Quick and Easy White Chocolate Pumpkin Pudding Pie Recipe

On By Rob GIn Close to Home, RecipeLeave a comment

I am sharing a twist to a recipe that some of you might be familiar with. You might have seen the traditional pudding pie recipe on places such as the back of the label of a graham cracker crust, the side of a pudding box, or somewhere else. White chocolate and pumpkin occasionally go together in recipes, which is the reason I wanted to try this twist today.

The total prep time for this was less than 20 minutes. Once it’s put together, it should still be refrigerated for at least an hour or so, but at least the prep work can go by fairly quickly. The ingredients I used for this are as follows:

4 cups of milk split into two equal portions (I used 2% milk)

1 small package instant pudding – Pumpkin Spice

1 small package instant pudding – White Chocolate

1 Graham Cracker Pie Crust

1/2 – 3/4 of an 8 ounce container of whipped topping

The first step is to make the instant pudding packages as directed (usually 2 cups of milk and the pudding mix mixed together for about 2 minutes). If you happen to have a 32 ounce Blender Bottle around, this works really well for mixing each of the puddings. Once the puddings are in their bowls, they should take about 5 minutes to set.

I put the puddings into the Graham Cracker Pie shell side by side.

I then used a fork to swirl them together. I didn’t want to have them completely mixed together, but wanted there to be a distinction between the white chocolate pudding and the pumpkin spice pudding.

The final step was to put the whipped cream topping on top. If you want to use the entire container, then go for it. I only used slightly more than half the container, since I didn’t think it would need a heavy amount of the topping, and it would be harder to use the lid to seal the pie if there was too much.

It is now ready to dig in. I hadn’t tried this before, but I like how the flavor turned out. The white chocolate pudding is a very smooth, mild flavor. The pumpkin spice pudding gives it a little kick that it needs. The graham cracker crust adds another layer of flavor as well as some much needed texture. The whipped topping adds some creamy sweetness to round it all out.

I have tried different variations before, but usually with chocolate pudding – layering with ganache, combining the pudding and whipped topping together, etc. It was nice to try something I hadn’t done before and have it turn out to taste good, too.

Modified Shepherd’s Pie

On By Rob GIn Close to HomeLeave a comment

I had planned on making some Shepherd’s Pie tonight, but since I got home early from my morning errands, I made it a bit earlier.

Shepherd’s Pie is traditionally lamb that is cooked in gravy or sauce with vegetables, and topped with mashed potatoes. Cottage pie is similar, but with beef as the main source of meat. There are variations of the meats and vegetables, but this is a nice hearty meal that is perfect for the Fall season.

My version has slight modifications, but the overall spirit of the meal still exists.

One ingredient that I use, but can be hard to find, is Ballymaloe Original Sauce.

I first discovered this sauce about 7 or 8 years ago. It works well on hamburgers, but is great with Shepherd’s Pies. This is a tomato relish and includes sultanas. I’m not usually a fan of raisins, but these work really well in this sauce/relish.

Start by preheating the oven to 400.

My first cooking step includes a big cheat. I used one pouch of instant mashed potatoes. Once those were hot and ready, it was on to the next.

I cooked up one pound of ground lamb. As soon as the meat is no longer pink, drain the fat. Reduce heat to medium. Add in one can of peas and carrots (14.5-15 ounces) with the liquid drained. I then added one 7.5 ounce jar of Ballymaloe to the mix. I put 1/2 cup of water into the jar and swirled it around to make sure I got all of the good bits of the relish, and then added them to the mixture.

Continue mixing for another 2 minutes, making sure the ingredients are mixed in. Grease an 8 inch round casserole dish and add the meat mixture.

Add the mashed potatoes (should be 2 cups) and gently press down to make an even layer.

Place in the 400 degree oven and bake for 25 minutes.

Let cool for about 5 minutes and enjoy!

This was just one of my modifications. If you want to have more crisp to the mashed potatoes, you can put it under a broiler for about 5 minutes. You can add cheese on top of the mashed potatoes before cooking. You can add in other vegetables. Create your own unique version if you would like.

Making this was one thing, but it all comes down to the taste. I was really happy with how this turned out, in terms of flavor. The lamb wasn’t gamey. The sweetness of the tomato relish came out well and the mashed potatoes really brought everything together. It would have been interesting to have a different texture, so crisping the mashed potatoes a bit under the broiler might have done the trick, but it wasn’t necessary. I enjoyed making this today and was happy to share.

Eat Well!

Pit Beef – The Canopy – Ellicotty City, MD

On By Rob GIn Going PlacesLeave a comment

My morning started out successfully. My goal was to get a pit beef sandwich from The Canopy for lunch and get home in time to watch the game, which I was able to do.

The Canopy is a small restaurant right off of Route 40 in Ellicott City, MD. When I lived in Ellicott City, I would go there every month or so. Now that I’m a bit farther away, I don’t get there as often, so I was happy to plan my day to include this place. This place has been open since 1983, and it’s easy to see why it’s still around and still bringing in the customers.

One of the nice things about the Pit Beef restaurants that I’ve visited is the meat is right behind the counter. You order your meat and your desired doneness (if beef), and they take it off the pit and start slicing right there. The meat is fresh. The sandwich is made right there while you’re saying what you want on it.

When it was my turn to order, I opted for a pit beef sandwich with the meat cooked rare. I then asked for tiger sauce and BBQ sauce. And requested potato salad on the side. Their version of tiger sauce is mayonnaise and horseradish. A perfect blend that goes well with beef. The barbecue sauce gives it that extra little touch. The potato salad uses red skin potatoes and onions. There was a nice proportion of mayonnaise on this, and the onions added a nice little crunch. The Canopy has Birch Beer as a fountain drink, so that also puts me in a happy place.

The sandwich itself is fantastic. The meat was cooked to perfection. I like it very rare, so it was good to have those bites that had the perfect flavor of the extra rare meat. Since the meat is thin-sliced, you can have some variety in terms of texture. This sandwich takes some work to bite through, but not too much. The meat had a tender bite through, which made it easier to eat. The kaiser roll held up well. Not soggy, not falling apart. The tiger sauce had a nice kick to it. It wasn’t overbearing, it was just enough to let you know it was there without making your sinuses go crazy.

When I first started ordering, I was thinking about getting Cole slaw as a side dish. But, I tend to think of Cole slaw as accompanying pork, so I decided against it. Potatoes seem to pair well with beef, which is why I went for the potato salad. I don’t remember having ordered the potato salad before, but I’m glad that I did. It was nicely seasoned and had really good flavor. The coolness of the potato salad worked well with the sandwich. And having Birch Beer on tap made it even more special. You can usually find Root Beer, but Birch Beer is tougher to find. So having a good meal at a familiar place helps make for a better day, and makes it easy to stay positive.

A Nice Saturday Morning in Columbia, MD

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It’s nice when a plan works out as intended. I had an idea for how I wanted my morning to go, and it ended up going pretty well. I would have preferred my football team won, but that was beyond my control (even though I was wearing my lucky shirt).

Today was a great weather day. Low 50s when I left, low 60s when I was out and about, and low 70s when I got back home. I started the day off by heading down to Wegman’s. I got myself a breakfast sandwich and a pumpkin frappe, so I was off to a good start. I then ran a couple of errands, which included heading over to Big Lots. When I was leaving Big Lots, there were some Canada Geese in the parking lot.

Not surprisingly, they do not walk in a “V” formation. 🙂 It’s not unusual to see them walking around in Columbia, but it was just one of those things that made my morning even better. I ran a few more errands and then made my way over to The Mall in Columbia. There was one main reason for to go there, and that was to try the new Pumpkin Spice Chocolixir at Godiva. I walked through a few stores along the way, and showed some good restraint by not making any purchases.

When the drink was being made, I was asked if I wanted some of the cinnamon mix blended into my drink, and I answered in the affirmative. I am glad that I did. The drink was put together nicely, with the added touches of the drizzle on the side and on top of the whipped cream. The consistency was very much like a thick milkshake, so they were successful there. With my first couple of sips, it tasted just like a pumpkin pie. There was a very strong pumpkin flavor in those first few tastes. As I drank more, the cinnamon mixture that was in the drink and swirled on the sides and on top started to become more integrated into the drink. This added a nice layer of sweetness to the drink, which brought a nice balance to the pumpkin flavor. When I finished up the drink, the consistency was still there, so I was happy with the overall experience. This was the first time I ordered this drink, and I will get it again if they bring it back next year.

I still had a few more errands to run before I picked up lunch. While driving, I noticed some really nice scenery. When I was walking out of Barnes & Noble and heading over to my car, some nicely colored trees in the distance caught my eye. I drove over to the parking lot and decided to take some pictures of the trees and leaves. All pictures were taken with my iPhone 6.

I like how this picture turned out. I think the cloud formations in the background add a nice element to this one. There is a nice combination of colors in this tree.

I wanted to get a little closer, just so you can see the different colors that are coming through in this tree.

Even closer still. The colors were more vibrant in person, but the camera doesn’t do them justice.

This was another tree that I saw and enjoyed visually.

I tried to get a close up, but I don’t think it came through very well. There are some leaves that have changed colors, but there are also some leaves in there that had already changed color and were starting to shrivel up.

This leaf was laying on the ground. I like how you can see the red and orange, as well as some yellow in the veins.

This was another leaf that caught my eye because there was still some green in the veins.

This last picture of a leaf was on the parking lot, not too far from the others (they are all from the same tree). The red in this leaf was much more prominent than the others.

When I have mornings like this, I can’t help but be in a good mood (even with only 4 hours of sleep). I had a rough outlined of my morning planned out for more than a week. I added a couple of errands yesterday, but was really happy to have the extra bits of nature highlight my day. I look forward to what tomorrow brings, even if it doesn’t go exactly as I might hope. I’ll just stay positive and keep on smiling!

New Experiences with Fond Food Memories

On By Rob GIn Going PlacesLeave a comment

Hello, old friend. I’ve missed you.

I read an article over the weekend about the McRib coming back to McDonald’s in a limited time run. The last time it was out, I could not find it in my area, so I was happy to see it was at my local McDonald’s. Some people really like the McRib. Some people have a strong dislike for the McRib. I happen to really like it. I don’t remember when I first ate one, but I always like them. Now that they are out on a limited run (both in time and location), I will take advantage of having them available near me.

When I opened the sandwich, it had a familiar look to me. It is still a big sandwich, and they definitely put in a good amount of barbecue sauce.

Just wanted to give a side view here. There are multiple components to this sandwich. The bun, the pork, the barbecue sauce, the onions, and the pickles. I am not usually a fan of pickles (unless they are in a Cuban sandwich), so I had mine without. But if you like pickles, then go for it. The bun works really well for this sandwich. It doesn’t get soggy, disintegrate, or fall apart while eating. The flavor provides a nice balance for the barbecue sauce. The texture of the pork works – similar to biting through a boneless rib. There is a nice pork flavor to the meat, and the barbecue sauce complements it well. The onions are a bit underrated. These are thicker sliced onions, so you get more of the bite of the onion flavor when you eat this. It wouldn’t have the same effect if they used diced onions. All combined, this brought back some fond memories of the McRib. And since it will be around for a limited time, I will be going back again (and again) before they are gone.

If the Shamrock Shake were around at McDonald’s, I would have gotten that to drink. Instead, I decided to try a milkshake at Wawa. I ordered the chocolate mint cookies and cream milkshake. It was a thick shake and had good texture. The mint flavor was a little less than I would prefer. It was a good shake, but I like their coffee drinks better.

I also made a stop at TJ Maxx. There is one that is not too far from where I live, but I never visited it. I’m glad that I went there yesterday. I purchased two things from there.

The Ghirardelli Dark Chocolate Mint squares are really good. They are not the same as York Peppermint Patties, which I also enjoy. The mint filling is gooey, so this is pretty much a one bite square for me. Fortunately, I have a big enough mouth for that. But if you require multiple bites, the filling might spill out, so be careful.

I’ve had Tortuga Rum Cakes before. They are good as a once or twice a year indulgence. I have never seen bite size cakes before, though. And these truly are bite sized cakes. The cake is moist and light. There is a distinct rum flavor, which is the trademark. So this really does hit the mark in terms of capturing the essence of flavor of the big Rum Cake into a small bite-sized portion. I was very happy with these purchases!

I am happy that the old favorites were still good and the new twist on old favorites were also good. Positive experiences definitely helped make yesterday a good day!

Easy Like Sunday Morning

On By Rob GIn Close to HomeLeave a comment

I tend to be a morning person. I usually wake up before 5AM, sometimes before 4AM. I might be a bit sleepy and tired at first, but I’m usually perked up and ready for the day after about 3 or 4 minutes. This past Sunday morning, I was a bit off. I was not “feeling it” at all. I am not sure why, it’s just how it went. I don’t think it was due to the overtime loss of the Caps the night before. I don’t think it was due to the gloomy weather (which I prefer). Sometimes things just are a certain way and we can’t explain them.

I ran some errands early on, but being out and about in perfect Fall weather didn’t help. I had originally planned to drive down and visit the Sykesville Farmer’s Market, but I didn’t have the energy or the drive to do it. I knew I had to get myself out of this morning funk, so I went out the front door and started walking, with the intention of walking to the Farmer’s Market. When I first got outside, the temperature was a nice, cool upper 50s/lower 60s and slightly overcast, which is my kind of weather. But I was still not perking up. Then, I started to listen to the silence. There was noise, but it was not people or cars or a train or anything else. It was different birds, frogs, insects, and more. Just listening to the sounds of nature and then looking at the trees helped get me going in the right direction.

I walked around the Farmer’s Market very briefly. I just did a quick walk-through without stopping to chat or really look at anything. I decided to get a Pumpkin frappe at French Twist Cafe, which was good as usual. When I was waiting for my drink, a couple walked in. They said it was their first time there, but they had heard about the place before and wanted to try it. They asked me for my opinion, and my face just lit up. I let them know about the coffee drinks and the crepes, and how good they all are. I was sure that they would enjoy anything they got, and the quality would be outstanding. The couple seemed to be really excited about being there, and I completely understood. If I’m in a a new place and I’ve heard good things and the menu looks good, I get really excited. If I’m talking about food, I am usually in a happy place. So this was the final step of me getting out of my funk and feeling better about the day.

I walked home and just enjoyed all that nature had to show me. The squirrels were running around trying to snatch the nuts that were falling from the trees. There was a lot of rustling in the trees and the bushes, so there were some other creatures that were enjoying the day. I had a really nice time for that 20 minute walk home. This is despite the walk home being mostly uphill. But those 20 minutes were more appreciated than a 5 minute drive would have been.

Sometimes we have bad days. Sometimes we have bad moments. But if we can try to find ways to get the negatives out of our heads and bring in the good moments, no matter how brief, it can help make for a better day. I took a few pictures on my walk, and wanted to share them.

This is just a picture of some trees. They aren’t uniform, they aren’t standing out. They are just there. But that’s what I enjoyed about them.

I’m not sure if these are coming through very clearly. I took one picture of the tree and then a close up. There are huge nests on these trees. The first time I saw these, I was driving up the 97 and had no idea what they were. If they were spider webs, then those spiders must have been big (I’m thinking Lord of the Rings big). But they were all over the place and some were up to 3 feet long. I thought these were tent caterpillars, but they are apparently web worms. Not just for the Internet, I guess. 🙂 Still pretty cool to see, though.

I thought this nest was particularly fascinating. The picture doesn’t do justice to the intricacies of this structure.

I liked the colors on this tree.

I zoomed in so you could see the different colors. Yellow, green, light green, yellow with brown creeping in.

After I arrived home, I decided to take a picture from my enclosed patio. I have a really nice view, but don’t take advantage of this as often as I should. I have to clean up the chairs, since they have a lot of dust and pollen sitting there from the Summer. But this will be a nice area for me to just sit and read or reflect or listen, now that the temperatures are comfortable.

I may have started the day negative, but I was able to get out of it and end it feeling positive.

Anh-Mazing Banh Mi – Clarksville, MD

On By Rob GIn Going Places3 Comments

When I lived in Southern California, I would get Banh Mi every so often. Banh Mi is a Vietnamese sandwich served on a baguette with various toppings. There were a couple of hole in the wall places I would go and could get a couple of big sandwiches for under $5 (total). The prices went up as the years went by, which is expected, but I still felt that I got more than my fair share of value.

Since I moved to Maryland, I have tried half-heartedly to find some places that served Banh Mi. Pho places are easy to find, and they might have one or two Banh Mi sandwiches on the menu, but I was hoping for some variety. I found about Anh-Mazing Banh Mi a few months ago and knew that I would make my way there eventually. I was out and about yesterday, and this place was on the way home from Gaithersburg, so I figured it would be the perfect opportunity.

When I arrived at the location (according to my GPS), there was a Farmer’s Market going on, and The Common Kitchen (along with some other shops and restaurants). The Common Kitchen is what I think of in my mind as a restaurant co-op. There are a lot of options, so I will be heading back there sooner rather than later, but I really wanted the Banh Mi.

I like their logo. It’s fun. I ordered a Pork Belly Banh Mi, and it came with a soup (chicken).

I started with the soup. Very basic, in terms of ingredients. Two nice sized chunks of chicken, a few pieces of vegetables, and cilantro. The flavor of the broth was really outstanding. The soup is something I could order by itself, and it would be satisfying, especially when the weather starts to get really cold. I then bit into the Pork Belly Banh Mi. My first bite took me back about 20 years, when I had my first bites of Banh Mi. The bread was perfect. Nice hard crunch to the outside, and soft on the inside without a lot of chewiness. The flavor of the pork belly is hard for me to describe, but I know I’ll get it again. There was a Vietnamese mayo pate on there. This is not going to be for everyone, but it really works with these sandwiches. There are some pickled carrots, daikon radish, sliced cucumbers and cilantro that go on the sandwich as well. They asked me if I wanted jalapeños on the side, which was an easy “yes” for me. When biting into the sandwich, the first thing is the crunch. Nice sounding, nice texture. Next comes the flavor. The richness of the pork belly hits, but then you also get the combination of flavors from the mayo pate and the vegetables.

Having eaten the soup first, I could say that I found it hard to believe that I ate the whole sandwich. But there is no way that any part of that sandwich could be left over. It was too good to put down and stop eating. The flavors of the sandwich hit me in the right spot yesterday, and as I reflect back today, I still enjoy the feeling I had while eating the sandwich.

The Common Kitchen does have other places to try, and I will. There is a Ramen Place, an Egyptian place, an Indian place, an Ice Cream place, a Bubble Waffle place, and more. So there is definitely enough to grab my attention and go back for more. Even though it was about 25 minutes to get home, the food was still at a good temperature. I might make my next meal a sit down, savor, and enjoy the ambiance type of experience. Definitely a positive part of my day yesterday.

Spring Mill Bread Co – Gaithersburg, MD

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Yesterday, while I was out and about, I made a stop by Spring Mill Bread Company in Gaithersburg, Maryland. I usually visit there 3-5 times a year, and always get the same thing, their Pesto Asiago Bread. I know I should branch out and try some of their other breads, and I will eventually do it, but their Pesto Asiago Bread is just really good.

When you walk into the store, it’s just a small area for the customers. I think this works really well, since the real star of this place is the food. There is another area with sweets, but I didn’t take a picture of it yesterday. One of the things I really enjoy about this place is that the oven is right there, so you can see what is being baked. I’ve come in and watched as they were rolling out the bread, watched as they were taking things out of the oven. This is baked fresh on-site, so these aren’t being shipped in from somewhere else and then re-baked to “freshness”. There’s nothing wrong with that, I just think the fresh bread experience is really neat.

While I was perusing through the different options, I noticed some samples. I asked for a sample of an Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookie. I’m not a fan of raisins, so this sounded good. It also tasted good. Definitely a cookie I would get again. I also noticed that they had a pumpkin log, so I purchased a slice of that. The flavor was on point. The pumpkin roll had the flavor of pumpkin and spices together. It had a firmness with the pumpkin roll that worked well with the spongy interior. The cream cheese frosting was a nice additional touch. It may seem like a lot, but when paired with the pumpkin roll, it worked perfectly. The outside was dusted with powdered sugar, which was a nice finishing touch.

Now, onto the Pesto Asiago Bread. This was good, as is always the case. The crust is firm, but not solid. The inside bread part has the perfect squish to it. The swirl of pesto and asiago cheese gives it a nice flavor without being overpowering. I tend to heat these up in my toaster oven and then add a little bit of butter, unless I’m having pasta, in which case I’m just going to dip it into the sauce or eat it with the pasta. One of the things I really enjoy about this bread is that no two loaves are exactly alike. I can appreciate the bread you get in the grocery stores, where there is uniformity. But when you have a bread like this, I think having some variance is what makes it better. Each bite will not taste the same. Some will have more pesto than others, some more asiago cheese, some more bread. I enjoy multiple bites of happiness every time.

I look forward to my next visit down to Gaithersburg. Maybe I’ll try a different bread. Maybe I’ll stick with just the Pesto Asiago Bread. No matter what, it will be a good and positive experience.

Fun Saturday Morning in Montgomery County

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Since the weather was nice this morning (45 degrees when I left), I decided to drive an hour or so down to Montgomery County to get some shopping done. My first stop was at PB’s Coffee & Dessert in Rockville, MD.

They didn’t have a pumpkin frappe, but they had pumpkin spice flavor syrup, so I ordered a vanilla creme frappe with pumpkin spice syrup added (a shot of espresso as well). The drink was a little icier than I prefer, but it was still good. There was a good vanilla flavor to it, and the spices from the pumpkin spice added a nice touch. I sometimes forget about vanilla flavors, since I usually get something with chocolate, or a specialty flavor. So I was happy to have tried that vanilla flavor with the pumpkin spice syrup added.

Once I had my coffee drink, I was on my way to the next stop: Nothing Bundt Cakes in Gaithersburg, MD. I used to go to a Nothing Bundt Cakes every month or so when I lived in California. I’m glad that there is one in Maryland, but since it’s a bit of a drive, I usually only go 3 or 4 times per year, and it’s usually when the weather isn’t too hot. Their specialty flavor is Pumpkin Spice, which has always been a good one. The flavor of the actual cake is really good, and the frosting on there is the perfect proportion.

After picking up the bundt cake, I walked over to Spring Mill Bread Co., which is in the same shopping center. I bought a couple of things from there, but I’ll write up about that separately.

I was then on my way to CostPlus World Market in Rockville for some fun shopping. That is another place I enjoy visiting since it brings back memories of California. When I lived in Southern California, there was a CostPlus about 5 minutes from my apartment, so I would go there once or twice a week, more during the holiday seasons. On this occasion, I just purchased just a few things, but there are times when I really fill the basket up with all different types of goodies.

I picked up lunch on the way home, but I’ll write about that separately as well.

During my drive, I was having a really nice time listening to my playlist. Some of the music I was listening to just enhanced my overall experience. “Gloria” by Laura Branigan played, and I just had to roll my windows down and turn up the volume. I replayed that song two more times. I don’t know why, but that song just really hit my ears in a good way this morning.

A little later, I was driving on East Gude Drive, and the song “Goody Goody” (the Chicago version) was playing. I thought it was a bit funny, since the name of the song is very similar to the street name. Randomness, I know, but that’s sort of why I’m writing.

There were some other songs as well. “Margaret” by Seven Mary Three. Not a song for everyone, but one that I hadn’t heard in awhile, so it was nice to hear it again. “Witch Doctor” by David Seville was another fun one. I believe this was pre-Chipmunks, but the same techniques were used in the song, so it sounds like they were part of it. I had to play “Stars” by fun. twice since I like that song. “Einstein on the Beach” by Counting Crows was another one I enjoyed hearing. It brought me back to memories of driving around in Maryland when I was in college. “Nothing in This World” is another fun one. It’s by Paris Hilton, but don’t judge. I happen to like that song. “Liberation” by Chicago was another one that I had fun listening to. A 15+ minute song that doesn’t hurt my voice to sing along to (if you know the song, you’ll get the joke). “Eternity” has the beautiful sounds of Sheena Easton, with Prince having written the song and lyrics. So a double dose of awesomeness on that song. “Unthought Known” by Pearl Jam, which I think is a pretty great song – probably in my top ten of Pearl Jam songs. “Don’t Disturb This Groove” by The System. Not a song you’ll hear on the radio anymore, so it was nice to hear it again. The last two songs I listened to before I got home were “Ride Like the Wind” by Christopher Cross and “Don’t Walk Away” by ELO. “Ride Like the Wind” may be considered “Yacht Rock” now, but I don’t care. I think it’s a pretty rockin’ song. “Don’t Walk Away” always reminds me of “Xanadu”. There was a nice animated section of the movie for this song. I love this movie. I am not ashamed to admit it.

That was it for my morning. I think it was a great start to the day, and the day continued to get better. Good times. Positive times!

Chili – Big Belly Deli – Sykesville, Maryland

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Chili with Garlic Bread

I have written about Big Belly Deli in the past, and it’s a place I enjoy visiting. They had chili with garlic bread listed as their daily special, so I decided to go there for lunch. We are expecting some fall weather soon, so I thought this would be a good preview. The temperature today is just over 70, with some winds (10-15 mph). The winds were not making it hotter or colder, but were blowing around some pollen, which just adds an extra layer of fun. I prefer a same temperature wind when the weather is below freezing. When it’s anything above that, I prefer a colder wind. I had the unfortunate experiences in Southern California with Santa Ana winds. Nothing like going out in 100 degree weather with with winds gusting to make it feel like 110-115 degrees. A bit off topic there, but that’s just me. We are supposed to be in the upper 40s tonight and tomorrow should have a high of the mid 60s. That is perfect weather for me. I’ll still be able to wear shorts, and won’t have to worry about needing to use any AC.

Back to the food, though. I ordered a bowl of chili, which came with the garlic bread. They are both represented in my picture, even though I think the picture looks sort of like a bunny. The garlic bread had good flavor. I preferred the inside part – softer, buttery, garlicky goodness. The crust was good to dip into the chili. The chili was a perfect portion. There were chunks of ground beef, some onions, some green and red peppers. The seasonings were on point for a good chili. Not too spicy, not too much tomato flavor. And the chunks of veggies and meat gave it the good consistency. When you add the melty cheese into those bites, it made for an outstandingly hearty lunch. Would I order this again? Yes, I would. This chili would also do well on other things, but it is good enough to stand on its own. Happy flavors today help keep me positive and raring to go for the weekend!