A Thing or Two

Hallelujah! TJ's is coming to Corvallis!

I don't have to tell you the many, many reasons we are looking forward to having Trader Joe's open a store in Corvallis. Cheers went up around the area when the news broke yesterday morning.

Lots of local comments on that article, many complaining about high prices at First Alternative Co-op. Always buying local really tests our principles; even among the most die-hard "Buy Local" friends I have, most of them are as excited about this news as if they'd just landed free tickets to a reunion Beatles concert.

Neccos - Mmmmm

I'm thinking about experimenting a little with our candy selection at the Darkside Cinema. It might be fun to offer candy that appeals to our sense of nostalgia. I never see Neccos, Sugar Daddies, or Bit-O-Honeys in movie snack bars anymore, and I'll bet some of our patrons would love to see these again.

In my research I uncovered these fun facts about Neccos.

Q: What are the original eight flavors in a Necco Wafer Roll?

A: The original eight flavors: orange, lemon, lime, clove, chocolate, cinnamon, licorice and wintergreen. The ingredients are simply sugar, corn syrup, gelatin, gum, colorings and flavoring.

Q: What are the six flavors in the Sweethearts Conversation Hearts?

A: The six flavors in the sweethearts Conversation Hearts are cherry, banana, lemon, grape, orange and wintergreen.

Bonus: Necco is a shortened version of "New England Confectionery Company."

Suck on that!

Lamb shish kebab, the Armenian way

Just going through old emails, I ran across this shot of the exalted shish kebab we made at Mom's last Christmas.

Yum.

I think it might be time for dinner, dagnabbit.

Lovefoodhatewaste.com - Tips and recipes to reduce food waste

LoveFoodHateWaste is a gold mine for those of us who hate to throw away good food—or food that we allowed to go bad in the fridge because we just couldn't use it up fast enough.

I buy romaine lettuce three heads to a bag. Inevitably, one of the heads starts turning brown before I can use all three heads.

I'm also the one who can never seem to make the right amount of pasta; there's either not enough, or we end up with a pot of cold pasta in the fridge, getting shoved to the back to make room for more appetizing alternatives.

At LoveFoodHateWaste, I can search for recipes that use up my leftovers, find out which "Best used by ..." dates are true and which are just there to get you to throw stuff away and buy more, learn about which foods keep well and how best to store them, and lots more.

No one like to feel like they are wasting money or food. This site can help you change your habits so you won't. At least, not as often.