Tag: cheese
Wholesome Agave Nectar 44 oz. $12.99 at Wegman’s
Currently at Amazon, two 44 oz. bottles of the Wholesome Agave Nectar costs $33.16. That would be $16.58 per bottle, so it is quite a savings at Wegman’s ($3.59 per bottle). Wegman’s White American Cheese runs less than $4 per package (pre-sliced). *But, I don’t think of Wegmans as being less expensive, except for these two examples, and the $.99 ICE drinks. *Wegman’s also has the “Raspberry Royale” tea from Bigelow.
Part of my jaunt up to Morrisville, via Apex, is to stop first in Cary at the Golden Hex (a European grocery). They have a fantastic variety of deli meats, salamis and sausages as well as various cheeses and a bunch of other grocery items from European countries. I’ve found a green seaweed there that I can “doctor up” to replicate the side dish that I had enjoyed several years ago at different restaurants. I think the additions included toasted sesame oil & seeds, soy sauce, vinegar, and some sweetener. *I think there was also some hot pepper flakes.
So I buy some sliced Estonskaya and maybe one other sliced salami. I take this to Wegmans, where I buy a ciabatta roll for $1.10. I either take a couple of slices (or buy them there) of the Wegman’s White American Cheese. It is both cheap and flavorful. *I take a sandwich bag with a couple of dill pickles & maybe some grape tomatoes and/or some olives (Castelvetrano). **I have been taking some sweet mustard flavored with horseradish cream, but after today I think I might simply prefer Dukes mayo. Oh, and I’m also thinking that a couple of slices of sweet (Vidalia) onion and/or some sliced Campari tomatoes. If I have some wavy potato chips (IGA has a small bag with about 3 good servings per bag at about $1.38), I take them too. Take a bottle of ice to use with my bottle of flavored ICE drink. This has to be a relatively cheap lunch, but with a lot of enjoyable flavors. ***Oh, I did actually buy a whole head of Iceberg Lettuce at Wegman’s today and included it in my ciabatta roll salami & cheese sandwich. My dill pickle spears were the “souped up” version with the Ranch flavoring.
I buy the cheap jar of dill pickle spears at WalMart, and the even cheaper packet of Ranch Dressing mix from either WalMart ($.60) or Food Lion ($.50) and add the packet’s contents to the dill pickle jar. After this first combining, I re-use the Ranch dill pickle juice in subsequent jars of dill pickles. The juice doesn’t appear to “go bad,” and I just pour off the plain pickle juice first. *I bought some whole dill seeds to try and sprout them, but the sprouting didn’t work. So, I ended up putting some of the dill seeds in the “Ranch Dill” jar. To my surprise, this kicked up the flavor of these pickles even more.
If I am fixing some Ranch Dressing chip dip, I do buy the more expensive Hidden Valley Ranch Seasoning at a little less than $2 per package. I add cream cheese (the cheap brand is okay), some sour cream, diced sweet onion, diced red bell pepper and S&P. *The chip dip & wavy potato chips are a “splurge” that I seldom enjoy because of the fat & threat to my blood sugar level.
I find that including “cheats” or “splurges” to the foods I eat make life more palatable & enjoyable. And, if you don’t cheat often or regularly, any move in the wrong direction is quickly re-adjusted in a day or two. The blood sugar level may spike higher than you would want on a daily basis or you may gain a pound or two by eating a lot of ice cream or spaghetti at one sitting. But, going back to the rule and not making the exception(s) the rule, the body quickly readjusts and the bgl or weight return to acceptable norms. *I just realized that it has been a long time since I ate a half gallon of ice cream in a day, or ate a large plate of spaghetti noodles w/ homemade spaghetti sauce as a cheat. I no longer have those desires. **Having said this, today for the first time in a long time, I stopped by a Wendy’s (Exit 319) and got and consumed a small Triple Berry Frosty (normally I would prefer chocolate flavored). I had never tried this flavor (it is new) before today, and it was a familiar flavor and I enjoyed it, but don’t think I would prefer it over a small chocolate Frosty.
In the past, I might buy a cheap Rocky Road flavored half gallon of ice cream at Food Lion and at home, would take a soup spoon and add some chocolate flavored syrup before scooping out and devouring the ice cream. After I’ve indented the ice cream, I would like to either add some Half-n-Half or regular milk in the ice cream container. Yeah, I haven’t done that in a while, or even desired to do so.
In 2019 I think I had eaten some Pistachio ice cream before 10 am, on a holiday Monday, and had just returned the half gallon container to the freezer section of my fridge, when I sat back down in my easy chair, watching a new episode of the new, new Outer Limits (or was that the new Twilight Zone) and in moments realized that something was terribly wrong with me. I was having a seizure due to low blood pressure, but I didn’t pass out completely. No, I just sat in my chair watching the TV show through a reddish filter and pissing on myself. My body providing the tinted filter. *I quickly recovered, but sat for a while trying to regain my composure and to determine my next steps. I called Jeff Mitchell to let him know what had happened. While talking to him I decided to drive myself to the Cape Fear Valley Emergency Care facility that is about a quarter mile up the road from my apartment. I showered, dressed, and drove there. And, as I have rehearsed elsewhere on this site, I was providing a urine sample there, when I passed out completely. And within the hour, I was transported over to Cape Fear Valley Hospital (across town) and three days of intense testing begun. **They didn’t come up with a definitive cause of my seizure and passing out, but my cardiologist had an idea I think. About a month later, when I passed out while getting a new CPAP machine, I was taken again to the hospital and within a few days had a new device in my body, a pacemaker. I think it was six weeks for the heart surgery, and my fractured knee to heal. Once I could get my behind in the driver’s seat, AND my leg (in a brace) into the car and my foot on the gas I was self-sufficient once again. I still wasn’t supposed to raise my left arm above my head until the electrode connections had healed. The only time that I might have raised my arm was when I was sleeping and awoke with my arm above my head. But, this only occurred once or twice, and I guess I could have tied my left arm to my body to stop this.
Just tried some of my sweet mustard & horseradish cream sauce on some smoked oysters. Good flavors together!
[NOTE 08/15/24]: I bought a small tin of Riga Cod Liver at Golden Hex (I think.). I’ve never eaten Cod Liver before, and I am 70 years old. I had a strange reaction to even opening the tin container. I guess I was afraid that I would be repulsed by however this food tasted. It wasn’t the flavor, which was slightly fishy (maybe like a hint of tuna), but the texture which was probably like foie gras, and I’ve never had foie gras either. Duck fat. I could tell this was a extremely fatty food. Not sure how I would enjoy this. I think I read that you could spread it on bread, and that you might want to eat it with something that would “cut the fatty” flavor. Citric juice or maybe a vinegar. I’m thinking that you could add cod liver to tuna, or smoked oysters to deepen their flavor, but I’m not sure it would be worth the extra cost.
Actually, I just noted a picture of a package of Duck Pate that I had tried some time ago. I recall that this also had a slight flavor that wasn’t as pleasing as the Nueske’s Liver Pate that I buy sometimes. I think this liver pate is reminiscent, but not exactly the same as Potted Meat.
I tried some Sprat’s Pate that I also bought at Golden Hex some time ago. I did not like the flavor.
[end NOTE]
[NOTE 08/25/24]: One of my regular morning breakfasts consists of hot tea, egg salad, bacon, & polenta. Sometimes I add grape tomatoes, if I have them. I currently prefer the Scottish Tea by Taylors, which has a “heavier” flavor. In fact, the first time I tried this tea, I didn’t like it, but when I tried it a second time, I began to like it, and after a while, I prefer it. Now I still like Bigelow’s “Constant Comment” and “Earl Grey” (longtime favorites, maybe since the mid-1980s) and another favorite, “Raspberry Royale,” since I first tried it at a Quality Inn in Lynchburg, Virginia about 2017.
Today, I came up with two additions/modifications that worked well. I had a small amount of some homemade pizza sauce (only 6 ingredients) and I put that on two thin slices of polenta which I heated in the microwave. This had good flavor. I also cut a couple of slices of English cucumber and put a little salt on them. These two modifications worked well and I might do either again.
I had another Ciabatta roll pizza with the homemade pizza sauce yesterday, but I forgot to add jalapenos to it. It was good still. This is a consistently satisfying pizza, and just enough. So, I can make a satisfying pizza at home, and I can make a very good Pastrami Reuben on rye. Oh, and the Kielbasa/Shrimp/Zucchini dish I make, is consistently pleasing.
I do not make it often, but I enjoy a multi-bean salad. Its not something that I want to eat every day, or even once a week, or possibly even once a month, but I do like it and it is a nice addition to my food rotation. Sometimes I buy the beans in separate cans, but this time I found a can of 3 mixed beans: kidney, pinto & black beans from Whole Foods. To this I added some wax (yellow) and some green beans. I also added the little red pearl peppers, and the multi colored medium pickled peppers and some chopped sweet onion, and orange bell pepper. I used three types of vinegar: white distilled, red wine and some apple cider vinegars with some Splenda. You could add pickles, pickled beets, pearl onions, garbanzo/cannellini/navy beans to this too.
I made my bean salad yesterday and still have enough for two more meals. I had bought a whole rotisserie chicken at Harris Teeter so I had a drum stick and a little white meat, and I steamed a medium sized ear of corn in the microwave (it was sweet & tender). *Harris Teeter sells their whole cooked chickens for under $7 compared to Publix, which sells them for about a dollar more. I had bought the Publix chickens for a while and then realized I didn’t like their fatty/mealy textures. I tried HT and liked them better. Still either one would be a good deal because you can get about five good meals from a whole roasted chicken. The last meal being a chicken salad with a good portion of chicken.[end NOTE]
Black Sesame Rice Crackers
Sesmark makes at least two different Sesame Rice Crackers, and I like the flavor of them both. But, a short time ago, I found some Black Sesame Rice Crackers at Whole Foods in Raleigh, and bought a bag of them. They had an even more distinct flavor that went really well with the Wegman’s Intense Brie. The Capricho de Cabra and the Bucheron Goat Cheeses are semi-soft and mildly tart and these would go well with either of these rice crackers. They also go well with raspberry jam.
Now I like liver, liver pudding/mush, liver pate, beef/calf liver, chicken livers, all types of liver. I especially like the flavor of Nueske’s Smoked Liver Pate. This will go good with the rice crackers also.
A Breakfast
Golden Julliard Flatware
Stafford Satin Flatware
Zephyr Mirror Flatware
This is a satisfying breakfast that is easy to prepare. Use a small skillet on the stove-top and put some bacon grease & some other oil (grapeseed, olive, avocado) in the pan. Slice the casing and remove it from the mush and press the mush down onto the skillet. If desired, slice some onion and put it in the pan with the liver mush. Depending upon how hot the pan is, the mush may begin to form a fine burnt (not to taste) skin that sticks to the skillet but can be scraped up. *Freddy’s hamburgers have a similar skin around the edge of their burgers.
Paint some oil on the surfaces of a waffle iron, and put a couple of slices of polenta on the hot iron surface and close the lid, and press it down and leave it to heat through. **Without the oil, the polenta may stick to some of the waffle iron surface when you try to remove them.
Prepare an egg (maybe two) in a bowl, with S&P, and various spices (marjoram, celery seed, dulse, garlic powder). Put a little oil & water in the egg mixture and beat with a spoon. Put a little oil in the microwave onion cooker, to keep the egg from sticking to the bottom of the plastic container. Cook the egg for perhaps 30 seconds and then add shredded cheese(s), and then finish cooking the egg. A minute or a minute & a half is usually sufficient to melt the cheese and cook the egg thoroughly.
When the egg is cooked, you can just flip the container upside down and slap it on a plate. The oils should cause the egg to release without a problem. ***Without the oil, some of the egg may stick to the bottom of the plastic egg cooker. You now have a perfectly formed & cooked egg, in a round flat shape that you could also put on an English muffin. Add some sliced deli ham and you have an Egg McGibson.
Without an English muffin, open the waffle iron and using a fork, remove the two polenta waffle cakes to your plate. ****You choose whether you want polenta or other bread with this breakfast.
Scrape the liver pudding & onion from the pan making sure to get the burnt bits stuck to the bottom of the skillet.
Add some small grape tomatoes. Slicing the tomatoes will allow you to add salt to the halves/quarters.
[NOTE 02/08/24]: I’ve mentioned cooking this breakfast elsewhere but I’m not sure I’ve ever stated the brand of “liver pudding”. This is “Pender’s Pudding” and I originally bought some at Pate’s Farmers Market (across town, in Fayetteville). But, I have since realized that there are other grocers that sell this. I think I bought some in the Carlie C’s and here is the simple process I used to figure it out.
Note that the file name of the image of the Pender’s Pudding was showing as January 22, 2024 at 11:12 am. I went to my Google Timeline and pulled up that date. Timeline wasn’t sure of where I was visiting at that specific time, but the outlined path made it clear, to me, that I was in the Carlie C’s IGA at that shopping center. *Not sure if I just saw it there, or actually bought it there, but I know the last time I bought it, I didn’t drive across town to Pate’s.
You may also notice that the Pender’s Pudding is vacuum packed, but once the seal is broken you don’t have an endless shelf life in your refrigerator. I know from experience that some has gone bad and had to be thrown out, or almost gone bad (beginning to get a slimy texture to the casing). So, this last time, after I sliced the plastic package open, I cut a slice of liver pudding for breakfast, but I cut the remaining into breakfast portions and put each in an individual re-sealable sandwich wrapper and put these in my freezer. I figure I can take one out a day or so in advance to thaw and hopefully won’t waste the rest.
The problem with this or any meat is that you don’t want to eat it every morning until it is all gone. And, when you rotate through waffles & bacon, oatmeal, eggs & bacon, fried apples & bacon, etc., you might not finish off the liver pudding before almost three weeks (too long, unless you freeze some of it). I do eat a lot of bacon, but it is packaged in 12 oz. sealed packages, and when I open one of these, I slice the bacon in half and then put all of it in a plastic container for my fridge. *I use the re-usable plastic containers that I have bought deli meats from Hillshire Farms in. They have clear plastic bottoms and a red see-through top. The Hillshire Farms advertising is meant to be easily removed from the red plastic top. It is a flat cardboard sheet that is attached to the red plastic top by a few daps of sticky glue. Just pull off the cardboard sheet, and roll the glue up into a ball & throw away. Depending upon where & how much you pay for the Hillshire Farms Deli Meat, it may or may not be cost effective to get these re-usable plastic tubs.
***I haven’t bought deli meat (honey turkey, honey ham, black forest ham, pastrami, corned beef) in quite a while. Actually since I started paying attention to my weight & Bgl, I realized that I didn’t need a deli meat sliced, to go on a bunch of bread. Now, I might buy some pastrami with the intention of making my Pastrami Rachels at home, but this would be an intentional act, knowing I was going to use more bread, buttered & toasted with melted Swiss cheese than usual. A “splurge” eating event. As might be going up to Greensboro to “Sticks n Stones” for their Margarita Pizza (jalapenos extra). Or perhaps going across town to Pharaoh’s Legacy to have their Lamb Gyro, with a Greek Salad. And this reminds me that I haven’t been up to Maguro’s for their lunch special (all the rice, I like but don’t need) in quite a while. At one time I was going weekly up to Southern Pines to eat at Maguro’s.
Also, the one “fast food” place that I had continued, Post-COVID to visit, Taco Bell, I haven’t been to in maybe a month now. I ate there every week, buying a Beef Burrito Supreme, a Bean Burrito & a Crunchy Taco, but sometimes leaving either the bean burrito or the crunchy taco out. I think the last time I stopped at Taco Bell, I only bought one item and don’t recall if it was the Burrito Supreme or the Crunchy Taco. You see, I can and do make/choose other items at home to go with this Mexican Meal. Homemade salsa, with roasted poblano & jalapeno peppers, some cumin & cayenne & Agave Nectar. Some chopped sweet onion, or maybe an avocado cut up. And some sour cream.
I’ve got an opened bag (probably gone stale by now) of Tortilla Chips on my dining table that may have been there a couple of months. I ate a few with some homemade salsa, and then they just haven’t fit into my current eating pattern since. You have a certain amount of calories in a day, but you also have to get all the nutritional value in that same day, so you can’t eat a whole bag of Tortilla Chips and then eat all the other stuff you need nutritionally for that day. **I tried 1 tortilla chip tonight, and they were still crisp & edible.
My Fitness Pal has helped me schedule and plan ahead the foods/meals that I am going to eat. The total calorie intake might not be exact for a certain day, but with a certain margin of error, they are close enough. So, I am eating with two main goals in mind. #1 is to keep my Blood Glucose Level down, and the 2nd is to cut calories to bring my weight down. I know that my Bgl will become more maintainable as my weight decreases.
I haven’t been able to decrease my weight (after having lost a little more than 10 lbs. in couple months period) below 250 lbs. and today was 252.6. I’ve also had a problem with keeping my Bgl down because I wasn’t able to get my Trulicity refilled when needed and eventually switched (maybe just for 30 days) to Rybelsus. But during those couple of weeks what had been averaging around 135 resting Bgl, had kicked back up above 150 Bgl. I’m still not happy with it, and after reading some of the side effects of Rybelsus, I want to return to Trulicity, if possible.
[end NOTE]
I’ve said there are two versions of the Sesmark Rice Thin Crackers and one of the packages is about twice the size of the other, and for about the same price. I know I can get the single channel package at Harris Teeter, where I first bought them. I don’t recall the other store where I bought the four (or 3) channel package, but will be looking because I didn’t notice too much difference between the two crackers.
Golden Juilliard by Oneida
I don’t recall when I first started collecting this cutlery, but it was many years ago, and not having bought any in this pattern in several years, I now find that Oneida has discontinued the pattern. Golden Juilliard has a gold plated highlight but there was a Juilliard pattern, same design but without the gold highlight. I always thought this had a elegant look without being pretentious.
I have a “silverware chest” for storage. I haven’t looked at what I have in a long while, but I think I had most of the pattern, both serving and individual place settings, and maybe enough to serve 6.
I have a different pattern that I use for daily use, but the Golden Juilliard has a small “seafood/cocktail” fork that I like to use for olives and pickles. I also like the size of the soup spoon which has a large bowl, which is even bigger than the soup spoon in the pattern I use everyday. But, I only have one Golden Juilliard soup spoon out of the storage chest for daily use. I don’t recall who made the pattern I use daily, but it is much different from the Golden Juilliard, less delicate and less elegant. I had eaten at a restaurant in Thomasville, Georgia on a visit there to the “Sweet Grass Dairy” (at the time they offered both goat and cow cheeses, but now only cow). The restaurant could have been Liams, but now that I think about it, it was probably Jonah’s (right next door). Their silverware was large, in the hand, and when I returned to Fayetteville, on my next visit up to the Oneida store in Smithfield, I saw and bought the pattern I currently use. [NOTE]: In writing the paragraph, I recalled that I had bought my current pattern at the Oneida Outlet Store in Smithfield. I don’t see the pattern on their web site, but haven’t looked at all their offerings. The Oneida Outlet Store left the Outlet Shopping Mall many years ago, now.
[ADDENDUM 02/06/24]: I thought that I might not be able to find the exact Oneida pattern that I use for daily use, but I finally saw four forks online that were for sale, and I immediately recognized them as the pattern I use. I believe it is called Oneida Stafford 18/10 Satin Flatware. There is a Stafford Mirror version which appears to be shinier.
I also have a sugar spoon, and a slotted serving spoon and serving fork. I lost my regular serving spoon by taking it to work one time to serve whatever dish I was taking, but then forgetting it and never seeing it again. Not often, but more often than you might think, I have needed a larger serving spoon (not slotted) to dip something, like soup, and the slotted spoon wouldn’t work. This flatware has a hefty feel and is a little larger in the hand, which is what I had liked about the flatware I used down at Jonah’s in Thomasville, GA. [end ADDENDUM]
On my first visit to Sweet Grass Dairy, and Thomasville, Georgia, I ate at Liam’s Restaurant. Jonah’s Restaurant didn’t exist yet. I think I’ve been to Thomasville three times, and I think because Liam’s was closed on one of those visits, I ate at Jonah’s which was right next door (with a little alcove between the two). I may have had a Lobster Bisque soup at Jonah’s and enjoyed it very much. And yes, I think it was Jonah’s that had the larger cutlery for dining. *And later when looking at the two restaurant web sites, I noted a “Christian” vs “Not Christian” vibe between the two establishments. At that time, Liam’s had named some of their menu items in a distinctly, “non-Christian” jibe at Jonah’s.
On my first visit to Thomasville, I was able to drive to the dairy where there were goats (not sure if the cows were there or elsewhere), and cheeses (both cow and goat cheese at the time), and a fat, old, white bulldog lounging on the cool concrete porch. I had come prepared and bought a bunch of different cheese and had an ice chest to bring it back to NC. I met the founding couple and a younger couple, that was son & daughter-in-law, or son-in-law & daughter. *On my next visit, you could no longer drive down to the dairy. There was a newly constructed store a short distance from the dairy. I think I bought some Pecan Oil, mostly as presents for friends & family. On my last visit to Thomasville, I think the only location was a restaurant in town, and now Sweet Grass Dairy was only producing cow cheeses, which appears to still be the case.
Oh, the other thing I collected was the Pfaltzgraff “Winterberry” pattern of Christmas dishes.
Birthdays, Bosch Books, Shrimp Burger & Moss Landing
I drove down to Jacksonville on Thursday morning to meet up with Mary Ann and Ray & Jacquelyn at Marrakesh Restaurant at 11 am. Mary Ann had said they open at 11 am, but I think I saw online that they normally open at 10:30 am, except on Sundays, which I think was 11 am.
On the way down, I stopped at the rest stop where NC 24 and I40 cross paths, to use the bathroom. There were a bunch of young children all being naturally loud, some in the bathrooms and some in lines against the hall walls. As I am coming back to my car, the children and their teachers had all migrated out near the church vans they were being transported in. A sign on the side of one of the vans was the name of a church, perhaps something like “Emmanuel XXX Church Rocky Mount, NC.”
Feeling playful and sensing their excitement of the whole experience, I asked, “Are you on a field trip, from Rocky Mount.” The nearest adult, I presume a teacher, responded that they were on a trip, and that they were from Rocky Mount. I did not find out where they were going, but I could surmise that they might be going down to Wilmington, NC. I waved at the children, who had now formed a line, with two children each side by side. Their teacher had grouped them in twos before they were to cross the street to get to their van. But, as I begin to get ready to back my car out of its spot, I see the last little girl in the line and she is looking at me and starts to wave. And, I am glad that I was still looking at these children, and so I make an animated wave back to her, as she joins her line-partner.
My thought on this waving to this child, and I’m not always attentive, is that she was the last child in the line of children I had been “playing” with and asking questions of. I probably didn’t even look directly at her while I was playing. But now “my playing” had been important enough to her that she was giving me a special wave goodbye. And that gift, unacknowledged, would have sent the wrong message to her. But the message I wanted to send to someone that had just given me a special wave, was that you are just as important to me as all those others were, maybe more so, because of you thinking enough of me to wave.
I had a picture book, on my passenger seat that was about “the Ocean.” Not just one ocean, but all oceans, and all the stuff and things that swim about and in these oceans. Something interesting for a child to look at, while physically holding a book. I wanted to roll down my window and hand this book, as a gift to the teacher, but I didn’t. That is a little regret. That would have made our interaction even more special & memorable. Oh well.
So, I had asked Mary Ann if I could stay the night (I normally just go down for the day and return home at night.), since I was planning to go to Wilmington for the Library Book Sale on Friday morning. She said okay. I wasn’t sure if I was going to both book sales, one in Wilmington and one in Washington, NC, but I thought that the Wilmington sale might have more books that I was looking for. *That actually turned out to be incorrect. There were 10 hardbacks in Washington and only 6 in Wilmington, but I went to both & bought 16 books for a total of about $45. ** Some of the extra money I gave, as a donation to the libraries above the $1 or $2 prices per book.
Up on Friday morning, read just a little of “Echo Park” and then had a very enjoyable warm shower. Short trip to Helen’s Kitchen for a country ham breakfast, with one egg over medium, grits, biscuits & coffee and water, with ice. *My routine is to save one biscuit (which I love how they’re made, really flat with little insides), slice it open with a knife and then put a good portion of the good portion of country ham that they bring out for my meal. I then ask for a sandwich wrapper, and in this case the waitress also brought out a small brown bag to put the wrapped country ham biscuit in. The breakfast was good, as usual.
It takes just a little over an hour to drive from Jacksonville to Wilmington, NC. Dixon, mostly unchanged, but most of the rest of the way (Highway 17) has become extremely developed, maybe even overdeveloped. Holly Ridge and Hampstead more development and then at some point there is only development on each side of the highway… endless stores, shops, conveniences, etc.
Made it to the library location in Wilmington shortly after 10 am. It was to open at 10 am. I walked through the front door and immediately there were all the books, on tables for sale. There was another room with books also, but there was no waiting in line to get inside, as there is at the Cumberland County Library Book Sale (Fire Department Limits). I was in, asked where Connelly books might be located, was directed and found a small box, on a table with Michael Connelly novels. I think I found two or three that I didn’t already have but ended up buying six hardbacks (at $1 each). Got a card with a 6/1 on it, which meant 6 @ $1 and 1 @ 50 cents, walked to the cashier, presented my card, was told that I owed $6.50 and I gave her a $20 and said keep the change for a donation. And, I was out the door, and in a brief time, once again on Highway 17, but this time heading back to Jacksonville, and then New Bern, and eventually Washington, NC.
So, I drove up to Little Washington to go to the Brown Library Book Sale (01/19/24 – Open to the Public) in the Washington Civic Center. I’m currently reading some of the Harry Bosch (LA detective), Michael Connelly novels, and have found I can buy them at library book sales for a dollar, or two. Brown Library was selling “hard backs” for $2@. I ended up finding 10 Connelly hardbacks, and paid $20 plus a small donation. Still, “what a deal” compared to spending $35 per book, when they are brand new, only paying $1 or $2 each.
Met a couple of women, friends of each other, going into the book sale. One was asking me about the yellow bag I was carrying in. I told her it was my grocery bag, and that I had forgotten my larger, heavy duty, light gray, bag that I had used for the Cumberland County Library Book Sales in Fayetteville. She went back to her car to get her own bag, and I talked with her friend briefly. The friend said she had become interested in “detective” novels, and I told her briefly about the L.A. detective, Harry Bosch, and that Michael Connelly was a very good writer. She repeated the last name, “Connelly” and we all made it to the front door and went in. I left them and went over to the “C” section for Connelly, and other authors with names beginning with C.
At first I couldn’t find any Connelly books, the name is usually prominently displayed on the colorful book jackets. I asked one of the staff whether there was a “Connelly” section. She wasn’t familiar with the name but she was putting a long string of another author’s books together. I then found about 4 Connelly novels grouped together. I already had a couple, and two I didn’t, but I bought all four. And then I found that there were others, not in the group, but there amidst the other authors if you looked, a Connelly here, a Connelly there, and eventually I found 10 Michael Connelly hardbacks (@$2). *Surprisingly finding more of these in Little Washington than I had at the book sale in Wilmington, NC. Only six of the Connelly novels I wanted in Wilmington that morning, but I did also buy a German Language softback for 50 cents also.
Before leaving the book sale, I looked around trying to find the two women I had talked to before coming inside. Since I had bought ALL of the Connelly books that I had seen, I had left none for the woman. I had a couple of duplicate books, and thought it would be a cheap present for someone I didn’t know to introduce her to Harry Bosch, and Michael Connelly. But, I didn’t see the women, but then thought they might have already left, and the next thought was that I might be looking at them and not remembering what they actually looked like.
So, I left and drove the short distance around to “Down on Main Street“. I’ve been to the restaurant, “Down on Main Street” several times. Perhaps first with Leo Taylor, on one of our visits to Washington. I think I may have had their Spaghetti “lunch special” and immediately fell in love with their spaghetti sauce. Most restaurants, that I visit, “dumb down” their spaghetti sauces, trying to not offend anyone with distinctive ingredients, like onion, mushrooms, Italian spices, or maybe even some meat (ground beef). But this spaghetti sauce was DELICIOUS! It had distinctive flavor and the garlic bread was good with it. *The problem, was eventually “Down on Main Street” stopped offering the spaghetti special for lunch. I think they stopped serving spaghetti altogether, at least for a while.
But, yesterday, January 19th, 2024, I had a Shrimp Burger, with slaw, and a side of fried okra, with a cold, Diet Pepsi. The burger was delicious, the shrimp good, the slaw good, the Kaiser Roll (maybe just a burger bun) soft & moist. The fried okra were cooked well, and there was a little plastic cup of cocktail sauce. It all came together for a very pleasurable lunch. My waitress, Jo Jo (not sure of how she spells it), was very friendly and attentive to my drink refills, and at the last, my “to go” cup. In our banter, I asked about the spaghetti special, and she said they offered it on Tuesdays for lunch. I told her I had enjoyed it before they discontinued it, and was glad that they had started offering it again.
While I was eating lunch, I think it was a waitress coming out from the kitchen, and a female customer, coming out from the bathroom awkwardly tried to occupy the same space briefly. And, the waitress, without really being at fault, contorting to try to avoid the customer, dropped a couple of small bowls and the food made a mess of a rug and the floor in that walkway area. Someone came out with a caution sign, and someone with a broom, and someone with a mop. These someone’s were all young men, not sure if they are all waiters also, but that the cleanup duty came to them, and they stepped efficiently into the fray, and the cleanup was, in a brief time, complete… except for on small dollop of perhaps mayo, left on one edge of the throw rug. And this, only something that someone, myself, that had witnessed the whole accident & cleanup, would even notice.
I mentioned the “accident & efficient clean-up” to Jo Jo, my waitress. I said that the young men reminded me of the Roomba Robots (there is a current commercial showing the imagined, behind the scenes, chorography controlling the cleaning robot). She said that her husband had also made a comment on how efficiently they cleaned up, when necessary. They are a good working team!
After my very pleasurable lunch experience at “Down on Main Street,” I decided to drive around the town. I wasn’t going to go far, but just wanted to see if there were any changes in the immediate area, and knew I wanted to “get on the road” back to Fayetteville. I had already been on the road for three hours that morning, from Jacksonville to Wilmington, and back through Jacksonville to New Bern and on to Washington, NC.
Just a few blocks up from the restaurant, I came upon Moss Landing. I found this new neighborhood to be immediately captivating. The homes were colorful, mostly in pastels & whites, and very reminiscent of the nice “beach” homes, that you find, “on the beach.” I drove slowly through the new development and then came back taking several pictures of the homes with my phone. I liked this neighborhood immediately and thought that it was a very nice addition to “Little Washington.” Something positive and to be proud of. *I live a long distance from Washington, NC, rarely visit, but have had good experiences in Little Washington and as “Down on Main Street.” I miss my good friend, Leo Taylor. He was very good to me, as a friend, and a boss.
Moss Landing, a new community in “Little” Washington, North Carolina. Moss Landing – Google Street View
from Wegmans
from Fresh Market
from Harris Teeter
Bucheron Goat Cheese from Wegmans.
[NOTE 01/21/24]: Finished “Echo Park” early this morning. There was something about the Wait’s garage description, and the hole in the wall that jogged my memory. I must have seen this in the Bosch series, but don’t recall how many years ago. *[01/22/25 UPDATE]: This novel starts with a car being found in the small garages leading to the High Tower Apartments, and the High Tower is an icon from the 1973 movie, “The Long Goodbye,” in which Elliot Gould plays the fictional detective, Philip Marlowe. I love the “feeding the cat” sequence and now there is even a view from the tower looking down on the small garages. Brief, but if you know what you are looking at, rewarding. The High Tower (elevator) is located just over the hill from the Hollywood Bowl Amphitheater. I learned to despise Harry Bosch from reading the books, not from the TV series. [end UPDATE]
Not sure of what criteria I’m going to use to choose the next book to read. Go to the latest, well next to the last one, unless Connelly has published a new one for this year… or go to the earliest one I have, which is probably about 2001. **Not sure that I am really interested in the early Bosch, although at one time I would have enjoyed it. Sort of like all those Midsomer Murder mysteries I watched over the years (20+ seasons). I enjoyed most of them, but no longer have a desire to rewatch them and I actually began to dislike Barnaby. What a shit family man he was.
NOTE [ 01/22/24 ]: Got around to writing to “Down on Main Street” Restaurant via email, complimenting them on my good experience there (again):
I first visited Down on Main Street several years ago with a friend, who had grown up in “little” Washington. His name was Leo Taylor and his parents had managed the Trailways Bus Station for many years. I think I had your “Spaghetti Special” and thought it was so good because you didn’t “dumb down” your spaghetti sauce. There was a lot of flavor in your sauce! And, I came back several times and enjoyed this special, until you stopped offering it.
I live out of town, but last Friday had come up from Jacksonville, NC and decided to have lunch with you. My waitress was “Jo Jo” and she was excellent, friendly and attentive. I had your Shrimp Burger, with coleslaw, and a side of fried okra, with a cold Diet Pepsi. Let me say that was the BEST tasting lunch, from the first bite to the last.
While there, there was an accident between a waitress, coming out of the kitchen, and a woman, coming out of the bathroom. They both tried to occupy the same space at the same time, and unfortunately the waitress dropped some of her order on the floor making a mess in the walkway. It wasn’t her fault, by the way. Here is the compliment… there were several young men who went into action, like the Roomba Robot, and cleaned up the area quickly and efficiently. They acted as a team, one with a broom, one with a mop, etc. Floor clean, viola.
So, you have really good food. You have a really good waitress, and you have really good staff that are working as a team!
Thanks.
Bill
[end NOTE]
[NOTE 01/22/25]: As I was reading the Bosch novels, I would go online and use Google Street View to get a better feel for the Los Angeles area. It may have been “Echo Park” and I was looking at a cafe that the character might have passed in the novel. I visited the web site for this restaurant and saw their long handled silverware. This inspired me to buy some like them. Yes, it made no sense, but I did it.
However, there is something rewarding about having a set of stainless steel chop stix. Well four sets. One for each place setting. [end NOTE]
Made a Really Good Helping of Green Beans, Potatoes & Bacon.
This was so simple, but ended up being really flavorful.
The can of green beans that I opened were whole, not cut or French Cut, green beans. Seemed thinner and not cut. I peeled one medium potato and then cut it up roughly. I used about three, half slices of bacon and then cut them into about six smaller sections. I used some Chicken Broth, S&P, and a little margarine. I may have used a small amount of bacon grease (from what I save after breakfast).
I stood over the stove, having heated up some of the green beans, potatoes & bacon, and I kept saying how good this tasted. *I am reminded of many years ago, probably the 1970s when I was working for Region “P” and was down in Queens Creek at a Senior’s meeting. They were having a pot luck lunch, and Essie Davis (not the Australian actress), who was a friend of my mother… they may have car pooled to/from work on board Camp Lejeune. Ms. Davis lived almost at the curve near a church, deep in Bear Creek. … Ms. Davis fixed a “mess” of green beans, potatoes & seasoned them with bacon. I remember enjoying the flavor of this dish so much that instead of having a desert, I had a second helping of the green beans. Delicious! And now what, about 50 years ago, I recall how good these beans were.
Ingredients
- 1 can green beans (do not drain)
- 8–12 small red potatoes (whole or halved)
- 3–6 oz seasoning meat (salt pork / bacon ends / ham hock pieces)
- ½ onion, chopped (you like onion anyway 🙂)
- Black pepper
- Optional: pinch garlic powder
Instant Pot Mini Version
Add in this order:
- seasoning meat
- onion
- potatoes
- 1 cup water
- can of green beans (with liquid) on top
Cook
High Pressure — 6 minutes
Natural release 10 minutes
Then quick release
I fixed this again yesterday. I didn’t have much Chicken Broth left, so used more water. I think I kept all other ingredients the same, and I paid attention to the doneness of the potatoes. They aren’t overdone… not too tender. I used cut green beans instead of the whole beans. But, the final product was not as delicious as the previous one. I added more salt… more margarine… more bacon grease… nope, just a little less flavorful than previously, but still very good flavors together.
Green beans are still one of the cheapest veggies you can buy at the grocers. And adding white potato, which will begin to soak up any other flavors… so adding bacon (not pre-cooked) to the broth just hits the spot.
Several weeks ago I tried chopping up fresh asparagus, steaming it, and then adding the asparagus to mashed potatoes. It was absolutely delicious! I made it several times, but surprising to me, it did not take long for me to not want this often. Or maybe I couldn’t figure out what other “sides” I wanted to have with this. *I did combine carrots & garden peas and cooked them in some Cary’s Sugar Free Maple Flavored Syrup, with some margarine. The sugar free syrup does not thicken up & burn like sugar or maybe honey would in a pan. It remains thin and watery, and the margarine provides a sheen to the carrots.
Haven’t made my Tomato Chutney in a while. But, did make my Cibatta Roll Pizzas at home. The home made pizza sauce is so easy to make. Only seven ingredients and I mix them up in a small glass jar. Tomato paste, oregano, thyme, garlic powder, white vinegar, olive oil and salt. I buy cheap, but good, sliced pepperoni at IGA… shredded mozzarella cheese, and the other two ingredients that I like are a little sweet bell pepper & some finely diced onion. I would like more bell pepper & onion, but the size of the Ciabatta rolls limits these. Bake in the oven first, and then a short time under HI Broil to crisp up the pepperoni. For me, this consistently satisfies my craving for pizza. The sauce is spot on for any good pizza sauce that I’ve had at a restaurant. And, the four small slices of bread fill me up, just enough.
Made some good spaghetti sauce the other day, but haven’t actually tried it on pasta yet. And, I decided to make only enough for two good helpings. I had a small amount of ground beef that might have gone bad in a few days, so that was my impetus for making spaghetti sauce. I had a half jar of Rao’s starter sauce in the fridge. I had a half can of diced tomatoes that were frozen. I cut up some sweet red bell pepper, and some onion. Think I added dried oregano, garlic powder, S&P and a little Equal sweetener. Turned out very well, although much more ground beef than usual.
Over the last six months there have been many changes to the foods that I have a desire to eat. I no longer like a hamburger with cheese. I put a slice of American Cheese on a burger recently and before I was through, I was asking myself if I could remove the melted cheese from the bread. I still love cheese. I like Swiss cheese toasted on bread and used to top French Onion Soup. *I use the cheap Beef Broth to make the onion soup, and I am thinking a better quality of broth would add to the finished flavor of the onion soup. *I also toast Swiss cheese on Rye bread when I am making my Pastrami Reubens (Rachels) at home.
Capricho de Cabra is one of my favorite soft cheeses, and it has remained relatively inexpensive. This goes well with Raspberry Jam and crackers. It is white, soft, crumbly and a little tart. I get this at Whole Foods in Raleigh.
I had some good Pepper Jack (maybe using jalapenos) that I bought at Wegman’s recently. I had also bought some smoked deli ham, and some Miami Onion rolls. Also bought a small jar of horseradish, and combined the horseradish with some sweetened yellow mustard. I use Equal and Agave Nectar to sweeten the yellow mustard. Currently love this horseradish/mustard combo, on deli sandwiches, hamburgers & hot dogs.
I like smoked Gouda and recently tried some “flowers” flavored cheese (don’t recall the name) that had a distinctively “earthy” flavor. I don’t think it was labelled as “Alp Blossom” cheese, but I had seen the name previously, and bought a small block at Sprouts.
Oh, forgot about the HT White American Cheese that I have gotten at Harris Teeter for sandwiches.
Bill Gibson, II 