Food movies

There are two movies that should appeal to you if you like eating, and who doesn't? One is the Danish movie Babette's Feast where one half of the movie is given over to the feast. Danish food is not my thing, although how much Danish food have I eaten? Not much or is that none, but the look of enjoyment of the actors might make me think otherwise.

The other movie is The Big Night. I liked the looks of all the food presented for the guests enjoyment, and it will make your mouth water.

Coney's built at home

All you out there who like occasionally to partake of "coney's" will want to take heed of this product. When we get hungry for a coney, but don't want to drive to where they are, we sometimes go the home-made route. Of course onions, and mustard are no problem, but the sauce is usually not exactly right. Except this time we have found one that is really very good, and it is spicy too. Tony Packo's hot dog sauce, which we found at Krogers is great. Try it coney fans.

Dark fudge chocolate chip kettlecorn

I don't deny it, I am a card carrying chocoholic. When I saw this at the superstore I read the copy and it was in the basket sooner than you could say presto somethingorother. Well after an in home taste test with my fellow tester she and I will have to tell you to look for this in your favorite superstore. It is as tony the tiger would say grreat.

Spaghetti Taco with Italian sausage and peppers

I was perusing the NY Times this morning and came across this little article that caught my attention. Why did it catch my attention? because it was talking about food. Now this food is a little different. It does not come from any famous chef, but from evidently a kid's tv show. The recipe was for a spaghetti taco which didn't exactly bowl me over. But this recipe kind of made my taste buds quiver just a little. I have not presented it yet to my wife who rules the kitchen, a right she has earned by turning out 'good stuff' for a lot of years, but I'm gearing myself up to do just that. I expect a response like 'has senility set in this morning?' said in a kindly way of course.

But really it sounds good to me and could all these kids be wrong. Well yes I suppose so, but here it is. Decide for yourself.

Great Depression Cooking

I was born in 1937 and the depression was still making everyone miserable. The depression ended only when WWII broke out at the end of 1941, and the country mobilized to manufacture war materials. Up until then it was pretty bad. My mother cooked apples different ways until she couldn't stand to look at them. She and my dad went many times to eat with her sister who had a jar of peanut butter, and was willing to share.

Clara, the cook and narrator has 22 other videos sharing her cooking and thoughts of those days. Check here for her video's.

I was led to these little gem's by our friend Kim Kommando.

I like to eat out, and if I can accidentally eat healthy at the same time I've gotten lucky.

List Names Healthiest Fast Food Eateries

Last Edited: Friday, 06 Mar 2009, 11:29 AM EST

Created: Friday, 06 Mar 2009, 11:29 AM EST

) By FRANK CARNEVALE MyFox National MYFOX NATIONAL -- Fast food is quick and inexpensive, but it can also be unhealthy and fattening. Is there a way to eat well and still get a cheap meal? In its March issue, Health magazine surveyed fast food restaurants in America. They ranked the Top 10 and one surprise is that McDonald's makes the list. The key to eating well at these restaurants is to look for the healthy options, like salad, soups and organic foods. Also patrons should go with reasonably sized items. But people need to be careful and stay away from unhealthy options like fries and super-size items. The magazine's criteria was to look at uses of fats, preparation, sodium counts, organic produce and the availability of nutritional information. The testing was conducted by a panel of dietitians, nutritionists and doctors. The America's Top 10 Healthiest Fast Food Restaurants are: 1. Panera Bread 2. Jason's Deli 3. Au Bon Pain 4. Noodles and Company 5. Corner Bakery café 6. Chipotle 7. Atlanta Bread 8. McDonald's 9. Einstein Bros. Bagels 10. Taco Del Mar Health magazine has more tips and dangers zones from the restaurants on the list. USA Today columnist Tedd Mitchell, M.D., echos Health magazine, saying that people should "stick to the lower-calorie, lower-fat menu items." Also he suggests splitting items at restaurants in order to save calories and cash.

Fast Food Restaurant Franchises

Then and now. Yesterday stopped in at Bob Evans for a sandwich and looked at the menu. My eyes landed on their Pot Roast sandwich with some fries-$8.50 or thereabouts.
Here is a 1950's menu from Woolworths lunch counter. I guess it's all relative, we made less money, we paid less for lunch, but somehow it doesn't seem exactly relative when you dish out almost twenty dollars for two sandwiches and some fries.

I really like steak, I don't love it, but I do like one now and again. Although I have changed my request from well done, to medium, I still rate this steak undercooked.

I do love chili. I have tried it in just about every restaurant I've eaten at here in my hometown. I rate them personally and know where I will or where I won't order it again.

I've seen some varieties of those innocuous looking little green, yellow, red peppers that will blow your head off. I like a little heat in my chili, but not so much that all I am trying to do is trying to prove I can stand the heat as they say. I can't. I figure about a 3 on the heat register is my limit.

FOOD

During my years of military duty way back in the fifties, I was not generally a very happy camper. I was not a soldier that would be exemplified as 'todays soldier' or have my likeness put on a poster for recruitment purposes. Although it was not altogether a bad experience. I got to travel to places I would not have visited otherwise. I met some people I wish I had kept in contact with. (a regret obviously) But, for this piece what is most important to the rest of my life was the military contribution to my eating habits.

I love to eat, but that is not the way it always was. I was, as I think an awful lot of young people are or at least were, picky or snoopy eaters, with a small range of likes and a large range of do not likes. Well the military cured me of that. I can still remember the incident. I was in basic training and working harder than I ever had in my young life. During breakfast in a huge, huge dining hall, or mess hall as it was called, maybe because it more accurately reflected what was prepared and served to its young heroes in the making, I was going through the serving line with my empty tray outstretched for some familiar breakfast fare. Maybe some eggs, bacon, oatmeal, pancakes, all of which were familiar to me because my mom served me one of the above all my life. But no, not today, because today my life would change. I pulled my outstretched tray back and it was filled with two pieces of toast covered with a mixture of hamburger in a white sauce of some kind. I remember asking my table partner who I thought had a little more worldly experience, jeeze everyone in the building had more worldly experience than I did, what the devil was that lying in a puddle on my tray. He explained in a succinct phrase, it's shit on a shingle. Oh, of course it is I thought. Well it was very early in the morning and we had already been at it for over an hour with a long day ahead of us, and I was starving. I had to eat something and even though the unappetizing offering with the unappetizing name was the only thing in front of me, I balked. I balked, but not for long, survival dictated I eat something and this was it. I started slowly, but found out I really liked this stuff. My mom didn't make it, but perhaps there are other entrees out in the world that I would like also. Thus opened my new world of trying different cuisine's made by someone other than my mom, whom I discovered was not intellectually curious when it came to food preparation. But it was one of those little things that changed my life, at least my appreciation of food, all the different types and origins, prepared by cooks far and wide.

But now after all these years of eating many different foods, and a daily diet prepared by the woman I married who is a very good cook, I still think the two best things to eat are a good old American hamburger, embellished with whatever your mind can imagine, and something chocolate for dessert. But I do thank the American military for opening my mind and stomach to all that is different and sometimes delicious.

Well I still have a prejudice against trying limburger cheese. I just can't get it that close to my nose.

fA MOUTH WATERING FIND

I'm not a cook, I'm an eater. My wife cooks and she is a good one. But I know what I like, and one of the things I like is a cup or bowl of gumbo from Red Lobster. Whenever we venture that way, I always like to add a cup of that good stuff to whatever else I'm partaking of. (I just ended that sentence with a preposition didn't I).

Well, like I say, I'm not a cook, but we discovered a canned soup product from Progresso, Chicken and Sausage Gumbo. It is just like the gumbo served at the Red Lobster and the whole can is about 260 calories, half of which is a very good single serving. It is spicy and if you can whip up a bunch of those buscuits they serve at the Lobster you are in gumbo heaven.