One day when I was in first grade, I think it was for Valentine’s Day, we spent the afternoon decorating graham crackers. I thought they were the most delicious thing I had ever tasted. In my memory, they looked just like this.
Here is Mezesmanna on Instagram also on Facebook, via This is Colossal
Did you miss it? Yesterday was Fruitcake Day.
Now I know what you are thinking, but not all fruitcakes are the same. There are some that should never see the inside of an oven.
But if you like fruit and you like cake, you can make a good one. Just don’t put in any yucky stuff (citron).
This is a recipe for Stained Glass Fruitcake that I like very much that I found in Sunset magazine many years ago. I use dried apricots, pears, peaches, cherries and a mixture of different types of raisins, but use what you like. The orange juice adds brightness to the cake. I bake it in mini loaf pans, and it is so good, the cakes don’t stay around for long. Make them early and cover with brandy soaked cheesecloth, if you like. I like them just the way they come out of the oven.
If you don’t have an oven, check out the delicious fruitcake made by the nuns at the Transfiguration Hermitage in Windsor, Maine.
Here’s the recipe:
Cream the butter and sugar; add the eggs; mix the baking powder and salt with the flour; add dry ingredients alternating with the orange juice. Then add the nuts and fruit. Grease and flour the pan or pans. Bake at 300 degrees (low and slow) for 2 1/2 to 3 hours. If you are using small pans, check the cakes sooner because they will bake faster than a large loaf. When a wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean, it is done. Cool on a rack, but turn out of the pans when the cake is still warm, but not hot.
This is a place we liked – huge red enameled oven imported from Italy; so screaming hot that your pizza cooks in 90 seconds. Tasty, too. If you are in the area, they deserve a look – reblogged from HMS Defiant . . .
We got an announcement today from a pizza place we ate at on our drive back home from San Diego. It was the first I received from them in almost a year. They’re not exactly beating the drum. It was though, excellent wood fired pizza and the atmosphere was friendly and inviting so we recommend it.
The place is also across the street from a Walmart that seemed to contain all the guns and ammo in Christendom. That may be no big draw for some, but living here in MetroParkCentralis and coming from San Diego, guns were scarce and ammo was even more conspicuously not available at either end. If I hadn’t loaded up with ammo at the Post Exchange at Fort Riley that morning, I’d have squeezed in some more .45 ammo.
On August 16, the third annual BACON Festival takes place in Reykjavik Iceland.
This year’s event marks the third annual Reykjavik Bacon Festival, an exciting day in Reykjavik that bacon-lovers cannot resist. People from all over the world flock to the streets of Reykjavik to enjoy country music and the greasy, delectable taste of anything and everything bacon. At the festival, an array of chefs cook up a feast of bacon-inspired treats for everyone to try, including bacon sushi and bacon-flavored popcorn. At this family-friendly event, anyone can participate in various bacon-themed events and collect any recipes that entice them. This day is one for the books and one you should not miss. If you needed an excuse to get away to Reykjavik this summer, the Bacon Festival is certainly a worthwhile reason!
Here is a photo from last year’s event.
Oh, yes! Lego-loving and food art, all in one! From Grant Thompson – “The King of Random”
This first Friday in June is doughnut day. I hope you did not miss it. We celebrated by taking a small road trip to the town of Wooster. Wooster is a small college town in Ohio. It has lots of trees, fine old buildings, good restaurants, two great bookstores, and donuts!
The key to this post is that Lerch’s donuts is located just a little north of town. Lerch’s donuts are unlike any other.
They are made on site. They melt in your mouth. They come in three flavors – plain, sugared, or cinnamon.
The donuts are made in a little food truck parked in a defunct shopping plaza (and at select locations around the area.)
Their website says:
Lerch’s Donuts was founded in 1933 by John Lerch, Sr., when he developed a method of frying soft cake donuts that are not greasy at his downtown Wooster bakery.
In 1934, he began producing Lerch’s Donuts at the Wayne County fair, soon becoming the #1 food vendor at the fair. Many things have changed since the 1930s; the bakery has closed, but not the recipe or popularity of Lerch’s Donuts.
Mobile concession trailers are located at the former Hawkins Market (Portage Square Plaza, Wooster, Ohio) and other various locations in season (spring – fall).
Wooster – come for the books, stay for the donuts.
Remember:
Smile and say, “Velveeta!”
On this day in 1928, Velveeta Cheese was first introduced. This is the same year Mickey Mouse was introduced to the world. Coincidence . . .?
Velveeta is that yellow brick of cheese food that melts smoothly over everything. Food.com describes it as,
“… a blend of colby and cheddar cheeses with emulsifiers and salt. The ingredients are heated until liquified, packaged in aluminum foil, then cooled.”
Is there a Velveeta tattoo? I could not find one, but I did find these cheese tattoos, including a GALLERY of tattoos from a wildly successful local restaurant chain, MELT, that will give anyone a 25% discount on meals (forever) if they get a tattoo of one of Melt’s approved logos.
This restaurant features huge sandwiches heavy on the grilled cheese with names such as:
Parmageddon / potato & onion pierogi, fresh napa vodka kraut, sautéed onions, sharp cheddar
The Dude Abides / homemade meatballs, fried mozzarella wedges, basil marinara, roasted garlic, provolone & romano
Lake Erie Monster / crispy battered jumbo cod, sweet slaw, jalapeno tartar sauce, american
More cheese tattoos:
This recipe is from tablespoon.com
Ingredients
Directions
I did not really make this. I thought I was going to, but it looks like too much work, and I am not all that fond of jello. But isn’t it great looking?
I am looking forward to Macaroon Day on May 31 – not to be confused with Macaron Day which is March 20.
What is the difference? Macaroons are super sweet, are easy to make, can be made by the home baker, and are not expensive. Macarons are super sweet, are difficult to make, are found in snooty French bakeries patisseries, and are expensive. I like them both.
The Macaroon, a flourless cookie. Traditional macaroons are made with flour ground from almonds and leavened egg whites. It is believed that macaroons originated in Italy. In 1533, macaroon cookies were brought to France by Italian monks and nuns. Two Benedictine nuns, Sister Marguerite and Sister Marie-Elisabeth, baked and sold the cookies in order to pay for their housing. They became known as the “Macaroon Sisters,” and their cookies became famous throughout Europe. Credit: Oddlovescompany
A macaron is a classic French cookie. The soft, crunchy, delicate shell is made from almond flour, sugar and egg whites, and sandwiches a smooth layer of creamy ganache. Credit: macaron day
This is about the easiest Macaroon recipe I know:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix milk and coconut together. Drop by spoonfuls onto the baking sheet. They will set and begin to brown in about 10 minutes. Check them early so they do not burn. Dip the bottoms of the cookies into melted chocolate.
No tattoos this Tuesday, just this little cartoon explanation.
Hello Kitty Dim Sum Restaurant in Hong Kong
If you love dumplings as much as you love Hello Kitty, it’s time to book a flight: the first Hello Kitty dim sum restaurant in the world is now open in Hong Kong.
Hello Kitty Chunanoki opened in Yaumatei on April 16 and fans waited for hours to snag one of the 80 seats so they could enjoy some of the 37 Hello Kitty dim sum options. Every part of the restaurant is themed, from the tables, glass chandeliers, to the wall artwork. Even the chopstick holders are shaped in the form of Hello Kitty’s iconic hair bow.
For devoted fans, Hello Kitty decor simply isn’t enough, sometimes you just want to eat her face. I say that in the most adoring of ways. The restaurant serves traditional dim sum items, all with a Hello Kitty twist. Rice and noodle dishes come family-style in the shape of her head, while traditional dim sum options like custard-filled steamed buns and pork bao are irresistible when adorned with Hello Kitty’s wide-eyed expression.
Cuteness knows no bounds when you open up the lid of a bamboo steamer and see steaming Hello Kitty manju staring back at you. Even the popular dim sum dish har gow gets the Hello Kitty treatment. The thinly wrapped plump shrimp dumplings somehow taste even better when embellished with tiny pink edible bows.
The restaurant will only be open for a 2-3 month trial period so Hello Kitty fans will have to act fast to get their kawaii dim sum fix. Check out the video above for an up close look at the interior and unabashed kitty-adorableness.
Images via Jetsoclub and Kotaku
Credit: Jenn Fujikawa
And Cynthia Moore
Firearms, fibers, any news or behaviors that make me say, "hmm, let me take another look at this."
I still miss my man, but my aim is getting better.
Gunsmoke and Knitting 