5640 Pearl Rd
Cleveland, OH 44129
I love supporting local businesses, whether it’s a restaurant, hardware store or, in this case, a local market. Not only does your local market typically have better prices than the big box grocer, but it also has a beautiful fresh fruits and vegetables, most of which are produced locally. So, you’re supporting your local growers and your local business owners in one shopping trip. In addition, you’re doing a small part to be green by purchasing products that are not shipped halfway across the United States.
Chuppas has great fruit and vegetables that are always fresh and colorful. My favorite part of Chuppas is their great deli. They freshly cut all meats and cheeses to order. Even better, the staff at the deli is so nice and friendly. Not at all like the deli counter at Giant Eagle, where they cut mass amounts of meat at once and let it sit and get dried out. More frustrating is the long lines at the GE deli even when 3 women are working, but 2 always seem to be too busy to help the customers.
Posted in Markets | Tagged Chuppas, grocery store, local, market, marketplace | No Comments »
I have been wanting to make tiramisu for over a year. Every once in a while I would browse the cookie ilse at the grocery store looking for ladyfingers, but could never seem to find them. Then, a few weeks ago I was at Trader Joe’s and the ladyfingers practically jumped in my cart. I was looking for edamame in the frozen food section, looked up, and they there were on the self directly in front of me. I took that as a sign that it was time to finally make tiramisu. Even better, Easter was only a few weeks away, so I ever had a special family get together as a reason to make a nice dessert.
- 6 egg yolks
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 2/3 cup milk
- 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 pound mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 cup strong brewed coffee, room temperature
- 1/8 cup Kahlua, rum or other coffee liquor
- 2 (3 ounce) packages ladyfinger cookies - I prefer the soft kind
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
Directions
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In a medium saucepan, whisk together egg yolks and sugar until well blended. Whisk in milk and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture boils. Boil gently for 1 minute, remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Cover tightly and chill in refrigerator 1 hour.
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In a medium bowl, beat cream with vanilla until stiff peaks form.
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Whisk mascarpone into yolk mixture until smooth.
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In a small bowl, combine coffee and rum. Split ladyfingers in half lengthwise and drizzle with coffee mixture.
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Arrange half of soaked ladyfingers in bottom of a springform pan. Spread half of mascarpone mixture over ladyfingers, then half of whipped cream over that. Repeat layers and sprinkle with cocoa. Cover and refrigerate 24 - 48 hours, until set. the flavors are at their peak at about 48 hours.
Posted in Food photos, Recipes | Tagged italian dessert, ladyfingers, tiramisu, Trader Joe's | 1 Comment »
These chocolate chip cookies truly are the best that I have ever had the pleasure to eat. I am not alone in this claim! My friends and family loves them, too. In fact, some friends and family members get very disappointed when I fail to bring these cookies to family gatherings:-) Now, I’m sharing the recipe, so that you all can make these cookies whenever you have a craving.
- 1 cup butter flavored shortening (I prefer Crisco sticks)
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 3/4 cup brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract (Mexican vanilla tastes great)
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups milk chocolate chips (dark chocolate chunks are my favorite)
Directions
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Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
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In a large bowl, cream together the butter flavored shortening, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well with each addition, then stir in the vanilla.
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Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually stir into the creamed mixture.
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Fold in the chocolate chips.
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Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheets.
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Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until light brown.
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Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
Posted in Food photos, Recipes | Tagged chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chips chunks, dark chocolate | No Comments »
I did not even like coffee all that much until about two years ago when I discovered that it really did help keep me awake at work. I worked in marketing for a bank downtown and was against spending $2.00 a day for a cup of coffee. My co-workers would go just about every morning to get their java fix. I would join them every once in a while for a cup of tea or hot chocolate. Then, one day I decided to try a cup of coffee. For someone who did not drink coffee, the caffeine really kicked in to the point where I was so alert that my hands were trembling. But, I loved the fact that I was awake, motivated, and could concentrate on my work! So, it all began…I was sold on the caffeine and I acquired the taste for coffee within a couple weeks.
So, now that I like coffee, I was still against paying for it everyday, so I decided that coffee would be my treat. I would only spurge on it a few days a week. Then, I quit my job downtown to work for myself from home. No more paying for coffee, but our coffee maker at home was a crappy hand-me-down from my parents that made coffee that tasted not much better than brown water.
One day, I was at the “office” with my new co-workers. One of whom had a french press and made a pot of coffee in it. I was pleasantly suprised with my first sip, it was like experiencing coffee again for the first time, but in a whole new way…a way that tasted great and did not require a couple weeks to acquire a taste. The flavor was so smooth and comforting. I had to get one of these french presses for myself. So, I did.
The first french press I purchased was a Bodum Chambord Coffee Press from Crate & Barrel. It was a great press and made delicious coffee. However, it had a flaw in design…glass. Yep, glass, which I broke twice. The first time, we ordered a new glass piece for about $20. Then, about a month later it broke again. That was it, I can’t be replacing the glass for $20 every month. So, I went on a search for a better press.
My search led me to www.wholelattelove.com. This site has crazy amounts of coffee making products. Very interesting to just browse through and see what kind of expresso maker $2,000 buys you these days. I found the perfect coffee press called the Bodum Columbia Thermal Coffee Press. I purchased the 8-cup version for $49.99 from wholelattelove.com, with free shipping and no sales tax! I even got 5% from a promotion they had running on the site at the time of purchase.
The Bodum Columbia Thermal Coffee Press is great for multiple reasons.
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First and foremost, it is not made of glass! No more broken glass.
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It is dishwasher safe.
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The plunger has a suction to the sides making is nearly impossible for any coffee granules to sneak through into your coffee.
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Since is double-walled stainless steel it keeps your coffee warm longer than a glass press.
Joe and I are so happy with our new coffee press. It makes great coffee, won’t break and looks great, too!
Posted in Product Preview | Tagged Bodum, coffee, french press, press | 3 Comments »
Chicken pot pie is one of my favorite one dish meals to make in the fall and winter months. I opt for the ready-to-use pie crust, which cuts down on cooking and assembly time. It’s also a great way to use up leftovers after roasting a whole chicken. I cut-up the leftover chicken and freeze it in pot pie servings, so it is ready to go when I have a craving for chicken pot pie!
1/3 cup stick butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 small onion chopped (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1-3/4 cup chicken broth or stock (I use my own homemade stock)
2/3 cup milk
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen corn
2 fresh carrots peeled and sliced
2-1/2 cups cooked cut-up chicken (I prefer a mix of dark and white meat)
Ready-to-use 9 inch two crust pie (Pillsbury works great)
Directions
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Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
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Melt butter in large pan over medium heat. Stir in flour, onion, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in chicken broth and milk. Heat to boiling, stiring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in chicken, peas, corn and carrots. Remove from heat.
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Line a 9 inch pie pan with a layer of ready-to-use pastry crust. Pour chicken mixture into the pastry-lined pie pan. Place top layer of ready-to-use pastry crust over chicken mixture and seal edges by squeezing together top and bottom crust. Cut a few 2 inch long slits in the top layer of pastry for ventilation. Or, you can arrange a lattice work type top (as seen in my picture) by cutting the pastry into long sections and laying them on top of the chicken mixture in a lattice work pattern.
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Bake about 35 minutes or until golden brown.
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Let sit for at least a half hour before cutting, so that the liquid/gravy in the pie has time to cool and thicken. Otherwise it will run all over when you try to cut a piece out of the pie.
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Enjoy!
Posted in Food photos, Recipes | Tagged chicken pot pie, comfort food, Pillsbury pie crust | No Comments »
I’m happy to report that a new Vietnamese restaurant has moved in less than 10 minutes from my house! Maybe you have read about my disappointing experience with the other Vietnamese restaurant down the street, Tay Do. After that fiasco, I was sad that there were no Vietnamese options near me that I would actually eat at.
#1 Pho has opened a new location at 7778 West 130th Street in Middleburg Heights (440-888-2150). I have already been there twice, once for takeout and once for dinner in the restaurant. Both experiences have been delicious with very friendly service. Between me and my husband, we have already tried almost all of their Bun (Rice Vermicelli) options. The vegetables were very fresh, the meat was perfectly seasoned and the crispy spring rolls were crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. In fact, I think the quality is even better than that served at the other #1 Pho location on Superior Ave. and East 31st, near Chinatown. The spring rolls were also very tasty. We tried a dessert of fried bananas with honey, which were good, but not great. Probably not the best place for dessert.
The new location in Middleburg Heights used to be a sushi restaurant. #1 Pho did not do too much to update the decor. The new location does not feature the trendy decor of its counterpart on Superior Ave., but it is clean with simple decorations you would expect to see at an Asian restaurant.
I spoke with the manager, who is one of the siblings of the family that owns #1 Pho. He was very friendly and hooked me up with a cup of tea and some candy while I waited for my takeout. He told me that they are also opening a high end Vietnamese restaurant on East 4th downtown.
So, if you are in the mood for some Vietnamese, give #1 Pho in Middleburg Heights a try.
Posted in Cleveland restaurants, Restaurant Reviews | Tagged bun, chicken, food, Middleburg Heights, pork, spring rolls, vermicelli, Vietnamese | 4 Comments »
I treated my brother and his friend to a celebration lunch at the Hot Dog Diner this past weekend. The reason for celebration is a whole other story, but we were totally celebrating the awesome comfort food at the Hot Dog Diner located at 4407 Brookpark Road in Parma. The decor is simple Cleveland memorabilia on bright mustard yellow walls. It’s a happy place with friendly and fast service.
My brother got the Fry Daddy Burger and Tyler’s Cheezy Fries Dog. This would be the two items on the menu that come with cheese-covered french fries on top of your sandwich. He said that it was one of the best burgers he has ever had the pleasure to eat. He loved how it tasted homemade and the texture of a hand packed patty. In fact, he had half of the burger in his stomach before I could even get my camera out for a picture.
My brother’s friend ordered two Wagon Train Dogs, topped with chili, sour cream and onions. He enjoyed every bite. I devoured a Windy City Wiener, Snappy style with mustard, onion, tomatoes, pickle spear, cucumber and celery salt. We shared a large chili cheese fries. There was not a drop of chili left on any of our paper hot dog holders!
The buns are soft, the hot dogs have a little crunch to the skin and the toppings are so tasty and fresh. What a treat of yumminess with a side of fat and cholesterol. It was worth every bite 
Posted in Cleveland restaurants, Food photos, Restaurant Reviews | Tagged Brookpark Road, cheese, chili, french fries, hot dog, Hot Dog Diner, Ohio, Parma | No Comments »
Empress Court Chinese restaurant at 8307 E Washington St. in Chagrin Falls, OH (440-543-8231) is a great place to get your Chinese food fix. My family and I have been eating at this friendly restaurant since I was in high school back in the mid 90’s. It is located in a nondescript strip of stores and provides your typical Chinese restaurant decor. If you want some tasty and fresh Chinese food from the Eastside suburbs, Empress Court is a great option.
My dad and I really like the Wor Sue Gai. This is chicken breast that is breaded and fried, placed over a bed of lettuce with a brown gravy poured over top. It is typically served with white rice. The chicken is always so moist, not dry at all. Typically, I am a fan of dark meat, which tends to have more flavor. But, the Wor Sue Gai, made with breast meat, is perfect.
I have always really enjoyed their wonton soup. The wontons have a great flavor and always taste fresh, like they were just made. The wonton wrapper is a nice thick “noodle” with tasty meat inside, these were not just pulled out of the freezer and thrown into the pot. They serve shrimp chips on the side, which seems to be something offered at only select Chinese restaurants. I could eat those crunchy shrimp chips all day. I like to dip them in my soup and listen to them make that “Rice Krispie” popping sound
Early this week, we ate dinner at Empress Court and tried a new dish…the Sweet and Sour Shrimp. Each piece of shrimp was quite large and the sauce had a perfect balance of sweet and sour. Even the green peppers had a nice crunch of freshness. Of course, the Sweet and Sour Chicken is also great.
You can’t go wrong with Empress Court. The food is fresh, the service is always prompt and friendly and the prices are very reasonable. I think they do a great take our business, too. Everytime we are there we notice lots of people stopping to pick-up their dinner. Next time you have a Chinese food craving, which is like once a week for me, try Empress Court!
Posted in Cleveland restaurants, Restaurant Reviews | Tagged Chagrin Falls, Chinese food, Cleveland, Ohio, Sweet and Sour Shrimp, wonton soup, Wor Sue Gai | 1 Comment »
I made beef stroganoff for dinner tonight and it turned out so good (if I must say so myself) that I wanted to share the recipe. The basic recipe came from allrecipes.com, but I added my own touches. This one is definitely going in the recipe binder. In fact, I was so hungry and excited to eat this that I forgot to take a picture. Ooops!
Ingredients
- 1 pound cubed beef stew meat (my grocer actually had meat packaged as”stroganoff”)
- 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed golden mushroom soup
- 1 soup can of water
- 1 beef bouillon cube
- 1/2 packet of Lipton onion soup mix
- 1 clove garlic chopped
- 1/2 cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
- salt and pepper to your liking
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1 tablespoon corn starch
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2 tablespoons cold water
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- dollop of sour cream
- 8 ounce package button mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 package wide egg noodles
Directions
- In a slow cooker, combine the meat, soup, water, bouillon, onion soup mix, garlic, onion, Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper.
- Cook on Low setting for 5-6 hours.
- Mix the corn starch and water in a small bowl until corn starch disintegrates. Stir in to create a thickness to your liking.
- Saute mushrooms in olive oil. Add to mixture within a half hour before serving.
- Stir in cream cheese and sour cream just before serving.
- Serve over egg noodles.
Posted in Recipes | Tagged beef stroganoff, Campbell's golden mushroom soup, Liption onion soup mix, Recipes | No Comments »
My last post about Anthony Bourdain’s book Kitchen Confidential got me thinking about those restaurants that may not be quite so good. You know those with the high school kid cooking your pizza who just wants to finish his shift so he can go drinking with his friends or the server with an attitude or, my favorite, the crazy lady who owns the place. Yep, unfortunately, I have a story about that lady. Specifically, the lady who owns Tay Do Vietnamese restaurant on Snow Road in Parma.
This is actually a sad story, because I really liked Tay Do the first 4 times I ate there. I remember the day I discovered the restaurant only a little over a mile from my home. I was so excited to find a great Vietnamese restaurant so close. They probably would have known me by name there in no time.
It all went down one evening when Joe and I decided to order dinner for pick-up from Tay Do. I called to order a Pho soup for myself and a beef dish for Joe. Excited for a yummy dinner, I jumped in my car and drove down the street to pick-up our order. The lady who owns the place was friendly just as she had been the last few times I stopped in. She made small talk while I waited for the order, it was ready just a few minutes later.
What a disappointment when Joe opened his Styrofoam container to find SQUID, not beef. I called Tay Do back immediately to describe the mix-up and let them know that I would be coming back to get our beef dish. Unfortunately, the phone call did not go too smoothly. Once I explained their mistake, the lady owner became quite defensive on the phone. “No! You order squid!” she said. “Sorry, I’m sure that we did not order squid. My husband does not like squid.” I explained. This coversation went back and forth a few times. Finally, I told her that I would come back to get our correct beef dish. She agreed, but was not happy about it.
I was so hungry at that point that we decided it would be best if Joe drove back up there to make the exchange. Now, here is where it gets crazy! Joe took the squid dish with him to show that it really was the wrong order. The lady took the squid from him and gave him his beef. Joe thanked her and walked out the door. A few moments later, as Joe was about to get into his car, the front door to the restaurant opens and it is the lady, with squid Styrofoam container in hand. She is yelling at Joe, “You eat Squid! You eat Squid!” At this point, Joe is quite annoyed. He looks are her, says, “You are crazy”, gets into his car and drives away.
How many ways can this situation simply be wrong? She is acusing her customer of eating half of an incorrect order and returning it. Who would really go to all that trouble to eat half of their meal, call to say it is the wrong meal, get in the car and drive back just to get a new meal? But, the scary part to both Joe and I is that we felt like she was angry that there was not enough squid left in the container to throw it on a plate and serve it to the next person who orders that entree. How about the fact that if she thought we ate some that maybe she gave us a skimpy portion in the first place.
Then, I think, here she is hanging out the door, yelling at a customer, while she has a dining room of customers. What were those people thinking? So, this whole experience was wrong on so many levels. Who treats their customers like that, especially when it was your fault in the first place!
So, I am sad that I can’t go back to Tay Do, becuase their food really is very good. But, how can I support a restaurant who treats their customers in such a crazy manner?
Posted in Cleveland restaurants, Restaurant Reviews | Tagged Cleveland, Ohio, Parma, Pho, reveiw, Tay Do, Vietnamese restaurant | 10 Comments »
