Why does Sandra Lee have a television show again?

What the fuck is wrong with this woman? I mean, seriously!?



And here all this time I was really wondering how to make a block of ice cream look like a baked potato. My life is now complete.

A few tidbits: Start of May edition

1. Found some potatoes and peas vindaloo in the freezer (recipe from Julie Sahni's Moghul Microwave). Tastes as fresh as ever. Score!

2. I just love Fat Tire. When are they coming out to Maryland!? I have to go all the way to North Carolina to get it. Though for a very limited time, it's being sold somewhere in DC, at the Black Squirrel in Adams Morgan. But just temporarily. By the time I can get down there it'll probably be gone.

3. A few things I've eaten recently that have caught me off guard because of their tastiness:

• Trader Joe's French Vanilla ice cream has an extremely luxurious richness to it. Really, it has to be the best commercially available (that is, not farm made) vanilla ice cream I've eaten in ages.
• The Helmand's vegetarian platter ($14). I don't often eat meatless when I eat out, but this past Saturday I made the choice and it was a winner!
• Dietz & Watson hot dog - I had one at Bon Bon's Ice Cream in Belvedere Square today and I was very impressed. Didn't even feel bad about the $2.85 I spent on it and the sauerkraut that came with it (I actually saw the caraway seeds).
• The cute little mini-cakes that you can get at City Café for a mere $3. I had a cup-sized red velvet cake that had two different layers of icing - a whipped one and a much denser cheesy one. The carrot cupcake I had today was almost as good.
  

4. Went to a sake tasting at Honeygo Wines - not in my neck of the woods so I had to go out of the way for it. The one I left with, after snarfing down three pieces of free nigiri sushi (What kind of fool passes up free sushi?): Gekkeikan's Haiku brand. The woman said the rice is polished. Gekkeikan says: "Slow fermentation at low temperatures gives this sake a slightly dry flavor with a light aroma reminiscent of orchard apples." I didn't taste apples. But I still liked it.

5. And finally, something that has nothing to do with food. As I've hinted once or twice on here and Twitter, I can sing! I'm a member of the Baltimore Men's Chorus, and I've got a plug to make. Our big spring concert and silent auction is coming up on Saturday, May 22, 8:00pm at the University of Baltimore Auditorium. Yes, I know that's the same night as the big Anthony Bourdain-Eric Ripert event at the Hippodrome. Yes, I know many foodies will be going there. But if you weren't planning to go see Bourdain and you wanted to listen to more than a few talented gay men singing some great music, you have your chance! Tickets are only $15!

Eating near Churchville

A few tidbits from Harford County:

1. Across the street from Harford Community College are various eating establishments I need to familiarize myself with. I've started with Richard's Fish and Crabs.


I am usually up that way on Tuesdays & Wednesdays when they have their $1-$2 crab deals. Currently, you can get smallish females for $1, small males for $1.50 and larger males for $2. I got three females and two small males (total: $6). Twenty minutes later and they were done! If you're not in a crab mood, they have everything from rockfish to shrimp, frozen and fresh.


2. I stopped in at Broom's Bloom Farm Products yesterday and saw tables of patrons happily sipping freshly-made soup and homemade ice cream. I first went to the fridge and freezer section, with frozen lamb, beef, pork and various sausages (anywhere from $3.50 to $10 per lb), and fresh farm milk, buttermilk, yogurt, butter and eggs. Nestled among them were plates of quiche and other ready-to-eat dishes, all made at Broom's Bloom Farm.


I was drawn to the ice cream, for $7.50 per quart. It seems steep - and, well, it is - but it is such good ice cream. I bought a small cup of vanilla (about $2.50) and figured I would bring it home to eat. Half way between Exit 80 and the Beltway it was already gone. It is not easy to eat a bowl of creamy, almost buttery ice cream while you are driving a stick shift, I'll tell you what! Also had a silky yet still crumbly corn muffin for only 85 cents.

Both businesses are open Tuesday through Sunday. that's not a Harford County thing, is it?

Vote and get free food!

If you vote tomorrow - or if you voted early and saved your "I voted" sticker - you can get free food on Tuesday. USA Today reports on the goodies:

• Krispy Kreme will pony up a free star-shaped donut with red and blue sprinkles and white icing if you show them your "I voted" sticker. I don't know if any of the three Maryland locations (Glen Burnie, Columbia or Rockville) is participating. Eh, who cares unless it's a hot donut?
  
• Ben & Jerry's is giving away free ice cream between 5 and 8 PM to celebrate Election Day, but only at the Annapolis location.
• Starbucks is giving away free 12 ounce coffees. At least, that's what the article says. Their website really says nothing about it.
• Ditto the Chick-Fil-á website. CFA is allegedly giving away chicken sammiches for $2.70. Participating ones only.

I wish I knew of other places that had such promotions!

New desserts I've tried: Guiltless Gourmet and Choctál

I really have made a concerted, pretty successful effort to eat out as little as possible, and I have been cooking at home a lot more. And one thing I've been trying out are some ready-made desserts lately. One I really liked was Choctál's gourmet chocolate ice cream cups, which you can find at Trader Joe's. This seems to be the only product that Choctál has in the area. It's a sampler of four "exotic" chocolate ice creams, each made from cacao beans from four different parts of the world: Costa Rica, Ghana, the Dominican Republic and Kalimantan (Indonesian Borneo). Just like coffee beans differ in flavor depending on what part of the world they grow, so too do cacao beans.

Behold, gourmet chocolate ice creams of the world!

I ate the Ghanaian variety, which Choctál describes as "rich and full-bodied ice cream with a milk chocolate character rounded out by hints of tropical fruit and the alluring essence of sweet fudge". Well it was a little fruity, but definitely milk chocolatey. A very good chocolate ice cream. I'm looking forward to trying the other varieties. Too bad their vanilla ice cream made with vanilla beans grown in Papua New Guinea aren't available here.

Ghanaian chocolate ice cream.

This stuff can't be found at Whole Foods, though I did take an interest in the Guiltless Gourmet Dessert Bowls that they sell there. Guiltless Gourmet makes lots of things, from black velvet cake to lime-flavored tortilla chips. I was more interested in the black velvet variety of their dessert bowl. I was curious, and for $2.50 it was surprisingly cheap for Whole Foods (where most candy bars cost more than that).

Just add a little water, beat til smooth, nuke it in the microwave for less than a minute, add fudgy topping and voila! I didn't hold out high expectations for this dessert. The mere mention of the word "guiltless" makes my taste buds think "tasteless" - and not in that charming, homey John Waters way. But it was actually pretty tasty. I later got their chocolate caramel cake bowl, which was also tasty, though not nearly as much as their black velvet bowl.

So there you have it: two different desserts I've tried recently, one guiltless, one sinful, both tasty.

UPDATE - I just had the Kalimantan cup. Slightly buttery, and a very strong dark chocolate flavor - the bitterness of it comes through, but in a good way. Still sweet, of course. I like it a little better than the Ghanaian variety.

Exit 23B: MD-25 (Falls Road)

I made my most recent beltway stop before I hit New York the week before last. I just have not had the time to write about it! In retrospect, there was a lot I still need to see off of the Falls Road exit off the beltway. This stop takes you to Greenspring Station. I think it really does hold true: one never truly gets to know his hometown until he leaves it. In the few years I lived in California, I would explore things when I came back to visit that I never had even heard of. Then I moved back, and went right back into "Eh, I'll get around to seeing it sometime" mode. Had it not been for this weblog, I still would be stuck in that mode. It's really forced me to explore this city and state in ways I did only on occasion.

I say that because I had no idea that Greenspring Station even existed. And why would I? I never get up to that part of Falls Road. Sure I understand it's kind of new, but still, no clue over here. It's one of those upper-middle-class sort of places where it's not quite easy to find something affordable to eat. I was about ready to smack this one guy I passed by - he was telling someone, a security guard I think, how he usually takes a limo from the airport or something. Something that caught me off guard, as a wee bit pretentious.

Likewise, my first impression of Greenspring Station - after that it was there in the first place (!) - was that it was a little expensive. It's a fun little place for shopping, tailoring (women only), eating, even going to the doctor. Just expect to lay down some moolah. I set out to not lay down too much. My target lunch: $10 or less.

It's strange, but as nice a place as this is, one would think they'd have a web site or something. No. The powers-that-be didn't seem to have that kind of foresight. So I won't be able to give a play-by-play of all the places I saw. I just don't remember them all. That's all the more reason for y'all to go see it for yourselves. But a few of the ones that I do remember include:

• a little liquor - er, wine - store-slash-deli that I didn't get to. It's a place to keep in mind for later.
• likewise, a little specialty store that sells specialty nuts and things. Again, check it out later.
• a new steak house opening up in Greenspring Station. Because doofus forgot to take a photo of it, I can't remember its name either.

I did stop in the Stone Mill Bakery (map) to see what they had to offer. Cozy yet not cramped or even that small, Stone Mill is divided up into two sections, a smaller, comfier "ready-to-eat" side and a larger, brighter bakery and deli counter side. Each side, however, serves all the same menu items. I thought I'd step up and order something, and looked at the menu. I had no idea that a Reuben could cost $10.50. In fact, most of the dishes - okay, all of the dishes - were a little pricier than I was looking for. It looks like a nice place to eat, but it will have to wait.

I next found the Poulet Gourmet Catering and Restaurant (map). I thought it was a chain - it's a small one - but I'd never been in so I took this opportunity. Wow, it does have lots of different things in it. It's like a rotisserie/combination pit beef/"ready-to-eat" sandwich shop/Boston Market gone Cajun/creperie/ice cream parlor. In fact, the City Paper calls Poulet's ice cream the best in the city for 2005 (eat that, Cold Stone).

With so many choices, Mr. Indecisive was in trouble. What to get? Out of all the things I saw, their wall of sweet and savory crepes looked particularly interesting. Each is named after a different local Catholic or other private high school - there's the Notre Dame, the Gilman, the Loyola (Dons, not Greyhounds), the Boys' Latin, etc. The Loyola particularly caught my eye, because its description basically reveals a "Reuben crepe": corned beef, Swiss cheese, Russian dressing and cole slaw all melted together into a delicious savory crepe ($7). So I ordered that, along with a large homemade chocolate truffle ($1). I ate the truffle in the car, which was a mistake - chocolate truffles should be eaten at room temperature, not fresh out of the fridge.

The Reuben crepe was probably better in conception than execution. For one, it was kind of messy, with Russian dressing all streaming out. This is not a crepe you can pick up. Not that I was going to, but try it and you will get covered in Russian dressing (you have been warned). It was also pretty difficult to cut apart. I blame this not so much on the knife as on the brand of corned beef. It was plasticky in its texture, difficult to chew or even cut, and not terribly exciting in its flavor. Note to Poulet: choose a new brand of corned beef. This one is not very good. The Loyola crepe also doesn't hold up too well on reheating, becoming even more of a big, Russian dressing-soaked mess after a few days in the fridge. I might try this on my own, if I could only make crepes very well at all (note to self: invest in a crepe maker - and a food processor, because you need a new one). I would definitely go back to Poulet, as there is just too much there to not try. But if you're looking for gourmet crepes, steer clear of Loyola.

Places I visited:

Poulet (rotisserie / deli / crepes / ice cream / catering) - 2436 W. Joppa Road (Green Spring Station), Lutherville, MD 21093; Phone: (410) 339-3900

• Would I eat there again? Yes
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? Sure, at least to try some of the other stuff

Places to look up later:

Stone Mill Bakery (bakery / deli / cafe) - 10751 Falls Rd (Green Spring Station), Lutherville, MD 21093; Phone: (410) 821-1358

Virginia Road Trip Part IV: New York Deli

I went back to Carytown for some lunch and a little bit of shopping. And again I was going on Kurt's recommendations. His one big suggestion for lunch would not have been an obvious one to me in the former Capital of the Confederacy. But in the end, I went to the New York Deli and had a lovely lunch.

The place has character - lots of art deco and bar-style decorations with a counter directly facing a large mirror and well-stocked bar. There were also tables, but after some confusion I just sat at the counter. The woman behind it immediately came to my aid with a menu (talk about service). For a drink I settled on unsweetened iced tea (about $1.50) - this way I could sweeten it with as much sugar-free stuff as possible (sugary drinks do not like my system, sadly). The refills were free (an uncommon thing these days). I had two of these while I waited for my main course, for about, oh, twenty minutes.

For that main course, I ordered one of their oft-requested Reubens (about $8.00) with some fries (again, the waitress' recommendation). I could see why it took so long to make - OMG, it was huge! I doubted that I could finish it! This Reuben had sauerkraut, Swiss cheese on top, cheddar cheese sandwiched in between two kinds of meat, corned beef and pastrami, all on rye bread with crispy, crusty fries and a large pickle wedge. And except for a stray strand of dried-out pastrami, it was delicious. If you find yourself in Richmond for whatever reason, get thee to Carytown and head straight for the New York Deli.

Afterwards I headed back to Baltimore, getting stuck in hhhoooorrrrrrible rush hour traffic about half an hour south of Alexandria. Once in Maryland, though, it was pretty smooth sailing. At least I had these purchases to reflect upon:

• A lemon zester from the Compleat Gourmet for $3. It was certainly a steal because: 1) this place jacks up most of its other prices; and 2) Bed, Bath and Beyond AND Williams-Sonoma have the EXACT SAME THING for $8 and $20 respectively. I also got a vanilla bean for $1.50 and another item that is a Christmas present for my sister, who is probably reading this right now so I can't tell her what it is;
• exploding "bath bombs" from Soak (3 small ones for $12);
• Two old CDs of Crowded House and the Mavericks for $3 each, as well as a DVD of one of my favorite MST3K'd movies, Parts: the CLONUS Horror, ($10, but it's the original movie so no bitchy commentary), at Plan 9 Music;
• And some ice cream to finish my trip at Bev's Ice Cream - Bev's Brownie sundae, with two large scoops of any particular ice cream, whipped cream and two other toppings (one of your choice) all on top of a brownie, goes for $5.50 before tax, just over $6 after (it's the cheapest thing you can buy in order to use a debit or credit card).

And that's it! This whole Jamestown-Richmond trip was a very long time in coming, but it's finally happened, and it was quite nifty. Pictures of Jamestown will follow, but I'll throw in some of Carytown, night and day, here:

This is the delicious and HOT lamb vindaloo from my dinner at Farouk's House of India the night before. The hottest stuff, according to the menu, "will bring you tears". Is it that bad?

Perhaps the most appropriately-named business on the street.

The interior of the New York Deli. That clock advertises A&P.

So... ya got a public restroom?

And there's this last one, with these cute doggies just lounging around, waiting for their owner (No, I refuse to call them "pet parents" - I loves me kitty, and I'd put him on the rescue boat before I got in. But I am his owner! Get over it!)

If you polish and gold-plate a turd, it's still a turd...

Remember that $25K sundae from the Serendipity 3 restaurant in NYC? Well, the mice, fruit flies and cockroaches sure did. That's why the NYC health department shut S3 down. And which is also why there won't be any unbelievably overpriced sundaes in that part of Manhattan for a while.

Hey, it's kind of funny that S3 didn't mention on their website that they were closed. Hmmm, wonder why?

U.PDATE: Just corrected a grammatical error

San Francisco #4: Snacks for Lunch

I did a lot of walking today y’all, and my feet are feelin’ the burn. That’s even with most of my travel budget going to transportation costs – taxi, bus, mass transit, shuttles. I jogged for (about) twenty minutes this morning, then all but undid it by eating a slice of pound cake left by my bed n’ breakfast proprietor. He finally did pick up my payment, by the way, and let me keep the key to the place for as long as I stored my luggage there

I grabbed an iced tea at the Duboce Park Café on Sanchez Street. This is a fun, sunny place that serves bagel melts and the like for breakfast. I wasn’t hungry by the time I got there. A few dogs, a straight couple making kissy face, a few friendly lesbians and this attractive Australian guy that I think was flirting with me.

I wanted to see if I could walk to the Golden Gate Park, the park in the city that rivals Central Park in Manhattan in terms of size (it's almost 200 acres larger, in fact). Alas, it was too far, and I wound up trudging up hill after hill after steep hill to the Mission District, a place that echoes much of California’s Mexican heritage (to wit, the massive statue of Padre Miguel Hidalgo in Mission Dolores Park). I got a snack, or so I thought, at the Taquería El Buen Sabor at 18^th and Valencia (Reviews behind the link are of burritos, and those San Franciscans seem to love their burritos. I prefer soft tacos myself). For just $2.20 I got a chorizo and bean taco with the chorizo piled high on top of two small corn tortillas. This unassuming little taco was something to eat with a fork. I haven’t had such good chorizo in years. Topped off with a Sidral Mundet apple soda for $1.75, it was a small, simple and satisfying lunch.

Of course, that wasn’t all I had. I set forth up Valencia en route to Japantown and found a delicious Indian ice cream place. Lonely Planet gives Bombay Creamery raves for its sweet and savory offerings. Bombay Creamery offer many flavors that seem simply exotic to us: cardamom, rose, cardamom rose, saffron rose, mango, etc. I tried the rose and the saffron rose. The former had a very strong rosewater flavor, while the saffron rose was milder, saffron-y with lots of rose in the background. I got both, a double scoop for $4.

Exit 4 - I-97 South (to Annapolis and the Bay Bridge)

This quest for food could've taken me to Annapolis, the Eastern Shore, even Bowie or Richmond! Instead, as there is nothing to eat right on Interstate 97, I got off at the first exit I could find, Baltimore-Annapolis Blvd (Exit 16). The exit branches into two directions, Glen Burnie to the left, and Ferndale to the right. I flipped a mental coin (no, I'm not that dumb to actually flip a coin while I'm driving) and headed left.

I did this twice. The first time, I headed into Cromwell Plaza, where I found some cheap stores, a Blockbuster, a Giant and lots of fast food and a small, cookie-cutter Chinese restaurant. Hungry for a little sweet stuff, I went to Rita's Ices (map, which just puts you on the corner; the actual Rita's ice is on the other end of that shopping center). I didn't realize it covered the entire East Coast; I just thought it was local to Baltimore. It has "Italian" ices, ice cream and soft serve that are about as average, in retrospect, as Carmen's. That and the kid behind the counter didn't seem to understand me when I asked if I could get the Italian ice with mixed-in stuff (they have several "combos" of ice, ice cream and cookies or candy), but without the ice. I gave up trying to explain and just got the damn ice cream by itself. Doable, average, and I'm not likely to go back.

That was about a week ago. Today here I am again, and this time I threw up my hands (figuratively) and headed for the small Chinese place, Hong Kong Restaurant (map). I don't have a good track record with this sort of Chinese restaurant, and the food is loaded with calories. But I gave it a shot, and found a surprising display of specials. Most noticeable was their Thai Basil Chicken, not something I see in many Chinese "greasy spoons" (er, woks?). I also noticed the New Year's special - from February, I guess - where you got tons of food for $35. This wasn't a small amount of cheap food, but things like lobster and whatnot.

I didn't have that large an appetite, and asked about their $5 meal specials. The woman behind the counter told me it was a lunch-size. Note, lunch-size, not specifically lunch only. I was able to buy the smallish lunch size for dinner!!! That's good, because, again, I wasn't that hungry. I hastily picked out the Triple Delight (shrimp, beef, chicken) with pork fried rice. With the free, obligatory fortune cookie my dinner came to a measly $5.24. And it came out pretty darn fast.

I took B&A Blvd the long way home, passing by Willy's Restaurant (map), a rowhouse-looking place that I mean to try out soon. Tonight's special? Crab cakes (the last time I passed by the special was chicken and dumplings). That will be a future visit - especially if I can get there from Exit 5!

I got the food home about 20 minutes later. It was not memorable, but still edible, and even for a smaller lunch portion, twice the food I could finish. For the price, though, it was worth the trip. And it may become much more memorable if I wake up tomorrow morning clutching my stomach and throwing up.

UPDATE: It's now four hours since dinner, and I'm starting to get an upset stomach. Your stomach will probably be stronger than mine so you probably won't get sick, but I am not going back.

UPDATE 2: It's now the following morning, and that stomach ache, thankfully, never got any worse. Maybe it was all the water I drank last night? Anyway, Hong Kong's food didn't get me ill like I thought it was doing. Still it's nothing too special, so I probably won't go back again. But don't let that discourage y'all. I know of few places where you can get dinner that cheap that doesn't serve its food in a wrapper.

Places I visited:

Rita's (dessert) - 7381 A Baltimore Annapolis Blvd., Glen Burnie, MD 21061. Phone: (410) 590-3900

• Would I eat there again? Maybe
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? No

Hong Kong Restaurant (Chinese) – 7389 K Baltimore Annapolis Blvd., Glen Burnie, MD 21061; Phone: (410) 766-2268

• Would I eat there again? Depends on how I'm feeling in the morning. If not bad, then sure No Probably not after all
• Would I go out of my way to eat there again? Probably not No Again, probably not
  

Places to look up later:

Willy's Restaurant (American) - 7271 Baltimore Annapolis Blvd., Glen Burnie, MD 21061; Phone: (410) 354-3004

Food Network Awards!?

Why is the Food Network giving out awards? Don't we have enough awards shows already? I mean sure, the ice cream companies they are showcasing now look kind of cool, like LaLoo's goat milk ice cream (some of which I just bought at Whole Foods yesterday - at $6 a pint, that's not going to be a frequent purchase). But I just sat through an exchange between Nigella Lawson and Alton Brown that was positively grating! Paula Deen's would've been better had they not edited her lines so poorly.

It does have its train wreck qualities, though. But the critics will probably love it anyway.

One note about LaLoo's: goat milk ice cream is lactose-free, a problem I don't have. The taste of the vanilla snowflake flavor I got is not that different from cow's milk ice cream, I think, until you get to the aftertaste. I swear, it has a faint feta aftertaste. Not in a bad way either.