Random Tater Pic of the Day #87

These are oven roasted butternut squash fries, are they the new sweet potato fries?

French Fry Diary 460: Two Amish Farm Markets

My friend Marni is always on the lookout for interesting subjects for the French Fry Diary. Recently she procured two items, from two different Amish Farmers Markets in South Jersey. First, from Bridgeton, she got homemade BBQ potato chips, then from Vineland, onion ring snacks.

The BBQ potato chips, which looked to be more crushed pieces than actual chips, were from Esh's Bulk Food & Candy at The Greater Bridgeton Amish Farm Market, and cost roughly $3.50 a pound. That's much less expensive than regular chips, but of course, in smaller pieces.

Before even trying these chips, I have to admit, one of the ingredients kinda turned me off a bit. The label listed "Selected potatoes, shortening (lard) and salt." Oookay. Lard is never appetizing, but I had to wonder - where was the BBQ seasoning? Or was it just salt?

There is some sort of seasoning, but it was definitely a weak sister to most BBQ seasonings, and not listed on the ingredients. That of course, sadly, wasn't the taste that bugged me about these rather bland chips. I couldn't seem to place it but I didn't really want to eat many if these. They made me a little queasy. If I'm being completely honest, I didn't like these at all. Sorry, Marni.

The onion rings were more accurately onion flavored snacks and came from CK Nut & Candy LLC at the Landis Marketplace in Vineland. Their ingredient list seemed a bit more familiar and straight forward. That was a relief.

For onion snacks they were a bit more orange than most I've seen. That color was misleading as they weren't as spicy as I suspected. But it should be mentioned they also weren't as oniony either. They were quite good, if a bit bland. I liked these, complete opposite of the chips, clear keepers.

Thanks again, Marni!

Random Tater Pic of the Day #86

Don't even ask, I don't even get it.

The caption to the image says: "I swear, Batman, If you ate my fries… Mini-Batman’s Adventure Time Adventures - Part Three Batman, why did you eat my fries?"

Seriously, I don't get "Adventure Time," if you can explain it to me, a fan of both Batman and French fries, it would be appreciated. Thanks!

French Fry Diary 459: Steamables

While looking for the regular Simply Potatoes I usually get for Christmas breakfast I saw these. Also from Crystal Farms Simply Potatoes, here comes Steamables - this particular variety is Rustic Italian Seasoned Russet Wedges. The best part? They steam right in the bag in your microwave.

I was all over this. A quick and easy side is always welcome. But steamed in the microwave, obviously crispy is out of the question, so these would be like baked potatoes. I could live with that. I popped them in the nuke.

While in the nuke I was a bit worried as the bag was plumped up like a balloon about to burst, more extreme than I had ever seen in a cook-in-a-bag food before. Like I said I was a bit concerned, however the aroma coming from the nuke was wonderful. Lotsa garlic.

The inside of the microwave was wet when they were done, and the bag was wrinkled and wet. When coming out of the bag, they clumped into the plate in an unappetizing lump. This didn't look good and it didn't bode well.

I added some salt and some butter to taste. The seasonings are a good Italian mix, the garlic however was overpowering. Over and above that, these are good as baked potatoes. Soft and hot perfection as a baked potato should be, with a pleasant aftertaste.

These Steamables don't look great, but they taste good, and with a bit of work on presentation, can make a great side for your meal. I think I would definitely try these again.

French Fry Diary 458: Freaky Eaters II

Yeah, I know, after last time, I should just avoid this TLC show like the plague. This is the show that finds folks who are addicted to one particular food, and then they display them like freaks and try to force Health Nazi therapy on them.

I've hated this program every time I've watched, but they drew me in again with another episode about French fries. In this case it's Eric, and as the highly original episode title states, he's "Addicted to French Fries," and Doctors Dow and Virgin are back to browbeat the poor young man into changing his ways.

Amber, the young woman in the first episode had a genetic condition, and like the Clockwork Orange mad scientists they are, Dow and Virgin tried to change her. What was odd was that Amber's daughter, who did not have the condition, they didn't give a crap about. Her daughter was why Amber was on the show.

540 pounds of fries... 

Here, Eric was already being harangued by a nagging wife and mother. I was sure Dow and Virgin would just add to it. Now here's the kicker, Eric is Eric Willmann, of The Daily Fry, which is linked here on the sidebar to the left. Yeah, it's true, Eric is my brother from another mother, a fellow French fry blogger. I was shocked that Dow and Virgin were after one of us. We are an endangered species after all.

The two Doctors' first plan of attack is to show Eric what's going in his body, first a vat of transfat (not pretty), and then 540 pounds of French fries. I had to wonder what happens after this vulgar display. Do they throw the fries out? What about the people who don't have enough to eat, and these two are throwing out 540 pounds of fries! They called it a 'box of death,' so I guess the homeless starve tonight...

Dow and Virgin

Next they gave poor Eric blood tests, with results indicating high cholesterol and potential heart disease. Not funny, and very serious. That's how determined they were to break this active skateboarder who liked writing about French fries. In the end, they did break him. He ate pizza and they skateboarded, I'm sure for the producers, that was a great end to the show.

Eric Willmann of The Daily Fry

However, anyone that clicks the link for The Daily Fry knows what the real loss is. They killed a fellow blogger. Nothing since August of 2011. Eric is doing well. He's not as picky an eater as he used to be. I would assume he's healthier, but he's not writing about the favorite fried food any more.

At least not yet, but here's Eric himself answering my question about it in the comments section of his blog. I asked: "…why did you stop updating your blog here? Was it because you aren’t eating fries that often any more?"

And here's Eric's reply a few days later: "I have only been eating fries once a week. But I should start updating again here soon. keep posted".

There you go. Time will tell…

Random Tater Pic of the Day #85

For today's Somebody Else's Fries we have these terrific Steak Frites from Parc Brasserie on Rittenhouse Square over in Philadelphia. Sadly, I have forgotten who sent this one to me. Anyone want to take credit?

French Fry Diary 457: Herr's Onion Rings

Every once in a while I need a break from French fries, potato chips, and even onion rings, so I try something different - onion ring flavored snacks. I've done a few of these, finding the 7-Eleven Select brand the best of the bunch. Recently I picked up a package of the Herr's variety at my local Wawa - Herr's Onion Rings.

Like most onion flavored snacks, these aren't really onion rings at all but corn meal covered in onion powder. Some have a bit more kick, but the Herr's rings are -just- that, some salt, and a whole lotta multisyllable chemicals.

The onion flavored corn meal rings aren't bad, but they aren't that great either. They are a little grainy, and could not only use more of a kick, they could use more flavor as well. As a rule, I am usually pretty pleased with Herr's products, but this is an exception.

Herr's Onion Rings are all right in a pinch, or an impulse buy, but if I want an onion flavored snack, I'm going to 7-Eleven.

Random Tater Pic of the Day #84

 

Today's Somebody Else's Fries belong to my man Terry. A recent dinner was comprised of fish and steak fries with a generous portion of ketchup. Looks good, man!

French Fry Diary 456: Little Louie's BBQ

A family member took a bad fall, so they was rushed to Cooper Hospital in Camden. I went up Haddon Avenue past the Pop Shop, as this was the most direct route to the hospital, I past a restaurant I had never seen before. Once the emergency was over, and everything had settled down, I had more time to investigate this new find. So something good did come of it.

Little Louie's BBQ is up the road a bit from the Pop Shop, just outside the bustling heart of Collingswood. It had its own parking lot so no outlandish parking fees, plus number one, and I had heard the ribs were very good. That put it high on the list for the mother-in-law, my favorite rib connoisseur. So The Bride, her mom, and I made plans for dinner at Little Louie's.

We went in on a Saturday night, didn't need reservations, and I was quite surprised to see that it wasn't crowded. Folks from out of the South Jersey area might not know, but Collingswood is a hot bed of trendy popular restaurants. If it's a restaurant in Collingswood on a Saturday night - it should be packed. And honestly after our meal, I have to say again - it should have been packed. Hope this review can get the word out.

The place has a stark but warm atmosphere, with old western movie posters on the walls, and a great view of Haddon Avenue. Like at Famous Dave's, they had a roll of paper towels at the table as opposed to napkins. Also at the table they had mild and hot barbeque sauces. In my opinion they needed one in between those two extremes.

I got the foot long hot dog, on a toasted long roll. The dog was just the way I like them, very crunchy, very juicy and very good. It was big, not just long, but thick. Well done as if done on a grill, as was the roll, it was a big meal. As sides I got fries (of course) and baked beans, although I got coleslaw instead. No harm, no foul, I guess.

The fries were awesome. These are hand cut, as in individually hand cut, natural cut fries. These were unevenly cut, some thick, some thin, like you would make at home if slicing them up yourself. They were soft and hot on the inside, and crisp on the outside - serious, nearly perfect fries. I couldn't get enough. They come in a larger portion, which will be what I order next time we come here.

All in all this was a wonderful dinner with The Bride and her mom. Terrific big servings on everything, although I could have definitely had more fries. Like I said, these were fantastic fries. Highly recommended.

French Fry Diary 455: Smashburger 2013

Here it is, the report from the annual trip to Smashburger on New Year's Day. I had anticipated this year getting together a whole expedition to go from folks at the NYE party the night before, but it didn't work out. Hangovers do that. And the couple we had wanted to come with us passed because of vegan issues.

I countered with the argument that Smashburger had a wide variety of vegan and/or vegetarian offerings, including a veggie burger and several flash-fried veggies as sides. I was told that just going to Smashburger, and giving them their business, would be like saying what they do is okay, and for them - it's not.

I understand completely. No harm, no foul. We're cool. But it did get me thinking. I suppose there are a lot of folks who feel that way, and it made me wonder. Are the fast food burger outlets just wasting their time by making vegan/vegetarian offerings available, when those folks won't be coming in any way? I would love to hear the thoughts of folks out there in the foodie blogosphere.

Now, on to the regularly scheduled annual Smashburger visit. Unlike the last two years we had been here to the Riverside Square Mall location, the place was packed, and hopping for New Year's Day lunch. After placing our order and sitting down, The Bride and I busied ourselves on our iPhones playing the BurgerSmasher game. You can test your skills here making burgers the Smashburger way.

Our shakes came to the table first. I got a big thick chocolate shake, as thick as McDonald's used to have, and Sonic still does. The Bride thought her Oreo shake was very good. They come in a glass, with more in the mixing cup so you know they did it right. In hindsight, this was the best part of the meal right there.

After the last two trips here, I elected to skip the Smashfries this time, in favor of the delicious Haystack Onions. These thinly sliced and deep-fried onions are a bit greasy, but very good. I ordered my Smashburger plain, as usual, but piled some of those onions on top of the patty. Both the burger and the onions were awesome. The burgers are always good.

Of course, the burger and onions only brought to mind the lunch of the previous day, and I have to say, Smashburger paled in comparison to Little Shanty in nearby Warren NJ. Now I hope to get there sooner, but I think next year we'll have a new tradition, lunch at Little Shanty both New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. Sorry, Smashburger.