Faygo Cupcakes for Opening Day!

I love baseball!

I whine every single year that Opening Day should be a national holiday. I inevitably rush home after work and manage to catch the bottom of the 9th, rather than getting to enjoy the entire game. Sure, I could take the day off - but really, there's stuff to do at work and that just seems a bit frivolous. I know others do it, or they call in sick, or they just sit at their desks watching games on MLB.com rather than paying attention to what they should be. Thus, my annual proclamation that Opening Day should be a holiday!

But this year, I have the day off. One isn't permitted to work during the first two or the last two days of Passover; today is the 7th of Passover's 8 days, and thus a paid holiday for me since I work in the Jewish community ... yay!!! The Tigers take on the Twins in Minnesota this afternoon, and I get to watch the whole game ... whee!

So, in honor of this occasion, what festive food are we making? Baseball, hot dogs, peanuts, and Cracker Jacks all go together. I'm certainly not going to make my own hot dogs - that's a chore even I'm not fool enough to bother with! I can't grow my own peanuts up in the cold of Michigan. I could make my own Cracker Jacks, but I'm not a huge fan of popcorn so I'm disinclined to bother; it's so much easier to buy a small box and have the actual product on hand to bestow good luck upon the season.

Then I thought about cupcakes because ... well ... cupcakes are a good thing to think about! They make everyone happy. And since I had made ginger ale-infused Vernors Cupcakes last fall in honor of the Tigers representing the American League in the World Series, I thought I'd riff on that a bit and use another Detroit soda for today's recipe: Faygo, which comes in many flavors and colors, and can thus be coordinated with any team. (Admittedly, my cupcakes came out to be more Mets-colored than Tigers! But it's the thought that counts. Jeremy said they're "(Friggin') fantastic" and that they taste like Creamsicles; that's really all that matters.)

These festive cupcakes would also be perfect to serve on Friday, for the Tigers' home opener against the Yankees - my two favorite teams, having grown up in New York but having lived in Michigan since I was 16.

Baseball's back! I'm a happy, happy girl ... :)

Opening Day 2011

Opening Day 2012

Faygo Cupcakes

Cupcakes:
1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup orange Faygo soda
4 tablespoons oil
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. In a measuring cup, combine the soda, oil, vanilla, and eggs; whisk together.

Pour liquid ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients, and stir to combine. Divide the batter among the lined cups, and bake for 18-20 minutes until a tester comes out clean. Let cool completely.

Frosting:
1 cup butter, softened
1 teaspoon blue food coloring
2 cups confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons milk

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, combine the butter and food coloring. Slowly beat in 1 cup of the confectioners' sugar, then add milk; beat in remaining confectioners' sugar. Continue beating 'til frosting is the desired consistency.

Spread frosting onto cupcakes, then serve.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

Frugal Floozie Friday - Mark's Midtown Coney Island

Mark's Midtown Coney Island - a friendly neighborhood standby - is today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature. Sure the coney dogs are great, and Craig thoroughly enjoyed going for the classic. But there are lots of other foods to enjoy that also fit within our mandatory budget of $5 per person.

I branched out to the soup 'n' sandwich plate for $4.99, which brought a cup of the daily soup - a bright, creamy Lemon Rice that offered just enough tartness to make it seem light despite being so rich - along with a half Turkey and Swiss that was absolutely stuffed. This was far more substantial than I'd expected, and I enjoyed every bite.

Several of the sandwiches - from Grilled Ham and Cheese to Egg Salad to a B.L.T. to a Patty Melt - come in at under $5 each. The coneys, of course, are a great deal: a single costs only $2.09. Or get the Coney Island Special, adding loose ground beef to your dog, which costs only $3.19. All but one of the burgers (the Italian Burger) cost less then $5, and you can even embellish them with an onion roll for 50 cents or extra cheese for 45 cents. And if you just want a snack, some consummate comfort food like Chili-Cheese Fries costs a mere $3.29.

Breakfast Specials offer a tremendous value as well, from eggs to the Breakfast Sandwich to a Short Stack; even Pancakes and Eggs - "Two pancakes or two French toast, two eggs, choice of one: bacon, ham or sausage" - costs only $4.99, just squeaking under the limit. But the prices get even better if you come in between 6-11 a.m. Monday-Friday, which is when Mark's offers extra special deals on this portion of the menu.

Even as good as our entrees were, I would have to say that the rice pudding - for a mere $2.29 - was the star of the show; Craig said it was the best version he's ever eaten. Dense rather than overly creamy, subtly flavored rather than doused in cinnamon as many can be, this was a perfect serving to share as it was very generous.

So, if you're looking for friendly staff, good food, and great values, go visit Mark's Midtown Coney Island!


Mark's Midtown Coney Island
Ann Arbor North
3586 Plymouth Rd.
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48105
734-998-0067



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Totchos, Michigans, and Coneys ... A Rambling Shpiel

Totchos??? What in the world is/are "totchos"?!?

I'll tell you: they're nachos made with tater tots! They have no redeeming nutritional value whatsoever - well, there were fresh tomatoes and jalapenos - but boy are they fun to eat!

My BFF Wendy and I went down to the Anchor Bar in Detroit awhile back, for a meeting of the Detroit Drunken Historical Society; they were planning to discuss the War of 1812 and Detroit's critical role in it.  Well, I like history - when presented properly, it offers stories of real people, decisions they face, defining moments in their lives. Sitting and chatting about a 200-year-old war and its logistics, though, wasn't my idea of a good time ... but it was an adventure, so why not try?

Well, it was even more tedious, truth be told, than I'd anticipated. The sweet but scattered woman who introduced the evening was confused about some key dates and locations. The first presenter was a very nice man who'd greeted Wendy and me when we walked in, but he reminded me of an 8th Grade history teacher droning through a lecture. There were a couple of questions and comments from folks who engage in war re-enactments. My mind wandered. These were clearly people more concerned with where to find the beer than with any intellectual pursuits ... emphasis on the "drunken" rather than the "historical."

But then - as always, with me - we come back 'round to the food to liven things up. There were totchos! Who doesn't love tater tots? Who doesn't love nachos? It was inspired to combine them into a crispy, crunchy, cheesy, gooey mess that was utterly irresistible. Perhaps because they were so good, in a trashy kinda way, or perhaps because I was so bored - could be either or both - I couldn't stop eating them. It took a great deal of will power to save enough to make an excellent breakfast for the next morning. I love my savory breakfasts, after all, and leftovers are just about a perfect thing to start my day.

We thankfully got to the last presenter of the evening, a Canadian man who'd been invited to share a different perspective on the war. He had a good sense of humor and a sharp wit; and he spoke with the cute "-oot" accent that my mother and her relatives haven't had for decades, having been in the U.S. for 60 years or so now ... think of the McKenzie Brothers from SCTV!

Somehow - I'm serious, the evening was so excruciating that my mind was off on a nomadic trek, so I really can't tell you how the tangent arose - this man found a way to mention that in Canada a hot dog with tomato sauce is called a "Michigan." What on Earth this had to do with the War of 1812, I can't imagine. But I've never heard of this name for a hot dog despite having lived in this state for more than 30 years, despite living only an hour away from Ontario, despite having distant relatives in Canada ... pique my curiosity, finally, at the end of the show!

So, of course, I immediately came home and started doing some research.

I could find nothing about hot dogs with a tomato sauce, but there was information about those topped with tomato-based sauces that are essentially a loose chili.  These specific chili dogs are eaten in New York City, though they're not as popular as the "dirty water dogs" you buy from street vendors (so named because they sit in the water all day ... possibly more than one day?); those are topped with a schmear of mustard and a pile of sauerkraut, maybe some onions.

But in upstate New York - in the Ontario vicinity, of course - the chili dogs are apparently called "Michigans;" and the sauce was created by a man from Jackson, Michigan. In the Detroit area, we top the hot dogs with chili, mustard, and lots of fresh strong onions. But we don't call them "Michigans" - they're "Coneys." Here's the story that helps to explain some of the history and the permutations:

"Although there are many different varieties of Michigan sauce available today, the original Michigan sauce was created by Mr. George Todoroff in Jackson, Michigan. The sauce was originally created to be used as chile sauce. In 1914, Mr. Todoroff took his recipe to Coney Island in Brooklyn New York and opened his first restaurant.  However, the hot dog hadn’t arrived on the scene when he first opened his restaurant, so he had to wait until 1916 to make his first famous 'Jackson Coney Island' hot dog.

In 1867, Charles Feltman, a German born immigrant, was selling pastry items from a small food cart at Coney Island. To make any money, he needed to sell a lot of food from a small space. His idea was to take a hard roll, steam it and wrap it around a German sausage. At that time, sports cartoonist Tad Dorgan caricatured German figures as Dachshund dogs and eventually coined Feltman’s sandwich a 'Hot Dog'! The hot dog was a big hit and it didn’t take Todoroff long to capitalize on combining the hot dog and his chili sauce.

The name of the Michigan hotdog originally came from Plattsburgh, New York. However, how and when the Michigan Sauce arrived there is somewhat of a mystery."

So, I still don't have all the answers. But at least I ultimately received a history lesson, even if it had nothing to do with the War of 1812!

Anchor Bar
450 West Fort Street
Detroit, MI 48226



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Boston Baked Beans for Opening Day

Baseball comes back today!  The Detroit Tigers' home opener will be at 1:05 p.m. against the Boston Red Sox.  I'm so excited!  Of course, I have to be at work this afternoon ... sigh.  But it's the principle of the matter!

Opening Day, for me, is usually when the New York Yankees play their first game of the season; they're not playing the Tampa Bay Rays 'til tomorrow, though.  But I've lived in Michigan for more than 30 years now, after moving from New York ... there can be a bit of wiggle room.

It is simply required to eat a hot dog in honor of this occasion - what's a baseball game without a hot dog, after all?  And I'm offering the perfect accompaniment, since the Tigers are playing the Red Sox from Beantown: Boston-Style Baked Beans, featuring the rich sweetness of molasses.

Now, I know that there are folks who don't share my excitement today, who aren't serving ritual, traditional foods.  Many people think that baseball is boring, because they don't understand it.  I'll spare you my rants about other sports which I simply cannot endure or which I ridicule with great glee, and rather focus on what I consider to be the great joy of baseball.

Sure, I'll grant you that there are lots of foul balls, causing significant delays in the games.  Sure, there  are plenty of superstitious players going through repetitive rituals, making it tedious to watch sometimes.  Sure, baseball players are prisses who can't play in bad weather.  Sure, there are performance-enhancing drugs and other scandals.

But baseball can be watched intently, play by play, or it can be company in the background; it can be whatever you need it to be.  There are thrilling moments that people remember - and debate - for decades.  People have been so devoted to the sport that their hearts have been broken by teams that have abandoned cities and by players who have abandoned teams.

Most importantly, though, the true beauty of baseball is this: with every single pitch there is the potential for something magical.  It doesn't always happen.  But the chance is there, and the hope is there.  And every so often, you get to witness a spectacular moment.

Today, a Mom or Dad or maybe a Grandpa is taking a child to his or her first baseball game.  They're wandering through the stadium, buying peanuts and Cracker Jacks and a souvenir program.  They're looking for their section.  They're heading toward the usher.  They're about to climb to their seats.

And in an instant, they walk out from the dark corridor and into the blinding sunshine.  A field of the brightest, most vibrant green lies before them.  Players are casually tossing the ball around.  Vendors are calling out with offers of pretzels and ice cold beer.  The scoreboard is zeroed out, waiting for the first hit, the first ball, the first run.

There are so few moments as special as that one instant when you walk into the ball park and the excitement surrounds you and transports you!  It elicits a gasp, and brings both a smile and a tear.

Today is a day of celebration.  It's Opening Day!  And all things are possible ....


Quick 'n' Easy Boston-Style Baked Beans

1 28-ounce can vegetarian baked beans, drained
1/4 cup unsulphured molasses
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 tablespoons brown mustard
2 tablespoons honey barbecue sauce
1/4 cup finely chopped onion

Place all ingredients into a small saucepan; bring just to a boil, then lower heat to "low" and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Serves 6-8.

Frugal Floozie Friday - Bill's Drive-In

Bill's Drive-In re-opened on February 1, after a brief fall/winter hiatus.  It offers hot dogs, chili dogs and root beer ... a limited menu, but one that is excellent nonetheless.  Focus on what you do well, as they say.

I would have featured this bright and friendly place sooner, but Jeremy and I visited just a few days before the season ended last fall.  So, better late than not at all, the hot dog stand is today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature!

You may remember that Bill's root beer made my Top 10 list for 2011; Jeremy summed it up this way - "Holy s---! This is, like, the best root beer I've ever had in my life! It's amazing!"  And it is very good, with rich flavor and not too much of a head; when you get a mug of root beer at Bill's, you get a full mug.  It's worth stopping by just for the soda alone.

But for less than $5 - our mandatory Frugal Floozie Friday budget - you can feed two people ... I'm serious!  Jeremy ordered a hot dog schmeared with ketchup and mustard, I ordered a chili dog with onions, we made sure to get our root beer, and the total tab was ... drum roll ... $4.30.  Yes, you read that correctly!

We drove up, parked the car, and before I could even reach to open the window there was a very friendly attendant already waiting to take our order.  He told us our options, we told him what we wanted, and he ran off.  I turned to talk to Jeremy while we waited; he uttered maybe one sentence before telling me "Lunch is here."  Our food was brought that quickly.

So now that they've reopened, be sure to eat at Bill's.  It's a long-time local favorite, and you'll be getting fast food that's also good food.

Bill's Drive-In
1292 E Michigan Ave
Ypsilanti, MI 48198
734-485-2831





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Frugal Floozie Friday -- Chicago Reds

Chicago Reds is a great place to go for an inexpensive meal, which is why it's today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature. Yeah, we talked about Chicago food yesterday, too, with the famous Italian beef sandwiches. But we've moved on to a different classic food item today; have no fear of redundancy!

My dinner companion ordered the Chicago Style Dog for $2.99: "The Classic Chicago Dog, a Vienna all beef dog topped with tomato slices, Kosher Pickle, Neon Relish, chopped onion, yellow mustard, Sport Peppers & celery salt on a steamed poppy seed bun." It was definitely "dragged through the garden," as they say, and generously so. My friend enjoyed it immensely, taking a sharp detour from his usual healthy diet of steamed vegetables and rice to indulge in one of his favorite guilty pleasures. He's had a difficult time of late, and it was good to see him smile so happily as he ate.

I, however, don't want all of those salad ingredients and funky colors on my hot dog. I'm from New York, born and raised; I want my "dirty water" dog (affectionately named because street vendors keep the wieners in warm water until they're served to customers) with mustard and sauerkraut, period. So for $2.59 I ordered the New York Dog: "Sauerkraut & yellow mustard on a steamed poppy seed bun." Perfect in its simplicity, I felt transported back to my hometown for a little while.

To accompany the mainstays of our meal, my friend and I shared the basket of Garlic Parmesan Fries (pictured above) for $3.49. These were as close to perfection as fries might possibly come - golden, crisp, hot, salty, garlicky, cheesy, but none of these attributes was overdone. The consistency was ideal, and the flavorings were exceptional. And the serving was so generous, especially with the hot dogs, that we had to take some of the fries home.

So our very filling meal plus some leftovers cost the two of us less than $10, falling perfectly within the Frugal Floozie Friday budget of $5 per person or less. And there are lots of other options within this budgetary constraint, as all of the beef hot dogs are under $3, and the Polish sausages and vegetarian Italian sausage all range from $3.59-$4.79.

For a great inexpensive and casual meal - not to mention some passionate arguments over which city's hot dogs are best! - head to Chicago Reds. And leave me a comment telling me how you prefer your hot dogs: New York or Chicago style? Detroit style, with chili and onions? Southern style, with cole slaw? Or - gasp! - with ketchup???


Chicago Reds
312 S. State Street (inside Amer's Deli)
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104
734-761-6000



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Hot Dog Hotdish for the Minnesota Game

Minnesota is noted for its cold weather and for hardy residents who speak with cute accents. The severe winters don't keep people huddled indoors, though; folks continue to go ice fishing, skating, and socializing.

But after venturing out into the frigidness, a warm meal is warranted. And Minnesotans are famous not just for casseroles, but specifically for what they call "hotdish."

According to Wikipedia:

"Hotdish is a variety of baked casserole that typically contains a starch, a meat or other protein, and a canned and/or frozen vegetable, mixed together with canned soup."

In honor of Saturday's game - Minnesota vs. Michigan - I thought I would pay tribute to this culinary tradition. But I was not going to resort to using the infamous condensed soups.

That is, until I read the following:

"Cream of mushroom soup is so ubiquitous in hotdish that it is often referred to in such recipes as 'Lutheran Binder,' referring to hotdish’s position as a staple of Lutheran church cookbooks. The soup is considered a defining ingredient by some commentators."

And so, I realized that I would be dishonoring the very essence of the hotdish if I tried to make it more sophisticated. It is consummate comfort food, and part of its charm is its hominess and ease of preparation.

So I took as my basis the famous green bean casserole, and added a few tweaks to make it an entree rather than a side dish. It's perfect food for a football game, as it's hearty and substantial and ideal for fall.

Hotdish is so integral to Minnesota culture that Sen. Al Franken even welcomed the state's Congressional delegation to participate in a hotdish competition this past January. The winner did not feature another Minnesota product, the lovely wild rice. It didn't feature venison bratwurst, or any other enobling ingredients. Nope - the winner was Sen. Amy Klobuchar, whose Taconite Tater Tot Hot Dish was a combination of ground beef, creamed soups (mushroom and chicken), tater tots, and Pepper Jack cheese.

Hotdish may be lowly, but you know what? Even with its simple ingredients and lack of elegance, it's really, really good! My Hot Dog Hotdish was devoured when I served it, and will be a hit if you serve it for Saturday's game. Jeremy loathes green bean casserole, but he loved this so much that he actually ate more helpings than anyone else!

University of Minnesota at University of Michigan
Saturday, October 1 at 12 p.m. EDT
GO BLUE!!!

I was THRILLED to see that this post was found and discussed thoroughly on Serious Eats the other day: "Hotdish Casserole"!!! And I was equally happy to find that everyone had lovely things to say about, and memories of, hotdish ... regardless of whether it's called a casserole or a covered dish or whatever around the country ... :)

Note: Today is the first full day of Rosh Hashanah. My friend Debbie Vanni at The Culinary Cellar very graciously invited me to write a guest post for the holiday. Thank you, Debbie, for the fabulous honor!

So go visit her fabulous site devoted to recipes and cookbooks, and you'll find us celebrating the new year and reviewing the past one while sharing a sweet treat: Apple Almond Kugel. 'Cause it's not a Jewish party without kugel, after all - a traditional creamy noodle pudding with a crunchy, cinnamony topping.

I've baked a lot of kugels over the years, but Jeremy told me that this is "the best one you've ever made!" Pretty high praise ... :)

Shana Tovah!!! [shah-NAH toh-VAH]

May you have a sweet new year!


Hot Dog Hotdish

4 wieners, cut into 1/2" slices
1 10-3/4 ounce can cream of mushroom soup
half of a 10-3/4 ounce can condensed cheddar cheese soup
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup milk
several splashes cayenne pepper sauce
1 pound frozen green beans, defrosted
1 cup fried onions
45 tater tots
4 ounces mild cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8"x8" baking dish.

Heat the wieners over medium heat in a medium skillet until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine soups, mustard, salt, milk and pepper sauce. Stir in wieners, green beans and fried onions; pour into the prepared baking dish.

Place the tater tots in rows over the green bean mixture. Bake for 25 minutes.

Place the cheese over the tater tots, and bake for another 25 minutes until the cheese has melted and the sauce is bubbling.

Serves 8.

Frugal Floozie Friday -- Mark's Carts

It's Frugal Floozie Friday, and today's adventure takes us to a place with a tremendous variety of foods. No, it's not a buffet; but it's a bit reminiscent of one, as you can choose a little bit here, something else there, and be lured by the temptation of a rich treat off in the corner.

Today we're visiting Mark's Carts, a courtyard in downtown Ann Arbor filled with street food carts featuring everything from comfort foods to ethnic dishes, from sandwiches to desserts.

Tom and I perused all of the available offerings, though unfortunately there wasn't a complete array as we were there early in the evening and each cart keeps differing hours. Apparently things really get going after 6 p.m. on Friday nights, with all of the vendors open and live music contributing to the festive ambience.

We decided to try a bit from each of the three carts that were ready and waiting for us. A Thai-style salad with peanut dressing from The Lunch Room was our opening act, a light dish of rice noodles with bright, colorful vegetables.

We had a wonderful chat with cart co-owner Phillis Engelbert, whose smile and enthusiasm are irresistable. Her cart's menu is vegan, and features everything from a barbecue tofu sandwich with slaw to large cookies (Blackstrap molasses gingersnaps, Mexican hot chocolate). And Phillis even told me that adults are welcome to order the fabulous "kids' meal": peanut butter and jelly sandwich, applesauce, carrot sticks, and a chocolate chip cookie -- a healthy happy meal for only $5. Bike delivery is available at lunchtime, if you're having a craving and can't get out of the office.

To go with the salad, we ordered a bratwurst on a crispy toasted bun from Eat. This was topped with sauerkraut from Ann Arbor's own The Brinery, which specializes in fermented vegetables (and makes a kimchi which Tom adores!).

At $6 for this portion of our meal plus $4 for the salad, the mainstay of our shared dinner came in at precisely $5 per person, our Frugal Floozie Friday budget limit, and featured an entire array of handmade and locally sourced foods that were good both for us and for Michigan's economy ... how great is that?

And yet, the pièce de résistance was a flourless chocolate cake purchased at Darcy's Cart, which was topped with an amazingly generous slathering of homemade whipped cream (cream-to-cake ration of 2:1!). You can pay $3 for just the cake, but why not invest the extra $1 for the cream? Coupled with a refreshing $2 lemonade from the Eat cart, sharing the sweet portion of our meal provided another less-than-$5 per person option, perfect for an after-dinner treat.

But let me get on to describing the "cake," which was really more of a dense fudge than a traditional flourless dessert (i.e.: one made with ground nuts). It was so rich and luscious, and it really benefitted from the not-too-sweet cream that helped to balance the depth of its intensity.

Darcy's Cart, like the other vendors in the courtyard, proudly cooks with Michigan products and features a bulletin board giving credit to those who've contributed to that day's offerings:


Mark's Carts is a great idea, leaping into the street food phenomenon so popular in larger cities and helping to promote both local vendors and the Michigan suppliers whom they support. Head on over some time, and eat a little here and a little there - a wide variety of cuisines and treats - and enjoy the summer weather while having a fabulous meal!

Mark's Carts
211 W. Washington
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48104
734-224-8859


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Frugal Floozie Friday -- Leo's Coney Island

I recently had dinner with a friend I hadn't seen for quite some time, and we decided to make it a casual evening. An inexpensive but good-for-the-soul meal was in order.

So, where did we go? What is today's Frugal Floozie Friday feature???

Leo's Coney Island. Ya can't go wrong with hot dogs, that consummate comfort food!

There weren't terribly many options that would qualify for our $5 or less per person budget; however, I did manage to get both the requisite chili dog and some vegetables by ordering cole slaw on the side. Yes, I am happy to delude myself that this somehow constituted a semi-nutritious dinner!

And not only did I get a hot dog, but I ordered an all-beef kosher Coney dog ... oh, it was so good! Lots of rich chili and a generous supply of onions (thank goodness I wasn't kissing anyone!) completed the perfect package.

The cole slaw was creamy and had good flavor. Some people are very particular about these matters, but I'm a big fan of virtually any variety of cole slaw. I liked this one very much, and certainly recommend it as an accompaniment to the star of the show.

My friend also ordered the kosher Coney, because it was just the right thing to do. And he also ordered a small Greek salad (over the $5/person budget, but that was his choice) which was very generously topped with all the expected goodies of banana peppers, olives, cheese, beets and tomatoes.

Leo's provided a welcoming atmosphere where we loitered for quite some time, good hearty food, and excellent value for our money ... what more can you ask for? A worthy expenditure of $5!

Leo's Coney Island
3644 Carpenter Road
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
734-971-2388


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Frugal Floozie Friday: Food and Fun for Five Dollars or Less ... Really!!!

Opening Day!!!

Today is Opening Day of baseball season -- Tigers at Yankees at 1:05 p.m. EDT on ESPN. For a girl who grew up in New York City and who's lived near Detroit for more than 30 years now, this is a primo way to start things off!

Although I'm loathe to admit it -- and I do my very best to keep my grey roots hidden so that folks can't tell my age by counting the silver, the way they count rings in a tree! -- I have to admit that I'm old enough to remember those mid-70s commercials touting All-American icons: baseball, hot dogs, apple pie and Chevrolet.



And each year on Opening Day -- a day which, as far as I'm concerned, should be a national holiday 'cause folks are either playing hooky or watching games on MLB.tv, but they're sure not working! -- I can't help but think of the old ads.

Because I adore baseball -- I was raised on it, going to Mets games (one of my mother's best friends is married to one of their former coaches) ... Yankees games ... and actually being at Yankee Stadium on June 17, 1978 for the game in which Ron Guidry pitched 18 strikeouts to tie the American League record. I think the quadrennial (it should be annual!) World Baseball Classic is one of the greatest things in the entire universe, as I can wake up in the morning to watch a game pitting Japan against China, come home from work and watch Italy play the Netherlands, and then fall asleep watching Cuba play Canada. It just doesn't get much better in my world!

I raised Jeremy on it, too: minor league games, t-ball, Tigers games, even Alaska Baseball League games when we spent part of a summer in Anchorage while my ex-husband did a medical residency rotation at a Native Alaskan treatment center. (The Alaska Baseball League describes itself as "A Premier Summer Collegiate Baseball League Containing Players From Major Colleges Throughout The World".) And any time the University of Michigan's baseball team is playing on Mother's Day, that's where you'll find Jeremy and me -- 1 p.m. on May 8, this year!

I also love apple pie, and I just happen to drive a Chevrolet -- a Chevy Suburban. But my tradition is actually much simpler: hot dogs and Cracker Jacks, those consummate baseball foods. No beer necessary (don't like it at all) but maybe a soda, which I almost never drink, just 'cause it's a celebration!

So, what sorts of unofficial holidays do you celebrate? And how do you do so? Every family has its own traditions, after all, apart from those the rest of society acknowledges; and these are so important to pass along through generations, integral to forming a family identity.

Let me know ... and it's okay if you stop mid-typing to catch a great play or to take a bite of your hot dog while watching the game today. Have no fear -- I'll understand completely ... :)

30 Things I Vow to Do This Summer

To help ward off writer's block (yeah, like that could happen to someone like me!), I signed up for Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop which offers writing prompts. So, following down the proverbial primrose path of one of these suggestions, I hereby offer:

30 Things I Vow to Do This Summer (Or At Least, The Food-Related Plans!)

1. Make pesto.

2. Roast tomatoes and make a sauce.

3. Find ways to get Jeremy to eat more vegetables.

4. Pit cherries ... lots and lots and lots of cherries, 'cause I buy them in 10-pound boxes for several weeks in a row.

5. Shop at the Ypsilanti Depot Town Farmers Market some Saturday morning.

6. Make Panzanella with my freshly harvested tomatoes and basil.

7. Work on my gardens -- backyard and community.

8. Shop more at the Om Market for Indian groceries.

9. Work up to running to the Om Market (preferably without gasping for my last breath), which is a mile-and-a-half from my home, while Jeremy rides his bike ahead of me.

10. Eat at the new Mediterranean/Middle Eastern restaurant opening soon near my house.

11. Go back to Comet Coffee.

12. Go to Lab, a self-proclaimed "coffee + tea + yogurt experience," which serves my beloved Intelligentsia coffee.

13. Go back to Shalimar with Tom tomorrow night for a fabulous Indian dinner, just like we had on our first date.

14. Use the beautiful bottle of blood orange vinegar that I bought at Fox & Obel (an extraordinary gourmet market) in Chicago.

15. Write up posts about Jeremy's and my culinary adventures while we were in Chicago.

16. Work on my assorted and sundry sidebar projects, which have been sadly neglected in recent weeks.

17. Eat less meat.

18. Eat another Delicious Dogs on the Run hot dog ... perhaps at Art Fair.

19. Continue to look for quirky cookbooks as I peruse rummage sales.

20. Continue to look for intriguing plates and cups and whatnot while I'm at the aforementioned rummage sales, to use for photographing food.

21. Improve my food photography.

22. Try to enter more cooking contests.

23. Finish a book, particularly the one about being a personal chef on a yacht in the Mediterranean that I keep renewing from the library -- Mediterranean Summer: A Season on France's Cote d'Azur and Italy's Costa Bella by David Shalleck.

24. Make BLTs with tomatoes from my garden.

25. Make BLT pasta salad.

26. Bring a picnic to an outdoor concert.

27. Donate tomatoes to a program that feeds the hungry.

28. Make my prize-winning Ratatouille in August when the ingredients are freshly harvested.

29. Make Cherry Sorbet.

30. Make a lattice-topped Cherry Pie.


NOTE: Don't forget to check out the "thank you" post for my followers, and leave a comment at the end of it if you're interested in the gift drawing: "L'Chaim -- To Life!"

"Come and Run From the Heat in the Middle of a Sunlit Street"

Jeremy and I spent a fabulous sunny Saturday afternoon this past weekend simply enjoying downtown Ann Arbor, now that the students have moved home and the townies can have the city back again. Yeah, I'm one of those kvetching, crotchety folks who inherently know that the students (and I even used to be one of 'em here) are essential to the identity of this university town, but who rather enjoy having parking spots and sidewalks and restaurant tables available for us, too ... at least during the summer.

The title of this post, for those who don't recognize the line, is from Neon Indian's "Deadbeat Summer." Now, thanks to working and/or going to school each summer from the age of 14, then "real life" as a grown-up and stay-at-home mom before divorce made me a full-time employee in the working world, "deadbeat" is not a term I have the luxury of applying to myself during the summer (or at all). Too many responsibilities and obligations, too little sunshine on my shoulders! But that first line of the song definitely describes our Saturday adventure -- which was a much-needed and wonderful respite -- as does the next one: "I'd rather get something to eat."



And so, eat we did! Indecisive as always, and wanting to post a new restaurant review since I haven't done that for awhile, I tried to determine where to eat since Jeremy had told me it would be my pick. Pizza? Mexican? And then serendipity -- a hot dog vendor at the corner of Liberty and Maynard.

Now remember -- I can't usually eat standard hot dogs, bacon, ham, etc., because the sodium nitrite gives me a crushing headache reminiscent of what it must feel like to have one's head flattened under a cement truck ... or hit by an A-Rod line drive, as Cleveland Indians pitcher David Huff was on Saturday at Yankee Stadium. But my sinuses had been acting up that morning, hinting at a pending infection, so I'd taken the "big gun" meds to ward off the demons. I dared to hope that perhaps I had enough medically-beneficial chemicals floating through my bloodstream to counter the nasty effects of the soon-to-be-introduced-and-usually-toxic one.

And so, Jeremy and I walked on up to Delicious Dogs on the Run and chatted with a charming woman named Autumn who was wearing a Tigers cap and listening to the game ... gotta love a gal who loves baseball!!! (Oh, and how agonizing was Galarraga's almost-perfect game last night, 'til the ump blew the call on what shoulda been the 3rd out in the bottom of the 9th?!?!?) Hot dogs, jumbo hot dogs, kielbasa, turkey dogs, vegetarian creations, combos ... oh, what's a girl like me to do??? Autumn very helpfully recommended her own favorite, the Polish sausage; and so Jeremy and I each ordered Combo #3 with the sausage, a side of chips and a drink for the most reasonable price of $4.50 per person.

I asked if I could take a photo, explaining that I have a food blog and love to promote local businesses; Autumn was happy to oblige, and promised to look up Food Floozie even though I have apparently run out of cards and had nothing to give to her as a memento. (Gotta remedy that little situation ....)

After slathering my hot dog in mustard and digging a Vernor's (a sweet ginger ale made in Detroit that took me years to get used to, which I now love) out of the cooler after Jeremy chose an iced tea, we meandered across the street to sit in the sun and devour a truly fabulous lunch. The Polish sausage had exceptionally good flavor, was very juicy, and the skin had just the right "pop" when bitten into. The soda was not just chilled but downright cold, which was just what was needed on a hot day. Truly, it was perfection ... :)

And then it occurred to me -- with all my schmoozing and picture taking, I had completely forgotten to pay for our meal!!! So I ran back to Autumn's cart with profuse apologies; she, too, had neglected that little detail, so I didn't feel so bad -- it's not like I was intentionally doing a dine-'n'-dash!

I wholeheartedly endorse Autumn and her delicious wares, and I will definitely go back -- no headache for Mary after so many years of having to buy specialty items or feel like an outcast when others could enjoy a quick treat with protein and I was relegated to a bag of chips or a pretzel. Maybe it was Autumn's charm and welcoming smile that beat back the sodium nitrite heebie-jeebies ... I don't know. But until you've been denied something as simple as the pleasure of a hot dog on a summery day, you can't truly appreciate how genuinely I relished every single bite. Sometimes, it's the little things ....

Tomorrow, I will regale you with the tale of Comet Coffee, the most extraordinary coffee experience -- so, so far beyond being merely a coffee "shop." It was our next stop, the place to run from the heat ... but why use up all my stories in one post, when I've gotta write some sorta shpiel each day of this month for the NaBloPoMo???

Playing Catch Up

I've got little crumbs and tidbits to toss out here, ones which didn't necessarily warrant their own posts but which can combine themselves -- like leftovers! -- into a nifty little package. I could have milked these and stretched them, but why make the effort? It's easier to do a re-cap -- a buffet, if you will -- here ....

First course ....

When Jeremy and I ate at Neehee's a few weeks ago, I was sure that he'd love the masala dosa as much as I do ... and I was wrong. (Good thing I didn't place any bets!) He adored the dosa part -- the enormous lentil pancake -- but found the potatoes to be too spicy.

He did, however, thoroughly enjoy the mango ice cream I bought for him to make up for his not liking the dinner he'd invited me to and paid for; and he absolutely adored the sugar cane juice (on the left, in the photo; on the right is my mango lassi, which was rich and delicious ... a perfect accompaniment to spicy food). When I learned that Neehee's served this drink, I knew Jeremy would have to try it: he'd once sliced his finger (thankfully not damaging his guitar-playing ability!) in trying to cut a stick of sugar cane that I'd bought for him, and it was infinitely easier to simply place an order than it is to extract the sweetness oneself. With what seemed to be a hint of ginger, this was something Jeremy liked so much that he might almost make the 13-mile trek to Canton just for a cup of it!

Next course ....

Two weeks ago, Tom and I went to eat at Ray's Red Hots on East University, a place that he used to take his daughter to both when she would come to Ann Arbor to visit him on weekends and also while she was a U of M student. He had many fond memories of the place, so how could I not go? Yeah, I can't eat anything with sodium nitrite or else I get the disturbing sensation that my head is being crushed under a dump truck; but there had to be something on the menu that I could have without getting a migraine, right?

Well, not really. $6 hamburgers, which I wasn't willing to pay for. Lots of variations on hot dogs, more hot dogs, still more hot dogs, tempeh dogs (retch!) ... sigh. The one lone employee was very friendly, very sweet, and very helpful -- a presumed college kid whose mother raised him well. When we asked about the nitrites, he offered that the hot dogs were from a company that uses top quality ingredients; well, Hebrew National gets rabbinic certification for kashrut (kashrut = Jewish dietary laws, a.k.a.: being kosher), advertises that they "answer to a higher authority," and states on their website that they use "No fillers or by-products. No artificial flavors or colors" ... but they still use sodium nitrite as a preservative! So I am eternally leery, and was unwilling to take the risk.

So Tom and I shared an order of waffle fries in addition to his relishing -- ha! -- a Chicago-style hot dog. The fries were good; but in retrospect, I should have considered either the cheese or the chili on top of them ... either or both of these would have provided some protein and a few thousand extra calories, but they would have been perfect and luscious in a "white trash" kinda way.

Ray Charles was playing in the background, which only enhanced the dive-y charm of the little restaurant. And since the food is served in baskets rather than on plates, and one bears responsibility for bussing one's own table, I had to take a picture of the very cute sign reminding people that the serving-ware is not available to go home as souvenirs.

Been very busy and preoccupied today, and I still have to write up my Mexican Brownies for a pre-Cinco de Mayo post on AnnArbor.com; so I'm going to save the fish course I'd also planned to add to the buffet table for another time ....