Food – Page 48 – Simply Norma

Keys Cafe & Bakery

We recently went to a restaurant for breakfast called Keys Cafe and Bakery in Woodbury, Minnesota.

The restaurant is in a strip mall and appears to be very well attended.

We decided to share the ominous looking cinnamon roll to start. Â It was good and I’m glad we didn’t let the size deter us. It is full of air, light and fluffy. Â I don’t know why they give you butter for it. Â It’s plenty moist.

I had fried eggs with hash browns. The eggs were a little undercooked as you can see.

My husband had the Italian Sausage Hash which was filled with lots of vegetables and which he devoured.

The service was great. Â Overall, a good place to have breakfast.

Keys Cafe & Bakery, 1750 Weir Dr, Woodbury, Minnesota.

Sour Cream Coffee Cake

P1040084 — Sour Cream Coffee Cake (made from scratch)

On a recent visit to my brother’s house, he made an absolutely made-from-scratch delicious sour cream coffee cake.

Here is the recipe, from The Colonial Garden Bed & Breakfast, so you can try it at home.

Mix Together

1 1/2 cups sugar

3/4 cup butter

1 1/2 cups sour cream

3 eggs

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Then mix in:

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

3 cups flour

Add apples, pineapple, blueberries or whatever you’d like (ours was blueberry)

Stir all.

Pour into a 13″x9″ greased glass pan

(Optional: sprinkle with brown sugar and crushed nuts)

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until set.

Cool slightly before removing.

P1040090 — Slice of Sour Cream Coffee Cake

Absolutely delicious!

Cinnamon Muffins

The recipe for these muffins was given to me by my brother who recently made it for us when we visited him. Â He found the recipe in the Iowa City Press-Citizen newspaper dated December 25, 2010.

I have not made them yet but have tasted them and want to pass the recipe along quickly so that you can all enjoy it sooner rather than later. Â They are delicious!

Cinnamon Muffins

3 cups flour

1 cup sugar

3 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp nutmeg

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup milk

10 tablespoons butter, melted & slightly cooled (or you can substitute oil for the butter)

For the topping:

1 cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar blended with 1 tsp cinnamon

Grease a 12-cup muffin pan

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees

Melt the butter and let it cool slightly

Pour the first five ingredients into a large mixing bowl

Add the beaten eggs and melted butter and mix well to combine

Add in the milk stirring just until combined; you will have a thick, rough batter

Fill the muffin pan with the filling, about 3/4 full with the batter for each one

Bake for about 20 minutes

Allow to cool for a few minutes

Then dip the top of each muffin in the melted butter and roll it in the sugar/cinnamon mixture

Serve warm. Â Makes a dozen muffins.

Enjoy!

The Olive Garden

I’ve often wondered if all Olive Gardens are the same. Â Seems like the menu with food, salad and drinks is the same. Â This last time we went, we experienced about a 10 minute wait before being seated in a booth. Â In previous times, we’ve had to wait up to 30 minutes.

After being seated, the “usual” Olive Garden atmosphere engulfed us. Â Noisy and bustling. Â I wonder if the types of buildings they buy are more conducive to noise or maybe they cram too many people in one place.

But — the predictability continued. Â We placed our orders and the breaksticks and salad were brought out. Â I have always enjoyed their breadsticks — warm and soft.

Olive Garden Breadstick

Olive Garden Salad

The salad had too much dressing this time.

I decided to get out of my predictability rut (I usually have the Apricot Chicken) and try their Ravioli with Chicken. Â Again, a bit soggy but overall it was okay.

Ravioli with Chicken pieces

My husband had the Stuffed Chicken Marsala with Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes.

Stuffed Chicken Marsala with Garlic Parmesan Mashed Potatoes

Uh, I think it was good. Â I wonder if his palette is not as discerning as mine.

I also had the strawberry mango lemonade which didn’t taste very much like mango and was served in a very tall glass. Â I had to ask the waitress to bring me a “short” glass so I could sip the drink with a straw.

Overall, there are things I like about the Olive Garden. Â But it’s hit and miss with some of the dishes they serve. The service we had was good even though it was crowded. Â This is probably not a place you want to go to for an intimate dinner though.

Gerber Cereal for Babies

I was single when my first son was born and we were living in a small attic apartment in Chicago. Â After my son turned 3 months old, I would add a spoonful or two of Gerber baby cereal to his milk so that he would sleep through the night. Â And, it worked.

Gerber Baby Cereal

Not being very rich as a single mother, I would sometimes have the baby cereal for my dinner since it was fairly inexpensive. Â I would add it to warm milk with a wee bit of salt and sugar.

And now, every now and again, I will buy a box and have some for breakfast. Â Seems like the taste is different though. Perhaps my taste buds have changed or Gerber has toned down the flavor.

I wonder though, since Gerber has been around for babies for so many years if they are considering a product for the aging baby boomers who grew up eating their product.

Just a thought.

Orange Moose in Black River Falls, Wisconsin

Traveling back and forth to Chicago now to visit relatives, we usually stop along the way to have a bite to eat.

The last time we stopped it was at a restaurant called the Orange Moose in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. Â The restaurant is located right off of I94 between Chicago and Minnesota. Â Outside, is a large orange moose.

Orange Moose Bar & Grill, Black River Falls, Wisconsin

The bar is apart from the main dining area which is nice. Â They have tables instead of booths where we were seated.

For being off the interstate, and not a MacDonald’s, this restaurant is pretty good. Â The tables have a paper placemat on them that accentuate their name.

The food came quickly and was hot. Â We had a Ruben sandwich (looks uncooked but my husband says it was cooked) and a Philly Steak sandwich.

Ruben Sandwich

Philly Steak Sanwich

It looked like we were the only ones there around 5:00ish. Â Too much food though.

And then, with the sun setting in front of us, we were off — back to Minnesota.

Krusteaz Blueberry Muffins

When I don’t have a lot of time to bake and need something quick to serve with soup, I resort to a box of Krusteaz muffins.

Krusteaz Wild Blueberry Muffins

The muffins are easy to make as all that is required is adding water to the mixture.

They taste good — unless you overbake them. Â Since each oven is different, I usually put the timer on for the least amount of time it says is required. Â If only one time is given, I usually check them about 5 minutes prior. Â If overbaked, the muffins will come out tasting tough and chewy.

Krusteaz Wild Blueberry Muffin Mix

The blueberries come in a can that’s in the box. Â The instructions say to rinse them first. Â The company’s website says that the blueberries are from Maine.

I put PAM inside the cookie sheet instead of using paper liners.

Krusteaz Wild Blueberry Muffins

These were overbaked by about 2 minutes (I was talking on the phone and got distracted). Overall, they are pretty good muffins.

Krusteaz Wild Blueberry Supreme Muffin Mix, Fat Free, 17.5-Ounce Boxes (Pack of 12)

Simple Barley Soup

A friend of mine made this delicious barley soup when I lived in Seattle. Â It can be seasoned with whatever flavors one likes. I happen to like thyme and cumin.

The ingredients are as follows:

6 cups water

1/4 cup medium barley

3 medium red potatoes

1 1/2 large onion

4 carrots

3 celery sticks

Salt to taste

Thyme to taste

Cumin to taste (not pictured)

Garlic to taste

Rinse the barley in cold water.

Put 8 cups water in a pot and boil.

Add the barley and simmer for about 45 minutes until the barley is cooked.

Coarsely chop the carrots, celery sticks and onion.

Put them in the pot with the barley and stir.

Add the garlic, thyme, salt and cumin — stir.

Chop the potatoes coarsely and add to the soup mixture.

Let the soup simmer for about an hour.

Taste and adjust the flavorings as needed.

Simple Barley Soup

This soup tastes especially good the following day.

Mi Familia Restaurante y Cantina

We’re still searching for a good Mexican restaurant to eat at and decided to try Mi Familia Restaurante y Cantina. Â A cantina in Spanish means bar.

Mi Familia Restaurante y Cantina in Woodbury, Mn

Normally, the restaurant’s that have bars have separate eating areas. Not so with this one. Â When we entered, there was a sign that said “Our credit card machine is down. Â Cash only. Â ATM in … ” Â Since we had cash we continued to enter.

To the left of entering, is the bar area, directly ahead is the above, uh, let’s call it a Â sculpture. Â From the tables directly past the sculpture are tables and booths. Â We were seated immediately.

We were served chips with guacamole dip and hot salsa. Â The chips were not very good. Â I’ve bought better ones at the store.

I had the super burrito (it’s hidden under the lettuce). Â The burrito was served with whole cooked pinto beans and rice. Â The rice was cooked a little too long but the burrito tasted good. Â The beans lacked flavor.

Super Burrito at La Familia Restaurante y Cantina

My husband had the enchilada verdes with rice and beans. Â His response was “it was okay.”

Enchiladas Verdes

We probably won’t be going back to this restaurant. Â It was too bar-like for me and the food was not worth the money spent. Â Although, our waitress was very good.

Mansetti’s Restaurant

It’s always nice to find a restaurant that has good pizza. Mansetti’s is fantastic!

We weren’t sure what to expect when we entered. There were a lot of seniors leaving the restaurant. Walking very slowly. We seated ourselves. The wait people were all young looking — a big contrast from the clientele that just left.

It wasn’t long before we were the only ones in the restaurant.