Food Festivals

I search the newspapers looking for food festivals in my area.  It's a great way to try out new restaurants that are popping up all over the county.  I went to one this past weekend and was pleasantly surprised.  So many choices of what to eat.

Being from the south, the bar-b-que booth line was the longest in the tent.  So, that may sound a bit stereotypical, but they brought their smoker, wood, ribs, sausage, and chicken. Foods smoking on the open fire would even make the vegetarians ready to try some southern ribs that day.

Other popular lines were the ice cream line, Hawaiian ice line, and the deep fried brownie line.... whoa!! What? Deep fried brownie? That caught my attention very quickly.  I watched the man cut the huge pan of brownies into perfect 2 x 2 squares (or were they 3 x 3), dip them in a thick batter, drop them in the fryer and wait.  At just the perfect hint of golden deliciousness, he took them out of the fryer and let them drain on a metal rack.  After an eternity of waiting, they were then sprinkled with powdered sugar and then drizzled with caramel or fudge sauce.  Guess what I did?  I refrained from eating one!  Seriously, I knew that something this sinfully delicious was best shared in the company of others.  Since I attended the event alone, I decided to opt for the healthy food... well somewhat healthy food, and save the brownie for another time.

The vendors were having so much fun at the event!

I heard laughter and Spanish being spoken at the booth of a new Mexican restaurant opening up the street from where I live.  There was mama wearing an apron in the "kitchen" cooking, and her relatives frying the strips of beef, taking orders, and chatting with the crowd.  How could I not order something from these people who were having so much fun? I ordered a flauta.  I'm not sure if I had ever had one before, but I certainly know  what they are now.  I satisfied the deep fried (albeit not a brownie) desire of the day.  It was filled with chicken, and covered with a delicious cream salsa with just a hint of heat, fresh cilantro, and crumbly cheese.  It was the best $1.50 lunch I've ever had.  It was so good that I went back to the booth and told them I loved it!  They smiled and said: "Oh, you need to come to the restaurant..they are even better there. More to a serving, plus chips and sides too." I can't wait for the restaurant near my house to open! I will be there....  But in the meantime, my slogan is: "Will drive for food"!
I walked around and spoke to a few vendors, saw a few students that I knew from school, and watched other events.

I stopped to take a look at the puppet show.  It wasn't the typical puppet show of late where they use hand puppets, but the old fashioned stringed puppets.  The puppeteer was amazing.  One little skit was about a clown learning how to dance.  Here I am in my fifties, and I find myself thinking: "come on clown, you can do it"!  I was cheering inside for the little clown.  It was simply amazing.  I will continue to go to food events for the food, but I will also look for the little hidden gems like the puppet shows.  It truly returned me back to my childhood when I received my string puppet as a gift from my parents.  I still have that little string puppet, but have never learned how to bring him to life.

My little friend the clown taking a bow.

Everything for the kitchen

Some people dream of having a huge closet,  wall size big screen television, or a nice swimming pool.  I dream of having a fabulous kitchen! My kitchen is not a tiny kitchen nor a huge one.  If there is a kitchen gadget, I want to own it!  How wonderful would it be to reformat my formal dining room into a huge kitchen/ library (to house my hundreds of cookbooks, chef bios, and food travel stories).  Yes, I can envision it now: wall to wall shelves to hold my books, a built in butler's pantry for all of my cooking paraphernalia  a giant glass case to hold all of my specialty dishes, and a small table with comfy chairs to enjoy a meal with a friend or two. I doubt that there are very many small houses with a giant kitchen taking up half of the space.

I'm always dreaming about "my kitchen" and I get a lot of ideas from visiting friends, stores, and looking at magazines.  I have discovered many things I would like to add to my kitchen collection.  I met with a group of women to have an art escape day. We had so much fun.  I met up with old friends, and made some new ones too.   I made vegetarian chili for the event for those of us on a "I would never eat an animal" diet, and my friend, Edvique "made" chili using the exact recipe as a local restaurant!  Yes, she knows the owner by name, as they have catered many of her "home cooking" events!  Her hospitality, kindness, and huge heart are what make her great! Her laughing about the fast food chili recipe and the catering are what make her so much fun!  She had handmade bowls from Colombia that are especially made to be placed in hot ovens, etc... They were beautiful!  I must try and find a set here in the U.S.  I made vegetarian chili which was a big hit for the vegetarian crowd.  I don't always measure ingredients when making chili, which doesn't help when writing a food blog, but I can at least tell the ingredients.

The long version would be to soak 5 different kinds of beans overnight, and cook the next day.  The quick version is to use canned beans.  I like black, pink, pinto, great northern and lima (yes, you read correctly)  beans. In a large frying pan, sautee 1 very large sweet onion, 1 green bell pepper, 1 red bell pepper, and two cloves of garlic. I cut them all in a large dice.  When those are tender, I put them in a crock pot with the beans (rinsed and drained), 2 cups chopped tomatoes, and 2 cups of fresh corn,  approximately 1/4 cup of chili powder, 2 tablespoons of cumin (more or less to your liking), 1/2 cup of chopped fresh parsley, salt and pepper to taste.  Add one large can tomato sauce and water to thin out the mixture.  More water can be added as cooking time progresses.  Everything is already cooked but the onions and peppers.  I just like to let it cook all day so that I can enjoy the delicious aroma!  When serving the chili, I always add chopped fresh cilantro (I love it!), grated cheddar cheese, and a spoonful of sour cream.  I pass the hot sauce and sliced jalapeno peppers for those that like a spicier chili.  The great thing about vegetarian chili is that you can add whatever vegetables you have at hand. My chili is never the same way twice. So, next time I make chili, I hope to have some artistic bowls (it's the artist in me), if not from Colombis, from somewhere else. While thinking about the warmth of chili, it reminded me that I would like a fireplace on one wall of my "dream kitchen"!  Stay warm this winter!