This is very, very cool. I can't eat regular hot dogs unless I'm ready to weather a migraine because of the msg / nitrates. However, that was not always the case. I grew up right down the road from Pulliams BBQ, where they are known for their famous hot dogs more than the BBQ if you do a poll among us locals. I, personally, love the BBQ just as much as the hot dogs, myself. So to see that Rachael Ray has deemed Pulliam's hot dogs 'Best in South', and among the top four in the NATION, awesome!
Pulliams is getting some great press recently. Just yesterday I found a local blog, Carpe Salem, that posted their Pulliams "experience". As I said, I grew up close by Pulliams. I probably started going up there in third or fourth grade. I remember thinking I was big stuff having my own money to get my own hot dog, and riding my bike up there all by myself to get it. You see, all they cook is the hot dogs and BBQ- you can get a drink, chips, or a pie to go with them, though. The hot dogs were wrapped in napkins, then bagged in a small brown paper bag that fit just right in the basket of my pink banana seat bike. My kids now devour the hot dogs and it wasn't very long ago dad and I were having a conversation about Pulliams celebrating one hundred years of business. I remember being so thankful to be able to pass such a simple, but special experience down to my children.
Now that I can't have hot dogs, I love the BBQ even more. Although, there are times I do get a craving...and when I do, I'll go to Pulliams and make that migraine count!
So, what is your relationship with hot dogs? Love them? Hate them? What's your favorite brand?
Last fall I found Oscar Myer's "MSG/Nitrate/Nitrite Free" line, and was very happy. I don't overdo it, though. It's nice to know when we're attending a hamburger / hot dog event, I can bring my own, affordable hot dogs.
What about you?
Showing posts with label yummy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label yummy. Show all posts
Friday, February 4, 2011
Thursday, April 16, 2009
379: Raising Foodies: Recipe Reviews
We haven't done a lot of cooking together in recent weeks, but I have been feeling out some new recipes. I must say, my crockpot is going to be very busy from now on. The biggest cooking feat I have accomplished is:
I made my own yogurt!
YES! You heard right! I done it the other day. You can find the instructions here. I started out with whole milk, but so intend on trying lowfat next time. Also, next time, I believe I'm going to get a vanilla bean to cook it with and see if that makes a difference with the taste. Yesterday I added a tbsp of sugar to a scant cup of strawberry puree, and blended that with 3 C of the yogurt. It become smoothie type consistency, and Jackson and I had it after church last night. Hannah turned her nose up to it, of course. Jackson drank her smoothie. He loves it. I agreed with Jay it had a tart tang to it, but I was ok with it, he was not.
I done a black beans and rice crockpot dish, and it was yummy. Hannah picked at it and overall refused it, and ate her accompanying orange for dinner with it. The second day, I shredded some Monterey Jack cheese, sprinkled it over a flour tortilla, melted it and rolled the beans and rice in it, and BINGO! It was a hit! Hannah loved it and Jackson had it on two different occasions. There was no waste with this very frugal recipe.
For breakfast one morning I done a black beans and eggs breakfast scramble, and it was YUMMY! I'll be fixing that again for sure. Again, frugal, and fast!
"Wendy why are you using so many black beans?"
I fixed half a pound in the crockpot ;o) I spoke a bit about that last week. It's so easy to do, and so much more cost effective than buying canned beans. You just wash them off, throw them in the crockpot, cover with water (3x the amount of beans), and go to bed! You just let it cook 8-10 hours and you're good to go!
I used the premise of this recipe for salmon and spinach. I filled the crock with spinach, laid the salmon fillets on top, added 1/4 C chicken broth around the sides and cooked for two- 1/2 hours on low. It was DELICIOUS. This was my own dinner Tuesday night after soccer practice for after the kids went to bed. They had super secret chicken nuggets. I read Jessica Seinfield's book Deceptively Delicious and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who has a child that is (especially psychologically) picky with food. I picked up my copy at Target for $9.08 to check your local store and request it if they're out of stock.
The chicken nuggets I made was real, cut up chicken breasts. I took 1 C spinach puree, mixed 1 egg in; in another bowl I mixed 1C panko breadcrumbs with 1/2 C flax meal, and some parmesean cheese. I submerged the chicken in the puree, and pulled the pieces out with a fork dropping them in the bread mixture (I used a small rectangle baking dish). I would roll around the pieces in the bread mixture til covered, and cooked it in a fry pan in batches. I just sprayed the pan with cooking spray, no oil, etc ...
Jackson walked in and said "whatcha fixing?", I said "chicken nuggets, here, have one" .. he pops it in his mouth, says "mmm, this is good", and walks out of the kitchen.
Hannah walks in, asks "whatcha fixing?" I say "chicken nuggets, go on" (I didn't want her to see the puree ... oh well ..) she sees the puree, and starts fanning her face saying "eewww I don't like it can I have a grilled cheese?" to which I say "No."
Granted, the recipe also calls for garlic and onion powder in the bread mixture and I didn't have any, so that would had made them much more flavorful. I was due at church soon, so I left as Jay was fixing their plates. (Jay was oblivious to my antics). I got back that night, and on the way back from checking out the explosion, I said "you left me some of those chicken nuggets didn't you?" and Jay said "they wiped it out". Hannah said "Momma I ate two plates of it!" Jackson said "Mom you knew I liked them". Jay said "the only thing I'd change is to cook them in bigger pieces more like chicken fingers instead of nuggets. They were good".
Ding Ding Ding! We have a winner! WOOOO-HOOOOO!!
Next on the list is using navy beans in a ranch dressing recipe, butternut squash snuck in some grilled cheese sammies, black bean burgers (for me), crock pot mahi mahi, crock pot Garlic chicken, and I think I'm gonna try this recipe with navy beans instead of black beans. The mind is running.
Run over to Grace's Kitchen and see what the younger set is up to!
I made my own yogurt!
YES! You heard right! I done it the other day. You can find the instructions here. I started out with whole milk, but so intend on trying lowfat next time. Also, next time, I believe I'm going to get a vanilla bean to cook it with and see if that makes a difference with the taste. Yesterday I added a tbsp of sugar to a scant cup of strawberry puree, and blended that with 3 C of the yogurt. It become smoothie type consistency, and Jackson and I had it after church last night. Hannah turned her nose up to it, of course. Jackson drank her smoothie. He loves it. I agreed with Jay it had a tart tang to it, but I was ok with it, he was not.
I done a black beans and rice crockpot dish, and it was yummy. Hannah picked at it and overall refused it, and ate her accompanying orange for dinner with it. The second day, I shredded some Monterey Jack cheese, sprinkled it over a flour tortilla, melted it and rolled the beans and rice in it, and BINGO! It was a hit! Hannah loved it and Jackson had it on two different occasions. There was no waste with this very frugal recipe.
For breakfast one morning I done a black beans and eggs breakfast scramble, and it was YUMMY! I'll be fixing that again for sure. Again, frugal, and fast!
"Wendy why are you using so many black beans?"
I fixed half a pound in the crockpot ;o) I spoke a bit about that last week. It's so easy to do, and so much more cost effective than buying canned beans. You just wash them off, throw them in the crockpot, cover with water (3x the amount of beans), and go to bed! You just let it cook 8-10 hours and you're good to go!
I used the premise of this recipe for salmon and spinach. I filled the crock with spinach, laid the salmon fillets on top, added 1/4 C chicken broth around the sides and cooked for two- 1/2 hours on low. It was DELICIOUS. This was my own dinner Tuesday night after soccer practice for after the kids went to bed. They had super secret chicken nuggets. I read Jessica Seinfield's book Deceptively Delicious and I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who has a child that is (especially psychologically) picky with food. I picked up my copy at Target for $9.08 to check your local store and request it if they're out of stock.
The chicken nuggets I made was real, cut up chicken breasts. I took 1 C spinach puree, mixed 1 egg in; in another bowl I mixed 1C panko breadcrumbs with 1/2 C flax meal, and some parmesean cheese. I submerged the chicken in the puree, and pulled the pieces out with a fork dropping them in the bread mixture (I used a small rectangle baking dish). I would roll around the pieces in the bread mixture til covered, and cooked it in a fry pan in batches. I just sprayed the pan with cooking spray, no oil, etc ...
Jackson walked in and said "whatcha fixing?", I said "chicken nuggets, here, have one" .. he pops it in his mouth, says "mmm, this is good", and walks out of the kitchen.
Hannah walks in, asks "whatcha fixing?" I say "chicken nuggets, go on" (I didn't want her to see the puree ... oh well ..) she sees the puree, and starts fanning her face saying "eewww I don't like it can I have a grilled cheese?" to which I say "No."
Granted, the recipe also calls for garlic and onion powder in the bread mixture and I didn't have any, so that would had made them much more flavorful. I was due at church soon, so I left as Jay was fixing their plates. (Jay was oblivious to my antics). I got back that night, and on the way back from checking out the explosion, I said "you left me some of those chicken nuggets didn't you?" and Jay said "they wiped it out". Hannah said "Momma I ate two plates of it!" Jackson said "Mom you knew I liked them". Jay said "the only thing I'd change is to cook them in bigger pieces more like chicken fingers instead of nuggets. They were good".
Ding Ding Ding! We have a winner! WOOOO-HOOOOO!!
Next on the list is using navy beans in a ranch dressing recipe, butternut squash snuck in some grilled cheese sammies, black bean burgers (for me), crock pot mahi mahi, crock pot Garlic chicken, and I think I'm gonna try this recipe with navy beans instead of black beans. The mind is running.Run over to Grace's Kitchen and see what the younger set is up to!
Thursday, March 19, 2009
raising foodies 3-19
This week, we're highlighting the night we made tuna pasta salad. That's a dish that is welcomed in our home, and Hannah enjoys making it. It's very easy, and frugal. I always make a big batch of it because it reheats well (for us weirdos) and you can eat it cool for lunch the next day.
We start out with half a bag of yolk free egg noodles, though probably any pasta will work- the texture of this pasta works well for our family. While you're boiling your noodles, boil some eggs- we usually boil six, because one will get eaten before it reaches the pot.
While the pasta and the eggs are boiling, chop some sweet gerkin pickles up. We like these pickles, so we usually use eight or ten of them (eating some along the way too). I leave some bigger chunks, and chop some smaller as well. When the eggs are ready, peel them, and chop them up in the manner you choose to chop. I love my egg slicer- I slice egg whites one way, then I turn them around and slice them again for a "chopped" size.
Finished product-
Salt and pepper individual servings to taste.
We start out with half a bag of yolk free egg noodles, though probably any pasta will work- the texture of this pasta works well for our family. While you're boiling your noodles, boil some eggs- we usually boil six, because one will get eaten before it reaches the pot.
While the pasta and the eggs are boiling, chop some sweet gerkin pickles up. We like these pickles, so we usually use eight or ten of them (eating some along the way too). I leave some bigger chunks, and chop some smaller as well. When the eggs are ready, peel them, and chop them up in the manner you choose to chop. I love my egg slicer- I slice egg whites one way, then I turn them around and slice them again for a "chopped" size.
Finished product-
Salt and pepper individual servings to taste.
Red Velvet Cookie-sandwiches
This project was inspired by Bakerella, if you have not read her blog, you MUST- just as soon as you finish reading this ;) It was a Valentine intended treat, but we made them the night of Valentines I think. I was very impressed with the number of cookies this recipe (using a cake mix) yielded. I believe, by using conservative tablespoon drops I ended up with a lot more than what she did, but it worked out well because the sandwiches were just big enough- not like those huge cookie sandwiches you see in the stores.
I like the idea of making smaller portions and getting seconds if you want, instead of having bigger portions and having the psychological struggle of wanting to "finish" so you "don't waste" any. Whichever way is fine, whatever works out best for you and your family.
I did find, however, that it is better to let your cream cheese filling fit in the fridge and set up a bit before icing the cookies, it spreads a lot better that way.
Hannah thought assembly was easy, although I needed to use my electric mixer for the actual mixing. That was a nice suprise though cause I remembered to pull out my new one with the digital display *g*
I like the idea of making smaller portions and getting seconds if you want, instead of having bigger portions and having the psychological struggle of wanting to "finish" so you "don't waste" any. Whichever way is fine, whatever works out best for you and your family.
I did find, however, that it is better to let your cream cheese filling fit in the fridge and set up a bit before icing the cookies, it spreads a lot better that way.
Hannah thought assembly was easy, although I needed to use my electric mixer for the actual mixing. That was a nice suprise though cause I remembered to pull out my new one with the digital display *g*
Friday, December 5, 2008
Birthdays and Holidays
I'm going to be in party planning mode for the next month. Hannah's birthday is the 20th, and Jackson's birthday is January 2nd. I need to figure out soon what we're going to do!! However, I found this most adorable crown tutorial, and I think I can manage hand sewing it, don't you think? I mean, Jay and I cross stitched quite a bit when we were dating. It wasn't bad. Hannah will be so surprised to find this on her birthday morning!!
I also found this method for making homemade applesauce ornaments. I saw directions here for bird patterns, too, so between the two of them I believe we have some good direction. I think we might try this this weekend. I like the idea of using glitter to decorate them.
Speaking of new traditions. With the kid's birthdays being so close to the holidays I constantly feel like I'm failing them with birthday-only related things. With their getting older and all, they're paying more attention to things now. Up until now, they've been perfectly contented with their $25-pick-what-you-want-within-reason allowances. (On their birthday, we go out and they pick whatever it is they want.)
It may sound hokey, but I wonder. In one of my favorite movies, The Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood (see trailor for a good LOL), Vivi (the mother of Sandra Bullock's character) had a tradition is "sneaking" a birthday cake into the kid's rooms and waking them up first thing on their birthday mornings. They'd have their own little "party" to start out the day, blowing out candles, etc ... This is the first year they will NOT be in school on their birthdays! They will get out of school the day before Hannah's (bday Sat. 12-20), and they'll go back to school three days after Jackson's (bday Fri. 1-2).
I saw Bakerella's idea of making mini-double layered cakes using her moist yellow cake recipe she put together. Naturaally I'm only capable of doing the "messy" design, but still.
What do you think of starting that tradition this year for something new?
Oops, gotta run- here they come ;)
I also found this method for making homemade applesauce ornaments. I saw directions here for bird patterns, too, so between the two of them I believe we have some good direction. I think we might try this this weekend. I like the idea of using glitter to decorate them.
Speaking of new traditions. With the kid's birthdays being so close to the holidays I constantly feel like I'm failing them with birthday-only related things. With their getting older and all, they're paying more attention to things now. Up until now, they've been perfectly contented with their $25-pick-what-you-want-within-reason allowances. (On their birthday, we go out and they pick whatever it is they want.)
It may sound hokey, but I wonder. In one of my favorite movies, The Divine Secrets of the YaYa Sisterhood (see trailor for a good LOL), Vivi (the mother of Sandra Bullock's character) had a tradition is "sneaking" a birthday cake into the kid's rooms and waking them up first thing on their birthday mornings. They'd have their own little "party" to start out the day, blowing out candles, etc ... This is the first year they will NOT be in school on their birthdays! They will get out of school the day before Hannah's (bday Sat. 12-20), and they'll go back to school three days after Jackson's (bday Fri. 1-2).
I saw Bakerella's idea of making mini-double layered cakes using her moist yellow cake recipe she put together. Naturaally I'm only capable of doing the "messy" design, but still.
What do you think of starting that tradition this year for something new?
Oops, gotta run- here they come ;)
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Christmas Cookies
Will you be making cookies this year during the Christmas season? I usually make my pumpkin chocolate chip cookies the day of our fall festival, at the kid's now-former school. It's the provate school that is associated with our church, so we were still planning on going (my working in it ..), like usual. It's tradition for us, been doing it for five years now!
But the week of the festival, Jay's grandmother passed away. The funeral was the day of the festival, and it was raining, so we did not get to make it to the destival. Due to the funeral events (cooking, planning, etc ..) I didnt get to bake the cookies like I usually do. So guess what? It's technically not fall yet ;) Oh you didn't know that? It's not fall until my cookies are totally eaten, LOL
I'm going to reformat the recipe this year to make it more healthful, too.
I'd also like to do some cut out cookies and decorate them with the royal icing with the kids, I think they'd like that a lot. Have you ever done that?
Have you ever baked cutout cookies and decorated them?
Have you ever been to a cookie swap?
What is your favorite Christmas cookie?
Speaking of sweets. I found a new blog "Bakerella", and I am in AWE of this woman's talent! The photography on this blog is mesmorizing, not to mention the sheer yumminess of it all. She also has a giveaway going on through December 6th, too. Check it out!
But the week of the festival, Jay's grandmother passed away. The funeral was the day of the festival, and it was raining, so we did not get to make it to the destival. Due to the funeral events (cooking, planning, etc ..) I didnt get to bake the cookies like I usually do. So guess what? It's technically not fall yet ;) Oh you didn't know that? It's not fall until my cookies are totally eaten, LOL
I'm going to reformat the recipe this year to make it more healthful, too.
I'd also like to do some cut out cookies and decorate them with the royal icing with the kids, I think they'd like that a lot. Have you ever done that?
We usually have a cookies swap for my Sunday school class, but I don't believe one is planned for this year. Maybe I'll host one. That would be so much fun! Have you ever been to a cookie swap?
Have you ever baked cutout cookies and decorated them?
Have you ever been to a cookie swap?
What is your favorite Christmas cookie?
Speaking of sweets. I found a new blog "Bakerella", and I am in AWE of this woman's talent! The photography on this blog is mesmorizing, not to mention the sheer yumminess of it all. She also has a giveaway going on through December 6th, too. Check it out!
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