AH, I REMEMBER WHEN

I remember when I used to invite my future wife over for Mushy’s Special steak and baked sweet potato by candle light! I think my cooking was part of what wooed her in the first place.

We tried to re-live one of those wonderful evenings the other night – wanting to make it just as special.

For her, it was a thick juicy filet and for me, a big juicy t-bone!

The weather was perfect for grilling, not too hot, and not too cool, with the smell of spring flowers blooming in the backyard, the birds were still singing, and the Black Dog Ale was cold.

In the oven, the huge sweet potato was baking for about an hour, while I prepared the butter and brown sugar!

All went well; the steaks came off the grill perfectly cooked, having resisted turning them more than once.

The meal was delicious, even if the fresh portabella mushrooms and sweet Vidalia onions were still safely hidden in the fridge! They would have been nice with the steak, like in the old days, but best I can remember…there was no room anyway!

MORE THAN A BIG APPLE TO EAT IN NEW YORK

After settling for McDonald’s biscuits the first morning in Manhattan, we opted for Ellen’s Stardust Diner on Broadway. The place is complete with “singing waitstaff”, all of whom are awaiting other tours in on and off Broadway Shows.

The air conditioning was off the morning we visited, and was almost unbearable, but the smell and taste of good breakfast food held us captive long enough to enjoy Chocolate Pancakes and The Bagel That Ate Brooklyn!

All the while waiters and waitresses took turns bellowing out show tunes. I must admit they were all very good, but it all soon grates on your last bite of bagel!

For lunch one day, we joined the local lunch crowd near Pier 17 on South Street and enjoyed ribs, chicken, burgers, etc. at the Heartland & Barbecue Brewery! It was a very cozy, relaxing, and cool (meaning well air conditioned) place to eat. Their selections of micro-brews were terrific too. Steve and I had a couple!

After cooling off on this particularly hot day in June, we took in the “Bodies - The Exhibition”. Their air conditioning was in great working order.

It was a very fascinating exhibition of male and female human bodies that had been dissected in very interesting and informative ways. As the warning says: Warning: Not for the squeamish. 'Bodies...The Exhibition' will give the public the unique opportunity to see first-hand the inner workings of our bodies through authentic, preserved human body specimens. This 32,000 square foot exhibit that features 22 whole body specimens, as well as more than 260 additional organ and partial body specimens. Please note: this exhibit is made up of bodies that were taken from the Dalian Medical School in northern China. There has been some controversy over the source, because the Dalian Medical School gets unidentified or unclaimed bodies.

That evening, back closer to the Novotel Hotel, where we were staying, we choose Ray’s Pizza. Ray’s is not your local family run pizza joint, but they do have many locations and serve up a good slice of pizza. Some places don’t offer single slices, but this place allowed me to walk down a line and point out several slices I wanted to try. This pepperoni and pineapple was simply delicious!

Steve and I had a great “boys night out” the evening Judy, Katie, Terri, and Julie took in “Hairspray”. We ended up a O’ Lunney’s Irish Pub just off Broadway. We were partying with the office crowd, still in their business work attire, while we displayed our manly legs in our tourist shorts!

Steve and I ordered, but he was the only one to get a meal. Through some southern low speaking misunderstanding, the little lady, who lived with her boyfriend, thought that the appetizer I ordered was my meal! I did not get upset, nor did I tell her of the mistake. I simply ordered another beer and watched Steve enjoy is fish and chips! Sure wish I had gotten to try that “corned beef”!

Oh yes, a side note, don’t you guys love these “afterburner” type hand dryers! My first experience with “Xlerator” dryers was at the Green Parrot Bar in Key West. Noisy little suckers, but they will blow freckles off your hands!

Judy, Katie, and I picked Rosie O’Grady’s for our last evening “big meal” and we were glad we did. The girls had a Prime Filet Mignon and I had, in honor of the trip, the New York Cut Sirloin Steak! Simply delicious and cooked to perfection!

After the meal we hammed around taking photos and then had the waitress take one of us. Unfortunately, the window light caused the camera not to fire the flash, so it was not as good as I had hoped. However, we enjoyed ourselves for a little over a $100 plus tip!

Yep, you can always find something to eat in New York City. Next time, however, if there is a next time, I’ll explore some of the ethnic food in the different boroughs. It has to be better than the tourist trap area in and around Broadway and Times Square.

For other photos and more information on our trip, check out Mushy’s Moochings, and Flickr.

FILET FETTUCINE

Tonight, I decided to cook for the first time since my shoulder operation. As usual, there was little in the house to cook, being the middle of the week, so I had to be creative! Luckily, there was a filet left over after the steak grill out the other night (see last post).

So, what to do?

Thaw the frozen filet, slice it up into small thin strips, salt, pepper the meat, and set aside.

Cook some pasta, preferably some shells, large or small, and set the pasta aside.

Chop up half a large onion and some portabella mushrooms (you may have forgotten you had – see last post) and set them aside.

In a saucepan, bring to a boil a jar of Bertolli’s Mushroom Alfredo Sauce, turn the heat to simmer and continue with the instructions.

In a large skillet, put some olive oil, a tablespoon of butter, a large scoop of minced garlic, a large squeeze of parsley paste, a large squirt of your favorite hot sauce, over high heat.

When the mixture begins to fry, dump in the thin sliced steak strips and cook them medium well.

Then dump in the portabella mushrooms and stir for several minutes.

Then dump in the sweet onions and cook until they begin to become opaque (do not over cook either the mushrooms or the onions).

Dump the complete mixture into the drained pasta, stir, then pour on the fettuccine sauce and mix thoroughly.

Once the appropriate buzz has been reached with the George Dickel, serve in a bowl and swoon in soft tones together as you look out over the green of the backyard and rising lake!

A wonderful experience!

ANYTHING YOU WANT – AT CRICKET’S RESTAURANT

Cricket’s Restaurant is just 1 minute from downtown Pine Mountain, Georgia, well, actually, it’s more like 3 minutes! It’s either that, or the guy who drove the distance off before making the sign drove at 75 MPH!

Whatever the distance, it’s worth the trip down HWY 18 from Pine Mountain to taste the 14 oz. Rib-Eye or the 8 oz. Filet cooked to taste, and served with Brabant Potatoes (that’s Cajun fer diced and fried) and sweet corn! Served with a nice Bass Ale!

Afterwards, sit on the porch and watch the traffic ramble on to Columbus or back down to Pine Mountain. Soon, you will be hearing the hoot owls and whippoorwills calling down in the Callaway Gardens’ forest. Ah, that sure is country down there!

For pictures and more details on our trip, click over to Mushy’s Moochings or Flickr!