Wordless Wednesday: Waves & Crabbing

Semi-Wordless Wednesday.

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Magic Bullet To Go - Winners!

Thank you to everyone who entered to win one of the Magic Bullet To Go packages!  I have heard from all 4 winners and can now announce who will soon be receiving this fabulous prize:

And the winners are...

Cara! of The Boys Made Me Do It!  with her Restaurant Style Salsa. 

Jen of Measuring Spoons and Mixing Bowls with her Roasted Red Pepper Dip.

Brandie of Homemade Living with her Mango Guacamole.

Kristen of Dine & Dish with her Strawberry Cheesecake Milkshake.

Such fabulous recipes, I can't wait to receive my own Magic Bullet To Go so I can try them all myself!  Everyone who entered shared fabulous snack recipes - thank you for entering!


Photo courtesy of DX Agency for Magic Bullet.

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

A Dessert Worth the Splurge! (Peanut Butter Banana Cream Pie)

There aren't many recipes that I repeat over and over, but this one has been a frequent summer go-to dessert for me.  I first started making it when it appeared in the Cooking Light issue back in June 2002.  So simple to make and once you've tasted it, you'll be making it every chance you get!

Frozen desserts are so easy to make and are great as a make-ahead for those friends that might stop by on Friday night to share pizza with your family.  Make a couple of these Peanut Butter Banana Cream Pies and keep them in your freezer ready to serve - just in case!

Can't you just taste the creamy, peanut butter goodness?  With each bite, you get a special surprise - a bit of frozen banana that is sliced thin and covers the bottom of the pie. I usually pick up the Nilla Wafer ready-made crust, but this time used a graham cracker crust.  It was fine, but the Nilla wafer crust really compliments this pie much better. 

You can find the recipe at My Recipes right HERE.  Go get it NOW!  You won't regret it, and I bet you'll be making more than one of them to keep on hand to share with friends and family all summer long!

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Wordless Wednesday: Birthday Cupcake Cake

Wordless Wednesday.


Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Baby Back Ribs 2 Ways for Father's Day

Happy Father's Day!

Hopefully, everyone was able to spend a bit of time with their father, grandfather, or other special men in their life today.  My Dad passed away almost 9 years ago, so I'm not lucky enough to be able to share this day with him.  But, he was in my thoughts just the same. 

Yesterday, I waited ever-so-patiently at this Italian butcher to get the baby back ribs I'd be making today.  Seems everyone was planning a big meal with tons of different types of meats and I was one of the last people to enter the store.  Oh well, at least I was able to get what I wanted, others were not so lucky as many items had sold out already.

My Husband loves his baby back ribs, so I try to make them for him a couple of times every summer.  I always feel like they are a summertime food - finger lickin' good and VERY messy!  Today, we decided to get our smoker going and try a recipe he found for Memphis Dust Rub on the ribs, as well as preparing some of them the way I always have - kind of an insurance policy.

As you can see in the photo, the ribs on the left side were the smoked ribs and the ribs on the lower right side were the barbequed ribs.  Even though we still struggle with our smoker maintaining a constant temperature (a constant frustration for us) the smoked ribs did end up very tender - and the Memphis Dust Rub was fantastic!  Very full of flavor with just the right amount of sweetness, not much heat which was fine for us.  It makes about 3 cups worth, so I put quite a bit into a sealed plastic container to use throughout the summer. 

I think My Husband had a really nice Father's Day between having his favorite meal and dessert (I'll share that next time!).  Our Boys made him some really sweet and funny cards which made him smile. 

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Snack Time and Magic Bullet Giveaway Reminder!

With my fabulous Magic Bullet To Go Giveaway (see THIS post to enter via comments), I thought this would be a good time to revisit some of the smoothies, snacks and dips I've made in the past.  Hopefully, this will inspire some more of you to enter for a chance to win one of FOUR Magic Bullet's To Go!

Inspired by the creativity of My Oldest, we made a hard to resist Peanut Butter and Banana Delight Smoothie.  You won't want to share it with anyone!

A full of flavor addition to your crudite platter is the Red Pepper Hummus I made awhile back.  It was really hard to resist and we kept going back for more!

A perfect snack for a summer road trip is Vanilla Cereal Crunch. 

Now that you've been inspired (hopefully!), go get your favorite snack recipe and share it in the comments on THIS post for a chance to win this:

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

GIVEAWAY!! A Magic Bullet Could be Yours! (CLOSED!)

The Magic Bullet To Go Giveaway is now closed as of 5 p.m. EST on Friday, 6/18/2010.  Stay tuned for the winners to be announced!

I have some exciting news to share!  I'm having a giveaway courtesy of DX Agency & Magic Bullet!  Keep reading to find out how one of 4 Magic Bullets can be yours!

 So, you must be wanting to know the details, right?  Keep reading!

Magic Bullet wants to know what your favorite snack food recipe is!


Father's Day is right around the corner! Magic Bullet wants to help you celebrate the fathers in your lives by giving you a Magic Bullet to Go. Summertime is in full swing and you know what that means - delicious snacks. Magic Bullet wants to hear all of your delicious recipes! If you think you have the best snack recipe, share your recipe with the blogosphere – you might just win a Magic Bullet To Go along with the travel bag.

Just leave a comment sharing your snack food recipe (editing to add:  please leave either the recipe or a link to the recipe in comments on this post) and who knows maybe your recipe will influence a future Magic Bullet Recipes book! Also, in order to win you must become of fan of the Magic Bullet - The Official Page on facebook. Here is the link:  http://www.facebook.com/MagicBulletTheOfficialPage
 
This is open to U.S. Residents only. 

Also, please leave contact information in your comment (if you have a blog, that will work as well) so that if you win we can let you know!
 
Entries must be submitted to the comments on this post by Friday, June 18th to be eligible.  I will be forwarding your entries to Magic Bullet and they will decide which submitted snack recipes will receive this prize:
 

So, get those snack recipes together and share them in the comments on this post by Friday, June 18th!
 
Note:  Post information on the giveaway and a Magic Bullet were provided to Family, Friends and Food in exchange for hosting this giveaway.  No monetary compensation was provided.  Photos courtesy of DX Agency for Magic Bullet.
 

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Chili's New Avocado Burger (review)

I'm a bit behind on this review... I received a gift card from the PR folks at WOMFire awhile back to go and try some new items on Chili's menu.  They introduced some new items that are focused on freshly prepared ingredients.  We like to go out on Friday nights and this was an opportunity to try something new.

While the three men in my family opted to go with their "usual" menu items... chicken crispers and fries... cheese quesadilla with corn on the cob (don't knock it, at least he chose a vegetable!).  I perused the menu in search of something new that would be worthy of sharing with the readers of my little ol' blog.  Here's what I chose:

Excuse the lack of focus as I took this with my phone.  Didn't remember to bring my little camera with us when we suddenly decided to go out for dinner.

The Avocado Burger is part of the Big Mouth Burger section of the menu.  What appealed to me was the fresh sliced avocado and the avocado ranch dressing that would top the burger.   The burger was tasty, but the dressing was hardly noticeable as far as taste goes, but the fresh avocado was a definite plus.  They could either leave the dressing off completely or put a little extra on so that the taste would come through.  It was prepared and cooked to order as requested. Now, these burgers have so much going on that they are going to be messy, so I'd suggest asking for extra napkins!

Overall, I enjoyed the burger, but it was much larger than what I can normally eat so I didn't finish it.  I have to save room for the fries, right?  I love Chili's fries... the seasoning keeps me going back for more... and it seems My Oldest feels the same way about them.

Besides the Big Mouth Burgers they have also added a new Asian Chicken Salad which is drizzled with a creamy peanut dressing.  I'm thinking that will be next on my list of items to try!

Be sure to come on back here on Monday afternoon... I have an exciting giveaway coming up and there will be 4 winners selected!!! So, tell your friends... and come see what it's all about on Monday!

If you are craving more Family, Friends and Food... check out our Facebook page!  There's some great conversations each day and tips from readers.  I've also started sharing some of my favorite blog posts that I've found there - so Tasty Tidbits is still happening, but it's all on the Facebook page!  Click HERE to head over and "like" it so you won't miss out on previews of posts and some fun food talk!

Disclaimer:  Family, Friends and Food was provided with a Chili's gift card to cover the cost of dining in the restaurant.  I was asked to write an honest review and was not told what to write... it's all my own opinion in this post.

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Lakeside Lodge(s) on Lake Gananoque

After telling all about the food on our trip to Lake Gananoque, I realized I never told you where you should stay - should you get the opportunity to go there yourself.  We had a wonderful stay at Griffin's Lakeside Cottages while we were there.  There were several different types of cottages available.  Ours had two bedrooms and a small kitchen and bathroom. 

As you can see, our cottage had these big, beautiful windows in it.  I loved that the windows gave us a nice view of the lake and the greenery around the cabins.  The staff at Griffin's couldn't have been nicer and we also enjoyed homecooked breakfast each morning.  After all the food we ate the day before, who would've thought that we would need breakfast, but who could turn down the most amazing scrambled eggs, homemade pancakes and yes, more bacon?  Not us! 

Not too much farther down the road (and within walking distance) there is also Tedford's Lakeside Resort.  This is where My In-laws stayed for years.  We made our reservations a bit later than we should have, so they recommended Griffin's to us for this year.  While we did not stay at Tedford's this time, we did take a walk over so My Husband could show Our Boys the boat house. 

My Mother-in-Law was able to get a tour of one of the cabins at Tedford's and they've been nicely updated over the years.  Each cabin has it's own porch and you can also choose to have a homecooked breakfast there as well. 

These are family owned businesses, and the people are a real pleasure!  The cabins are kept nice and clean, but a note on the bedrooms... they have twin beds in them.  Afterall, this is a fishing destination and often it's a group of men who come to stay for several days.  We didn't mind and I know Our Boys loved that they didn't have to share a bed!

Griffin's does not have a website, but if you are interested in making reservations there you can contact them via the information on this LINK.  Tedford's has a website which you can view right HERE.  For those living in Northern New Jersey, it's not a bad drive up there... took us only about 6 hours and we stopped for lunch, but don't forget your passport... you will have to show it when you cross the border into Canada!

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Wordless Wednesday: Discovery

Wordless Wednesday... more on our trip later this week!
Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.

Fishing and Food at Lake Gananoque

Anyone who has married someone they have not known their entire life knows that there are things that can seem like a mystery about their spouse when it comes to their youth.  You know what I'm talking about.... you hear stories from various family members about things they said or did and try to match that up to the person you met as an adult.  Also, there are the stories of family trips and holidays that you weren't there to witness.

Well, over Memorial Day weekend our family relived a trip that My Husband's family took every year at that time when he was growing up.  We loaded up our van with packed bags and all the things needed for a fishing trip!  Now, anyone who knows me very well will be scratching their head and wondering why on Earth I would agree to go on a fishing trip?  Well, I have two boys and they like to fish and I figured I wouldn't have to touch anything "icky" so, I couldn't say no.  I have also been hearing about the trips to Lake Gananoque for years now, and wanted to see it for myself.

The lake is beautiful and I really enjoyed the quiet there as well.  We were completely "unplugged" while there... no cell phones, internet, email or anything like that.  I think we all need a break like that occasionally, and this was a perfect mini-vacation for it.

It was quite lucky that My In-laws were able to get in contact with the family who took them out on the lake all those years ago!  It was a pleasure to have Terry, our guide, take us out each day for fishing and his patience with the million questions our boys had was incredible!  They are still talking about him and can't wait to go back and see their new buddy again!

Terry was able to guide us to some areas of the lake where the fishing was very good.  Although the first day we were off to a slow start.  Once the fish started biting, everyone managed to catch a nice sized pike each day!  Even me... the person who does not fish ended up catching three of these nice sized fish!  Once we got our fishing in each day, Terry would take us to one of the many lakeside picnic areas to fillet up the fish and prepare an incredible shore dinner for us. 

This is truly campfire cooking at its best!  Every part of the meal, except for dessert, was cooked on the campfire that Terry made each day.  We started each meal with a "healthy" slab of bacon fried up extra crispy.

Has to be some of the best bacon any of us have ever had!  The meal continued with the fish that we caught, along with boiled potatoes, fried onions and fresh sliced tomatoes.

Each day, we had the special treat of a homebaked pie!  I think the blueberry was my favorite, but we also had pumpkin and apple pie to finish off each day's meal. 

As you can imagine, we were so stuffed after each day's shore dinner that we didn't even bother having dinner!  We were so well fed while we were there that hunger was not something that we felt at any time.

Overall, this trip was a lot of fun!  It was nice to go somewhere that My Husband has spoken so fondly of over the years.  Sharing it with Our Boys and My In-laws was wonderful, too.  We are all looking forward to making the trip again and creating some fabulous memories for Our Boys to look back on when they are grown.

Now, after all that fabulous food... I spent last week eating salads and not a lot of creative cooking was going on - hoping to have more interesting things to share in the upcoming week!

Please note that all photos and content belong to Patsy Kreitman, unless otherwise noted. If you want to use something please ask first.