Good Pizza But Has No Bite Despite Having Jalapenos On It!

There is a pizza place in Newburyport MA - downtown area - that has great pizza. It is the Anchor Stone Deck Pizza place. It is not a big place. They don't have a lot of seats but they do have stairs that lead up to a second floor with more seating. One can watch them make the pizza. One can eat in or take out. I believe they also deliver it. 

It is one of a handful of good pizza places in Newburyport MA. I have tried most of the pizza places. There is one or two that I have not tried, yet. 

Facebook.

This is the pizza I ordered that was supposed to have jalapeno's on it. I guess it was the kind that can be tolerated by those who live in the area; long time residents. I ate both of them but did not get any kind of bite that one normally get when one eats jalapeno's.  This is not to say it tasted bad. It was really good.  I was hoping for some bite with that flavor. I saw that it had jalapenos on it. One can see the green parts on the pizza above. 

They have a few pizza's already made. I chose a couple - last two pieces {big pieces as one can see in the photo) that was of the jalapeno pizza. One can also have it made to ones liking. 

TomLeeM

My Art On Items For Sale.

(no personal website yet but I am working on it, the one I had needed a lot of work). 

Three Flavor Seafood from Thai Lilly Kitchen in Newburyport MA

There is a new restaurant in Newburyport MA called Thai Lilly Kitchen. It has only been opened a short time. It had moved in the place where the Szechuan Taste. I think it is a good replacement for what was there.

They changed the dining area. They took out the booths. I think this makes it feel roomier. They put in some nice tables and chairs. The lighting is nice. Other than this, it has not changed all that much.

I have no idea if they changed the cooking area / kitchen. I had never saw what it was then or now. Since it was already a kitchen area, I doubt they had much to change since both the old and the new are restaurants.

I ordered an appetizer. This is the dumplings. It has pork in it. I had it fried instead of boiled. It was really good. I shared it with my brother. It was really good. It came with sauce. It was even better with the sauce. 

It was the right amount. I dislike the appetizer that is the size of a main entree. 

This is what my brother had. It is crispy duck. I was able to get a piece. It was really good. I have had crispy duck at other places but they were not as good as this. 

I had the three flavored seafood. It was really delicious. The sauce had some bite to it. I liked it. The seafood - shrimp, squid and haddock - that is battered. It had a nice crunch to it. The three seafood was not over or under cooked. The squid was not chewy like some places that serve it. The shrimp and the haddock was good.

It came with either brown or white rice. We chose brown rice. I ate mine. I used it to absorb the extra sauce. Jerry ate some of his and used it to absorb some of his leftover sauce. The rice was really filling. With the entree's being so good, next time I won't get the rice. If I do, I know it will be cooked right. 

I liked the white plates the food was on. It came with a cloth napkin. It only came with a fork to eat it with. I guess one can get chopsticks since I saw others were using them. I like using chopsticks and not just with Asian food (another story / blog [like the fork chops - part fork / knife combo and part chopsticks]).

Thai Lilly Kitchen - Facebook.

There might be a website on them but I have yet to find it. 

TomLeeM

TomLeeM - my art at Cafe Press. 

(I am still trying to do the sewing part but I posted this to show the artist part). 

The Art Of Scottish American Cooking by Kay Shaw Nelson

I bought this book since I was checking out Scottish recipes. I think (I am not totally sure) I bought it at a museum store. It looked really interesting (not sure which museum store it was).

Even though I don't remember where I bought my copy of it, I have found a few places online that has it for sale. Amazon has it for sale. Good Reads has it listed plus places where one can buy it (assuming online). Google Books has it listed.

I have not read it all but I am working on it. I am reading two or three pages a day. It is not huge but it will take a short time to read all the recipes. I find each one to be very interesting. I will probably blog about this cookbook once I have completed reading it all. There aren't any photos of the foods in it but I don't think it is really necessary. The paper seems to be an inexpensive paper. I think the value is more in the recipes that is in the book instead of what they are written on. 

I don't think it is limited to just those of Scottish American descendants. I think anyone interested in reading about not only Scottish American recipes but also the history behind them. 

The book I bought has a hard cover on it with a dust cover over that. It looks exactly like the one above. One advantage over an e-book is that one can still read it even without power (e-book readers need power to read them) and one can easily search recipes on a printed book than an e-book reader (at least when compared to my Kindle e-book reader [had it for a few years and still works but I have not had a chance to see if I could do a search on it or find a way to find an index that takes me to a certain page - perhaps the newer ones do]). 

The book is published by Pelican Publishing. Here is a link to their site for this book; The Art Of Scottish American Cooking by Kay Shaw Nelson.  

Pelican Publishing Company seems to have a nice variety of books at their site. They seem to have a nice variety in the 'cooking' section. 

The Pelican Publishing Company.

The thing that I like it is that (almost - haven't read it through yet) has a bit of history for each recipe. I think it is not just a recipe book but a book on the history of the recipes and the people who created or used them. It is not just the history of the recipes but also about the people who either created them or used them or brought the recipe to the USA. Even if one doesn't really cook, it is still a good read. 

I have not tried any of the recipes., yet. Once I do, I will post a blog for the attempt (don't always succeed at it) here on this blog. It would be one blog post for each recipe tried. There are quite a few (of the ones I have read) that I definitely want to try.

My Art On Things For Sale.

The above shows art supplies and also a sewing machine. I am trying to get into sewing too. The sewing part is another blog; Big Quilter Guy. I have eight blogs but none as active as this one (I am working on them being more active). 

TomLeeM

Big Goofy Guy

Lunch At Starbucks of Newburyport MA.

I had two Starbucks gift cards. The first I used while doing laundry - afternoon / evening - and the second one now. The second one was my brothers but he gave it to me for taking to work a couple of times (normally he rides his bike to the train station then to work but the weather has not been great lately, a lot of rain and cold temps.

The Starbucks in Newburyport MA is a small place but it is cozy. They have a few seats on the inside. It is in the downtown area. There are benches not far from it; across the store and at the end of Inn Street. 

I had a blueberry muffin. It was moist. It had whole blueberries in it. As one can see, it did not fair well when I took it out of the bag they gave it to me. It was still very good even though it looks it was mangled. It was not too big. It was a great size for an appetizer type dish.

This is the chicken caprese panini sandwich. It was heated up. It was really good. It was not too big. It was great for lunch. I liked the way the cheese was 'stringy' and warm. It was a great combination. The bread was thick but excessively. It had a nice amount of meat and ingredients. It went well together. 

This is an unique egg combination. it was the Souse Vide egg bites. It was warm and delicious. It was not huge. It came with a fork but I did not use it. I picked it up with my fingers. They were about the size of a half dollar coin. The paper indicates it was the 'chicken chorizo tortilla'. 

I had a bottle water for my beverage. They also had tea and coffee. I am more of a tea drinker than a coffee drinking (tried coffee a couple of times and it tasted like burnt toast dipped in hot water, even when I added milk to it). I was not in the mood for their tea. The water was refreshing. I just wish they also had some diet soda's there too. 

I think I tried their tea latte once. It was pretty good. It was different. I know it was one of their teas. One does not normally think of tea when one goes to a coffee shop.

I have been to a few tea shops and would rather go to them than a coffee shop; unless they coffee shop offers more than just coffee and donuts. It seems many do this. 

I did not know Starbucks owned Teavana. I have been to Teavana shops in different malls. It was really nice. I read that they were going to close them since they sell Teavana in their Starbucks stores but some malls made them keep some open; it brings shoppers to their malls. I would rather go to a Teavana than a Starbucks. I think it would be cool if there was a Teavana in Newburyport. 

TomLeeM

My Art On Things That Are Used. 

Big Goofy Guy.

Supper at Starbucks of Newburyport MA

My sister gave me and my brother a Starbucks gift card. I used mine at a Starbucks located in Newburyport MA. It is not a big place but it is a nice place. 

It is not far from where I like to do laundry - Newburyport Laundromat. .It is not far from the downtown area and one can roam around the town while one has a load in the washer and while the cloths are in the dryer. They have a neat feature on some of their machines; one can use a credit or debit card to pay for it instead of quarters (they do have a change machine available in case you want to use quarters). 

This is their cheese Danish. It was pretty good. They heated it up for me. It was nice and warm. It was almost as good as Panera Bread (which I think is really good). It wasn't huge. I thought of it as an appetizer. The cheese was tasty but not too melted. The crust / bread was not over toasted. It came together quite well. 

I don't normally eat cookies since I am a diabetic. I felt my sugar level was low after walking a bit and having missed lunch and this looked really good. It was really good. It wasn't as sweet as I thought it would be. I walked it off afterwards. It wasn't a huge cookie and the icing was not too sweet. I am glad I had one. I went back another day but they either didn't have snowman cookies that day or they were out. 

I have never tried this before. It is sparkling water with some raspberry lime flavoring. It was good yet a little odd. I still drank it. I am not sure I would drink it again - at least not in that flavor - unless I was really thirsty. They had other drinks but they had too much sugar for me. The only other one was water. 

I saw this and was hungry for a bit of string cheese. It was tasty. I am not sure why I got it. It was one of those spur of the moment type of things. 

This is turkey and stuffing panini sandwich. It was heated up for me. It was really good. The only thing that was really missing was the gravy and the cranberry sauce. Perhaps they could have put the gravy in a small container so one could dip it in? I liked it even without the gravy. It wasn't too big. It was great for a lunch meal. 

TomLeeM

My Art Store at Cafe Press.

Personal web page is down but I am working on getting it back up again.

Big Goofy Guy

Great Grilled Cheese by Laura Werlin (cookbook on grilled cheese).

I bought a book titled 'The Great Grilled Cheese - 50 Innovative Recipes For Stovetop, Grill And Sandwich Maker - by Laura Werlin. Here it is listed on Amazon. I bought my copy at the Kittery Trading Post in Kittery Maine.

It covers a divers ingredients and cheeses. I think it has a recipe for almost everyone. It covers a wide variety of cheeses, breads and fillings. It not only has recipes but other information too; like sandwich making tips, bread lexicon, and about cheese. The sections of the book are classic grilled cheese, almost-classic grilled cheese, modern grilled cheese, seasonal grilled cheese, quesadillas, and sweet grilled cheese.

I think it is neat that it shows three ways to cook or grill the sandwiches; stovetop method, sandwich maker method and gas grill method. The method I am most interested in - since I don't have a sandwich maker and the gas grill is too much of a hassle - is the stovetop method (since I can do this method any time of the year - using my coated cast iron pan, my non-stick pan or some other pan I am hoping to get in the future).

The price varies but I think it is a good price for what one gets. I think it was worth what I paid for it.

It is not a very big book but it does have a lot of really nice recipes (I have not tried any but I will and will be posting a separate blog for each recipe tried). It has a lot of good photographs in it too.

When I was searching for a photo and information on this book, I found other books on grilled cheese sandwiches and other similar foods. It is amazing what one can find online. One must caution while searching online since one might find the bad in addition to the good. 

I found a web site that has some grilled cheese tips. It is at Pop Sugar. They are useful. 

On a side note, I have made a grilled cheese sandwich the 'bachelor method' (my method of making it that is easy to do). I toast two slices of bread. I butter the slices of bread. I put some cheese between the sandwich (and whatever else I want to add to it). I microwave it just long enough for the cheese to melt (varies with different microwaves and their power output. I think it comes out pretty good. I will try it again and will post / blog about it. 

Big Goofy Guy

(might just keep it this for my web site - once it is up again - it is still down).

My Art On Cafe Press.

TomLeeM

Heinz With Mayonnaise And Ketchup Already Combined? Mayochup!

I have been blending mayonnaise and ketchup to dip my fries in, to add to my sandwich and for other things. I like the blend. I sometimes add mustard to it too. I think it tastes really good together. My brother thinks of the blend - mayonnaise, ketchup and mustard - as the McDonald's 'special sauce' (I am not sure if it is but it seems similar - never analyzed the real sauce so I cannot know how close it is to it). 

It seems Heinz has a product that does it for you (without the mustard but perhaps that will be their next product?). I came across it at the local grocery store. It looked different. there was a couple of other Heinz products I bought at the same time but have not tried them yet (future blog).

Heinz Mayochup. 

I like how they put the cap on the bottom so the product is always draining down toward the cap. I have seen other products do that too. It makes it easier to everything used and easier to pour out the contents. When they had the cap on the top, it made it harder to get to the stuff on the bottom. With the cap on the bottom, one just let gravity takes its course so one uses the whole contents of the bottle. 

I have cooked up hot dogs (I like to microwave them). I put the Mayochup on the bread then adding cheese (or not adding it since I don't always have cheese). I think it makes it easier than adding them separately and it is more evenly combined / blended. 

I am strange. I added the Mayochup to macaroni and cheese. It was good without it and it was good with it too. I think it made it even better. I think it even creamier and tastier. 

I have added it to a bologna and cheese sandwich. It was really good. I have tried it with different meats and different cheeses. It made it easier to apply to the bread. 

I have realized that what tastes good to one person might not taste good to another. I am more willing to try new things than most seem to be. I try to not prejudge things before trying them. I like to try things and figure out whether or not I like them after I tried them and not before. 

TomLeeM

My Art On Things For Sale at Cafe Press.

A close up of me.

My web site is still down. I might rename it from Big Goofy Guy to TomLeeM.

I will reduce the number of pages too plus try to make it nicer. I have had replies that it needs work / improvement. I will work on that. 

Herbs?

Since I had a post about spices and spices that give some 'heat' to the taste, I thought I do one on herbs. I was reading an article and it mentioned 'herbs and spices'.

I found a definition of it on Wikipedia.

'

In general use, herbs are plants with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, medicinal purposes, or for fragrances; excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from spices. Herbs generally refers to the leafy green or flowering parts of a plant (either fresh or dried), while spices are usually dried and produced from other parts of the plant, including seeds, bark, roots and fruits.' ( copied from the site). 

Wikipedia has a list of herbs and spices. I think it is very informative. It seems each listing is a link to more information on that herb or spice.


With herbs and spices, I think eating plain is so unnecessary. I think so much can be done with them.



This is just a small post but something I wanted to add in addition to the blog about spices.

TomLeeM

My Art On Things To Buy

Spicy and Spicy Hot? Not the Same!

I think there is a confusion between spicy and spicy hot. It is a pet peeve of my sister and I am in agreement with her. I don't seem to get as upset as much as she does but I do agree with her.

Spicy does not mean it has heat (like a jalapeno, or other similar heat producing plant). There are a lot of things that are considered spices or spicy but have no heat to them at all. There are a lot of spices out there that are used to give flavor to foods but not always heat. Spices can be used to keep food from tasting 'bland' (it seems some like it that way but I am not one of them). There are spices from all over the world.

Spices Inc has a lot of spices but only a few of them have any heat. The site is for those who buy in bulk.

Wikipedia has a good definition of a spice.
'A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring, coloring or preserving food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Many spices have antimicrobial properties. This may explain why spices are more commonly used in warmer climates, which have more infectious diseases, and why the use of spices is prominent in meat, which is particularly susceptible to spoiling.^[1] Spices are sometimes used in medicine, religious rituals, cosmetics or perfume production, or as a vegetable.' (copied from the site). 

Spicy hot does mean it has bit to it. It can vary from a little to a lot. It also depends on the person eating it and their level of tolerance of the heat. It seems some can take the heat while others cannot. Most seem to fall in between those two extremes. 

There is a 'spicy heat' scale or the Scoville scale; information of which I found at Wikipedia. Chili World seems to have information on the Scoville scale too. 

TomLeeM

My Art Store at Cafe Press.

Oye's Chinese Restaurant in Reading MA

My brother and I went to the Oye's Chinese Restaurant. It was recommended by a friend. I am glad we went. It was really nice. The decor was really nice.

We were going to a movie but the place we wanted to go no longer had the movie we wanted to see. It was close by and ate there. We found the movie we wanted to go to another theater (turns out even better than the place we originally were going to). It was dark when we got there. Jerry used the directions he got plus Waze app on his phone. I wasn't sure if it was open. It was and we had plenty of time to eat. It closed an hour after we got there.

This was on the table. It is really nice how they folded it that way. I wish they had chopsticks. I should have asked for some. I think chopsticks make it taste more authentic; even it doesn't change the flavor if one uses a fork and knife. 

I had the fried gyoza appetizer. It came with a dipping sauce. It was pretty good. I liked it with and without the sauce. It was on some noodles. I ate some noodles and save some to absorb the sauce from the main dish I was having. It was the right amount for an appetizer. I dislike it when the appetizer is enough for two or as an entree (unless one is sharing with some one else). I liked the sauce. I drank some of it. It is better with something being dipped in it than drinking it by itself. 

My brother had the fried calamari. It was pretty good; the couple of ones that my brother let me have. It had a little bite to it. It had this noodle that came with it. We did not know what kind of noodle it was. The calamari had a nice crunch to it. There was some vegetables with it that wasn't bad. My brother ate the calamari. I ate some of the vegetables. 

I had the General Gau chicken. It was fried. It was really good. It had some bite to it but not as much as I was expecting. There was some leftover sauce. I used the noodles from the appetizer to absorb the extra sauce. It was good that way too. It wasn't a huge amount but just enough for one person; for me anyway. It wasn't overly battered. It had a nice crunch to it. The sauce wasn't too thick. I don't mind it being thick but it is hard to taste the food if it is excessive. 

This is the seafood platter that my brother had. He ate all of it. He said it was really good. I did not get to try any of it. I am glad he ate it all since what I had filled me up. There was a nice variety of seafood in the dish. 

Here is the inside of the restaurant. That was the top of my head. I was taking the photo in 'selfie' mode. 

Here is another part of the restaurant. One can see my brother. One can see the bar with television on the right. 

Here is some more of the restaurant. It wasn't that busy but it was later in the day. It has a really nice interior. I try to include an outside photo but it was too dark to really take a good one.

TomLeeM

My Art on Things for Sale at Cafe Press.

Me

a big guy who eats (perhaps too much at times but I am cutting back - a balance of limiting how much with variety). 

Chocolate Cream Pie from Tender Crop Farms in Newbury MA

There is a nice little place that is just down the street from me. It is called Tender Crop Farms. They sell fruits, vegetables, meats and baked items. I believe it is open all year round.

They have more than one location. This sign indicates Canaan. The one I went to was in Newbury MA, on route 1. It is a very nice place to shop. It is not a big place; smaller than most grocery stores but they do have some nice things.

They have some gifts on the second floor. It is a neat place to shop and look around. They have some interesting things upstairs. I have not bought anything (yet) but I do like to go up there and look around.

On the outside they have a handful of animals. I think there is a cow, a donkey, a few goats, a pig and a few chickens.

Here is the chocolate cream pie I bought. Actually my brother bought it for me. It is by Emily's Bakery. It wasn't big. As my brother told me - after he ate all of his at one sitting - it was a 'single serving'. I had already take a slice out of it (photos shows a part missing).

Here is the single slice that was missing. It looks really good. It tasted really good. Since I am a diabetic and it was a regular pie, I did not eat all of it at one time. I was able to spread it out to two meals then my brother found it and ate the rest. 

One one slice, I put on some whipped topping (in an aerosol canister) by Reese's.  It was pretty good with the pie. I have tried it on ice cream and it was pretty good. 

I tried the one on the left. I did not know about the one on the right. I will look for it and give it a try. 

TomLeeM

Cafe Press - My Art Store.

Big Goofy Guy

I am big, I like Disney's Goofy. I am a guy.

Philly Cheesecake Mac and Cheese and Shepherds Pie Mac and Cheese at Mr Mac's.

I read on a Facebook for Mr Mac's that they now had a shepherds pie macaroni and cheese. I wanted to give it a try. It was part of the Mr Mac's Facebook page. The photos at the site made it look really good. It looked good when I got it. 

This is their to go box for their small bowl of macaroni and cheese. It is nice and sturdy. It shows their web site URL. It is just big enough to hold a small size container. I guess they have a box for every size container. 

I was given this. I started to eat it. I was told that it was not the shepherds pie but the Philly cheese steak macaroni and cheese. The waiter said it was his fault that there was a mix up. I wanted to pay for it since I was really enjoying it and finished it. He refused. 

One has to be careful with the pan. It is really hot. It has a cover for the handle to help people from getting burned. It is on a wooden palate shaped like a pan. It helps the customer to move it without burning oneself on the hot pan. 

Here is the shepherds pie macaroni and cheese. It was really good. I ate it after I got home. I had forgotten to take my pills for the evening and needed to eat after taking the pills. It started out just a couple of bites but ended eating it all. It was really good. As one can see, it is in the small bowl inside the to go container. 

The bowl is cardboard. It holds up quite well. The outer box is cardboard but of a thicker more sturdy variety. Perhaps one could use it for other things? 

I think it was made with beef. To be authentic, shepherds pie needs to be made with lamb. When it is made with beef, it is called cottage pie. Some places still call it shepherds pie. This is just a 'pet peeve' with me. I wish places would just use lamb in making it or change the name to cottage pie. 

My Art On Things For Sale

TomLeeM

Big Goofy Guy

2018 Ipswich Chowderfest in Ipswich MA.

I went to the Ipswich Chowderfest last year and I attended this year; 2018. I was able to get to last years on time and was able to try all the different chowders. This year I did not get there in time and was only able to try about half of them.

Since the online site for the event listed it from 11 am to 4 pm, I thought I would have time to try them all when I arrived at about 2. When I did arrive, the sign where it was indicated it was 12 to 3 pm. When I bought the ticket to get in, they did not mention that half of the chowder providers had already left. I guess they did not expect that much of a crowd? It didn't seem as busy when I arrived.

I was able to try the chowders from Ipswich Clambake, Shaw's, The Brown Dog, En Fuego and Super Subs of Ipswich. Soon after I tried the chowder from Ipswich Clambake, they left. It wasn't long before another one left. The card that had the list was also the card one marks for what one things was the best. I marked Ipswich Clambake. It was laminated and difficult to mark. 

Here is one of the chowder providers. This one was The Brown Dog. I think they have a place in Ipswich MA.

Here was another one. I think this one is Shaw's. Shaw's is a grocery store.

I think this one was the Ipswich Clambake. They left soon after I had tried their chowder. I voted for their chowder as the best of the ones I was able to try. I wish I could have tasted all of them.

This was what half the chowder tent was like when I got there. I wish I could have tried all of them.

I think this one was the Super Sub of Ipswich. I noticed the sample size of sub sandwiches. 

Fortunately there was a place selling cheese burgers and hamburgers. It was $5.00 for a burger plus a bag of chips. The burger was huge; about half a foot wide. I also had a diet Coke. The total was $6.50. It was low for what one got. It was filling which what I had hoped the chowder sampling would do.

Here is the cooking area of the burger group.

There was a tent selling some kind of ale. 

There was The Orville Giddings Band that played. It was live music. They ended soon after I got there. What I heard was nice. 

There was a couple of other tents too.

There was a raffle helping to support the Open Door group.

They were selling apple crisps.

 A couple of shots of the crowd at the event. 

I did win a raffle for a 'rainy day box' that a real estate office offered at the festival.

It was a nice size box - the box itself being a prize. The box was chuck full of things to do on a rainy day; movies, candy, popcorn, activities book, popcorn buckets (plastic and cardboard), and a Lego set. 

I am amazed what they were able to fit into the gift box. The gift box is a reusable box. It is really nice. I viewed one of the movies and my brother ate some of one of the candies. 

TomLeeM

My Art On Items For Sale At Cafe Press