tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-47539713565113609862024-03-13T23:59:10.193-04:00A Dollop A DayThis blog is about one of my favorite things. Food. Food that I make. Food that I love. Food from my favorite places. Food that I try. Food in general.kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-26940561780220600392009-04-17T10:54:00.003-04:002009-04-17T11:04:05.694-04:00Enchiladas<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SeiY6A1APXI/AAAAAAAAADg/fXnK-ciqmS8/s1600-h/enchiladas-ck-1185393-l.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325674681787759986" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SeiY6A1APXI/AAAAAAAAADg/fXnK-ciqmS8/s320/enchiladas-ck-1185393-l.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>The other night I had a plate full of yummy goodness. What is this, you ask? It was my sister's ultra delicious <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enchilada">enchiladas</a>. In my opinion, they are some of the best enchiladas ever.</div><div> </div><div>She doesn't make them that often, but I am always glad when she does. (Especially when she invites me over to eat them.) </div><div> </div><div>The part that I think is the most fun ( at least to watch) is when she puts the meat into the middle of the tortilla. It's a pretty messy process, so I've never actually done it. I leave the enchilada stuffing process to the professionals, thanks.</div><div> </div><div>The tastiest part of the enchiladas is all the cheese that goes on top. I really like cheese, and let me tell you, there is a lot of cheese. A medium amount of cheese also goes into the middle of the enchilada. It's basically Heaven in your mouth.</div><div> </div><div>If you're ever craving Mexican food, I suggest that you try to make some enchiladas. They're very easy to make, and they're very pleasing to the taste buds.</div><div> </div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-15841594135137990312009-04-17T10:42:00.003-04:002009-04-17T10:54:17.463-04:00Potatoes, anyone?<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SeiWR7iIetI/AAAAAAAAADY/sKniwjswepA/s1600-h/Don_t_Eat_Those_Green_Potatoes__A93A1CA6-0696-EE49-99B2FB243E730079.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5325671794148408018" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 253px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SeiWR7iIetI/AAAAAAAAADY/sKniwjswepA/s320/Don_t_Eat_Those_Green_Potatoes__A93A1CA6-0696-EE49-99B2FB243E730079.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I was watching <a href="http://www.foodnetwork.com/patrick-and-gina-neely/index.html">Cooking With the Neely's</a>with my sister. They were featuring a side dish called Warm Bacon Potato Salad. Normally I'm not a potato salad type of person, but for some reason this spoke to my stomach. (The reason also could have been that I hadn't eaten lunch yet.) My sister and I, after much debating, decided to make the potato salad.</div><br /><p>We made a list of need ingredients, and headed off to the store. We bought all the ingredients, which we rather expensive. We then went home to embark on our new cooking adventure.</p><p>Once at home, we set to work cooking the potatoes, frying the bacon, and making the dressing-type concoction that the potatoes are tossed in. Also in the salad are onions and garlic. I am not a big fan of onions; in fact, I absolutely hate them. I was a little skeptical about the end result.</p><p>While my sister and her boyfriend, Omar, were making the rest of the lunch, I finished making the potato salad. I mixed all of the ingredients and placed it in a bowl. After everything was done, we sat down to eat. I put some of the potato salad on my plate, and took a timid bite.</p><p>It was nothing like I had thought it would be. The sauce contains white wine vinegar, and that flavor was prevalent in the dish. There were lots of onions, which made me like it even less. Needless to say, I wouldn't personally recommend it to anyone. </p>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-47846157624256456192009-04-10T09:47:00.003-04:002009-04-10T09:55:00.191-04:00Easter<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/Sd9OZc2GrzI/AAAAAAAAADQ/y-G6ycOZlTc/s1600-h/eggsclose2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323059483722034994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/Sd9OZc2GrzI/AAAAAAAAADQ/y-G6ycOZlTc/s320/eggsclose2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I am very excited for Easter to roll around on Sunday. My family usually has a very big meal on Easter. I can hardly wait. Who doesn't like tons of delicious food cooked by your family?</div><div> </div><div>My grandma usually cooks a tasty ham for Easter. Along with the ham, we usually have <a href="http://www.elise.com/recipes/archives/001837deviled_eggs.php">devilled eggs</a>, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes, rolls, pie, fruit salad, and a few other various forms of food that I can't quite remember at the moment. (That probably has to do with the fact that it's too early in the morning for me, even if it is almost ten o'clock.)</div><div> </div><div>My favorite part of the meal are the devilled eggs and the sweet potatoes. I could eat both of these foods everyday for the rest of my life and not get tired of eating them. I know people say that, but I'm really serious.</div><div> </div><div>We usually eat around lunch time, and then eat the leftovers at dinner time. It's quite the plan, I think. I really enjoy all the food that my grandmother makes, and I like getting to spend time with my family.</div><div> </div><div>I hope all of you have a good Easter, and that you enjoy it.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-67121083466274275782009-04-10T09:37:00.003-04:002009-04-10T09:47:06.404-04:00Famous Dave's<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/Sd9MIr_3niI/AAAAAAAAADI/3805IuG6HfE/s1600-h/Famous_Dave_s.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323056996708490786" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 182px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/Sd9MIr_3niI/AAAAAAAAADI/3805IuG6HfE/s320/Famous_Dave_s.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This past Sunday I went to Indianapolis. It was for my friend's father's birthday. There were almost 25 extra people in attendance, and he was totally <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">surprised</span>. We ate at <a href="http://www.famousdaves.com/">Famous Dave's</a>, his favorite restaurant. This, in my mind, is quite funny, since his name is Dave.</div><div> </div><div>We were all seated before he arrived, and there were too many chairs at the table that I was sitting at. The table was supposed to seat three comfortably, since there was hardly any room on the table. There were four of us at the table, and an extra chair was seated next to me. Another friend came and sat down in the seat, and the waiter brought us our drinks. I inevitably spilled my water all over me in the first five minutes of being there because of the lack of room on the table. For the rest of the time that I was there, I looked like I had wet my pants. Talk about embarrassing. I bet you wouldn't have wanted to sit <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">in front</span> of twenty five other people, plus whoever else was at the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">restaurant</span>, looking like you couldn't control your bladder.</div><div> </div><div>Famous Dave's is a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">restaurant</span> that serves all sorts of barbecue goodness. I ordered the ribs and beef brisket combo. It was very delicious. They have five different kinds of barbecue sauce on the table so that you can choose which one you want to put on your dinner. Most dinners come with a side item of your choice, plus corn bread and corn on the cob. I tried the mashed sweet potatoes as my side, but it wasn't very good.</div><div> </div><div>By the time dessert time rolled around, my pants were still wet. I didn't order any dessert, but a few other people did. They had bread pudding with vanilla ice cream. It looked good, and they said it was quite tasty; however, I did not actually get to try it.</div><div> </div><div>We drove home in the pouring rain, but the food was well worth it. If you like barbecue, I suggest that you give Famous Dave's a try.</div><div> </div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-65967934979285620912009-04-03T10:00:00.003-04:002009-04-03T10:25:16.754-04:00Ooey Gooey Chocolate Caramel Cake<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SdYcFtZgF2I/AAAAAAAAADA/47OSHLgGC0E/s1600-h/coolwhip.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320470894196299618" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 306px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SdYcFtZgF2I/AAAAAAAAADA/47OSHLgGC0E/s320/coolwhip.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Well, that's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">at least</span> what my sister calls it. ( I'm <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">referring</span> to the title.) My mom started making this a long time ago. It's one of my personal favorites. That must mean it's pretty spectacular. I'm not really sure where the recipe came from, or what it's actually called though.<br /><br /><br /><br />The other night I went to my mom's for dinner, and I decided to make this cake for dessert. It's really quite simple. All you have to know how to do is mix up a boxed cake mix and bake it basically. ( Well, that, and know how to open jars.) First, you take a box of devil's food cake mix and prepare it accordingly. Next you have to bake it in the over for the directed amount of time. After it is cooked, let it set outside of the oven for about ten or fifteen minutes.<br /><br /><br /><br />This is where the fun part comes in. Once it is cool enough to touch, take the end of a wooden spoon and poke about a million holes in the cake. This is a really good way to take out all your frustrations. Next, take a jar of caramel sauce (the kind used on ice cream sundaes) and pour it all over the cake. After you are done with that, you take a can of sweetened condensed milk and do the same exact thing. The reason we poked holes in the cake is so that these ingredients can soak down into the cake.<br /><br /><br /><br />After you have done this, put the cake into the refrigerator to cool completely. This is necessary for when you put a container of <a href="http://brands.kraftfoods.com/CoolWhip">Cool Whip</a> on the top, or else it will melt. After it's cooled, (this will probably take about an hour in the refrigerator) ice the cake with a container of Cool Whip. This is the final step. It is best if you serve the cake cold, so keep it in the refrigerator until you are ready to eat it or serve it.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-16514821021768530632009-03-30T09:58:00.004-04:002009-03-30T10:13:13.080-04:00Dog 'n Suds<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SdDTC-XoulI/AAAAAAAAAC4/PHk1qF3jf-g/s1600-h/Dog-n-Suds.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318983207979891282" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 198px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SdDTC-XoulI/AAAAAAAAAC4/PHk1qF3jf-g/s320/Dog-n-Suds.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I'm sure that almost every city has their own "Mom and Pop" drive-in. Lafayette does, too. This local drive-in is called <a href="http://www.dog-n-suds.com/">Dog 'n Suds</a>. There are two Dog 'n Suds, one located in Lafayette, and the other is located in West Lafayette. (That's right, it is there for your disposal.) Both are located on 52, and are easily <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">accessible</span>. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Dog 'n Suds is one of my favorite places to eat in the summer. All you have to do is drive in, park in a spot, and press the button to order. (Well, you also have to decide what you want to eat, too; but that is as hard as it gets.) After you order your food, a waitress will come and serve it to you on a tray that attaches to your window. (It's totally safe, and won't hurt your car, either.) You pay the waitress, but be careful. They only accept cash. After you are done consuming your delicious food, you press another button located on the menu, and a waitress will come and retrieve your trash and tray. They also have an option of sitting outside in an area with picnic tables.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>At Dog 'n Suds, they sell really yummy food. They are known for their <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">coney</span> dogs, but they have various other toppings as well. I do not like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">coney</span> sauce, so I usually get a hot dog with ketchup and cheese. The cheese isn't that nasty processed, nacho-like substance. It's shredded cheese, and it makes the hot dog amazingly good. Their hot dogs can be ordered as a regular sized hot dog, and a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">foot long</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">hot dog</span>. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>They also sell corn dogs, which are pretty tasty; as well as hamburgers, french fries, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">cole</span> slaw, and onion rings. To go with your meal, I suggest your order their homemade <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">root beer</span>. It's some of the best root beer that I have ever tasted. If you like it a lot, they have two liter bottles <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">available</span> for you to take home. If you prefer ice cream with your <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">root beer</span>, they have <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">root beer</span> floats as well as <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">root beer</span> freezes. A <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">root beer</span> freeze, for those of you who do no know what that is, is sort of like a milkshake. It has <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">root beer</span> and vanilla ice cream blended together. It's pretty spectacular.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>They are open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily. I've noticed, however; that if they are not very busy around 9:15 p.m., they like to close early. I highly suggest the Lafayette Dog 'n Suds over the West Lafayette one, but I'm sure they are both pretty equal. (I just like the Lafayette one better.)</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-87958272089361274662009-03-27T09:41:00.003-04:002009-03-27T09:49:50.742-04:00Fluffer Nutters<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SczZEGagujI/AAAAAAAAACw/X7NjJGG73co/s1600-h/peanut_butter_salmonella1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317863924482226738" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 230px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SczZEGagujI/AAAAAAAAACw/X7NjJGG73co/s320/peanut_butter_salmonella1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Last night I was craving a peanut butter sandwich. However; we're not talking about just a plain, old peanut butter sandwich here. I am talking about a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fluffernutter"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Fluffer</span> Nutter</a>. I walk into my kitchen and get out all the ingredients: bread, peanut butter, and marshmallow creme. A <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Fluffer</span> Nutter is a peanut butter sandwich with marshmallow creme. It is delicious.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>For all of you that have never had one, you're probably thinking that this sounds really weird. I would probably be thinking the same thing if I had never had one, either. But in all actuality, I have been eating this twist on a regular peanut butter sandwich <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">since</span> I was little.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>This is something I'm sure you can make in your dorm room, if that's where you happen to be residing. It's very easy to make, and it takes about a total of one minute to produce a good <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Fluffer</span> Nutter. Anyone can be a master chef at this. If you're feeling crazy, you can also add bananas or honey to the sandwich. Both are equally as good on the sandwich, but the original <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Fluffer</span> Nutter is best.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-80404808201212561142009-03-26T09:22:00.003-04:002009-03-26T09:41:43.737-04:00Cheeseburger in Paradise<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/ScuGERQJInI/AAAAAAAAACo/GRNQkYSIqk4/s1600-h/Cheeseburger_in_Paradise.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317491192949711474" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 263px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/ScuGERQJInI/AAAAAAAAACo/GRNQkYSIqk4/s320/Cheeseburger_in_Paradise.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This past weekend, on one of my final days of Spring break, I went to a place near Indianapolis. I hadn't really gone anywhere on my Spring break, so it was a good way to end it. (I was a slave to my work all week, which is why I didn't get to go anywhere.)</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>My sister, our friend Kayla, and I were all in my car on Saturday afternoon trying to decide what to eat for lunch. This is always a big process for us, because none of us ever know what we want to eat. We're sitting there, driving around my apartment complex, and I'm asking them whether I should go left or right. No one is saying anything. My sister, I think jokingly, says let's go to <a href="http://www.cheeseburgerinparadise.com/">Cheeseburger in Paradise</a>. At first I was definitely thinking in my head that she was a little crazy. However; about five seconds later, I'm all for the idea. It's something to do, right?</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>We drive back to my sister's apartment, since we never really got very far in the first place, and pick up her boyfriend, Omar. When we're all in the car, we realize that we don't have directions; but not to worry, I thought I had some in my glove compartment. We look, and I really don't. Instead, I decide to wing it since I think I know how to get there. (We got there ok, except once we got within a one mile radius of Cheeseburger in Paradise it was a little sketchy.)</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Cheeseburger in Paradise is a restaurant that is beach themed. In the waiting area, they have wooden beach chairs decorated in neon colors. We go up to the hostess, and she seats us near the back in a booth. The walls are decorated in palm trees and sunsets. It's really quite cool.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Omar and I order homemade lemonade to drink, and Erika (my sister) and Kayla order coconut iced tea. I've never had coconut iced tea, so I tried it. It was really good, suprisingly. The lemonade, however; wasn't the best. To eat, I had to get a cheeseburger. (The name is Cheeseburger in Paradise, is it not?) I decided on the Barbecue Cheddar Burger, with fries on the side. It was quite tasty. The fries are the skinny kind, like McDonald's, only a bajillion times better.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>They do not only sell cheeseburgers. They have salads, chicken, shrimp, etc. They also have dessert. While we did not get any this time since we were all stuffed, we have tried the chocolate nachos before. I was not a big fan of these, since I think it's a little weird to be eating chocolate flavored tortilla chips. Everyone else that went thought they were really good though. The chocolate nachos are chocolate and plain tortilla chips topped with chocolate sauce and sprinkles and has vanilla ice cream one the side.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>To end our trip, we drove around looking for a mall or something. We didn't find one. The food was well worth the trip, though. If you love the beach, but can't get away to Florida, I suggest you try Cheeseburger in Paradise.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-73424244975934868272009-03-13T00:14:00.004-04:002009-03-13T00:27:57.892-04:00Irish Potatoes<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/Sbnf6PV6uCI/AAAAAAAAACc/ODuGF2hr3fg/s1600-h/potatocandyee2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312523427104077858" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/Sbnf6PV6uCI/AAAAAAAAACc/ODuGF2hr3fg/s320/potatocandyee2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Earlier this week, I received homemade "cookies" from a friend. In honor of St. Patrick's day coming up, she made me something called <a href="http://www.sees.com/index.cfm">Irish Potatoes</a>. Sounds weird, right?</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>When I was first presented with the gift, I was a little skeptical. Something sweet that is called Irish Potatoes? And not only that, but it looked just like a potato. The "potato" was wrapped in aluminum foil. I next opened that foil, and inside was a brown blob, which was, in fact, shaped like a potato. (Surprise, right?!?) The blob was covered in what looked like brown powder.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I was scared to take a bite, no joke. Well, I got over my silly fear, and opened my mouth and took a tiny bite. It was really bitter at first. But then I tasted something slightly sweet. Looking down, I noticed that the inside of the "potato" was white, just like in a real potato. I was amazed at the construction of this. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>After the initial shock, I figured out what this little creation was made out of. The inside was white divinity. (For those of you that have never had divinity, it is a really sugary candy that is mainly made out of eggs whites, and well, sugar.) It also contained a few walnuts. The outside turned out to be cinnamon and cocoa powder mixed together, with a few walnuts sprinkled about.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>It doesn't sound very good, does it? Well, after the first few bites, you begin to acquire a taste for it. It really grows on you. It is not too bitter and not too sweet, either. If you're feeling like a tasty treat for St. Patrick's Day, I suggest you give these a try.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-44447887211861043642009-03-09T09:57:00.004-04:002009-03-13T00:13:32.677-04:00Two Cookin' Sisters<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SbndYXhbW6I/AAAAAAAAACU/IkhPXGfOf1w/s1600-h/store%2520shelves.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5312520646161030050" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SbndYXhbW6I/AAAAAAAAACU/IkhPXGfOf1w/s320/store%2520shelves.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This past weekend, I took a little trip with my sister, mother, and grandmother. (It was very little, since I almost always have to work on Saturdays.) We went to Brookston, Indiana. Now, for those of you who do not know where this is, it is located about fifteen or twenty minutes away from good, old West Lafayette. Our destination: <a href="http://www.bigsistersalsa.com/">Two Cookin' Sisters</a>.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Two Cookin' Sisters is a small shop in Brookston that sells a variety of things, mostly homemade. The main item that they sell is homemade jelly. We're not just talking original grape jelly here, folks. They make all kinds. (They have red raspberry and chocolate to hot red pepper jelly.) You are bound to find one that you like.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>My mom is practically obsessed with a certain kind of jelly that you can only get at Two Cookin' Sisters, and this was the reason for our adventure. The jelly that my mom likes so much is called Strawberry Margarita. Now, I can't vouch for the goodness of this particular jelly, because I have honestly never tried it. It doesn't sound that appealing to me. However, I did pick up a jar of jelly for myself. It is called "Grandad's Orchard Spiced Peach Jam." Let me tell you, it tastes just like peach pie. It is amazingly good.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Not only do they sell jelly, but they sell homemade barbeque sauce, homemade salsa, pickles, relish, tortilla chips, and homemade applesauce. Along with these items, they sell hand crafted items from Indiana residents. (These range from mounted photography, to ceramics, and also blown glass and homemade paper.)</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>If you're not going anywhere for spring break, I suggest you take a mini trip and check it out. There is an ice cream parlor attached to the store, and they sell some pretty tasty treats, too.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-24240183910617514882009-03-06T10:03:00.002-05:002009-03-06T10:14:14.907-05:00Donuts Galore<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SbE9owjjvbI/AAAAAAAAACM/POAdsvs8xJY/s1600-h/donuts.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5310093206084631986" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SbE9owjjvbI/AAAAAAAAACM/POAdsvs8xJY/s320/donuts.bmp" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This morning, on my way to campus for class, I stopped at <a href="http://web1.userinstinct.com/16483506-mary-lou-donuts.htm">Mary Lou Donuts</a>. Mary Lou has been one of my favorite breakfast stops for as long as I can remember. It's fast, and there is plenty of variety.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Mary Lou Donuts is located on 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">th</span> Street, in Lafayette. It is a out-dated looking building, but don't let that fool you. Inside, there is not a lot of room to sit down, so I suggest you take your donuts to go. However, if you feel the need to sit down, there is about a total of maybe twelve seats in the whole place. They are light blue/teal in color, and they are swivel chairs with no backs. They're very retro-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">esque</span>. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>When ordering your donuts, there are many flavors to choose from. They have jelly filled (my personal favorite), cream filled, donuts with no filling, cake donuts, dream horns, apple fritters, and many more. There are about thirty different <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">varieties</span> in all, and they usually have a special donut of the week, too. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>To go along with your donuts, you can order milk; which also comes in a few select flavors. They also carry orange juice, coffee, tea, and lemonade; but I strongly suggest the chocolate milk. To me, donuts and milk go together. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Mary Lou opens very early, at around 6 a.m., and closes each day around 5 p.m., except for Sunday. They are closed on Sunday. The donuts range in price from 35 cents to about one dollar, depending on what you get. I've tried many kinds of donuts from here, and they have all been delicious.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-64898760379517913402009-03-05T16:40:00.004-05:002009-03-05T17:03:36.747-05:00Main Street Wine and Cheese Cellar<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SbBLtaQNUHI/AAAAAAAAACE/92ik5FXcgE8/s1600-h/Main%2520St_.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5309827204183314546" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SbBLtaQNUHI/AAAAAAAAACE/92ik5FXcgE8/s320/Main%2520St_.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I'm sure that most of you had a grilled cheese at some time in your life, am I right? A lot of you probably enjoyed it, too. I know that grilled cheese is something I like to make when I don't have a lot of time, but I know that I will enjoy it. For this blog post, I am going to write about a small <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">restaurant</span> called the <a href="http://www.mainstreetcheese.com/">Main Street Wine and Cheese Cellar</a>. It is located in downtown Lafayette, on Main Street. (What a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">surprise</span>, right?) </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>My sister and mother discovered this place only last summer. They then decided that they needed to take me along the next time they went. I am happy that they did. I'm not quite sure how long this place has been located in Lafayette, but I am going to take a guess and say about two or three years.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>At Main Street Wine and Cheese Cellar, they prepare the king of all grilled cheeses. They do not use normal sandwich bread. They use a thicker <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ciabatta</span> bread, with <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Parmesan</span> cheese on the crust. You can pick from a few different cheeses for the middle of your grilled cheese. ( I suggest the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Havarti</span>.) It is then grilled to perfection and brought out to you. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I am not sure how many of you are familiar with Fair Oaks Farms, but it is a large dairy farm in Indiana. The cheeses from this restaurant all come from Fair Oaks Farms. They are available for purchase at a small glass case located inside the restaurant. Also for sale are half gallons of milk (chocolate and white) from the cows at Fair Oaks Farms, as well a variety of bottles of wine. <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Occasionally</span>, when fruit is in season, they will sell fresh fruit from local farmers outside of the restaurant.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Main Street Wine and Cheese Cellar also has soup for lunch, along with blackened chicken <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">quesadillas</span> and salads.You can have soda to drink, or you can grab a bottle of milk. If you're feeling fancy, and are of age, you can even have a glass of wine. </div><div> </div><div>The atmosphere is great, and the waitstaff are very friendly. I encourage that you check it out sometime soon, and stop by for an amazing grilled cheese sandwich. It never hurts to try something new, now does it?</div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-67271832953330033592009-02-27T11:11:00.003-05:002009-02-27T11:29:35.332-05:00Pizza King<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SagUo_gLACI/AAAAAAAAAB8/vjYN02asI8Q/s1600-h/pizza.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5307514855329824802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 156px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SagUo_gLACI/AAAAAAAAAB8/vjYN02asI8Q/s320/pizza.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>What college student doesn't love pizza? If you're anything like the average student, you probably eat pizza at least once a week. On Wednesday night of this week, I received a phone call from a friend that I had no spoken to, let alone seen, since we graduated from high school. She wanted to get together over dinner and "catch up" so to speak. I gladly accepted, and we made plans to meet at one of the local <a href="http://www.pizzakingindiana.com/">Pizza Kings</a>.If you've never had pizza from Pizza King, it is some of the best pizza in Indiana. (There are more Pizza Kings located in a few select places in Indiana.) </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>When we arrived at the small restaurant, we seated our selves. The menus are located at the tables, and you get to press an intercom button to order. After decided what we would like to eat, we ordered. The only thing that is brought to you at your table are your drinks. They arrive on a small train located behind glass next to the tables. It is really quite neat, and makes the restaurant unique. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Your food is prepared very quickly, and your intercom at the table tells you when it is ready. You go to the counter, where you pick up your food and pay for it. You then go back to your table and eat your pizza. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>The pizza is not cut into triangle shaped slices. The pizza is cut into little square shaped pieces. If you're not used to your pizza being cut like this, it takes a little bit of getting used to. Also, the pizza is a very thin type of crust pizza. I read on the menu the other day that they now have thick crust pizza, but I cannot vouch for it because I have never tried it. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Their <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">bread sticks</span> are pretty yummy, and I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">recommend</span> getting the nacho cheese to go with them. Also on their menu are submarine sandwiches. I am not a big sandwich fan, but their Texas <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Barbecue</span> sub is just about to die for. Another item on their menu, if you're not in the mood for pizza, is their Pizza King Salad. It is loaded with cheese, ham, turkey, radishes, croutons, and green onions; plus your choice of dressing.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>The atmosphere is good, and I am sure that you will enjoy the food. It is in between not expensive and expensive, if that makes any sense. Their hours and locations are listed in the link above, if you click on the words Pizza King.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-87198037486975293652009-02-23T09:42:00.004-05:002009-02-23T10:12:22.144-05:00If you're in the mood for a little driving..<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SaK8QGHArMI/AAAAAAAAAB0/Awmu-X8zWjE/s1600-h/szbjtall.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306010295699811522" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SaK8QGHArMI/AAAAAAAAAB0/Awmu-X8zWjE/s320/szbjtall.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This past Saturday, I went to Indianapolis. It was a very spontaneous idea. While working on Saturday, one of my co-workers, Jeff, and I decided to try and convince our new boss to let us leave work early and go to Indianapolis to pick up another co-worker and bring him back to town so that he could work on Sunday. We honestly did not think that our plan would work. (I work at the mall, and we get pretty busy on Saturdays. I was scheduled to work from 1 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., so asking to leave at 5:30 was a little excessive.) None the less, we were <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">surprised</span> when our boss, Danny, said that we could both go.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>We decided to take my car, which in all honest wasn't the smartest idea in the world. You see, it had just snowed that morning, and it was supposed to continue snowing late. I drive a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Firebird</span>, and it has absolutely no traction when there is anything on the ground expect the road. However, with me driving like a normal person, we got to Indianapolis just fine.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>We picked up our co-worker from his brother's, and started to head back to Lafayette. We didn't get very far, because we passed Circle Center Mall. We made a spur of the moment decision and decided to go and visit our old boss from work, Jason. I'm not very experienced with driving in "big" cities, so this adventure wasn't very easy for me. At one point, I was taking up three lanes of traffic because it was so confusing to me. We find a parking garage, and have to park on the fifth floor. We finally reach the inside of the mall, and go and see Jason. It was around 7 p.m., and he asked us to stay until 10 p.m., which was when he got off work. We decided to, and went to walk around the mall. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>We went shopping, and witnessed a petty crime. (A young girl decided to steal a woman's shoe from her as she was sitting on a bench and ran away with it.) Soon after this, we met Jason soon after, and decided to go get something to eat. We took his car, and we drove to Greenwood, Indiana. It isn't too far from Indianapolis. We stopped first at Ruby Tuesday's, but found out that it closed at 11 p.m., which was in a half hour. We then drove to the mall in Greenwood, where we decided to eat at a place called <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">BJ's</span>.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>None of had ever been there before, but Jason had heard good things about it. Also, it was open late. We went inside, and were seated almost immediately. After looking over their extensive menu, we ordered an appetizer to start with, as well as our drinks. The appetizer consisted of some amazing spinach-artichoke dip and chips, and also some avocado wraps and southwestern egg rolls. I wasn't a real fan of the avocado wraps, but they eggs rolls were <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">surprisingly</span> good. I got strawberry lemonade to drink, and it was very fruity. I had almost four glasses, if that tells you how good it was.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>For dinner, I ordered <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Broccoli</span> Chicken Pasta, and the other guests ordered a pizza called "Sweet Pig." The pizza had ham and pineapple on it. When the food arrived, they set my plate <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">in front</span> of me, but the waitress served the pizza to them. It was very nice. My food tasted pretty good, but it was nothing out of the ordinary. However, the pizza was out of this world. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div>After finishing up, we decided that it was too late to do anything else. We went back to the parking garage, where everyone except Jason got into my car. We left the parking garage, and drove home. We made it home safely, even though it snowed pretty bad the last twenty minutes of the drive.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>If you are ever near Greenwood, Indiana, I strongly suggest this restaurant for a meal at anytime of the day. It had a very enjoyable atmosphere, a good waiting staff, and pretty wonderful food. And if you're old enough, they even brew their own beer.</div><br /><div></div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-38706032232621665162009-02-13T10:37:00.004-05:002009-02-13T10:52:28.698-05:00Pizza....fruit style.<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SZWWLG0M9kI/AAAAAAAAABk/rTCwvkrz6OM/s1600-h/fruit+pizza.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5302309253850920514" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 258px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SZWWLG0M9kI/AAAAAAAAABk/rTCwvkrz6OM/s320/fruit+pizza.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Tonight is Friday night. While a lot of you might be going home for the weekend, partying, or doing something with your girlfriend/boyfriend, I am not. Tonight my sister is having a game night at her apartment. (So, you're probably thinking that I'm a loser. But hey, whatever.) First off, this game night is going to be a little bit different than her usual game nights. The usual game nights consist of usually four or five people sitting around her table playing a game or two. We all have fun, until I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">inevitably</span> spill my drink all over her new <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">place mats</span> or table cloth, and the night is ruined. </div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div><br /><div>Tonight is going to be a little bit different. She has decided to step up game night a little bit, and has invited an enormous amount of people over; probably more than will be able to fit into her apartment. So, when she asked me to come, I of course said yes. She then asked me if I would make some sort of food for this <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">extravagant</span> event. Again, I said yes. (Apparently food is the price of admission for game night tonight.) So, I was sitting in class yesterday trying to figure out what to make. I couldn't decide, so I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">texted</span> my sister and she recommended that I make <a href="http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Fruit-Pizza-II/Detail.aspx?prop31=1">fruit pizza</a>.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>The last time that I made fruit pizza was in 6<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">th</span> grade home economics class. It was the only time that I had ever made it, so I wasn't real confident in this choice. However, I set out this morning after my only class to make it. I went to the local Kroger and bought the ingredients, and went home. It calls for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">premade</span> sugar cookie dough, and you're supposed to press it into a pizza pan or something like that. I don't have a pizza pan. So I improvised and I just rolled the dough out into a circle. It didn't look very big when I put it on the cookie sheet, so I decided to add a little more dough. If you've read any of my previous posts, you know that I have a knack for not following directions. </div><div> </div><div>After it is done baking, I take it out of the over. It didn't turn out very small. In fact, it turned out quite large. Well, I guess that means more fruit pizza for everyone, right? I finish making the pizza, and everything else goes smoothly. As I type this, it's in my refrigerator.There's nothing else I can do for it except keep it in the refrigerator until game night, I suppose. So, I hope all of you have fun on your weekend escapades, and hopefully someday you'll give this type of pizza a try.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-44597909587725519832009-02-10T13:34:00.005-05:002009-02-10T14:10:25.286-05:00Since it's such a nice day out..<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SZHQneUVgBI/AAAAAAAAABc/zJap7xL2fT8/s1600-h/03PB300540large.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301247612963618834" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 218px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SZHQneUVgBI/AAAAAAAAABc/zJap7xL2fT8/s320/03PB300540large.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>This past weekend I was sick. We're not talking just the sniffles here, I mean really sick. Which means that I didn't get to make anything or try anything really cool this weekend. You can interpret that as either a good thing or a bad thing, it doesn't matter to me. So instead of telling you a story about what happened to me over the weekend in my cooking escapades, I'm just going to tell you about one of my favorite <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">restaurants</span> in Lafayette, <a href="http://www.mccordcandies.com/sshop/"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">McCord's</span> Candies</a>.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>The name can be a little bit deceiving. Yes, they make candies. However, they make other food, too. This place is in downtown Lafayette, again. (To be honest with you, I hadn't been to campus that much before last semester. I tended to stick to my own side of town rather than venturing over into the unknown.) However, it is really not that far from campus. If you're in the mood for a little <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">exercise</span>, this place is easily <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">accessible</span>. It's just a little bit aways beyond the walking bridge. Sort of, if you know your way downtown. In the best interest of keeping this a good idea in your head, downtown Lafayette isn't all that big. So if you're afraid that you're going to be wandering around aimlessly for hours, don't be.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">McCord's</span>, as I call it, decor is straight out of the past. It seriously has Coca Cola wallpaper on the walls. You can eat either upstairs or downstairs, whichever you prefer. I prefer the upstairs, because if you sit near the edge of the balcony, you can watch those that are downstairs. I've been eating here since forever. It was one of my favorite places to eat as a kid, and it still is.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Now, about the food. They don't have anything <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">extravagant</span> like apricot chicken or anything. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">McCord's</span> sells sandwiches, soups, salads, etc. I suggest the ham salad sandwich, or if you're feeling really <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">adventurous</span>, try the sandwich named the Bohemian. It's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">apparently</span> ham salad and peanut butter. Don't ask me if it's good or not though, I've never tried it. I suppose that once I get there, I like to stick to what I usually get. Or maybe, I've just never felt THAT adventurous.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>This place is pretty cheap, and they have really yummy desserts, too. They sell shakes and sundaes for dessert. I recommend the banana shake (made with real bananas, not the flavoring) or a tin roof sundae for dessert. However, they have many other choices that appeal to the taste buds, too. </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>You're probably wondering where the "candy" part comes in, right? Well, like I said, they do make their own candies. When you walk in, you have to walk through a small aisle to get to the seating areas. On one side of the aisle is where they make the food, on the other side is an endless array of chocolates, rock candy, and other sorts of deliciousness. Now, the candy is kind of expensive if you buy a lot of it. But let me tell you, it is definitely worth it. When I was little, my mom used to let me pick out two pieces of candy after lunch to take home. (Don't let me lie to you, she still buys me some candy before we leave. =) ) It was the highlight of the whole trip.</div><br /><br /><div>So, as I usually so before I end my blog, I'm going to suggest that you go here. Since it's really nice out, and it's supposed to be rainy and colder all week, I strongly suggest that you take a nice walk and go get yourself some candy.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Hours: </div><br /><br /><div>Monday-Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.</div><br /><br /><div>Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.</div><br /><br /><div>Sunday closed</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Address: 536 Main Street</div><br /><br /><div>Lafayette, In 47901 **</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>** Just <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">in case</span> you don't feel like wandering around downtown, you can <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">map quest</span> it. </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-65727553407050263312009-02-05T21:35:00.006-05:002009-02-06T11:57:45.460-05:00Brrrrrrrrrr.<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYukgMaS9UI/AAAAAAAAABE/jfZg74lui8M/s1600-h/soup.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299510259525809474" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 300px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 234px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYukgMaS9UI/AAAAAAAAABE/jfZg74lui8M/s320/soup.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>It's been cold this week. I'm talking zero degree weather here. (Don't worry, there's luck in the near future. It's supposed to be 53 degrees on Saturday!) In general, what food do many people think of when it's cold out? Well, if you're anything like half of America, then you must be thinking about soup. I was. Which is why I decided to make a nice bowl of soup the other day.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Well, it was a more of an "on a whim" decision. I was surfing the net, and I came along a picture of this really <a href="http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=287237.0">good looking soup</a>. In all actuality, looking back, I think it looked appealing because I was hungry. I'm not usually a soup person. (Don't get me wrong, I like to enjoy a bowl of tomato soup and grilled cheese every now and then.) It just doesn't really appeal to me that much. I think it might be the liquidity of it all. Anyways, after contemplating on whether or not I should make the soup all during my ENTM 318 class, I decided to go for it.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>On the way home from class, I stopped by the store and picked up the ingredients for the soup that I didn't already have. (I substituted broccoli for the celery, though. I absolutely hate celery. I think it tastes gross.) So, I go to my apartment, and start cooking the chicken. I am one of those people that always things that the meat that she is eating isn't cooked. Yeah, it's a little weird, but it's just one of those things. So I have to cook my meat for at least ten or fifteen minutes longer than I'm supposed to.</div><div> </div><div>While that was cooking, I put most of the other ingredients into a different pot, and started to cook them. Once they were boiling, I put the FULLY cooked chicken in the pot with everything else. So, I'm waiting, and the mixture wasn't getting very soup like. It was still pretty liquidy. So, I decided to add some flour to thicken it up. I add some, wait a few minutes, and stir the mix again. I believe that I was right in putting the flour in. I turn of the heat, and let it set for a few minutes. I come back to the kitchen to get myself a bowl, and the mixture isn't very soup like anymore. It's almost like a casserole. Apparently I had added too much flour.</div><div> </div><div>Ok, so too much flour is something that I can deal with. So, I take my first bite, and this soup concoction that I made is....absolutely disgusting. It doesn't even taste a little bit good. So, there went my dinner and some of my money down the drain. It's ok. I'll get over it. No big deal. However, I think that I have a problem with following directions. So, my advice for the future is: definitely to follow directions; and the pictures most likely always look better than in reality.</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-13546966758126569312009-02-04T18:35:00.005-05:002009-02-06T12:08:55.294-05:00Cookies R' Us<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYxtTjnBtkI/AAAAAAAAABM/axG5UDv3NpM/s1600-h/070201cookies1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5299731044252104258" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 250px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 251px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYxtTjnBtkI/AAAAAAAAABM/axG5UDv3NpM/s320/070201cookies1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>So, I am going to go out on a limb here, and assume that most of you are not originally from the Lafayette/West Lafayette area. I however, was unfortunate enough to grow up here in Lafayette. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't that bad; but by the end of your college years, I am sure that you will undoubtedly want to get out of here. So, if you add seventeen years on to living here, you'd get what I'm saying. </div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><div>Lafayette isn't really that great. It's not small enough to be horribly boring, but not big enough to always have something to do that you didn't do just yesterday. It's just in between. Nothing out of the ordinary, although downtown Lafayette is a little cutesy, if I do say so myself. (It has all those like whole in the wall shops, as well as the farmer's market.)</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Since I've lived here for just about forever and a half, I've been to almost every place you could think of. So, in this blog entry, I'm going to introduce you to one of the most amazing bakeries on the planet. No joke. Right now, I bet you're a little skeptical. However, if you decide to go and try something from there <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">someday</span>, I strongly believe that you will agree with me.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>This place that I have been speaking about is called <a href="http://www.topix.com/yp/lafayette-in/602059990f-orears-pastry-shop">O' Rears</a>. Don't ask me where they got the name, either. But now, since I'm wondering about that, I might have to ask the next time I am in there. Anyways, back to the real topic at hand, O' Rears. This bakery is located on 9<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">th</span> Street, downtown. (For all of you that have no idea where that is, if you click on the link above, there is a map and the address.) </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>When I was in middle school, I played volleyball. (Yes, this is sort of relevant to the overall idea of this entry.) We would have volleyball tournaments late in the season on Saturdays. The tournaments were usually located in downtown Lafayette. My mother would usually buy us cookies from <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">O'Rears</span> after the games. They were beyond amazing. Everyone enjoyed them on the team, and the parents did, too, as well. My mom first introduced me to this establishment, and after all these years, I still like to go there whether it is by myself of with my family. They still have the best cookies, and I have broadened my horizons and tried other things as well. (All are equally as good.)<br /><br /></div><div></div><br /><br /><div>To me, there is no <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">equivalent</span> to most of the items they sell there. They sell a variety of sweets. If you're a cake person, they have scrumptious cake. If you like brownies, they have several different flavors. ( I like the ones with the chocolate frosting on top the best.) They also sell cookies, doughnuts, muffins, and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">petit</span> fours. You will not be disappointed in anything that you purchase from there. It's not too expensive, and if you ever have a craving for sweets, I highly <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">recommend</span> that you stop by and get yourself a cookie.</div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-58554634241386294192009-01-29T09:54:00.010-05:002009-01-29T16:36:22.549-05:00And what, may I ask, are we supposed to do with all this snow?<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYIgjh8MLKI/AAAAAAAAAAg/Eh2ikK6rBYo/s1600-h/002.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296831906519461026" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYIgjh8MLKI/AAAAAAAAAAg/Eh2ikK6rBYo/s320/002.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div>So, I'm sure that when we all woke up on Wednesday morning and looked out our windows, we had a variety of thoughts. Some of us might of been thinking "Uggh, snow. I hate snow." or "I really don't want to walk to class in this mess."; while others of us might have been thinking "Great, snow. I love snow. Woohoo." or "I hope Purdue cancels classes and we get a snow day!" (Yeah right, Purdue cancel classes? That's a joke.) I personally was thinking about how I was going to get my car out of the parking lot in able to get to school on time. (Let's just say it didn't end up happening. It took me, and two random guys that live in the apartment complex adjacent to me, almost an hour and a half to get my car to a plowed road.) Since I didn't have another class until 3:30, I decided to visit my sister who lives a couple buildings over from me. (They had plowed her parking lot, how unfair, right?) </div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>So, my sister is that type of person who just loves the snow, or just seems to this year. My sister is a senior here at Purdue, in her last semester. She is student teaching at Rossville this year. For those of you not around here, Rossville is a really small town basically in the middle of nowhere, or so it seems. When it snows, it's always inevitable that she will get a two hour delay or Rossville will get cancelled; which is why I think she likes the snow so much right now. Anyways, when I get to my sister's, she's pretty excited. Of course it has something to do about snow. By now, I'm pretty sure that you're thinking "Isn't her blog supposed to be about food?" Well, I'm about to get to that part. My sister is so excited about the snow because she wants to make <a href="http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Snow-Ice-Cream-II/Detail.aspx">snow ice cream</a>. Yeah, that's right. Snow ice cream.</div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>If we hadn't done this once before, I would have thought that she was crazy. But trust me, snow ice cream is pretty good. So, we get a really big bowl (and I mean really big) and head outside. If you ever decide to make this, make sure you go to a place where there is clean snow. You don't want any nasty things getting into your ice cream. It is best to make this right after the snow falls, not three or four days later. Anyways, back to the story. We go back inside, and my sister decides that she wants to make chocolate snow ice cream. The last time we made it, we followed the recipe, which was for vanilla. For chocolate, the recipe said to add chocolate milk instead of white milk. Neither of us had any chocolate milk, so my sister decided that it was a smart idea to melt chocolate chips to mix into the snow. If either of us had thought about this before we did it, we would have known that this wouldn't work. I mean seriously, putting melted chocolate into FREEZING cold snow? Needless to say, when we poured the chocolate in the bowl, it immediately froze back into chocolate. Now that we felt a little dumb, we plucked the frozen mass of chocolate out and threw it away.</div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><div>We then rummaged around in her pantry, and came up with the next best solution, hot chocolate mix. After mixing it into the snow mixture, we tasted it. It wasn't really chocolately, but it would do the trick. So, in all reality, snow ice cream is good. That is, if you follow the recipe and don't try anything crazy. So go do something fun, and make yourself some snow ice cream with all this snow that we have.</div><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><div></div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4753971356511360986.post-4966788296583834842009-01-28T18:17:00.003-05:002009-01-28T18:37:51.428-05:00Food. Comida. Whatever you want to call it.<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYDo0W80OJI/AAAAAAAAAAY/_yXupWERKDg/s1600-h/cupcake.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296489147999205522" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 298px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_B1pa63OktMo/SYDo0W80OJI/AAAAAAAAAAY/_yXupWERKDg/s320/cupcake.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Food. We all eat it. Some of us enjoy it more than others, and no one enjoys the same exact foods as the last person. Growing up, food was a big part of my family. We made food for everything, whether it be for a church dinner, or just for an after school snack. </div><div> </div><div>I learned a lot of what I know about cooking from my grandmother. (Let's just say the cooking gene must have skipped a generation, meaning that my mom most certainly didn't receive it.) The rest I learned by trial and error growing up. This is how I learned to love food. Trying new foods is sort of a passion for me, in a sense. </div><div> </div><div>I'm not going to lie, I don't like a lot of things that I try. As much as I love food, there are just some food items that I absolutely hate. But hey, the same goes for everyone, right? However, if you never try anything new, then you're probably missing out on something amazing. (In my opinion, anyways. It's something my mother always told me.)</div><div> </div><div><a href="http://www.cupcakes.com/">Cupcakes</a> are beyond my favorite thing to make, just because they're just so darn cute. (Don't lie, I know you think so, too.) So be forewarned, I'll probably either write about them a lot, or have a lot of pictures of them. So. Enjoy. =)</div>kahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07274273303961170755noreply@blogger.com3