Be Still My Beating Heart

I was browsing Tastespotting, which I don't recommend you do if you are even the slightest bit hungry, and ran across this. Holy sweet mother of everything that is good and sacred. Macaroni & cheese, check. Pulled pork, check. Barbecue sauce, check. All grilled between two slices of bread and even more cheese. Excuse me while I wipe the drool off my keyboard.

And to make it even better this glorious sandwich hails from the Grilled Cheese Truck. Are you kidding me, the Grilled Cheese Truck? Can it get any better? And in case you're wondering, it can. Check out their menu and drool.

Free Food On Tax Day.

Tomorrow, Wednesday April 15, is tax day and if you still haven't filed your taxes you should get on that. Several businesses are offering special deals tomorrow to help ease the pain of having to deal with the IRS. Wonder if they can write off all these freebies?

Maggie Moo's will be giving away single scoops

Cinnabon will give out free Classic Bites from 5-8

McCormick & Schmicks- Wednesday diners will get a $10.40 certificate for future use. There'll be $15 - $20 entrees discounted to $10.40. And bar patrons can choose themed drinks, such as a pint of Samuel Adams Deduction Draft.

The P.F. Chang's -15% discount

McDonalds - Buy One Get One Big Mac's and Free McCafe's

Dunkin Donuts - Free Donut with Coffee Purchase

Papa John's is also offering "a large cheese pizza and up to three free toppings for $10.40 when you order online". Code is 1040M.

Taco Del Mar is also giving away a free taco, but there aren't any located in the central Ohio area.

T.G.I. Friday's will give Wednesday customers $5 Bonus Bites gift cards for food and beverage purchases of $15 to $25 and $10 cards for those who spend more than $25. Members of the 1,000-outlet chain's frequent-customer program also will get double points.

Fifteen (15) free prints from Walgreens Photo: Orders must be placed by 11:59pm (Central Time) on 04/15. Enter code TAXDAY at checkout.

As always freebies are at the discretion of participating stores, so don't kill the messenger if the store nearest you isn't participating. If you know of any other specials for tomorrow please leave them in the comment section.

(illustration: mediabistro.com/fishbowlLAoriginal/taxes.jpg)

Hibernation.

No recipe here and no real story, just the first time the smoker has been put to work in 2009! A random nice day and the husband decided to smoke some chicken wings, thus the trusty smoker was brought out of hibernation. Usually she's seen a few appearances by now, the husband is an all-weather griller and smoker - all three have manned their fair share of snowy days. But the arrival of nicer weather means the smoker will be out even more and so will the neighbors. It's amazing how much more friendly they all become when the smoker is doing her thing!

This Is Why We're All Fat.

My friend sent me this awesome blog, she's a fantastic friend because she knew how much I'd appreciate this site. I'm drawn to strange & unique food and this blog is right up my ally. It's hilarious and sadly, or not, makes me hungry!

PS. So far my favorite is the french fry encased deep fried hot dog. What's your favorite?

A Dish By Any Other Name....

This is what we had for dinner, there will be no recipe - you are lucky to even get a picture. It was shameful how easy this meal was to make, almost as easy as something Sandra Lee would put together. So why then am I posting a picture of our dinner if I'm not going to share with you how to make it? It's because I'm asking you dear reader to help settle a little debate amongst the husband and myself.

What do you call this dish?

I realize this dish goes by several different names depending on where you live, but no matter, give me all the names you know this dish by. The husband and I thank you.
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Updated 4/09: several people have brought this post to my attention recently and I thought I should go back and give you some background. The husband's family calls this meal - a hot shot. When I suggested this for dinner our conversation went something like this -

me: what about open faced turkey sandwiches for dinner?
the husband: nope.
me: why not?
the husband: turkey hot shot, yes. Open faced sandwich, no.

He thinks he's funny like that, or should I say he thinks he's a hotshot. He insists this is what they're called and I say it's just what people from southwestern Ohio call it. This usually starts another mini food battle where he mocks my southeastern Ohio hometown, but I digress. I say they're open faced sandwiches and more people know them by that name than a 'hot shot.' So dear readers that's the debate in a nutshell. Yes, you waited this long for that....riveting, wasn't it?

I'm So Busy My Head Is Spining....

My apologies, I've been busy. I did manage to take a few pictures & hold on to a few recipes, in the hopes that one day I would catch back up. I have a lot of saved drafts, so expect to see some random & older posts in the next several days (weeks). Happy 2009 to everyone!

Things I Wish For.

I want this pan. Despite it being to much money and only good for a few times a year, I want this pan. I want to be able to make cute little acorn cakelets. I can only hope it will be at the outlet soon, before I forget how much I want it.

I'd Like To Thank....

It's been a week of firsts for this lil' blog - finally achieving my 100th post and my very first blog award, which I interpreted as "you mean someone really reads this and likes what I'm doing?!?!" Really though, I was nominated way back Kate for the Arte y Pico Award and since I just recently became aware of my nomination, I'm really late in my nominee choices. I guess better late than never right?

So here are my nominees for the next five winners of the Arte y Pico award, along with the rules and regulations.

Congratulations to my five nominees -

• Becke @ Columbus Foodie

• Joelen @ Joelen's Culinary Adventures

• Jan @ Jannypie's Craft Empire

• Erin @ Our Extra/Ordinary Life (who is also a super talented photographer too)

• Amanda @ Life Without Dragons

The fine print:

1.) Pick five (5) blogs that you consider deserve this award for their creativity, design, interesting material and for contributing to the blogging community, no matter the language.

2.) Each award needs to have the name of the author, as well as the link to her/his blog - so everyone can visit and offer congratulations!

3.) Each award winner has to show the award and put the name & link to the blog that has given her/him the award.

4.) All award-winners should link to the Arte y Pico blog, so everyone will know the origin of the award.

Dime A Dog Night.

You can't really go wrong with 10 cent hotdogs, especially if you pair them with a baseball game, peanuts and a cold beer. If the tickets are free, well even better. There are two more dime a dog nights at Clipper stadium - Monday 8/25 and the final game at the stadium Monday 9/01. Time is winding down to see a game at the stadium before they tear it down, what better opportunity than to come on dime a dog night?

FYI - with old ticket stubs you can get free general admission tickets, I saw several laying in the parking lot prior to the game. Also if you purchase reserved seats in advance you can get your own dime a dog t-shirt!

Cooper Stadium (1932 - 2008)

Closed.

*victuals & libations will on vacation from 8/11 - 8/17.*

This chicken has nothing to do with our vacation, it just made me laugh when I saw it in an email from Williams- Sonoma. I like how the chicken looks like it's just hanging out and how it also looks like it's flipping off the person who shoved the roaster up it's ass. The vertical chicken roaster can be yours for $30. Have a great week/weekend!

Fun At The Fair.

I love The Ohio State Fair & everything about it - the rides, the animals, the food, the exhibits/displays, people watching, the smells - though some are more plesant than others & did I mention the people watching?!?! We didn't have a chance to go last year, so I was super excited to go with our good friends and their two kids. Going to the fair with kids is always fun!

The petting zoo

My favorite, the poultry barn

The rides

And the real reason why people go to the fair......

FOOD!

The husband started off with a sirloin steak sandwich with the works - mushrooms, peppers, onions & marina sauce. It looked, smelled & tasted delicious!

I had to get the "famous" $2 corndog, which is only famous in my family for being one of the cheapest* corndog's at the fair & conviently located directly next to the big yellow slide. *Family members, didn't it used to be $1?

The D family hit up the fry stand twice & were rewarded each time with hot, delicous and one of a kind fair fries! Love them with lots of salt, vinegar & ketchup.

Our last stop before leaving the fair is always cinnamon sugar doughnuts from the Inky Dinky doughnut cart. We handed over $4 and got a bag of 15 of the most incredible doughnuts I've ever put into my mouth. Seriously they melt in your mouth! I limited myself to four, which if you know my love for doughnuts is an amazing feat.

More food pictures, I love the fair at night when everything is lit up & sparkling. We did not get a lemon shake up this year, which is sad. But I did find a recipe on a freinds blog for a healthier version, which I will have to try out soon. I also had a rootbeer float, fabulous, but styrofoam and foamy brown ice cream don't photo well.

*FYI - tickets are only $2 after 8pm (the fair is open until 10), which leaves you with plenty of money for more food!

Extra Produce Sought.

From this past Sunday's Columbus Dispatch (Garden/07.21.08)

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, about 25 million people have poor diets or rely on food banks or soup kitchens. "Plant a Row for the Hungry" is a service program of the Garden Writers Association Foundation. It encourages gardeners to donate surplus produce to food banks, soup kitchens and service organizations. Many of the 70 million gardeners in the United States harvest more vegetables and fruits than they can consume. This excess can be donated to food banks and soup kitchens, or gardeners can plant an extra row of vegetables for this purpose. If you have extra produce in your garden this season, consider donating it to the Mid-Ohio FoodBank or another food bank near you.

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Ok, be honest. The economy sucks right now, but I have a roof over my head and food in my kitchen. I bet you do too. Many do not have these luxuries that we take for granted. Don't think about what you don't have in life, think about what you do have. Most of us will never go hungry. I know there isn't a lot of extra money lying around these days - but a little goes a long way. Save up your spare change, plant an extra row or container to donate, buy a few extra cans or boxes of food every time you go shopping, or simply donate your time. There are many organizations around Columbus who do their very best to feed, clothe and shelter those in OUR city who are less fortunate than ourselves. Do your part to help, you never know when you might need help down the road.

Cooking for 2.

Best of friends Oliver (cat) and Carson (dog), relax after checking out some luscious fondue recipes courtesy of Cooking for 2!

Best of C-bus '08.

It's time again to vote in Columbus Alive's "Best of 2008!" Vote for the best C-bus has to offer in dining, shopping, arts & culture and nightlife - the winners will appear in the March 27th issue.

On Vacation.

The husband & I are leaving tomorrow morning for a much needed week at the Grandparents cabin on Lake Cumberland. I'm looking forward to boating all day, enjoying the sun, campfires, hanging out with friends & family and all the great food we'll be eating! When I return, I'll post all the great recipes, pictures & and of course the many libations we consumed over the week!

Hope you also have a great week!

Oh bacon, how I love thee.

Ingenious. For complete details on how to make your own bacon place mat, check out Instructables.

Hot dogs - bringing joy to everyone!

Our community yard sale was today and the husband had the great idea of selling hot dogs & drinks in addition to peddling our treasures. I think we ended up selling about 16-18 hot dogs at 50 cents each. Seriously selling hot dogs was a huge hit - people loved it! Next year I think we should skip selling our treasures and just set up food court in our driveway! Give people some shade & food and then maybe politely suggest they take one treasure with them - consider it part of their happy meal!