My Winnings

Filed under Food, Reviews by on 16 January 2011 at 11:51 am {3 comments}

A few months ago, October to be exact, I won a $35 gift card to CSN from Ashley. Gift cards are awesome because you have so many choices, but I had so many choices I couldn’t decide what to purchase. If you’ve been to the CSN website, you know that they have basically everything.

Should I get something I need? Something I want? Plates? A new light? Pillows? I hemmed and hawed for literally two months. Finally, the day before my promo code was set to expire, I made a decision. I ordered a OXO cheese grater and an OXO veggie chopper.

IMG_6827 My cheese grater was literally falling apart, which made that decision easy. Also, I use chopped garlic, onion, and green peppers in almost every meal. The onion never fails to make me cry profusely.  I know Alton says you shouldn’t have a tool that only does one thing, but this time I think use triumphs over space.

Reviews:

The shredder is great. It’s not as easy to clean as my collapsible OXO grater (which I had for six years before it died), but I love that it comes with a container.

The chopper is excellent and easy to clean; I didn’t shed one tear.

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CSN was great too. I used my Pay Pal account to pay the four dollars in shipping. Apparently, I had an old address listed and my items shipped to Arkansas. I emailed CSN and received an email back from James. Not only did he get my items redirected, but he also didn’t charge me for it.

I love my new gadgets and am likely to order from CSN again.

Thanks Ashley!

Live Free and Wine

Filed under Food, Local, Wine by on 13 June 2010 at 6:33 pm {2 comments}

Today was the first NH Winery Association wine festival Live Free and Wine.

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Overall this was a fun event. Jeremy and I went together. Last night I Googled what to wear and maybe it wasn’t the best idea. While I wasn’t super dressy, I wore a cotton dress, pearls, sandals and a cardigan, almost everyone else was in jeans.  I should have known better dressing up, even a little, in NH.

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At first I was a little uncomfortable, but then as the tent got hot I was really happy with what I’d chosen to wear.  The best thing about this festival was that everything was made in New Hampshire.

I am under the impression that the planners had no idea this event would be so well attended because it was crowded. The crowds made some things really difficult like talking to the wine makers, taking pictures or actually getting to the wine. It was kind of like a mosh pit in the tent. But the winemakers I did get to talk to, were super friendly and passionate about what they do.

At the entrance everyone was given their glass and ten pour tickets. Initially receiving ten tickets seemed fine,but then we found out you could only purchase more tickets if you went back through the line. 023 Going back through the line didn’t seem like the best plan, so unfortunately we didn’t get to taste something from each of the 12 or 13 vendors.

Jeremy and I both came out with some things we enjoyed. My favorite wasn’t a wine at all but a hard cider from Farnum Hill.  The Summer Cider was great; it was fruity, sweet, but with earthy undertones and the best part bubbly.

Jeremy had several favorites, but as he’s napping, I’m going to talk about the one he sampled that comes with a picture.
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La BelleWinery brought jalapeño wine. The jalapeños are grown here in NH. Jeremy said it had a real kick.

The last highlight of the day was the cheese. Of course my favorite Cabot was there, and I got a magnet along with several samples. I didn’t feel guilty about taking multiple samples of Cabot because I exclusively buy Cabot at the grocery store for our basic cheese needs. Along with the Cabot, there were two other local cheese that really stood out: The Sandwich Creamery and Robie Farm.

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The Sandwich Creamery had the best boursin I’ve had since Paris. Robie Farm’s Toma was just perfect. Sadly, he had already sold it all but the samples when we got there.

Overall the festival was a lot of fun. I hope that next year the vendors are spread out a little more, that I bring more cash, and that tasting tickets are more readily available.

T.G.I.F., well almost

Filed under Cooking, Food, TV, Work by on 28 January 2010 at 6:57 pm {one comment}

Things at work have not gone well this week.  I really like to be able to control situations. Unfortunately right now the only thing I can control is my attitude and I’m not exactly excelling at that. It seems everything that is happening at work is totally out of my control. Biggest issues:

  1. My students aren’t attending school. The attendance average for all my classes today was less than 50%.  When this happens not only are they not learning, but I worry about the reasons they aren’t attending, which with my students could be grave. In addition, it will be a pain in the butt to get them caught up, whenever they choose to return. 
  2. Some of the policies or lack there of at my school are making me feel so frustrated. I work at a very traditional school, which I understand. But the lack of value they place in diversity makes me feel isolated and dare I say it discriminated against. I’m going to have to figure out someway to get around this. Alerting the newspaper doesn’t seem like the best idea, and  lately I’ve had this going through my head.

    (I heart That Thing You Do).

  3. Lastly, some of my co-workers drive me nuts. I wish they would go far, far away.

With all that said, this is the semester of English that I prefer teaching, and I am so thankful to have a job.  But a long week is a long week, and I really just wanted something warm and comforting for dinner. So when Jeremy suggested quesadillas, I was definitely on board. I knew the warm, melty cheese with veggies and black beans would at least make me forget if not remedy my problems.

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Between this and a good laugh at my Thursday night NBC line up, I’m hoping to get out of my funk.  I’m a bit concerned that I may be getting sick. Ugh. . .

Vermont = Free Samples. . .

Filed under Uncategorized by on 31 December 2009 at 8:58 pm {no comments}

On Tuesday, Jeremy and I started our day by walking to The Skinny Pancake. This place is a foodies dream all the way down to the food shed map on the wall that showed where everything came from. I didn’t love my crepe (way too sweet, even for me), but Jeremy’s food was great.

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Next, we started our tours. First we went to the Magic Hat Brewing Company.  The people were very friendly and the samples and decorations delightful. 100_0126 Next, we went to Lake Champlain Chocolates.  I’m not really a chocolate lover, but learning about the process of chocolate making was really interesting.  After chocolate, we met some good friends at the Vermont Pub and Brewery. My veggie burger was one of the best I’ve ever had, and it was fun to see some friends.

After lunch, we went strolled around Church Street (really this town is beautiful);  then it was time to go  back and take a nap. It was really nice to rest after being so busy in Rochester. After resting and spending some time just hanging out, we went for a late dinner. The Green Room was only a block from our hotel and almost totally empty. They were out of the advertised Potato, Broccoli, Leek Soup, which left me very disappointed. So Jeremy and I split a cheese plate and duck confit tacos with a sweet, smooth Riesling.

100_0142 Bad lighting but great cheese. I really wasn’t very hungry, so I only ate about a quarter of a taco. After dinner, we walked down church street again and got some coffee then headed back to the hotel. Our room was ok, but the beds at Hilton are really just the most comfortable beds I’ve ever slept on; I loved it.

On Wednesday, after a late morning work out we headed off to see a bit more of Vermont before heading home. The first stop was City Market. Wow! Talk about a social conscience; this place has it going on. I literally walked around the entire store saying, “I love you; I love you.” So many organic and bulk foods. I wish I could shop here every day. There was an entire wall of granola. Here’s me express my undying love. 100_0156

After picking up some great grains, flours, tea and coffee, it was time to head to Ben & Jerry’s. Ben & Jerry’s was colorful and fun; basically everything I had imagined. The tour was short, and I gave my sample to Jeremy. I ate half of a Peanut Butter Cookie Dough cone. It was ok, but I should have stuck with my favorite, Peanut Butter Cup.

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After Ben & Jerry’s, we attempted to go to Cabot Cheese. 95% of the time I am a meticulous planner, but I decided to be laid back about this trip, which ultimately led us to arriving at the Cabot Creamery at 3:55, when it closed at four. It was way in the middle of nowhere Vermont. The samples however were great, and I came out with some garlic and herb cheddar.

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After Cabot, we drove back to quaint Newmarket. I love traveling, but it is nice to be back on our own couch.

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