Chili dog do's

Howdy friends! If only you knew how many photos of food I have taken and NOT written about because I've been so busy!!! 

Well. Going to try to jump on the wagon again....tonight we did Chili Dogs.... but not any old Chili dogs......Chili dogs living in a cornbread "bun". I say "bun" because it's not technically a bun. But it is DELICIOUS. 

So. Acquire some Jiffy Mix. I made two batches and put it into a square baking dish over parchment paper.

Then you gently lay some hotdogs into the batter. So they are kind of bathing in the batter. Like a cozy batter of cornmeal.....

These are jumbo dogs and I baked it at 400* for about....40 minutes or so. I checked after the first 25 and then decided I wanted them more done....

This last part, I didn't take a photo of, but I lifted it out of the pan and then sliced it like a hotdog bun. 

Topped with Chili (Thx Jay and Michal! You guys are the best at feeding us! The Shepard's Pie was also delish) and cheese and BOOM. Super easy. Can be adjusted for lots of people or a few. 

 

Living It Up Toronto- Part 3

Decided to combine the last two days of the trip into one post as there were only 3 stops in the two days. We doubled down on the City Pass and hit up some tourist stops: Casa Loma and the Ontario Science Center.  In between the two spots decided to check another place off the list:  

Kanga Aussie Meat Pies 

Meat pies are pretty much the only thing I know about Australian cuisine. Although I "a shrimp on the barbie" might be a thing or just racism. I'm not quite sure. #ThanksCrocodileDundee. I don't know that I've ever had the desire to visit Australia but I'll gladly try their cuisine. 

Karen went with the Kiwi Classic meat pie. Just looking at what's in it screams Karen: beef filling with chunks of white cheddar cheese. Apparently its the favorite of New Zealanders per their website. Maybe Karen is a Kiwi at heart? They had an option to make it a meal- so she got garlic mash potatoes and sausage roll. She highly enjoyed it with the sausage roll being the star of the show.

Kiwi Classic Meat Pie w/ garlic mash potatoes, and sausage roll

I ended up going with the Mate's Masala pie which got my attention ingredient wise: Indian chick pea curry, eggplant, and sweet potato. Per the menu its said it was "spicy" but I didn't think it was spicy at all. The fries were freshly cut/made there which were also excellent. The spinach + feta roll was great as well. I have no idea if Australian folks made our food but kudos to the chefs/bakers as it was fantastic.

Mate's Masala Pie w/ fries and spinach + feta roll

So somewhere (possibly our hotel) there was a stand with tourist brochures and places of interest. One of the pamphlets she picked up was a tour for butter tarts. Apparently butter tarts are national treasures for Canadians. I was unaware of this fact but figured it was our duty to try it out. Unfortunately all the tour spots were a couple hours away so after a quick google search ended up finding Tartistry as it was on the way back to our hotel.

We arrived at Tartistry and wouldn't you know it- they were closed. Damnation...so turn to head back to the car and the door opens up. The owner is there and says she happens to be baking for a big event they had coming up for the end of the week and if we wanted to get some tarts she'd be more than happy to accommodate us. That was cool as hell. She also gave us a run down on the history of butter tarts and per the sample it was confirmed they are all the rage.  We ended up getting a half dozen butter tarts: plain, coconut, lemon curd, pecan, maple walnut, and smore.

Butter Tarts

These butter tarts were FANTASTIC. Kudos to you Canada and the inventor of butter tarts. Karen was talking about trying to make them at home. I fully support this as I'm terrible at baking. I don't think I have the discipline and appreciation of exact measurements needed for baking. She's the top baker in this household.

Last day in Canada saw us hitting up the Royal Ontario Museum. That was super cool as a nerdy history major here. Definitely put that on top of the list for tourist spots within in Toronto. Wanted to hit up one more spot on my bucket list for food: Schnitzel Queen.

Karen is the one who introduced me to schnitzel (not code for something). Knowing that in my research prior to leaving I found Schnitzel Queen ranked highly for both ratings and cheap eats. This was definitely a great choice. Karen ended up going with the pork Bayern schnitzel which came topped with cheese and sauerkraut.

Bayern Schnitzel

Bayern Schnitzel side view

I went with the pork Cordon Blue schnitzel with came with ham, onions and cheese.  These sandwiches were so huge that no side items were needed. I had thought about a side prior to ordering but glad I decided not to get one. We ended up eating half of the sandwich and saving the other half for the plane ride home. I really enjoyed both of them- Karen of course liked mine better so she got to eat the other half on the plan ride home.

Cordon Blue Schnitzel

Cordon Blue Schnitzel side view

Fair warning- Schnitzel is cash only for international travelers as they only take Canadian debit cards for electronic payment options. Since it was the last day I only had U.S. dollars on me. I handed the owner $20 to which he replied "I'm not good with math so this seems good enough." That was very cool of him as I think the total more than that.  So memo to self- make sure to have enough Canadian money next time for another meal at Schnitzel Queen.

Toronto was definitely a foodie/fat kid's dream when it comes to food. I would say food wise it was the one of the highlights/reason to visit Toronto. Definitely want to go back and hit up more places to eat and who knows go on a butter tart tour.

#Foodie4Life,
Reef

Living It Up in Toronto Part 2

Day 2 in Toronto was definitely the Foodie Tour of the city. Met up with a high school friend of mine who I don't think I had seen in person in around 20 years. Obviously in the glorious age of technology and Facebook kept in contact and what not. I would say that's not really the same thing but I digress. Anyway he suggested Kensington Market. Unlike St. Lawrence Market, Kensington Market is an actual neighborhood/district. I would say it most likely is the most diverse area I've ever seen- in a good way. It has all types of cuisine- Mexican, Jamaican, Chinese, etc. I think the weirdest combination for a restaurant (which will have to scope out next time) was a Hungarian Thai place called Hungary Thai. Decided to do a walking tour and actually hit up two spots that were on my list of places to try.

The first stop was Seven Lives- which they don't have a website but here is their facebook page https://www.facebook.com/SevenLivesTacosYMariscos/. This place does So Cal/ Baja style tacos. Fair warning this place only takes cash so you know it's legit.

Karen ended up getting a Carnitas tacos. In case you're not familiar, carnitas is braised pork shoulder. As you can tell from the pictures they serve them on blue corn tortillas which added to the awesomeness. This taco was someone simple but awesome and full of flavor. I think its safe to say if we weren't going to hit up other joints we would have ordered a whole lot more.

Carnitas Taco

I ended up picking two different types of tacos to try. I got the Gobernador and a Carnitas taco. Should have let Karen order first so I could have tried another type but hey just another reason to go back. The Gobernador was fantastic if you're into seafood as it contains smoked marlin, shrimp, and cheese. Since I don't get to eat much seafood at home, this was a great treat for me.  I think whenever I go back to Toronto is this going to be the first stop right off the plane (depending on time of day). Honestly not familiar with the seafood scene of Toronto but this tasted pretty fresh and got bonus points from me.

The Gobernador and Carnitas Tacos

We perused the streets of Kensington Market and Toronto- catching some local tourist sites like the old city hall building, a street art alley, and an apartment that was used for Queer As Folk and Orphan Black. Ended up picking up some specialty ice tea from Ten Ren's Tea . Like a dummy I forgot to snap a picture but man they were refreshing. I picked the Taro Coconut Milk Tea per my friend's suggestion. Karen wanted a Pineapple Mango slushie but they were out. So she opted for the strawberry mango slushie... which she didn't like it so we ended up switching. Probably why I didn't take pictures. I mean I like both of them so I can't complain.

Stock photo of the Taro Coconut Milk Tea 

Definitely some good walking which lead to stopping for a snack. This time from another place on my list: Banh Mi Boys. Best I can describe it would be a Korean sandwich shop. This is located in Toronto's Chinatown. Related note- I think that might be the largest Chinatown in this side of the planet. Seriously might be 10x the size (if not more) of Chicago's Chinatown. Luckily we had my friend Jon who knew of a secret menu option for Banh Mi Boys: Club Bao. This is a steamed bun filled with fried chicken, pork belly, mayo, pickled carrots, cilantro, and cucumber.

Club Bao

Banh Mi Boys can be added to another must go to place on a trip to Toronto. You know the place is good when there's a line/wait to order and get your food. Well worth the wait for sure. Next to this location of Banh Mi Boys ended up being an Asian Gelato place called Kekou Gelato House. Asian Gelato? Sounds like something I had to try so we went for it.

Osmanthus Plumbery in the background

Karen ended up getting a cup of Osmanthus Plumberry gelato. She said it tasted like blackberry sorbet and really dug it. I ended up picking the peanut butter sesame gelato in a cone. To be honest Asian flavored gelato never would have crossed my mind when it came to ice cream but I'm glad these folks came up with it. This was some good stuff. Definitely have to say Toronto's Chinatown puts Chicago's to shame in size, food, and creativity.

It was an awesome time hanging with my friend Jon and going on a walking foodie tour for most of the day. We said our goodbyes and ended up hitting the very tourist spots afterwards as I had picked up a City Pass (basically for 1 price you get tickets to a bunch of place). The two stops which were next to each other were CN Tower and the Ripley's Aquarium. Definitely hit the tourist standards for fun. Actually thought they were pretty neat.

Given the time we were done with the CN Tower, our options for food places on my list were limited. One place which was not was Poutini's House of Poutine. I'm fairly certain you could guess from the name of the place that they specialized in Poutine. Day one we had tried poutine at a generic place so we felt it needed to be tried at a legit place.

Karen went with The Layered- which fits the name as it is what the original poutine combination is known for (fries, cheese curds, gravy) but with an extra layer of cheese curds. I ended going with The Works: which added sour cream, bacon, and chives to it. If you can tell there are no healthy options when it comes Poutine but hey we were on vacation so it's allowed.

The Works Poutine

The Layered Poutine

Poutine that's what's up. Don't worry about the over eating as we both didn't finish. We ended taking them back to the hotel and saving them for dinner the next night. Probably the best all day foodie outing I've had to date.

#TorontoFoodie,
Reef

Living It Up in Toronto- Part 1

Decided to hit up one of the cities on my bucket list for vacation: Toronto. Unless it happened when I was a kid, I'm fairly certain I never visited Canada before. I think one of the main reasons I wanted to visit Toronto was because of my love for the Scott Pilgrim comics. The other thoughts were that its close enough to drive to (8 hours from here). Funny enough we ended up flying cause I didn't think road tripping was the way to go- border patrol and all those excuses. Interestingly enough the customs into Canada is automated/self checkout.

Nerd me is one of those research types who pretty much just scopes out places to eat more than places to see. That being said one of the spots I wanted to check out was St. Lawrence Market . It consists of two spots: The South Hall which is a 2 floor building with over a hundred different vendors (food and merchandise) and then a farmer's market across the street. Fairly certain this market hit just about every continent with food options.  

After perusing around for a bit ended up going with Karen's pick and going to Manotas Organics & Fine Latin Foods. They had a woman out front cooking arepas and empanadas. I'm not one to turn down Hispanic cuisine so they were picked up. Once again I'm a sucker for freshness when it comes to food. I think outside of having paid for something, I don't care much for leftovers. Thus if you're ever at my place I usually try to hand off food. All that being said these were a hit.

Chicken Empanada

Arepa in case you've never had one, it is pretty much a dough made from maize (aka corn). In this instance the lady was frying them up.  Really can't go wrong with an arepa...unless of course it's super dry then you might. In this instance it was pretty good.

Cheese Arepa

So after the St. Lawrence Market- opted to check into the hotel and rest up before heading over to Niagara Falls. In case you're wondering (or too lazy to check a map) it is only 1 1/2 hours east of Toronto. Niagara Falls itself is pretty beautiful. One observation which surprised me was that the majority of the visitors (not sure if tourists or locals) were of Indian/Pakistani origin.  That being said I don't think we came across any Indian restaurants in Niagara Falls at all (driving wise). I'm sure there are a bunch if you googled it.

Food wise decided to go cheap eats and themed diner route and went with The Flying Saucer Restaurant . As you most likely guessed- I saw flying saucer in the name and was like need to check it out. Place was pretty busy as Niagara Falls had a comic convention going on at the time, which is kind of funny walking into a U.F.O themed diner and seeing folks in cosplay. It was like Mos Eisley Cantina from Star Wars. #NerdAlert.

So first day in Canada, need to try at least one of the things they are known for poutine. Poutine for the less informed- no worries I was a part of that group- are French fries, cheese curds, and gravy.  I mean cheap eats from a diner probably wasn't the obvious place to try a national treasure but turned out to be a good decision. Not sure if their fries were freshly made or just the oil they use to cook them, but they were fantastic on their own. Add the other unhealthy stuff and you got a winner. Definitely an item to try if you're in the area.

Flying Saucer's Poutine

Food wise they kind of have the standard flair but then under their sandwich section they just had the name Western. So ended up asking the waitress what that entailed. Not sure if its a common Canadian sandwich as no description was under it. Basically a ham, egg, and cheese melt. It was okay at best. I'm not sure what I was thinking it was going to turn out. The star of the meal were the fries. Also interesting- on the table they had ketchup and vinegar. Not malt vinegar, just plain old vinegar. Never seen that before but was like well why not give it a shot. It was surprisingly addictive.

Western Sandwich, coleslaw, and fries

The Western Sandwich side view

Karen ended up going with a burger. She picked the Jupiter burger as that was the smallest burger they had. Now I'm not sure if its all Canada or what- someone can let me know- but they make their burger patties more like meatloaf. That being said- someone did not enjoy the burger. I gave it a try and it was just weird as it was kind of softer than meatloaf/almost paste like. I might be exaggerating but if you're use to burgers a certain way that just throws off your mental game.

Jupiter Burger with coleslaw and fries

Jupiter Burger side view

Overall The Flying Saucer Restaurant was a let down outside of Poutine and adding vinegar to fries. You would think they'd have a gift shop or something to go along with their theme but they didn't. So I'd say if you're on a budget and don't mind poor truck stop grade food, this might be the place for you.  Highly doubt I'd go back to this joint again.

I think day one in Toronto was 50/50 start to the trip food wise as the Hispanic food and venture around St. Lawrence Market was a good first impression. Niagara Falls I'm sure has plenty of other options food wise so won't let that mediocre experience dissuade me from going back.

#CanadianFoodieAdventure,

Reef

Birthday Foodie Style

So had a pretty gluttonous birthday weekend this past weekend which I think is okay per the rules. Something like "it's your birthday do what you want" or "hey let's get fat!". Why not both?

The first stop and meal of the day was lunch at Emerson Creek Pottery and Tea Room which isn't too far from my house in Oswego. First heard and visited this place last year on a recommendation. It was pretty funny as you drive down this gravel road towards an old farm you start thinking "where am I?"

Road leading to Emerson Creek (from their site I'm not that talented)

They do have a wide variety of teas but really the food is a star for me. I think they have the best mango salsa I've ever had. Funny enough Karen had taken her mom here the week before and brought me back some salsa. With that in mind I opted to go completely new- also helps they switch up their menus on a weekly basis.

Opted to go with a new item for an appetizer- baked blackberry brie. Honestly I don't know what my expectations were before it showed up- mostly because I couldn't tell you how brie tasted. Probably still can't as I'm pretty terrible differentiating between the types of cheeses- except for blue cheese as I am not a fan. That being said, this was pretty tasty. From what I gather its not a complicated dish to make but the freshness of the blackberries stood out to me.

Baked Blackberry Brie with crackers

Karen opted to get a strawberry lemonade that they make.  She was telling me how last time whoever made it had a plethora of diced strawberries in it. I think she was hoping for the same treatment but apparently that person from last time wasn't on lemonade duty. Probably got fired if they were stuffing these full of strawberry. That being said I gave it a try and liked it.

Karen's Strawberry Lemonade

Emerson Creek offers a you pick two type meal option. I mean I don't think they all it Pick 2 cause they don't want to get sued by Panera.  I enjoy it as I got to try a couple more new items. I ended up going with an Oven roasted turkey with Raspberry/Cranberry spread croissant and Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Soup. Fear not if you're thinking "hey those don't sound like they go together" as I ate them individually and did not mix them. Although to be fair the croissant and turkey would mix well with the soup. Can't say I've every had red pepper soup before but giving that Karen got a copy of their recipe we will be eating it again. Definitely would get both of these again as they were good. I think the overall quality that made these more enjoyable is the freshness of the ingredients.

Oven roasted Turkey with Raspberry/Cranberry spread Croissant and   Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Karen opted to go the pick two route as well and got the soup and a Oven Roasted Turkey Club with Provolone cheese on a pretzel roll. I think a club sandwich is definitely on the Karen's go to list when it comes to sandwiches. Once again to kill you with the recurring theme- the freshness really put it over. I should know as I tried it. Also in fairness I think you have to try very hard (aka be super lazy) to mess up a club sandwich.

Oven Roasted Turkey Club w/ Provolone on Pretzel Roll and Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Soup

Emerson Creek does have a kid's menu for you folks with kids. Lily hit up their grilled cheese which came with chips and fruits. Once again fairly simple and hard to screw up so understandably this was fantastic per Lily.

Kid's Grilled Cheese with chips and fruit

Overall was  a good lunch and will try to get back to Emerson Creek again at some point. Probably the trickiest part of hitting up that place is their hours: Tue - Sat 10:00 am - 4:00 pm Also the place fills up quickly. If it wasn't for those I probably would frequent it more often.

Probably blogged about this before but as is tradition for any special event my mom suggest eating at Gemato's. Really not sure when this tradition/idea started. I mean ribs are great there and she loves it so why not go there?

Half slab of ribs with Texas toast, fries, and back beans

Haven't ventured out in the area for BBQ food but as of now Gemato's is the best place in the surrounding Naperville/Aurora area. I know I got a couple suggestions for places but forget to check them out.

Speaking of other traditions in regards to my birthday, Karen once again baked a cake for my birthday.  I of course forgot to take a pick of the whole cake but did take a pic of my slice of cake:

Karen made: Three Layered Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie Cake

Fairly certain I gained 10 pounds just looking at that piece of cake again. A three layered chocolate peanut butter brownie cake. That cake was awesome- not even trying for brownie points (no pun intended). That cake didn't last very long as folks dug into fairly quickly. 

Birthday was pretty good and fattening. Thanks again  to everyone I heard from and hung out with. Was a great time.

#Foodie,

Reef

P.S. Karen sent me a picture of the whole cake after I wrote this:

Healthy Home Cooking

So the last blog was pretty unhealthy with all the junk food. Fear not we still have a bunch of that still in our pantry - minus the crullers which were devoured within a couple of days. Definitely a dangerous item that was in the fight to stay healthy. But its gone now so no worries here.  Still we did manage to return to some home cooked healthier options as well.

Not sure when Spaghetti squash because the instant sensation. I kind of want to say we started using it a year ago or more. If I remember right I was on Instagram and saw a recipe for a lasagna spaghetti squash. It's a good alternative for pasta in my opinion. As previously noted I was not a big pasta fan growing up. All that being said was at the grocery store and picked up a giant one. Opted to go Mexican with it.

Cooking up that giant spaghetti squash

Pretty much went ad-lib but yet stereotypical in my choices- corn, black beans, red peppers, jalapeno, onions, refried bean, and Sazon. For the cheese I went multiple blend of cheddar cheese we had in the fridge. I'm sure there's recipes out there for you folks who need direction/more specifics.

Inside layers: Corn, Black Beans, red peppers, Jalapeno peppers, Onions

The layering before going back into the oven

 Following the standard cooking show format I have to say this came out great. Ended up adding salsa to the top of it. I think originally I wanted to put the salsa in the mixture and just forgot about it. I had the jar sitting on the counter. Didn't notice it until after I had put it in the oven to bake.  Pretty much was the cheese away from being a full vegan meal I believe. Being a giant spaghetti squash this made a whole lot. Decided to try and freeze the leftovers and see how that turns out. Fingers crossed.

Finished product with a generous amount of salsa

Pretty much was the cheese away from being a full vegan meal I believe. Being a giant spaghetti squash this made a whole lot. Decided to try and freeze the leftovers and see how that turns out. Fingers crossed.

Karen decided to go healthy burgers for "Meatless Monday" one week. We happened to be at the dentist that weekend and they had a Cooking Light magazine. A part of me wonders if the dentist has all these subscriptions or has all these hook ups. I would think a magazine distributor would make a killing that way. Anyway she found this recipe in the magazine: Lentil-Tahini Burger.

Beautiful plating

Funny enough we had everything except the Lentil. Pretty much like making my own hummus so have a giant jar of tahini at all times. I know some folks aren't big fans of hummus outside of say a spoonful of it on the side. I can eat that every day much like tacos. Based on the ingredients and a use of a blender, this was definitely a recipe I would have tried so kudos to her for finding it while I was busy being chastised for not flossing enough by the dental hygienist. But I digress and let's get back to the deliciousness that Karen created. 

I think Karen followed the recipe outside of a couple things. 1) She doesn't like cilantro so that was left out. 2) No black pepper as I converted her to use Adobo instead of salt & pepper. 3) Sweet onion instead of the yellow onion cause we're bigger fans of that. 4) Low calorie buns cause we try to limit the whole carbs/calories. Fairly certain I said to put some Sazon in it but that fell on deaf ears.

Inside the meatless burger (should be an album title)

 These came out really good. I will say the pickled cabbage is good but actually gets better the next day as it has more time to absorb the flavor/juice. So maybe my suggestion would be to make the pickled cabbage a day before or maybe a couple hours earlier so it has time to "pickle"...(insert SMH here).  Definitely will have to get Karen to make this again in the near future. Also pretty sure this fell on Meatless Monday.

#HealthyEating,
REEF

Random Junk Food Finds

Had a bunch of finds over the last month or so that for some reason or another I've not put in a blog. If I had to guess probably keeping themes together and just timing. But we'll go with option C: Laziness. Either way its time to give these items some justice in no particular order.

First up was some sushi from Jewel. I was wanting to get into sushi for awhile. Pretty much think I'm the only one in this house hold that likes it as well as not prone to digestive issues. #CastIronStomach. Or would that be #CastIronColon? Either way happened to be at Jewel and saw some sushi on sale so figured why not give it a shot. I understand it not like legit freshly made sushi but hey I'll take what I can.

Okami Super Sriracha Sushi Roll

So Jewel on occasion will have some sushi for sale- I saw on occasion as I have only seen them a couple of times. I'm doubting this area is a big market for sushi rolls but I could be wrong. I ended up going with the Super Sriracha rolls as i'm a big fan of Sriracha. I think its due to the garlic that adds spiciness.  This turned out to not be too shabby and would get them again. I think the drawback outside of it not being fresh is that they're actually pretty pricey at $6 but maybe I'm a cheapskate.  Honestly though it makes me think I should go out and get some real deal sushi in the near future.

Also at Jewel I came across an item that hit a couple of Shariff interest points. Krispy Kreme Banana Crullers. If you notice by the packaging the first point: Limited Time. Second point is Krispy Kreme as it had been a while. The last point was new item. Not sure I've encountered banana mini crullers before so it went directly into the shopping cart.

Banana Crullers.

The final assessment was there was pretty fantastic. I think I've previously reviewed a strawberry version of this and had the same surprise. The banana flavor was throughout the cruller. Typically you see something flavored and its just the glaze or topping. Not these. Banana flavored from start to finish. If you're a fan of banana...PAUSE...then I'd give these a try.

The next item once again got my attention based on the marketing brilliance that is putting the word "NEW" on something. Happened to be going down the freezer aisle and low and behold this bad boy/girl (depending on your sass level) was calling out to me.

Cake & Cookie Fantasy

Cake & Cookie Fantasty? Edy's you're going all rated R on us. Its a combination of red velvet cake
 flavored yogurt with bits of sugar cookie in it. As unhealthy as that sounds- its not terrible bad at only 150 calories a serving. You would think that would be some crazy candy bar level of over 250 calories but it wasn't. Definitely would recommend picking some of this up and giving it a shot.

Oreos seems to be going crazy over the recent years with all types of flavors.  This year would be no different with the two flavors I found.

Firework Oreo and Waffle & Syrup Oreo

Firework oreo might be one of the craziest ideas - or at least something I would never have thought of. Somebody was like hey- why don't we take a regular oreo and add some pop rocks into the filling? Boss was like hell yeah let's do it. I mean granted same boss probably was the person behind the stupid Swedish fish version bit their track record has to be pretty good outside of that. I would say the draw back to this one is you kind of have to savor/eat them very slowly to experience the pop rocks.  Then again if you get them stuck in your teeth you'll have the same effect. Pretty crazy taking a drink of water with some stuck in my teeth. It just more for novelty and no doubt if you have kids they'll love it.

The other flavor Waffle & Syrup should just be named Maple Syrup Oreos. Not really sure how they captured the "waffle" part of it as its just a golden oreo cookie. Maybe I missed it? I mean it wasn't bad but really its like a spot of syrup in the middle of the cookie. If you look at the package you can how they laid it out. I mean it was good but I wouldn't go out of my way to try them or buy them again.

Definitely an unhealthy blog this go around but fear not the next blog should be healthier as it's a couple of home made items from yours truly and Karen.

#FoodieLife,

Reef

Luck of the Irish

Been quite the eventful couple of weeks with one cousin getting married and another getting his PhD in Bioengineering. Congrats to both of them. That being said my achievements all fall into the food discovery realm. Sorry to take your shine cousins but it had to be done. The monumental first step was avenging our previous Irish experience.

A Couple of blogs ago we had hit up an Irish place and the food was at best "just alright". Don't recall but I'm going say this was Karen's idea to try for Irish food again. We went to a place we hadn't been to in a couple of years: Ballydoyle. The weather was pretty terrible I recall as it was pouring rain but on the positive meant the place would be pretty empty. Ballydoyle did not disappoint as it hit the Irish food spot on.

Started off with a new appetizer I've never seen or heard of before: Corned Beef Bites. It's a deep fried breaded corned beef and cream cheese with Parmesan sprinkled on top. I know it said it came with cocktail sauce but I don't recall it tasting like cocktail sauce. Either way these was pretty scrumptious. Yes I went for a word that I don't use to be all hipster about it. I think it worked.

Corned Beef Bites

Karen looked to redeem the previous restaurant's failure at a Boxty. Ballydoyle's Boxty, both in looks and taste, appeared to be freshly made at the restaurant. The rest per their description: "our famous corned beef, Swiss, cabbage, sauerkraut, brown mustard, 1000 island" was also great. Karen is not a fan of mustard but she really like this Boxty. I would say her only "complaint" was there should have been more Swiss cheese.  Having tried it I think I would have asked for more 1000 island dressing but I'm a sucker for more sauce...PAUSE.

Corned Beef Boxty

 Lily went off the kid's menu with chicken tenders and fries. She scarfed those down so I'd have to imagine they were mighty tasty. I would probably have called them Chicken Nuggets or if you want to be like the golden arches- "McNuggets". That sure if that's a racist joke or not upon retrospection. Don't blame me blame going up in the McDonald's heyday.

Chicken Tenders with Fries

 I played it safe with my choice and went with the standard Shepard's Pie. Now I didn't play it safe for my own sake but given the win-loss record with the Boxty someone who doesn't like to be shamed has- I figured worst case if the Boxty failed I could switch meals as I eat anything. Disclaimer- eating anything vs. liking everything are two separate things. Like I hate blue cheese and bacon wrapped dates but I could still eat them if I had to.  Anyway I am a sucker for a good Shepard's pie so this was a "sacrifice" I was willing to make. This Shepard's pie was pretty scrumptious. So much so that ended up going halfsies with She Who Shall Not Be Named.

Shepard's Pie

I think until proven otherwise Ballydoyle's might be the best Irish restaurant in the Aurora area. Will have to research but if you have an suggestions in terms of Irish food in this immediate area I'm willing to give it a shot. Also wouldn't mind scouring the surrounding areas and Chicago for more Irish food.

Got a bunch of items/finds to catch up with yet again but will get them out there. Also got a couple of folks interested in going out on foodie adventures. Hit me up with dates and times and let's make it happen.

#CantStopWontStop
-Reef-

Omg BREAD

First let me say, HELLO I AM BACK! Reef has been holding down the fort while I have been moving into my house and figuring out my kitchen and actually getting back into the nitty gritty of cooking again. 

So YAY REEF!!! Thank you!!! (And thanks for the push I needed to get back into this.)

So. Awhile ago I ran across this no-knead artisanal bread recipe ...my favorite blog Lainey Gossip was talking about how Lainey's husband Jacek was on a tear with baking bread. However, they were using a Dutch oven, which I did not own. After agonizing over buying one for literally like 5 months, I broke down and got myself one for Mother's Day. From Amazon, super basic, like $22. And then I decided I MUST BAKE THIS BREAD IMMEDIATELY. 

 

It's a very easy recipe. You mix in your flour, salt, yeast and water and cover it with plastic wrap and let it sit for 12-24 hours. Mine was closer to 24 hours I think. 

 

I didn't take a picture of it after it rose but suffice it to say, it rose. Then you put a towel down with flour and make a rectangle, cover it and leave it for about 15 min. Then you sort of fold it into thirds and then again until it's kind of a cube/square (also flour and corn meal it a bit) and then cover it again and let it rise for about two hours. 

 

  

So the last thirty minutes of rising you put your entire Dutch oven into the oven (450 for 30 min, lid on). Then take it out and put your dough into the pot and put the lid back on and then bake it for 30 min. It should be noted that I STARTED baking my bread at like, 9 pm on the hottest day of the year so far. Oops. This is my bread halfway through. 

 

Then you take the lid off and bake another 30. Isn't this bread GORGEOUS? 

 

I had to eat two pieces immediately with butter. Omg. And the crust is very crunchy and crackley (in a good way) and I want to eat it all NOW. Omg. Mmmmmmmm

 

Overall. I will COMPLETELY make this again. Not sure if I would do weekly but it's definitely in the rotation of random breads I enjoy baking and eating WAY TOO MUCH. Now it's sleepy time. If I can sleep after eating all of those carbs. 

Also: my friend Melly got me that plate and isn't it so pretty?! I love it!