Price Chopper

Oh boy. So much to say. Where do I start? Maybe with …“Price Chopper, you’ve come a long way baby!”

When I first moved up here, you were not my first choice. That’s right, you weren’t. I loved Grand Union. They were my warm and fuzzy for all my food shop­ping needs. Dev­as­ta­tion set in when they started clos­ing stores. Still to this day they have the best gro­cery store buf­falo wings ever. Sorry, it’s a love that grows stronger for me all the time. It’s all about absence mak­ing the heart grow fonder. Every now and then I’ll make the trip to Corinth to get me some, but I should say your honey wings are my favorites.

Skip­ping on over to a Fri­day, Novem­ber 11th now, let’s talk about my amaz­ing day spent with a group of amaz­ing peo­ple and the ton of amaz­ing food; along with the very evi­dent desire to have mean­ing­ful rela­tion­ships with every guest in the room. Price Chop­per not only wel­comed us with open arms, but rolled out the red car­pet as far as I’m con­cerned. All the guests there I spoke to they felt the same as me. You really did us more than right and your­self more than proud.

Badge

A lit­tle some­thing I’d like to note, I had a flare up of allergy symp­toms and made trips to the ladies room often through­out the day to blow my nose and cough until it felt like my head would explode. One of these trips allowed me to come back to the lobby to find no one. Imag­ine? They left me. LOL …thank good­ness for the recep­tion­ist, I finally found them. @whatchamagifts was kind enough to take my lap­top and purse into the event room.

When I finally walked into the room I was embar­rassed to be late, so I quickly found my group and prac­ti­cally ran to the table and took my seat. If memory serves me correct, up first to speak to us was Jerel (Jerry) Golub and he did a fan­tas­tic job telling us about Price Chop­per and its philoso­phies and mis­sion. They strive to pro­vide us con­sumers qual­ity prod­ucts, choices, and have an open forum where our con­cerns can be heard. A real sense of com­mu­nity was felt right from the start and con­tin­ued through­out the entire #PCHol­i­day­Cheer Showcase.

Say Cheese!

Rus­sell Zwanka, Senior VP of Sales Mer­chan­dis­ing & Market­ing (A.K.A. VP of Everything)

I met some really nice folks and actu­ally every­one was down to earth. The 1st person I met was such a nice man and not as one would expect an executive to be, you know what I mean …very business proper. He balances professionalism and personable very well, and it was a pleasure having a moment of his time. Russell was very informative and listened to what us bloggers were telling him. You could tell he really cared about what we had to say.

Jerry Golub, President & CEO

The next person I met really surprised me too, in a good way. With such an important position in the company and in the Golub family, I expected at least some touch of arrogance. But, nope. Not at all. Another sweetheart of a guy and so willing to talk to people. Very friendly and pleasant to speak with and another one who was very open to what bloggers had to say. I love it when someone cares how I think and feel about what they do.

Heidi Reale, Director of Marketing & Customer Insights

The next two ladies I met over the sum­mer and it was a plea­sure see­ing them again.  Heidi Real, Director of Marketing & Consumer Insights pictured here,

…and I don’t know how Liz Lisuzzo, Consumer Insights Specialist, man­aged to avoid my cam­era, but she’s a sweet­heart too. By the way, you can chat with her on Twitter at @PriceChopperNY. You might even catch Heidi on too. These two ladies are my favorites and I hope to have an opportunity to spend some fun time with them at some point. Liz is sweet and Heidi is a hoot!

Luscious Desserts

After meeting the people I met, after speaking with the people I spoke with, and after taking in all the information the speakers had to share, I have more confidence in Price Chopper. It’s been my favorite place to shop for my groceries for quite a while now, and I know I’ll find what I’m looking for and at a reasonable price. And, who can beat $0.10 off on gas at Sunoco for every $50.00 you spend? What’s not to love?

Thank you Price Chopper!

Is Price Chopper your favorite grocery store too? Why? What is it you like best?

I’ll be posting more on the wonderful food Price Chopper included in this #HolidayCheer Showcase over at my food blog, Tech Valley Food tomorrow (I’ll direct link to the post too). I hope you’ll take a moment to stop by.

Chili & Chocolate Party 2011

Saturday (April 30th) I attended Linda Connors annual Chilly & Chocolate Party in Round Lake, New York. It’s always a good time watching all the entries nervously standing close by their latest creation trying to get an ear shot of what people are saying. If I’m honest, I have to admit being one of those eager to hear what the word is. I’ve got my ears stretched as far as they go trying to hear whether or not people are liking my wonderful entry.

I’ve never entered a chili, but have always enjoyed taste testing them all. This year was no exception and I tried almost all of the samples. Unfortunately some people don’t realize they’re supposed to take a SAMPLE so everyone can have a taste. You have some people piling their bowls full of their favorites. Not cool since the person who made the one(s) being gobbled up will be missing out on possible votes from those not lucky enough to have tried theirs. Next year I think I’ll suggest servers and volunteer to serve.

I’ve only entered a chocolate desert one time before this year’s contest and won 1st place for presentation. That was a few years ago so I thought I’d enter again this year. After throwing around a few ideas I finally settled on a dessert I felt would just be a dessert to throw on the table. Better to have as many desserts as possible to vote on, so off to Price Chopper I went shortly after 3:00pm. After grabbing different things in the store here is what I came up with.

Love In a Bowl

I’m cutting down the amount I made since it was for 75 people.

Ingredients

2 One Quart Container Large Fresh Strawberries (More if you want and as ripe as you like them.)
2 Cans Pineapple Chunks (I used Dole but you can use any that you like.)
1 Large Bag Chocolate Chips (I used Toll House)
1 Chocolate Cake (Your choice how you make the cake — from scratch or a box.)
1 Quart Heavy Cream
3 — 4 tsp Confectioners Sugar
3 — 4 tsp Vanilla Extract

Directions

Prep

• Drain 2 cans of pineapple well and freeze 1 can of pineapple chunks on wax paper or in a bowl until firm. (If in a bowl, stir often.)
• Bake cake according to directions and set aside to cool completely. Once completely cooled — IMPORTANT TIP - I use the cake to hold my frozen pineapple chunks I have on toothpicks and I’ve dipped in chocolate. Once the chocolate is set,  I put the chocolate covered pineapple chunks in a bowl and place in the freezer until I’m ready for them.
• Break cake into 2″ — 3″ pieces.
• 1 quart of strawberries — remove stems and cut  in half. Set aside.
• 1 quart of strawberries — wash and let dry completely.
• Put heavy cream carton and bowl in the freezer for 15 or 20 minutes.

Whipped Cream

• Pour heavy cream into chilled bowl.
• Add confectioners sugar and vanilla.
• Use a whisk or electric mixer to beat (low setting to start increasing speed gradually.)
• Beat to desired peak.
• Put in fridge to keep cool and stiff.

Chocolate

• Melt chocolate over double boiler — stirring frequently. (I use a Pyrex bowl over a pot of boiling water then turn the heat to just below medium.)
• Keep on low heat.

Building the Love

• Whipped Cream — spread a thin layer on the bottom of the dish.
• Layer of cake.
• Dip strawberry slices in chocolate and stick to the side of the dish. I left about 2″ between each.
• Layer of whipped cream.
• Layer of cake.
• Layer of whipped cream.
• Dipped strawberry slices stuck to the side of the dish.
• Scattered layer of frozen pineapple chunks (no chocolate)
• Layer of cake.
• Layer of whipped cream.

Topping Off the Love

• Line the top with chocolate dipped strawberries as you would like.
• Scatter chocolate covered pineapple chunks as you would like.

Ok, now. Get a big spoon, a bowl, a and a small spoon. Scoop out some love from one bowl and drop it in another. Enjoy!

Do you have a favorite chocolate recipe you like? Don’t be rude! Share it with us!

It is only two and a half blocks to Lydia’s, but the reality of winter hit hard today and it was not expected. It is also the first work day since daylight savings time so it is totally black outside. There was a time when I loved the onset of winter, but not anymore; so in the car I go and drive the two and a half blocks.

Photo Credit: Flickr — di_the_huntress

Lydia’s home is always warm and welcoming. The house has definitely taken on the personality of its owner. Lydia has invited Chris to join us for dinner; a person we all know and we are pleased that he will be with us this evening.

As we gather in the kitchen Lydia offers a glass of wine. So I wouldn’t whine I gladly accepted a glass, Lydia kept me company. Annie arrived shivering so we went in to the nice warm dinning room and sat down to dinner. Lydia actually made up this dinner; she has been experimenting since her daughter is a vegetarian.  She made some adjustments and put together a dish consisting of brown rice, cauliflower, chickpeas, ginger, cubed jicama, coconut milk, curry powder, and parsley. We are not telling Anne about the coconut milk (she doesn’t like coconut). Lydia also served a green bean salad with a vinaigrette that everyone enjoyed. Sliced baked apples were served for dessert; they had a nice crunch and a sauce that was yummy.

What we all realized is that we were laughing, sharing stories, eating good food, and learning a bit more about each other on this nasty cold night. I can speak for myself that I would be under a blanket reading if it weren’t for the commitment to this vegan experience.

What you might ask; what is this? In a very small and charming community a group of women are sharing their dinners and following a vegan diet. It all started in the summer months when one of the ladies suggested a vegan week while summer offerings were bountiful and it was a great to sit on a porch, enjoy company, and good healthy food. The decision to do this happened after a wonderful lunch at the Culinary Institute which is an entire story in itself that will be shared at another time. Now it is fall vegan week and there are 5 women having a great time cooking and sharing.

Flickr: jugglerpm — Paul Martin

Vegan week started on Saturday, some went to the farmer’s market to gather the freshest of vegetables others went to specialty stores or the local market to purchase ingredients. I went to a specialty store and poked around for quite some time since basically I kept changing my mind on what I would make for my dinner and I also had to deal with the sometimes difficult task of lunch. Our first dinner was at Carrie’s home a comfortable cottage with an inviting dinning room. We chatted a bit and settled in at the table for a delicious dish of Orechiette with Butternut Squash and Thyme with a Salad of Pickled Vegetables Over Greens. We had baked apples for dessert a bit over cooked but the sweetness was definitely satisfying. We attempted to take pictures of our first fall gathering but we could not find all the wires to hook up to have the ability to send electronically so we are basically picture-less at the moment. It was all very good and later I assisted making a granola and getting it in the oven. I was too tired to stay but I hope to share in the rewards. It was a very good and satisfying dinner. This is a group of women with strong opinions so we try to avoid politics and conversation that causes indigestion. We all belong to a book club and are reading The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand which brought about some lively conversation.

Now the lunch part.  All of the ladies work full time jobs so spending leisure time in the kitchen is a luxury so preparing lunches becomes a hit or miss when eating vegan. Today was a miss for me I ate basically banana chips, dried cherries, and a bowl of brown rice. I need to improve the lunch menu or I will be really cranky by the end of the week. I didn’t mention that we reluctantly decided that we were giving up wine for the week. We will see how long that lasts.

Tonight we are heading over to Lydia’s I hope she has a fire blazing. You will hear from me tomorrow.

@LindaCarmical A.K.A. @lindawrites63

This recipe comes from my “Bacon Wrapped Chicken ‘n Spinach” appetizer and it’s a huge hit with my family and friends. This works for a family dinner or as a fancy dish for company.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken ‘n Spinach

• 4 Boneless Chicken Breasts – Cut butterfly style so it opens like a book.
• 1 Box Frozen Chopped Spinach — thawed and drained well
• 12 — 16 Strips of Bacon – depending on how many strips you place on each chicken breast (I use maple bacon) Cream Cheese Mixture *See recipe below.

Cream Cheese Mixture

• Cream Cheese (I use onion & chive)
• 1 Garlic Clove – minced (1/4 tsp. garlic powder works too)
• ¼ Cup Water Chestnuts – chopped
• 1 Scallion – chopped small (optional)
• Salt (optional)
• Pepper (optional)

Pre-heat the oven to 400° F.

1. Combine cream cheese, minced garlic, and chopped water chestnuts together.
2. Add salt (optional) and pepper (optional) to taste.
3. Mix well and set aside.

Chicken Prep

1. Thoroughly wash and clean any fat off the chicken.
2. Lay a butterflied cut chicken out onto a work surface. Cut side up.
3. Spoon about 2 Tbs of the cream cheese mixture onto 1 side of the chicken. Be sure to not spread the mixture too close to the edges. Pull the other side of the chicken over to close it like a book. (You can adjust how you place the mixture into the chicken and roll it up to close it.)
4. Lay out 3 or 4 bacon strips a work surface.
5. Place 1 stuffed chicken breast across the bacon strips sideways.
6. Wrap the bacon strips over the chicken and tuck it under.
7. Repeat for other 3 chicken breasts.

Baking the Chicken

1. Place chicken in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
2. Set oven to broil and continue to cook for an additional 5 to 7 minutes, or until bacon is at desired crisp level.

Let sit for 5 minutes and serve warm.

Tip: I always make extra cream cheese mixture. I heat it in the microwave and spoon over the chicken to dress it

@fantomaster

Here’s a creation of my own which I’m rather fond of due to the rich contrast between the meat, the fruit, the puff pastry and, of course, the spicing. It also reminds me of my growing up in the Middle East and Africa.

Pie “Oasis Delight”

* 2 lb ground beef or lamb
* 2 sheets puff pastry* 1 handful of figs and dates (chopped)
* 10 oz. pine kernels
* 5 oz. butter
* 1 egg yolk
* 4–5 big cloves of garlic (chopped)
* curry powder (optional)
* cumin seed (ground)
* salt

* pepper

1. Heat 3.5 oz of butter in frying pan, then add spices and continue heating till the air above starts to oscillate.

2. Gently braise the meat and stir to mix with the spices.

3. In a separate pot, heat the remaining butter and fry the pine kernels till they are a golden brown.

4. Roll out the bottom sheet of the puff pastry on a surface sprinkled with flour.

5. Add pine kernels, figs and dates to the minced meat and stir to mix. (Keep appr. 10 kernels for decorating the pie.)

6. Gently spread filling on bottom pastry sheet.

7. Roll out top sheet of the puff pastry on a surface sprinkled with flour, then cover the bottom and filling, carefully sealing the edges.

8. Cut out 4–5 small diamonds from pastry surface sheet.

9. Brush egg yolk on pastry and press the remaining pine kernels softly into the pastry for decoration.

10. Bake for appr. 45 minutes at 160°C (320°F) until pie is a golden brown.

(Serves four.)

|meat pie | meat pie | meat pie | meat pie | meat pie | meat pie | meat pie | meat pie |

Thank you Ralph (A.K.A. fantomaster) for your contribution! This sounds delicious and I can’t wait to try it!

@DinnerPlanner

Another winner from Sue. This meatloaf looks so delicious I can almost smell it!

You’ll need:

- 1 ½ lbs. ground beef
– 1 (8 oz.) package fresh sliced mushrooms
– 1 medium onion – finely chopped
– 2 teaspoons minced garlic
– 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
– 2 tablespoons butter
– ½ cup bread crumbs
– ½ cup shredded Romano cheese
– ½ cup milk
– 1 egg
– ¼ teaspoon salt
– ¼ teaspoon pepper
– ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
– ¼ teaspoon allspice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

1. Place mushrooms in a food processor and pulse until finely chopped.
2. Melt butter in a small skill.
3. Add mushrooms, onions, garlic and Worcestershire.
   
4. Saute for about 3 — 4 minutes.
   
5. Place ground beef in a medium size bowl.
   
6. Pour mushroom mixture over the beef and let cool for 5 minutes.
7. Add bread crumbs, eggs, milk, cheese and seasonings.
   
8. Mix with your hands to combine.
9. Spray a casserole dish with non-stick spray and place meat mixture in dish forming a square shaped meatloaf.
   
10. Bake for 1 hour.

Thank you @DinnerPlanner for another tasty contribution!

@DinnerPlanner

Susan this recipe looks and sounds absolutely yummy! I put it on my weekend menu and I can’t wait to try it

Quick & Easy Fried Chicken With Sundried Tomato Crust

~ 2 lbs. boneless chicken breast (pounded or sliced to 1/8″ thickness)
~ 1 tablespoon olive oil
~ 1 tablespoon butter
~ 1/2 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
~ 5 sundried tomatoes (not in oil)
~ 2/3 cup freshly grated Romano cheese
~ 1 1/2 teaspoons of dried basil
~ 1/2 teaspoon of salt
~ 2 eggs — beaten in a small bowl

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Combine breadcrumbs, sundried tomatoes, Romano cheese, basil, and salt in a blender.
3. Blend on high speed for about 1 minute or until dried mixture is smooth.
4. Pour contents into a large re-sealable bag.
5. Melt butter and olive oil in large skillet.
6. Dip each piece of chicken in egg mixture to coat.
7. Place 1 piece of chicken into bag and shake to coat.
   
8. Do this for each piece of chicken until well coated.
9. Fry each piece about 1 minute per side until light golden brown.
10. Remove from pan and place on lightly sprayed baking sheet.
11. Bake for 15 –20 minutes.

Thank you @DinnerPlanner for your contribution!

Anyone else have any melt in your mouth chicken recipe favorites? SHARE your Holiday recipes! Leave a comment and I just might include your favorite recipe in a post!

Whenever the Holidays are around I always start combing the Internet for yummy recipes. This year was no different from any others. I found myself on my favorite recipe sites Recipe Zaar and Food Network, going through page after page of scrumptious looking easy appetizers, and then it dawned on me. So many Twitter People tweet about dishes they’re making, made, or gonna make; why not try to get a collection and post them here? Better yet, why not break the bunch into a series? I could start with appetizers for the holidays from them and move on from there. That’s when I came up with a Twitter Dinner Party Series!

First, how about some finger foods to add to your Holiday Menu? These are a great way to get the Holiday Party started…plus my favorite Holiday concoctions of course, but those come later in the series.

ENJOY!

|appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers|

Appetizers

@MomsWhoSave offers great coupon codes, discounts, and freebies! You’ll find big deals at her place!

We used to order bruschetta in a restaurant that tasted similar to this, but they took it off the menu. After some trial and error, my husband (the cook in the family) came up with this recipe. We love it, and our guests always do too. It makes a great appetizer!

John’s Bruschetta

- 1 package garlic Texas Toast (Texas Toast brand or your favorite brand from the freezer section of the supermarket)
– 8 slices Muenster Cheese
– 1 8 oz container Pesto
– 2 Roma Tomatoes
– 1 Tbs Basil
– 1 Lime
– 1 small bunch of spinach

1. Dice tomato, and put in a small bowl. Add basil and juice from lime and mix.
2. Place toast on baking pan, then spread pesto evenly over the slices.
3. Add two to three leaves of spinach to each slice. Next add one slice of Muenster cheese to each, and top with diced tomato mixture.
4. Put into preheated oven and cook per directions on box.
5. Cut slices in half and serve.

|appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers|

@CiaoBella50 has a wonderful blog where people can “Bitch, Brag and Bond”.

I like to make bacon wrapped water chestnuts for the holidays! They’re really easy to make and delicious too!

Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

- 1 Can Water Chestnuts – drained
– 12 Bacon Strips – cut in ½ to make 24
– Sweet Baby Rays BBQ Sauce – substitute your favorite bbq sauce
– Toothpicks

Preheat oven to 375°.

1. Wrap each water chestnut with a strip of bacon and secure with a toothpick.
2. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until the bacon is crispy.
3. Remove from oven and brush with Sweet Baby Rays BBQ Sauce.
4. Return to oven and continue to bake another 10 minutes.

|appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers|

@LindaCarmical A.K.A. @lindawrites63
I got this recipe off of T.V. and they were a little boring so I took them up a notch. These are yummy and always a huge hit no matter what the occasion.  I’ve also adjusted this recipe a little and made this as a main course before. I’ll include the adjusted recipe in the Main Dishes part of this post.

Bacon Wrapped Chicken ‘n Spinach

4 Boneless Chicken Breasts – cut into 1″ x 2″ pieces
1 Box Frozen Chopped Spinach — thawed and drained well
24 Strips of Bacon (or ½ the number of chicken pieces) – cut in ½ to double the strips (I use maple)
Cream Cheese Mixture *See recipe below.
Toothpicks

Cream Cheese Mixture

Cream Cheese (I use onion & chive)
1 Garlic Clove – minced (1/4 tsp. garlic powder works too)
¼ Cup Water Chestnuts – chopped
1 Scallion – chopped small (optional)
Salt (optional)
Pepper (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400° F. (You’ll change to broil to finish cooking.)

Combine cream cheese, minced garlic, and chopped water chestnuts together. Add salt (optional) and pepper (optional) to taste then mix well. Set aside.

Thoroughly wash and clean any fat off the chicken. Cut the chicken into 1″ x 2″ pieces. Set aside.

1. Cut all 24 bacon strips in half to make 48 strips.
2. Lay a strip of bacon out on a work surface.
3. Place a piece of chicken across the bacon strip 1/3 from one end. (Like a letter t.)
4. Spoon a small amount of cream cheese mixture onto the chicken.
5. Place a small amount of spinach on top of the cream cheese mixture.
6. Starting with the short end, wrap the bacon over the chicken. Now wrap the long end over the chicken and tuck it under if long enough.
7. Repeat for all other pieces of chicken.

Place chicken pieces in the oven and cook for 7 to 10 minutes. Set oven to broil and cook chicken for 2 to 4 minutes. (Watch closely so they don’t burn.) Serve warm.

|appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers |appetizers | appetizers|

Do you have fans on Twitter and want to share your favorite recipe with them to try out? Post a comment to let me know!

Will you favorite Twitter Peep’s favorite recipe be next? Check back to see!

Don’t forget, follow this Twitter Dinner Party Series and you’ll find yummy Holiday recipes from some of your favorite Twitter Peeps!

Thank you @MomsWhoSave and @CiaoBella50 for your contributions.

Next Twitter Dinner Party Post