SportZone - Crabby Fries and Beef on Weck

     The first out to eat meal I’m reviewing for this blog will be formatted differently than I did them on Syracuse Sandwich. Instead of giving you the who, what, where, and other information I’m only going to list the name of the place and a link to their menu. 

     After picking Christine up for school, we were on the way home when I asked her what she wanted for dinner. “It’s your day to pick,” she responded. Yes, we've split up the days to decide what’s for dinner, but that’s another story for another time. I've been craving crab fries for a few weeks and the best ones we've had are from SportZone, a sports bar near our house. SportZone reminds me a lot of Tully's from back home. They don’t have delicious Tully's tenders, but they've got a decent menu full of sandwiches, burgers, hot dogs, and a few regular entrees. Their appetizer menu is rather large and the best thing we've had off of it are the Crabby Fries.

     A mixture of blue crab meat and J.R.’s queso cheese dip is poured over a plate of Zone fries. Zone fries are their double fried seasoned French fries. As you can see from the picture there is a ton of crab meat topping the fries. I really appreciate that you can actually see the crab, something that isn't always possible when you order crab dips. Old bay seasoning finds its way into the mix which compliments the crab. Between the seasoned fries, the Old Bay, and the salty cheese sauce, there’s no lack of flavor. The blue crab meat is rich and sweet, its sweetness helps balance the saltiness of the fries and cheese sauce. It is the perfect sized appetizer, not so big that’ll you’ll be full before finishing your entree but not so small that you’re left wanting more.

     For my dinner I order the Beef on Weck, which is listed as an Upstate NY Favorite on the menu. If you read my Syracuse Sandwich blog, you’d know that this is one of, if not my favorite sandwich. Hafner's in North Syracuse makes a wonderful version of this sandwich that they call Beef on a Wick. Both sandwiches are the same; the only difference is the spelling of the roll. A Kimmelweck roll is a white roll topped with coarse grain salt and caraway seeds. Inside this tasty roll is roast beef that has been soaked au jus. On the side they serve horseradish and more au jus for dipping. Because we already had the Crabby Fries, I opted for the homemade Zone chips that come standard with all of their sandwiches. They make their own potato chips which I think is a nice touch. For a little extra you can order Zone fries or sweet potato fries. The roast beef was cooked to medium well which was good but I prefer my meat to be cooked to more of a medium rare to medium for more flavor. Between the salt and caraway topped roll and the au jus I was dunking it in, this is a very salty sandwich. I slathered horseradish on it to give it some kick, and also to cut the salty flavor. It’s a simple sandwich with great flavor but I’d have to give the nod to Hafner's if I was comparing the two. Not to take anything away from SportZone, because this is the third time I've ordered it there.

Ratings: Crabby Fries – Delectable         Beef on Weck - Yummy

Country Breakfast Pizza

     

     After going back and reading all of my old posts, I've decided to format them a little differently. Unlike before I’ll list out both the ingredients and the steps instead of just including all of them in paragraph form. I’ll still provide a link to a recipe if applicable.

     The first post back from the two and a half year hiatus is for Country Breakfast Pizzas. Christine and I are always looking for new recipes to try and if they’re quick to make, all the better. She stumbled upon Pillsbury’s website and found a slew of recipes that we’ll be trying over the next couple months. One that I found interesting was ham and egg breakfast pizzas made with flaky biscuits as a base. After reading a few reviews someone suggested instead of making the mayo and mustard sauce, use country gravy. And instead of the ham, use sausage. I know, how healthy. We both decided they sounded better with the gravy and sausage. Because we radically changed the recipe, I’ll link you to it but please follow the instructions that I used because they’re a bit different. Instead of buying regular sausage and frying it up, I bought Jimmy Dean’s Turkey sausage crumbles because they’re somewhat healthier than the former option. Instead of making the gravy from scratch, to save time I opted to buy a packet of McCormick’s sausage gravy mix.

4 Eggs

1 Package Refrigerated Flaky Biscuits

1 Packet McCormick Sausage or Country Gravy

½ Package of Jimmy Dean’s Turkey Sausage Crumbles

4 oz Italian blend shredded cheese

4 oz Sharp cheddar shredded cheese

Pinches of salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic salt

1. While preheating the oven to 425 degrees, flatten biscuits to a ¼ or ½ inch thickness. Once preheated place the biscuits on a greased baking sheet and bake for 6-8 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom.
2. Crack all four eggs into a small bowl, season with salt, pepper, onion powder, and garlic salt. Beat and then pour the eggs into a skillet over medium heat. Stir them lightly until they start to firm up but leave them slightly runny. Add the sausage crumbles and continue stirring lightly for 2 – 3 minutes until eggs are cooked thoroughly.
3. Make gravy according to directions on the packet, set aside. (I used the creamier version listed)
4. Take the biscuits out of the oven and check for doneness. Spread the gravy over each biscuit like you would pizza sauce on dough. Top with egg and sausage mixture and then with both cheeses.
5. Put under the broiler on high until the cheeses melt and then serve immediately.

     I don’t know if I didn't flatten the biscuits enough but they did start to rise considerably. So before topping them with the gravy and such, I made sure they were cooked through and then flattened them with a spatula. When I make these again I might use a rolling pin and get them really thin and just adjust the baking time. I think they turned out really well, but they are filling. The package of biscuits we bought had 8 in it so we ended up with 8 small pizzas. We both had three but couldn't eat the last two. The possibilities of these are endless because, after all, they are pizza. So let your imagination run wild and see what you can come up with. I’d love to hear what you've tried.

Rating: Yummy - Can't wait to try out different versions of these.

Coming Back!

     Good News Everyone! After about a two and a half years since the last post on this blog, Dan in the Kitchen will be active once more. But here is a recap of what's gone on over that time: Christine and I sold our house in NY to move to Delaware where she got a job teaching high school English, I worked in a bakery for a year, we bought a three story townhouse near Christine's school, I just started a job with the state, I started writing a non-food related novel, and most importantly we are expecting our first child in April. 2013 is going to be a year of changes, both big and small, for the Isom household.
     If you read this blog in the past you probably noticed the redesign and you might remember my other blog Syracuse Sandwich, where I reviewed sandwiches that I had in and around Syracuse. While I still order sandwiches when I'm out the majority of the time, I also wanted to review the other dishes when ordering out. So, I've decided to sort of combine them both into this one. What you'll find on this blog is a collection of reviews of the recipes I try and of the meals that I order. Along with the reviews, I'll post food related material that I may come across on one of the sites or blogs that I frequent. Please check back soon for the first of many new posts.

God bless and happy eating.

A tough decision...

After a few weeks of thought I have decided to stop posting on this blog. I have some other larger projects in the works and responsibilities that take precedent over the time it takes to write posts for both of my blogs. However I will begin posting on Syracuse Sandwich again starting today. Thank you to everyone who read this blog regularly.

Dan's Daily Dose #41, #42, #43, & #44

FIVE SPICE POWDER     
1 tsp. Ground cinnamon     
1 tsp. Ground cloves     
1 tsp. Fennel seed     
1 tsp. Star anise     
1 tsp. Szechwan peppercorns 

ITALIAN HERB SEASONING     
1 tsp. Oregano     
1 tsp. Marjoram     
1 tsp. Thyme     
1 tsp. Basil     
1 tsp. Rosemary     
1 tsp. Sage 

  

CINNAMON SUGAR     
7/8 cup Granulated sugar     
2 Tbsp. Ground cinnamon 

  

CHILI POWDER 

3 Tbsp. paprika     
1 Tbsp. ground cumin     
2 Tbsp. oregano     
1 tsp. red or cayenne pepper     
1/2 tsp. garlic powder 

Dan's Daily Dose #39 & #40

     Add fresh butter to your fruit pie filling after it has been cooked. Or dot pieces of butter over the fruit before you place on the top crust.

     A Perfect Pastry Crust?  In your favorite recipe, substitute a 4:1 ratio of lard:butter.

Dan's Daily Dose #38

     To restore color and shine to an aluminum pan, boil some apple peels in it for a few minutes, then rinse and dry.