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Thursday, July 18, 2013
Family, Food Trucks and Cupcake Wars
Food Trucks and Cupcake Wars
Warning-if you aren’t into food; this week may not be for
you.
A few weeks ago I was hanging out with our son and daughter,
Adam and Sam (I don’t like the added “in-law” when it comes to my kids) and we
somehow turned on the TV and were watching the Cooking Channel. It’s owned by the Food Network and seems to
either show older shows from the later or have shows that are slightly upgraded
in ideas.
Anyway, we were watching a show devoted to the Food Truck
craze called “Eat St.” and one of the trucks was right here in the Phoenix
area. It’s called The Short Leash. All hot dogs, but done in a different way.
At least that’s the way they presented it. It was interesting enough that Sam and I
decided we wanted to try it. Knowing our
husbands love hot dogs we figured this was an easy field trip. Adam seemed to be listening intently to the
show and knew his dad would go along with us on this ride.
We “liked” the FaceBook page and we printed out the July
calendar. Tuesday worked for all of us
as both men had the day off. Adam and
Sam had a host of doctors’ appointments that day and the opening of the truck
was after the first one and before the second.
Perfect.
It was going to be in the lot by Urban Cookie. I kept saying “I’ve heard of Urban Cookie,
just don’t know where.”
We arrived. We
ordered. All the dogs were wrapped in
homemade naan. Turned out to be our
favorite part of the lunch-that naan was delish! Anyway, we all tried the fried pickles.
Yummo. The jar said
“medium dill”-but these were sweet and ended with a nice wallop of just enough
heat. They were coated in panko and
fried until nice and crisp.
As for the hot dogs, we had several choices: veggie (you know I took that version),
chicken, bratwurst, spicy and traditional beef.
Adam and Sam chose the chicken and Steve decided on the
traditional. Now for the unique part,
we had some good options, here’s how we enjoyed our first food truck
experience:
Adam had the strangest:
• Bear
Peanut Butter, Cracker Jacks, smoked Gouda, Bacon and BBQ Sauce
Peanut Butter, Cracker Jacks, smoked Gouda, Bacon and BBQ Sauce
Sam tried: • Lady
Chipotle Cream Cheese, sautéed Onions, fried Pickles
Chipotle Cream Cheese, sautéed Onions, fried Pickles
Steve went with: • Moki
Roasted Green Chilies, sautéed Onions, fresh Tomatoes, Pinto Beans, Cheddar Cheese and Mayo
Roasted Green Chilies, sautéed Onions, fresh Tomatoes, Pinto Beans, Cheddar Cheese and Mayo
And last, I decided on:
• Aiko
Mango Chutney, diced Jalapenos, Red Onions, fresh Cilantro and Mayo
Mango Chutney, diced Jalapenos, Red Onions, fresh Cilantro and Mayo
It was incredibly hot and the wait for our meal took about
20 minutes. We all agreed that it looked
better on TV. It’s not that it was bad, but we all had suggestions about how it
could’ve been better with some very small adjustments. We thought the texture would have improved
everything if the various hot dogs would have been split open and grilled until
crisp. Everyone but me had a frank that
at least went from top to bottom of the naan-mine was half the size of the
flatbread which meant I was eating only the condiments until I got to the
middle. While Sam’s was so hot she had
to wait to pick it up-mine was cold due to the mango chutney coming out of the
fridge. Adam said his would’ve been
better if the cracker jacks had been recognizable.
Now for the Urban Cookie!
Folks if you’re ever in the Phoenix area-hunt this little place up! I knew I had heard of them-2 years ago they
were the winners of The Cupcake Wars show.
They also do some incredible cookies and scones. Adam and Sam were so hot that they bought
themselves the ice cream sandwich which was huge and made with almond macaroons
and homemade vanilla ice cream.
Since we treated for lunch, they splurged and bought a dozen
cupcakes for the family dinner that night.
The cupcake of the week was S'mores.
They had their winning Olive Oil and Orange cupcake there to try. The choices were unique and the best
part? I had a vegan/non-dairy one to
try! Banana spice. It was so nice to be part of dessert for
once! And I didn’t have to make it.
I also picked up a few ideas for some new cookies. I really like the idea of dried pineapple and
coconut chips in an oatmeal base.
Family and food go hand in hand and while we had a day of
trying new things-it was also fun to sit down to a healthy (read that “make
amends”) dinner of grilled salmon, True Foods kale salad and some artisan whole
grain bread with honey and seeds.
Hope you all had the same great times with your family!
