To channel some Aaron Lewis of Staind, It's been awhile...
Not for lack of food consumption and even food awesomeness...more of a total lack of not really wanting to write anymore. Writing for school is different, but still something that I was doing. I have now taken the summer off and now I feel like I can get back to me a little it. Not completely, but a little. With that is the fact that I truly don't necessarily enjoy food as much anymore. I enjoy it, I guess, but I do not enjoy it the way that I was PASSIONATE about it. Every once in a while, I get a zap of passion, and I make something amazing, but for the most part, I am just making food to make food.
I am really hoping to rekindle some of my fire. At 30, I'm starting to just feel like I run the rat (race) every day and there is little to nothing exciting going on.
I will say that I keep up with Hell's Kitchen and MasterChef, and as I said to Billy earlier, I wish that I had the talent to be on one of those shows....I'm even starting to question whether I belong even considering the 50 year, own a restaurant plan.
C'est la vie. We will see. What will be will be.
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Breakfast....
About 2-3 times a month, I eat breakfast with my best friend at Harvest Bakery in Simsbury. Generally, it is an opportunity for us to talk, vent, and eat. I tend to have some kind of benedict usually, because I am a sucker for Hollandaise, and she generally waffles between the Fosters Scramble and Nana's Fritatta. There are also generally sweets purchased after for the rest of the day. You can see their menu here... http://www.harvestcafebakery.com/
Anyway, like I said, I generally migrate to a benedict.
Last week, we bought deli ham at Luizzis (home made), which you can read about in a prior entry on this blog. Anyway, Billy mentioned that he wanted some kind of benedict. A quick perusal of the fridge realized that Allie ate all the ham. So, I offered up an irish benedict, a la Harvest Bakery.
So I toasted some english muffins (yes, Daly, I burned the edges of yours. Its hard with English Muffs...they get crispy easily.)and put some corned beef hash on them. Then, I put on fried eggs, and slathered with hollandaise. Yum. It was absolutely delicious. Although, I wonder if it is just that ANYTHING smothered in hollandaise is really good.....
In other news, I got my juicer. Fresh squeezed orange juice comign right up....Although, I think that I still need to get the kitchenaid attachment, because the juicer is kind of a pain to clean.
Anyway, like I said, I generally migrate to a benedict.
Last week, we bought deli ham at Luizzis (home made), which you can read about in a prior entry on this blog. Anyway, Billy mentioned that he wanted some kind of benedict. A quick perusal of the fridge realized that Allie ate all the ham. So, I offered up an irish benedict, a la Harvest Bakery.
So I toasted some english muffins (yes, Daly, I burned the edges of yours. Its hard with English Muffs...they get crispy easily.)and put some corned beef hash on them. Then, I put on fried eggs, and slathered with hollandaise. Yum. It was absolutely delicious. Although, I wonder if it is just that ANYTHING smothered in hollandaise is really good.....
In other news, I got my juicer. Fresh squeezed orange juice comign right up....Although, I think that I still need to get the kitchenaid attachment, because the juicer is kind of a pain to clean.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Its Been A While....
So its been a while since I have actually blogged on here. Not that I haven't cooked much, because I have, but I've been lacking my creative ingenuity. (hmm. I'm thinking I spelled that wrong). I've had some good meals out, but nothing to spectacularly write home about...I went to Houston and had my first Po'boy (fried crawfish...yummy). But, again, nothing mind blowing.
So, instead, I'm going to write about grocery shopping in Houston.
First of all..stores there are BIGGER than stores here. Or at least the ones that I found my way into. Well, one chain, but two different locales, on account of me getting lost on my last day there to find the second one. They are called HEB. Holy deliciousness.
First experience in was on a Sunday. They had samples. Like Costco samples. That is awesome. I love samples, especially when there is variety in samples. This store had WINE samples. COPIOUS quantity of wine samples. I had pinot grigio (eh, ok), a delicious red (can't remember the name), a moscato that blew my mind, and a sangria that was unreal.
Let me tell you about the moscato. It had a pretty label with butterflies. It was positively earth shattering, and I went back the day I left (hence getting lost), to buy two bottles...one for my aunt and one for me. I also bought 2 gallon zip lock bags to attempt to stow said bottles in my checked bag for my flight home, and hope that they didnt shatter all over my stuff. Anyway, I digress. Two bottles. They are delicious, and I might have a glass later. I'm sort of afraid to, because they were so reasonably priced ($10/bottle) that I dont want to have to try to hunt the wine down here, and pay 3x that figure. LOL.
Secondly...I bought blood orange soda and this il Dolce sparkling white wine. This was used in the sangria with strawberries (strawberries purchased yesterday here at Big Y). Again, deliciousness, and all because HEB had samples. *sigh*. Very exciting. Those two bottles were also put in ziplocks and stowed in my checked bag for my flight home.
I will admit, I was terrified to be putting carbonated things in my bag, and worse, liquids in glass bottles. all I could think about was the way they throw those bags and my stuff getting broken. Thankfully, I can say that despite rough treatment, all of my bottles escaped unscathed and unharmed. All things are now in my fridge.
No, I am not a lush, and I didnt just buy alcohol.
I also bought this sauce, called by HEB, "That Green Sauce". Apparently, its made with poblano and jalapeno peppers. Its delicious. That was also a sample, as dip with sour cream, at the store. Bought that and brought it home, also safely packed in a ziplock. I poured some of that on a pork chop the other night and baked it for an hour, and it was very good, although super spicy. Apparently, the sauce really needs the sour cream to cut the spiciness. it was almost too spicy for Daly too.
The piece da resistance that I located in Houston, although, not only available in Houston is fresh squeezed OJ. Again, a sample, I have fallen in love. Never again will I be able to suck it up with bottled garbage. It is sweet and not tart and just overall delicious. Better for you too than the bottled crap. At this grocery store, they sell it. Bottled. As you stand there and they squeeze it. Yes, its expensive ($5.50 a gallon), but SO WORTH IT. This stuff did not come home with me, although I did indulge in a pint before I went through airport security. However, I purchased oranges when I came home and am on the hunt for a juicer.
So, the question of the day is.....do I buy a stand alone juicer (which is another kitchen appliance I will have to house) or do I buy the Kitchenaid Stand Mixer attachment (which is obviously much smaller). Price is comparable.....
So, instead, I'm going to write about grocery shopping in Houston.
First of all..stores there are BIGGER than stores here. Or at least the ones that I found my way into. Well, one chain, but two different locales, on account of me getting lost on my last day there to find the second one. They are called HEB. Holy deliciousness.
First experience in was on a Sunday. They had samples. Like Costco samples. That is awesome. I love samples, especially when there is variety in samples. This store had WINE samples. COPIOUS quantity of wine samples. I had pinot grigio (eh, ok), a delicious red (can't remember the name), a moscato that blew my mind, and a sangria that was unreal.
Let me tell you about the moscato. It had a pretty label with butterflies. It was positively earth shattering, and I went back the day I left (hence getting lost), to buy two bottles...one for my aunt and one for me. I also bought 2 gallon zip lock bags to attempt to stow said bottles in my checked bag for my flight home, and hope that they didnt shatter all over my stuff. Anyway, I digress. Two bottles. They are delicious, and I might have a glass later. I'm sort of afraid to, because they were so reasonably priced ($10/bottle) that I dont want to have to try to hunt the wine down here, and pay 3x that figure. LOL.
Secondly...I bought blood orange soda and this il Dolce sparkling white wine. This was used in the sangria with strawberries (strawberries purchased yesterday here at Big Y). Again, deliciousness, and all because HEB had samples. *sigh*. Very exciting. Those two bottles were also put in ziplocks and stowed in my checked bag for my flight home.
I will admit, I was terrified to be putting carbonated things in my bag, and worse, liquids in glass bottles. all I could think about was the way they throw those bags and my stuff getting broken. Thankfully, I can say that despite rough treatment, all of my bottles escaped unscathed and unharmed. All things are now in my fridge.
No, I am not a lush, and I didnt just buy alcohol.
I also bought this sauce, called by HEB, "That Green Sauce". Apparently, its made with poblano and jalapeno peppers. Its delicious. That was also a sample, as dip with sour cream, at the store. Bought that and brought it home, also safely packed in a ziplock. I poured some of that on a pork chop the other night and baked it for an hour, and it was very good, although super spicy. Apparently, the sauce really needs the sour cream to cut the spiciness. it was almost too spicy for Daly too.
The piece da resistance that I located in Houston, although, not only available in Houston is fresh squeezed OJ. Again, a sample, I have fallen in love. Never again will I be able to suck it up with bottled garbage. It is sweet and not tart and just overall delicious. Better for you too than the bottled crap. At this grocery store, they sell it. Bottled. As you stand there and they squeeze it. Yes, its expensive ($5.50 a gallon), but SO WORTH IT. This stuff did not come home with me, although I did indulge in a pint before I went through airport security. However, I purchased oranges when I came home and am on the hunt for a juicer.
So, the question of the day is.....do I buy a stand alone juicer (which is another kitchen appliance I will have to house) or do I buy the Kitchenaid Stand Mixer attachment (which is obviously much smaller). Price is comparable.....
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Another seafood post.....
In line with my last post, I figured that I would post another one.
Did I mention that I love fried seafood? Well, if I didn't, allow me to mention it now. I LOVE (note the capitals) fried seafood. Now, living on the CT shoreline, that gives me a lot of options as far as places to go, but we do have a favorite. We started with a place in North Branford, called Supreme Seafood. Good stuff, however, they only take cash (which I rarely carry). http://www.supremeseafood.net/index.html
So, we located a place here in Branford that is amazing. Its called TNT Seafood, and is attached to a Ritas italian ice. Scrum diddly. They also use a little different batter at TNT that uses cornmeal.Its absolutely delicious. Reasonable as well. We also get an italian ice for dessert. I've never eaten in, but have generally taken it home, and its really good. The only downfall of them is that they are only open until 8pm generally, which is fustrating.
So, they have an extensive menu, but we stick with what we know. Allie really loves their burgers, and we generally get the double combo plate with whole bellied clams. Then we get the shrimp and scallop combo. Extra tartar sauce, and more onion rings then fries. The onion rings are delicious.
So the other night, I decided that we were going to have seafood, because I haven't had any in a while. So, I hopped down and went to order the usual. Well, as I was spitting out my usual, they informed me that they had no whole bellied clams. WHAT? REALLY? that almost put a kibosh on the whole order.
Anyway, I had clam strips. EW. Never again. There is a huge difference, and I personally prefer the whole bellies. WOW. Never realized that strips were quite so obnoxious.
Anyway. I got italian ice to go, came home, chowed down, and made the decision that I will go to visit on Thursdays, when I can guarantee whole bellied clams.
Do you prefer strips or whole bellies?
Did I mention that I love fried seafood? Well, if I didn't, allow me to mention it now. I LOVE (note the capitals) fried seafood. Now, living on the CT shoreline, that gives me a lot of options as far as places to go, but we do have a favorite. We started with a place in North Branford, called Supreme Seafood. Good stuff, however, they only take cash (which I rarely carry). http://www.supremeseafood.net/index.html
So, we located a place here in Branford that is amazing. Its called TNT Seafood, and is attached to a Ritas italian ice. Scrum diddly. They also use a little different batter at TNT that uses cornmeal.Its absolutely delicious. Reasonable as well. We also get an italian ice for dessert. I've never eaten in, but have generally taken it home, and its really good. The only downfall of them is that they are only open until 8pm generally, which is fustrating.
So, they have an extensive menu, but we stick with what we know. Allie really loves their burgers, and we generally get the double combo plate with whole bellied clams. Then we get the shrimp and scallop combo. Extra tartar sauce, and more onion rings then fries. The onion rings are delicious.
So the other night, I decided that we were going to have seafood, because I haven't had any in a while. So, I hopped down and went to order the usual. Well, as I was spitting out my usual, they informed me that they had no whole bellied clams. WHAT? REALLY? that almost put a kibosh on the whole order.
Anyway, I had clam strips. EW. Never again. There is a huge difference, and I personally prefer the whole bellies. WOW. Never realized that strips were quite so obnoxious.
Anyway. I got italian ice to go, came home, chowed down, and made the decision that I will go to visit on Thursdays, when I can guarantee whole bellied clams.
Do you prefer strips or whole bellies?
Monday, November 14, 2011
Lobster
There are few things in the world that I love quite as much as seafood....and lobster more than anything. Anyway, I wanted to go to the store to obtain soda. I dont drink a lot of it, as its not really good for you, but Billy loves soda, and I really had a craving this week for it. SO. I was looking to see the best deal for soda, and came across the best deal at Big Y.
Also, at the same time, I noticed that they had lobster for $4.95 a pound. They also had crab meat, fresh, for $6.99 a pound. Billy and I decided that lobster was what was for dinner. :-) We went to Big Y and bought not only lobster and crab, but soda and milk, and something else that I don't remember at the moment. Large score....one of my favorite sodas is Cherry 7-up. It was on sale. YAY!
Now, I have eaten lobster my entire life. However, i have never cooked one. I'm honestly afraid to...i feel badly. But, before you ask how I can eat a steak without feeling bad, but feel guilty about a spineless crustaecen, its easy....i'm not the one killing the steak. I dont think about it. However, I was goign to put the lobster in water. Thankfully, I didn't have to, because I was watching the Giants game, and Billy did the murdering for me. I made the accompaniments, including the butter, brussell sprouts, and rice. I laid out the plates. Billy put them in the water.
I have also only had steamed lobster once. I remember why. I cracked it open, and splattered greed GOOK (ewwwwww) all over my clothes. Its disgusting, and slimy, and reminds me why I generally eat baked stuffed lobster. Thats next. I'll try that next time. No green crap spewing all over me and my clothes. I suddenly flashed back to eating at Red Lobster in Portsmouth, NH with my parents about 12 years ago, where a similar thing happened, and I ruined my jacket. Nope. No more steamed lobster for this chick.
Anyway, it was fabulous, and we both sucked down claws and tails. Yummo. Absolutely fabulous. I will never pay 17.00 per plate out again for lobster. No thank you. Our whole meal, including sides, butter, lobster, and drinks was probably 15.00. The lobsters were 11.00, and each of our lobsters was about 1.25 lbs. Just enough. Would be better with stuffing. I'll save even more. Stuffing is cheap. :-)
Anyway, lobster. Thats what was for dinner. I was sad when there was no more left...maybe for my birthday we'll buy more. :-D
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
A little bit of everything.
I was watching QVC the other day (its my guilty pleasure with a cup of coffee on the weekends) and was watching the Kitchenaid special. They had mixers and food processors on. OH MY GOD. I need one of both. in Red. Santa, please?!
I went to the cheese place last Friday, since I had time. I picked up some fresh mozzerella...I'm guilty. I eat it like candy, and the guy who packaged it for me winked knowingly, and said he did the same. What I also got, in addition to fresh gnocchi, which I love, was cheese called LaTur. It is amazing! Billy wasnt thrilled, because it is extremely pungent, and definetly different, and somewhat expensive (18.00 a lb, which I only bought 1/2 lb. It lasts, I swear, and its phenomenal). I am not generally one to spend money on stuff like that...I would rather spend it on fish or steak, but this stuff is unbelievable. check out a blog I follow, the Reluctant Gourmet, for his take on it. Its 3 different types of milk put together, and is the consistency of brie, sort of, only a little softer. I can imagine this baked in phyllo dough. OOH. I'll have to try that.
http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/blog/all-about-cheese/la-tur-cheese/
Mexican food. So on Sunday, we were out and about, and went to costco in Milford. While we were down there, we decided to eat at a new mexican restaurant (at least new in orange) called Puerto Vallarta. I have eaten at one before in Southington, and was not super impressed, so I was hoping for a good experience. Boy did I get one. I stuck with something I know, and know well....fajitas. I got the lunch portion, and honestly, did not need any more. What also made me very happy was they offered the lunch menu on the weekends, which many restaurants do not do. They bring warm chips to the table throughout your meal with fresh salsa, and the fajitas are absolutely amazing. Sizzing flank steak with warm corn tortillas, homemade guacamole, rice and beans, peppers and onions. I was in total heaven, and I ate everything. Billy had some Mole thingy which he said was very good, and Allie had the burger said that it was one of the best she ever had. So, after I finished eating my sizzling plate (way better than
chilis, and i LOVE chilis) I decided that I wanted to try some kind of dessert.
Does anyone remember Chilis back in the day with the cinnamon tortilla bowl with ice cream? Well, Puerto Vallarta has it. However, it was cold, and I wasnt into something like ice cream. So, I got Sopapillas, which are fresh fried, honey and cinnamon tortillas with whipped cream and a cherry. Oh my god. They are amazing and different, and totally wonderful. And, they are incredibly reasonable price wise. ($3). It was a wonderful experience, and we will definetly be back. For all our chow, which left us all stuffed and unable to eat dinner 3 hours later, I think with tip, it was $50. Thats pretty good for 3 people, with dessert. I definetly recommend it, and they have locations in Newington, Southington, and Orange (maybe a few more, but those are the ones i'm familiar with).
http://www.puertovallartausa.com/default.asp
Anyway....more later!
I went to the cheese place last Friday, since I had time. I picked up some fresh mozzerella...I'm guilty. I eat it like candy, and the guy who packaged it for me winked knowingly, and said he did the same. What I also got, in addition to fresh gnocchi, which I love, was cheese called LaTur. It is amazing! Billy wasnt thrilled, because it is extremely pungent, and definetly different, and somewhat expensive (18.00 a lb, which I only bought 1/2 lb. It lasts, I swear, and its phenomenal). I am not generally one to spend money on stuff like that...I would rather spend it on fish or steak, but this stuff is unbelievable. check out a blog I follow, the Reluctant Gourmet, for his take on it. Its 3 different types of milk put together, and is the consistency of brie, sort of, only a little softer. I can imagine this baked in phyllo dough. OOH. I'll have to try that.
http://www.reluctantgourmet.com/blog/all-about-cheese/la-tur-cheese/
Mexican food. So on Sunday, we were out and about, and went to costco in Milford. While we were down there, we decided to eat at a new mexican restaurant (at least new in orange) called Puerto Vallarta. I have eaten at one before in Southington, and was not super impressed, so I was hoping for a good experience. Boy did I get one. I stuck with something I know, and know well....fajitas. I got the lunch portion, and honestly, did not need any more. What also made me very happy was they offered the lunch menu on the weekends, which many restaurants do not do. They bring warm chips to the table throughout your meal with fresh salsa, and the fajitas are absolutely amazing. Sizzing flank steak with warm corn tortillas, homemade guacamole, rice and beans, peppers and onions. I was in total heaven, and I ate everything. Billy had some Mole thingy which he said was very good, and Allie had the burger said that it was one of the best she ever had. So, after I finished eating my sizzling plate (way better than
chilis, and i LOVE chilis) I decided that I wanted to try some kind of dessert.
Does anyone remember Chilis back in the day with the cinnamon tortilla bowl with ice cream? Well, Puerto Vallarta has it. However, it was cold, and I wasnt into something like ice cream. So, I got Sopapillas, which are fresh fried, honey and cinnamon tortillas with whipped cream and a cherry. Oh my god. They are amazing and different, and totally wonderful. And, they are incredibly reasonable price wise. ($3). It was a wonderful experience, and we will definetly be back. For all our chow, which left us all stuffed and unable to eat dinner 3 hours later, I think with tip, it was $50. Thats pretty good for 3 people, with dessert. I definetly recommend it, and they have locations in Newington, Southington, and Orange (maybe a few more, but those are the ones i'm familiar with).
http://www.puertovallartausa.com/default.asp
Anyway....more later!
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Fair Food
In the East (read: New England) there is a big fair type thing called the Big E. It is held in Springfield, MA, and spans about three weeks. There are vendors for crafty type things, and there are animals. There are horse shows. There is a carnival type thing. There are houses dedicated to each state in England And, there is food.
I"m a big fan of all things fairs. I like kettle corn. Allie likes the carnival type stuff. I like animals, and I like crafty type vendors. I like the Big E for the state houses. So, when my company started offering tickets at a discount ($10.00 a ticket (normal price is like 15.00 a ticket)), I ordered my tickets. We planned to go the first of October, which we did. The weather did not cooperate, and it rained (well, drizzled), but ew. But...we went anyway.
We stopped at Denny's in Rocky Hill on our way up, due to our early Saturday morning departure. We were going to do chow on the fly, but I had seen a Denny's commercial the night before, and wanted to try it. Deliciousness. And cheap. I'm all about good food for not a lot of money. They have these fried pancake bites with strawberry that are phenomenal, and I had a 4 cheese omelet with some kind of cheese sauce on top. Yes, cheesy overload, but I was being bad regardless, so who cares. Billy had chicken fried steak and eggs (I so love chicken fried steak...and he shared two little bites with me). Allie had eggies and toast...her new way of liking eggs is over easy. :-)
Anyway, we got to the Big E and got a great parking spot about a half block from the entrance. Parking alone is $10.00, which isnt horrible, considering when we left several hours later, it was $20 to park in our spot. We werent especially hungry when we got there, because we had eaten at Denny's.
We walked around, and inspected the big E house, which had a lot of interesting vendors. They had this cookware set that doesnt require water. They had a salsa mix that was darn tempting to buy....all you do is buy a can of chopped tomatoes, a jalapeno, and add this mix, and you have instant salsa. But, its expensive as heck, and we didnt want to spend $20 on it. They had showers that had blue lighting and multiple jets. Those were cool. Lots of different stuff. We went into the animal house...which had huge clydesdale horses..beautiful animals, but I want to be able to pet noses, and give carrots, and these horses were in stalls that were too small for them, and you couldn't reach. They had goats, and alpacas. They had piglets (so cute). They had the AKC, who had all kinds of dachshunds...They had US customs, who had a wicked cute beagle...
Then we went into the state houses. I was after New Hampshire, because I miss home, and I wanted maple candy, which is crappy when you buy it here. I'm such a sucker for maple candy. My mom bought me one back last time she went north, but I wanted more. I'm horrible. But, it is just SOOOOO good. so good. Expensive, but soooo good. We walked through the houses, and were really interested in a lot of stuff, including the dips in New Hampshire (4 of which came home). :-)
Anyway, by the time we did that, and a lot of walking around, I was hungry. Went into the Maine house SPECIFICALLY for a lobster roll. Now, I love lobster. LOVE IT. Lobstah, as we refer in the NE. Anyway, Deliciousness. However, the way to eat a lobster roll is to slap it on a toasted hot dog bun, and slather it in butter. yup. none of this mayo crap. But, they are expensive here (15.99 for a lobster roll on the CT shore), and I do not want to cook my own lobster. I thought...Maine. They'll make it right. SIKE. Mayo. And CELERY. EWWWWWWWWWWW. No thank you. The price was good, but not what i wanted. Needless to say, we didnt eat in a state house, although Rhode Island had some delicious looking chowder in a bread bowl (hmmm. maybe i'll have that for dinner tomorrow night)
So, we hit up one of the carnival good vendors. Specifically, the BBQ one. We liked the looks of the ginormous slabs of meat roasting earlier, and ordered a steak and cheese with roasted red peppers. WELL. it was good. not great, but good. the cheese was like melted velveeta (scrum), and the peppers were good. Allie wanted cheesy bacon fries from teh next cart over, so we got a bucket of those and shared.Those were PHENOMENAL. Crispy fries, crunchy bacon (real bacon) bits. oh my god. Deliciousness.
We were really on the hunt for fried butter (Daly wanted to try it), and fried Koolaid, but couldnt find either, and ended up buying Billy and Allie fried oreos, which they both immensely seemed to enjoy. We split a Guiness at the international tent, and I bought tons of maple candy, and tried maple cotton candy....other samplings aroudn too...but we were good once we left.
So, fair food wasnt great, the big E wasnt great....but fun was had by all. The kid slept on the way home. We got starbucks twice in one day, and we watched Transformers 3 when we got in the door. :-)
I"m a big fan of all things fairs. I like kettle corn. Allie likes the carnival type stuff. I like animals, and I like crafty type vendors. I like the Big E for the state houses. So, when my company started offering tickets at a discount ($10.00 a ticket (normal price is like 15.00 a ticket)), I ordered my tickets. We planned to go the first of October, which we did. The weather did not cooperate, and it rained (well, drizzled), but ew. But...we went anyway.
We stopped at Denny's in Rocky Hill on our way up, due to our early Saturday morning departure. We were going to do chow on the fly, but I had seen a Denny's commercial the night before, and wanted to try it. Deliciousness. And cheap. I'm all about good food for not a lot of money. They have these fried pancake bites with strawberry that are phenomenal, and I had a 4 cheese omelet with some kind of cheese sauce on top. Yes, cheesy overload, but I was being bad regardless, so who cares. Billy had chicken fried steak and eggs (I so love chicken fried steak...and he shared two little bites with me). Allie had eggies and toast...her new way of liking eggs is over easy. :-)
Anyway, we got to the Big E and got a great parking spot about a half block from the entrance. Parking alone is $10.00, which isnt horrible, considering when we left several hours later, it was $20 to park in our spot. We werent especially hungry when we got there, because we had eaten at Denny's.
We walked around, and inspected the big E house, which had a lot of interesting vendors. They had this cookware set that doesnt require water. They had a salsa mix that was darn tempting to buy....all you do is buy a can of chopped tomatoes, a jalapeno, and add this mix, and you have instant salsa. But, its expensive as heck, and we didnt want to spend $20 on it. They had showers that had blue lighting and multiple jets. Those were cool. Lots of different stuff. We went into the animal house...which had huge clydesdale horses..beautiful animals, but I want to be able to pet noses, and give carrots, and these horses were in stalls that were too small for them, and you couldn't reach. They had goats, and alpacas. They had piglets (so cute). They had the AKC, who had all kinds of dachshunds...They had US customs, who had a wicked cute beagle...
Then we went into the state houses. I was after New Hampshire, because I miss home, and I wanted maple candy, which is crappy when you buy it here. I'm such a sucker for maple candy. My mom bought me one back last time she went north, but I wanted more. I'm horrible. But, it is just SOOOOO good. so good. Expensive, but soooo good. We walked through the houses, and were really interested in a lot of stuff, including the dips in New Hampshire (4 of which came home). :-)
Anyway, by the time we did that, and a lot of walking around, I was hungry. Went into the Maine house SPECIFICALLY for a lobster roll. Now, I love lobster. LOVE IT. Lobstah, as we refer in the NE. Anyway, Deliciousness. However, the way to eat a lobster roll is to slap it on a toasted hot dog bun, and slather it in butter. yup. none of this mayo crap. But, they are expensive here (15.99 for a lobster roll on the CT shore), and I do not want to cook my own lobster. I thought...Maine. They'll make it right. SIKE. Mayo. And CELERY. EWWWWWWWWWWW. No thank you. The price was good, but not what i wanted. Needless to say, we didnt eat in a state house, although Rhode Island had some delicious looking chowder in a bread bowl (hmmm. maybe i'll have that for dinner tomorrow night)
So, we hit up one of the carnival good vendors. Specifically, the BBQ one. We liked the looks of the ginormous slabs of meat roasting earlier, and ordered a steak and cheese with roasted red peppers. WELL. it was good. not great, but good. the cheese was like melted velveeta (scrum), and the peppers were good. Allie wanted cheesy bacon fries from teh next cart over, so we got a bucket of those and shared.Those were PHENOMENAL. Crispy fries, crunchy bacon (real bacon) bits. oh my god. Deliciousness.
We were really on the hunt for fried butter (Daly wanted to try it), and fried Koolaid, but couldnt find either, and ended up buying Billy and Allie fried oreos, which they both immensely seemed to enjoy. We split a Guiness at the international tent, and I bought tons of maple candy, and tried maple cotton candy....other samplings aroudn too...but we were good once we left.
So, fair food wasnt great, the big E wasnt great....but fun was had by all. The kid slept on the way home. We got starbucks twice in one day, and we watched Transformers 3 when we got in the door. :-)
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