friday field trip — pleasure in simple things

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just coffee, donuts & chicken in philly

July

friday field trip

They only sell coffee, donuts, and fried chicken. My interest was in the donuts. I heard there were some imaginative flavors offered and I wanted to check it out. I looked up the address of Federal Donuts…1219 South Second Street. Great. I usually go everywhere in Philly by walking or by public transportation, but we would save time by driving…I heard these donuts sell out early! My sister, daughter, and I headed out early morning.

The store turned out to be a very unassuming, tiny little shop, with six counter stools and no parking in a Pennsport neighborhood. I guess we lucked out that there was only one person in the shop when we arrived, so we were able to sit at the counter. Lucky because we could take our time analyzing our treats…each of us eager to decide our favorite variety.

Not wanting to miss tasting any of the unique flavors, we ordered one of each from the menu of nine flavors offered…just to sample, mind you. That included three ‘hot’ donut flavors made to order: indian cinnamon, appolonia spice, and vanilla lavender. These donuts were coated while hot in a sugar/spice mixture. The other nine flavors, called ‘fancy’ donuts, were the same great, very light cake-type donut, coated with a flavorful glaze.

A photo of Federal Donuts’ current ‘fancy’ donut flavor offerings.

The flavors offered – definitely imaginative. The taste – awesome! I talked to the woman working in the store and the one regular customer seated at the counter. I wanted to know about other donut flavor offerings…could I just be happy with the nine I was trying? No. I had to know what flavors I may have missed. Torture! Flavors are changed regularly. Some past flavors included chocolate covered banana, pina colada, mandarin-coffee, s’mores, and root beer float. So, even after deciding my favorite flavor, it could change on my next visit when different varieties may be offered.

At first I thought donuts and chicken were a wierd combination of food items to sell, but after thinking about it, both are fried. Plus, Federal covers both with unique seasonings and glazes. Chicken seasonings include harissa and za’atar (no idea what these taste like!) and the glazes are chili-garlic and honey-ginger. Although I am not crazy about fried chicken, after tasting the donuts, I DO want to try the chicken sometime!

My favorite this visit? My favorite ‘fancy’ donut was the fig on fig. My favorite overall was the vanilla lavender. (My daughter chose strawberry rhubarb pie and vanilla lavender.) I asked at the shop for the current hot seller. Can you guess? Chocolate coconut. I was surprised. The shop thought the reason was because it was the most familiar flavor to customers.

As you can see by my ‘after’ photo of the leftovers, we basically only took ‘a little bite’ of each flavor as research!

I realized after I got home that I didn’t even get a photo of my favorite flavor…I guess it just wasn’t around long enough!

Thanks for visiting! Don’t forget to ‘like’ my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/insimplethings or leave a comment for a chance to win this month’s giveaway book! Only a few days left for July’s selection…a beautiful ‘coffeetable’ garden photography book. August 1st starts the giveaway for Yes, Chef.

4 comments » | food & festivities

kitchen of the year 2012

July

field trip friday

I had the greatest rainy day in New York City!

Have you heard of House Beautiful’s Kitchen of the Year? Each year, a designer is chosen to create the ultimate kitchen in Rockefeller Center and the public is welcome to visit. It is such a fun event. It runs for five days and there are associated activities throughout the week. This year, I attended on the last day because I planned to be in the city on that particular day anyway.

The 1,000 square foot, 2012 kitchen was designed by Mick De Giulio. My three favorite things in the kitchen did not even relate directly to cooking! Not the stove, oven, or any of the appliances…my favorites were:

1. The butler’s pantry. WOW. I have always dreamed of having one of these. Every show house I go to seems to have one and I WANT ONE. Too beautiful considering it is not a room your company would ever see! The best part about the 100 square foot space was the cove ceiling with venetian finished gilded iron lights.

2. Another thing I loved was the fireplace in the kitchen. Could you imagine making s’mores in your kitchen? Great item. I am also a huge fan of white, so I loved the white seating and table in front of it. I guess it may not be real practical for some families…but, who is talking about practical?

Photo of the fireplace in the 2012 Kitchen of the Year.

3. Probably my very favorite thing in the entire kitchen wasn’t even a permanent part of the display…I am talking about Executive Chef Michael Ferraro from Delicatessen.

Photo of Executive Chef Michael Ferraro from Delicatessen

He was giving a presentation on preparing a pan roasted herbed chicken with shaved brussel sprouts. A very informative presentation and a super guy. I was so glad I got the chance to meet him. I was just disappointed I could not fit in a visit to his restaurant this trip – a rainy day would have been a great time to have some great comfort food…next time.

Can’t go wrong with truffle oil! Photo of Chef Ferraro from Delicatessen giving a demonstration at the 2012 Kitchen of the Year.

A photo of Chef Ferraro during a demonstration at the 2012 House Beautiful Kitchen of the year – inserting herbed butter under the skin of a chicken to be pan roasted

A photo of the pan roasted herbed chicken and shaved brussel sprouts prepared by Chef Ferraro at the 2012 House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year. I got to taste!

If you want to see more photos of the 2012 Kitchen of the Year, you can check out the House Beautiful website www.housebeautiful.com/koty To see more about Chef Ferraro and Delicatessen http://delicatessennyc.com/

Any other day, visiting the Kitchen of the Year would have been the highlight of my day – not this day…I had the chance to spend time with my great friend Lisa, and also had the opportunity to watch her lovely and talented daughter perform in the Rockettes Showcase! Bravo Regan! :)

Thanks for visiting! Enjoy your weekend, Jackie

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favorite childhood book

July

friday field trip

What is the first book you remember from your childhood? When I posed this question to people I know, some common responses were Pat the Bunny and Good Night Moon…I remember reading these titles to my children, but have no recollection of them from my own childhood. The first, and only picture book I remember was Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton…What does that say about me, I wonder? It is a great book, mind you, but not exactly the kind of ‘warm and fuzzy’ titles mentioned by my friends.

With that in mind, I fast forward to a day recently when a friend gave me some of those trendy topic cards…you know the ones…they suggest topics to start dinner conversation? Well, the ones I received suggest activities, and this was the first card I pulled out of the pack:

So, I guess I could have chosen to read Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel. I didn’t. I decided to go with the first book I remember really enjoying reading by myself…the flashlight under the covers, I will risk getting in trouble, it’s so good, I like this whole reading thing book. For me, that book was, without question The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary.

Interesting revelation that the two ‘milestone books’ from my childhood were both considered ‘boy books’…particularly back at the time I was enjoying reading them. Interesting. My Friday field trip was to the local Barnes and Noble rather than the library. I thought I might want to buy a copy of the book to keep for my bookshelf. But, when I saw the cover illustration had been changed – modernized and looking very different from the original book – I decided against it…it just didn’t look like the same book.

I planted myself in one of the comfy chairs in the corner of the bookstore and went about reading my book…to the left of me a girl was reading Psychology Today and to the right, a young man was reading Help Cure Cancer Through Nutrition. There I sit, in the little reading circle, with a book from the children’s section written for an eight-year-old reading level…I wonder what the two neighboring readers thought about my selection?

I’m surprised how much of the story I did not remember, considering the book had such a profound effect on me. Mrs. Cleary, now over 90 years old, was considered a trendsetter back in the 1960’s. She was a librarian that decided to write books for children when she discovered that school age children, particularly boys, couldn’t find books that were written for people ‘like them.’

So, I wonder how I ended up with The Mouse and the Motorcycle…it was definitely taken out of my grade-school library, but I wonder how I chose it…Did the title or cover appeal to me? Did the librarian recommend it to me? I will never know. I just know that last year, when I was asked to name the top six books – of all the books read in my lifetime – that have had the biggest impact on me, The Mouse and the Motorcycle made the list.

Thanks Ms. Cleary, for instilling a life-long love for reading into my life.

To read more about Beverly Cleary, visit her website: www.beverlycleary.com

11 comments » | nostalgia

in search of a ‘beachy’ wine

July

friday field trip

This week’s Friday field trip is to a liquor store…not very characteristic of me, since I am not a big drinker and I am not usually the one in the family to make the trip to the liquor store… but, I am on a mission…I am looking for a ‘beachy’ bottle of wine! I am one of those people that has to love the packaging as much (or more) than the product I am purchasing.

At this time of year, there should be plenty of beautiful summer labels to choose from…my only criteria is that it can’t be a red and it can’t be expensive. (Although I am pretty sure for the right awesomely beautiful label/bottle, the criteria may just fly out the window.)

Instead of showing you photos of a liquor store or some of the contenders, I will cut right to the chase and show you photos of the winning bottle! It is a wine called SeaGlass. Love it! This bottle happens to be a sauvignon blanc.

Now, this selection is merely by aesthetics. I won’t know if the the taste measures up until the tasting, over the weekend. The label indicates it is a perfect choice for light summer fare, so it sounds perfect! I will give you a full critique of the tasting on my facebook page, if you want to check it out at the end of the weekend. https://www.facebook.com/insimplethings

Great, isn’t it? Growing up, I always called the glass I collected along the shore, ‘beach glass,’ but it seems most people use the term ‘sea glass.’ Either way, it is beautiful. The website for the manufacturer, SeaGlass Wines, is just as beautiful…if you want to check out their other varieties of wine, or just admire their website: www.seaglasswines.com

With temperatures in Connecticut in the 90’s, I think I will put my bottle of SeaGlass right in the fridge to cool down until the testing!

Does anyone have a ‘beachy’ bottle photo they would like to share on facebook or twitter? I would love to see them!

6 comments » | food & festivities

making pesto

June

friday field trip

This week, Friday field trip is to a cooking class at Terrain. And, I have included one of the recipes in this post!

You know how much I love (the newly opened in CT) Terrain…well, I recently noticed a pesto class on their calendar… I was determined to attend! With a little creative scheduling, I was able to make it happen.

Kelly, one of the Terrain chefs, led the class. She is a Culinary Institute of America (CIA) graduate and just a lot of fun to be around. I guess I didn’t really capture any great photos of her… it didn’t help that her Sicilian heritage was kicking in…plenty of hand motions and enthusiasm didn’t bode well for a clear photo! Believe me, she was adorable…a huge smile and dressed in her ‘farmer chic’ (Terrain’s dress code) attire.

The ‘students’ soon discovered that pesto is not just about basil, oil, garlic, and pine nuts. Kelly really opened our eyes to experimenting with different greens and nuts. It was a lightbulb moment for me to consider using new and different combinations of greens and nuts in pesto rather than relying on the traditional basil and pine nuts. We were able to taste test all the creations Kelly demonstrated. I eagerly tried the arugula and sunflower seeds, and LOVED the basil and kale and almonds.

The taste tests were accomplished by spreading the pestos on warm bread…yum! This is something I never do with pesto. I use it on pasta, but haven’t ever used it as an appetizer ingredient or as a condiment…where have I been?!

Terrain only uses the freshest of ingredients in their cafe, restaurant, and cooking classes.

A photo of pesto made in a Terrain cooking class.

Kale Toasted Walnut Pesto (makes about 1 cup)

You can make this pesto with plain (raw) walnuts, but toasting them gives them a little extra flavor that can hang with the slightly more intense (and bitter) taste of kale.

Ingredients

½ cup plain/raw walnuts, roughly chopped
1 garlic clove, smashed
About 3 cups chopped kale
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ – 1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Directions

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add walnuts and stir constantly (or gently shake pan) until toasted, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let the walnuts cool.

Pulse garlic clove in food processor until it is chopped finely, about 30 seconds. Add kale, toasted walnuts and Parmesan cheese and pulse until chopped. You may have to stop the food processor, open the top, and push the kale down toward the blades.

With the food processor running on low, add olive oil in a steady stream until you get the consistency you want, I went with almost ¾ cup of olive oil.

Season to taste with salt and pepper (we used about 1 ½ teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon black pepper).

Kelly also suggested trying the combination of pistachios with spinach. I can’t wait to try this combo! Other ingredients suggested included cilantro, mixed herbs, watercress, parsley, hazelnuts, and pecans.

I left there with a jar of freshly made pesto and feeling much more adventurous about trying new ingredients to add variety to the pesto I make at home. If you want to attend a class or other event, check out the Terrain website for the event schedule: www.shopterrain.com

By the way, I stopped and bought a loaf of good bread on the way home ;)

6 comments » | food & festivities

signs of summer…castles in the sand

June

friday field trip

It has been a really crazy week and I can’t believe I even have time to post, but I couldn’t let a Friday go by without a Friday field trip! Here in Connecticut, we have been having some really hot weather…I think we had a day with a record breaking temperature…it really is starting to feel like summer :)

What better way to start gearing up for summer than to attend a sandcastle competition? So, I decided to attend a local competition and post some photos to help get you into the summer spirit. No better way to feel happy about the beach….except maybe to listen to the Beach Boys… or watch an episode of Sand Masters.

Here are my two favorites…

How about this ‘dude?’ Gotta love him :) Look at the hair!

Has anyone else out there discovered the show Sand Masters on the Travel channel? I am enthralled with the show. There are people out there that call themselves master sand sculptors and basically make a living out of creating things in the sand. Sand Masters showcases these professionals. If you live in an area that is hard-pressed for a sandcastle competition and my pictures aren’t enough…try checking out the show…you can watch it on the Travel channel or on line…here is a taste:

http://www.travelchannel.com/video/the-shark-bar-reborn

Hope you enjoyed Field Trip Friday…and a little taste of summer from here in Connecticut :)