Borscht is an Eastern European dish, most famously Russian or Ukrainian. Amusingly enough, my motivation to learning this recipe was because pretty much any spy fy movie you've ever seen that mentions Russians will also note a restaurant that has must-try borscht. There's no surprise why: it's a hearty beef and beet soup, typically with potatoes and onions and other root vegetables that can be made vegetarian, and is a quintessential peasant dish. But like any peasant dish, it has wild variations from town to town, so it's kind of hard to screw up. You know, unless you're me.
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I've had this urge to bake homemade dog cookies for my three fur babies. Last night, I had baked my husband a batch of chocolate chip cookies. They were lying on the cooling rack when I noticed my three dogs staring up at it with hopeful expressions, hoping one would fall and they could have a tasty morsel. But alas, everyone knows chocolate can be deadly to dogs, so they were only going to eat one in their dreams. This whole thing had me thinking: why don't I bake some cookies for them now? They'll think they're human cookies and it'll be a real treat since I baked cookies for my husband and I just last night! I went online to make sure I had ingredients for some kind of dog cookie. I found a recipe where I had most of the ingredients I needed, but I modified it and made it my own. Once they were baked and cooled, my dogs couldn't get enough of the tasty cookies! This Sunday for brunch, my wife and I went to try Bobo's Restaurant on E Grant Rd, just to try something different. We'd heard great reviews, the price was right (a single $, according to FourSquare), and the tips boasted massive servings and great coffee. I judge any diner by the quality of their coffee, so I was looking forward to it.
So, after watching me bounce and squee over Baggin's Sundown sandwich, Joanne suggested we buy the stuff to make a "Turkey Day sammy" at home. Which, naturally, sounded like just about the best idea ever. When we went grocery shopping, we made sure we had some turkey breast deli meat, some Stove Top (because it's not Thanksgiving without the Stove Top, I stand by that), cranberry sauce (I got some that still had the berries in it, because that just sounded like a great idea) and attempted to make our own.
Look at the tastees... This one was all Joanne. She woke up wanting French toast, and we decided to use some of the fresh bananas we had on hand. She caramelized them, and served the French toast (which she makes with cinnamon and sugar in the egg beat) with the bananas, all sweet and tasty on top, with syrup, powdered sugar, and a slice of that glaze on the plate. You can tell we watch too many cooking shows when you start to "plate" your brunch. Some bacon this side of chewy (she likes hers so crispy it's almost burnt), some grapes (the reds were sweet and very popular, but the greens were still a bit tart, odd against all the sweet), my usual cranapple juice (I feel like an old fart, "I have a medical condition!"), and our usual hot tea: Earl Grey for me, Lady Grey for the lady, two sugars, just to kill the bite.
Admit it, you wish you were eating with us. Baggin's is a Tucson-only sandwich joint that, while a little on the higher end (something like $8-10 a combo), is one of our favorite spots for lunch. Hot and cold sammies, pasta, salads,and an interesting assortment of sides. Today, I thought I would branch out from my usual Sun Chips, and try some of their sides For lunch I had the Sundown, which is basically Thanksgiving on a hoagie. Cranberry sauce, sliced turkey breast, lettuce, tomato, I requested some red onion, and stuffing. For a side, I picked the potato salad. The Sundown was AMAZING. I have been wanting to try it since I realised what it was, and boy, did it deliver! The potato salad... Ehh. Not so much. I wouldn't say I'm "picky" about my potato salad, as it's just something I generally don't care for. Macaroni salad is like that, too. It was too much mustard, I think. I prefer the Amish style potato salad myself. I had better luck with the sesame noodles another time, but I might be better off sticking with the chips. Joanne favors the Unforgettable, which has turkey, avocado, sprouts, tomato, cream cheese spread, and bacon on 12-grain bread. She sticks with her chips, and while I experiment with the spiced tea (which... is not really my thing. Maybe hot in the cold weather, but not now), and return to old faithful, she sips her iced tea, half sweet. But then, she's quite sweet enough. Although one of the best part about Baggin's is the free chocolate chip cookie that comes with every combo. I think it's such a sweet, old-fashioned touch. So many people would fuss about calories, but when you're eating this well, the indulgence seems more than acceptable.
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Brunch w/ BlakeHalf-boricuan, half-corn fed Indiana hick. Stir in a taste of the southwest and serve in LA, on the rocks. #BrunchWithBlake #FoodPorn #LAFoodie Archives
July 2021
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