Things I Snacked On This Summer

It always seems popular when I write about some of the things I've been snacking on, so here are a bunch of things I ate over the last three months that didn't warrant their own post.

WHITE FISH SALAD

This white fish spread, from a market two blocks away, always hits the spot on hot days. It's cold and smears perfectly across sliced pieces of bread. And it's really tasty. 

THAI CHILI PORK SLIDERS

We went to Junior's with Elizabeth's parents one night over the summer and her mom had the appetizer of Thai Chili mini spare ribs. She couldn't eat them all so we took the leftover pieces home with us. The next day I cut the meat off the bone, heated it in a pan, and placed it on slider buns.

The flavors were pleasant but the meat was really fatty. I added some slaw to mask the fattiness but it barely helped. Oh well, it's not like I made these from scratch, they were just leftovers.

CAMPBELL'S CHUNKY CHICKEN & SAUSAGE GUMBO

After my parents visited in July, I got really sick. As sick as I've been in years - I was under the weather for more than a week. (That's quite rare for me, I never stay sick for more than a couple of days. I once had mono and I was sick for exactly two days.)

So, for the first time in a long time, I was actually craving soup. I bought a can of Campbell's "Grilled Chicken & Sausage Gumbo." While it didn't make me feel like I was in New Orleans, I was surprised at how delicious it was. It was salty - it's canned soup, I'm not sure there's any way around that - but I loved the flavors.

Of course I was really sick and my taste buds were all f**ked up, so don't hold it against me if you try this soup and it's terrible.

MEATLOAF SANDWICHES

If there is one negative about Paisanos, it's this: I expect too much of them. (True, you could argue that that's my problem, no theirs.) When I try a product from Paisanos and it's not the best of its kind that I've ever had, I feel slightly disappointed.

Fortunately that doesn't happen too frequently. But one night in July I made meatloaf sandwiches for Elizabeth, her dad and myself. They were very good - I added arugula and aioli to mine - but they were not as good as the meatloaf sandwiches/sliders I used to make for my friends with Taylor's meatloaf. 

 AN ICE CREAM CONE ON THE CONEY ISLAND BOARDWALK

This was, um, that.

HOMEMADE (STORE-BOUGHT) POTATO CHIPS

Cobblestone Foods has the best homemade potato chips I believe I have ever eaten. I'm hesitant to share that news with my 22 followers, because they are often sold out, and this can't help matters. But oh well. I'd take these any day over french fries. Often I reheat them in the oven for a few minutes just before serving. Just fantastic.

TACOS

Not long after my parents brought me all the Taco Lita hot sauce I made hard-shell tacos, trying to make them as close as possible to Taco Lita's. (They ended up being not very close at all, but they were still fantastic.) Hawkeye tried desperately to get some, but we didn't want to share.

CARNITAS & SLAW DOGS

I had leftover Trader Joe's carnitas one day so I heated it in a pan with a mustard barbecue sauce, dumped it on a grilled hot dog, and added slaw. It looked better than it tasted. I mean, it was still good, but the carnitas and the wiener just didn't work all that well together.

LAY'S SWEET SOUTHERN HEAT BARBECUE CHIPS

I've been to the South many times and I've eaten barbecue all over the country, and I have no idea what "Sweet Southern Heat" means. Still, they were pretty good. I didn't detect any barbecue flavor, it was more of a chili heat, but there's nothing wrong with that. But I won't be getting them again.

JAMAICAN STYLE JERK CHICKEN PATTIES

Another item I purchased because it was on sale ($2), I ignored the 2-minutes-in-the-microwave wording and cook it in the oven for 25 minutes. The packaging reads "SPICY" and it wasn't, but it was still pretty tasty, especially when I dabbed it with some very spicy Jamaican-style hot sauce. I don't think I would pay more than two bucks for these but I will definitely get a package again on sale.

SMOKED SALMON PINWHEELS

I was mentioning to Elizabeth that Trader Joe's used to have a salmon roulade that I really liked, though I haven't seen it in years. A day or two later I was at a market and saw these "Smoked Salmon Pinwheels," so I gave them a try. They were not as good as the Trader Joe version (and they were twice the price) but they made a decent afternoon snack. I will not be purchasing them again, though.

ANGRY BIRDS FRUIT GUMMIES

I bought a Roku over the summer so that I could stream baseball games through MLB Extra Innings. I opted to get the model that included Angry Birds, since I'd heard Elizabeth say she likes playing it. I'd never played nor even seen the game, but it's actually pretty fun. I would not use the word "addictive," as many people do, but I enjoy playing it every once in a while.

So one day I picked up some Angry Birds Fruit Gummies to eat while we played the game. They were not very good.

RED BARON THICK PAN PEPPERONI PIZZA

One evening, when Elizabeth was going out for after-work drinks, I saw this pan pizza at the store and was in the mood for thick crust. I cooked it in the oven. Once again, I did not think much of a Red Baron pizza. The pepperoni was good but the cheese and sauce were bland and, as usually happens with frozen pizza, the crust was bad.

SPICY SZECHUAN WONTONS

At Fortune House for lunch one day I was extremely hungry, so in addition to my usual lunch special I ordered something called "Spicy Szechuan Wontons," despite having no idea what they were.

"Do you want them steamed or fried?" the waiter asked.

"Fried, please." (Although I did not know what they were, I was reasonably certain I wanted them fried.)

They were delicious. I mean, there wasn't really anything special about them, they were just fried wontons (good) tossed in a spicy sauce (good). I will definitely be getting these again.

BACON SANDWICHES

One night I made BLTs (well, without the T) and decided, instead of regular mayo, to spice things up. To one of the sandwiches I added Empire Mayonnaise Co.'s vadouvan mayo, which was good... but to the other I added Baconnaise. That was just awesome. 

 JERK TURKEY FLATBREAD

At a local deli I picked up some Boar's Head "Jerk Turkey Breast." It is delicious, and really spicy. Sometimes when I need food and am not sure what I want, I put some of the turkey on a Trader Joe's flatbread. To this one, I added lettuce, cheese, and chipotle sauce. 

RUFFLES CHIPS AND DIP

Watching a football game the other day, I got a bag of Ruffles "Smokehouse Style BBQ" chips, which are great, and "Beef & Cheese Dip," which was pretty bad.