A reason to keep living...........

[Tangerine LaBamba]

On Tuesday, my best girlfriend and I are heading out for lunch at our favorite pizza place. I haven't been there in a couple of years, and she's been waiting so that we could go together. We'll make snorting hogs of ourselves there, but that's traditional. Their pizza is just great.

BUT, next door to the pizza place is a gigantic Trader Joe's. It's really big, the biggest I've ever seen.

So, we're going to hit that after lunch, just so that we're forced to walk and, you know, stay upright. And I am going to buy cheeses like they're the last on earth. I love their cheese selection.

Across the street, there's a beautiful and vast Whole Foods. We'll go there, too. They have a splendid bakery.

Then, on our way home, we're stopping - for the first time for both of us - at PENZEY'S!! They opened this store a bit over a year ago, but we haven't been there yet. I've never been in a Penzey's store, always done it online.

I can't wait to get inside and sniff.

I really, really hope I don't die between now and Tuesday..........................

[Lucinda]

1. I can't decide if I should hate you, be jealous, or celebrate for you.

:rofl:
I'll give it some thought.

[NMDemDist2]

2. BRAGGART

:cry:

meanie!!! :evilfrown:

you think you're so cool with your big city ways and big city snooty shopping/pizza/spice stores.

Bitch Lucky Lady you.























:rofl:

Seriously, have a great time and send a pitying thought for your country cousin :hide:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

3. I deserve this, dammit

Don't I?

It's gonna be a dazzler of a food day, which is why I posted about it here. Even I - the doyenne of the Washington social world (insert loud, wet laughter here) - don't get to have days like Tuesday very often.

I just checked the weather forecast - series - and it's supposed to snow. That would suck.

But, yeah, it's a foodie's dream, at least for me. And you. Other women would probably go clothes shopping. Or shoe shopping.

That's what separates the foodies from the amateurs.

Got any requests from Penzey's, anyone? I can mail you something a whole lot cheaper than the shipping charges at Penzey's, so, series, let me know, and I'll get you what you want.


"Your debutante knows what you need, but I know what you want."
- Bob Dylan

[NMDemDist2]

11. Ok Ok

yeah you deserve it. totally.

wish I even cooked anymore to send you a wish list but alas, I am forced to a diet of mesquite range fed cattle and very little else.

good thing I have sharp canines

:evilgrin:


you have fun and we want ALL the details when you get back.

:yoiks:

[katusha]

4. do you have a budget for this trip

or will you get to impulse spend on whatever you like, say a whole wheel of cheese.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

5. Total?

I am betting I'll spend a couple hundred bucks.

Plus lunch.

At Penzey's, I know exactly what I need, so I'll get out of there for under fifty bucks. I think.

I'm gonna try to hold on to myself in Trader Joe's, but I'm a sucker for good cheese, and I haven't been around any for a long time. So cheese and crackers there will be pricey.

Plus, what used to be "Two Buck Chuck" is now "Three Buck Chuck," I'm told, so I need some of that.

OH, and those big bricks of dark chocolate. They're great.

And there are the mustards and the garlic-stuffed olives and ....................

Actually, I'm screwed..................

[Lucinda]

6. Can you smuggle in a camera for those of us living vicariously through you?

:rofl:

[Tangerine LaBamba]

7. I'll be shaking too much

First my favorite pizza? (I started eating Ledo's pizza when I was in law school - going back to 1975!) Then TJ's, Whole Foods, and Penzey's?

My girlfriend reminded me that she knows CPR.....................

[Lucinda]

8. All that food porn could seriously do you in.

Good to hear you have CPR covered. :rofl:

[kestrel91316]

16. Here's how I control my Trader Joe's addiction:

1) It's a mile from my home, so I MUST walk. I need the exercise.
2) There's not enough parking, and access from the busy surface streets is nightmarish, so I MUST walk. I don't need the hassle.
3) I am walking there, so I can only buy two canvas totes' worth of food.

[Stinky The Clown]

9. What's the pizza joint?

A local or a chain?

[Tangerine LaBamba]

10. Ledo's

I started going there in law school, when it was just a tiny joint in Adelphi.

They use smoked provolone. And their pies are square.

A few years ago, it was named Best Pizza In America by Oprah. So, you know it's got to be good. I mean, Oprah knows her food, right?

It's the one place where I can eat a large pie all by myself. And I fully plan to do that on Tuesday. Plus, I'll get one of their Italian hoagies to take home. Maybe a calzone, too. Or a stromboli.

Who am I kidding? I'll get all three to go.

http://www.ledopizza.com/index.cfm

[Stinky The Clown]

12. One of these days I'm going to try this place

Two Amys ..... over near Embassy Row and AU ....... one of maybe twenty Italian recognized joints in the US. (A dear friend on mine did all the development work for the Tuttabella chain.)

http://www.verapizzanapoletana.org/vpn/vpn_frames-index.htm

http://www.2amyspizza.com/

[Tesha]

13. Ohhhh - we've got one sorta close...

45 min away in Arlington Mass... I'm making a list

here's we are reading all the spices available and drooling! Yummmm

thanks so much for posting about them. I'll need to allocate a third drawer to spices now...

[Tangerine LaBamba]

14. Get their jars.

They sell, really cheaply, some beautiful glass jars - they come with labels and removable shaker tops - and my kitchen is filled with them. They're just perfect, and the price is right.

So, you're going shopping, too, eh? Nice to contemplate, isn't it? A hint - get their Smoked Spanish Paprika. You'll absolutely swoon over that one. And their chipolte powder is fabulous, too.

We just got a weather bulletin - we're under a Winter Storm Watch here starting Sunday afternoon. This could be interesting. The storm is coming up from the South, and they're the ones that hit us hard.

I knew it. My big Tuesday is gonna be cancelled, you just wait and see. Dammit.............

(grumble, grumble................)

[kestrel91316]

15. I want a Penzey's, too........(whine)

[joneschick]

17. Penzey's is next door to Half Price Books for me.

try the sandwich sprinkles-- Daughter #3 loves it on her grilled sammiches :hi:
and the szechuan salt & pepper blend

[hippywife]

18. The really sad thing is that

now that I no longer live in Columbus, Ohio, which I did til I was almost 38, they have put in a Whole Foods, a Trader Joes, and a Penzey's all within about a five mile or so radius from the area I lived in.

Timing has never been my strong suit. I am thankful to have a WF just a few miles beyond where I work so if I need something specific, I can usually get there on my half-day Friday.

Have fun! Sounds like an outing for Hedonists International!

[cbayer]

19. Things you might want to take a look at at TJ's

BIG packages of basil - cheap
Hummus - lots of yummy kinds with different ingredients
Small racks of lamb - not the kinds sitting in marinade, though. Those are awful.
Greek yogurt - fig is my favorite.
English toffee
Chocolate covered expresso beans
Coffee ice cream
Frozen croissants that you allow to rise over night in the oven.
Frozen key lime pie
Candied macadamias
Reduced fat cheetos

And I totally agree about the cheese!!

Have a great time.

:hi:

[troubleinwinter]

21. Ya forgot "Two Buck Chuck"!

[cbayer]

22. They raised the price! It's now three buck chuck.

But, you are correct, I forgot about the wine. They have incredible deals on wine.

:toast:

[troubleinwinter]

23. I also like their "Masala Cooking Sauce" in a jar.

It says to mix with water, but I use coconut milk. Cube some chicken to cook in it and serve over rice. Sometimes, but not always, TJ has some nice chutney too, to serve with it.

I can only remember TJ's with drooling fondness, as I have moved to an area there isn't one.

Family is gonna visit me from the SF Bay Area in April. Just wait til my daughter sees my shopping list for TJ's and Asian markets!!!!

[cbayer]

24. That's sounds great.

They have a lot of good marinade and cooking sauces. I like their vodka marinara, too. And I have really enjoyed some of their fresh pastas, like the raviolis.

Oh yeah, and their fresh lasagnas are excellent and perfect for two people.

I am sorry you don't have one around. I get there about once a month and stock up.

:hi:

(Glad to see you stopped pouting!)

[troubleinwinter]

26. WHO SAYS I STOPPED POUTING?!

I don't intend to stop til family gets here late April. They are driving. They can bring LOTS. And LOTS. If there isn't room enough, one of 'em can stay behind.

It's a 13 hour drive, so I'll hafta get mostly the jarred/canned type stuff. I do hope they have Masala and chutney in stock. I'll try the Vodka sauce!

[cbayer]

27. Make them get a cooler!

They make these cool ones that plug into the cig lighter. Then they can pack it with cheese!

Now stop pouting and start dreaming!

:pals:

[troubleinwinter]

28. O...M...G... CHEESE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Of course, I hafta be sorta nice, because one of the family members is an executive chef in SF. He makes Vodka sauce and Putanesca. And the best soups in the world.

[The empressof all]

25. I love that Masala sauce too

Great tip about cutting it with coconut milk...I aways used chicken broth. I also love their frozen Mandarian Orange Chicken. The wine flavored Salami's and great prices on Kosher Hot Dogs make TJ at least a twice a month outing.

[troubleinwinter]

20. I am here pouting. Best leamme alone awhile.