Favorite Chocolate Pastries

So these are my favorite chocolate pastries. 

They are liked over-sized or really supersized Rugelach. 

When these come out of the oven, the soft, hot pastry dough interspersed with overflowing, dripping layers of chocolate are unbelievable!

This mound of chocolate pastries is from Mahane Yehuda Market in Jerusalem. 

OMG, I can't wait to visit again and have one (or more) of these--totally lose all self control! LOL  ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Favorite Chocolate Pastries

Cheesecake Heaven

So I never met a piece of cheesecake that I didn't like. 

This was an awesome display of the varieties of it at the Cheesecake Factory.

I remember my mom used to make a pretty darn great cheesecake (and a lot of other good food)!

I still can see the graham cracker crust with the sweet hot creamy cheese filling coming out of the oven. 

Unfortunately one of the conundrum of life is that all the good tasting things are so darn fattening and bad for us. 

I think though if they can make fake burgers like Beyond that taste like the real thing, then surely at some point they will figure out how to make a skinny cheesecake that tastes good. 

There are still some mysteries left in this universe for us to unravel. ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Cheesecake Heaven

Revolting Bug Food

So this is the latest food items in modern supermarkets.

It says:

"Eat Bugs"

Bugs are a source of high protein.

Crunchy too.  

The ones above were Cheddar Cheese Crickets!

There was also Chile-Lime Crickets (with Pumpkin Seeds) and Dark Chocolate Crickets (with Amaranth Seeds).

Then came the BBQ and Honey Mustard Crickets 

 

And to top it all of some Salt and Pepper Mealworms.

OMG folks, we have gone back to the Stone Ages eating this crap. 

Or maybe this is all that will be left when Armageddon finally comes.  ;-)

(Credit Photos: Andy Blumenthal)

Revolting Bug Food

Best Chicken Lo Mein (Kosher)

Best Chicken Lo Mein (Kosher too!) that I ever had. 

At China Bistro and Sushi in Hollywood, Florida.

Order the extra chicken for a couple of bucks.

Well worth it!

Steaming hot from the wok. 

And don't forget to make it extra spicy!  ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Best Chicken Lo Mein (Kosher)

Cold-Press Fruits and Veggies

We starting watching this movie with Joe Cross called, "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead."

This guy weighs a ton and goes on a 60-day all juicing diet.  

He stops all the food and just carries his juicer with him everywhere making fresh fruit and vegetable cold-press. 

While obviously a little extreme, I like the idea of reducing the food intake (especially everything gluten which is death itself), and replacing it with healthy juice. 

I tried one of the super green juices and it literally tasted like eating grass. 

Uh, that's not gonna realistically work for me. 

So I settled on Evolution's Organic Super Fruit Greens that has a combination of orange, mango, pineapple, cucumber, spinach, romaine, and kale. 

I actually like it and am sitting here sipping on one as I write this blog post. 

I went into the fridge and threw all the carbs in the freakin garbage--good riddance!

Gotta get and stay healthy!  ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Cold-Press Fruits and Veggies

Duck Donuts Don't

A colleague brought these unbelievable fresh, hot, Duck Donuts into the office yesterday. 

Each one weighs like a brick and is so full of carbohydrate good(bad)ness. 

I had to use all my self-control and willpower not to eat any (or all) of these. 

It comes down to mind over matter--If you don't mind, it doesn't matter!  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Duck Donuts Don't

Beyond Burger Good!

So my terrific, son-in-law Itzchak surprised us with some delicious Beyond Burgers before Shabbat. 

They are meatless burgers, and supposed to be pretty healthy, but they taste good too. 

Let's just say these were very delicious and we gobbled them down. 

Cheesy with tomato, onion, bun, and all. 

As my father would say, "It tastes like more!" ;-)

(Credit Photo: Andy Blumenthal and thank you again to Itzchak and Rebecca!)

Beyond Burger Good!

Beautiful Tutim

Love these strawberries (i.e. Tutim) from Israel. 

(Hebrew classes are paying off...)

Large, red, and sweet to eat. 

They look so appealing and delicious. 

G-d's beautiful fruits (and vegetables).

What an amazing world He has created for us. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Beautiful Tutim

Kosher Cheeseburger, Finally

So I've never had a cheeseburger. 

I keep kosher. 

And we don't mix milk and meat together.

Tough watching all the fast food commercials from McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy's, and more. 

So lo' and behold, my surprise when they introduced the kosher cheeseburger.

It uses the Impossible Burger made from plants--and it's advertised as having more protein, less fat, no cholesterol, and fewer calories than meat. 

So we got two bags of food from Goldberg's bagels. 

One bag had breakfast with bagels and egg salad. 

The other bag had the kosher cheeseburgers for lunch (after the morning's activity)

We ate the egg salad bagels and they were good. 

But we were really looking forward to the cheeseburgers. 

Finally, after all these years of waiting...

But what happens, Dossy threw out the garbage from breakfast and...

She accidentally threw out the Impossible Burgers with it. 

So when we got back to the car, salivating for the cheeseburgers...

We look in the front, in the back, in the compartments--and nothing!

It's gone!  It's all gone!

No freakin cheeseburger for me. 

Not then, not now, and I'm afraid not ever.  :-(

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Kosher Cheeseburger, Finally

Sizing Fashion And More

So it was interesting article in the Wall Street Journal today...

There is an obesity problem in the U.S. 

But the statistics in terms of the typical sizes of fashion (for women) has been "largely" overlooked.

The biggest size most fashion brands even bother to sell is: 12

"Only 7% of womenswear stocked at multi-brand retailers is a size 14 or above."

But the average American dress size is between between 16 and 18!

The typical runway model is size 2.  

BTW, I think men have the same problem with sizing.

There was another thing about measurement in the WSJ today having to do with measuring time. 

Day is measured by the earth rotation (on its axis). 

Year by the rotation around the sun.

Month by rotation of the moon. 

Earth, Sun, and Moon...give us time. 

Now we need to take all the wonderful time we have measured and not spend it all eating.  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal @Ripley's Believe It or Not)

Sizing Fashion And More

Making Chocolate

Making Chocolate

Pu Pu Platter @David Chu's

Celebrated Mother's Day today @David Chu's in Baltimore. 

In addition to my favorite, Sesame Chicken, Dossy ordered the Pu Pu Platter. 

2 BBQ Ribs
2 Teriyaki Beef
2 Spring Rolls
2 Frieds Won Tons
2 Chicken Toast

(Thankfully, there was no poo in the pu pu!)

All this Kosher Chinese food, had me craving a Coca Cola afterwards like it always does. 

Then we stopped at Market Maven, which replaced Seasons that went bankrupted last year. 

Overall, a nice family day that I am so grateful for to Hashem!  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Pu Pu Platter @David Chu's

Flowers and Bird

Just wanted to share this beautiful painting from Reuben in our synagogue.

I love the plethora of colorful flowers in the vase.  

The sweet bird with it.

The verdant green background. 

The unique etched wood frame. 

Very happy...and all the world is okay.  ;-)

(Source Photo of Reuben Art: Andy Blumenthal)

Flowers and Bird

This Is What You Smell

Great sign at the nut stand at Sugarloaf Festival.

"This Is What You Smell!"

Hot cinnamon pecans or almonds. 

Wow, did that smell nice.

I got a tiny bag of the pecans, and when I opened it, the smell and taste that hot cinnamon really took over. 

Were there other smells present as well?

Probably, but I chose to focus on the cinnamon nuts. 

The other smells will have to wait for their special sign and appropriate attention to deal with it. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

This Is What You Smell

On Taste And Smell

Just wanted to share this saying (translated from Hebrew) that I like:

On taste and smell, there is no argument.

What tastes or smells good or bad to one person versus another is not up for debate. 

Each person has their own taste buds and odor senses.

Some people may be more or less sensitive to different tastes and smells. 

So there is no arguing there.

You either like or you don't like. 

That's your prerogative!

Don't make a big stink about it. ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

On Taste And Smell

Sushi Night In

My son-in-law did such an awesome job making Sushi from scratch.

He took such painstaking care on the rice, the fillings, and rolling and serving them. 

Even the multitude of dips to choose from. 

It was an awesome treat. 

Worth the wait after Shabbat and then some.  

Thank you so much for inviting us.  ;-)

(Source Photo: Rebecca Blumenthal)

Sushi Night In

Rainbow Cake :)

Rainbow cake is happy. 

Price is not bad for $3.99.

Calories are horrific at 750!

What happened to the broken blue part of the cake at the bottom--maybe that's where another 50 calories got lopped off. 

Anyway, it's Friday and I want to wish everyone a happy Rainbow Cake weekend and a Shabbat Shalom!

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Rainbow Cake :)

Take Your Head Out of My Shopping Cart

So this was funny today at Harris Teeter. 

I'm checking out on the express line with a few things. 

First some tofu.

The lady at the cash register goes:

Hmm.  Healthy!

Then some Meal Mart Buffalo Style Chicken Wings.

Again, the lady at the cash register comments:

Have you tried that?  Is it good?  It looks good!

Politely, I replied:

Yes, they are really good.

At the same time I was feeing smart-alecy, like what the heck, should I open the package on the conveyer belt and let you taste one--right here, right now.   

Sure privacy is a big issue when it comes to technology, social media, and all sorts of surveillance these days

But even when one simply goes to the grocery store--there is the very basic privacy about what one is buying. 

Yes, I see people looking into my cart, with eyebrows raised eyeing my goodies.  I can hear them thinking:

What is he buying?  Is it marked Kosher? (Uh, actually it is!]  That doesn't seem like a balanced diet!

Another time, the checkout person asked me when I was buying a bunch of something:

Oh, are you having a party? What's the occasion?

While I appreciate the good-natured banter and people being friendly, it seems more than weird in a way to be discussing what I'm buying, why, and for whom.  

Not quite Big Brother, but maybe that's the leftover small town feel in our lonely urban and high-tech living.  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal)

Take Your Head Out of My Shopping Cart

Green Eggs and Ham - דוקטור סוס

So who would've thought that Dr. Seuss's "Green Eggs and Ham" comes in Hebrew. 

I watched this video, and loved it!

It is amazing that this can translate over.

One critique that I have is that the book should've said that the main character didn't want to eat the green eggs and ham, because he is kosher (instead of not being hungry or not loving the food).  

But then again, he would've had to stick to his guns and not have eaten it in the end! 

One other thing that I learned from this video/book, is that even though I am loving learning Hebrew in Ulpan class, I still have the vocabulary of a 9 year old.  LOL

But I'm learning... ;-)

(Thank you to my daughter, Rebecca for sharing this with me.)

Green Eggs and Ham - דוקטור סוס

Cannibal Soup

Two funny things came to mind about eating dinner.

The first was a joke my dad always told which was something like:

We had our mother-in-law for dinner...and boy was she good!  LOL

The second was something I heard recently about power and politics, which was:

If you're not at the table then you on the menu!

Ah, you better have a seat (and welcome voice) at the table or else you may find yourself part of the next batch of beef stew coming out of the kitchen. 

Two new ways for us to think of dinner time.  ;-)

(Source Photo: Andy Blumenthal) 

Cannibal Soup