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Simply Homemade Bread Mixes – Product Review

February 16, 2014 / / 0 Comments

countrywhiteI got a breadmaker for Christmas, and Mike picked up one of Fleischmann’s Simply Homemade bread mixes at the store.  I thought it was sort of silly, isn’t the whole point of having a bread maker to be able to throw some ingredients together and get great bread?, but after a couple of failures doing exactly that, I decided to try it.  It was delicious!  Seriously, soooo good.

I think I got the Country White, though I threw away the box and the bread was actually sort of brown.  I also cooked it for 3 hours, rather than on a rapid cycle.  You don’t get a particularly large loaf – but if what you want is flavor, this has it.  I think next time I’d select light crust rather than medium, however.

I don’t know how much the package was, my bet is that it’s not cost effective, but if I found them on sale I might buy a couple to keep to make some quick bread without having to put much thought into it.

Baked Coconut Shrimp

February 16, 2014 / / 0 Comments

Last night it was V-Day so I made coconut shrimp for my husband.  I’d never made them before, but it was very simple.  You just take peeled shrimp, cover it with sweetened shredded coconut, place them on a lightly greased baking sheet and cook in a preheated 400F oven for about 15 minutes (for medium shrimp), flipping once.

It’s somehow tricky to attach the shredded coconut to the shrimp.  It just falls off.  I tried putting the coconut directly on the shrimp, coating the shrimp with mango sauce or egg whites, and then dipping it on the coconut, and doing so after dusting the shrimp with cornstarch.  They all worked equally world, and Mike couldn’t tell the difference between them flavor wise.

I made a mango sauce to go with the shrimp, but Mike preferred them without it.

 

A mess of a Frico

February 16, 2014 / / 0 Comments

This week I’m cooking Friulian food, which meant that I had to make a Frico.  As I read in a blog (which I can’t find now), “frico” is what you made in the dead of winter, when nothing was growing and all you had was old cheese and old potatoes.  At its simplest, frico is just Montasio cheese, shredded and fried with some flour into a thin wafer.  It can be eaten as a snack or with soups.  Montasio is a cowmilk cheese, eaten at different stages of its development, somewhat similar to Parmesan.

More complicated versions of frico will include thinly sliced potatoes, as well as chopped onions and pancetta (if you’re rich!).

I found a recipe that looked great and incorporated all those elements and wanted to make it. But then I lost it.  Rather than go with one of the other recipes, I tried to remember the steps on that one but made a HUGE mess of it.  First I fried the onions and chopped bacon together (didn’t have pancetta), then added slices of potatoes I’d previously boiled and topped with a lot of grated cheese.  I didn’t have Montasio, so I used a mixture of Parmesan and San Joaquin Gold, a cheese from the Cowgirl Creamery, which despite the cheesemakers claims that it’s a Fontina-turned-Cheddar, is actually very similar to Parmesan.

The cheese was supposed to melt, caramelize and harden, so that I could then flip the whole thing and cooked in the other side.  Of course, that didn’t happen. Instead the onions started to burn before the cheese melted and when I tried to flip it, I just messed the whole thing up.  It was still very tasty, but not what it was intended to be.

I may try again, actually following a recipe.

 

Hormel Natural Choice Apple Gouda Chicken Sausages – Review

January 8, 2014 / / 0 Comments

AppleGoudaChickenSausage-largeI got these at Grocery Outlet yesterday.  They were only 50-cents, or so, as today was the expiration day.  I was going to use them in quesadillas, but we ended up eating them whole.

All in all, they were good, but so sweet that none of us wanted to have a second sausage (and at 3 oz, they aren’t that big).  My youngest particularly enjoyed how juicy it was.  The cheese, indeed, seems to be there more to provide juiciness than flavor.

They are actually made from “natural” ingredients: chicken, Gouda cheese, dried apples, brown sugar, vinegar, salt, paprika and spices.  They are in pork casings.

I don’t know that I’d buy again, unless they were on sale at 50-cents.

BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger & Cheeseburger w/ Avocado & Bacon

The Habit Burger Grill – Walnut Creek – Review

January 4, 2014 / / 4 Comments

 

BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger & Cheeseburger w/ Avocado & Bacon

BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger & Cheeseburger w/ Avocado & Bacon

Habit Burger is a newish  chain of “upscale” fast food burger joints that is trying to spread throughout the Bay Area.  One may be opening in San Leandro in a year or two, a fact that Mayor Stephen Cassidy considers a major accomplishment of his administration (I kid you not!).  We were driving by Walnut Creek, and my husband decided we should stop by one of its restaurant and find out whether Cassidy’s characterization of the restaurant as “a hip, healthy and delicious” was accurate.   It wasn’t, but then again, I can’t say I am surprised.

As far as fast-food chains go, Habit Burger is definitely a step up from McDonalds and their ilk.  Its flavor profiles are closest to In-N-Out, but the restaurant is classier and it offers greater choices.  The burgers ($3.50) were tasty, though the patties were small, thin and dry.  They are charbroiled, which gives them a flavor similar to Burger King’s whoppers.  My youngest daughter, who had hers with cheese & ketchup but nothing else, found it too small and too dry.  This is a child that’s eaten her fair share of school cafeteria burgers, so criticism from her says somethings.  I ordered my burger with guacamole and bacon ($1 extra each) and that made all the difference.  The guacamole tasted fresh and vibrant and the bacon was crispy;  the two combined completely redeemed the burger – but the patty was pathetic.   My husband had the BBQ Bacon Cheeseburger ($4.60) and he also thought the burger was just OK.

My 11-yo had the chicken sandwich ($5.75) . She found it “OK”. The chicken itself was dry and the sandwich was a bit too peppery. She wouldn’t return, even if we had one here.

Neither my husband nor kids liked the fries ($1.85).  They had a hard/chewy outer part and had a strange flavor. To me, they tasted as if they’d been cooked with their peels, but that wasn’t actually the case.  Still, they did remind me (flavor wise, not texture wise) of In-N-Out fries.  The portion was generous, but we didn’t finish them between the four of us.

We had different opinions with respect to the shakes ($3), however.  Hubby ordered the vanilla and he found it too thin and tasteless. I shared the mocha with my oldest, and we both enjoyed it.  It had a nice flavor, and while it was thin, I guess you don’t expect mochas to be thicker.

The food was ready fast and, as I mentioned, the restaurant was quite nice and clean.  It did smell horrible, though, like old, stale oil.  Maybe that’s why their fries were so unappetizing.

In all, I’d say this place is marginally better than In-N-Out, but nowhere as good as Nation’s.  It’s probably a good fit for those who like Burger King but want nicer surroundings. But if you want a burger that looks like it’s made of beef, then Habit Burger is not for you.

Chicken Sandwich

Chicken Sandwich

Closeup of beef patty

Closeup of beef patty

The Habit Burger Grill 
1255 S California Blvd
Walnut Creek, CA
(925) 279-2286
http://www.habitburger.com/

Marga’s Chain Restaurant Reviews

Bistro Buffet @ the Palm’s Casino – Las Vegas, NV – Restaurant Review

January 2, 2014 / / 0 Comments

Updated 2016:

We returned to the Palm’s Buffet in 2016 and found the prices higher (or rather, fewer good deals) and the food more tired.
—

Last August, 2013, we stayed at the Palm’s Place in Vegas, and had the opportunity to eat at the Bistro Buffet thrice.  We hit it for brunch, lunch and dinner on three different days.   In all, I can give the Bistro Buffet thumbs up, though my experience was as uneven as the actual price of the buffet.

The Bistro Buffet looks deceptively small, but it must have close to a hundred offerings.  In addition to basic American food, they have some ethnic offerings.  They also offer some ethnic specialties, mainly Mexican and Asian.

Indeed, my favorite dish was the kalbi short ribs available in the Hawaiian section.  The Thai curries were also very good.  Another plus goes to the Delmonico potatoes in a blue-cheese sauce.  These were worthy of their namesake restaurant.   How good the carved meats were depended on how long they’d been sitting.  The tri-tip, marinated in a chimichurri style sauce, was delicious.

The desserts were less impressive than they could be, but the warm, moist and perfect bread pudding was always a winner. Don’t bother with the overly sweet sauces, however.

The Sunday brunch includes a variety of seafood.  My daughter was less than impressed by the crab legs, but other people seemed to be enjoying them.

Service was always good.  I particularly enjoyed all the free champagne with the Sunday brunch, I was happy to have a nearby hotel room to sleep it off 🙂  Note, even though this buffet opens to the casino, the air was perfectly breathable and our meal felt relaxing.

The one somewhat frustrating part about this buffet was getting the best deal.  The regular price, if I’m not mistaken, is $8 for breakfast, $13 for dinner and $20 for dinner. With a player’s card, you get the meals for approximately $5/$8/$13.  However, you need a players’ card per discount.  Children’s prices are a couple of dollars lower than regular prices, which means that, given that children cannot have players’ cards, they are actually higher than for adults.  So, for example, I paid $8 for lunch, but had to pay $10 each for each of my daughters.   Now, $10 doesn’t seem like much for a buffet this big, but I have a child that eats a few grains of rice and considers herself done.

Sometimes travelzoo and restaurant.com also have deals that may make the price even lower. Restaurant.com deals work together with the players cards deals, when they have them.

Bistro Buffet
Palms Casino Resort
4321 W Flamingo Rd
Las Vegas, NV
(702) 942-7777
http://www.palms.com/casual-dining/bistrobuffet

Marga’s Restaurant Reviews

La Hacienda – Albuquerque, NM – Restaurant Review

January 2, 2014 / / 0 Comments

We were walking around the old part of town in Albuquerque last August, tired and hungry, and not quite sure as to where to go for dinner.   For a number of reasons, I wasn’t too happy to go to La Hacienda, but it was there and they had seating so there we went.  While I wasn’t predisposed to like it,  our waiter won me over with great service and a free sopapilla dessert, which was very, very, very good.

The rest of the food was standard quality for Tex-Mex places.  The chips and salsa reminded me of Chevy’s (which is a good thing).  The chips were light and thin and the salsa held its own.  I had a guacamole salad, and while there was a bit too much lettuce, it was pretty good, if simple (what i wanted).  My daughter enjoyed her taquitos and my husband’s Indian tacos turned out to be regular tacos served in fried bread, instead of a tortilla.  They worked and he was pleased.

The place is very cute inside, with lots of light-colored wood and bright pictures, and the location in the plaza could only be better if they had more ample outside sitting.  But it was nice and cool inside.

The only thumbs down in the menu went for my daughter’s corndog, but she also didn’t like the fries, and we felt they were very good (but they had the slight flavor of potato skin, which might be what she disliked).

Prices for most Tex-Mex entrees are in the low teens, with some dinners in the high-teens.  Pretty much what I’d expect to pay for the food.

La Hacienda also goes by the name Casa de Fiesta.

La Hacienda
2004 S Plaza St NW
Albuquerque, NM 
(505) 248-0110

Marga’s Restaurant Reviews: beyond the Bay Area

Cruiser’s Cafe 66 – Williams, AZ, Restaurant Review

January 2, 2014 / / 0 Comments

Three things attracted us to Cruiser’s Cafe 66, conveniently situated in Williams, in the way to the Grand Canyon: they had a singer playing music we like (folk music & soft rock), they had a nice patio for outdoor dining and we found a parking space nearby.

For lunch my husband and I split a rack of pork ribs ($20) and my daughter had the kid’s mac & cheese ($7 or $8, I believe).  She was happy with hers and ate the whole thing.  She must be going through a growth spur, because she then had several ribs as well.

Fortunately, neither my husband nor I are in need of extra calories, so the remaining ribs were enough for us.  Unfortunately, they weren’t that great.  The first thing that greeted you into the restaurant, even before the music, was the smoke from the grill – but none of it seemed to have permeated into the ribs, which tasted parboiled.  The BBQ sauce was just generic.

Service was quite good, our waiter was pretty attentive (Yelp reviews contained complaints of bad service).  Alas, we usually get good service even at restaurants when others don’t.  Perhaps we aren’t so picky, or perhaps we just look like bigger tippers.

In all, Crusier’s Cafe 66 is still a good place to stop for the atmosphere, just don’t order the ribs.

Cruiser’s Cafe 66
233 W Rte 66
Williams, AZ
(928) 635-2445
cruisers66.com

Marga’s Restaurant Reviews: Beyond the Bay Area

Cuisine of India (Delhi Palace) – Sedona, AZ – Restaurant Review

January 2, 2014 / / 0 Comments

We were in Sedona on vacation, staying at a house near Cuisine of India aka Indian Palace, India Palace and Delhi Palace.   I don’t know what the actual name of the restaurant is, I’ve found reviews under all names.  We wen there for lunch a rainy day in August, 2013.

According to my daughter, this was the smallest buffet at which she’s ever eaten.  That’s not necessarily true for me, but with ten or so offerings, including rice, it would definitely not win any prizes for size.  Then again, it also doesn’t seem to be very popular, at least for lunch, so few offerings hopefully mean the food is fresher.

As far as Indian food goes, this buffet was pretty average.  I liked the mushroom korma, but the chicken tikka masala was underseasoned (even though it was a bit spicy).  The same can be said for the chicken tandoori, it didn’t taste as if they’d use any spices on it other than pepper.  The lamb curry was OK, though the lamb was a bit dry and tough.  The rice was a bit too starchy for my taste, but the garlic/herb naan bread, served pipping hot, was quite good.  Sweet lassis also lacked flavor.

My biggest problem with the meal was the price.  We ended up paying $42 before the tip for 3 people.  That’s pretty ridiculous for a buffet lunch.  Now, my husband didn’t look at the bill carefully so perhaps they charged us for our other daughter who didn’t eat any of the food (which they knew, as she instead had a subway sandwich at the table).  According to the website, the lunch buffets are now $10

As far as the restaurant itself, it was your run-of-the-mill shopping center restaurant, it didn’t have any ambiance to speak of.

Cuisine of India/ Delhi Palace
1910 W Hwy 89A, Suite 102
Sedona, Arizona
928-204-2300
www.cuisineofindia-az.com

Marga’s Restaurant Reviews: Beyond the Bay Area

Olde Sedona Bar & Grill – Sedona, AZ – Restaurant Review

January 2, 2014 / / 1 Comment

We were staying in a residential neighborhood in Sedona,  and my husband wanted to go somewhere near for dinner.  The Olde Sedona Bar & Grill didn’t get the best of reviews, but I figured it was worth a try anyway.  Plus I had a  $25 restaurant.com voucher ($50 minimum purchase).  For what we ended up paying, $50 after the coupon,  including tax and dinner for a family of four, this ended up being a good experience.  I wouldn’t have been happy if I’d paid much more, however.
Probably what I liked the least about the place was the decor, it’s pretty run down.  I did appreciate the photos on the wall of movie scenes shot around Sedona.  No wonder I always imagined the old west to be full of cool rock formations, that’s where all the movies were filmed!

The Olde Sedona Bar & Grill offers unpretentious food, of the type served at family restaurants throughout the country.  None of it was particularly remarkable, but all of it was tasty enough.  I’d give it 3 stars.

I had the buffalo brochettes ($18), which were perfectly cooked medium-rare (OK, maybe on the rarer side, but it worked well).  The meat wasn’t terribly flavorful – but that’s always true with buffalo meat -, but the sauce was pretty yummy and adding some salt helped.  I appreciated how tender the pieces were, and the lumpy garlic mashed potatoes tasted like the ones I would  make.  They really hit the spot.

My husband had a burger ($10) which he characterized as a good, standard burger.

My oldest daughter had a child’s quesadilla ($6).  It was huge! Definitely adult sized, she only finished half or so.  She did like it, however.

My youngest, on the other hand, was unhappy with her bean and cheese burrito ($6) but she hasn’t been fond of any of the ones she’s had in the southwest.  The beans must be different from the ones used in California.  It was a huge burrito as well.

Service by our waitress was excellent.  She was solicitous, and when she didn’t know how to deal with the restaurant.com smart phone coupon, she promptly asked her manager for help.  Note: they did not include the supposedly automatic 18% tip, so make sure you add it (and remember to tip in the original amount).

Olde Sedona Family Restaurant Bar and Grill
1405 West Highway 89A
Sedona, AZ
928.282.5670
www.oldesedona.com
Daily: 11 AM – 2 AM

Marga’s Restaurant Reviews: Outside the Bay Area

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