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JanMcBaker

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Everything posted by JanMcBaker

  1. As long as it had chocolate and/or nuts, it was for me. Paydays were the only non-chocolate candy that I loved since it was covered with peanuts. I just didn't care for those candies that were basically flavored sugar-- if it wasn't chocolate, it was not proper candy as far as I was concerned. I'd have some out of desperation if that was all that was around. Crackerjack was ok since it had peanuts-- I'd save the nuts for last. Geez, I had forgotten about this-- They used to come in a 3-pack and they, or LifeSavers, was a Sunday afternoon treat for us five kids in the family. Dad would get a couple 3-packs of the Crackerjack, or I think a 6-pack of assorted LifeSavers. He'd switch the labels on the LifeSavers so we wouldn't know what flavor we were actually getting. OK-- I did like LifeSavers too. Probably the big thing about getting those was that each of us could have an entire pack to ourselves! I guess he and Mom would share the sixth Crackerjack or LifeSaver pack that was left.
  2. Well! I don't know if that's the worst commercial ever made. Certainly one of the weirdest I've ever seen but I don't think it's the worst. I'll let you know if I think of the worst one I've seen. Oh, and the BK king is definitely creepy.....
  3. I saw the mention on another thread about bread from Leonardo's, an Italian bakery at 183 Bustleton Pike just outside Philadelphia in Feasterville. Living not far from the county line, I thought I'd check it out this weekend. What a place! Except for some cookies, every baked good is baked on the premises. And boy, is there a variety of baked goods-- assorted breads and rolls, cakes, cookies, pies, butter cakes-- including one that my sister described as "a childhood dream come true"-- peanut butter cup butter cake. They sell butter cake by the piece, so it's not the runny kind of butter cake. I got a piece of the plain to try and there is definitely a lot of 'goo' on the cake-- it's not more cake like some butter cakes are. It was a bit sweeter than I prefer, but still a very nice cake. They also have these fried cheesecakes, which is something I had never seen before. The cheese filling is this smooth, rich cheesecake-like filling and is either alone, or paired with cherry, chocolate, lemon, raspberry, etc. Picture a cinnamon sugar dusted, approximately 2x6 inch blintz and you'll have an idea of what one of these things looks like. I had part of a cherry cheese one and it was very tasty-- crispy outside, smooth filling and a nice, not too sweet cherry filling. My sister tried a chocolate cheese one and she really liked it. They also sell various savory pies by the piece, such as tomato, fresh tomato, vegetable pies, and a potato pie.... yes, potato, and it is good! Picture the basic rectangular tomato pie shape with mozzarella cheese on it, then paper thin potato slices spread on it, and rosemary sprinkled on it. It's baked, of course, and a piece of it made a nice breakfast with a cup of made-to-order cappucino. They also do sandwiches and have assorted meats and cheeses. Plus all manner of Italian groceries-- pastas, oils, vinegars, candies, etc. And I haven't even gotten to DaVinci's yet, the pizzeria and restaurant side attached to the bakery. I can't wait to get back and try something there. I will definitely be posting a report from that side of the business too. The restaurant menu looks very interesting...... Geez, I'm sounding like an ad, aren't I? But really, this place is definitely worth checking out for tasty Italian foods-- and $2 cappuccinos don't hurt, either! BTW, Carol, the very helpful and friendly counter clerk, advised that the website is still under construction so it might not be as detailed as they'd like it to be yet. And if you go, the place is on the northbound side of Bustleton Pike, just behind a real estate/law office at Franklin Ave. By Septa, you can take the Neshaminy Mall 58 bus from Frankford Terminal, or from the Somerton train station at Bustleton and Philmont on the R3 line.
  4. I'm loving your blog! Lots of things seem to strike a familiar chord with a lot of people-- like your utensil forest for one! I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one with mass quantities of spatulas! And with cookbooks strewn throughout the house, for that matter. You have a very warm, comfortable, 'homey' house!. I just emailed myself the onion bread pudding recipe from the link shown earlier. Can't wait to try that one!
  5. Phew is right! And you actually use your label maker!
  6. Well said, Sandy. Perhaps we could be considered 'particular' rather than elitist?
  7. Ooohhhhh---- this should be a good one! Coffee, chocolate and pork-- three of my favorite food groups! And where do you get those Guittard chocolates? More details about what's in those boxes, please, Chris!
  8. And if it hasn't been done already, there was also talk about lowering the 'normal' values for blood pressure. I wondered what hand the drug companies had in that! After all, if your BP is suddenly 'high', what will your doctor likely recommend? Oh, and weight loss does not automatically help. I lost a lot of weight and my blood pressure is still high. No one had ever told me that it might stay high no matter what I did.....
  9. I know where you can find one. If you're ever in Punxutawney, PA some February 2nd.....
  10. Damn!!! What a twerp! And you lasted a whole hour??
  11. Oops.... and here I was thinking that I didn't have any food neuroses until I came to that line above! I'm not as nutso about it as I used to be, but after all, what's a PBJ sandwich if you don't have PBJ in every bite? And when I was a kid, with 7 in the family and not a lot of money, occasional Saturday dinners were bologna sandwiches-- using the chunk bologna that you slice yourself. We'd each slice our own for our sandwich and I remember being heckled a bit for trimming my slices so that every single millimeter of that bread slice was properly covered with bologna! My post was originally going to be about my brother, who eats each item entirely before going to the next. I still recall a family dinner at a restaurant when he ordered steak. But of course he had to eat each side dish first..... then complained that the steak wasn't hot!! Oh, and referring to one of the early posts about the nasty associations with rice... This same brother used to be a city mechanic, working on trash trucks. Guess what the workers there called "Uncle Ben's Perverted Rice"?
  12. This would make the mundane task of supermarket shopping much more pleasant. ← For which person?
  13. Come on, people! You're taking this all much too seriously, I feel. Do we expect movie critics to produce cinema masterpieces? For my two cents' worth, it sounded like a tasty, enjoyable meal.... well, maybe except for the brussel sprouts. But now I need to make pigs in a blanket! I just love those little buggers. Gee.... I wonder how store-bought frozen challah dough would work as a 'blanket' for them.
  14. It was a fabulous dinner. Thank you so much, Jim, for putting it together, and big thanks also to Joe Poon for making it!
  15. Thanks so much to Cali, Ellen and Sandy for your blog this past week! It was a fun and most thought-provoking time.
  16. Perhaps they're the gassy ones...? Sorry, I couldn't help myself!
  17. No worries there, Sandy. It didn't keep me from prior pizza runs, or from the meat fests! And that's part of what I had to figure out for me. I've been willing to make some adjustments but, for the most part, my new way of eating had to fit easily into my life. I knew that if I tried to make major changes, or deprive myself, that I could not stick with it. Take the pizza runs, for example. I'm willing to compensate a bit by eating lighter the rest of the day, but no way am I giving up pizza! Also, your writing about exercise made me think of something else I recently decided about exercise. I'm not going to worry about exercising for weight loss. It takes so much exercise to burn off any significant amount of calories, and I'm just not one to exercise for hours in a day! A number of years ago I did basically that-- exercised for 2-3 hours a day, 4-5 days a week. I did lose a lot of weight but that pace was impossible to keep up, and have a life. Oh, and my high blood pressure DID NOT come down! No one had ever told me that it might stay high no matter what I did. That was a major PITA. So-- I recently decided that I'll walk, or march in place watching TV-- my major forms of exercise, because I feel the need to move around, or to get my knees loosened up, or to help my heart and lungs, or it's a nice day for a walk. That's my view and I'm sticking to it! One more important thing, Sandy-- I noticed in one of your pictures there was a can of Hershey's syrup with what looks like a pry-off lid. Is that right? If so, I've never seen that kind! Where did you get it?
  18. I'm very much enjoying this blog by the brave 'Three Blogateers!' Thank you very much for your views and insights. I've also been dealing with weight issues the last couple years, and seem to have hit on what works for me, having lost about 60 pounds in the last couple years. And I seem to be keeping it off, too, which is a major surprise and accomplishment for me. A couple things have come to mind during this time that I'd like to toss out and see what people think-- One is that, there is certainly no 'one size fits all' for weight loss. I've mainly been doing Weight Watchers, but trying to do it in a way which fits my life. I think my WW leader would be horrified to see what I eat sometimes. But we're supposed to be able to eat whatever we want..... The other thing, and one which I've only recently considered and basically come to terms with, is that perhaps not everyone is meant to be thin! It makes sense to me. After all, why would there be such variations in physical characteristics-- except for weight? It's like saying everyone should be six feet tall or have brown eyes. Thanks again to Sandy, Mizducky and Cali for your writings!
  19. I tried to save time one holiday by reheating a turkey I had cooked ahead of time. It must not have saved much time because I never did it again. Anyway, I used one of those cook-in oven bags. Keeps the moisture in and the turkey ended up nice and moist. I probably used about 300-325 degrees for the oven temp. Since it's already cooked, I'd go more for 'taking the chill off' the turkey, or getting it fairly warm, rather than trying to get it piping hot.
  20. MFK Fisher and Laurie Colwin come to mind.....
  21. Yikes! I can't believe it took me so long to remember these guys! From the syndicated, never ready for prime-time cooking shows, came Larry Bly and the late, lamented Laban Johnson, with 'Cookin' Cheap.' It originated with Blue Ridge Public Television and was syndicated among other public TV stations. What a hoot that show was! Very, very down-home recipes. I imagine the production costs for the entire series would probably still be less than that for one episode of FoodTV's shows.
  22. I've reheated pizza on the stovetop, in a flat (not one with ridges), round cast iron griddle pan. I spray the pan with a cooking spray and start the slice in a cold pan. Once things warm up, I cover the slice with a large pan lid, to heat the top a bit and get things melting. Then I'll take the lid off to allow the crust to get crispy. Heat to your desired degree of reheatedness. This method usually gets the crust crisper than when I first got the pizza! Granted, this method only works for a slice or two at a time, though, depending on the size of the slices and your pan.
  23. A problem I find with some dark chocolates, and one I don't always keep in mind, is that dark chocolate is not necessarily bittersweet or semisweet. If the label does not specify bittersweet or semisweet, I assume it's going to be too sweet for my liking. Such is the case with the bar of Ghirardelli 'Espresso Escape' that I have in my desk drawer. The ingredient list does show bittersweet chocolate as the first ingredient but I'm finding it more sweet than bitter. There's not really a pronounced coffee flavor either for that matter.
  24. My peeve is seeing 'frig' as an abbreviation for refrigerator, rather than 'fridge.' Don't these people know the friggin' abbreviations?! I know that doesn't refer specifically to food, but it is food related, right?
  25. Oh, THAT is a good one!! I like that too. My sister and I are especially partial to: "We need desserts!" --Lilo, in 'Lilo and Stitch'
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