Food For A Better Life

Four different types of Alexia Crunchy Snacks, 3 waffle fries & 1 onion strip, were tried by Fang & myself.  The waffle fries state they have 25% less fat than regular chips.  They use russet potatoes for the waffle fries & spanish onions for the onion strips.  The are all naturally flavored.  The first was the waffle fries classic ranch which has 140 calories per serving (5 servings per 5 oz bag), 3g saturated fat, 200mg sodium, 190mg potassium, 18g carbohydrate, 1g fiber, & 1g protein.  Fang said it was salty, subtly flavored, & good.  I thought some of the chips were really tangy, others not; inconsistent flavouring.  The ranch flavor is mild tasting & I thought it was ok.  Next was the waffle fries aged cheddar cheese which has 140 calories per serving (5 servings per 5 oz bag), 3g saturated fat, 200mg sodium, 230mg potassium, 18g carbohydrate, 1g fiber, & 1g protein.  Fang thought it had an over=powering cheese flavor & wasn’t bad.  I thought it was very cheesy & ok to good.  Then we tried the waffle fries hot pepper which has 140 calories per serving (5 servings per 5 oz bag), 3g saturated fat, 200mg sodium, 190mg potassium, 18g carbohydrate, 1g fiber, & 1g protein.  Fang thought they were medium stregthen in heat & would be good w/ a glass of beer.  I thought they were mild tasting @ first w/ some heat progressing @ the back of the throat.  Some chips were spicier than others; inconsistent flavouring.  It was good to ok.  Last were the onion strips savory seasoned which has 150 calories per serving (4.5 servings per 4.5 oz bag), 3g saturated fat, 200mg sodium, 80mg potassium, 18g carbohydrate, 1g fiber, & 2g protein.  Fang thought it was like eating cold onion rings w/ a richer flavor & they weren’t bad.  I thought they were more spicy than onion rings; you could really taste the black pepper.  They were crispy & ok to good.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 6:47 pm under tip
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gifts from the kitchen by Publications International, Ltd. (copyright 2002) is a book that gives you ideas for gifts that you can make right in your own kitchen.  The book is sectioned into Condiment Collection, Marinades & Drinks, Sweet Temptations, Bath Time Luxuries, Pampering Pleasures, & Home Decor Delights.  Condiment Collections has recipes such as Tomato-Basil Sauce (pp. 20-21) & Peppered Chili Oil (pp. 24 - 25).Marinades & Drinks has Mulled Wine with Rum (pp. 52 - 53) & Blended Spice Tea (pp. 58 - 59).  Sweet Temptations has Roasted Muesli Mix (pp. 68 - 69) & Strawberry Nut Fudge (pp. 84 - 85).  Bath Time Luxuries has Invigorating Bath Foam (pp. 92 - 93) & Refreshing Foot Bath (pp. 104 - 105).  Pampering Pleasures has Floral Body Oil (pp. 114 - 115) & Natural Neck Pillow (pp. 120 - 121).  And Home Decor Delights has Fragrant Room Spray (pp. 142 - 143) & Scented Lavender Wands (pp. 146 - 147).  These also make good projects that you can use as well.  If you are crafty & like making personal gifts, this may be a good reference book for you.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 6:45 pm under book review
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The Colorado Renaissance Festival, located in Larkspur, CO; website: ColoradoRenaissance.com opened yesterday w/ price for a ticket @ $17.95.  It is opened only Saturday & Sunday & will be open for only 6 weeks during the summer.  Food prices are rather pricey w/ a baked potatoe @ $3.50; a pretzel @ $2.25; & a dill pickle @ $1.25.  Beverages start @ $2.25.  The players/employees can be rather obnoxious; I was pushed by one of the employees as the “parade” went by because I was in the way.  There a many, many merchants there selling a variety of products from tarot reading, to hair braiding, to swords, to pottery, to jewelry, & much more.  There are several entertainers doing small skits there on the several stages in the park & performing as the travel around the park.  It is rustic so getting around in a wheelchair or stroller can be difficult.  Parking is free & off-road.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 8:21 am under event critique
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(1 serving)

1 med. - lrg. tortilla
1/4 - 1/3 c. tomato sauce
ground cumin
1/4 - 1/3 c. cooked black beans
1/4 - 1/3 c. cooked brown rice
shredded cheese, your favorite
sliced chilies, such as jalapenos, green chilies, or banana peppers
sliced black olives
sliced scallions
oil or cooking spray for greasing

Preheat oven to 425 degrees; lightly grease pizza pan.  Place tortilla on pan; add tomato sauce, cumin to taste, black beans, brown rice, & first small handful of cheese.  Then add to taste chilies, olives, scallions, & second small handful of cheese.  Bake 5 min.; let cool a couple of minutes, slice & serve.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 7:15 am under recipe
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With Fang’s help, we were able to taste test 3 different Digiorno crispy flatbread pizzas & 2 different California Pizza Kitchen rising crust pizzas.  The Digiorno’s that were tasted were the tuscan chicken (”Tuscan Style Chicken w/ grilled white meat chicken, spinach, oven-roasted tomatoes, garlic & a creamy red sauce”), the pepperoni & fire-roasted bell pepper (”Pepperoni & Fire-Roasted Bell Peppers w/ pepperoni, & fire-roasted red & yellow bell peppers”), & the 2 italian sausage & onion (Italian Sausage & Onions w/ Italian sausage slices, sausage crumbles & white onion strips”).  The California Pizza Kitchen pizzas that were tasted were the BBQ chicken w/ red onion & the Sicilian.  Fang stated that of those 3, the pepperoni tasted the best.  For the California Pizza Kitchen, Fang liked the BBQ chicken best.  Fang thought that for frozen pizzas, it was comparable in taste to Domino’s.  For cooking, I found that the DiGiorno flat breads could easily get burnt around the edges and the California Pizza Kitchen sometimes developed bubbles in the crust while baking.  The sicilian was difficult to cut due to the large slices of salami on it.  The tuscan chicken had batches of spinach on it, so you might get a slices that had minimal or one that looked like spinach pizza.  Prices weren’t bad ($5.29), but they were on sell at the grocery store ($2.00 off).  Coupons were available, too ($1.00 off).  Both Digiorno & California Pizza Kitchen are Kraft products.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 9:00 am under tip
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The Vegetable Expert by Dr. D. G. Hessayon (copyright 1991); price $9.95.  It is a gardening book that helps you to prepare a garden, decided what to plant in your garden, an alphabetical listing of different vegetables & herbs you may want to plant, done in an encyclopedic way.  The type of soil, plant info., varieties of a species, troubles you may encounter, how to plant a particular plant, tending the plants, harvesting, & preparing them for each vegetable.  Plus it gives you information on troubles in general that you may encounter & how to deal with them.  In these tough economic times, gardens are becoming more popular to help you save money on grocery bills.  So if you are just starting out or are looking to diversify your garden, this book may be a helpful tool to get you going.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 8:38 am under book review
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1 apple, cored & cut into bite-size pieces
1 stalk celery, sliced
1/8 c. craisins
1-2 slices monterey cheese, cut into strips
1/8 c. almonds
1 T. lemon juice
1/3 - 1/2 c. plain yogurt

Mix together all ingredients & serve or you can chill.  The amount of cheese & yogurt are personal taste.  Makes 1 entree or 2 sides.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 6:00 am under recipe
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The Breakfast King located on the corner of Mississippi & Santa Fe @ 1100 S. Santa Fe Dr. in Denver, CO; phone 303-733-0795.  It is open 24 hours, 7 days a week.  All the items on the menu can be ordered no matter what the time.  The selection is pretty large for a relatively small establishment.  The atmosphere is definately the old time diner that many of us went to with our parents when we were kids.  The prices are resonable, service is quick & friendly w/ promptness on refills, you seat yourself, & portions are large.  Coupons for discounts on all meals are pretty common @ local King Soopers near the establishment.  And sometimes you may get a free sample of a dessert, as Fang & I did w/ rice pudding when we were there for dinner.  The coffee is kind of watery, so if you are a coffee connoisseur, maybe you shouldn’t get the coffee.  The tea tastes fresh brewed.  Really a good option for families, seniors, & any one looking to save a little money when going out to a sit-down restaurant & feeling full when leaving.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 8:13 pm under restaurant critique
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A New Look at Microwave Cooking: A Practical guide to the possiblities of your Microwave Oven by Lila Chalpin (Copyright 1979); Price $7.95.  It is a helpful book if your microwave oven didn’t come w/ a book or it was lost.  Has charts on cooking different items as well as defrosting.  Plus a bunch of recipes to help you utilize your microwave oven.  The recipes range from toppings & sauces to pastas, grains, & breads to desserts to other uses.  The omelet (p. 31) is real helpful to cook a quick breakfast.  The Sea Island Rice (p. 72) is a bit quicker than cooking on the stove, but it made a bit of a mess in the microwave, even w/ a lid on it as recommended. It came out flavorful yet a bit crunchy.  The Brownies (p. 99) came recommend as did the dried flower process (p. 135).  Recipes ranged from lollipops to chocalte fondue to lamb to lobster to granola muffins to soybean chops.  A relatively inexpensive book to help you create quicker meals @ home.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 8:33 am under book review
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1 salmon filet, no skin
1 1/2 T. butter
small handful parsley, chopped
small handful chives, chopped
2 mushrooms, diced or sliced
salt & pepper to taste
1 1/2 T. lemon juice
3 T. mayo - light if desired (optional)

Cook salmon in microwave for 5 minutes in a lidded dish.  In frying pan, melt butter; add herbs & saute a few minutes.  Add mushrooms, salt & pepper, saute a few more minutes.  Flake salmon roughly, add to frying pan, & add lemon juice.  Cook a couple of minutes.  Remove from heat & place in a food processor a puree; add mayo if desired to make pate more creamier.  Put contents into a lidded container & chill a few hours @ least.  Serve w/ crackers, chips, slices of focaccia, or crostini.

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Filed by The Culinary Questor at 9:56 am under recipe
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