Category Archives: Rants & Raves

Because sometimes I am not sure what will come out of my mouth- so Rants & Raves us my melting pot of commentary

Some Home Cooking to get me back in practice (Part 1)

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IMG_2946 IMG_2951 IMG_2952After several weeks of vacation and a lot of work travel I haven’t been able to cook as much as I tend too. So when Paul got word about his promotion, it was a good reason to try out a few new recipes I have been waiting on.

First off was the Pineapple Upside-down cake; for some reason I had a craving for its sweet and gooey texture when I got back from Provincetown. I cheated some and used a Duncan Hines box as the starter (and they were recently on sale) along with canned Pineapple. The recipe I started with is below and my changes are in red.

  • ½ cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, melted
  • 1 cup firmly packed brown sugar [I prefer dark but light will do]
  • 1 can (20 oz.) pineapple slices, drained and lightly patted dry
  • 4 Maraschino cherries, halved [I forgot to buy them..]
  • 1 package Duncan Hines®  Signature Pineapple Cake Mix
  • 1 package (3.4 oz.) vanilla instant pudding and pie filling [I actually use coconut instant pudding – it adds a different yet subtle taste.]
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup water
  • ½ cup oil
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • pitch of salt

Intructions:

Now the cast Iron pan I use is larger than the one they recommend by an inch or two.. but that just means it won’t be a high

  • Preheat oven to 350°F.
  • Melt butter in 12-inch skillet with oven-proof handle or cast iron skillet. [Because I use a cast iron skillet, I actually put the pan in the oven while it heat up, then once hot, put in on the burner while I add the butter to melt]
  • Remove from heat. Evenly sprinkle with brown sugar.
  • Arrange pineapple slices on top of mixture and place cherries in center of each pineapple; set aside.
  • Combine cake mix, eggs, water, oil, salt, vanilla and instant pudding in large bowl.
  • Beat with an electric mixer at medium speed for 2 minutes. [Mixing by hand works perfectly fine as well]
  • Pour batter evenly over fruit in skillet.
  • Bake 50 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. [My oven had the cake perfect at 42 minutes – but had I wanted a more well cooked top, I could have left it in longer.]
  • Cool cake completely on wire rack in the pan. While it cools the dome in the middle will sink down and flatten out.
  • Invert onto serving plate.

Now to kick this up a few notches – you could drizzle in rum over the cake while it is still warm.. I am just saying..

 

Angel Mornings @ Gifford House

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I have been lucky to have the generous tasting of these folks from the different locations in Ptown over the last few years – so was excited to check them out at the Gifford House in a traditional dinning room setting.

I am so glad we did. A great menu – actually pretty large by Ptown standards for breakfast fare. It’s not going to rock your socks off  “ambiance” wise – the room is basic to what it needs to be – but the flavor and food quality is where it is at. They make basic ingredients, taste the way they are supposed too and they invite you to “kick it up a notch” with the graceful punch of seasoning and combinations. From the egg scramble with sausage to the omelettes.. I could eat here every morning.imageCheck out the full image

menu. They are open 8am to 2pm and the entire Menu Served All Day

508-487-8600

 

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Jimmy’s HideAway simply can’t be beat

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Really is no way to get creative when place is simply “always good”. Jimmy’s Hideaway  is that for us. No matter when we go – it is consistently working at the top levels of quality. From the subtle flavors of the Avocado & Cucumber soup or the Watermelon, Tomato and Feta appetizer to the equally as filling and rich entrees. For our last visit, we ended up ordering the same two app’s we did in previous year – but did realize we did until we tasted them and the memories flooded back. For our Entree, we went with the Organic Statler Chicken Breast, dressed in herbed lemon and sage with a roasted shallot au jus, piled high over a sinfully good smoked gouda corn bread pudding and grilled broccolini. Like with the apps, I ordered for the nights specials menu and selected the Lobster Fra Diavolo. Rich and spicy this plate is not for those with sensitive tummy’s with i’s complex spices, sauce and cooked lobster.

Jimmy’s HideAway

179 Commercial  St. Provincetown, MA. 02657

Reservations recommended 508 487-1011

on Facebook, or visit them on the web: www.jimmyshideaway.com

 

 

It’s happening again! #Ptown24

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I got a chance to participate in this last year and I have to say it was really a lot of fun. Seeing other folks images that had been in similar places over the course of day, taken over different times and angles.

It really resonates with the diversity and history that Provincetown offers and how we all saw things differently, but when packaged together for those 24 hours create a cohesive story.

Any of you local peeps or those of you planning to be on vacation in town August 24th think about taking part #PTown24 . It’s really easy to participate and you help build a part of local history as well as capture moments in time.
Share the word

Sponsored by Provincetown Community Television and LIPTV, special thanks to the #Ptown24 folks whose contributions appear in this video!

The Canteen is not to be overlooked

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Canteen was one of the suprises when they first opened in 2013 that has managed to keep it a favorite casual meal spot. With its rough and simple “shake-like chaos” to the incredible fresh and vibrant flavors – Canteen is always a perfect way to each and people watch. One of the signature dishes is the fried brussels sprouts. In fact that was was usually brings us in. They manage to do make the smoky, crispy and tender all at the same time. It’s like “vegetable crack”. 1001572_10201541924447545_1570023088_n-2

But on this trip it was all about the hot  “lobster roll”. While some folks prefer the cold kind blended with mayo – I much prefer my warm (barely cooked) and dressed with butter.  In this Canteen blew us away. Often time we here people refer lobster meat as being “sweet’. Generally it’s not and an imagebe rubbery and tough. Canteen manages to bring the sweetness out, kisses its with butter and lovingly scoop it into the grilled role. This is a “not to miss” dish.  Note: they have a back eating area that often time people miss.. so don’t be turned away if you don’t see seating in the front.

Check them out on Facebook or visit them on the web at thecanteenptown.com or Yelp

225 Commercial Street
Provincetown, MA 02657

Open lunch and dinner
11 AM-11 PM
No reservations

Because its more than just eating I do..

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I do take pictures while on vacation!

 

The Provincetown Portuguese Bakery is a taste of coming home

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One of the local “always been there” places in P’twn is the Provincetown Portuguese BakeryP. With it’s no frills storefront, many folks might miss the treasures in this Provincetown institution. If you are lucky you can catch them making the fresh Malassada in the window. These sweet fried dough is the equivalent to the italian street fair favorite, fried dough. But instead of tomato sauce, they add sugar. Best consumed hot and fresh, even better while walking down the street. Don’t forget to grab napkins. Proimagevincetown Portuguese Bakery also has a good solid selection of basic sweets and savory foods include meat pies, and sandwiches. For the budget conscious, the breakfast is a great deal nothing fancy – but it will get your day started. Remember – this isn’t high end, fancy food – this is solid, good working class basics, yet a great reminder of some of Provincetown’s “non-gay” history.

299 Commercial St, Provincetown, MA 02657-2202

Visit them on Facebook

 

Cafe Edwige

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With another show under our belt, and the night still early, we decided a later dinner at one of our favorite finds in P’town for the last several years was eating at Cafe Edwige. While pretty outstanding for breakfast/brunch – dinners offer a solid flavor profile with a simple and straight forward menu of options.

Not being overly hungry I went with the Cure All Kale Salad. Dressed with bacon and fresh toppings, this well portioned dish was good, but lacked sharpness in the dressing. Kale, being what it is, can often be a hard “nut to crack” raw. So my tastes run towards adding sharpness like lemons, limes or even hot pepper flakes or chili infused oils to balance to denseness of the leaves. I think it also lacked salt and pepper to my tastes. But I would still suggest you give it a try..

For our entrees, I opted for the Local Board; with an assortment of olives, cheese liver pate and bread. This was perfect for my dinner, but I would warn – the pate’s is hearty “liver” flavor and doesn’t disguise itself. Our other dish was the Filet Mignon.

OK – now this is where Edwige excels. It was literally, “melt in your mouth” good. Perfectly cooked, tender and well seasoned- this was the meat eaters orgasm of flavor.

More on them

333 Commercial Street  •  Upstairs
Provincetown, MA  02657
edwigerestaurant@yahoo.com     Contact:  508 . 487 . 4020