Beat the Heat Smoothie

Here we are at the start of another week long heat spell. I have been trying to stay cool by going to the gym (air conditioned) and making a nice frozen blender smoothie in the afternoons. 

I usually have several bags of fruit in the freezer; diced bananas, halved strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. When in season, I'll have frozen diced peaches and apricots as well. I freeze the fruit by first place the prepared fruit on a cookie sheet, stick it in the freezer, and then put the frozen fruit in zip lock freezer bags.

For this afternoons smoothie, I combined frozen bananas, strawberries and blueberries, a teaspoon of bee pollen and a squirt of honey. Ahhhhhhhhh

Having my Cake

My Favorite slice of cake is "Devels Food Cheesecake" and can be found at Juniors Restaurant. I used to live in Brooklyn not far from the original 'Juniors'. They also have excellent coffee,, freshly ground just before brewing. The two together are just outstanding.

Our Original New York cheesecake is combined with our famous Devil’s Food Cake. Recently featured on the Food Network's "Throwdown with Bobby Flay." Layers of rich chocolate cake and fudge frosting adorned with devilishly large chocolate chips and shavings.

When Blind Wins Out

"Two Buck Chuck's" as Trader Joe's Charles Shaw Brand house wine is affectionately called, hit the shelves at our very own Trader Joe's Wine Store on 14th Street here in Manhattan several months ago. Except here, it's $2.99, or "Three Buck Chuck's".

- Bobby L. on review site Yelp.com says, "I recommend the "3 buck chuck" for pure non-snobish enjoyment".

- Brett W. says "Who needs a therapist when you have Trader Joe's Wine Shop?"

- Alan G. "A classic case of "what's not to like?"

I've been bringing Trader Joe's wonder wine to dinner gatherings and pot lucks for awhile now.. always reassuring people that the wine had 'won awards',, but I never really knew what those awards were, or who gave them, or when this happened.

So, I decided to put this mystery to "Google". It wasn't easy to find. A lot of bloggers and writers write about the award, but I couldn't quite find out the specifics. But apparently, the 2005 Chardonnay, in a "blind test" won out with the judges at the California State Fair Wine Competition. Jim Gordon blogs the Two-Buck-Chuck Blind Taste at WineMag.

Hmmmmmm,, So if someone actually saw the label, they wouldn't consider it? Maybe the 'blind test' is the only way Chuck can be taken seriously. In the mean time, 'Three' or 'Two Buck' Chuck is still a phenomenon and a perfectly fine choice for most any occasion.