Alysia Musing

Thanksgiving day is winding down and among the things I’m thankful for include few days that are not filled with meetings, appointments and events.

When I went to bed last night I had the thought of getting up nice and early to do a little last minute shopping for Thanksgiving dinner.  Instead I slept in a bit before visiting a client’s cat and then headed to the fabulous Food Bazaar in Trenton.  Of course I was joined by a crowd of others who had some last minute shopping to do but I must admit that my trip was extended by my need to take in all of the foods that were not familiar to me.  I swear there was a gentleman with what looked like a 4 foot piece of sugar cane in his cart.  I also spotted a green (and had to touch) a fruit (or vegetable?) was covered with prickers.  Then there was frozen mango puree.  While I’m sure that the puree has many culinary uses, I could see myself thawing it out and drinking it through a straw.

If you are in or near Trenton, NJ, check out Food Bazaar – you can get what you need and have a great adventure!

This post was originally listed on 7/20/08.

Ice cream is good for me. Well, I FEEL good when I eat it at least.

Today I had a taste of Halo Farms chocolate with chocolate covered almonds ice cream and added a healthy portion of fresh blueberries to it. Talk about good and refreshing!

I think back to the days when I was a young girl and begged for chocolate ice cream on a sugar cone. Sometimes with sprinkles (or jimmies as some call them) sometimes with peanuts. I remember rocky road, black cherry, heavenly hash (do they still make that?). What about that magical chocolate syrup that would turn into a hard shell when it hit the cold ice cream? Do they still make that?

Back home in Niagara Falls, NY there is this great ice cream place called Dee Dee’s. As a child I took many a visit to this local spot after little league games, with family and with friends. There were times on hot days when the line would be out the door filled with people young and not-so-young waiting to get a serving of a generous portion of tasty goodness.

When I say a generous portion, I really mean an extreme portion. A small serving was made up of two GIANT scoops of ice cream. If you wanted only one GIANT scoop, you needed to order a “baby” portion. If you wanted to get a frosty dessert for a family of five or were just plain insane, you would order a large which came with four GIANT scoops of ice cream.

My little brother (who is really just four years younger and has been ‘bigger’ than me for about 17 years) would order “crazy” ice cream flavors like “Superman” and “Bubblegum”. Who out there would find it appealing to eat ice cream and chew gum at the same time other than those whose ages only include one digit?

When I went home during the summer of 2004, my now husband and I took my then 3 year-old-niece for a visit to Dee Dee’s on an especially hot and rainy day. I’m not sure what my order was but I clearly recall that my sweet niece had a cone with chocolate ice cream which melted all over everything. The fun thing was that we could jump in puddles and stand in the rain to get rinsed off!

What is your favorite ice cream flavor?

This post was originally listed on 4/28/08.

Today I needed to run a few errands, fill the Prius up (glad I went hybrid but it buying gas is still a painful experience) and a trip to a few stores, including a grocery store.  I always hear about how you shouldn’t go grocery shopping.  It seems that I’m in a constant state of hunger these days so I stopped at a Wendy’s for a value menu sized french fry.  I’ve often thought, “what fast food restaurant has the best french fries?”.

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t make a habit of passing up deep fried, salty goodness no matter who’s logo is on the bag.  But if one had to choose, who would be the winner?

McDonald’s and I go way back.  My grandmother took my brother and me there for a treat now and again when we were wee tots.  Happy Meals were packaged in a cool boxes AND they came with cookies.  Has McDonald’s changed their recipe in all these years?

Now Burger King, I believe, has had a few different recipes.  Some I liked more than others.  I have to say, I sure like that Whopper though.

Wendy’s has a nice fry.  It’s a bit thicker cut than the Micky D’s and BK’s.

I think my favorite fry of the moment is at a place that has no local locations, Nathan’s Hot Dogs.  They have a Potato-y crinkle cut fry full of tasty goodness.  I think that little, plastic miniature pitchfork looking thing that comes with the fries makes them taste extra good.  The last time I experienced a good ol’ Nathan’s french fry was during my trip to Las Vegas with my sister-in-law and her girlfriends last year.  How sad.  WAIT!  I’m scheduled to go to New York City next month to attend my super-genius cousin’s graduation from Columbia!  What does this mean?  I’ll tell ya!  I’ll travel by train into Penn Station, where there is a NATHAN’S HOT DOGS!!!    All is right in the world.

What do you think?  Where is your favorite french fry joint?  Leave a comment and let us know!