Post Screws Around With Grape-Nuts
Most cereal is candy masquerading as breakfast. Mrs. Fussy and I were running errands together yesterday and found ourselves in the cereal aisle. She doesn’t get out much, and was shocked to see how much food wasn’t actually food.
It was difficult for her to find a box of something boring. She loves boring cereal.
The game I play with the kids when we shop together is to look for a box of cereal that looks like the least fun cereal in the entire store. They are remarkably good at finding something that will suit their mother.
I’m trying to eat healthier too. But when I’m in rural PA and can’t find lightly sweetened organic flakes made from heritage grains, my fall back option has always been Grape-Nuts. Except there was a problem. As I was giving Mrs. Fussy the business about why she should read the ingredients on her generic bran flakes, I remembered to take my own good advice and double checked that the ingredients on this 116 year old brand remained unchanged.
After reading the label, I put the cereal back on the shelf, and walked away crestfallen.
Trucker
Well we made it to Pennsylvania. And let me tell you, I have a new appreciation for truckers.
I drove the smallest U-Haul for the better part of seven hours. It’s only ten feet long and it was filled with half of our worldly possessions. That was harrowing. Trucks are all about blind spots. And it probably took at least 100 miles until I stopped reflexively trying to look in the rearview mirror. But even a small truck has a lot more mass and momentum than any SUV or van I’ve ever driven. It’s big.
What set this trip apart from all the other big drives from Albany to Bedford was that it was a solo journey. And that meant that I could eat whatever I wanted.
Moving On
Wow. What a ride. I rode into town six years ago as a displaced ad guy with a kid. I knew nobody. When I looked around at the local food scene I sunk into a deep depression. Our fanciest restaurant was proudly proclaiming their farmed Atlantic salmon on the menu, and there was no place to get a grassfed burger. God help you if you wanted an espresso.
Now I’ve got a house, two kids, and thousands of people who read my thoughts about food every month. Thousands? That’s nuts. But more importantly, the food in the Capital Region has decidedly improved tremendously. Maybe I was able to help give some of these places a push. Maybe I just happened to hop on the wave at the right time.
I don’t know. But I do know there is still work to be done. And I’m shocked to find that I’m reluctant to leave. However, it was family that brought me here. It’s family that’s taking me away. And it’s family that’s going to bring me back eleven months from now.
Nobody can say what the next year will bring to food in the Capital Region, but here are a few of my thoughts.
Last Pan Standing
Packing up the kitchen is traumatic. Even after I cooked our last meal, the cookware remained in the kitchen. And last night, we still sat around the dining room table eating leftovers warmed up in one of the All-Clad saucepans. You know, since I refuse to have a microwave.
But now all the cookware is packed. All but for the cast iron skillets.
They are my babies. And they get packed last. These mighty pans may even get to ride in the front of the cab with me. I haven’t figured that part out yet. I’ve also kept two cocktail mixing spoons out of the box. Don’t laugh: with their long handles they are quite a versatile tool. As our last remaining metal utensil, they may help to scramble one or two last eggs later today.
I’m not letting go of cooking. You can pry my pans from my cold dead hands. But speaking of not letting go, there is someone else I want to tell you about. And I am pretty sure he’s been writing since before I was born. Now he is blogging. Actually he’s been doing that for awhile too. And really, the only thing that his blog needs is you.
Best and Last
We’re down to the last few days. I pull out of here on Wednesday. And I’ve been continuing my goodbye tour. We had a last taste of Crisan on Saturday. Friday I made it to the Cookie Factory and Gus’s.
But at home we’ve now packed all the plates. We’re eating off paper for the last meals at home. And I don’t expect to be using too many more of them since today my job is to pack up the cookware.
That means last night was our last homemade dinner in this house for a year. And I think I did an impressive job at using up a lot of delicious odds and ends. I’ll tell you about that. But I also need to weigh in on this Metroland Best of the Capital Region Dining list too.
However, given the limitations of my remaining time, that will have to be in lightning round style.
Bye Bye Booze Bottles
The goodbye tour continues. I’ve been trying to stop at all of my favorite places, and try some new ones before I leave.
Yesterday I said goodbye to Sweet Sue at her shop, and shook hands with Vic as he was working with his crew on The Grocery. I had a last batch of zippy sauce from Famous Lunch and made a point to re-taste the croissant at the Placid Baker. There were the quesadillas from Troy’s quesadillery. And of course I had to take the kids to Bella Napoli for a Boston cream donut and a fudge fancy.
By the way, why didn’t anyone tell me they have cold brewed iced coffee at Placid Baker? Come on people! This thing works both ways.
Earlier this week I took a quick trip to the Berkshires. There I discovered a place that’s doing an amazing 12 hour drip cold brew iced coffee extraction. It’s mesmerizing to watch that contraption work. And it was without a doubt the most expensive iced coffee of my life. But since I was driving past Valatie, I took a few minutes to drop in on my friends at Harvest Spirits. It wasn’t just a social call. I was there to take care of two important pieces of business.
Use It or Lose It
Talk about mixed blessings. My last story on All Over Albany was all about what to eat when it’s brutally hot outside, and it happened to run the week the weather broke. Now it’s delightful in the Capital Region, which renders my recommendation useless. On the plus side, we turned off the air conditioning, drove around with the windows open, and even enjoyed some time outdoors.
It was even cool enough to do all the cooking that has piled up over the last couple of weeks.
Here’s the thing. With the move, we’ve been working on emptying out the pantry in addition to the liquor cabinet and the chest freezer. And in one marathon cooking session I used up all the sweet potatoes, canned diced tomatoes, and semolina flour. I also made a considerable dent in the eggs, parm-reg and ricotta.
I can’t seem to find the comment in the archive. But there was someone who had wondered why we’re simply not just moving our comestibles down to Princeton. They must not have used a question mark. But it’s a good question. And really, there are many answers.
AskTP – Boxes Boxes Everywhere
I have no idea where I’ll be the next time Ask the Profussor rolls around. Maybe I’ll be in Providence. It’s possible I’ll be in remote rural Pennsylvania, or maybe basking in the bright lights of midtown Manhattan. August is going to be a month of traveling before getting the key to our new place in Princeton at the beginning of September.
Daily posts at this point are as much a compulsion as anything else. Still, it’s possible that in the chaos of the move, or with the pitfalls of spotty internet access while traveling, that August will see some occasional dark days.
I know, perish the thought. A day without Fussy is like a day without sunshine. Still, you will have the blogroll. And there is always the archive. That stuff goes back all the way to the beginning.
Speaking of the beginning, way back then I committed to answering every question asked of me in the comments section. And I’m keeping good to my word. The only caveat is that questions need to include a question mark. You know, because if they don’t, it’s a statement and not a question.
So without any further ado, here’s what slipped through the cracks this go around.
Purveyors of Fine Meats and Cheeses
Before we get started, I have to say that you all are amazing. Reading through the comments yesterday, I was really impressed with the level of discourse on such a heated topic. Wow. Seriously, I feel lucky to have you as readers and as participants in this conversation.
Okay. Gushing aside, there’s some business that you should know about. Katrinella’s has closed. The Hong Kong Bakery is reopening tonight on Wolf Road (and I fully expect it to be awesome). Guilderland Restaurant Week is happening now (but the real treat is a discount class with dinner at Different Drummer’s Kitchen). But if you are going out to eat in Guilderland, it should be to Sushi Tei because they are offering $1 pieces of nigiri through July 30 in celebration of their anniversary.
I’m also behind the eight ball because yesterday’s previously scheduled post got preempted by the news from last weekend. Tomorrow is the last Ask the Profussor before I leave town for the year. And I’m up to my neck in boxes. Soon, it will be time to pack the plates and cookware. Then I’ll be totally screwed
But last Friday it was hot and I didn’t feel like turning on the oven even to simply reheat a store bought roast chicken. So what’s a food-loving family to do? The answer was cold cuts.
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