As I get older, foods that are allegedly bad for you are having a nostalgic attraction for me and I realize at some point, eating all that quinoa is not going to grant me extra hours on this planet. Last weekend I made my Oma’s Apfelkuchen, which included about a pound of butter, 3 eggs and 2 cups of sugar. It tasted…

I love burrata; I remember eating it as a teen at one of my friends’ house, whose dad was into making homemade cheese. (Her mom made the most awesome “gravy” aka tomato sauce). We recently were at an upscale brew pub and I ordered the salad with burrata and heirloom tomatoes—my better half didn’t quite get what was so…

I’m going to add my mom’s age old advice to this one.  Unless you’re marinating meat, don’t cook with beer (or wine) you wouldn’t drink.  The only exception is Mickey’s is great for marinating beef.  

I might consider going to a reunion with my college or grad school friends but high school, nope.  I can sum this up in one sentence:  I went to High School in New Jersey in the late 1970s.  Enough said. 

I remember watching the SNL performance when I was in High School .and being gobsmacked in a good way. By ‘78 I was pretty much done with bloated 60s /70s rock music and Devo, the Ramones and Pere Ubu were a godsend.

Team Candy Corn all the way. Its that seasonal candy that evokes memories of trick or treating, popcorn balls, and yes Lebkuchen from the German couple up the street (Yes, Virginia, gingerbread like cookies are not just for Christmas!).  Give me all the Satan’s earwax you don’t want to consume!

Being a regular at a brew pub or beer place is wonderful. We have local called “99 beers on the wall” that we’ve frequented for years. We’re now friends with all the regulars and the owners and yes, its great to go to someplace where every one knows your name. And as a woman going solo, its a comfort to go someplace…

I’ve made Jamaican Oxtail Stew for the family.  According to the carnivores, its quite yummy.  Americans are really odd when it comes to meat--I had an co-worker who loved tacos de lengua until she found out it was actually cow’s tongue.  My Opa used to joke that German’s used every damn bit of a pig except the…

I loved Radlers, but I draw the line with Diesels or Teichwassers, which was beer mixed with cola.  Just not a fan.

Yes Fahrrad is the German word for bicycle. Radfahrer is a bicyclist.

When we were in Munich, I learned how to drink copious amounts of beer with food. First off, keep the ABV on the mid to low range. Eat food with the beer and yes, walk everywhere. We’d do a few litres throughout the day, and even as a smaller woman I never felt extremely buzzed. The Germans would tell us that the…

Our County has a “citizen app” where you can check up on local restaurants inspection scores as well as report food borne illnesses.

I’d add civics to that as well. 

‘A bigger failing of the US public is that it took till 91 for Siouxsie and the Banshees to sell anything..’

I will be slightly mad at you for a few days for getting “Happy Birthday” stuck in my head but a solid list--the further listening list is pretty much what I was listening to in 1981 and most of the early ‘80s.  Danke AV!

You just reminded me of the Kevin Meaney bit where he goes on about the MickeyD’s apple pies.  All I can hear is him screaming “HOT APPLE PIE! HOT APPLE PIE!!”

As a rule, I don’t understand when people (and corporations) try to make a dessert item “healthy”. Desserts are treats and should be gooey, sugar laden and delicious, not good for you.   Have that damn fast food occasionally and start taking the stairs at work.  Its all about balance folks.

There are some pumpkin beers that are palatable, and I enjoy with say, a chocolate dessert or something spicy like Mexican food.

Oh dear me.  SOS.  While steak dinners were much appreciated at my small Western PA college cafeteria, we knew that the next day meant SOS for either lunch or dinner.  Their version was pretty awful and probably hastened my dislike for red meat products down the line.

Doesn’t the Kabbalah say that Kugel has mystical powers?  It’s so delicious, I’m of the opinion that its not too far from the truth.