Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Our Kitchen
Most people use their kitchens for cooking and eating. Since we eat out most meals, this is what we use our kitchen table for.
Sunday, July 26, 2009
0 - 2
I have not posted about any new restaurants lately, because we have not been any place new that was worthy of writing about. I bought some gift certificates from restaurants.com this week and we decided to use a couple of them this weekend. Note to self - Don't try two new places in one weekend. Makes for a boring weekend restaurant wise.
I have chosen not to name the restaurants because they are both independently owned. Not that anyone is going to read my blog and not go.
Friday night we went to a Mexican restaurant in Flower Mound. The write up about it was so good. "Special spice blend", blah blah blah. That is exactly what it was. BLAH. When you eat Mexican food, you are going for flavor. Very bland!
Saturday night was even worse. I will not list the city because there are only 2 restaurants in the city. The first warning sign that is was going to be bad, was the parking lot. 8:00 p.m. on a Saturday night and it is empty. Next sign, you walk into the restaurant, and you smell cleaner and no food. Next sign, only one other table had customers. Next sign, there is something wrong with the AC and several people are standing around with buckets on chairs and draining the AC. Next sign, the menu is HUGE. There is no way that they can make all of this food fresh.
Pops had chicken fried steak. I had pork chops. The food was comparable to Denney's. No bread. No refills on drinks. Mac and cheese was terrible. How can you mess up Mac and cheese? I felt really sorry for the owner and employees. My suggestion - cut your loses now and close the doors. You don't have a chance. It was sad to me to think these people put their life savings into this place that will not succeed.
I always wonder why someone will move into a closed restaurant space and think they can succeed. The previous place had good food and good crowds, but was forced to close.
Oh well, I guess I just started my "diet" a little early. For the next seven days, I am trying the "cookie diet". I ordered the "special" cookies that you eat during the day and real food at night. Supposedly that is how the "Hollywood" skinny people lose weight. If not, all I have lost is satisfaction for a week and $60.
I have chosen not to name the restaurants because they are both independently owned. Not that anyone is going to read my blog and not go.
Friday night we went to a Mexican restaurant in Flower Mound. The write up about it was so good. "Special spice blend", blah blah blah. That is exactly what it was. BLAH. When you eat Mexican food, you are going for flavor. Very bland!
Saturday night was even worse. I will not list the city because there are only 2 restaurants in the city. The first warning sign that is was going to be bad, was the parking lot. 8:00 p.m. on a Saturday night and it is empty. Next sign, you walk into the restaurant, and you smell cleaner and no food. Next sign, only one other table had customers. Next sign, there is something wrong with the AC and several people are standing around with buckets on chairs and draining the AC. Next sign, the menu is HUGE. There is no way that they can make all of this food fresh.
Pops had chicken fried steak. I had pork chops. The food was comparable to Denney's. No bread. No refills on drinks. Mac and cheese was terrible. How can you mess up Mac and cheese? I felt really sorry for the owner and employees. My suggestion - cut your loses now and close the doors. You don't have a chance. It was sad to me to think these people put their life savings into this place that will not succeed.
I always wonder why someone will move into a closed restaurant space and think they can succeed. The previous place had good food and good crowds, but was forced to close.
Oh well, I guess I just started my "diet" a little early. For the next seven days, I am trying the "cookie diet". I ordered the "special" cookies that you eat during the day and real food at night. Supposedly that is how the "Hollywood" skinny people lose weight. If not, all I have lost is satisfaction for a week and $60.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Ice Cream Recipe
Well, I think I have made a few people hungry for ice cream. I am thinking that I need to contact Williams Sonoma and make sure I get my commission.
I have been playing around with some recipes and here is what I have come up with.
Basic Ice Cream Base
1 Can Eagle Brand Condensed Milk
2 C. Half and Half
2 C. Milk
This makes the perfect amount for a 1 1/2 quart ice cream maker. I am not a vanilla person, but if I were to make vanilla, I would probably add a couple of teaspoons of vanilla to this mixture.
I have used the low fat condensed milk and fat free half and half. My only "issue" is that I think it leaves a funky aftertaste. No one seemed to notice it.
For a fruity ice cream, add about 1 cup of pureed peaches, strawberries, bananas, etc. I added about 1/2 cup of sugar while it was in the food processor.
The family tells me the favorite is the coffee ice cream that I made. We love Mud Pie around our house is this is my version.
I microwaved about 1/2 C. milk for about 1 minute. To that, I added about 3 heaping tablespoons of instant coffee and stirred until it was dissolved. I added the coffee mixture to the vanilla mixture until it tasted "coffee enough". During the last five minutes, I added crushed Oreo's and toasted almonds. Really good.
Enjoy!
I have been playing around with some recipes and here is what I have come up with.
Basic Ice Cream Base
1 Can Eagle Brand Condensed Milk
2 C. Half and Half
2 C. Milk
This makes the perfect amount for a 1 1/2 quart ice cream maker. I am not a vanilla person, but if I were to make vanilla, I would probably add a couple of teaspoons of vanilla to this mixture.
I have used the low fat condensed milk and fat free half and half. My only "issue" is that I think it leaves a funky aftertaste. No one seemed to notice it.
For a fruity ice cream, add about 1 cup of pureed peaches, strawberries, bananas, etc. I added about 1/2 cup of sugar while it was in the food processor.
The family tells me the favorite is the coffee ice cream that I made. We love Mud Pie around our house is this is my version.
I microwaved about 1/2 C. milk for about 1 minute. To that, I added about 3 heaping tablespoons of instant coffee and stirred until it was dissolved. I added the coffee mixture to the vanilla mixture until it tasted "coffee enough". During the last five minutes, I added crushed Oreo's and toasted almonds. Really good.
Enjoy!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
My New Toy
I have a new toy, and it is probably not a good thing. Most things that I do have a story behind them, and my new toy does as well.
For the past few weeks, Chick-Fil-A has been selling peach shakes. I absolutely love homemade peach ice cream. Several people told me how good these were, so I tried one last Monday. I have to say, I was so disappointed. I don't know if they got the mixture wrong, or what, but I was expecting it to taste like homemade peach ice cream, and it didn't.
When I get a craving for something, it won't go away until it is satisfied. Pops said, "Well, you just need to make some." We haven't had an ice cream maker for a few years because they are SO messy. I got to thinking and decided to check out the new ice cream makers that don't require ice or salt.
Thursday, I went to Williams Sonoma and bought one. I hate to say it, but I absolutely love it.
I came home and made enough of the basic mixture for 3 batches of ice cream. Ice cream every night is probably not a good thing. I made fresh strawberry Thursday night, fresh peach on Saturday and tonight I am making one of our family favorites; coffee ice cream with toasted almonds and crushed Oreos.
I couldn't wait to tell my sister about it, and she came over yesterday to taste the peach. She went out and bought one and is making ice cream right now.
Dangerous!
For the past few weeks, Chick-Fil-A has been selling peach shakes. I absolutely love homemade peach ice cream. Several people told me how good these were, so I tried one last Monday. I have to say, I was so disappointed. I don't know if they got the mixture wrong, or what, but I was expecting it to taste like homemade peach ice cream, and it didn't.
When I get a craving for something, it won't go away until it is satisfied. Pops said, "Well, you just need to make some." We haven't had an ice cream maker for a few years because they are SO messy. I got to thinking and decided to check out the new ice cream makers that don't require ice or salt.
Thursday, I went to Williams Sonoma and bought one. I hate to say it, but I absolutely love it.
I came home and made enough of the basic mixture for 3 batches of ice cream. Ice cream every night is probably not a good thing. I made fresh strawberry Thursday night, fresh peach on Saturday and tonight I am making one of our family favorites; coffee ice cream with toasted almonds and crushed Oreos.
I couldn't wait to tell my sister about it, and she came over yesterday to taste the peach. She went out and bought one and is making ice cream right now.
Dangerous!
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Car Repair NIGHTMARE
This is probably not interesting to anyone at all, but I had to write it to VENT. I have been so irritated for the past few days.
It all started Sunday night. We finished dinner early and were home before dark and I was talking about being bored (ha ha). Finally about 9:00 p.m., I decided to change clothes and watch Real Housewives of New Jersey - The Reunion Show. The phone rang. It was Jordan and she was at Walgreens with a dead car. We drove to Ft. Worth to see if we could jump the battery. We bought a new battery at Sears last summer.
The car was DEAD. We called a wrecker and decided to tow it to Sears. We took Jordan home and waited for the wrecker. We got home about 11:30. Well, I wasn't bored anymore. On Mondays, Jordan has to be in Aledo for work at 6:30 a.m., so Pops got up at 5:00, picked Jordan up, drover her to Aledo, waited for 3 hours for her to finish, and dropped her off at her Ft. Worth office. My job was to take care of her car at Sears.
They called me at 8:15 and said they would look it and call us back. Finally at 1:00, they had not called back, so I called them. It was a bad battery and it was ready. Great. Pops had a dentist appointment at 2, but I thought we could get it to Ft. Worth and he could make it back on time.
I got in Jordan's car and when I backed up, I knew we were in trouble. It sounded like it was going to blow up and would hardly move. Unfortunately, Pops had already taken off and my cell phone was in his car. I made it a couple of exits and found a pay phone. I called him and told him to turn around, and we headed to our regular mechanic, RC Automotive in Hurst. We have used Robert for many years and highly recommend him. Very honest and great service.
Robert finished up with what he thought was wrong, called us to come get it, but when he backed it out, it was not good, so he called back and told us not to come. Eventually, he figured out what it needed and fixed it. Janelle and I had to go pick it up and drive it to Ft. Worth. Jordan's car - done.
Now for my car. Took it to the dealership for routine maintenance and a warranty issue. They always give you a loan car. Usually a nice one - but I got the crap car. I go to pick it up and they did not fix a missing piece on my wheel or even check into it. What they did do was rotate the tires and forget to balance them. On the way home, the car was shaking all over the place.
Tuesday, I go to Discount Tires to have them balanced. Not only were they out of balance bad, one of the tires had a nail in it. It is possible that the nail got in my tire on the way home from the dealership, but highly unlikely.
Since Discount is a dealer for my wheels, I was going to get them to check on ordering a replacement center cap. They couldn't locate one, so I decided to go to the dealership that I bought them from. I called ahead to make sure the Vogue Tyre guy would be in. He called me back and said he would.
Get to the dealership at 1:45. He is no where in sight. Someone calls him and he says he will have his assistant help me. 30 minutes later, no one in sight. Finally, I try to get help from someone else. He takes me to another waiting area. Finally, after stopping to flirt with the girl at the desk for 5 minutes, he tells me they don't have it and will have to get it from California. The Vogue guy will call me when it is in. The Vogue guy doesn't even have my name or number, so how is he going to call me????
I give him my info and asked him to have the Vogue guy call me. I emailed the Vogue guy when I got home. STILL no return call or email.
The only thing I do know is that the tiny little plastic cap will be $50 - $60 whenever I can get someone to help me. I thought it would be maybe $5 at the most. RIDICULOUS!!!!
It all started Sunday night. We finished dinner early and were home before dark and I was talking about being bored (ha ha). Finally about 9:00 p.m., I decided to change clothes and watch Real Housewives of New Jersey - The Reunion Show. The phone rang. It was Jordan and she was at Walgreens with a dead car. We drove to Ft. Worth to see if we could jump the battery. We bought a new battery at Sears last summer.
The car was DEAD. We called a wrecker and decided to tow it to Sears. We took Jordan home and waited for the wrecker. We got home about 11:30. Well, I wasn't bored anymore. On Mondays, Jordan has to be in Aledo for work at 6:30 a.m., so Pops got up at 5:00, picked Jordan up, drover her to Aledo, waited for 3 hours for her to finish, and dropped her off at her Ft. Worth office. My job was to take care of her car at Sears.
They called me at 8:15 and said they would look it and call us back. Finally at 1:00, they had not called back, so I called them. It was a bad battery and it was ready. Great. Pops had a dentist appointment at 2, but I thought we could get it to Ft. Worth and he could make it back on time.
I got in Jordan's car and when I backed up, I knew we were in trouble. It sounded like it was going to blow up and would hardly move. Unfortunately, Pops had already taken off and my cell phone was in his car. I made it a couple of exits and found a pay phone. I called him and told him to turn around, and we headed to our regular mechanic, RC Automotive in Hurst. We have used Robert for many years and highly recommend him. Very honest and great service.
Robert finished up with what he thought was wrong, called us to come get it, but when he backed it out, it was not good, so he called back and told us not to come. Eventually, he figured out what it needed and fixed it. Janelle and I had to go pick it up and drive it to Ft. Worth. Jordan's car - done.
Now for my car. Took it to the dealership for routine maintenance and a warranty issue. They always give you a loan car. Usually a nice one - but I got the crap car. I go to pick it up and they did not fix a missing piece on my wheel or even check into it. What they did do was rotate the tires and forget to balance them. On the way home, the car was shaking all over the place.
Tuesday, I go to Discount Tires to have them balanced. Not only were they out of balance bad, one of the tires had a nail in it. It is possible that the nail got in my tire on the way home from the dealership, but highly unlikely.
Since Discount is a dealer for my wheels, I was going to get them to check on ordering a replacement center cap. They couldn't locate one, so I decided to go to the dealership that I bought them from. I called ahead to make sure the Vogue Tyre guy would be in. He called me back and said he would.
Get to the dealership at 1:45. He is no where in sight. Someone calls him and he says he will have his assistant help me. 30 minutes later, no one in sight. Finally, I try to get help from someone else. He takes me to another waiting area. Finally, after stopping to flirt with the girl at the desk for 5 minutes, he tells me they don't have it and will have to get it from California. The Vogue guy will call me when it is in. The Vogue guy doesn't even have my name or number, so how is he going to call me????
I give him my info and asked him to have the Vogue guy call me. I emailed the Vogue guy when I got home. STILL no return call or email.
The only thing I do know is that the tiny little plastic cap will be $50 - $60 whenever I can get someone to help me. I thought it would be maybe $5 at the most. RIDICULOUS!!!!
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