Archive for the ‘Fast & Easy’ Category
Good evening, Dear Readers:
Well, I’ve had a busy day, not all of it good, and I don’t feel like doing anything else. And then I remembered that I hadn’t written a blog post in a while. Good heavens, more than two weeks! My apologies.
Now, did you make it to McDonald’s for a free coffee? Not bad, is it? I brought my own Sweet N’ Low, and nobody cared. They put the cream in the coffee FOR YOU, and I had my back turned when I added sweetener. Drank my happy coffee all the way home. Twice. It’s pretty good, just be aware of the sugar/Equal thing, and bring your own if you want different. The small coffee is regularly $1.39, and I think the larger is about 20 cents more; I didn’t look too close. But if you need a coffee, and there’s no Starbucks nearby, (or like my family, you hate Starbucks), it’s pretty good. I might have a coffee there more often, and as my late grandmother would tell you, “Don’t knock it.”
I’ve got a lot of things going on, so I’ll fill you in some of it. First, Neighbor K and I are getting up early and walking. When I say “early,” I do mean “early.” As in 4:00 am Central Daylight Time. I am not joking–we get up and go walking in the 4:00 am hour. And walk for 30 to 45 minutes. She takes out the Daft Pug for a quickie and then we start walking. We’ve seen some, shall we say, interesting things on our early morning treks, as well as had a really good early start to our day. She goes to work, but sometimes, I go back to sleep.
I’m working on not doing that anymore. But I have gotten lots done when I get up and stay up.
We started last Monday, and while I got up and went, she didn’t sleep well that night, so I was on my own. I didn’t waste the chance, though–I went back inside, did morning prayers and chanted for a while, then went out about 5:45 and walked. Last lap involved me dropping off my hand weights and going straight up the street to McDonald’s for a free decaf on the last day. (I’d walked there on Sunday too, but didn’t walk 2 or 3 miles beforehand.) Last Friday it rained when a cold front came through, so I did the same thing I did Monday, and the rain was over by 5:45 am.
Second: the New Orleans Saints won yesterday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I’m only a real football fan when the Saints are in the playoffs on the way to the Superbowl. I was, indeed, in shock when they went the last time, so I just wait for it to happen again. They’ll play the Houston Texans this week, I think, so we’ll see what happens.
Irony: a lot of folks who came to Houston after Katrina stayed after Katrina. I see a split loyalty at that game, and probably a lot of torn emotions. But I’m not a football aficionado, so I’m not so worried.
In other news. . . .
You remember years ago there used to be the SAVE Club, where every month you’d get a box filled with new and different products for you to try? (I got them for a while in the early 80’s for a while, right after I got married–the first time.) They were about $10, if I remember correctly, and they sent coupons and new and interesting products like Simple Green cleaner and. . .ramen noodles. Yes, I’m not kidding. At the time, ramen noodles were a new gourmet item, and were at least $1 a packet. Hard to believe that they’re now about a quarter, (in health food stores they might be more but healthier ingredients) but times change. I can’t find any info about it on the web, but I’m sure it was called the SAVE club.
Then in in 2000, there came StartSampling.com, and getting curious, I discovered that I still have an account and can still earn points and stuff. I haven’t thought about that site in years, until just now. I donated a bunch of my points after 9/11. In fact, the account still had the GER’s house as the address; I’ve since updated that. Oh, dear. . . .
Now, in 2014, there are so many subscription boxes to choose from. Makeup. Jewelry. Dogs. Cats. Clothes. Handymen/Handywomen (tools and such.) “Favorites” picked by minor celebrities. (I got Cosmetique a few times, too.) Even a monthly box for. . .cyclic needs, if you know what I mean. I kid you not. Check out FindSubscriptionBoxes.com if you’re interested in seeing more of these. You can also find lots of info and pictures on these subscriptions on Pinterest.
I haven’t thought about this kind of thing in years, and had no idea it had expanded so much.
I know what you’re thinking: “Why are you bringing this up, Amy, and what does this have to do with all things foodie?” Well. . . .
You like to have delicious nibbles? Looking for something new? Then Graze.com is the place for you.
No, I did not get paid for this. I’m just passing along info. But it’s great!! Neighbor K said she was considering giving them a try, since she got a flier at work for them. I told her to go for it.
My flier came from a magazine a week or two ago, and said that the first box was free. Woo hoo! You can cancel at anytime, and even speed up or slow down the delivery of the boxes, all online.
How could I resist? I sent for one. It arrived on Saturday. Oh, boy! (Oh, and they fit right in the mailbox.)
What’s inside?
Carefully I turned it over and popped open the package:
My Graze treats are here!
Inside, you find:
Surprise! (Well, it’s always a surprise, that’s the fun of it)
Take a closer look:
Four delicious choices!
Graze.com wants to revitalize snacking with healthier choices like the ones you see here. No GMO, no HFCS, no artificial flavors or colors, and no trans-fat, either. They were about a cup of each, I think, selected according to what I told them I prefer–gluten free, of course, and one or two other criteria. However, there are 90 different type of snacks, and you can “like,” “love,” or “trash” them. You tell them what you like and they send you healthier, portion-controlled snacks from what you would like and what you tell them. You can get a box weekly, bi-weekly, or more often, just go online and tell them, it’s simple.
You can read more about the people and the company here.
Graze says it’s not a good choice for folks with allergies, because they can’t guarantee everything to be allergy-free. Be forewarned if you’re allergic.
The packaging is all made from recycled materials, including the literature that comes with it. Don’t just toss it, recycle it all! However, for those of us who like to garden, take a look at what else you can do:
Portable planting! (With the clean, empty plastic containers in it.) Start your seeds here.
All of these little snacks were great–because I nibbled them all day on Saturday. Yeah, yeah, I know–but I also cleaned up the HeatCageKitchen garden, and dug up some roots of the “houseplant gone wild” that me and Neighbor K battle occasionally, plus did housework and laundry. The maintenance guy cut most of that mess down and took it away, but I dug up as much of the root system as I could and took out another weed that was masquerading as a plant in the monkey grass. So, I was workin’ it, and nibbled off and on. See what I did?
And now, it’s neat again.
I lost the strawberry plant that was giving me those weird little frankenberries, and I will need to dig through those white buckets on the left to see if any garlic actually grew. Basil’s gone, but as you can see, there is a large Meyer lemon on the tree on the right starting to turn yellow, and I’ve got not only a new little bell pepper at the top of the pepper plant, but another little Hatch/Anaheim chile pepper on that plant. I trimmed the mint down, but with watering, it will be overgrowing again soon. (Closeups in an upcoming post.)
Yes, the snacks were very good. The Super Berry Detox was nice and sweet, and so was the Toffee Apple, although it had sugar in the small amount of toffee sauce. Never had that before, much as I like apples. I won’t be buying goji berries anytime soon, but if they send it again, no problem. The nuts, well, they were nuts, and I like just about everything but chestnuts, so no complaint there, either. The salt and vinegar taste is a little strong next to the unsalted ones, but I got used to that, too.
Once you try them, go back to the website and tell them that you “like,” “love” or “trash” them. They’ll send them occasionally, regularly, or not at all based on that little rating system and how often you elect to get a “nibblebox.”
Oh, yes, well. . .I went to cancel it, and the second shipment is already on its way. I’ll cancel it after that’s done. I’ve “snoozed” them so they don’t come for a while. Or, I could just keep snoozing it and get one occasionally if I want one. I’ll think about that for a while.
You’re probably wondering how my my little “nibblebox” cost, aren’t you? Well, the first one is free, and subsequent boxes are $6.99. That makes each snack about $1.75 each. If you work in an office, how much do you spend getting something from a vending machine? Is anything in that vending machine as healthy? Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn’t. (With all due respect to folks who run and service said vending machines, some of us prefer healthier fare, we’re not judging you.) You can have the box sent to your office, or to your home, and the little sealed plastic packets fit nicely in a purse, lunch bag, briefcase or desk drawer. You can also gift a box to other people at any time from your online account–they get a box in the mail, there’s a gift card with it, it doesn’t cost extra, and they’ll be happy when they see that you sent it.
How cool is that? Don’t know what to get for a birthday or a special occasion? With a week’s lead time, you can send a tasty “nibblebox” and the recipient will know you care.
Oh, and the holidays, including Christmas, are coming, so keep Graze in mind, OK? They are soon planning something called the “Big Box,” consisting of 5 larger, resealable bags of different snacks; those are $25 a box. But you have to join the waiting list for that–but when they’re ready, that’s also a good thing for a holiday gift.
Now, if you’re interested in trying out Graze’s neat “nibbleboxes,” here’s what you do–go to the website and where it says in small print under the “Get Started Now” button, “have a special code? enter it here,” you put this code into the popup field: AMYO2RN7B. Why would you do that? That’s the code on my packing slip to give to friends to get your first and fifth box for free. No kidding–fifth box is free if you decide to keep going with it. Within a week, you could start nibbling!
Now I don’t expect that hundreds of people will try to use the code, but I figure a few might consider it, so I’m putting it here for anyone who might like to try a “nibblebox.” Not sure how many times it will work, either. I think I get points or something, but mostly I figure a few of my readers just might be interested, so why not?
Again, no commitment, and cancel anytime. But you just might like it, too. What would be wrong with that?
Well, it’s getting late, and the 4 am wake-up alarm happens before you know it.
I’ll try to write again real soon, so I can tell you about the delicious baked pear, and a few other things. Oh, and more gluten-free stuff, too.
Happy Snacking!
Good evening, Dear Readers:
You know, sometimes we get ideas that seem like they’ll work, until we try them. Sometimes those ideas stay in our heads for years before we finally get around to trying them.
Sometimes they work. Sometimes they don’t. But you never know until you try, right?
Take my favorite coffee flavor, Chocolate Raspberry. I had the idea to make cappuccino and flavor it with chocolate and raspberry. It was gonna be great!
Well, I tried it this morning. . .it was OK. Nothing special. The espresso overpowers the flavors, at least, these two. It works out well with the hazelnut flavoring, though. Maybe I’ll give it some more thought.
Anyway. . . .
Well, I had to do it. Tonight I made some of that delicious Fall Broccoli Salad I told you about, via The Texas Pioneer Woman.
Since I live in a Houston suburb and not on a working farm (yet), I went to Target to get the ingredients. That’s OK, they had everything I didn’t.
Holy Shish Kebab.
Oh, yes, oh, yes, oh, yes!
Now, I hope Janette (aka The Texas Pioneer Woman) doesn’t mind, but I made it just slightly different. Partly because I forgot to put a little onion in it. But I’m getting tired, so I forgot. I was going to “do it later,” but you know how that goes.
The other thing I changed was the dressing. I did use the vegan egg-free mayo I wrote about last week, primarily because it tastes like the real thing. (I taste-tested it first with the end of a spoon, of course.) I just didn’t feel like making my own mayo, so I used the Just Mayo. Of course, it’s an 8 ounce bottle, and the dressing takes half a cup. I won’t use the rest of it quite so fast.
I also used Bragg’s apple cider vinegar instead of the white vinegar, (not quite as sharp) and instead of white sugar, you know I used. . .Somersweet.
Now I did have to cook up some bacon, so I did the easy way–in the toaster oven. On a cooling rack in a baking sheet, 400 degrees, and watch it, because it can burn pretty quickly and then you have to start over. I had to cook the bacon in two batches, though.
A side note: if you’re thinking about getting a countertop (aka toaster) oven, let me put this bug in your ear: 110v vs 220v. If you’re going to do what I do with it, make sure you get one that’s big enough to roast a chicken in and has a nice sized broiler pan. Don’t get one that doesn’t do more than toast bread and Pop-Tarts.
Anyway.
After I chopped all the broccoli and washed it, I left the colander in the sink to drain a bit more. I mixed up the sliced almonds and raisins in the big mixing bowl, then mixed the dressing. Once the bacon started crisping, I took it out, let it cool, then crumbled it all up in to the almonds and raisins. When the bacon was all done and crumbled in, I dumped that into the dressing bowl and mixed it up with a spatula. Then I shook out the broccoli one more time to get out as much water as I could, added it to the big bowl, then dumped the dressing mixture into the broccoli,, and started mixing some more.
I’ll try it once with the onion, maybe some green onions from the back patio, but I’m tellin’ ya, this was WAY TOO GOOD!!
I texted Neighbor K to see if she’d like some for lunch tomorrow, but she didn’t answer, so I’m guessing she’s already hit the sack. I packed it up in containers and stuck it in the fridge. When she reads this she will secretly be mad that she missed out on a healthy salad with bacon in it. But this weekend, Neighbor K will have the recipe to make it for that big, tall boyfriend of hers, and maybe even give a little to Daft Pug.
This weekend would be a good one to make this salad for family and friends, or if you’re like me, just yourself. But go try it, because it’s pretty easy and the flavor is well worth the bacon cooking.
I wonder if the Gomez Family Farm hosts vacationers and wanna-be cowboys. If I ever have the chance, I’m going to go on a vacation somewhere that I can do that. But don’t look for me to attend rodeos, OK? I’d rather go see Def Leppard or find myself at a jazz concert.
Make some of this salad this weekend for you and yours. It’s delish, whatever you sweeten it with.
Happy Dining!
Good morning, Dear Readers:
With the early fall weather we’re having, I thought you might enjoy a post from The Texas Pioneer Woman, who published this delicious recipe just this morning.
Now if you’ve ever been to Sweet Tomatoes, they serve a broccoli mix called “Joan’s Broccoli Madness.” Oh, it’s SO GOOD!! But I never think of how to go about making it in my own kitchen.
Thanks, Janette!
You can read more about Janette Gomez, The Texas Pioneer Woman, here. I don’t know exactly where in Texas she lives, but I’m so glad we can claim her as our own.
Happy Wednesday!!
Good evening, Dear Readers:
Sorry it’s been so long since I wrote. My other website is up and running, and I’m overdue to write another blog post for that one. The focus is technology, not cooking, so it’s a little more work, ’cause I gotta READ, not write off-the-cuff like I do here. I do research for this blog too, but I know more about cooking and baking than I do about Big Data and Cloud Computing. But hey–cooking and technology are important, and frequently they overlap.
Especially when I get a new catalog from Sur la Table. If you don’t want to see really expensive and complicated coffee machines, don’t click on that link.
I have some updates on the garden to share soon, but I definitely need to get out there and weed some more before I show you any pictures. The second Anaheim chile pepper was used Sunday for this delicious dish, and the Meyer lemons are starting to turn yellow. JUST starting, like limes, but it might be a month before harvest time.
The other day I put one of my cookbooks back and I saw a book given to me by a guy I used to date. He lived on a boat, and he had to say goodbye one day, but I did find out that boat sank during Hurricane Ike in 2008 and he’s a land-lubber now. No, I don’t want to see him again, but he did give me a copy of The Yachting Cookbook. No kidding. It’s out of print, but Amazon still has copies from individuals for sale. All 14 reviews are 5-star, and everyone raves about how great the recipes are–both in simplicity and taste.
I’ve never used it. I’ve thought about it, though.
After flipping through it again this weekend, I found one recipe I’m going to try soon–Eggs in Hell on page 141. Supposed to be good for folks after a night of overindulging. Also included are tips, like the one on the same page:
“While cruising, the traditional way to thank your host is by picking up the tab for dinner ashore one night.”
Helpful stuff like that. I’ll let you know if I try it.
And for those of you who want the latest and greatest healthy cookbooks, here you go:
Let’s get excited about. . .kale. . . .
Kale’s OK, but no, I can’t get excited about it. But if you are just wild about kale, go get the book and get cooking. I have been trolling through Barnes & Noble occasionally, and just found it recently. Maybe I need a life.
These days I wonder what my late Grandmother O’Donnell would think about all the stuff available in American grocery stores. She passed away in February 2005, six months before Hurricane Katrina wiped out her house (it was long ago sold.) My grandmother took me to the grocery when I was little, like 4-5-6, and that’s how I learned to grocery shop (because Moms know grocery stores are the worst place to take kids.) Yes, these were the halcyon days of Suzy Homemaker and the Easy-Bake Oven.
Like quinoa, chia seeds are one of those things we didn’t have at Schweggmann’s or Winn-Dixie, and I’m not sure anyone would have known what to do with them anyway. But I, like many of my contemporaries, remember when they introduced Chia Pets. I’ve never had one, but maybe one day I’ll get one and try it out. (No, you don’t need to send me one!)
A couple of years ago, I ordered something online that came with a sample of chia seeds, exactly one quarter cup. Did not know what to do with it, but a little clicking around found this recipe for Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Pudding Loved it, never made it again, but I’ll make it again one day. Later, on a trip through Trader Joe’s one day I found a bag for about $4 or $5, so I got some, even though I didn’t know what I was going to do with them.
I’ve since found them in Kroger for a better price.
Kroger’s brand of chia seeds. Bigger bag for less money.
And then Giada de Laurentiis’ new book came out, and I found another use for chia seeds. I made some of the Chia Seed Pudding on page 29, and happened to have most of the ingredients handy and gave it a try.
Giada’s Chia Seed Pudding
Because I had such long days, I took this to work and had half of it about 10:00 am, and the rest about 4:30 pm. It was pretty good, too. However, keep reading. . . .
Chia seeds are kinda funny–they’re little bitty, but leave them in liquid for a while and they plump up and make a pudding-like texture. (If you put them in a smoothie and don’t consume the smoothie right away, I think you can guess what will happen to the texture your smoothie.) However, chia seeds are very nutritious, and can also do a stand-in for other thickeners in some things. They’re also filling with lots of fiber–but no phytoestrogen like the celebrated flax seeds, which are touted as helpful to menopausal women, but can actually mess with or mess up your hormones.
Lucky me, I had all the ingredients on hand, but used agave syrup with a little maple extract in it instead of the maple syrup. And so I made it regularly. Delicious!
Now, because I was working in an office with people who loved cupcakes, cakes, sandwiches and pizza, I had a tough time leaving it alone and eating clean, and I fell off the wagon a couple of times. But this was a healthy new treat, and I so enjoyed it daily.
I bought my usual frozen fruit that I was buying for smoothies and added that on top. Looks good, doesn’t it?
Amy’s version of Giada’s Chia Pudding, with a cherry on top.
It didn’t look this good when I took it to work, but it sure was tasty.
And then one day I thought my appendix had ruptured. My gut was killing me, and I was a couple of days away from going to the emergency room for an X-ray and possibly surgery. Just what I needed. I backed off eating the pudding, and go back to smoothies. . .and the pain went away.
Remember that chia seeds swell up, and have LOTS of fiber in them. And I guess after a few days, they swell more and more. Smoothies don’t do that.
You can find a different recipe for Vanilla Chia Pudding at Martha Stewart’s website, but here’s the recipe from Giada’s book. You make stir it up the night before (no cooking!) and it’s ready in the morning–just top with fruit and slivered almonds and you’re ready to eat.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Chia Seed Pudding
Ingredients:
1 cup vanilla-flavored unsweetened almond milk
1 cup low-fat (2%) Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup (preferably grade B, plus 4 teaspoons for serving (Amy’s substitution: 2 Tbsp agave syrup and 1/4 tsp maple extract, mixed)
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup chia seeds
1 pint strawberries, hulled and diced
1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted (NOTE: in a single layer on a baking sheet, bake in a preheated 350F oven until lightly toasted, 6 to 8 minutes,and let cool completely before using)
In a medium bowl, gently whisk the almond milk, yogurt, the 2 tablespoons maple syrup, vanilla and salt until just blended. Whisk in the chia seeds. Let stand for 30 minutes. Stir to distribute the seeds if they’ve settled. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
The next day, in a medium bowl, toss the berries with the remaining 4 teaspoons maple syrup. Mix in the almonds.
Spoon the pudding into 4 bowls or stemmed pudding glasses, mound the berry mixture on top, and serve.
________________________________________________________________________________
Enjoy!
.
Happy Friday, Dear Readers!
I hope all is well with everyone. It’s been a busy week, but I hope everyone is well and enjoying the sunshine. Remember it wasn’t too many months ago that people were freezing even down here in the south of Texas. Now that you can feel your feet again, put them in some fresh grass or warm sand while you can.
I’ve often written about Neighbor K, who literally lives right next door to me. She has a lovable pug, while I have the GER’s somewhat aloof rescue cat. K works in one direction, and when I was last working (and where I went today downtown) we literally went in opposing directions. We talk about all kinds of stuff, compare notes, and keep each other out of trouble. K has fed Jezebel the step-kitty, and she lets me walk the lovable pug.
K is more of a serious athlete than I’ve ever been. I only recently started walking and working out again because I walked into Vitamin Shoppe a month or so ago and asked for something for pain. What they gave me, Solgar No. 7, works like a charm. Now I’m trying to exercise daily, mostly with walking and strength training; I’ve also got some yoga and Pilates DVDs that I use when I feel up to it.
K runs, jumps, swims, bikes, lifts weights, beats up engineers and finds yoga kinda boring. She can lift that 25-pound pug like a sack of flour, and pretty much anything else short of her car. That’s why I have been known to ask for help with lifting and moving stuff when I know she’s home.
Mostly she eats pretty good stuff, although I did tell her about being gluten free and all that. Now and again, I know she orders pizza. . .and more than one person has heard me ask her, “Are you feedin’ my dog pizza?” (He gets little pieces of crust–but I’ve seen him try to stare K down while she’s eating pizza.)
The other day K mentioned that she’s just trying to eat clean, which is what a lot of us strive for. Me, I generally avoid wheat, soy and mostly, sugar, as well as high-carb stuff. Mind you, there are times when you eat what’s available–and occasionally, when someone is nice enough to make me a sandwich, I just say “thank you.” (But then I avoid wheat again after that.)
So today was the first time I’ve been back downtown since February, and a few things have changed since the last time I was there. The first thing I noticed is that the Seattle’s Best Coffee shops are now called Amilie’s, at least the ones I saw. The fixtures are the same, but I didn’t stop in. I thought about it, though, but didn’t have time. I made it to the building in plenty of time, and it turned out to be the same building, but not the same company, that I visited the last time.
When I got off the bus, I passed by My Fit Foods down in the tunnel, and planned to go back there for lunch after looking at what was in their fridge cases. Then I hiked it all the way over to the other side of the tunnel, taking the yellow branch to get to the sky blue branch to get to the building. (Thankfully, I didn’t see anyone I know.)
The interview went well, I thought, and it lasted for nearly 2 hours. Nice place, nice people, but we’ll see what happens.
In that part of the tunnel, near the Allen Center, is a nice little round food court area with a number of places to eat. Another one of the newly renamed Amilie’s coffee bars, a branch of the Houston Shoe Hospital also populate this round area. But where did I end up eating lunch? I saw a place I wrote about last fall: Snap Kitchen!!
Yes, they have a little storefront next to Amilie’s, and when I got out of the interview, that’s where I got a spot of lunch. We don’t have these down in my neck of the woods, but I hope one day we do. It’s awesome takeaway designed to be healthy, clean food in disposable microwave-safe containers. There are microwaves there in the store–you can heat them up there, or eat them cold, your choice (and the heating instructions are on the package.) The two young ladies working there were so nice, and of course, I FORGOT to ask their names!
If you two are reading this, I do apologize. I was a bit flustered after the interview, and, DUH, I forgot. Y’all are very nice, and it’s appreciated.
After prowling the fridge cases for a minute and talking with them, I decided on beef–specifically, Naked Beef!
No kidding that’s what it’s called. Yes, it was really tasty and filling:
Cooked sugar snap peas can be mushy, and so I prefer them fresh. However, these were not mushy, and the cauliflower had a bit of scorching to it. Delicious!
Now, if I’m going to splurge on lunch, even if it’s a healthy one, I want dessert too. Get a load of this:
Yes, you read that right: Goat. Cheese. Cheesecake.
Oh, my.
Now, you know that when you try something new, the law of probability will tell you that there are three possible outcomes: you will love it, you will hate it, or you won’t care either way. But I had to try it, just once.
Gluten free, sugar free, egg free. So far, so good.
Ya’ll, I LOVED this cheesecake! The nuts and coconut are ground up on the bottom to form the crust. Since goat cheese has a slight tartness to it, not nearly as strong as, say, feta cheese, I had to find out for myself. The cheesecake is sweet, but not overly sweet, thanks to the agave syrup. The little red things on top are pecans, in strawberry puree, I think.
All I can tell you is that this is a great little thing to try. Rich, creamy, sweet–everything you expect cheesecake to be. I don’t know if it’s baked or not, I didn’t ask; it might be closer to the “no bake” variety. Honest, it didn’t matter when I took that first bite.
Realizing that Snap Kitchen is mostly in Houston, most folks won’t have access–but really, with anything new, splitting it with friends may be the way to go to find out whether or not you’ll like it.
But no Snap Kitchen doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try something new. Look–I have friends in Australia, one born in New Orleans like I was. They’ve been all over the world more than once visiting friends and relatives. You think they haven’t tried something new? So you find something you don’t like–make a note and try something else. You might just surprise yourself–and you will find something new to enjoy.
Now–I also mentioned to these two nice ladies working there that I’d been in Snap Kitchen before, and they knew exactly where it was. I also mentioned that I write a food blog, and try very hard to be gluten free. I told them that mostly because. . .I knew what Snap Kitchen was, and also mentioned the Epic bars, which I failed to remember earlier. I did extoll the values of the Epic bars to one of the young ladies who wasn’t sure she’d like one. A bit weird to have “meat bars,” but they really are great.
After I’d thanked them for their help and tossed out the used containers, the other lady gave me one of their gluten free brownies to try–on the condition I write about it. I didn’t ask, she offered!! (I don’t ask for stuff like that, I think it’s rude; if I’m offered a politeness, then that’s different.)
After walking nearly 3 miles this evening, I did have that delicious brownie–but it did have sugar. Of course it was good! A little different than my favorite yeast free brownies, but no less delicious. It wasn’t a big brownie like you’d get in a bakery, but they sure do pack a lot of flavor in it.
And, even before I told them I was a blogger, I was going to write about Snap Kitchen anyway–it’s one of my favorite places to grab a bite.
I texted K on the bus and told her about it, but forgot she’s never been there, and maybe she’s forgotten last year’s blog post. Heck, I forget some of them, too. So I’ve got a couple of their brochures for her for the next time she goes into town for work.
Somehow, I can’t see taking the GER into Snap Kitchen, but you know, maybe he’d like it. I don’t actually take him anyplace anymore, but if he asked, I’d probably take him. (Maybe on a leash.) But my friend LM, a college professor, drives into town to shop at Whole Foods now and again, so I wonder if I told her about Snap Kitchen. I’ll ask.
So tonight, this post is for Neighbor K and anyone else who want to “eat clean.” Here in Houston, it’s Snap Kitchen, but wherever you are, you might be able to find something similar, like MyFitFoods (we have one down here by Barnes & Noble.)
And you know what? Even if you don’t try to do the healthy food thing the way people like me and K do, I bet you’ll find something you like.
Enjoy!
