmer down and richen the flavor for quite a while, maybe at least an hour. When we went to eat, the balls had reverted back to their one inch size and were even harder! And they seemed slimy on the outside and way too dense on the inside. So what's they story? Why did cooking forever help once, but then hurt worse this time? By the way, the broth got quite opaque so i wonder if the balls just disintigrated into the soup? thanks! Oh, the only other thing was that hubby used a kitchen tablespoon instead of a measuring spoon but he said when it seemed to thick he put in extra water anyways, but not exta oil. Oil was measured in a kitchen tablespoon, but i cant imagine that too little oil would have caused the prob...
Family Get-together - Andover, Stoneham, Woburn, Burlington, Billerica, Lowell areas
We were at Towne Place Suites (by Marriott) at 114 and Rte 1 in Danvers which may not be close enough to Andover for you, but actually might be ok since 114 goes to Andover and it is halfway between some of those other towns you listed. Or they probably have other ones in other towns. They also have a Residence Inn across the street (where they got us chairs). They were extremely nice and accomodating. I have to say though, that unfortunately this was a gathering for after a funeral, so i dont know if the circumstance was impetus for their hospitality or if they are always like that. It was also a couple years ago, but I doubt much changed. I imagine if you tell them this is a family reunion, etc, so they know its not just a teen age wild party, that should help. We also arranged it in person so dont know if that helped for them to see that we didnt look wild. The pool wasnt an issue at all, and i think we asked rather than assumed it was okay to use. I dont know if anyone actually used it.. This place felt like a little apartment with private entrance. Theres also more hotel style suites like Spring Hill, (i think( run by Hilton and they have indoor pool, but they are smaller rooms..
If you set something up and need food ideas, come back here! We got Excellent deli sandwiches delivered. Oh, you could also try to check out places near you to see them, and ask them all your questions before you call the places up here. I always find it good to ask a bunch of questions at a different location of a chain to get the idea of what they do, and the go do it at another one, knowing what to expect before i go..
Dried rosebuds
there's a bunch in my living room right now that i haven't taken out of the vase yet :). Did you try the big middle east store in watertown? cant think of the name..Or i am guessing an Indian store, may be one in waltham.
Family Get-together - Andover, Stoneham, Woburn, Burlington, Billerica, Lowell areas
If you really want an open house with people coming and going, and being able to stay for longer than a restaurant usually occurs for, and would prefer to do it at home if you lived here, then you might try having a party in a suite type of hotel room. We had people coming in from all over and had a gathering like that and brought in food and with the kitchen and living room area, and the kids hung out on computers in the bedrooms and outside by the pool and it really served the purpose. They even brought us lots of extra chairs from their other hotel. If you were missing the cooking yourself aspect, i suppose you could spend Sat. nite there and cookl up a storem.. Also, I know Bacci in Stoneham and Calititris in Danvers have separate rooms for family gatherings available.
Strip T's increasing funkiness
well, it may get even busier since they were featured on Phantom Gourmet today. Now all thats left is for Guy Fieri to decide its a Diner and Dive and noone will ever be able to get in without a months advance reservation! On Phantom, t the owner said his son got tired of Manhattan and asked to come work at StripT's and that they fought like crazy about it for a while. The dad joked that it was a good thing that no weapons were handy! He said that they compromised and the lunches are the old menu and dinner is the son's. The review raved but showed lots of empty seats and said that the old clientele is afraid to come in, which is why they have kept lunch..However, it does sound like all that is changing by the hour..I'm glad theyre doing so well.. My mom's friend is the mother of the owner. I havent been for years since i lived across the street and had lunches there. The title of this thread may have been best changed to describe what is really going on there, but now i am guessing that noone feels the need to get this place even more crowded and thus i imagina the thread title will remain mystreious and in code.. BTW , obviously father and son have worked out their different approaches and are getting along famously now..He spoke very proudly..
ISO Great Boston Doughnuts
coffee time in salem has the best bismarks.Several flavors and full of whipped cream.. also best eclairs ever. Craving to go back there, havent been in a long time and would like to try the paczis which are there now for a few weeks. I think Kanes jelly donuts taste kinda wierd and i remember wishing i liked the other types more as well...
Has anyone been to Peabody Coffee House? (Greek cuisine)
I came across this Greek restaurant and bar on the internet with 2 yelps and 1 old Chowhound and 1 other review, all very good reviews, but nothing else found about them... Seems odd that a place almost 40 years old is almost non existant on the web especially since the little i saw was really good. So has anyone gone? Is it a very hidden treasure? not there anymore? a place noone goes to for good reason??? thanks!
16th Birthday High Tea
dont know what area you are looking in, but if north is ok, you could try the Wenham Tea House. and across the stree is the Wenham museum which may or may not have some exhibits good for teen girls.(its a childrens museum but the age level varies with the exhibits they have at the time.
Colarusso's Farm Stand Reading : New Store opening soon
Went on opening day and there wasnt really any hoopla or crowds. Pretty much business as usual.
MUCH bigger with huge aisles you can actually wheel a cart down! I wasnt there that long, just had time for a little checking it out but looked like basically the same stuff. I did enjoy buying the flowers at buy one get one free. Am enjoying my fragrant roses for 5.98 for 2 bunches...Are the baked goods any good there? Cuz i didnt love the muffin i got or the cookie samples.. But it is really nice to have this place around here and it was especially nice being that it felt like summer out... The parking lot was decorated with mini irises which was a sweet touch.
Is there any Vegetarian Corned Beef product out there? Or any fake meat product that would work in Corned beef and cabbage?
thanks everyone! Has anyone tried the Heritage or the Worthingtons? I lloked them up and they are the same company and look to be the same product. I think the only place to find them is a Seventh Day Adventist store, unless anyone knows any other place.. I will try to see if they have it tomorrow. Some of their products can be very excessively salty and i like salt, but its worth a try! Any other ideas? Its funny that colcannon was mentioned because i just noticed it the other day on an online menu for a local irish place and thought it sounded good, and here it is mentioned again!
Pizza, pizza.....north of Boston
Suzie11, to get a better idea of what you like, what places in your area are your favorites and least favorites now? Do you prfer a small quiet place, or a big happening bar? Also, just curious what you think of Calitris pizza since its in Danvers and its a different style than most places in the area?
Is there any Vegetarian Corned Beef product out there? Or any fake meat product that would work in Corned beef and cabbage?
With all the decent meatless products out there, I have yet to find corned beef,, Is there anything out there?? I have Used Smart Deli Ham slices in the past, or when Morningstar made their good veggie dogs that no longer exist, and both imparted a nice smoky flavor but neither are close to the texture of corned beef. Don't know why they can come up with decently simulated burger and chicken, but not beef chunks or corned beef. Same issue with making "beef stew". I use griller chunks but not the right texture. Seitan isnt too bad for stew by looks, but it adds too much asian flavor for those dishes..
thanks!
Which Restaurants do you consider your "Regulars"
Swank, do you go to Cafe Barada? when i lived in the area, and it was in Arlington at the time, but now in Cambridge, we used to love it, if you like MidEastern food..
Easter Brunch near Natick
Are you looking for a traditional big easter brunch buffet with breakfast items and turkey, ham etc? or just a place that serves breakfast or lunch. CUz if you want a traditional easter brunch buffet than Zaftigs definitely isnt the place unless they are shifting modes for easter. Its a smallish deli with booths..The traditional big brunch place would probably be THe Crowne Plaza. Brunch used to be in the hotel lobby but they recently broke it up into separate parts. My mom and sisters ate at the breakfast part called the Pantry and it had just opened so there were a couple snafus but the chef came out to talk to them, altered the bill and brought them a sampler platter of some type of filled merengue cookies and cheeses. I will get more info if i can. Also, dont know what they do for Easter, but my mom and sisters and mom's friends all adore the Gourmet Decision, an upscale dinner place that has more affordable brunch than their dinner prices. My family loves the fresh creative ingredients there. I will see what else i can dig up by asking around...
Hamantaschen in Boston/Metrowest?
I know that Zuckers Bakery in West Peabody always has it, although out of your desired area..The filled bread-like type is usually poppy and prune and more variety with the cookie type (which are much less dry than the average cookie type). THey are a kosher Montreal bakery and they often have other flavors that are old school and not typical to the U.S. but I cant recall at the moment what it was.. Get a warm challah while your there.. Also I imagine Zaftigs Natick and Kugels Framingham may offer the pastry kind, but dont know.. or Cheryls Bakery in Brookline?
A curious taste of chocolate in Reading...Would love others opinions..
gourmaniac, I am hoping that russel stover has just upped their quality,and that its nothing to do with aging! If you are looking for a bargain, and dont mind Lindt Truffles, which i dont crave but think are ok, go to the Lindt Outlet in Stonham at Redstone Plaza. They are about 50 cents apiece but i discovered if you go to the back in the 70% Xmas section you can buy a little cardboard house to fill with 15 truffles for 3 bucks! She filled the boxes but you can get an empty box and then fill it with your own choice of flavors!.Although, i have to say that its still that Russell Stover 64 cent bar that i keep craving . I know they have a few more at the Rite aid off main street in reading (not the haven st one) because I got a few more there. You will have to put up with them saying "you are my Guitar Hero" on the box :)
A curious taste of chocolate in Reading...Would love others opinions..
Havent tried them. So, do you have to go into the city to find decent chocolate?
Is anyone else addicted to Olde Cape Cod (Westminster) crackers?
I have to eat these everyday. I spent years finding a good cracker to snack on and with Uneedas and Royal Lunch gone, these have become my cracker..I love the Rounds, but they also come square and in the form of the Westminster Oyster Crackers that you get in restaurants for soup. The rounds taste like the oyster crackers but better. They are so home baked in flavor with just a perfect touch of salt sprinkled on top. They are very crispy but light and melt in your mouth. Kind of on the style of saltines but saltines suck...Or Carr's but much fuller flavor and thicker. And they are 1.50 a box at Marketbasket and low in calories and sodium. Just wheat, canola oil and a bit of yeast and salt basically..
A curious taste of chocolate in Reading...Would love others opinions..
I don't like really cheap waxy chocolate, and can't usually spring for real high price stuff, so i tend to end up with decent mid level chocolate like Droste(love the pastille rolls, but havent seen it lately), Heberts Lindt, Ghiradelli, and do like M&Ms.. So we decided to maybe give some supposed really good chocolate a chance and went to The Chocolate Truffle in Reading. At almost $24 per pound I expected gourmet lushness..combined with their great online reviews online(but havent seen anything here). Bought three pieces, a carmello milk, vanilla mousse dark and small solid milkchocolate heart. The solid was fair, but tasted to me like the discs i get at Michael's when i make cheap kids chocolates, the marshmallow was tough and chewy, the caramel in it tasted sub Rolo and not buttery or creamy like i would have thought and the Vanilla mousse was wierd tasting and sugar was not dissolved.. Frustrated, gave up and went to Rite Aid and got a couple of Russell Stover candy bars at 64cents on half price and a hersheys choc marshmallow heart. The Hersheys choc was subaverage but the marshmallow at least melted in my mouth. I dont usually think much of Russell Stover, but i have to say that those particular chocolate bars were actually delicious . A bit too sweet, but had some darker notes and melted like velvet. I would be curious to have seen the drugstore stuff in a blind taste test with the Truffle shop...I would love it if someone else tried this taste test and let me know if i am crazy or right! I thought I had a decent ability to taste chocolate.. I was told by a judge at Topsfield Fair that my Ghirardhelli Mocchachino truffles tasted like a truffle is supposed to taste.. THe Russell Stover bars are in red boxes, thin bars about 7x3" with cute retro animal pictures and sayings on them, and at 2 oz would come to less than 5 bucks a pound. Also, if anyone wants to tell me where to go to try really amazing milk chocolates, please feel free! Winfreys didnt have any val day stuff left, and i have never really been excited by their choc anyways..
Did your Valentines Day dining met your expectations? Do you rec it for next year?
loving these posts! also love how beets have become the valentines food of the decade:)
Did your Valentines Day dining met your expectations? Do you rec it for next year?
oh yeah, and for dessert we had stopped first at Tootsies coffeeshop in Wakefield to pick up make your own cupcakes to bring home. They were small, but had a nice homemade flavor, and the owner was very friendly.
Did your Valentines Day dining met your expectations? Do you rec it for next year?
Ours surprisingly turned out to be exactly what we wanted. It wasnt a Chowish gourmet adventure but that wasnt what we wanted this time around. We had a rough week and all we wanted was low-key, low-price, low crowds, but with some romance and a Valentines day feel and a decent meal. We ended up at Brothers Kouzina in Peabody, a casual but a bit upscale Greekplace. The atmosphere was really nice. They have rasberry colored walls, lamps and linens anyways, dim lighting,and had red balloons and mylar hearts and roses decorating, and they had a guy singing romantic songs from the 40s to the 70s. We had swordfish, baked potato, onion rings, and spinach pie with greek string beans and roasted potatoes. The portions were huge and the varied flavors were really good and fresh.And it was 30 bucks.. I'd say for anyone seeking something thats a compromise between a fancy night out and a non festive early supper before the Valentines crowds rush in, that this was a perfect compromise.. I am always especially interested in hearing about places that have music since its hard to find. I know Cafe Jags in wakefield had a jazz trio. DId anyone eat there?
Is there anyplace north of Newton to meet and eat with someone who keeps Kosher?
I looked on internet and saw Taam chinese in Newton, cafe at JCC and Brandeis student caf, but wondering if there's anything more north along 128. Last time we met outside at Friendlys cuz their ice cream is kosher and you dont need dishes for cones. Wondering if theres either a kosher place or other non-kosher places other than Friendlys, maybe vegetarian places or coffee or ice cream shops where those keeping Kosher can eat. Thanks!
