Retiring this blog

I am retiring my Blogger blogs.  Starting today, June 16, 2018 my blog posts will be found at https://thislife225879410.wordpress.com 

A burger worth writing about

I have never been crazy about hamburgers.  They are ok once in a while but I've never been one to crave a burger...until now.

Mike and I were out and about in Sarasota and we decided to try a new place we spotted Burgerfi.  Knowing that we were in a very well to do area and that we have found some amazing restaurants in this area, mostly gourmet (table cloths, cloth napkins, and sommeliers), we had no idea what we would find.  Turns out it is a gourmet burger fast food restaurant.

When we walked in, you go to the counter and place your order and pay.  They give you a pager thing and tell you that when the order is done it will buzz and your food will be at the counter.  Different...

I ordered the CEO burger.

The meat was NOT greasy.  It was delicious.  The candied bacon tomato jam was a sweet and savory treat. The aged swiss cheese was yummy and melty.  The star of the burger was the truffle aioli.  It infused the burger with a rich, earthy umami that makes my mouth water just thinking about it as I write.



Jackie, the woman who took care of us was wonderful.  She made sure that our first visit to Burgerfi was not our last.  She let us taste their special burger sauce that is usually reserved for the burgers but people like to use with their onion rings and fries.  Check out the size of the onion rings.


Just as we were finishing up our meal, Jackie came out with two samples of their shakes, one vanilla and one coffee mocha.  They were both scrumptious.

So, next time you are in Sarasota, FL near the University Town Center Mall, stop in and see Jackie at Burgerfi.  You won't be sorry!

Happy tasting!

Father's Day Surprise!! No milk in the house, no problem!

Happy Father's Day to all the wonderful Dad's out there.  I wanted to make my hubby some pancakes for breakfast but, when I started gathering ingredients, there was NO MILK!!!!  Sigh...

What's a girl to do?  I remembered that I had grabbed a box of Duncan Hines Perfect Size for One Apple Cinnamon Muffins.  What could be better than an apple cinnamon muffin cooked in a mug??  One packet of mix, 3 tablespoons water, stirred, and microwaved in a mug for 1 minutes and 10 seconds - that's it!  Mike loved it. I loved it!  Winner! Winner! Apple Cinnamon Muffin!!!

Tried something new - Good Table Freezer to Plate by General Mills

The other day I was walking through Publix, hunting Pokemon, when I spotted something new.

Good Table Freezer to Plate by General Mills.  There were four choices:  Lemon Garlic Herb Chicken, Southwest Chicken, Chicken Marsala, and Teriyaki Chicken.  I love Marsala, yet have yet to make it from scratch and have it be really good.  My main problem when I make it is trying to remember what kind of Marsala wine to buy.  Now I don't have to.

How easy is this meal?  Let me tell you....EASY!!!  Add water and frozen chicken to what is in the box, cover, bake and YUM!

I was pleasantly surprise by the Sodium content. Both my husband and I enjoyed the meal.  I think we will try some of the others in the near future.

Check them out here.

All things HUMMUS!

I used to think that hummus looked like flavorless baby food.  Whenever it was offered to me, I would turn my nose up at the tan mush.  One day, a coworker brought in homemade hummus with warm pita bread.  That is when my love of hummus began.

I really enjoy the Sabra brand of hummus. Their original is tasty but my favorite is the roasted red pepper flavor.  I have also tried the Publix brand hummus, which is very good.

How do I eat my hummus?  I love to eat it with slices of cucumber instead of chips or pita.  I love to spread it on my tortilla, add fresh spinach, some cooked chicken or turkey, and some feta cheese.  Roll it all up and delicious wrap.

One Halloween, I decided to make pumpkin hummus from scratch to bring to a party. I also took a ghost shaped cookie cutter and cut out shapes from tortillas and baked them.  Very tasty.  Here is the pumpkin hummus recipe.

Pumpkin Hummus

2 Tbsp tahini (if you can't find tahini, use creamy peanut butter)
2 Tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp olive oil
3/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground pepper
1 - 15 oz can pumpkin
1 can garbanzo beans
1 garlic clove chopped

Put all ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth.

Recently my husband saw that Bush's Beans had put out a line of Hummus Made Easy. He bought some for me and tonight I tried it.  I have to say that it was very good. I made the Classic flavor with reduced sodium garbanzo beans. It was so good that I'm planning to go out and get a bunch of mix and beans to keep on hand in case of spontaneous party. 

If you think you don't like hummus, give it another try.  I'm glad I did.

Another great meal from the Ravenous Rhino food truck

Tonight we stopped at the Ravenous Rhino food truck for dinner.  This is our second visit to this fantastic restaurant on wheels.  Mike had the Hogzilla burger, which is stuffed with bacon and cheese.     He happily ate it before I could get a picture.

I had the pulled pork sandwich (above) with their granny smith apple coleslaw.  It was the perfect meal.  I'm so happy that we stumbled upon this food truck and write about it here.

You really MUST try them.

Trying new things

I love to try new recipes.  Earlier this month, Chef Warren Caterson come to the library where I work and did a cooking demonstration.  I have both of the chef's cookbooks Table for Two: The Cookbook for Couples and Table for Two: Back for Seconds. Because of Chef Warren's visit to the library, I became brave enough to cook some tuna steaks.  Pan-seared Tuna Steak with Sesame Oil was the recipe I tried.

Not only was this delicious for me, but my husband who doesn't eat fish, ate it and said he would like to add this to our dinner rotation.

Thank you Chef Warren Caterson for the inspiration.