Dunkin;s Summer Of Treats

 August is a hot month so it;s going to be a time to treat yourself. This is where Dunkin Donuts comes in.They have so many new treats and some fun ones on the near horizon. Go for a cool sweet treat.

One of the ones that intrigued me is their new ice cream cake doughnut. It is supposed to be like aCarvel ice cream cake.

This has the chocolate cookie crumbles that makes the middle of the cake. This is on top of a blob of marshmallow buttercream (which to be honest would be perfect for a s'mores doughnut) The inside is a chocolate buttercream surrounded by the typical flaky dough.It is super sweet  -a fun treat with a good iced black DUnkin coffee. Dunkin is also offering chocolate crumble doughnut holes in dark chocolate.  These look tastier and perhaps less sweet than this.

Another fun offer is the buckets of drinks coming out on August 7th.It's $12.99 for a forty-eight ounce bucket of either cherry lime Rickey refresher, pink pineapple sparkling refresher and iced coffee with peanut butter swirl. These are perfect if you;re having a small get together or barbecue. I would love to have a bucket just filled with their iced decaf cappuccino with a huge shot of mocha.   There's even a bucket holder so it fits in your car's cup holder.It's in the signature Dunkin pink.  You can refill the buckets with anything after that Buy bags of the Dunkin coffee or the pods and make your own creations for it. This is also great for a long road trip.

Dunkin Donuts has n-some fun treats planned for August. Enjoy the ice cream cake doughnut or the bucket of either coffee or a refresher. It's worth a trip to your local DD.

Fun Food Full of Crunch And Noise

 There's something satisfying about crunchy food. It's the sound.There's fun in noisy food. Imagine combining that with nutritious ingredients for a fun meal/

New contributor and deputy food editor at the  New York TimesEmily Fleischakers gave three recipes in yesterday's Wednesday Food section. why do people like crunchy foods.Take a bite into an apple and get the answer. A crisp sounding fruit means its;s still good. A soft one signals rotting. According to Megan Povey, a food physics professor at the University of Leeds crunchy foods were received as being fresh because the cells were intact. Also people are conditioned to think of crunchy as fresh.It was done in a Pringles study back in 2004. Another theory comes from Charles Spences, one of that study's author and head of a research lab at The University of Oxford.People are just aware of crunchier foods in their mouth s than with a more silent one. It could d be that eating crunchy foods is just fun.Ms. Fleischakers looks to her New York Times contributors for recipes.Hetty Lu Mckinnon gives a mouthwatering fresh corn and black bean salad with corn chips.  This is definitely party food.Avocados and cilantro are also added to this and are dressed with a lime garlic and cumin dressing.A pinch of sugar balances it out. Hit sauce can be added for more zest/

The other recipe is an interesting. I'ts fromJ-Jaye Shackleford Hurley who has made it for her tail gating parties at Ole Miss - the University of Mississippi.It's a crunchy ramen broccoli slaw. This has the unexpected ingredient of ramen noodles There are towards of broccoli cut into florets, along with the equally crunchy carrots and purple cabbage>There are also red onions and almonds.The ramens are stirred in uncooked.Discard the flavor packers or save for another soup.The dressing is an Asian influenced one with soy sauce and a bit of sugar mixed in with oil and vinegar.Jeme Claiborne has her crispy tofu nuggets.It;s as good as the store bought ones.Take a block of extra firm tofu and wrap it into paper towels. Lay something heavy on it so all the excess water comes out.Mix dill pickle brine with tamari, oil and sugar.Pour this over the torn tofu chunk and mix well. Then add flour garlic powder. smoked paprika and  freshly ground pepper.Toss again to coat. Cook in a375 degree air fryer for twenty minutes. Flip the nuggets over halfway through cooking. These can also  be baked in a 375 degree oven for forty minutes.

These recipes certainly provide the crunch factor. They;re a great party foods .They full of flavor and full of noise.

The Colonel Is For Sale

 Kentucky Fred Chicken has been a part of the American table for decades. Now it's up for sale. Is anyone up for buying that special secret recipe of eleven herbs and spices?Or any of the Colonel's items? There seems to be more interest in him than in his chicken,

Regular contributor Kim Severson wrote about this in today;s New York Times Wednesday Food section. Kentucky Fried Chicken has been around since the late 1930s It  is more popular in Japan and China. The Japanese dress up figurines  of Harlan Sanders, the Colonel as Santa Claus and his meal is the must have Christmas dinner..In China, the home of most of the world's KFC restaurants he;s a respected elder.In the African countries of Nigeria and Kenya Colonel Sanders is the symbol of quality and cleanliness. In the  US he;s really not considered that important on the fast food scene. His home in Shelbyville Kentucky, a town in the middle of lush Kentucky  horse country is up for sale. The family that brought his property from him wants to move on. This week they'll auction off the house and his personal items and that includes his special recipe for the fried chicken batter. There is still the restaurant named for his second wife Claudia, but that's also closing the restaurant owners and the Sanders' good friends Tommy and his wife have kept open. Regulars will be upset not getting not only the chicken bu the country ham and rolls the size of muffins.

There will still be KFC. sanders sold it in 1962 for two  million dollars. He tremendously regretted that. , as still visited  franchises and berated managers on how they prepared the chicken.The chain was later  acquired by Pepsi in 1997 and then the company morphed into Yum brandsThey also have Taco Bell and Pizza Hut. They do still have the family meals first created not by the Colonel but by  his first franchisee Pete Harman. Harman already had a restaurant in Salt Lake City and came up with the meal plan of packing  several chicken pieces in a bucket with rolls and gravy. They coined the famed phrase "finger licking good and ) dubbed Sanders the "ColoneL" However there are also now chicken sandwiches and nuggets to compete with Popeye;s and Mc Donald's.There is also boneless chicken served with such sauces as chimichurri ranch and sticky chicky sweet and sour. The Colonel's image is also being rebranded. He's shown as a experimenting with exploding pressure cookers which cooked the original chicken and  also throwing pots of gravy on the floor. He;s am anti corporate finger licking machine who will dance on a boardroom table or climb a skyscraper to advertise a value  meal.

What will happen to all the Colonel's items and restaurant. Hopefully it will be bought by a foodie fan who can carry on the legacy. They will have the special recipe. They can run with it.

Jif And Ramen

 Is it true you can put peanut butter on anything?It seems that way. The classic peanut butter brand Jif has gone way out side theirwhell house and created a peanut butter ramen. It's a strange combination , probably taking after Chinese and Thai dishes that feature peanuts.Yet does it take like these recipes?

I had to find out when I saw the Jif Ramen in my local Acme's soup aisle. It looked intriguing but the peanut butter part was kind of off putting. Yet I  had to try it.

Unlike regular ramen which has an oil veggies and flavoring packets this just has a dried peanut powder.

It looks like red powder and that gave me hope.  Would it be spicy? Would it have ground chilis and hoisin sauce?

No. It was pure dried peanut butter. It cooked up the same way as ramen. Pour boiled water over the mix of flavoring and noodles. Let sit for about five to six minutes..

It wasn't;t bad but if I get this in the future I will add a few drops of hoisin sauce and a tiny pinch of ground hot pepper.It would add a lot to it. The peanut flavor was interesting and a change from the usually veggie or chicken flavored ramens. There is  a lot to eat , with the noodles.

Can peanut butter be mixed on anything? Nowadays, yes Jifs take on ramen is an interesting one. Try it if you love peanut butter.

Road Trip Goodies

 This is the time for road d\trips whether an  hour to the beach or longer to another state. You have to eat and drink on the road. What to eat? what to drink Do you go healthy ? Or just gobble up junk.

If you;re by yourself you can indulge in chips and cookies for a short while. The best bet is to bring foods that wont cause any distress on the road. Healthy snacks like Sun Chips are perfect, Unlike potato chips they're made from whole grains lie whole wheat and brown rice flour. They're also lower infant and calories than regular chips and come in such tasty flavors as Garden Salsa(a must have) Harvest Cheddar and French Onion. You can get little bags but the bigger ones will last. Potato chips are another fun road trip snack but try the lower sat ones. Lay's have these in ripple and plain and they 're not soaked in sodium.  You could also get baked versions. They are healthier, being lower in fat and calories however their taste is so so.Try flavored almonds o rpistachios Almonds are are great snack for a relatively long road trip. They have flavor but not fat and offers dietary fiber for digestion. This is great because you don't want stomach issues on vacation. Pistachios are another good nibble.The also promote gut health which helps in keeping the stomach normal. As for drinking fill your Stanley cup with water. Mix in a few flavor drops. Mio has some tasty flavors such as fruit punch,watermelon  and strawberry.

WHat happens when the kids come on a road trip? Go for the Goldfish. This kid classic is non sticky and non messy which makes it perfect for little travelers. Buy cute containers from Dollar Tree or Dollar General to store them  r buy a new backpack to store these containers. Pick out different flavors such a as the Original  to Pizza to Pretzel. Also consider pretzels too these too leave minimal crumbs and are easy to eat.However don;t give them to little ones under they age of four.They can easily become a choking hazard. Pretzel sticks are good along with rods For toddlers consider making pancakes the night before and cutting them into strips. Dip them in sugar to make them tastier. Oat puffs are also good for a long trip as are rice husks o cheese crackers. Kids will want fzzy  drinks because they feel this is a special occasion. Stick to juice or chocolate milk boxes to quench thirst.Older kids can enjoy watermelons chunks along with grapes for hydration.Cookies are also a must for whatever age you're traveling  with. Oreos and chocolate chip cookies are fun diversions, perfect to snack on.

Road trips need food. Drivers and their passengers need sustenance. Fill the car up with tasty snacks and drinks for those highways and byways.

Chez Panisse Still Perfect At Fifty-Five

 There some some institutions that stand the test of time. The great eatery Chex Panisse is one of them .It has been around since 1971 thanks to it's chef Alice Waters. Chef Waters has created a menu that is amazing and iron clad.It has gone strong through through its five and a half decades.

Regular contributor and chef herself, Tejal Rao l had the lucky chance to eat and review Chez Anisse in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. The restaurant was started in 1971 by the great and innovative chef Alice Waters who introduced good French restaurant cuisine to Americans and the slow food movement.  Hers is a farm to table cuisine, the initial one that influenced generations of young American chefs and taught people how to rethink cooking and eating. Chez Panisse still has her imprint . even thought it seems to have slightly changed. The restaurant is divided into two separate dining rooms with two separate kitchens. The downstairs half is run by chefs Amy Dencler and Martin Fabre while the upstairs is run by Nathan Alderson and Ann Cromley. downstairs there is a set menu that;s not a tasting but has four tight courses. A cheese menu can be added. There are pricey, however,One menu for this Monday is $135 while the dinners for the rest of week are  a whopping.$175 per person.

Is the food worth the price? Yes. There are smaller dishes in the bar, namely zucchini blossoms with small zucchini still attached.  There are also ala carte dishes as well.The salads(despite the scare of ingesting Cylospora) are finely calibrated offering fresh cranberry  bean and fennel with anchovies lemons and eggs. Chef Tejal loved the gougere, a cheesy choux  paste puff along with creamy butter beans swimming in broth and topped with olive oil and a halved hard boiled egg.The bar menu has Gulf shrimp so small they could easily be added to their fish stock. However they're fried and served whole with a splotch of lemon aioli. There are many strawberries dishes, thanks to the restaurant's relationship with supplier Swanton Berry Farm.Berries are surrounded by an airy Pavlova and freshly whipped cream. They rpdocued delicious savory and sweet baked goods. Their  lamb pie was beautifully browned and crispy all over while their almond cake. This had a deeply golden top that bubbled at the center.It was topped with early blueberries in a dark syrup and whipped cream.

Chez Panisse is legend. It has and will draw people who crave good food in simple yet elegant recipes. It is the creme de la creme of American restaurants.

 

The Most Perfect Picnic

 A picnic is the most idolized  and romantized meal. Yet there are times when the who outdoor dining can go south - quickly. There is a guide to help create that perfect meal - perfect for th park, for the beach and lake and even perfect for the back yard.

Regular contributor and supervising video producer for NYT cooking offers a great guide in Wednesday's New York Times Wednesday Food section.Keep on mind that these menus can;t take the heat. what does that mean? Wisely choose dishes and ingredients. Keep mayo based salads and foods along with leafy vegetables, soft cheeses fruit and seafood to a minimum. If there has to be potato salad  Mr. Vaughn recommends using a creamy tahini instead of mayo then adding plenty of herbs and pepperoncini ,yellow peppers for bite.Also consider the sandwiches. Don;t use lettuce which can get soggy and ruin the whole sandwich.Instead try a thinly sliced cabbage slaw. Another don;t do is chop food there at the picnic. The charcuterie board should already be preset  with cold cuts ,grapes already sliced cheeses and veggies.Also preslice sandwiches into manageable segments, placing them cut side up.This allows guest to grab them without creating a mess or touching other portions. Also  keep chips and dips to a minimum too. Bags of just chips and pretzels work well here.'

Picnics require ice = lots of it Dry ice can be used like even planner Suzette Louis-Jean  of  La TAS  Events in New Jersey . However dry ice can be tricky to get. Settle for an insulated bag or cooler filled with cubes.The more important fact is how to pack ot.It should be on the bottom to prevent anything delicate from being crushed. Unfortunately ice melts quick in hot weather, Have reliable friends bring extra - namely two bags each.Overestimate how much will be needed. There is never enough ice. Mr Vreeland also recommends using frozen fruits to chill lemonade, fruit punch and tea. Add frozen cherries and pineapple to tropical drinks and add  frozen peaches to iced tea. Besides have ice coolers make sure to pack airtight storage stackable storage containers. These are excellent for preventing leakages and save room in the car or tent. Rimmed baking sheets and plastic cutting boards are other must haves.. Lay things on these on, their bigger flatter slices to prevent any toppling.Pad and secure everything with kitchen towels to prevent containers from falling. Mr.Vreeland also gives recipes for potato salad, Italian sandwiches, pine apple coconut punch and brownies

It is possible to have the perfect picnic. Just follow the instructions to do so and enjoy.It's an idullic meal out in the fresh air,