The Unofficial Cook

Someone told me about this product saying it was a good substitute to fresh egg noodles. I found it at the frozen food section at Wal*Mart and bought one to see if they were really good. It’s made locally in Denver, Colorado.

If I hadn’t made my own noodles for a homemamde chicken noodle soup I made some months back, I’d say this was great.  But now, I have to say it’s a weak substitute for the real, homemade thing.  It also takes much longer to cook than fresh ones.  The texture does get better reheated the next day.

When I was a kid, my sisters and I could spend hours talking about things we’d just heard or read about.  Our favorite topic was always food. Of course, we would stray sometimes and talk about the usual stuff, places or things and activites or something.  But we would always go back to food, especially if it was something we’d just read about.  I don’t know if all families are this way….but we were.  We still are actually. (more…)

Dove Ice Cream is manufactured by M&M/Mars. They started their packaged ice cream line only in 2004.  Before that, they had the delicious Dove Ice Cream Bar which was started by a Greek candy shop owner from South-side Chicago.  The candy shop owner, Leo Stefanos, developed the rich, creamy ice cream dipped in chocolate so his son and daughter wouldn’t run out to the streets when they heard the ice cream truck come by. (more…)

I found more chocolate bars I’ve never tried before at the Commissary of Peterson AFB. Had to try them…just because.

One was the Mozart Piano Bar I expected would have a bar looking somehow like a piano, but did not.  The other was a Schluckwerder Marzipan bar which turned out to look very unappetizingly-shaped.  They are both German-made. (more…)

That’s what Pass Key Restaurant in Pueblo, Colorado says of its signature sandwich, the Pass Key Special.  It’s an Italian sausage sandwich served on a loaf with lettuce and plenty of mustard, fries and sweet peppers.

You can have it with your choice of cheese:  American, Swiss or Provolone.  I chose provolone to go with mine.  They also have the Super Pass Key Special which is basically the same sandwich with all three cheeses.

I’ve never had an Italian sausage sandwhich before.  Even Spouse who grew up in New Jersey with their big Italian population, had never heard of it before.  It was different. Lovely with the spicy mustard and nicely seasoned homemade sausage patty.

The real surprise of our visit to this restaurant were the Munchers.  You know how servers at all restaurants will try to make you order more, right? (more…)

If you see this artificially-colored bag of young rice cereal at your local Asian store, don’t even bother to pick it up from the shelves.  Save yourself the trouble.

It’s made by a company in Vietnam called Himing Co. Ltd. and is labeled “Cereal Flakes”.  It doesn’t come with a manufacture or expiry date.

I got it at the Filipino Sari-Sari Store.  It’s what Filipinos call “pinipig”, a young immature rice that’s harvested while still green, pounded and winnowed, then turned into the most delicate of rice cakes and pastries.  I’ve had this hankering for the rice cake we call “Kalamay Pinipig” for some time now.

What a disappointment! I should have known from the bright green it was artificially colored. The rice itself had a peculiar smell - old and musty and not at all appetizing like it should be.

At that point, I should have thrown it all in the trash where it belonged.  Strangely enough, I persisted.  Hey, sometimes your imagination just gets the better of you, right? (more…)

It was more than 2 years ago when Spouse and I went to New Orleans on a day trip from Biloxi, Mississippi.  I fell in love with the city even before we set foot in it.

On our approach to the city, the car radio was tuned to a local station that was playing the music of the city, jazz.  Driving on Interstate 10 to cross the now world-infamous Lake Ponchartrain, I was struck by the beauty of the many bridges, the city and the beautiful waters of the lake and the mighty Mississippi beyond.

Aside from being the home of jazz and the blues, New Orleans is also famous for its cuisine.

My target on that summer’s day was the Muffuleta of Central Grocery.  I first heard of it in the PBS special, “Sandwiches You Will Like”  that Spouse and I watched just a few weeks before our trip.  Central Grocery is located in the French Quarter, on Decatur Street.  If you are not looking for it, you can easily miss it.  But I was a woman on a mission that day….my radar was up and my tummy was leading the way. (more…)

I was looking for raspberry liqueur at the Peterson AFB Ccommissary, of all places….and didn’t find it, of course.  Just when I was planning a liqour store stop on the way home, I spied this bottle of Rose’s Blue Raspberry Mix. (more…)

Culver’s is a restaurant made famous by their mouth-watering ButterBurger.  I have to do another post on their burger when I have photos. Ohhh……mmm….and if I remember to take a shot before I take a bite.

They’re a 22-year old restaurant chain out of Wisconsin, the state made famous by cheese. Spouse and I like going to this restaurant because their burgers are exceptionally good and because they have a clean, well-lit place that just makes eating all the more pleasing. (more…)

I ran out of Filipino cooking staples, fish sauce (patis) and soy sauce (toyo) and went to my local Filipino Store on South Academy Boulevard here in the Springs.? Since I am determined to start cooking  more Indonesian recipes, the plan was to stop by another Asian grocery in the area to pick up the essential ABC Kecap Manis.

Well, lo and behold….the Filipino Sari-Sari Store had it right there in their shelves and I didn’t have to go around looking!

Here’s a photo of two important Indonesian ingredients. Kecap Manis and Fried Red Onions.

(more…)

These are the two best ice creams I’d recommend to go with pies and pastries - Dreyer’s Vanilla Bean and Haagen-Dazs Dulce de Leche.