Tavern and Tap for City Pulse

Read it here.

Marquette

At the beginning of August, I took a business trip to Marquette in the Upper Peninsula. I had never been there before, and while my dad insisted that Marquette is "a neat town," I wasn't convinced.

After traveling for work a lot this year and staying in a lot of nondescript hotels (think HoJos, Knights Inns, etc.) I decided to do something different this time and find myself a bed and breakfast. After a Google search, I settled on the Blueberry Ridge Bed and Breakfast.

I think the charms of bed and breakfasts might be lost on me. I found it awkward to make conversation with the owner over breakfast, and while I'm sure that there are some travelers who would be charmed with the owner's early-morning piano playing, I found it strange.

The breakfasts were sugary sweet.

Grape salad with brown sugar.

Peach puffed pancake with whipped cream, straight out of the can.

Dining room. This was at 7am. Notice the lit candles.

"Spicy fruit compote." Spicy because there was a cinnamon stick in there.

On my upcoming return trip to Marquette, I will stay at the Landmark Inn. And I'll find a little added protein for breakfast, I hope.

For lunch, I went to Sweet Water Cafe, more than once. I also went there for breakfast. This little cafe is wonderful- fresh, healthy food, made with seasonally-appropriate ingredients that are influenced by the UP (maple cream latte.) They make their own bread and desserts and both are fantastic.

Chilean avocado salad- exactly what I needed after the peach puffed pancake.

Almond cheesecake.

Yogurt, fruit, and granola, with toast and a maple cream latte. My favorite thing at Sweet Water.

I'm looking forward to eating at Sweet Water as many times as possible in October. What a little gem.

I also ate at Elizabeth's Chop House for dinner and The Vierling for lunch.

Bread basket glory at the chop house.

Best thing I ate at the chop house was the house salad. That vinaigrette was to die for.

Planked whitefish at the chop house, with double the spinach.

 My advice? Skip these two places and explore Sweet Water's menu as much as possible.

Marquette is a hilly town, which made running challenging but justified the above-mentioned almond cheesecake. There's a great little independent bookstore, and of course the views of Lake Superior are breathtaking. One morning I drove to Presque Isle park to go for a run, and I know that the autumn leaves will be spectacular at the park in October.

Before I hit the road for the 7 hour drive back to Lansing, I had a root beer float at Doncker's, which also has an adorable gift shop.

Does anyone have other Marquette or Upper Peninsula recommendations? Does anyone want to volunteer as chauffeur?

Sinclair Grill for City Pulse

Read it here.

Good Truckin Diner for City Pulse

I wish I was there now for the breakfast tacos.

State Room for City Pulse

My State Room, my favorite.

Gingerbread cake.

Goose confit cassoulet.

November Bon Appetit- Pumpkin Scones (with or without cinnamon butter)

I took a few days off before Thanksgiving this year. The boyfriend I would be hosting Thanksgiving dessert for about 20 of our nearest and dearest, and I knew that I would need to get it together and clean the house. Those 3 days were lifesavers, and they also gave me a chance to make something a little luxurious, something that screams "holidays" to me- breakfast baked goods.

Flip to Bon Appetit's November issue and the recipe for pumpkin scones with cinnamon butter. The only time I'd ever made scones, I admit, was from a mix. You know those ones that they sell at World Market? Sticky Fingers brand? That name is the truth. Scone batter adheres to your fingers and doesn't want to release.

I made the batter in the evening, formed it into scones, and froze them on a baking sheet overnight. In the morning I got home from my workout, popped these in the oven, and by the time I was showered and Keurig-ed, the house was fragrant with the aroma of breakfast.

Full of chopped cranberries and pumpkin.

I skipped the cinnamon butter, because my brother always used to make me go to Texas Roadhouse and I always hated the cinnamon butter with rolls. I just don't think butter should be sweet. Give me an herby, tarragony butter any old day. I just drizzled a little melted butter on the scones.

A scone of some stripe is now a contender for Christmas morning. Not pumpkin, obviously, because eating pumpkin after Thanksgiving is tantamount to wearing white after Labor Day. Or whatever. I'm not even sure that they must be sweet. Savory scones are a thing, right?

Le Chat Gourmet- Croissant Workshop

As I write this I am laying in bed, covered up by my most festive bright red down comforter, sipping coffee laced with my most-anticipated holiday treat- Peppermint Mocha Coffeemate.

Every year, the weekend after Thanksgiving, I buy the biggest bottle I can find. I go hog wild with the stuff until the end of the year. If there's anything remaining in the bottle at midnight on New Year's Eve, it gets dumped. But man oh man, that's a glorious month.

Back to it. A few Saturdays ago, my most cookingest girlfriend and I finally padded our stomachs with scrambled eggs and fruit and headed into Eaton Rapids, a town south of Lansing where, frankly, not much exists. But what DOES exist in Eaton Rapids is Le Chat Gourmet, a cooking school which owner Denene Vincent has built in her home. The kitchen is drop-dead gorgeous and Chef Vincent's skills make you forget that you're in Eaton Rapids.

I wrote about Le Chat Gourmet here, a few years ago. (It was before the boyfriend made his debut. No guys stood a chance of getting my email address this time around.)

At 10am that Saturday we arrived and started our six-hour submersion into all things butter, flour, and French. That's right, a Croissant Workshop.

We rolled.

How weird is this creepy video?

 We pinched, we prodded, and most of all, we waited. 
 

We banged on a sheet of butter with a rolling pin.

Croissants take a few days to come together. The flakiness comes from multiple rollings of the dough, and after each roll, the dough has to rest. At one point, the dough has to rest overnight. Chef Vincent had prepared dough beforehand that rested overnight, so we cheated a bit and used that to make our final products. We did, however, double back and make the dough from the start, so I'm sure some other, later eaters enjoyed the fruits of our labor.

Finally, we had baking trays full of plain croissants, pain au chocolat (my favorite), and almond croissants.

We baked them, and I'd never felt more French in my life. Even when I lived in St. Amand-Montrond in a French boarding school and spoke French for the majority of every day. I still wore my Americanism like a hot pink scarf.

Stacey gazed upon the pastries and thought about the meaning of life.

Finally, we feasted.

Mon dieu.

If I'm being honest, I will probably never make croissants unless my French friends or my British friends come to visit. They are all better cooks than I am and could lend needed assistance. Otherwise, I'm not sure these beautiful babies will ever emerge from my kitchen. They were delicious, oui. But a girl's gotta work, you know?

Bien sur, if any of you want to come over and make a day (and slumber party) of it, I will reconsider. These would certainly make for a memorable Christmas morning, non?

What I've Been Eating

Blueberries, almond butter, a few chocolate chips.

 Protein Pancakes.

One mashed banana, two eggs whisked in, a tablespoon of ground flax seed, a shake of cinnamon and a bit of vanilla. Cooked over low heat in a greased skillet for about ten minutes.

Blueberries, almond butter, honey.

The topping possibilities are endless.

Peanut butter, strawberries.

 Sometimes, on Fridays, I add a little cocoa powder.

Blueberries, butter.

Raspberries, almond butter.

I think you get the picture.

The best pork chop I've ever had. Bar none. It came from Ham Sweet Farm, where I've been getting my meat of late as a member of their ingenious meat CSA. Near the first of the month, I get an email saying my share is ready. I head out to the farm and load up on chicken, pork, bacon, steak, hamburgers. . .

I marinated these chops in cranberry balsamic vinegar, olive oil, garlic salt and lemon pepper. Sometimes (ALL the time, who are we kidding) the simplest preparation is the absolute best.

Hamburgers from Leroy's. In between a wedding ceremony and reception a few weeks ago, the dreamboat and I headed to Leroy's with a few friends. I'd heard that the burgers are killer. The rumors were true. We will go back this afternoon to celebrate my birthday, and the fact that it's Sunday, and that this burger deluxe is $4.25.

Trust me.

Mike's Village Restaurant for City Pulse

Read it here.

If you're not convinced to eat the doughnuts, read my cohort's article here.

Save your allowance this week and head to Dimondale.

Blondie's Barn, Haslett

A few weeks ago I met my brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and their best friends for breakfast at Blondie's Barn. Although I'd gotten up much too early on that weekend morning and had already had some coffee, I couldn't resist ordering a large latte from the full coffee bar the moment I sat down.

It was large. It was the size of my head, and I have a freakishly big head. (Seriously. I can't wear most hats. You should see me struggle into a turtleneck.)

I asked our waitress if they make the corned beef hash on site, or if it's canned. I'm not a snob about it, I know corned beef hash is a pain to make, but if it's canned I always order something else. They made it there. My mouth watered.

I ordered my eggs poached and my bread in the form of biscuits. Biscuits are one of my favorite things in life and are the primary reason I love Cracker Barrel so much.

Yes, I love Cracker Barrel. I can't help it. The food is good, and every time I go there I find something in that country store that I just have to have.

This corned beef hash was fantastic. It had lots of salty flavor and was hot and fresh. The eggs were properly poached- no hardened yolk in the center. I cleaned my plate and sopped up anything that had gotten away from me with my biscuits.

Blondie's has a kitschy feel, was packed with hungry eaters, and left me one satisfied breakfaster. I could become a regular customer.

Readers, I've been doing a lot of eating, and I'm dying to tell you about it. I've also been doing a lot of working, but I'm trying to get my time management together. Stay tuned, because delicious things are coming your way.

Wolfgang's, Grand Rapids

A few weeks ago I hit the road for a quick trip to Grand Rapids with a girlfriend. She and I have been know to start chattering so much, and so distractedly, that once while we attempted to drive to Kalamazoo for dinner we ended up in Indiana. Since this trip had the advantage of daylight and neither one of us had had quite enough coffee yet, we were confident that we would remain in the correct state for the duration.

While she did what she needed to do, I researched where we would eat breakfast. After this great series on MLive ran, I had jotted down two must-visits in GR: Anna's House and Wolfgang's (the link wasn't working, so check the Facebook page too.) A quick Twitter check with my most beautiful cousin confirmed that Wolfgang's is the spot to beat and we headed over for a late breakfast.

We waited for a table for about 20 minutes while we gazed lustily at the dishes being whisked past us. After we were seated we came up with a game plan quickly- we would each order our own savory dish and would get a sweet dish to share. I just love friends who are as out of control as I am.

Of late, I've been loving both biscuits and gravy and corned beef hash. The two struggle for the #1 spot in my brain every time I go out for breakfast. When I read the description for the Keane, I snapped the menu shut and checked my chin for drool. Keane- Two biscuits in a skillet topped with corned beef hash, sausage gravy and three eggs. In the immortal words of Uncle Jesse, have mercy.

I got those eggs poached, as I am wont to do. The moment the hot skillet was set on the table I punched into the middle of the eggs JUST TO SEE if I would have something to complain about (i.e. hard yolks.) The yolk glided out of the egg and ran into the corned beef hash, and I ate my words. And everything else in the skillet. I cleaned it out and washed it down with hazelnut coffee and tears, because Wolfgang's is an hour away from where I live.

You didn't forget that we had breakfast dessert, did you? I couldn't forget the massive plate of pancakes sitting between us, staring at us, whispering to us "you're going to spent the night in the gym for this one, girls." We knew before we sat down that we wanted the Victoria Upton- tiramisu pancakes layered with mascarpone filling, and coffee topped with whipped cream, dusted with cocoa powder.

The pancakes were so light, but the filling was so rich and coffee-y. That dollop of whipped cream? The size of my face. The dish was gorgeous, to boot, and could have been photographed for a magazine. Instead, it showed up on my Facebook and Instagram, which is almost as important. Judging by the feedback on Facebook, Wolfgang's brings Grand Rapidians running. "I would have met you there on my lunch break!" said one cousin, while a friend who spent formative years in GR professed her love for the restaurant. I understand why.

Keep this place bookmarked, and if you're ever in GR and hungry, get thee to Wolfgang's.