River Cruising Water Cooler

[Roz]

6 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Trader Joe's has Almond Kringle back in stock for the holidays.  Had my first piece for breakfast today.  

 

I really didn't need that piece of information. 😄  Add to "to do" list - stop at Trader Joe's for Almond Kringle.  I haven't been to TJ's since this pandemic stuff started, because it's so hard to even get in the store.  They strictly control how many customers are allowed at one time (we only have 2 stores; both small), so you have to line up outside with a cart between each customer.  

[Daisi]

Dr. Oetkar is a common brand here.. I'll have to drop into our local Dutch shop to see if they have any special stuff in for Christmas.  I could use some Poppy Seed Cake (the Polish variety) as well.  Now you have me salivating....

 

Wishing all Americans on the board a very Happy Thanksgiving.

[dogs4fun]

53 minutes ago, Roz said:

 

I haven't been to TJ's since this pandemic stuff started, because it's so hard to even get in the store.  They strictly control how many customers are allowed at one time (we only have 2 stores; both small), so you have to line up outside with a cart between each customer.  

Same situation here - only 3 TJ’s in the metro area & strictly controlled occupancy. 

[jpalbny]

We have been going to Aldi as it's nearly impossible to get into TJs here in Albany. They only allow 50 at a time in the store. We got lucky once and the line was minimal, so we were able to make a trip there. And it was remarkably pleasant when we got in, because it wasn't crowded and the checkout lines were really short. But every other time we've driven by, the line wraps around the building. Nuts.

 

The one thing I'm really missing is their Inca Corn. Such a tasty snack and I haven't found a substitute anywhere else yet. And they have the best blocks of Feta in brine; our local supermarket chain doesn't have anything that comes close.

 

Just had a window in between the rain systems so that we could go for a walk outside. It was raining again within 5 minutes of our return home so we timed that well. Pre-burning a few calories for today's feast, I hope.

 

Daisi, we know about that kind of poppy seed cake. Chris introduced me to that kind of poppy seeds; all I'd ever eaten were dried seeds on a bagel. Such a world of difference.

 

Our breakfast table.... Hopefully this will hold us until afternoon. Happy Thanksgiving to all!

 

 

 

Edited November 26, 2020 by jpalbny

[Coral]

15 hours ago, jpalbny said:

 

I also baked a cranberry tart for tomorrow. The filling is fresh cranberries cooked in a sugary sauce, then drained and placed into the tart shell. Then an almond custard is poured around them and baked. I hope it lasts until tomorrow!

 

 

Your cranberry tart looks to die for! Care to post a recipe?

[Coral]

9 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Trader Joe's has Almond Kringle back in stock for the holidays.  Had my first piece for breakfast today.  That's MY thanksgiving tradition!  [No turkey in our house ever – we don't like it; but that duck breast sounds very good!]

If you have Aldi's nearby - they are often cheaper! Same brand except for in shrink wrap. They are good.

[Coral]

1 hour ago, dogs4fun said:

Same situation here - only 3 TJ’s in the metro area & strictly controlled occupancy. 

Ours is controlled occupancy but they stopped cleaning the carts after every use. Now just 4x a day but they do have wipes nearby. It sort of makes no sense as our cases are the highest it has ever been.

 

Funny - you have never seen Kringles there. They have them several times a year (different flavors). Stay away from the pumpkin one.

[notamermaid]

Poppy seed cake is quite traditional in Germany, a local baker here makes a good one. Very filling. An alternative is "Mohnschnitte". More dough, fewer seeds and very sweet. It is more like pastry for the afternoon, what we call "Teilchen". I have never had cranberry cake, sounds delicious @jpalbny

 

notamermaid

 

[dogs4fun]

I wish they would open an Aldi’s here but, alas, there are none to be found in the entire state.

I had never heard of Kringles much less noticed them in the store.

My sinful splurge each holiday season is povitica. Yum!

Years ago I watched some ladies make some loaves from their ‘old country’ recipe. It was absolutely delicious but, good grief, talk about labor intensive!

I order mine from Kansas. 🙂

I enjoy the photos & descriptions- it appears that many of you are gourmets whereas I’m merely a third grade dropout when it comes to cooking.  

[Daisi]

We are very lucky to have lots of European groceries here, so seasonal treats are widely available.  I have seen the Almond Kringles, but never tried them.

 

@notamermaid, are your Poppy Seed Cakes rolled, or baked in a square?  The ones we get are very thin layers of dough rolled up with poppy seeds.  My Dad (who is from Quebec) calls it the Polish Yule Log, as we always had them at Christmas.  I miss my Mom's Swiss bread, it's a rich egg type bread that she used to make in a braid.  That and Stollen (unglazed) were what we always had for  our Christmas breakfast.

[rcaruso]

In Vienna at the Christmas Market by the Rathaus, I had a pretzle with Mohn, decadent.  My family has always loved Mohn kuchen.

[Coral]

20 minutes ago, rcaruso said:

In Vienna at the Christmas Market by the Rathaus, I had a pretzle with Mohn, decadent.  My family has always loved Mohn kuchen.

This same time 2 years ago I was on a Danube River boat cruise on Crystal. I spent 5 days in Vienna. Also visited Christmas Markets in Salzburg and Lake District in Austria. I have to say "I loved the food at the Christmas markets". I miss it already. that was such a great vacation.

[Coral]

1 hour ago, dogs4fun said:

I wish they would open an Aldi’s here but, alas, there are none to be found in the entire state.

I had never heard of Kringles much less noticed them in the store.

My sinful splurge each holiday season is povitica. Yum!

Years ago I watched some ladies make some loaves from their ‘old country’ recipe. It was absolutely delicious but, good grief, talk about labor intensive!

I order mine from Kansas. 🙂

I enjoy the photos & descriptions- it appears that many of you are gourmets whereas I’m merely a third grade dropout when it comes to cooking.  

Aldi's is an unusual store IMO. It appears things are very cheap and the quality would be cheap but I am surprised the quality is actually pretty good, they carry a lot of the same things Trader Joes's does and their European (mostly German/Austrian) items are pretty darn good. I would say produce is hit or miss and I haven't bought a lot of meat from there (aside from turkeys and hams). Whenever I purchase for food banks, food pantries, Thanksgiving meals - Aldi's is my go to place. I can buy a ton of stuff and not break the bank. I often walk out surprised at how little I spent. When I buy for myself, I walk really slowly because they always have new stuff and stuff I only see in Europe and love that. Staple items are always really cheap there also. 

 

One of our Aldi's is across the street from the most expensive neighborhood in my city. There are a lot of very nice cars in the parking lot when I am there.

 

Off to look up povitica. 

Edited November 26, 2020 by Coral

[Coral]

37 minutes ago, Daisi said:

We are very lucky to have lots of European groceries here, so seasonal treats are widely available.  I have seen the Almond Kringles, but never tried them.

The ones we get where I live are from Racine, Wisconsin.

 

https://www.kringle.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAwf39BRCCARIsALXWETx9hJihxQJGzxoNXnYWx91RH48YqyYpaOxmFUzeGEadMXqV0VTbyVkaAhC3EALw_wcB

 

They are not as good as European bakeries but they are good enough.

[dogs4fun]

43 minutes ago, Coral said:

Off to look up povitica. 

I love the English Walnut povitica - very rich and absolutely delicious.

43 minutes ago, Coral said:

One of our Aldi's is across the street from the most expensive neighborhood in my city. There are a lot of very nice cars in the parking lot when I am there.

Actually, that doesn’t surprise me - my brother likes to shop at Aldi (Ohio) & lives in an upscale area.

I’ve shopped Aldi’s In Copenhagen & just last year, in Munich. Definitely would like one nearby - especially when shopping for our church food bank (more bang for the buck).

BTW - thanks for the Racine link. Methinks I’ll order a pecan Kringle - looks yummy. 

Edited November 26, 2020 by dogs4fun

[Roz]

I grew up in Pittsburgh which has a large Eastern European population - Polish, Slovak, Slovene, Croatian, Serbian, Ukranian, etc.  I am very familiar with both poppy seed roll and poppy seed cake.  Yum to both of them.

 

Aldi's can be a mixed bag, and varies by location.  

Edited November 26, 2020 by Roz

[Coral]

1 hour ago, dogs4fun said:

I love the English Walnut povitica - very rich and absolutely delicious.

Actually, that doesn’t surprise me - my brother likes to shop at Aldi (Ohio) & lives in an upscale area.

I’ve shopped Aldi’s In Copenhagen & just last year, in Munich. Definitely would like one nearby - especially when shopping for our church food bank (more bang for the buck).

BTW - thanks for the Racine link. Methinks I’ll order a pecan Kringle - looks yummy. 

In Austria - they are known as Hofer. Maybe our German friends know why. Same logo.

 

Povitca looks amazing!

[jpalbny]

4 hours ago, Coral said:

Your cranberry tart looks to die for! Care to post a recipe?

 

Yes, happily. I just want to taste it first and make sure it's a good recipe. In a few hours.

 

1 hour ago, Coral said:

One of our Aldi's is across the street from the most expensive neighborhood in my city. There are a lot of very nice cars in the parking lot when I am there.

 

 RE: Aldi and upscale cars...that's how we can afford the payments on our Audis! 😉

 

2 hours ago, dogs4fun said:

I enjoy the photos & descriptions- it appears that many of you are gourmets whereas I’m merely a third grade dropout when it comes to cooking.  

 

No, we just like trying unusual recipes. We have clipped more recipes out of Food & Wine than we can ever make. But we try.

 

Around 2005/6 when I was still south of 40, but north of 200#, we realized that our dietary habits were crummy and that we should put more effort into cooking and eating quality food that we'd actually enjoy, rather than stuffing ourselves full of junk because it was the easy thing to do. So we started taking cooking much more seriously. We started using better ingredients and using much fewer prepared foods. We really got into food and wine pairing.

 

We still eat too much (and drink too much wine) but it's not as bad as it was. We found that eating a smaller quantity of interesting food was much more fun than stuffing ourselves with a box of hamburger helper. The only bad thing is that it takes a time and a lot of planning to serve "interesting" food every night, even if the recipes aren't terribly complicated. And of course, when you're endlessly trying new recipes, there are bound to be some flops along the way. I don't post pictures of those...

 

So then, I consider us less as  gourmets, but it's more that we like quality ingredients done in a simple manner with a few ingredients. My duck recipe with raspberry sauce takes maybe 5-6 ingredients and I'll have it done in 20 minutes, once I get them out of the marinade. Speaking of which, I'm getting hungry now, so I better get off Cruise Critic and get the sweet potatoes in the oven!

 

Enjoy your meals, everyone!

[Host Jazzbeau]

2 hours ago, Coral said:

The ones we get where I live are from Racine, Wisconsin.

 

https://www.kringle.com/?gclid=Cj0KCQiAwf39BRCCARIsALXWETx9hJihxQJGzxoNXnYWx91RH48YqyYpaOxmFUzeGEadMXqV0VTbyVkaAhC3EALw_wcB

 

They are not as good as European bakeries but they are good enough.

 

Racine seems to be the Kringle capital of the US, as the brand that Trader Joe's carries is also from there:

https://www.ohdanishbakery.com/

 

They make lots of different flavors – which IMHO is a shame because Trader Joe's only carries one flavor at a time, and all the rest are ... not Almond!!!

 

PS – It looks like Aldi's carries the Racine brand, not Oh.  I have found some Aldi's in NYC and will try to make an expedition after Thanksgiving to get one of theirs and compare them.  [What I do for you as your loyal host!  Such sacrifice!  Oh, the humanity!]

[Coral]

16 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

Racine seems to be the Kringle capital of the US, as the brand that Trader Joe's carries is also from there:

https://www.ohdanishbakery.com/

 

They make lots of different flavors – which IMHO is a shame because Trader Joe's only carries one flavor at a time, and all the rest are ... not Almond!!!

Yea - last year, Aldi's had 4 flavors at Christmas when Trader Joes's had the one. I did buy the cheesecake flavor about 2 months ago and it is in the freezer (haven't tried it). I like the raspberry one and almond one the best. I also bought a holiday berry one last year (which I don't see on the website - not sure if it has been renamed). I haven't been to Aldi's recently to see what they have this year. While I like them, I am not sure if I would pay for shipping from Racine's website for one.

Edited November 26, 2020 by Coral

[Host Jazzbeau]

2 minutes ago, Coral said:

Yea - last year, Aldi's had 4 flavors at Christmas when Trader Joes's had the one. I did buy the cheesecake flavor about 2 months ago and it is in the freezer (haven't tried it). I haven't tried it. I like the raspberry one and almond one the best. I also bought a holiday berry one last year (which I don't see on the website - not sure if it has been renamed). I haven't been to Aldi's recently to see what they have this year. While I like them, I am not sure if I would pay for shipping from Racine's website for one.

 

No, the prices from Oh's website are outrageous.  Even at $8 Trader Joe's is a bargain.

[Coral]

3 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

No, the prices from Oh's website are outrageous.  Even at $8 Trader Joe's is a bargain.

Yea - just wanted to mention that for those who were going to order off of the website. They are good but not that good.

 

I bought cocoa bombs from Costco's website. Our Costco didn't carry the variety ones, so I spent $$$ online to buy just the hot cocoa flavor ones off of the website. Haven't tried those yet. They are not wrapped as nicely as the ones in the store. Haven't tried those yet.

Edited November 26, 2020 by Coral

[Coral]

So I work in Higher Ed at a small liberal arts school in the Midwest and had school is session this fall. COVID-19 cases where I live are shockingly high. We just sent our students home (as scheduled) last weekend. They have a few more weeks of remote instruction. I had to laugh when a professor sent a Barry Manilow song "Looks like we made it" to each of us on Friday. Most of us expected to only last a few weeks before going remote and we survived our semester in person.

 

I have to say this was a difficult semester. I have no clue how health care workers do it or those who work in grocery stores, etc... They deserve kudos as I thought my job was difficult enough (when all of my other friends were working from home) and these individuals have far more difficult jobs and face more of the public daily than I do.

[Coral]

1 hour ago, jpalbny said:

So then, I consider us less as  gourmets, but it's more that we like quality ingredients done in a simple manner with a few ingredients. My duck recipe with raspberry sauce takes maybe 5-6 ingredients and I'll have it done in 20 minutes, once I get them out of the marinade. Speaking of which, I'm getting hungry now, so I better get off Cruise Critic and get the sweet potatoes in the oven!

 

Enjoy your meals, everyone!

This is how I want to cook. It is the work thing that interferes. This is how I try to cook on weekends. 

[notamermaid]

All that food talk! First: Aldi. Had some chicken steaks from Aldi (just the raw meat then fried by me) for dinner. Good meat. Second: Dr. Oetker. Will get back to that subject. Third: Mohnkuchen (poppy seeds cake). One version is round high cake, like a gateau. Sold in pieces. Other version is thin dough baked square, then cut up and sold as slices. Will post a photo if bakery has them and allows me to.

 

Have a good evening everyone if you are behind me in hours. Nearing my bedtime here.

 

notamermaid

 

Edited November 26, 2020 by notamermaid
Clarification