Weeks 14 & 15 = A Tale of Two Dinners

So, yes, I am waaaaaay behind on posting results, but what can I say? If it comes down to writing blog post or getting Christmas stuff done, Christmas wins. It has a deadline. Luckily, it kinda works for me because Weeks 14 & 15 ended up having something in common - deep-fried food!

Most of the time, I try to avoid frying anything other than an egg. I hate how the oil splatters all over. And I almost always burn myself trying to drop dough into the pan. And all that for food that probably isn't all that good for you. Why bother?

But in Week 14, I had the best idea ever for Dallas @ Philadelphia - Philly Rellenos! Brilliant! For a split second, I considered just stuffing the poblanos and baking them in the oven, but then I read a recipe for Chilies Rellenos Autenticos on All Recipes. It looked easy enough, and the word "autenticos" got me hooked. What the heck? I'll give it a shot.

Honestly, it was easy. Still kind of messy, but easy. I used filet mignon and provolone cheese, plus a little Merkt's cheese spread for the filling.

I know what you're thinking. Why would you smother an expensive cut like filet with cheese? I guess I was hoping the filet would save it if the whole thing turned out disgusting.

It was silly of me to worry. This is maybe the best meal of the season.

Of course, the beer helps.

Hold that thought. I should say, "Beer helps most of the time." Nothing could save the dish I made for Week 15 - Salmon Tartare on Navajo Fry Bread.

It looks pretty, doesn't it? Too bad it tastes like ass.

In my defense, Seattle @ Arizona is a tough food match-up. I thought about making salmon chimichangas, but that sounded gross. And I briefly considered fish tacos, but I guess I was kind of over Tex Mex. Plus I've always wanted to try fry bread. I've never eaten it or made it, but a few years ago my sister-in-law Barb cooked a Christmas dinner that included a dish to represent her parents and mine. For my dad, she made some sort of Choctaw bread.  I can't remember what it was called, but I guess that idea has always been in the back of my mind.

I should have known better. Barb is a way better cook than I am.

I followed the easiest fry bread recipe I could find. Not that any are particular difficult, but like I said, frying intimidates me. Worse, this is basically baking, right? So that means getting all the measurements just right, not forgetting ingredients, not "overworking" the dough or whatever.

Fuck it. It was a nightmare. The dough stuck to my hands. I couldn't get in the hot oil without burning myself. And then this happened...

Like Big Bird said, "One of these things is not like the other..."

Worse, the fry bread was AWFUL. It basically had no flavor. My best guess is that I pulled at the dough too much (is that vaguely dirty?), making it chewy rather than...well, rather than whatever it is supposed to be.

Oh my god. What if how I made it is how it is supposed to taste? That's a really sad thought.

Fortunately, the salmon tartare from Bon Appetit was awesome.

Unfortunately, I couldn't really enjoy it. Partly because it was on the fry bread, but mostly because I was convinced we would die of food poisoning.

Here's to better luck in Week 16.

VA

Week 13 = Lobster Tacos

I seriously considered making lobster sushi for the NE v. SD game. It's easy and kind of snacky, and Rob and I were not sure if we'd be home for dinner, so that seemed like a good idea.

But then I looked up San Diego foods, just to see if they were known for Asian cuisine, but then I saw the words "fish tacos" on the Wikipedia page.

Fish is good. Lobster is better.

And tacos are the best!

Aren't they pretty?

I honestly thought I had come up with something new, but Google proved me wrong. Of the thousands of results, I made lobster tacos with avocado salsa from MyRecipes.com. Added bonus? California is known for avocados!

The recipe is really easy. The only thing was I couldn't find pre-cooked lobster, so I had to buy fresh lobster tail and grill it.

My life is so hard.

Week 12 = Heaven Must Be Covered in Green Chili

KC v. Denver turned into "burnt ends" green chili.

First, I write "burnt ends" because I didn't really do them right. I just couldn't see myself spending 10 hours cooking a brisket on the grill just so I could toss the majority of it. Instead, I found a slow cooker recipe on FabulousFods.com. And since I had a some bbq rub from some other meal, I figured this would be way easier.

That's the brisket swimming in the green chili from a recipe I found on DenverGreenChili.com. I didn't bother with the liquid smoke or with slicing the brisket up and putting the ends back in for another 5 hours.

I guess that means a took a short cut on this short cut  - which makes me the laziest cook on the planet. Well, not the laziest. I mean, I did cut up the brisket. That has to count for something, right?

It looks kinda dry in the picture, but it was actually very juicy.

By the way, does any one knows what happened to La Preferida cans of green chillies? I can find them online but not at Jewel. I looked in every aisle and came up with nothing. What's up with that? And to be honest, I didn't have the foggiest idea of how to substitute for them, so I just bought up a bunch of serrano, jalapeno, and poblano peppers, hoping for the best. I was really relieved to learn that green chillies are simply any green peppers you want to cut up and use in your dish.

Yeah - I now know that's pretty stupid. Whatever.

Here's the pretty picture of the finished product:

Wait! I almost forgot. I used smoked sharp cheddar from Wisconsin. That made up for the lack of smoke overall. The meal was ultimately very good. And it was awesome for lunch the next day. And the next. And for breakfast on Wednesday. If I made this again, I would add the liquid smoke and maybe roast the tomatillos, just because that's delicious in all ways.

Week 11 = STEAK!!

I swear when we started this last season, Rob and I made steak or bbq every weekend. You'd be surprised how many football cities are all about the meat. But this is our first steak game this year, and it was well worth the wait. 

New York strip was an obvious call, so we decided to make a traditional steakhouse kind of dinner. But how we we going to to get Dallas in there? 

Answer: Tex-Mex everything!

We started with a wedge salad, because Rob is crazy about a wedge salad. I don't totally get it. I mean, bacon, yes. Bleu cheese, most definitely yes. But otherwise it's just a big old lump of iceberg lettuce. That would never win a Snob Salad Competition. Anyway, we switched it to Tex-Mex by using chorizo instead of bacon.

 Chorizo is really greasy, so we cooked it and drained it and patted it dry. The results were good. I think maybe bleu cheese and chorizo is a combo I would use again.

Next game the potatoes. Seriously, that was just an attempt to balance the plate. Fingerlings, jalapenos, onion, and leeks plus a little Mexican spice combo.

Again - good result, but can you go wrong roasting veggies in an oven? Not really. 

Now for the meat! I looked up Mexican spice rub, and got a recipe from Food and Wine for Mexican Spice-Rubbed Rib Eyes with Lime Butter. 

Um, did somebody say lime butter? Sign me up!

That's basically softened butter with lime juice, lime zest, and garlic. The green was so pretty that I wanted to take a picture. Sorry it doesn't translate too well. Maybe I'll have to ask Santa for a real camera.

 Here is a picture of the meat resting with the lime butter on top. It looks like ice cream!

I still want to eat it.

Finally, it all came together. We picked up a bottle of Rioja to round it all out.

Meat is good.

Week 10 = A Confession

Before I make my confession, I want to say that I think the crab and corn choice was inspired. First, you have crab. Delicious. Add corn. Delicious again. And when you think about the number of times I have to come up with something for either New England or Indianapolis, corn and crab soup is pretty ingenious.

And if my soup really was corn and crab, we could be done already.

Crab is surprisingly hard to find in the fall in Chicago. Rob said, "Go to Mariano's," but I'm not drinking the Kool-Aid on that one just yet. Everyone acts like Mariano's is the second coming. Yes they almost always have what I'm looking for, but I was closer to Jewel and I'm not going all over town for Sunday night dinner.

Unfortunately, Jewel did not have any crab legs. I could have bought a can of the good stuff - $24.99 for 16 ounces when I only needed 8. No way - I'm too cheap for that. And I wasn't going to buy Chicken of the Sea. I'm too much of a snob for that.

So what's the solution? Fake Crab!!! I don't care what anyone says, I like it. Just not for cooking.

At least it's pretty, right?

Actually, it didn't suck. I bet the recipe would be great with the real crab in it. I encourage everyone to give it a shot. You can find the recipe at Kitchen Confidante.

Week 9 = GO PACK GO!!!!

Oh, yeah!

Not only did the Packers beat the Bears, they demolished them. Humiliated them in front of a national audience. I almost felt sorry for the Bears. LOL!

I'm taking credit for the win because dinner was Italian beef smothered in a Merkt's beer cheese sauce. (Get it? So witty!) The recipe is insanely easy. The only change from the recipe here is that I like to brown the beef. Actually, Rob likes me to brown the beef. I don't think it's really necessary, but whatever. If it was weekday, I'd probably skip it.

Ignore the vaguely phallic poblano pepper sticking out of the sandwich.

The cheese sauce isn't a recipe. Here are the instructions...

• Buy Merkt's Beer Cheese.
• Melt it.
• Add milk until it looks like sauce.

That's it.

We made enough to put on, I don't...EVERYTHING for the next week.

I also made a side of spinach, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, and leeks with a splash of red wine vinegar. 

None of that has anything to do with Wisconsin or Illinois. I just needed a veggie. It's been a while. And I have to say, this my new favorite easy-to-make side. 

By the way, I also bought mandarin oranges to throw in but completely forgot about them. If anyone has a suggestion for what I can do with those, that would be great. 

Gotta go - the Pack is on!

Later,

VA

Week 8 = So Many Things Went Wrong

First, I realized last week that I've been numbering the weeks wrong all season, and I have no idea how. I haven't skipped a single week!

Second, it's Sunday and I'm only just now getting to writing up last week's dinner. In my defense, it's been a crazy week: birthday stuff, teaching stuff, coaching stuff. Pretty much life conspired against me. Not my fault.

Finally, I was less than pleased with my dinner. I made crab pierogi, but I cheated. I used egg roll wrappers instead of making the dough. I would love to claim that I was too busy, but even if I had all the time in the world, I just don't see myself making dough. Ever.

The pierogi were stuffed with crab (from a can - no judging!), bell peppers, and scallions. As I was folding it all together, I realized I had onion & chive cream cheese in the fridge, so that went into the mix, too. I'm not sure it add anything, but it made the stuffing kind of hook together better.

The best parts of the dinner were made by Rob.  He made a red pepper sauce and a beet and leek salad. Without the red pepper sauce, I think the pierogi would have been super bland. And apparently, beets and leeks are seasonal veggies for Pennsylvania, so they totally count.

I gotta run. I still have to shop for the most important game of the year: Bears @ Lambeau! Here's a hint - I made Rob go to D'amato's on Grand for the bread. Add bonus? He picked up pizza for lunch!

Later,
VA

Week 7 = Pistolettes

I know, I know. I'm so late again. But in my defense, is has been one bitch of a week. I didn't have a single free night until Thursday, and I dedicated that night to sleeping.

The game last Sunday was Green Bay @ New Orleans. Rob and I went to the Groo's Football and Turkey Party. Once a year, they invite a bunch of people over, and Dave deep fries something like a thousand turkeys while everyone watches football.

I love this party. So good.

The game, however, was shitty. Luckily, my snacker was awesome! My first plan was to make beignets stuffed with brats - which I thought was possibly the best idea ever. Then I read a couple of recipes and realized that beignets were way beyond my capabilities.

But looking for easy recipes led me to a sandwich I had never heard of before - The Pistolette. I used this recipe from Real Cajun Recipes, obviously substituting brats for the shrimp and crawfish but also using Merkt's Beer Cheese (brilliant!) and some cajun seasoning. Here's what it looked like before I stuffed the dinner rolls...

Okay, so it looks a little like cheesy pooh, but I ate it straight from the pot. Yummy, I promise.

Rob has used our one big pot to make his party contribution, so I decided bake rather than deep fry.

I don't think any one in Louisiana would have recognized these as pistolettes, but I don't care. I liked them and will probably make them again.

This Sunday is a bit of a problem for me - Baltimore vs. Pitt. I want to make crab pierogi, but Rob is over the dough stuffed with stuff. Send some better suggestions, ASAP!

Thanks!
VA

P.S. One gratuitous puppy shot:

Week 6 = I'm so late!!

Don't worry - not the scary kind of late. Just really, really slow to finally write this up.  Working at Le Cordon Bleu is kicking my ass, but at least the class is almost halfway done.

Last Sunday was Giants @ Eagles, so I made Philly Cheesesteak Calzones!

I can already hear people complaining - "Calzones? What's so New York about calzones?" But before anyone gets all bent out of shape, I kind of agree. The problem is soooooo many foods represent New York, but very few represent Philadelphia. At least very few that I wanted to make. (Scrapple anyone?) But who doesn't love a cheesesteak. And Wikipedia lists calzones as "New York Street Food."

Winner, winner!

Rob pointed out that traditional calzones don't have marinara, at least not inside, so I tried to make a white cheese sauce. I made a mess of it, but it ended up being delicious.

Just in case, I added marinara, too. The white sauce was better, but I think the red makes for  prettier picture.

Well, pretty if you ignore the fact that I wiped up sauce with my finger. Don't look at that. And don't judge me, but I used Pillsbury pizza dough for the calzones.

There's only so much a woman can do on a Sunday afternoon.

Next week? SF @ Denver. I got nothing. Help!

Week 5 = Try Everything at Least Once

Clam chili? Really? That's a thing?

It's a thing. You can get at least one recipe here. And there were others - most of them kind of weird, but they are out there. Someone must be eating them. 

And since I was stuck for something to represent New England and Cincinnati, I became one of them. Originally, I thought I'd take my sister-in-laws suggestion to make a thick New England clam chowder and pour it over spaghetti, like Cincinnati chili,  but I was afraid that was too much of one and not enough of the other. Hence...

Note the Sam Adams. 

Could've been brewed in Cincinnati. 

Could've been brewed in Boston. Clever, right? 

Thanks, Chuck!

I am pleased to report that clam chili does not suck. In fact, I just had the leftovers for lunch, and they were really good. 

I followed the recipe from Sea Watch International - at least I kinda did. That recipe makes 16-20 servings, so I cut it in halfish. I used bacon instead of Italian sausage, dried cilantro instead of fresh, and dumped in maybe double the chili powder. The bacon was probably the most important addition, but I also threw on some Cholula hot sauce, the green kind. That was probably my favorite part.

This is just an extra picture. Didn't want it to go to waste.

So the lesson this week is keep an open mind...clam chili is easy, healthy, and not horrific. Give it a shot...

As for me, I hope I never have to do Cincinnati or New England again.

Guest Blogger Sue Hamill's Final Product

Like I said, Sue got an ear infection and couldn't finish her meal on Sunday night. She finished on Monday, making Tex-Mex Jambalaya and Cajun T-bone Steak.  Unfortunately,  I just started a new job teaching at 6 am (Seriously. That's not a type. 6 am. Every day.) so I'm a little behind.

Here's the finished product:

Pretty, but take a close up look. Yum!

By the way, did I mention there was shrimp, too?

So good!

Here's my brother Barry's review:

All in all the meal was tasty, but a little mild - probably because we had to accommodate not only a nine-year-old (who, while generally an adventurous eater, does not care for things "spicy"), but also one of our step-nieces-in-law who is having stomach problems.  So, the seasoning was light, and at least on one of the steaks, non-existent.  But the black beans and corn in the "Tex-Mex jambalaya" is a path worth pursuing, and I liked the less-soupy version that Mrs. Hamill made here.   And Cajun rub on a t-bone?  Nothing wrong with that.

Sue gets major points for creativity, and she's given me a good idea for this Sunday Night Cin v. NE - assuming I don't sleep through the weekend.

Week 4 = Guest Blogger #2: Sue Hamill

So my sister-in-law wanted to play this week, too. She went to the store, got T-bones and jambalaya fixings, and then came down with an ear infection.

Looks good right? Here's part of the email from my brother:

Jambalaya mix, to which corn and black beans would be added, as well as diced tomatoes with green chiles; shrimp and Andouille sausage; a salt-free Cajun seasoning as the basis of a rub for the steaks.   Sounds good, huh?  Well, we can't have it either!

Pretty sad, right? 

Don't fret...Sue felt better on Monday and cooked the meal. I'll post pictures soon.

Week 4 = Guest Blogger Week: Lori Gillespsie

Cowboys  and Saints; Texas and New Orleans.  Hmmm… what should I make?  Texas Chili it is.  What makes it Texas?  No Beans.  I’m also making Corn Bread and Cole Slaw and for dessert, Chocolate Croissants.

So let me explain my cooking style.  I’m pretty good with flavors, so I get an idea, check out the internet and then let it fly.  I typically don’t measure anything.  I cook by taste.

I started the Texas Chili by cutting up a roast into bite size pieces.  I think it was about a pound. I browned the meat with some onions then added some beef granules, some water, some crushed tomatoes, chili pepper, red pepper, garlic salt, and cumin.  Brought it to a boil, then covered and simmered until meat was tender.  I added just a bit of flour to thicken it up.  Spoon it in a bowl with some sour cream and cheese and it looks like this.  

 Corn Bread with Texas chili is a must. I cheated here and I bought a mix, Fleishmann’s Simply Homemade.  It had some ideas on the side, so I added frozen corn and Cheese to the mix before baking.  

We needed a vegetable with this chili since it really doesn’t have anything but meat in it, so I made coleslaw. It’s so easy and tastes better than almost anything you can buy in the deli.  Get a cole slaw mix from the produce department and add a dressing of some mayo and vinegar and sugar or honey.  Finish it off with some salt and pepper and you’re done.  It’s really a “to taste” kind of side.

Dessert was Chocolate Croissants.  I totally cheated here too.  Trader Joe’s had some really good ones.  They were frozen.  Just follow directions and bake.  They need to be left out for about 9 hours before going in the oven. Here they are baking.

Everything was tasty.  My husband suggested that the chili could have been a bit spicier, but I was also feeding 2 young boys so I went easy.  But add more if you like.

And that my friend’s was dinner for my Sunday night Game.  It was a bit Texas heavy, but that would be because I have been a fan of the Boy’s since 1977. Go Cowboys!

Read More From Lori at  lfginspired@blogspot.com

HELP!

Anyone wanna be a guest blogger?

Rob and I are going to the Denver Digger and won't be home until really late on Sunday evening. No cooking for me!

All are welcome. Just let me know.

VA

Week 3 = Some Risks Are Worth It

If Rob hadn't come up with the Italian sausage wontons, I would never have tried this bizarre combo. And since I used pierogi last year, I really wanted to try something different for Pittsburgh this year.

Cabbage rolls do have an unfortunate resemblance to brains.

My first plan was to make an eastern Carolina bbq sauce to go on the cabbage rolls stuffed with pulled pork, mainly because I thought Charlotte was on the eastern side of the state. And I thought a vinegar based sauce would make sense. But when I figured out where Charlotte actually was and saw how many halupky recipes had tomatoes in them, I ended up with a Lexington/Piedmont sauce.

Okay - I definitely still have problems with planning because I never checked if I had enough cider vinegar. I didn't, but I substituted a combination of distilled white and balsamic and no one died.

Success!

The cabbage  roll recipe is this one from All Recipes. It's pretty easy, much less futzy than the wontons. Really, anything that sits in slow cooker all day works for me. I did substitute ground pork for ground beef. Like I said, I wanted pulled pork, but I wasn't sure how to make the pulled pork, stuff the boiled cabbage, and then cook it all together. Maybe I could have just wrapped them and left it at that, but since I had never made halupky before, I choose to stay close to the recipe.

The end result...

One more thing. Thank God, I decided to add the mashed potatoes. That sauce was hot!

Next week is New Orleans at Dallas. Let's see if I can avoid barbeque this time around.

Later,

VA

Week 2 = Crafts Suck but this Meal was AWESOME!

I so wish I could take credit for this one.

Seriously. Pan-fried Italian sausage wontons? Stroke of genius! And it was all Rob's idea.*

Carolyn asked for the recipe, but I really kind of just looked at videos and read some recipes and then guessed at what to do. My main guide is this recipe at About.com. I substituted Italian sausage, peppers, and onions for the pork, shrimp, and scallions. I didn't add any liquid because, well, I forgot. That may have been a lucky accident because of the veggies and the fat in the sausage. I'm also a little paranoid about undercooking sausage, so I browned the filling first. 

As for folding wontons - holy crap! What a pain in the ass! You can maybe get a teaspoon at the most in any one wrapper. And even then, half of them are going to rip. Having said that, I'll probably do it again. I love all things wrapped in dough.

Speaking of "pain in the ass," let's discuss the giant-sized Twinkies. 

First, they're giant-sized because I am incapable of crafting anything, and almost every recipe out there required making little Twinkie molds out of aluminum that you wrap around spice bottles. Plus you had to poke holes in the Twinkies and squirt cream inside using a pastry bag.

Are you kidding me? It's stuff like this that kept me off of Pinterest for years. 

I did the best I could. I skipped making the proper filling and just made buttercream filling that was excessively sweet. (Btw - getting the filling in the little wholes looks a lot easier on television.) Luckily, I bought dark chocolate Ghirardelli chips and that helped balance things out.**

Alright. That's all I can write. Bogey wants to go to the park. 

Until next week,

VA

*I'm so proud!

**Frosting + chocolate chips = delicious snack!

Week 2: Chicago @ SF

Chicago at San Francisco? This is  a case of too many options.

Let's see, I could make...

• Seafood Deep Dish
• Italian Beef on Sourdough
• Fried Rice-a-Roni
• Joe's Special on a Horseshoe Sandwich
• Chicken Tetrazzini with Sausage

All delicious sounding, although Rob is not interested in frutti di mare pizza. He says it sounds gross. And I'm putting on the kibosh on the Italian beef. I love it, but I did it last year. I'll have to save that for a Monday Night game.

Fried Rice-a-Roni is crazy...but maybe Asian would work. Both cities have areas called Chinatown. I haven't made Rice-a-Roni in years, and I've never made fried rice. Is fried rice really Chinese?


Well, I've learned one good thing. The martini was invented in San Francisco. Martinis make everything taste just fine. Ask my mom.

Week 1 = Epic Fail

I'm sharing the picture of the Colorado Burrito portion of the dinner. It was pretty good. I love enchilada sauce and cheese and tortillas. Those parts were all good.

If I make this again, and I might, I would reconsider the stew meat. I just don't care for it, but I also don't know enough about using a slow cooker to know what to substitute.

I also got to use my new convection oven/toaster/ broiler thingy, so that was cool.

My mistake? Baked beans and cornbread. Blech! Very unpleasant. Maybe because I overcooked the cornbread. Maybe because I don't really like baked beans, even when they are made with bacon.

Lessons from this meal -

• Plan ahead. I kept waiting for inspiration to hit. It never did. Then I panicked and went for easy. It's not that easy isn't good, but I wouldn't have been stuck with something half-assed if I had thought through my meal just a bit more. 
• Ignore Erica's suggestions. It's not that she's a bad cook,* but she will fuck you up if she gets the chance. Ask me why I hate green peas so much. 

Week 2 is Bears at 49ers. Two awesome food cities! I had better start planning now. 

VA

*If you get the chance, go camping with Erica and Chris sometime. They make an awesome campfire team.

NFL Week 1: Colts @ Broncos

vs. 

I just found out that I have to coach the little ones on Sunday night, so that means I'm breaking out the slow cooker. I think I'm going to make Chile Colorado Burritos. Recipes abound, but I like this one from Six Sisters' Stuff.


Now...what about Indianapolis? Corn salsa?

Help!

I almost forgot - I pick the Broncos. I don't really care for either team, but my dislike of Eli Manning has tarnished his brother for me.

Road Trip! Pt. 2

We had an awesome time at the fair. As a family, we experienced great triumph (Liz defeated the ropes course!), terrible fear (Adrian lost his glasses!), extreme exhaustion (Holy crap! How many people are they going to let in here?). And that weird, woozy feeling when your mouth is full of spit and you're pretty sure your going to get to taste your breakfast one more time.

Not that the cinnamon roll was bad. It was delicious. But I am officially retired from roller coasters.* I would rather drink beer.

Despite the near-vomit experience, my mom and I survived each other's company for a full 6.5 hours. And that's after a 5 hour car ride the day before. I'm going to give credit to the St. Paul Hamills, although it probably helped that the Exiled King of the Cheeseheads (my brother Barry) stayed home.

But enough of the family stuff. What about the food?

In an extremely unscientific study, here are the Top 5.

5. Blue Cheese and Corn Fritz from The Blue Barn

If it were up to me, these would be #1. Sweet corn, tangy bleu cheese and deep fried? What's not to love?

Perhaps my family needs to work on their collective palate. Most either didn't understand or couldn't taste the bleu cheese. I could, especially when I added the chimichurri sauce. But then again, I am a delicate and sensitive flower.

4. Caribbean Lobster Roll from Café Caribe

I've been on a lobster roll kick all summer, and this one topped them all for me, even if Adrian decided he didn't like lobster. I don't think he and I are related.

Seriously, look at that claw!

The lobster roll could maybe have been higher on the list, but it suffered from being the second to last snack of the day. However, Sue pointed out that this is a really flexible sandwich. New England plays anybody, and I'm buying lobster!

3. Chocolate Chip Cookies from Sweet Martha's Cookie Jar

I'm going to catch hell for not putting the Sweet Martha's cookies at number one. People love them. They are ooey gooey bites of sweetness and joy that take me back to my mom's kitchen.

Yes, they are fantastic. But wait. There is more deliciousness to come.

2. Pizza Tots from The Green Mill

Tots. Stuffed with pizza. Does anything else need to be said?

1. Korean BBQ Pork Collar with Kimchi Pickles from Famous Dave's

 We hit the trifecta!

The pork collar. which was tender enough to cut with a plastic fork, was smothered in a garlicky-ginger BBQ sauce. The pickles were surprisingly sweet but still had the spicy sour flavor you expect from kimchi. I loved them, Sue loved them, even Adrian wanted more. BBQ has to be on the list for the Sunday Night Game.

Now I just have to learn how to make barbeque...

Thanks to Mom, Sue, Adrian, and Liz for going to the fair with me. I had a great time - despite my face in this picture...

VA


*I am only semi-retired. I'll officially retire after Friday night at Great America! Do they have good food?