favorite grocery cravings...

what do you go out of your way to buy when you see it @ the store?

sweetbreads

nice. i do fresh "a" lobe foie or live soft shell crabs

Well,

A bit OT w.r.t. Chicago, but whenever I go back to Virginia, I gotta buy me some Wise Cheez Doodles. Best Snack Food - ever

vegmojo

Pickapeppa suace from Jamaica and Stubb's bbq sauce.

Not so much a go-out-of-my-way must-have as a guilty pleasure, but if I see one of those big bags of Best's Kosher Bagel Dogs, I'll bring 'em on home. I can't think of anything in the must-have category that isn't a staple for me anyway -- maybe the closest would be cinnamon chips for pancakes and baking. The Domenick's at Howard & Clark has these very sporadically and I try to grab a few bags when I notice them.

This changes from visit to visit depending on my food cravings(so often my life revolves around them) and depends on if I'm at Dominick's, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, or Polish grocery.

A new find is Krusteaz fat free cranberry orange muffin mix. Most of the time I'm a purist when it comes to baking and like to mix my own, but this is pretty darn good. I did add an extra 1/2 cup of frozen organic blueberries for more fruit, but the orange and cranberry flavors dominate in a good way.(Dominick's)

I almost always pick up a container of Breakstone's lower fat sour cream to have on hand. I like the texture compared to other low fat versions, but it has higher fat, only 1/3 less than regular I believe. Also, always some Yoplait.(Dominick's)

I also like to pick up San Pellegrino Aranciata(cans of orange flavored soda) when I see it. It's less sweet than regular pop and has orange pulp in it. Quite refreshing.((Dominick's(some), Trader Joes(usually there) and Whole Foods)).

I rarely shop at Whole Foods anymore, since the parking can be a hassle at many city locations, and I can no longer walk to the Lakeview location since my move further west. Plus, the high prices aren't a great incentive either. There, though, I always get several spinach/feta cheese pies from some Middle-Eastern bakery. It's a great lunch option that needs no prep.

At the Polish groceries, I almost always buy some goofy bakery concoction(is that really cheesecake?), imported butter, and usually boneless chicken breasts(ridiculously low prices). For an easy dinner, I pick up fresh polish sausage, potato dumplings and refrigerator or deli-case spruced-up sauerkraut.

When's lunch? I'm sad to say it revolves around a low fat Lean Pocket with meatballs and mozz plus some Yoplait.

Food Nut wrote:I also like to pick up San Pellegrino Aranciata(cans of orange flavored soda) when I see it. It's less sweet than regular pop and has orange pulp in it.

Have you tried Chinotto? No orange pulp but the bitter citrus flavor is great. The small bowling pin shaped bottles are not only stylish but a more appropriate serving size, quenching your thirst without leaving you feeling sugar-bloated. Sanbitter is pretty snazzy as well ... soda pop for people that like Campari.

What? I like small serving sizes? Small cars too? I don't eat 14 pounders and drive a Ford Extraneous? I guess I'm un-American.

Infra-size me,

rien

rien wrote:Have you tried Chinotto?

No. Where do you buy it?

Food Nut wrote:

rien wrote:Have you tried Chinotto?

No. Where do you buy it?

Any of the several Italian salumerie or groceries (Bari, Conte di Savoia, Riviera, Caputo's, and surely others -- I haven't seen it at Graziano's).

Antonius

Italians can be gluttons, too.

Thus, the very large (1.5 L?) bottles of San Pellegrino, all flavors, at Caputo's. Packaged for distribution in Italy only.

I must admit, the stuff goes flat before I can mix it all with Campari and other things. Just tossed the last of a bottle of blood orange...

JeffB wrote:Italians can be gluttons, too.

Thus, the very large (1.5 L?) bottles of San Pellegrino, all flavors, at Caputo's. Packaged for distribution in Italy only.

I must admit, the stuff goes flat before I can mix it all with Campari and other things. Just tossed the last of a bottle of blood orange...

I, on the other hand, go through a bottle of blood orange in 2 sittings, which means I can go through a six pack of those 1.5L bottles in a week, or faster.

The blood orange and grapefruit are my favorites, and you can usually buy six packs of the 1.5L bottles for $8 at Caputo Cheese.

i saw chinotto @ that new place on may off of randolph, gourmet 47. it's getting better ea time i go.

Fresh-squuezed OJ from the TI in Wilmette - especially if they are in the process of squeezing it. So good. They generally have fresh grapefruit and tangerine juices, too, and sometimes blood orange, which makes one deliciously lurid Mimosa.

Also, it seems that whenever I'm in the store, I always pick up at least one cryopak pork t-loin, and sometimes a nice little 2-lb boneless loin, too. The possibilities for experimentation with either are virtually endless.

... Haribo Gummy Bears ...
And I couldn't find any today! Three Wags and two Jewels and I came up empty. I'm jonesing for that chewy orsoliscous treat.

Habanero pistachios from Trader Joe's. My wife and 2 year-old daughter love them too. They aren't really that hot but they go great with beer.