Da' Bronx!

My husband & I headed to Yankee Stadium last Friday for the first time since the Bombers moved into their new digs. We were not disappointed.

The Stadium is all you imagine it to be. Grand, majestic and packed with representations of Yankee history. But I am here to talk about the food.

The park has many offerings - everything from sushi to made-to-order nachos, they have it all. But don't look for a cover on your soda cup (we were told the Stadium does not use them). Weird.

For this inaugural visit, we sat in the Mohegan Sun Sports Bar. Passes are necessary for admission to the club and tickets are required to sit in seats, which are angled in rows for easy viewing. Cool view, to say the least.

The menu is lacking in choices, especially for a couple of vegetarians. We ordered a bunch of appetizers. Each was served fast and more importantly, hot. A beer will set you back $10. Insanity, yes, but you can't watch a game without one.

The place is cool and worth the $90. ticket to sit in the A/C on a hot steamy night. Audio is streamed in through HD TV's above, so you won't miss one second of Michael Kay-ism.

The only minus is the room is soundproof, which takes you out of the Stadium hoopla.

And that, my friends, is a big drawback!

Frank's Gourmet Grille

After a long day of shopping, my mom and I popped into Frank's Gourmet Grille form some eats. Located in a strip mall, Frank's is the sort of place you pass drive by if you didn't know it was there. We got a referral from one of the local store owners and decided to give it a try.

The dining room was simple, casual and clean, the staff friendly and helpful. After perusing the menu, we both decided on French Onion Soup. It came in a crock with crusted Gruyere cheese. The perfect start to our meal on a biter cold day. My mom followed hers up with the Chicken Caesar Salad (lame) but I decided to try the Grilled Vegetable Medley Wrap. It was delicious. Over stuffed with roasted garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, alfalfa sprouts, Kalamata olives & fresh mesclun greens, it was topped off with mozzarella cheese & a roasted red pepper mayonnaise. The perfect blend of salty and sweet veggies topped with cheese....are you kidding me? In a word, yum. Too big for one person though. I brought half home.

The dessert menu is huge. They had so many to choose from....everything from Cheesecake to Key Lime Mouse and Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake. No easy decision there.

Frank's Gourmet Grill is located at 135 Boston Post Road in East Lyme, CT. Their facilities are available host special events and parties, so call if you are interested in booking a function. frank was not on site when we were there, but he looks pretty friendly in this picture! Worth the trip if you want to try something different and a place to absolutely check it out if you are in the area.....shopping....like me and my mom! : )

Enjoy!

Don't look down!

Yes, this is a restaurant. No, I am not kidding.

For just shy of $12,000, you can dangle from the sky while you enjoy a gourmet meal....or wonder where you are going to wash up after you pee yourself.

Recently written up in USA Today, (article to follow) Dinner in the Sky just might be the only untapped niche in the food industry today. I couldn't help but wonder what their slogan might be: "Enjoy your meal.....if you are able to keep it down" or perhaps more appropriately, "enjoy your meal.....but don't look down!"

Seriously.....what's next?

From USA Today:

Here's a dining concept that'll make your head - if not your stomach - spin: It's dinner at a table suspended 165 feet in the air with chairs that swivel 180 degrees. Dubbed Dinner in the Sky, the attraction is making its U.S. debut Monday in Orlando at the annual International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions convention. About 25,000 attendees are expected at the one-stop-shopping event, where the amusement industry rolls out new thrill rides and related products.The high-flying dining venue was introduced in Europe last year and consists of a platform suspended from a crane. Guests are harnessed into 22 seats, with space in the center for a chef and two helpers

With local officials' blessings, the platform can be transported to just about anywhere the crane can maneuver. One recent spot: in front of the Amiens Cathedral in France, with dinner prepared by a three-star Michelin chef. 'It was like eating with the 12 apostles and Jesus Christ,' quips David Ghysels, co-founder of the Belgium-based company.

Ghysels sees all sorts of U.S. possibilities for the dangling restaurant, including air space over the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls and golf courses. 'I think human beings always like to see what's happening from the air,' he says. 'And there are so many wonderful natural spots in the U.S. Dinner in the Sky could go anywhere.'

The restaurant ( dinnerinthesky.com ) belongs firmly in the special-occasion category, however. The cost for eight hours is about $11,444 not including catering.

Another Snowy Day......

It snowed again today. It's still coming down. Another day of cooking.

My mom has already made some veggie soup. More greens, different veggies, just as yummy. But I digress.....

My niece Emily is visiting. She loves to bake. Especially bread, but anything is fair game. Last night she and my mom whipped up some dough. Here it is on the table, waiting to be transformed into a seriously delicious bread. Soon after this photo was taken, it was rolled into individual balls, about the size of a scoop of ice cream, coated with olive oil, sprinkled with herbs and place in a tube pan where it will rise again! Fast forward to later today when it emerges from the oven and is ripped apart by eager hands waiting to smother it with butter and devour it's pipping hot pieces into our bellies.

Is there a better way to spend a cold and snowy afternoon?

The Vegan's Hundred

The challenge has been accepted.....below is an excerpt from one of my favorite blogs Bittersweet.

"News travels pretty fast in the blogosphere, and the latest craze that’s been showing up on food blogs far and wide has been The Omnivore’s Hundred, a list of 100 foods that all omnivores should eat at some point in their lives. Well, I like the idea, but obviously that sort of thing just doesn’t fly with me. Instead, I present to you my revised list, The Vegan’s Hundred instead! Everything here is either naturally free of animal products or can be veganized, and just like the original, these foods vary from the every day to extraordinary, delectable and disgusting. They’re simply all of the things that, in my opinion, any vegan foodie should definitely sink their teeth into at least once."

Your mission, should you choose to accept it:

1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.

3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.

4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.

5) Pass it on!

Ok, I am not a Vegan, but I am a vegetarian, so, here goes.....

1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis (ew-disgusting, vegan or not)
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme Brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba Ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic Soba Noodles
13. PB&J Sandwich
14. Aloo Gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black Truffle
18. Fruit Wine (made from something other than grapes)
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla Ice Cream
21. Heirloom Tomatoes
22. Fresh Wild Berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice & Beans
25. Knish
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet Pepper
27. Dulce de Leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi Peas
32. Chowder in a Sourdough Bowl
33. Mango lassi

34. Sauerkraut

35. Root Beer Float
36. Mulled Cider

37. Scones with Buttery Spread & Jam
38. Vodka Jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast Food French Fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine (from a Bottle worth $120 or more)
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi

49. Glazed Doughnut

50. Seaweed

51. Prickly Pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese
55. Cotton Candy
56. Gnocchi
57. Piña Colada
58. Birch Beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob Chips

61. S’mores
62. Soy Curls
63. Chickpea Cutlets
64. Curry
65. Durian
66. Homemade Sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears or funnel cake

68. Smoked Tofu

69. Fried Plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho

72. Warm Chocolate Chip Cookies
73. Absinthe
74. Corn on the Cob
75. Whipped Cream (straight from the can)
76. Pomegranate
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed Potatoes with Gravy
79. Jerky
80. Croissants
81. French Onion Soup
82. Savory Crepes
83. Tings
84. A Meal at Candle 79 (http://www.candlecafe.com/)
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds

87. Macaroni and cheese

88. Flowers
89. Matzoh Ball Soup
90. White Chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch Chips
94. Yellow Watermelon
95. Chili with Chocolate
96. Bagel with Tofutti
97. Potato Milk
98. Polenta

99. Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee

100. Raw Cookie Dough

For fun pictures of furry chip clips and much more, check out Bittersweet at:

http://bittersweetblog.wordpress.com/

Even I Can Make This Soup!

Soup is the prefect compliment to a chilly afternoon. So, when the temperature dipped below freezing the other day, my mom took to her pans and whipped up two batches...chicken soup for her and veggie for me. (I don't eat anything that once had feathers or fur.)

Today's blend had leeks, potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, cabbage, white beans, zucchini and veggie bullion. Sprinkled with some Parmesan Cheese, it hit the spot, warming me up the way comfort foods are supposed to.

The beauty of this soup (besides the taste) is there is no need to run to the market, just throw in whatever you have on hand. You really can't go wrong, so go for it!

After all, the best recipes often happen by accident.