Frannie's eSpace

You can never have too much Durkees!

I love Durkees! At the grocery store yesterday, I picked up 2 jars thinking that we were about out. When I got home, there were 2 jars in the pantry. That makes 4 jars of Durkees that we now have. Life is good!

Do you also have a favorite food that you could never have too much of?

Dunkin Donuts vs Starbucks

There is no contest: Dunkin Donuts wins in every category.

1) Starbucks coffee is terribly strong!
2) Starbucks coffee is too expensive!
3) DD serves bagels better. (At Starbucks... they won't even toast your bagels, and they don't have butter.)

I heart DD!

Target Choxie chocolate

Have you ever had Target's Choxie brand of chocolate? It's really tasty. I much prefer dark chocolate, and their espresso truffle bar is yummy. I think it has little bitty pieces of coffee beans in it. I just had a piece and am yearning for more, but I'll refrain since nothing tastes like the first couple of bites!

McDonalds vs Dunkin Donuts

I'm a die hard fan of Dunkin Donuts coffee. It's absolutely the best in the world! However, McDonalds coffee, believe it or not, is a close second. Nonetheless, all things being equal, DD would win every time!

I stop for coffee on the way to work most every morning to help gear up for the day. For the past several years, no question have I gone to DD. However, just recently, the one that's on my way to work raised their cup of large to $2.10. And, then with the tip jar, you're talking an extra 50-75 cents. It was the Tipping Point! It got me thinking to give McDonalds a try, and I did, and am very pleased! The one on my way to work has very friendly and efficient people who know me.

Like I said, all things being equal, I'd go to Dunkin Donuts every morning, but, well, all things aren't equal.

Southern Sushi

I had the most interesting and delicious appetizer last night at a party: Southern sushi, and it's my kind of recipe with only three ingredients! Basically, you take a slice of sandwich ham (like Plumrose), spread cream cheese on it and then place two trimmed pickled okras at one end and roll up like sushi. Then, you cut it into sushi-sized slices. Hmm... I wonder where you can get pickled okra? Anyway, the next time I throw a party, my guests will be eating Southern sushi!

2 interesting recipes

Recipes with three or fewer ingredients are my kind of recipes. Recently, I've made two interesting dishes that fit my stringent standards of <3 criteria. My sister sent me the recipe for the first one which I made over Christmas weekend: beer can chicken! You may have heard about it: you set a whole chicken over an open beer can and stick it in the oven for a couple of hours. The steam from the beer keeps the chicken nice and moist. It was delish, and the next night I even made chicken soup from the leftovers. I made the second interesting dish, barbecue pork, over New Years weekend. Coincidentally, it called for another can: this time root beer. Basically, you put a tenderloin in the crockpot and pour a can of root beer over it and cook for several hours. Then you drain off the liquid, shred the pork, and add a jar of barbecue sauce.

Yum, yum for both!

Soup Tip

Although I don't claim to be a cook, I do have a tip for soup that prevents it from turning to mush by the second or third day. I discovered it by accident this evening while reheating last night's chicken soup. I had to cook the rice separately last night because there wasn't enough rice to mix in with the soup. We then spooned the rice in our bowls and added the soup on top. Good news is that tonight, the soup still had a good consistency, even after sitting in the fridge all day. The rice had not soaked up all the liquid turning it to goulash. I'm going to separate the rice (and noodles) from soup from here on out!

Hmm, I wonder if I should patent this process?

Mac 'n Cheese Snacks?

Just saw an add on TV for Sonic's "Mac 'n Cheese Snacks." From what I could tell, it's basically a blob of macaroni and cheese somehow dipped in a bread crumb mixture and fried. I wonder which it has: more fat or more starch? What is this world coming to?

Birds Eye Steamfresh Veggies

You've got to try Birds Eye SteamFresh frozen vegetables! The preparation could not be easier: you simply microwave them straight in the bag for about 5 minutes. The veggies retain their bright colors and they are crunchy. There is no water to drain either. I'd read a review that they were too expensive at roughly 2 dollars a bag. For fresh, beautiful vegetables that require no preparation except for turning the dial of a microwave, who would fuss at 2 bucks? If you like fresh veggies but don't like to chop, get thee to the frozen vegetable section and buy some bags o' Birds Eye!

An idea for rice

Here's a great way to perk up rice: while the rice is cooking (I like Basmati rice the best because it has such a nice smell), saute an onion, and when the rice is done, stir in the onion. Um, um, delish! It gives a bit of a crunch and flavor to the rice. We had it for supper tonight... and it goes with just about any thing.

If you have easy ways to add pizazz to any food, please let me know! I need all the help I can get!