Happy New Year, and I hope your celebration goes well and without incident.  As tradition with other New Years, it’s normal to have certian items the first day of the year.  Tradition is that the first thing you eat in the new year, should be one of the things to bring you luck.  One of my favorite is Hoppin’ John (Black Eye Peas and white rice).  Right after the stroke of midnight, you eat some Hoppin’ John.  The person who is preparing the dish, puts a dime in the finish dish.  Then they person who gets the dime in their portion will have good fortune for the new year.  

Below is a recipe that will give you a good warm bowl of Hoppin’ John to bring in the new year. Enjoy, and let me know how it turns out for you.

Ingredients

2 cups dried   black-eyed peas
Cold water1 pound lean slab bacon or 1 pound meaty ham hocks
1 large onion, chopped
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
4 cups water or chicken broth
2 cups uncooked long-grain white rice
Salt and black pepper to taste

Preperation

Before preparing dried beans, sort through them thoroughly for tiny pebbles or other debris. Soak, rinse, and drain dried black-eyed peas. Place black-eyed peas in a large soup pot over medium-high heat and cover with cold water; bring to a boil. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 1 to 2 hours. Drain and rinse beans.

Using the same large soup pot, over medium-high heat, add soaked black-eyed peas, bacon or ham hock, onion, and red pepper. Add water or chicken broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until the peas are tender (do not boil as the beans will burst).

Remove bacon or ham hock and cut into bite-size pieces. Return meat to pot. Stir in rice, cover, and cook 20 to 25 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Serves 6-8 people

]]> http://www.soulified.com/2009/12/happy-new-year-and-hoppin-john-recipe/feed/ 0 http://www.soulified.com/2009/09/memphis-the-chocolate-bar-returns-on-october-3rd/ http://www.soulified.com/2009/09/memphis-the-chocolate-bar-returns-on-october-3rd/#comments Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:45:02 +0000 echristoperj http://soulified.com/?p=1607 Read More]]>

Well… Zora’s Lounge is doing another The Chocolate Bar event on October 3rd.  If you recall I attended the previous event, and left with mixed feelings.  I loved the idea and the vision that they had, but was slightly blinded by the execution of it.  I have hope that they will improve this event.  Anyway, it’s Saturday October 3rd @ 9pm.  Doors open, and the event starts at 9pm.  There are two sections in the lounge.  There is a $5 cover section, and a $10 cover section.  The only difference is that the $10 section is where Lila will perform.  The $5 section gets the music via speakers.  The live performance should start at 10:00pm.

The main premise is envisioning a sushi bar, but with chocolate and great wines. The wines include Relax Riesling… Frontera Shiraz… Barefoot Moscato, Sauvigon Blanc, Beringer White Zin, Zonin Baccorosa and Sonoma Merlot. The assortment of chocolate consists of triple chocolate cake, cocoa truffles, tiramisu, German chocolate cake, white Russian truffle, marzipan and fudge. TIP: Anything below $5 in price is not worth it. The slices of cakes and such are much better value.

Zora’s Lounge is located at 652 Marshall, Memphis, TN.  Also to get more information please call (901) 525-0009.

Website/Myspace/CDBaby/iTunes

Speaking of Lila, she will be the artist of the evening.  She is a local violinist, who plays a variety of genres such as Jazz, hip-hop, soul, R&B, funk, alternative, rock, Latin, and reggae.  She recently released a Jazz/Fusion album titled “The Blue Violin“.  You can go to iTunes or CDBaby to sample songs from her album.  It should be a very good performance and experience.  Below is a very nice video bio on her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdZ9G_evSdw

Just received word about a very interesting event this weekend. The Hattiloo Theatre’s Zora’s Lounge is presenting “The Chocolate Bar” on September 19th @ 9pm. This will be a great chance for them to show off their newly redesigned Zora’s Lounge. They also have “We Two” performing at the event, which is a mostly Jazz with a dash of Neo Soul. The main premise is envisioning a sushi bar, but with chocolate and great wines. The wines include Relax Riesling… Frontera Shiraz… Barefoot Moscato, Sauvigon Blanc, Beringer White Zin, Zonin Baccorosa and Sonoma Merlot. The assortment of chocolate consists of triple chocolate cake, cocoa truffles, tiramisu, German chocolate cake, white Russian truffle, marzipan and fudge.

There is a cover charge of $10 per person. Zora’s Lounge is located at 652 Marshall, Memphis, TN.  Also to get more information please call (901) 525-0009.

UPDATE  With Review 9-26-09

We attended The Chocolate Bar last week, and it was an experience.  There were some good points, and some bad points.  I’m very glad that there are people trying to create quality events, that cater to the “Grown Folks” crowd.  I just think that they need more work on the execution of those events.  Here are my thoughts below.

Good Points

• 1. Great concept for the event. Fine chocolates and wine to enjoy while enjoying soothing live music, with like minded people.
• 2. Location and venue were perfect for this event.  The lighting was just right, to almost a fault.  It was a smoke free environment, with nice furniture to accent the mood.
• 3. Event started on time, and the performers started on time also.  This shouldn’t be a big deal, but it is.
• 4. Food was good, fresh, and was made to order.
• 5. Event staff were very helpful when they were made aware of any issues.

Bad Points

• 1. The flyer was very inviting, but left off basic information that would have helped attendees.

1. 1. a. There was an option to reserve tables in advance, but wasn’t listed on any communication. This would have helped, since it was a very small venue.
   2. b. There were two areas of the venue. The main lounge which was $10 cover (Music was performed here, but very cramped) or the side lounge $5 cover (music was heard over speakers, but more room).
   3. c. Event started at 9pm, but it didn’t list the time when doors opened.  The doors also opened at 9pm.  I like to arrive early, and enjoy the vibe.
   4. d. The performers started at 10pm, but that wasn’t listed anywhere. Attendees had no clue if the performers were late, until they asked the staff when was the performers starting.

• 2. Before the performers started at 10pm, they had music playing. based on the crowd’s age and the event’s theme, they did not have the right music at all.  Each song was totally different genre from the previous song, and it was played way too loud for the over 30 crowd.  It was to the point where you couldn’t have a conversation as you at the chocolate and sipped wine.
• 3. There were no samples for the food items on the menu. So you were ordering blind.  For example the Tiramisu @ $3 a piece, was a 1″ by 1″ swirl of whipped cream with sprinkles of coffee and chocolate. So, the first 8 items on the menu were small pieces of chocolate or miniature inspired creations.  The last four items (Chocolate Cheesecake, Triple Chocolate Cake, German Chocolate Cake, and Chocolate Fondue) all were wonderful looking.  We only found that out when we saw someone in the other $5 lounge with them. No one in the $10 lounge had ordered any of those five items, so no in that lounge had know of the deliciousness they were missing.
• 4. Lighting was a bit too dark.  There were some accidents, because people couldn’t see in some portions of the lounge.
• 5. Performers were good, but didn’t perform any Jazz pieces.  They performed mostly R&B, Neo Soul and some Blues.  No jazz at all.

Now after reading all that you, would think that we had a bad time.  We had a good time, but there were the above things that kept getting in our way of having a great time.  We would love more events like this in the Memphis area, but they are few and far between.  So, that is why we expect so much from the few that are here.

As lovers of great food, and especially Soul Food, we tend to frequent small mom and pop restaurants.  Being in the South, we to try to give our dining dollars and support to fellow Black owned businesses, that happen to have great food. This policy of ours is becoming harder to continue. What’s the reason of this declining desire to give our valuable dining dollar to these businesses? Very simple….  consistently bad customer service.

Why is it that some of our Black owned restaurants can have such bad service, and seem not to be concerned about it?  Also, why is it expected for us to give then our business, regardless of their customer service? You want to give them the business, and enjoy the food.  Which would be a win-win for everyone, but some businesses don’t see it that way.  Below I will give three recent examples of this problem. Each restaurant’s service has varied problems, but problems none the less.

1. Safari World Tapas Bar, Memphis, TN – My wife and I, went downtown to met some friends on June 27th.  The place we intended to was Onix, but it was packed and jumping.  So, the group of us decided to go next door to Safari. It had plenty of tables available, but there was a reason why.  Once we were seated, we saw many employees walking back and forth, but no one stopped to take an order or to ask if we needed anything for ten minutes.  Mind you there were only one other occupied table in the restaurant.  Once they took our order, there were many items on the menu, but they just didn’t have available. Even though they have a Tapas style dining, they didn’t explain it to the group.  Once we received our food, it was reheated, microwaved, and generally not cooked to order.  The portions were small even for Tapas dining.  The service was so discouraging, that we had to complain to one of the employees. Food and prices were horrible, but atmosphere was great.
2. Tiffany Soul Food, Locust Grove, GA – During the July 4th weekend, we were in Atlanta. After leaving the outlet, we wanted to get lunch, but something different.  After seeing sign for the restaurant, decided to give it a try. Once inside, there was very minimal air conditioning. We placed our order, paid, and received our cups for the drinks. The ice machine didn’t work, but the cashier knew about it. Even though she knew about it, she didn’t inform anyone.  Once we told her that it didn’t work, she told us it doesn’t work, and gave us ice from the chest behind her.  She continued this same ritual with all patrons that we after us.  Once I checked my bill she overcharged me, and seemed surprised that I questioned her concerning it.  She spoke to the cook  in the back, and the cook informed me that they couldn’t refund my money ($5), because they didn’t have the key to override the register, and that the person who did left for the day. It was currently 11:30am.  They offered more food, in lieu of my cash refund. The next issue was that, our friends ordered the fried chicken white meat meal. They failed to inform them, that all they had was wings available, for white meat.  Once my friend mentioned that he didn’t like wings, the cook didn’t offer an exchange with a baked chicken breast or a refund or try to resolve the issue.  She just walked away. Food and prices were average.
3. Cheesecake Corner, Memphis, TN – This evening we visited the Cheesecake Bistro located downtown Memphis.  The experience that we encountered tonight is what spurred this article.  I have to say that the customer service this evening, had to have been the worst that I have had in my adult dining memory. That’s a bold statement.  We travel in and outside the country very often, and enjoying dining out.  Sometimes there is the argument that Black owned businesses treat Black customers different than other customers of other races. I can say that the Cheesecake Bistro treats everyone equally horribly.  While we sat and talked, no one ever asked if we need anything or wanted to order. Once we decided to order from the counter, there was a line, but to be expected on a Friday night. The lone employee taking and preparing orders, didn’t speak to anyone unless your order was ready. A party of six was in front of us, and they had waited for about ten minutes, and had not received a single nod or acknowledgment from the employee. They walked out, along with two other people in line behind us. Once we finally order, he didn’t apologize for the wait, and was generally cold to us. After ring up the order it equaled $45.10 for two SLICES of quiche, and two SLICES of cheesecake. Of course bad customer service was free.  After five minutes passed our friend was notified that there wasn’t anymore of the crab quiche, and had to make an adjustment. There wasn’t an apology or anything. When the quiche was ready it was brought out by the owner/cook/dishwasher, and he spoke in firm one word sentences. “CRAB?” My wife indicated it was hers. Again he spoke “SAUSAGE?” and I indicted it was mine. This was repeated with our friends at the table.  Oh, no silver ware was give either.  Really? I received better service roadside in Honduras, and they didn’t speak english. After getting home, I googled them, and their service is known for being horrible. Food and prices were out of this world. Service was so bad it was astonishing.

Don’t get me wrong, there are good Black owned restaurants that do have good service.  Melanie’s on Watkins, I’m looking at you. :)  It’s just becoming harder to find them, and even harder to justify returning to them.  This isn’t an article just to complain about the problem. I also have ten tips to help them becoming much better. Best thing is all the tips are FREE.

Ten tips to increase customer service

1. Communicating any known problems to customer before, the customer is aware of the problem, minimizes the inconvenience.
2. Act like the customer is always right, even if they are wrong.
3. A complaining customer is a potential repeat customer, but they need an issue corrected. Also the one that complains, is first one to let you know. Other customers just left and never returned.
4. Ensure proper staffing on high volume days. The extra payroll needed for that will more than compensate for the lack of lost customers, due to slow service.
5. If you are the owner, you set the mood for the restaurant. It’s easier for your employees to give the same sub par service that you provide, because they know that you don’t value good or even great service.  So what is their motivation for providing it?
6. Take time to visit and introduce yourself to each table, at least twice an hour. It gives the customers someone to connect to, and learn more about your vision. It also helps you understand how your restaurant is performing.
7. If an item from the menu has run out, have the employees inform the customer, during the greeting. This is an opportunity to up-sale another item, and create desire next time for the sold out item. See #1
8. Hire employees that have better customer service skills than your own.  At your favorite restaurant there is one employee that you look for, that makes your experience that much better.
9. Don’t take complaints personally, but do take service personally. That’s your brand, name, and reputation on the line. A bad employee can ruin all that and leave, and get another job. Can you buy another restaurant?
10. Apologize, apologize, and apologize again, even if it’s not your fault. See #2

Sorry for the length of this article, but I felt that it was needed.  There are many good Black owned restaurants. If you know of one or many that you have visited, please comment and I’ll create a post highlighting them.  Remember there is no reason to eat bad food or have bad service.

Eric

Here is the last event to help fill up your weekends.  The Soul Food Festival.  Bet you didn’t know one of those existed.  I was really taken aback when I saw the size of this event, and the numerous cities that it is taking place.  It has many musical groups for the “Grown Folks” crowd.  From Peabo Bryson, Silk, Ready For the World, O’jays, MC Lyte, and quite a few others.  The artists do vary from city to city, so check the flyer for your location.

There will be a variety of Soul Food vendors, some local and some national.  To become a vendor for your city’s event check here. Also for general rules about the event check here.

Tickets range from $25 – $35 for general admission, and VIP tickets are from $45- $50.  Gates normally open two hours prior to show time, and the show lasts about four to five hours.  Tickets can be purchased in advance at Front Gate Tickets. Below are the upcoming dates and cities for the Soul Food Festival.

July 11th   Nashville, TN

August 1st   Memphis, TN

August 8th   Charlotte, NC

August 15th   Cleveland, OH

August 22nd   Kansas City, MO

August 29th   Cincinnati, OH

September 5th Palm Beach County, FL (Info not released)

]]> http://www.soulified.com/2009/07/soul-food-festival-coming-near-you/feed/ 6 http://www.soulified.com/2009/06/back-from-vacation/ http://www.soulified.com/2009/06/back-from-vacation/#comments Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:37:14 +0000 echristoperj http://soulified.com/?p=829 Read More]]>

Sorry for the lull in posting, but I needed a good vacation to revive my spirit.  Now that it is refreshed, revived and renewed I can burn it up.  We went on a cruise to the Western Caribbean, and had a blast.  I see that not a lot has happened in Soul music lately, so I’ll do what I do best, and bring you some more unknown music.   Check out the photos from the trip.  You will notice the food looked unreal.  It was.  I had some great dishes, that I’m going to do some follow up posts on.

Well… I’ve finally getting these contests going.  The site is finally done, and time to celebrate.  Ok, here is the deal.  There are two contests, since there are two parts of Soulified, so double the goodness.

Music Contest

• For the music lovers, there are two chances to win.
• The prize is a copy of Prince’s new three album set (Lotusflow3r, MPLSound, and Elixir), that was released a week ago.
• Just be the 25th or 50th person to register and post a comment saying “music” to this article.

Food Contest

• For the food lovers, there is only one chance to win.
• The prize is a set of four Urban Accents spices.  They include Sonoma Pepper, Marrakesh Za’tar, and  Mozambique Peri Peri,
• Just be the 25th person to register and post a comment saying “food” to this article.

Taste Of Thursdays

Being kind of new to Memphis, it has been hard for us (wifey and myself) to find some places to really enjoy music. Hard to believe, that can happen in the City Of Memphis. We have found two places recently, that are great examples of grown folk chill spots. They have the prerequisite of the great music, delicious food, and a full calendar of events. The first we tried was Soul Cafe, which Dave Hollister frequents, performs and hosts in some of the events. You can count on them to have a show every Friday, to help relieve the end of the week stress. The second place that really eximplifies the term “hole in the wall”, is Cafe Soul. Don’t let that turn you off. The outside of the building, doesn’t do any justice to the inside. With the stage in the center, it really makes for an enjoyable time. Will Graves & Soul are there the 2nd and 4th Saturday of the month. So, there are two great ways to spend your Friday and Saturday nights.

Now there will be two more days. Your Thursdays can now be filled with Taste Of Thursdays. It’s going to be a blend of Jazz, wine and Italian food. It starts March 19th, and will be every 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month. Then your easy Sunday’s can be made easier with Sax On Sunday. They’ll have various sub genre’s of Jazz, and also a poet on hand to drop a stanza or two. I haven’t been to either of these new events, but once I do, I’ll give the full report.

This meal was a spur of the moment choice.  I was at the grocery store, and couldn’t think of what to cook for dinner.  I wanted something mostly healthy, but had a taste for fried pork chops.  I knew I could pull together a salad with no problem, but what about a 2nd veggie?  I chose yellow squash and zucchini.  It’s easy to make, and doesn’t take too much prep work.  Let’s get started.

Squash & Zucchini Ingredients:

3 Medium Yellow Squash

3 Medium Zucchini

1 Large Onion

1 Cup Garden Mushrooms

1 Tablespoon Butter

3 Slices of  Bacon

1 Teaspoon of minced Garlic

Preparation: First slice the bacon, and put into large skillet, that has a top, on medium.  Add to the bacon a few pinches of black pepper, then cook the bacon till it gets crispy. At that point add the minced garlic, and chopped onions. Let those ingredients simmer for about 5 minutes while constantly stirring.  Add the butter, sliced yellow squash, sliced zucchini, and chopped mushrooms.  Let simmer for 25-30 minutes, and stirring every 5 minutes or so.  As it simmers, it will cook down, and produce about a cup or two of liquid.  If you want to reduce the amount of liquid remove the top, and let simmer a little long.  At this point you have to depend on your preference on how you like your squash and zucchini. If you like it more firm, then remove sooner, or if you prefer it softer, let it simmer longer.

Pork Chop Ingredients:

3 Medium Sized Pork Chops (Thawed)

1 Cup Of Flour

To Taste Goya Season Salt

To Taste Kickin’ Chicken Season

To Taste Ground Black Pepper

2-3 Cups of Cornola Oil

Salad Ingredients:

Organic Mixed Greens

Candied Walnuts or Pecans

Cornbread Croutons

Golded Raisins

Cranasins

Preparation: Ummm…. Mix the chosen amounts of ingredients to taste.  Then lightly dress with your favorite salad dressing.

Servings: Squash & Zucchini serves about 4 people, and the pork chops serve 3 people

Note: If pork isn’t your thing, please substitute the bacon with turkey bacon, and the pork chop with chicken, fish or a hamburger steak.

Last night I had plans to try out our new Emeril’s Grill & Panini maker on my chicken breast seasoning recipe. After taking it out the box, and assembling it, I had the urge to use the normal charcoal grill. So, I’ll have to review the Emeril Grill later in the week. My aim with bringing simple, but great recipes, is to show people that wonderfully flavorful food can be prepared and cooked in a short amount of time. Anyway, on to the recipe.

I start with normal chicken breasts, that were from Sam’s Club.  I have found that their meats and seafood are of a very good quality.  After removing them from the packaging, and rinsing them thoroughly, I laid them on plate to start the process.  With the breasts still moist from the washing, I lightly coated them with  Goya’s seasoning w/pepper.  That will give them a slight yellow tint.  I then proceed to sparingly sprinkle crushed red peppers on the breasts.  I then flip the breasts, and repeat those steps on the other side of the breasts.

The 2nd major step is to take the powder marinade from Weber (yes the grill people), called Grill Creations Southern Whiskey Marinade.  Take a medium bowl, with 1/2 cup of olive oil (extra virgin), 1/2 cup of water and combine in the marinade and mix well. Once you have completed the mixing, start dipping the breasts in the mixture, and make sure both sides are fully coated.  As you remove the breasts from the bowl, lightly rub it against the edge of the bowl to release any excess marinade back in to the bowl.  This is enough marinade for six large chicken breasts.  The entire process, should take about 5 – 10 minutes.

Once you have completed the last step, you can immediately starting cooking them.  With this marinade, there isn’t any waiting for it to “soak in”.  You can proceed to grill, bake or even use in a skillet.  For this meal I chose to use a charcoal grill with mesquite chips.  I did a slow cooking for 45 mins, and they came out perfect.  There is one thing to note.  The size of the chicken breasts does have a affect on the final taste.  I used fairly large breasts, so if you buy small or medium sized chicken breasts, then you may want to not want to use the Goya seasoning.

To accompany the grilled chicken breast, I added a nice salad.  The salad was made up of a variety of organic baby spinach, romaine, tango and other greens.  To spice up the greens, I threw on some cranasins, whole walnuts, golden raisins, and corn bread croutons.  Please let me know how you like this marinade.  Enjoy.

[singlepic=35,420,360,,center]

Good afternoon. I’m posting this recipe just in time for a friend that is under the weather. This is a great savory soup, that will warm those chilled bones after being out Christmas shopping. It is very easy to create, since you are just putting all the ingredients, bringing to a boil, then simmering. This can be used as a good base soup, that you can add and remove items as you please. I have made some changes to cut done on time, preparation, and importantly cost. Let’s begin, and as always please let me know your feedback with this recipe.

Ingredients

6 Cups of Water

3 Cans of condensed Chicken broth

1 to 2 (10 oz) Can(s) of Cream Of Chicken (I added an extra can to thicken it)

1 small to medium roasted chicken (Most grocery stores have them)

1/2 Cup of Cooking Sherry, or White cooking wine, or even water

1 to 2 Cups of Mushrooms (garden, Bella or even Shiitake mushrooms if you choose)

1 Cup chopped onion 1 Cup chopped or grated carrots (depends on your preference)

2 Cloves of Garlic minced (I used a pre-minced garlic)

1/2 Teaspoon of Basil Leaves (I used the finely chopped leaves)

1/2 Teaspoon of Oregano Leaves (I used the finely chopped leaves)

12 oz Package of Cheese (or your favorite type) of fresh, dried or frozen Tortellini

Optional ingredients (All items are to taste)

Fresh ground pepper

Sea Salt

Grated Parmesan Cheese

Preparation

In a large stock pot or soup pot add water, Chicken Broth, Cream Of Chicken soup, onions, carrots, mushrooms, Basil, Oregano, and garlic. Pull all meat from roasted chicken, and place in a bowl. You can use the whole chick or dark or white meat, depending on your preference. Anyway, after the chicken meat is in the bowl, pour the cooking sherry, white cooking wine or water in the bowl. Mix the chicken well to make sure it’s soaked and coated with the liquid. After that is done, pure the contents of the bowl in the pot, with the other ingredients.

Bring pot to a boil and stirring, then add the Tortellini to the pot. Bring down the temperature to a simmer, and let it simmer for about 30 minutes. You should taste the soup during the simmering. Just to make sure it tastes to your liking, and checking on the Tortellini to ensure that it is cooked properly. That is it. You can add the Parmesan Cheese on top of the soup, when you serve it. Also, this soup freezes and microwaves well. So, it’s great for people on the go.

Servings: (10) 1 1/2 cup servings.

Ever sometimes lose that cooking spirit, and don’t know how to get it back?  I have found the cure for that aliment.  Find yourself a local farmers market, tour for one hour.  In Memphis, TN there is a great one on Winchester.  It is very large, and has been here for years.  Wall to wall it contains Indian, Asian and Hispanic food items, that normally can only be found certain countries.  It is filled with exotic fruit, unique vegetables, live fish, and huge variety of foreign foods.  Once you arrive, inside the store you are given a feast of greenery.  They have regular and Pineapple sugar cane for $2.49.  Next to the sugarcane, is potted herbs for $2.00.  To think how fresh and vibrant those herbs will taste, just sends my mind racing at the cooking possibilities.  

Walking around the fruit and veggie sections, you can see all unique items that have been used on many a cooking show.  The next marvel in this market is the seafood section.  They have live fish tanks, and the ability to filet them at your request.  Beyond that section are the sauces, rice products, frozen food items that you just can’t find in the States.  I’ve found a certain Bulldog sauce from Japan, that is not in any other store.  Picture this, a whole grocery store isle of noodles.  Both sides, four shelves each side covered in just noodles.  Let that soak in a bit.  The last thing about the store, is that their prices are cheaper than main stream stores.  I know they don’t have this caliber store in each area, but look around.  You may find something similar or even better.  Just walking through, you will get ideas and remember old recipes that can can have new life breathed into them.  Enjoy.

     Here is my famous secret ingredient cheese cake.  I have perfected this through the years, and I even used to sell these in NJ.  It’s a very simple cheese cake that you have to bake.  It’s just simple four ingredients.  You can put the mix in a 9″ graham crust pie pan, made by Nabisco or a off brand.  The off brand actually tastes better, in my tests for some reason.  Or you can make your own crust with, butter, brown sugar and crushed graham crackers.  You can also put the batter in mini graham pie pans.  They hold one heaping table spoon of mix each.  The mini graham cracker pie shells, are great for parties and other events.  It allows you to really plan how many much you need to make.  
     This is a great base mixture, to which you can add chocolate chips, various nuts, carmel and such.  You would add after you have completed combining the mixture.  Also, you can add various items by pouring half the mix into your pan, add nuts or what have you, then pour remaining amount of mixture.  Basically, your extras are in the middle of the cheese cake.  The toppings can be added after it is ready to serve.  I normally add cherry toppings, or fresh strawberries or berries, or maybe even a chocolate kiss on the top of the minis.  The variations with this recipe are endless.  Let me know if you have any questions, and how it turns out.  Oh, the secret ingredient is the vanilla.  It changes the entire flavor of the cheese cake based on ho much you use.  I’m kind of heavy handed with it.

Gather all items and make sure all are at room temperature

2 eggs
2 PKG 8oz Philly cheese regular
1 cup of white granulated sugar
1 to 2 tblsp of pure Vanilla to taste (don’t use Jamaican vanilla.  you can use imitation vanilla, but I use pure Mexican or American vanilla)

This will make 1 9″ pie pan or 12 mini pie pans

1. Mix all with a blender at room temp, until mixture is very smooth with no lumps.  Mix in eggs, sugar and Philly cream cheese at the same time. Add vanilla last.
2. Pour into desired graham cracker pie pan
3. Pre heat oven to 400. Then cook for 30 mins, or until top is lightly gold brown. 
4. After done let cool, for about 30 mins
5. Let freeze then take out 2 hrs before needing to serve (the freezing increases the thickness/consistency of the cheese cake)
6. Add any toppings as needed. Normally the middle of the pie sinks, and in this impression is where I add the toppings.  The ugliest looking cheesecake is the one that gets the topping to cover it up.

Good afternoon. This is a little late, but it’s the first real post. This morning we were up early and wanted something different for breakfast. Well… How different can you really get for breakfast? More like a new place to go. So, we remembered passing by Bryant’s Breakfast and decided to give it a try.

Once we parked in the crowded parking lot, you could tell you were in for something good. The robust smell of breakfast filled the air. By the smell of breakfast I mean full bodied coffee, infused with crispy fried bacon waftingbthrough the air.

First thing you notice is the expansive glass windows. It gives everyone driving by a chance to see the long line of hungry customers. Once inside you see it’s like a cafeteria style diner.  With plenty of seating for everyone in line.  You’ll find that most people get their orders to-go.  Once you get in line, even though long it moves pretty quickly.  Their system works very well.  While in line, you have time to decide from the many breakfast options on the menu for your gastric journey.  They have numerous omelets, grits based breakfast bowls, and the other standard fare.  Also they have some great square large biscuits.  They give three with each entree.  I can’t see how any one can eat three AND their meal, but its there for the brave.

When you finally get to the counter, you are presented with more options.  You can grab a mug, and pour your own cup of Joe.  They also have decaf.  There aren’t any mocha latte blah blah here.  Just regular, but very good Joe.  There is a lady behind the counter that will ask for your drink order, if it’s anything other than the coffee.  Once you get to place your order, you pay and take a seat and wait.  For a place that offers that many options, they have very fast service.  If you are dining in, the two waitresses will bring your order by calling your name.  Thats when the magic happens.  

I had the Sausage Omelet.  It is made up of patty sausage and American cheese, that’s cooked inside the omelet.  it comes with three huge biscuits, a small cup of grits and grey thick gravy for the biscuits.  My better half had the bacon omelet, that is made with whole strips of not too crispy bacon.  I’m not sure what brand of pork meat they use, but it was perfect.  Each omelet was loaded with the afore mentioned meats, and was cooked to perfection.

While you’re enjoying the food, the great service continues.  They are checking on your periodically to see if you need more coffee or anything else.  You come away from there feeling welcome and not rushed.  After we finished the meal, we sat and talked for awhile.  It’s a sight to just sit there and watch the people come and go, and how the whole process works.  Not once was there a break down or slow down.  

It gets a four of five brownies.