I’ve always liked plants and don’t come across too many when I go shopping. Came up with some new plants just from grocery produce. I purchased one of those living lettuce heads and used the lettuce and saved the rootball and planted it in a plant box I have. Only a couple days later I have some new heads of lettuce growing!
It got bigger!
Did the same thing with a watercress.
The watercress is almost ready to harvest……it bigger now.
…Wonder if I can get a third crop?
Planted a garlic clove….
Maybe it will flower?
Here’s a radish top.
Below is a carrot top.
Here’s a pineapple top. They swore to me when I was in Hawaii that a pineapple top can grow a pineapple. A few days latter this one died……..???? Either I didn’t do this correctly or my pineapple top was already sick????
Maybe the most unusual one and my favorite is the cabbage core..
I think it looks kinda neat.
A few days latter it looks like this.
Love Plants…….
Working on an avocado….did it before……You put toothpicks to hold the seed above water and it will eventually root. Just a few days latter the seed is rooting but I don’t have a plant yet….
Hopefully this one will become a plant.
These are a few FREE Cool Plants you can get from produce you already purchased.
A new best dish of the year that I tried recently came from The Larder and The Delta in Phoenix Arizona. The dish is called Hoppin John and is made with Sea Island Field Peas, Carolina Gold Rice and Herb Salad. Gosh it’s Forking Scrumptious and you don’t have to wait till New Years to eat it. Why wait? You can prosper now!……. It’s earthy, a little spicy, deeply flavorful also with interesting textures like crisped rice. The Sea Island Field Peas have a taste that is not so different from lentils. This dish taste like a marriage of Persian Tahdig (Bottom of pot Crisp Persian Rice Casserole and Lebanese Mujadara (rice & lentil with onions) It’s just so delicious that you won’t be able to leave your fork down for long!
While we are here I should also let it be known……..That I’ve tried many hot chickens in metro Phoenix and I have tried Hattie B’s…………but the absolutely FORKING BEST Hot Chicken I ever tried anywhere was the K.F.C. Sandwich from The Larder and The Delta. The thigh meat was so succulent, juicy and flavorful like no other. The coating was ever so slightly caramelized, crisp, spicy but not too spicy. Big gorgeous pops of pickles cut threw and a really great slaw with the perfect bun…..better than good…. it’s like from another planet.
OMG….to me that K.F.C. stands for KENTUCKY FORKING CRACK SANDWICH. This is really to die for!
But today’s extraordinary dish was The Hoppin John!
The Larder and The Delta is a small restaurant located in downtown Phoenix. In case you didn’t know they serve high quality chef driven modern food that swings southern inspired. A Forking Great little place to check out.
The Other Forking Best Thing I ate out this week was the Hoppin John from The Larder and The Delta in Phoenix.
Worth a Fork!
www.TheLarderandtheDelta.com
Every THING is subject to change and your experience may or may NOT differ.
Dijon Mustard was originally made in the town of Dijon located in Burgundy France since the Middle Ages. Since then people have enjoyed Dijon Mustard and it’s a part of food history.
For years and years the only Dijon Mustard I used in recipes was Grey Poupon. I don’t spread mustard on things because I find that most mustards are very overpowering. If I spread mustard on something I can’t taste the food…..I read about how smooth and wonderful Amora Dijon was so I had to give it a try.
In the middle is Grey Poupon.
On the left is Amora Intense
On the right is Amora 1/2 strength
First I go and give each mustard a sniff.
Amora 1/2 strength smells mustardy.
Amora Intense smells a stronger mustardy smell.
Grey Poupon doesn’t seem to have any aroma…..?
Now I go for the taste.
Amora 1/2 strength – is super smooth, mildly mustardy. It’s almost like eating a loose deviled egg that’s heavy with mustard.
Amora Intense – is a little more interesting but is also very smooth and a little bit stronger…this one taste sort of has an almost Chinese-like Mustard taste with Horseradish…….but smoother……This one is slightly more acidic or it taste sharper but is still delicious…This one you can feel it in the back of your mouth. This is the only one out of the three that leaves a mild mustard finish in the mouth.
Grey Poupon – Seems harsh and vinegary after the other two. I also can taste something a little sour in this one..
Those were my Forking Thoughts on Dijon Vu – Dijon Mustard Tasting – Grey Poupon VS Amora.
These aren’t necessarily my best recipes but they all are very good to excellent. Up above is a picture of the Cook’s Country Potato Cheddar Pierogi I made. I can’t even tell you how often this recipe is pinned. At Holiday times and when this is featured on TV up to 350 people a day look up this recipe on my site.
So far 139 people Yum’d Forking Easy Classic Boule Bread.
Portuguese Inspired Roasted Chicken got 56 Yum’d so far.
Korean Inspired Leek Salad got Yum’d 128 times so far!
So far 93 Yum’d Duchess Style Parsnips.
Healthy Creamy Low Fat Roasted Cauliflower got at least 71 times Yum’d.
Cauliflower Crust Pizza got Yum’d at least 240 times and 5 stars.
Pumpernickel Bread got Yum’d 43 times so far.
Spicy Thai Basil Salad got an official 4 stars. (might have made 5 stars if they didn’t switch up ingredients. The person rating this recipe didn’t add the oil, basil, Chile or soy sauce and used sambal instead.)
Spicy Mexican Style Cole Slaw is officially 5 Stars.
Socca Bread is officially 5 stars.
Eye Roast is officially 5 stars.
Indian Inspired Green Beans with Chia Peas is officially 5 stars.
One of The Forking Truth’s Recipes made it to our local newspaper.
Since I published this I just got a new official 5 star rated recipes.
I paid $3.00 each for these pastries from Cafe Chenar are BOTH Yummilious……I thought they’d be small since they were only three dollars each but they weren’t so small. One was filled with ground beef and the other was filled with seasoned potato….Both were scrumptious! I note on my last visit to Cafe Chenar I noticed some prices did go up a dollar or two…..maybe these pastries went up?….Well they should have because I thought most of the food was priced too low.
Crispy Fish Wrap from Wraps ‘N” Curry in Glendale
The Crispy Fish Wrap from Wraps ‘N’ Curry in Glendale is Fresh made naan bread brushed with mint mayonnaise, lettuce, onion, tomato, cilantro and hand battered fish. I think it’s tasty and quite a value for only $8.95.
Salad and Go in Phoenix $5.74
Salad and go is a Drive Threw gourmet Salad to go restaurant. They offer about a DOZEN different salads and also seasonal varieties. You have different protein options but chicken and tofu options only cost $5.74. Other options that only cost slightly more are shrimp and beef. Salad and go is a local group of restaurants that operate in Metro Phoenix.
Mac ‘N’ Cheese Balls from The Social on 83rd in Peoria at P83
Notable Mac ‘N’ Cheese Balls were served to me from The Social on 83rd. They had creamy cheesy interiors and a crisp thin, seemed like oil free exterior and mighty tasty. They were served over a lemon herb aioli. ($7.50) (Price increase possible)
$8.00 Happy Hour Vegetable Plate from Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante
Usually Happy Hour Food is breaded, fried, maybe wings or something heavy. But these $8.00 Happy Hour Vegetables are delicious and seem healthy….You actually have room to order dinner if you want to after enjoying them! This $8.00 Happy Hour Vegetable Plate is an unexpected Healthy, nutritious and the just right appetizer to share from Bottega Pizzeria Ristorante in Glendale.
Chino Bandido in Phoenix offers Chinese and Mex style foods in about 90,000 different combinations. You either get one entree with white rice for $7.35 or pick the combo with two entrees and rice and beans for $8.90. Upgrades to burrito-ize or quesadilla-ize an entree cost 85 cents, upgrade the white rice to jerk fried or one of the other fried rice also will cost 85 cents more. Complimentary snickerdoodle cookies are served with meals.
From Banh Mi Vietnamese Eatery in Phoenix. The Rice Plate with Grilled Chicken (The egg roll was already consumed)
Well between me and my husband we tried most of the food that Banh Mi Bistro Vietnamese Eatery Offers and everything we tried is delicious and EVERY FORKING THING THERE is under $10.00. The one plate that stands out to me today is the Rice Plate. It’s a double portion of protein, salad garnish, rice and a pork egg roll. They offer the rice plate with Pork Chop, Grilled Pork, Shrimp, Grilled Chicken, Shaken Beef and Tofu Vegetable options. I can vouch that the Grilled Chicken, Shaken Beef and Grilled Pork are Great Choices….They all taste different but all are a Great Value and are delicious…This is the best $9.00 complete plate that I know of in North Phoenix.
They are small street sized tacos but these vegan tacos from Casa Terra in Glendale are to die for……..and we’re only priced at $9.00. They are made with house made tortillas, pibil mushrooms and escabeche…OH SO FORKING GOOD!
I hit the jackpot at FiGaMi Asian Fresh in Phoenix. They have a whole menu of $3.50 appetizers I didn’t try them all yet but the three I tried were all very good. (Chicken Meat Puff, Chicken Dumplings and Burmese Style Fermented Tea Salad)
My favorite Appetizer was the Burmese Fermented Tea Salad. It was earthy, tangy, crunchy and refreshing. It was unlike any salad I ever tried before. It was made with vegetables, peanuts, fried beans and tomato. (ONLY $3.50)
For my dinner I enjoyed the Burmese Style Fish Noodle Soup ($6.50)
It was crazy Forking Good. It was a thickened fish soup with rice noodles, crispy noodles, an Asian marinated jammy egg and fresh cilantro. This dish happens to be the national dish of Burma……Dang it was great!
I’m certain that there are a bunch more out there but this is what I tried this past year
Everything is subject to change and price increases are to be expected.
I tasted and drank the MOST FORKING AMAZING things in Napa California. I’ve been to Napa many times over the years and have been to many of the restaurants and many of the wineries. But Napa doesn’t stay the same. Wineries and some restaurants come and go. Many smaller wineries are getting sold to large wineries. I also noticed that there is a new more hip Napa now. Tasting have gone up dramatically in prices in Napa. Not all but many tasting rooms now are lounges with servers instead of bars you taste at.
This isn’t your grandpa’s Napa Tasting Room (The Prisoner). They seat you here and serve you some dip with crackers. (tasting was around $45.00)
Even old school wineries like Trefethen have converted to the new hip modern way.
Trefethen
(Clos du val)
Some tasting rooms are also show rooms for goods. We did a tasting at a Ralph Lauren Showroom. I did my tasting sitting on a $7,605.00 leather chair. (Trident Wines)
Ralph Lauren….and the $7,605.00 chair.
But not every tasting room is multi million dollar building.
The finest wine I tasted came from this bare bones shack and it was called Pina. Not only was the wine the finest the tasting fee was also the cheapest ($20.00 a tasting)
The Food
Protea a casual Caribbean-Latin-Global order at the counter restaurant with a daily changing menu.
Torc – a new American restaurant. Highly recommended by the locals but what drew me in was that truffles were on the menu.
The Silverado Trail is without restaurants so if one is doing those wineries chances are that you will do a stop at the Oakville Grocery.
Bistro Jeanty serves classic French Foods.
The Acacia House by Top Chef Master Chris Cosentino is in a renovated victorian mansion. They serve Californian Cuisine that’s bold yet refined.
La Calenda is a casual Oaxaco Mexican Restaurant that is part of the Thomas Keller Group.
Gott’s Roadside is a casual American Eatery with several locations.
Bottega is an Italian Restaurant by celebrity chef Micheal Chiarello.
Addendum is only open Thursday – Saturday for lunch (11:00-2:00) and is by Chef Thomas Keller. They only serve three different boxed lunches with changing sides. It has been said by many publications that the fried chicken is the best in the country.
That was just a taste….here are some pictures to savor.
This was just a little taste of where the FORK I’ve been……..Napa California.
There’s a NEW permanent flavor of M&M’s out there and it’s Hazelnut Spread. The M&M’s colors are the traditional ones of yellow, orange, green, blue, red and brown with the usual smooth shiny finish.
The bag is a little weird looking if you’re not paying attention.
Honest to GOD I thought the Blue M was holding a Poop emoji……but maybe I need bifocals now so maybe it’s just me?????
I start by opening the bag and take in a big sniff.
It smells like chocolate.
Pour some out and take a bite to see the center.
They do look a little different with a lighter center.
I eat a couple……..
The texture is different and these M&M’s have a soft center…..at first they don’t taste so different from regular M&M’s. They seem like regular M&M’s but that are oddly soft…….and a faint hazelnut aftertaste.
Then I let one dissolve in my mouth…..At first not any different with the same hard sweet shell. Then I taste the familiar chocolate……Oddly it isn’t till I’m almost done I get the hazelnut….followed by a little salt.
These Hazelnut Spread M&M’s are better to savor than to eat…..
Now if you let them dissolve real SUPER SLOW…….Shell melts….next goes the soft chocolate….next you are left with all hazelnut center that oddly seems slightly harder than really soft chocolate……You definitely get the hazelnut best when you eat them this way….
If you are just eating the M&M’s like a normal person……. The hazelnut flavor is a very good and natural flavor but I wish the hazelnut flavor wasn’t so late to the party. Can’t taste it till the M&M is almost gone and then the hazelnut hit comes followed by a light touch of salt.
************Unless you let these M&M’s dissolve slow as can be you won’t get all the hazelnut flavor.********** (well at least from the bag I tried)
Those were my Forking Thoughts on the Hazelnut Spread M&M’s…..Your opinion and thoughts may indeed differ.
The Butterfinger Candy Bar was created in 1923 by Otto Schnering of the Curtiss Candy Company of Illinois. Between 1964 and 1981 The Curtiss Candy Company changed hands and also merged into other companies that include Nabisco and R.J. Reynolds. In 1990 Nestle bought Butterfinger (and Baby Ruth) from Nabisco. Then in March 2018 Nestle sold Butterfinger to Ferrero. (picture above is from www.BussinessWire.com)
www.TeamHellions.com
February 2019 fun sized Butterfinger Candy Bars began to display “Improved Recipe” on the packaging. (red on right side – right upper corner in photo below)
Bite sized Butterfingers (that are expired from my local grocery store) are made by Nestle.
Fresh new Butterfinger Candy Bars are now made by Ferrara Candy Company.
When you compare the ingredients you might read that molasses is no longer an ingredient in the Butterfinger Candy bar…..and the sodium has increased by 20%.
www.LazerTimePodcast.com
The Butterfinger now lacks that caramelized molasses flavor and is now more salty.
www.AdsByDee.com
Other changes are that the Butterfinger now uses a larger sized peanut in its core and more cocoa and milk in it’s chocolate coating.
www.Simpsons.Wikia.com
The Ferrero Company also dropped the hydrogenated oils and uses a double layer wrapper instead.
On the left is a Nestle Bite Size Butterfinger. On the Right is the Ferrero Butterfinger
The Nestle Bite Size Butterfinger (on the left) has a more textured peanut butter type of candy threw it with a more caramelized nutty kind of taste.
The Ferrero has a noticeably better chocolate coating and more deep peanut flavor but it is salty…..seems less sweet…..It’s almost sandy…….It doesn’t have that flaky texture that the Nestle Butterfinger had. The Molasses taste is missing.
Both are good just different now.
Your opinion and experience may differ.
Those were my Forking Thoughts on WTFork happened to the Butterfinger Candy Bar.
These are the best of what I tasted in Metro Phoenix this year so far. The dishes aren’t really in any particular order. These are dishes that are not just very good……These dishes are The FORKING BEST! I mean like from another planet delicious….Out of this world!
Pictured above is a Tuna Aguachile from Barrio Gran Reserva in Phoenix. It was light, refreshing and spicy. It’s filled with special ingredients and also some unexpected surprises. The flavors just POP and it’s amazing. Actually I could list just about all the plates I tried at Barrio Gran Reserva but will list just one more special one.
Barrio Gran Reserva
This is Pan Seared Corvina. It’s with a Salsa d Xoconostle…..The fish is perfect and this salsa is the best salsa I’ve ever tasted….It’s made with a special pepper that fire roasted with an extra delicious taste….Unusual delicious ingredients are on the plate like red pine nuts and rose mole. Every bite taste different but it’s all insanely delicious together.
www.BarrioGranReserva.com
From Confluence in Carefree AZ
Confluence serves food that is astoundingly amazing….Every Forking plate is a masterpiece. It’s really great food times TEN. The plate above is a Sweet Potato Ravioli….its as great as it can be and then you taste a leek….and it taste better than a leek….It taste Forking BETTER than a leek…The chef did something to the leek to make a Forking leek amazing. Then I get to a leaf of radicchio……and it taste better than radicchio……..The waitress tells me that the Chef cooked the radicchio leaf in red wine and brown sugar. A really special plate I can add over TWENTY plates from here but I will just pick one more plate.
From Confluence in Carefree AZ
The Red Sea Bream is prepared and seasoned to perfection. Here’s that magic thing again….The little green things on the plate are green beans…..But they are OMG Amazing! They are sweet, tender, slightly pickled…..they taste better than I can describe….They sort of burst and pop in your mouth. Every other vegetable just adds another delicious layer of flavor…Also there are some really melt in your mouth gnocchi on the plate….This plate was just magical.
www.RestaurantConfluence.com
From The Collins Small Batch Kitchen in Phoenix AZ
Chef Christopher Collins has a few restaurants in Metro Phoenix but it was at The Collins Small Batch Kitchen I tried The Twisted Noodle Salad. One would never guess that a salad could have so much going on…..This salad has everything and is bright, sour, sweet, spicy, flavorful, crunchy and chewy. It’s made with soba noodles, kale, avocado, pickled cucumbers, arugula, scallions, herbs, toasted coconut, peanuts, carrots and is dressed with chili-lime vinaigrette. I am certain that their are a few more secret ingredients that make this salad unbelievably scrumptious with a KICK that doesn’t hurt.
www.TheCollinsAZ.com
The Cabbage Rolls from Cafe Chenar in Phoenix were the BEST Cabbage Rolls I’ve ever tried. Did you ever taste a cabbage roll that melted in your mouth just like cotton candy? I never had a cabbage roll like this before. The cabbage was so tender it just dissolves in the mouth. The filling was so light, tender and really perfectly seasoned. The filling was a mix of this amazing tender beef, rice and some potato. I never had beef of this light texture before. It was tender like it was cooked in a sous vide water oven. These cabbage roll were really extra special!
I haven’t found a website for Cafe Chenar but you can find them on Facebook.
This next one was an unexpected one…….and doesn’t look special.
Both of us were blown away with all the incredible flavors packed into this Quinoa Meat-less-ball from the newly opened Meat The Ball Restaurant in Phoenix. It has a crisp thin breaded exterior and an amazingly delicious stracchino cheese core. This meatball was also SPICY HOT and full of awesome flavors……..I hope they don’t change a thing with this recipe because it was perfection. I should note that the rigatoni pasta and secret tomato sauce I had that same night was also perfection. It was shocking to get pasta that was so spectacular like from the finest restaurant but was from this little casual place.
www.MeatTheBall.com
I was recently at the newly opened fine dining vegan restaurant in old town Glendale called Casa Terra.
All the food I tried at Casa Terra was flavored very well but the street sized Tapas Tacos had all kinds on flavors and textures going on with them. They were so delicious that once the word gets out about these incredible tacos everyone will have to try them…..I wish this restaurant was open for lunch so I could enjoy these tacos for lunch………..with a soup or salad………or more food..
www.CasaTerra.com
From Singh Meadows in Tempe AZ
Singh Meadows is in Tempe and is a produce market and cafe. The cafe serves stunning dishes that are mostly vegetarian featuring magnificent fresh vegetables. I recently tried three plates from Singh Meadows and all three are worthy of being here but there’s something about the beet plate….It’s not a boring beet plate like you get from most restaurants…..It’s more like a plate that could win at a Chopped Championship. Assorted fresh beets are prepared four different ways. Almond, avocado, cream cheese, fancy greens, super sweet green beans, high quality country bread and what I think was urfa pepper just go amazingly well together.
www.SinghMeadowsTempe.com
Those were some of the BEST PLATES I tried in Metro Phoenix in 2019 so far. I can’t wait to taste the rest of the yearn Metro Phoenix!
Everything is subject to change and your experience may or may not differ.
If you regularly read my blog you know that I’m not a fan of Oreo Cookies. Even as a child I couldn’t eat Oreo Cookies. I recently received a gift box in the mail from my sister in New Jersey. In the box were peanut butter Kandy Kakes and a lemon pie by Tastykake…..and this package of Carrot Cake Oreos….I was very puzzled by the package of carrot cake Oreo Cookies. .I thanked my sister for the package and asked her why she sent me Carrot Cake Oreo Cookies. She said that she remembered that I used to like lemon pies and peanut butter Tandy Kakes. She also said that she remembered that I use to eat a lot of carrots so she thought I’d like Carrot Cake Oreo Cookies…….Well that was very nice of my sister to remember all that and to think of me by sending me this package……….well……..I have to give these carrot cake Oreos a try.
These cookies are marked artificially flavored in the right hand corner. Towards the left bottom this package reads carrot cake flavored cookie with cream cheese frosting flavor artificially flavored.
I notice that the cookies don’t contain any carrots or cream cheese. š
I open the package and take a good sniff.
It’s an odd odor. it’s a little sour, a tiny bit like graham, I’m getting more sour again,. I take a small bite…….WOW that’s weird. Yuk…before I can figure out what I’m tasting my mouth is a slimy. The cream is awful. The cream actually has a slight coconut taste. The cookie is a little bit like a graham cracker but not exactly. The cookie has chucks of salt in it. When I take another bite I can taste something citrusy…..The worst part of these cookies is the paste like cream that builds a turtle wax finish in the mouth………. They are just very unpleasant. ICK they made me burp and I had to re-live the experience.
I didn’t like them but my dogs are very intrigued by them……..?
Those were my Forking Thoughts on the carrot cake Oreo Cookies.
