Spike Your Juice? My adventure in home wine making...

So I was reading twitter, as I often do in my free time, and I came across an interesting product. I enjoy a spikey drink once in a while, so I purchased it! "Spike Your Juice" is a kit to make your own homemade campaign-like drink using bottled juice.

I hate most bottled juices, at least the ones I can get at the normal grocery (Whole Foods and Trader Joe's are about 40 mins away) so I made lemonade, breaking one of the rules of the product. The rules for juice selection are as follows:

• minimum sugar content of 20g/serving
• no refrigerated juices
• no artificially sweetened juices
• no unfiltered juices

I juiced about 10 lemons, poured the juice into a 1 gallon container (hence breaking the no unfiltered juices rule), then filled with water and lots of raw sugar.  Then I took one of the yeast packs out of the kit and poured it into the gallon of lemonade, put the airlock stopper in, and sat it on the counter for 2 days as directed.

Today I opened the bottle, and I could see the yeast had created this foamy substance on top of the lemonade, so I poured it through a fine strainer and gave it a taste...It was good, but not very alcoholly tasting. In the product's defense, I could let it ferment for a couple more days and it would get stronger, but I don't want to alter the flavor any further. If I had to guess it might have 4 percent alcohol in it, so less than a beer.

Since that turned out ok, I'm trying again on a bottle of Cran-pom juice my mother bought, and has since decided she doesn't want to drink (she switched from the full sugar version to the "diet" type). I'll let you know how it turns out!

I Cooked! - Parmesan Chicken & Salad Greens with Lemon Vinaigrette

This is an amazing recipe, and pretty easy to make!

Preheat Oven: 200 F

4-6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts
1 C. Flour
1 tsp. Kosher Salt
½ tsp. Fresh Ground Black Pepper
2 Eggs
1 Tbsp. Water
1 ¼ C. Seasoned Bread Crumbs
½ C. Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese, plus extra for serving
Butter
Olive Oil

Directions:
1. “Butterfly” the chicken breasts then cover with waxed paper on a flat surface.

2. Flatten with a rolling pin or meat mallet until ¼” thick

3. Combine flour, salt, pepper & Parmesan cheese on a dinner plate

4. In a shallow dish beat eggs and water

5. Put bread crumbs on a dinner plate

6. Coat each chicken breast on both sides first with flour, then eggs, then breadcrumbs

7. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large skillet, then cook 1-2 chicken breasts on medium heat 2-3 minutes each side until cooked through

8. Add more olive oil and butter to do the next set of chicken breasts

9. Put finished chicken breasts on a baking sheet in oven (200 F) to keep warm until ready to eat

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Lemon Vinaigrette

¼ C. Fresh Squeezed Lemon Juice (2 Lemons)
½ C. Olive Oil
½ tsp. Kosher salt
¼ tsp. Fresh Ground Black Pepper
Salad Greens to serve with same number of Chicken Breasts made

Directions:
1. Mix dressing, then toss with salad greens

2. To serve: place a mound of salad on top of each chicken breast, then grate a little more Parmesan cheese on top 

I've made this twice. The first time I made it frying the chicken in the olive oil/butter combo suggested, and the second time using Grapeseed (aka rapeseed) oil. The grapeseed was so much better! The chicken came out crunchier and far less greasy! Honestly though, my favorite part of this recipe is the vinaigrette! It's divine, especially if you prefer vinaigrette over nasty ol' sugary or creamy dressing! 


(sorry no pics, my hands were covered in egg and breadcrumbs while cooking. Just use your imagination.)

Restaurant Review - Oak City Grille (Royal Oak, MI)

Your Diva is on the mend, finally. It was a tough battle, but I think I'm over the worst of the cold. So, here we go...

Oak City Grille is a restaurant tucked away in the middle of a block. Other than the sign outside, there's nothing really special about it from the outside. At first glance, from the outside it looks like it might be a dive. Imagine my surprise when I walked in and found dark wood everywhere, nice brass light fixtures, a very nice wine list, and a menu with more than buffalo wings! Looks can be deceiving! I've been to Oak City Grill a couple of times prior to this visit, and I'm always given the same treatment. I ask for a table for one, and the greeter insists that I sit at the bar despite the fact there are several empty 2-top tables. I'm short. Sitting at the bar is very uncomfortable since my legs dangle. They don't care. Since I'm alone, I have to sit at the bar.

Once you are seated, you know this will be expensive, and they don't disappoint there. Since I'd resigned myself to paying more than usual, I went for gold! I ordered the Peppercorn Sirloin, and a glass of Pinot Grigio. While I waited for my meal I was given a basket of bread with cold butter that was subsequently hard as a rock, and never was I offered a glass of water. If I needed anything I needed to send up a flare to get the bartender's attention. As my wine glass emptied, never was I offered another glass of wine, and I'm at the freaking bar!

Despite the service, the food was fantastic! The steak was cooked to order (well done, without being dry), and topped with a spicy peppercorn glace. Some might call it gravy, but it's not, it's glace! Gravy is thick, flavorless and forms a skin as it cools. Glace does not! The steak came with a side of broccoli, a vibrant green and also cooked to perfection, and smooth, creamy mashed potatoes. For the meal and 1 glass of wine, I paid $26 (before tip).

The service leaves something to be desired, so don't go expecting first class treatment, but the food is amazing. However, I'm not sure the amazing food makes up for the substandard service and high prices.

Review - Sanders Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels

I love dark chocolate, I like caramels, and I like sea salt, but when I saw the three of them together in this Sanders Candy, I couldn't imagine it! Sanders is a Michigan candy company, they have been around over 100 years when there were Sanders lunch counters. The lunch counters are gone, but the candy and various confections remain.

I'm not a big candy eater. I'd rather eat cake than eat a piece of candy, but DivaMom received a box of the Dark Chocolate Sea Salt Caramels in a gift basket, and I was intrigued. DivaMom doesn't like dark chocolate, so I claimed them right away. I was a bit leery, I mean, I like eating savory and sweet things in rapid succession, but salt on candy? Seemed weird. I opened the box and it smelled like normal chocolate. I picked up the first piece and bit into it. I could taste the salt, the chocolate and the caramel, but my mouth was having a hard time distinguishing the flavors. They were just kind of a jumble. One moment the bitter chocolate was the strongest flavor, the next the sweet caramel, and then the next the salt. Major mouth confusion. I didn't know if I liked it or not. I had to try another...same result. Mouth confusion. I decided to give them a try again the next day.

The next day I knocked off some of the salt granules and tried again. Much better. The saltiness was still there, but the chocolate and caramel were able to shine through. This time the salt brought out the amazing sweet creaminess of the candy, rather than the three flavors duking it out for dominance.

I still don't know if I like the candy. I think I do, but only if I remove some of the salt first. At least I have the rest of the box to experiment with :)

Just another quick update...

Your Diva has a bit of a cold or sinus infection or something, but I've got lots to write up that I'll get to in the next few days. Stay tuned...