The plumcot...why not?

Another fun find during the grocery shopping trip mentioned in my previous post were plumcots. If I'm not mistaken, they were on sale. Never having had a plumcot before, I decided it was high time to ride myself of that particular ignorance. I selected three succulent looking victims, (ended up being less a dollar for all three!), and added them to the already growing number of fresh fruits and veggies in my basket at the time.

Granted, like many Americans, I tend to be slow to actually snacking on fresh fruit when I'm standing in my kitchen looking for something to munch, so it's taken me a few days to actually get around to trying these pear-green beauties. I love plums, and I've recently become a fan of fresh apricots (I grew up eating the dried ones). True to my beliefs about trying new foods, I took a massive bite of the fruit, and let the juices run down my mouth. Upon first taste, it was like biting into a ball of honey. The flesh was extremely sweet and fairly mushy. The skin had a delightful tartness that cut into the almost unbearable sweetness.

I'm not really a fan of very sweet fruit, I actually prefer tartness. When shopping for grapes, most people sample them for sweetness; I go for the ones that look hard and will likely be more sour. Tart berries are the best. I even prefer watermelon that's not very sweet (I also like it warm rather than cold). So while it would be an overstatement to say I hate the plumcot, I'll just say I'm not really a fan. To each; her own. I've still got two more, and I promise you, they won't go to waste.

For the love of...

I recently made a promise to food. I promised I would be kind to it...give it a chance, and try not to judge it too much by it's appearance. When trying new foods, I've found diving in and taking a huge bite proves to be much more satisfying than taking a tentative nibble. It also helps avoid a premature proclamation of disdain. You really can't get the full, honest impression of something if your tongue approaches it with fear and trembling. I've trained my tongue to approach completely ready to fall in love. No hesitations or hiccups at the gateway of my taste buds. Thus far, this theory has provided me with countless treks to Yum-town. On a few occasions my tongue has found itself a bit incompatible with a few items, but that's to be expected. You can't really be a foodie if you have no discretion in your tastes. I've also found it's best not to ask what something is until after you've swallowed a good mouthful of it...possibly two. This tends to keep you honest. Think about it...how often have you tried something and liked it...until you found out what was in it? So what if that new dish you tasted is actually cow eyeballs boiled in rat dung puree? If you liked it when you tried it, then own up to it! Don't suddenly leave it hanging because you found out it doesn't run w/the cool crowd of ingredients. Alright, folks, enough of muh preachin', get out there and try something new!

Camping 2

Camping was tons of fun! The rain kind of followed us around for a bit, but didn't totally dampen our trip (pun intended). It was great being outdoors, and really taking/having the time to enjoy the beauty God has endowed all nature with. One of the things I enjoyed most was cooking over the open fire, and yes...I did bring my apron.

Here's what we had:

Friday
Lunch: PBJ sandwiches
Supper: Chili w/crackers

Saturday
Breakfast: Banana Pancakes
Lunch: Bean Burritos w/salsa
Supper: Grilled Cheese sandwiches, Tomato-Basil Soup, Sweet potato fries

Sunday:
Breakfast: Sweet potato pancakes
Lunch: Leftovers- PB&Banana Sandwiches, tomato soup, grilled cheese sandwiches, mashed sweet potatoes

We had TONS of fruit to snack on/for desert as well. Needless to say, we didn't starve. On the way back to home, we stopped in a neighboring town for supper. A cute, little Mexican restaurant. I had chicken enchiladas. Not bad. We got back in Sunday at close to midnight, so tired we could barely keep our eyes open.

Camping 1

So I'm pretty excited. This weekend, I'm going camping with some dear friends. What really excites me is the culinary challenge, as I have never cooked on a camping trip. I'm not exactly sure how it will turn out, but I know I'll enjoy the experience. Another frontier to be conquered! (not that I've conquered any frontiers) I'll let you know how it goes, of course. If you happen to have any menu suggestions, please post them in the comment section!!

Happy eating!