Food but not recipes

[Volkonski]

Made the mistake of reading this article and now I am hungry for a food item that is totally unavailable anywhere within about 1600 miles of here.

Note, in the context of this article "fried clams" refers specifically to fried whole steamers (aka soft shell clams aka Ipswich clams) and not fried clam strips which are an abomination the sale of which should be prohibited for the good of the country.

These 114 restaurants serve the best fried clams in Massachusetts, according to readers

https://www.boston.com/food/restaurants ... sachusetts

[Volkonski]

Trivia question- most of the clams eaten in the USA are what type of clam?

Answer- Atlantic surf clams.

These large (4.5" to 7.5") clams are used for clam strips, minced/chopped clams, clam juice, chowders and sushi.

Factoid- In the 1950's clam strips were popularized by the Howard Johnson's restaurant chain which served them under the trademark "Tendersweet". (They were in fact neither ).

[chancery]

Ha! I've spent the last year on Cape Ann, and a couple of months ago my girlfriend and I had a pleasant meal at the Clam Box in Ipswich, ranked second in that article, where the clams are very good and the restaurant building is a handsome specimen of what Robert Venturi (in Learning from Las Vegas) and Edward Tufte (in The Visual Display of Quantitative information) define as a "Duck."

In the summer of 2019 we visited friends in Hampton Bays on Long Island, not far from your summer cottage. I tried unsuccessfully to arrange a meet-up, but we were able to spend a pleasant interlude nearby at the original Big Duck on Route 24. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Duck

Off Topic

I'd be grateful if someone could explain why this wikipedia image won't display in the post:

[Volkonski]

Ha! I've spent the last year on Cape Ann, and a couple of months ago my girlfriend and I had a pleasant meal at the Clam Box in Ipswich, ranked second in that article, where the clams are very good and the restaurant building is a handsome specimen of what Robert Venturi (in Learning from Las Vegas) and Edward Tufte (in The Visual Display of Quantitative information) define as a "Duck."

In the summer of 2019 we visited friends in Hampton Bays on Long Island, not far from your summer cottage. I tried unsuccessfully to arrange a meet-up, but we were able to spend a pleasant interlude nearby at the original Big Duck on Route 24. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Duck

Off Topic

I'd be grateful if someone could explain why this wikipedia image won't display in the post:

[Chilidog]

I don't know why, but it seems like I've been eating a lot of middle eastern and Indian food lately.

I'm not a huge curry fan, but I do like butter chicken.

And we've been eating trader Joe's Shakshuka a lot.

It's a quick, easy meal.

[Chilidog]

My wife wants to try a vegetarian diet for a while. There's a place near us that has a weekly meal plan package. I'm not so sure I can do that for a sustained period, but I'm willing to give it a try for a couple weeks.

I need to drop a few lbs.

[Volkonski]

I don't know why, but it seems like I've been eating a lot of middle eastern and Indian food lately.

I'm not a huge curry fan, but I do like butter chicken.

And we've been eating trader Joe's Shakshuka a lot.

It's a quick, easy meal.

You and Mrs. V.

[Volkonski]

My wife wants to try a vegetarian diet for a while. There's a place near us that has a weekly meal plan package. I'm not so sure I can do that for a sustained period, but I'm willing to give it a try for a couple weeks.

I need to drop a few lbs.

If that doesn't work you could go Keto. Plenty of meat yet I lost 50 pounds so far.

Our SIL is vegan and our daughter doesn't eat meat. They are always cooking up wonderful smelling but carb heavy dishes. If I ate their diet I would gain 100 pounds. They both exercise a lot and are 30 years younger than I.

[bill_g]

Interesting, though pleasant, shopping experience at the new Smart Foodservice in Wilsonville yesterday. It is actually a public retail outlet for US Foodservice, a large restaurant supply company. I think it's a smart thing they did considering the restaurant business tanked over the last year. Judging by the link, Wilsonville is store #207 meaning they are probably available across the country. Whether these stores will last once we get past the covid limits on public dining is a question for another day. But, for the moment it appears we have a chance at commercial products at rock bottom prices, though in quantities we may have difficulty handling.

For example, everything is in bulk quantities. Ten pounds of anything is the small size. They have super fresh romaine in a five pack for under $3. That beats Costco, but you better have a buddy system in place with your neighbors cuz you can't freeze lettuce. The same $5 you spend for a teensy piece of bleu cheese at Safeway will get you a two pound bag at US Foods. For those who want a slice of good ol American cheese, they sell it by a block that should come with it's own back up alarm (beep beep beep). Need bleach? They got bleach, and they'll help you carry it to the car. Need compostable paper to-go ware? How about a lifetime supply of dried herbs? Soy sauce, fish sauce, or rice wine? Feel like bringing out your inner barrista?

Credit card only.

[Lani]

Factoid- In the 1950's clam strips were popularized by the Howard Johnson's restaurant chain which served them under the trademark "Tendersweet". (They were in fact neither ).

When I was little and was taken to the dentist or a doctor, I was promised I would get Howard Johnson fried clams if I was a good girl. That was when you parked outside and entered your order and someone would appear and hook a tray onto your car window. I loved them! During the summer, I lived on the Chesapeake Bay, which was a whole different appreciation of clams!

Now I'm hungry for clams.

[AndyinPA]

East Coast critters--clams, blue crab, lobster--can't be beat. I remember what a huge disappointment king crab was the first time I had it in Alaska. I was really looking forward to trying it, but it's nothing like Maryland blue. I've had lobster in different places around the world and have never had any as good as East Coast lobster. The best mussels I've ever had were in Norway, but I've had good mussels lots of places.

[Volkonski]

The Keto bread that Aldi Grocery Stores sell has become unavailable due to a problem at the baker that makes it. We are down to our last loaf.

[neonzx]

The Keto bread that Aldi Grocery Stores sell has become unavailable due to a problem at the baker that makes it. We are down to our last loaf.

Can you make it at home?

[MN-Skeptic]

The Keto bread that Aldi Grocery Stores sell has become unavailable due to a problem at the baker that makes it. We are down to our last loaf.

Can you make it at home?

I'm not much of a bread eater, but my husband loved good bread. When the first bread making machines came out years ago, I bought him one which he loved to use. I may not eat a lot of bread, but I do love the smell of baking bread. If I were you, I'd buy a bread making machine and google keto bread machine recipe. There are a number of recipes with very positive ratings.

[Volkonski]

The Keto bread that Aldi Grocery Stores sell has become unavailable due to a problem at the baker that makes it. We are down to our last loaf.

Can you make it at home?

In theory, yes. But getting the ingredients might take a little doing. Not going to find some of them in the baking section of a supermarket.

[sugar magnolia]

The Keto bread that Aldi Grocery Stores sell has become unavailable due to a problem at the baker that makes it. We are down to our last loaf.

Can you make it at home?

In theory, yes. But getting the ingredients might take a little doing. Not going to find some of them in the baking section of a supermarket.

They invented this thing called "Amazon" not long ago for hard to find items. You should check it out.

[MN-Skeptic]

Can you make it at home?

In theory, yes. But getting the ingredients might take a little doing. Not going to find some of them in the baking section of a supermarket.

They invented this thing called "Amazon" not long ago for hard to find items. You should check it out.

[neonzx]

Can you make it at home?

In theory, yes. But getting the ingredients might take a little doing. Not going to find some of them in the baking section of a supermarket.

They invented this thing called "Amazon" not long ago for hard to find items. You should check it out.

I'm pretty sure V and Ms. V can work this all. They have a nice kitchen, and sometimes, free time on their hands.

I'm gonna send them my address cause I want a loaf.

[Volkonski]

In theory, yes. But getting the ingredients might take a little doing. Not going to find some of them in the baking section of a supermarket.

They invented this thing called "Amazon" not long ago for hard to find items. You should check it out.

I'm pretty sure V and Ms. V can work this all. They have a nice kitchen, and sometimes, free time on their hands.

I'm gonna send them my address cause I want a loaf.

As with the ships waiting at Suez we hope this problem will resolve in less time than it would take to an alternative path (collect the ingredients and bake the bread ourselves). We have Carbquik and so can make biscuits if needed.

[Maybenaut]

East Coast critters--clams, blue crab, lobster--can't be beat. I remember what a huge disappointment king crab was the first time I had it in Alaska. I was really looking forward to trying it, but it's nothing like Maryland blue. I've had lobster in different places around the world and have never had any as good as East Coast lobster. The best mussels I've ever had were in Norway, but I've had good mussels lots of places.

I don’t eat anything with an exoskeleton.

[filly]

East Coast critters--clams, blue crab, lobster--can't be beat. I remember what a huge disappointment king crab was the first time I had it in Alaska. I was really looking forward to trying it, but it's nothing like Maryland blue. I've had lobster in different places around the world and have never had any as good as East Coast lobster. The best mussels I've ever had were in Norway, but I've had good mussels lots of places.

I don’t eat anything with an exoskeleton.

Allergies?

Because mollusks and shellfish are some of the great joys of my life. But I might have to take an antihistamine with lobster, which is very distressing.

[sugar magnolia]

Crawfish, lobster, shrimp, soft shelled crab, crab claws, as much as I can eat, in no particular order.

[Maybenaut]

I don’t eat anything with an exoskeleton.

Allergies?

Because mollusks and shellfish are some of the great joys of my life. But I might have to take an antihistamine with lobster, which is very distressing.

I have allergies, but not to any of that stuff. It just skeeves me out.

[filly]

I get it. I grew up with it and it was a real treat in my house so maybe that's why I like seafood so much. I guess you're a "no" for the Annual Good Friday Crawfish Boil?

[Lani]

I love shrimp the most, but also like lobster and crab. I haven't eaten oyster or clams for years, mainly because they aren't popular here. I had a very severe reaction to mussels decades ago and haven't touched one since.

TBH, I buy shrimp, lobster & crab, but I get products that have already been cleaned up. I hate stripping the shrimp and cracking lobster & crab shells. UGH. GROSS. I also avoid passing by a meat counter that has pig heads.