International Waffle Day!

Just finished making waffle mix for my branch library.  They are planning on celebrating International Waffle Day by serving waffles to patrons today.






I have a great recipe for "Yeast Waffles" given to me many years ago by my sister-in-law, Polly. We make it every Christmas for our Christmas morning breakfast.  It is a tradition we started when my Mom was still with us.  It was her request that we serve it with link sausage, her favorite.  


I am hoping there is some mix left over after the library celebration!


I am glad to share the recipe with you.  What is really great is that the mix will keep up to two weeks in the fridge.

YEAST WAFFLES

Beat: 2  Eggs

Add:        1 tsp. salt

            1 TBS Sugar

            1/2 C. Vegetable Oil

            1 pkg.Yeast in

             1/4 C. Warm Water

Add incrementally:        2 C. Milk

                          3 C. Flour

Make at least one day before using.

Put in a large container.  Keeps at least 2 weeks in Frig.

Kierre's Kountry Kitchen Jury's Out

Hit some golf balls today at Northshore Golf Range near Maumelle.  We have been wanting to try Kierre's for a while.  Two different people recommended it to us.  So that is where we headed when we left the range.

It is certainly not a restaurant with an ambiance.  That is unless you like a warehouse atmosphere.  However, the service was good and the waitress had a great smile!  She was very helpful for us newbies.  Also, in her favor she didn't hover...my pet peeve.  Just when you are in the middle of a conversation the waiter/waitress interrupts.  


I had smoked chicken with mashed potatoes, green beans and buttered carrots.  Chuck had the fried catfish with slaw and French fries.  This is the good part.  The portions were so generous that we decided to split the catfish and my vegetables for lunch. We took the chicken home for tonight's dinner.  


That is where I am headed now...to the kitchen to warm up the chicken.  Chuck made his famous potato salad to go with it.  It can't get any better that this!

Scallions Thumbs Up!

Scallions in the Heights always a good choice for lunch with a friend. 







It is convenient, good food and reasonably priced.  In warm weather you can sit outside. 
That is exactly what my friend and I did today.  

We sat on the patio; drank iced tea and caught up while waiting for our order.  Both of us ordered the Quiche.  I had Spinach Quiche with Sour Cream Potato Soup and she had Quiche Lorraine with fruit.  This plate also comes with a poppy seed muffin.  I eat mine as dessert unless I decide to take it home for breakfast.

Arg! Thumbs Up-Now Thumbs Down!

I just found out 
that McDonald's 
Caramel Frappé has 
590 calories...
naturally, I get one with whipped cream!  


Guess who just eliminated them from her vocabulary?

Starbuck's Caramel Frappuccino is off the list, too!  Their web site doesn't even mention their Frappuccino...probably same at McDonald's...too many!

Izzy's Thumbs Down

I am not sure why we keep going back to Izzy's.  I guess it's like a bad experience: the further you get away from it you lose sight of the experience itself.


We have never ordered any item that motivates us to come back.  Yet, we did it again Saturday night.  After I got home from work we didn't want to cook so away we went.  We wanted Pizza.  We want Pizza at least once a week and indeed, that is what we ordered.   Their menu has untraditional Pizzas; we went for the veggie instead of the "all meat"...our names...they have "Grab You" names.  


The crust and sauce were great.  However, it was as if they cooked they crust first. Then threw the veggies and cheese on top; stuck it back in the over to melt the cheese.  The rest is history.  There was a lot of uncooked spinach and a lot, and I mean a lot, of uncooked Zucchini squash.  Maybe the next time, and I mean maybe, we will build our own cheese pizza with Pepperoni.    The veggie pizza will not entice us to come back.  


Some people must like it.  The dining room was full.   I am not sure why.  There are better places to get Pizza....and Mexican...and hamburgers. Maybe they have found something that we haven't in the last 15 years.

The Sweet Life in Paris

The Sweet Life in Paris: A Recipe for Living in the World's Most Delicious City 
by David Lebovitz

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I really loved this book. It was like reading a blog in the form of a hardback book. It took half as long as I expected because half of it is recipes. That's where you come in...the part about recipes.


One recipe that caught my attention was on page 12: 

"KIR

makes 1 serving.

1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons creme de cassis
1 glass well-chilled dry white wine, preferably Aligote, or another tangy-dry white wine, such as Chablis or Sauvignon Blanc, will also do.


Pour the creme de cassis into a wineglass.  Add the wine and serve.  The accompaniment of choice, in Paris, is salted peanuts."

It brought back memories of drinks after work at Jacques & Suzanne, a Swiss-French restaurant, located on the top floor of the bank in which I worked.  It is long gone now. However, I give them credit for spawning the "fine dining" culture of our city.  


On page 169 he gives a good list of how to or not to order coffee in Paris.  He defines the coffee choices and recommends which ones to order or maybe not.


He saves the best for last: Dulce de Leche Brownies.  They sound wonderful, that is, if someone is making them for you.  You will like the book and his take on Paris and especially the food/recipes--especially you foodies and passionate cooks.

View all my reviews

Taziki's

Lunch yesterday at Taziki's.  This was our first trip.  Our friends recommended it and they are Greek so we went with it. 


We have been to Greece and liked some Greek food ....Cucumber/Tomatoes with a slab of Feta Cheese and Ouzo...be careful of the Ouzo!  There is nothing like Feta Cheese in Greece.  However, the Feta on my Spanakopita Roll-Ups was close.  It didn't have that "goaty" taste that so much of the Feta in States has.  Oh, also the fried potatoes in Greece are to die for; the ones at Taziki's weren't.  

It was Wednesday and I had the Spanakopita Roll-ups with Fruit.  The Roll-Ups were delicious, but I will try a different side next time.  Chuck had a Lamb Gyro and was not impressed..".the Pita wrap was too doughy and the lamb was tasteless".   It was also hard to hold and eat without all the insides ending up in his tray, lap and/or floor.  


We will try again.  After all "they"* say that Mediterranean food is "good for you". 


*Whoever "they" is!

Maddie's Place Thumbs Up!

Friends called..."Let's Get Together"!....which means let's eat out so no one has to cook.  "You decide where to go since you eat out more in Little Rock than we do."


We went through our lists: West Little Rock, Midtowne, Downtown, "Riverside" area.  Chuck had been to Maddie's Place in the "Riverside" area...foot of Cantrell Hill...for lunch.  He came home bragging about the Shrimp Po-Boy...best shrimp I have had in a long time.  He picked up a menu and we went with his choice.  We were not sorry.  

See a side note below...

The weather was nice so we sat outside on the patio.  We had a delightful waitress...thanks, Jennifer!  The food was superb: Grilled Shrimp Salad: 1/2 order Cornmeal Crusted Chicken Tenders w/Shoestring Fries (yes, 1/2 orders are available for a lot of the selections); Crawfish Po-Boy; Crawfish/Shrimp Po-Boy.


We were not disappointed.  We don't won't to over sell, but I think you won't be disappointed either.


BTW...this building was the old "Faded Rose" in the 70's/80's.  They moved in a renovated building next door.