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What I ate last week
EPISODE 49
NEWS/UPDATES
Housekeeping: abbreviated show notes are now on Substack because I’m referencing so many things with links
I try not to talk about Olive Garden every week but I’m going to bring it up twice in this episode. I haven’t been to an Olive Garden since about 2018, when Brian tricked me into eating at one in West Virginia. He said he had a gift card but didn’t. He was wearing an all beige outfit and immediately disappeared. A beige and brown outfit is Olive Garden camouflage. https://nypost.com/2026/02/05/us-news/olive-garden-cook-commits-suicide-in-most-gruesome-way-in-kitchen-cops/; The people of Reddit are saying that he was on PCP, which I hope for his sake he was since it blocks your pain receptors, and had worked there for 37 years? Brian’s thought was why are there deep fryers an Olive Garden? What are they deep frying?
Ballerina farm raw milk recall: why the hell are you selling raw milk in the first place. Increase in deaths associated with raw milk consumption actually was on my 2025 bingo card. I do realize that it is now 2026. I drank raw milk from a cow named princess in TorC
Kickback jack’s lawsuit https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/kickback-jacks-pay-11-million-refusing-hire-men
This website is juicy
Correction: I previously stated that Poppy had a Shirley Temple flavored soda but it’s really Olipop. Never had it.
What I really want to go on is an Arthur Schwartz food tour
Will I feel like a dolt on a food tour? I hate being a tourist. Also I remember going on a tour through Rome as a teenager and we ate at some amazing restaurant and everyone was falling over backwards at the baked shells and I was like ok this is just normal Italian food.
Woke up in the night to Daddy (my cat) playing with a mandarin
He is also really into blueberries, beans, field peas
Whole Foods Cookie Bar
My sister says the Mexican wedding cookies are great; doesn’t love the lemon sandwich cookie that is similar to a Pepperidge Farm brussels cookie
Cookie tables at Ohio weddings: particularly in the Youngstown area; my Ohio supervisor said that it’s a more catholic eastern european/ german / irish heritage tradition. She had three weddings in Ohio but not once a cookie table because she was in the Columbus area. Ohio seems to have very hyper local food traditions. When I was young I was invited to my cousin’s wedding in Ohio but my parents wouldn’t let me go because they didn’t want me to see a 19 year old getting married. They didn’t want me knowing that that was a possibility. My supervisor asked me how old I was when this happened and I realized that I often use the location of the family computer / or computer room as a measure of time. We’re turning your bedroom back into the computer room
https://www.communitydinner.org/
Pasta e Fagiole with Meatballs (a recipe that I wrote down years ago and gave to my sister; she made it this week and said it was great):
1. Sear tiny meatballs in olive oil in a dutch oven, remove.
2. Deglaze pot with wine or vinegar and add diced onion, a diced carrot, olive oil. Cook until soft.
3. Add garlic, thyme, pepper, chili flakes, and a heap of tomato paste. Cook until bottom of pan is brown
4. Deglaze pot with chicken stock. Slowly add more chicken stock, then a Parmesan rind. Let cook for 3 hours on low. There should be enough stock left to cook pasta.
5. Add a can of cannellini beans (not drained, just some liquid poured off), chopped swiss chard, and meatballs. Cook for another 40 mins.
6. Stir in pasta just before ready to eat, and cook until done. Add water if necessary; you’ll want there to be some liquid remaining after pasta is cooked. Serve with parm, pepper, and olive oil.
I attended a virtual conference for work that seems to have originally been planned for the week of Halloween since everyone’s event titles and slide decks were death / halloween themed. Nobody addressed this at any point. Seems like the months in between last halloween and today would have been a perfect time to edit.
Speaking of work, I'm looking for places to eat in Baltimore for a work trip; what should I do there? Watch a bridge collapse? The last time I went out of town Brian accidentally ordered a gallon of egg drop soup and ate that all week. Can’t wait to see what he does this time.
GALLERY FOODNOW is an incan-mexican fusion restaurant with great reviews; I’m weary of fusion restaurants but it looks casual and hole-in-the wall enough that it could be good; when I think of fusion restaurants I think of 90s new world cafe style places filled with men with goatees.
Looking for more Afghani food; there is a place that I have flagged near Johns Hopkins and Atomic Books
Staying in a hotel that is basically called “Hotel near the downtown area and convention center” what a beautiful name
SCENTS
Maison Francis Kurkdjian Aqua Universalis: is a unisex citrus-aromatic fragrance (launched 2009) designed to evoke cleanliness and freshness, often described as "white linen" or "clean sheets". It features key notes of lemon, bergamot, lily of the valley, orange blossom, and light, airy white musks. This smells almost exactly like what my grandmother wore; the original scent that made me think that scents were for me. Another scent that reminds me of her is the Niagara brand starch spray. I like the layering of musk with the white floral.
Joe Malone Basil & Neroli: Earthy, green take on Neroli. Smells like a hot summer garden, with peppery tomato leaf notes. Fades into a 90s Double Tree Hotel soap.
Top - Basil: The herbaceous warmth of basil, with a peppery edge, adds an unexpected twist to the vibrant citrus notes.
Heart - Neroli: Neroli is a green floral note, wonderfully clean and fresh. It infuses the fragrance with the elegant scent of orange flower.
Base - White Musk: A powdery, clean note that enhances the trail of the scent, adding a softness that endures.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian Baccarat Rouge 540 smells like a creamsicle flavored fluoride gel from the dentist in the 90s; then it completely disappeared, thank god. https://www.franciskurkdjian.com/us-en/p/baccarat-rouge-540-eau-de-parfum-RA12232.html
Gaiac by M. Micallef: also initially smelled like some sort of dental product. Very warm and spicy, woody on my skin. The clove and vanilla cheapen it for me. “A Woody fragrance for men. Gaiac was launched in 2005. The nose behind this fragrance is Jean-Claude Astier. Top note is Bergamot; middle notes are Cloves and Jasmine; base notes are Guaiac Wood, Vanilla, Amber and Vetiver.”
Vetiver as a flavoring, called khus, is used in shirley temples. Who would have thought that grass could smell so powerful. I guess I should have taken a clue from the Fresh Cut Grass scent from the Gap in the 90s that I obviously haven’t gotten over https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysopogon_zizanioides#Food_and_flavorings
Fresh Cut Grass scent was my first introduction to abstracted smells, that and the beach scent at Yankee Candle; went to the factory when I was little and dipped candles. https://optional.is/required/2022/12/06/yankee-candles-levels-of-abstraction/
I layered Le Labo Bergamot over Gaiac and the fresh acidity of it reminded me of the bold punch of an Olive Garden Italian Salad Dressing
Daddy: smelled like butter this week
Listener feedback: Petitgrain (pronounced PET-ee-grahn or PET-ee-grayn) helps with anxiety, depression, and even asthma. Can get you through childbirth. Petitgrain and Neroli transport me, which I initially chalked up to nostalgia, seeing as my grandmother wore these scents, but I’m starting to think there’s something more to my attraction to these scents.
INTERNET
https://www.instagram.com/p/DUT3SbdkUCu/?img_index=2&igsh=MThtZzdtZjdmeXV4Ng==
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8Hh8gVu/
Got the shivers these strudels look so bad https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8HhUgDt/
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8Hh91DC/
Joe Wilkinson on Off Menu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken_Kiev
Elbow Bread is doing a New York Charlotte Russe for Valentine’s day; which I’ve always seen but never knew what it was. It’s basically a push pop. https://citylore.org/taste-charlotte-russe-from-holtermanns-bakery/
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP8HwoBPJ/
Bagna Cauda for the Super Bowl https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP89dD7jQ/ would not go over well at my local southern superbowl party where people find the food of continental Europe too foreign and offensive
As someone who worked as a buyer at a vintage store this sounds like a health code violation nightmare https://angryorchardex-change.com/
I’m watching Alone season 11, which is set in the arctic circle. Basically a show about weight loss journeys. I looked up their location on Google Maps and it looks like it’s the Kendall Island Bird Sanctuary on the Mackenzie River Delta. First review for this location is “Never thought I’d see a bird here”
Traitors: Kristin from Top Chef, who loves to cry, tearily said that “I truly believe that we were all chosen to be here”; like yeah girl, by NBC casting. You all are affiliated with NBC.
https://share.google/GUqqfEDDyyPyRpp15
February 2, 2026 (Monday)
8am: Stok cold brew with half & half.
10am: A bowl of cornflakes with milk.
1pm: Whole Foods assorted entertainment crackers with My Two Sons fiery jalapeno pimento cheese and a roasted peanut M&M.
5pm: Spaghetti with sugo piccante di salsiccia and parmesan, made at home.
6:30pm: Blue Bell coffee ice cream with malt and a small end piece of the banana bread.
Got home from facetime my mom while on a walk down the river and the crackers were toppled over and broken all over the floor; Brian claims he did not hear this even though he was 15 feet away, door open, in our sub 900 square foot home.
Brian will put a load of laundry in the dryer and not notice that it sounds like we’re operating a rock tumblr. Every couple months I reach into the dryer and pull out a knife. Sometimes he leaves sharpies in his pockets and they scribble on all of our clothes.
My dad made pasta bake with Bob Evans breakfast sausage and my mom was mad about it, then I realized that I was maybe about to do the same thing with the mystery sausage. Free sausage is by nature a little bit mysterious. I think my mystery sausage was vaguely sage flavored, or garlic. Very fatty.
Why don’t Italians make beef sausage? Or is that what a meatball is?
Found an Italian beef sausage recipe sponsored by the NYC Beef Council https://spicedblog.com/homemade-italian-style-beef-sausage/
Pork has a milder flavor and its fat and meat emulsifies better than beef, which is more crumbly; pork fat has a lower melting point and stays softer when the temp lowers
My pasta sauce: mystery sausage, onion, garlic, chinese chili flakes, Cirio passata, a parmesan rind
https://app.ckbk.com/recipe/marc64373c04s001r035/rigatoni-col-sugo-piccante-di-salsiccia
I was trimming my nails into a small bowl while waiting for the sausage to brown and it looked like pre shredded parm and I thought wow that’s dangerous.
Coffee sandwich of a day. I have a bag of Dietsch’s malt in the freezer that my dad gave me.
Email to Dietsch’s customer care:
Me: Hi! I’m curious why the chocolate pretzels are missing 1/3 of the pretzel? They were great btw.
Dietsch’s: Hi Caroline! We use full size pretzels in our 1/2 lb and 1 lb boxes as well as our 1 lb bags but for our 1/2 lb bags we use some of our pretzels that are missing a loop to help cut down on pretzel waste. Smaller pieces than that are coated and used in our ice cream. Dietsch Brothers Website Administrator, Findlay, Ohio
February 3, 2026 (Tuesday)
8:30am: Counter Culture coffee with half & half, made at home.
9am: A bowl of cornflakes with milk.
12pm: Whole Foods assorted entertainment crackers with My Two Sons fiery jalapeno pimento cheese
2:30pm: Kettle jalapeno potato chips.
6pm: Shells with leftover sugo piccante di salsiccia and parmesan.
8pm: Blue Bell coffee ice cream.
Finally cleaned my Moccamaster and it didn’t make the coffee taste any less bad.
Eating a bowl of corn in the morning is strange
Jalapeno kettle chips are too sweet
February 4, 2026 (Wednesday)
7am: Stok cold brew with half & half and a bowl of corn flakes with milk.
8:30am: Leftover coffee with half & half at the office.
11am: Leftover shells with sugo piccante di salsiccia and parmesan and a cup of coffee with half & half at the office.
Cake room: nothing but old Page-a-Day recipes
4pm: Three black and white cookies from Whole Foods.
6:30pm: Grilled Virginia ham, swiss cheese, thinly sliced onion, and Edmont Fallot grain mustard on rustic rye bread from Whole Foods, made at home.
7:30pm: A cup of earl grey tea with half & half, made at home.
Leftover coffee was in my old anise seed jar and it tastes like anise.
Well I found them. black and white cookies in the regular baking section at Whole Foods; it was an unbranded clear plastic clamshell of small cookies. Not as good as the Katz’s in my opinion. A bit too sugary. Hiding in the kitchen facing the cupboards cramming them into my mouth like Brian’s dad crinkling Tasty Kakes in the dark of the kitchen.
Edmont Fallot in a stone, corked crock that my sister got me in France. It reminds me of a little clay or stone pot and lid that I used for salt until my cat broke it. The deaf and slightly obese one. The pot was for some sort of French herbs de provence product that was sold at Whole Foods. Brian was sad when it broke. This mustard is reportedly the only mustard still made in Burgundy.
https://thefrenchfarm.com/brands/edmond-fallot/?srsltid=AfmBOopIkgCpq3PSQsgsxZzzUaAod4rQLw4bl9a96H_SLlT6aK27xEfV
https://thefrenchfarm.com/edmond-fallot-old-fashion-grain-mustard-stone-jar/?srsltid=AfmBOorrScrWj-2BgXu0CwwNvEMvDNLhu6R_wZhW2MG2tu4MmeWowchKeIo
Using this precious mustard is part of my 2026 goal to stop living with scarcity mindset and practice abundance. I saw an infographic for traits of people living with scarcity mindset once and all eight of the points described me. I used to save all of my Lip Smackers and beautiful erasers in the 90s and never ended up using them. I tend to hoard things and then try to use them at the very last minute before they rot. I’m trying to feel ok about running out of things and not having a replacement on hand, as I almost always do. I’m trying to be more generous with myself. Next step is to wear my nice clothes more often, which I often hide away out of fear of sweating in them or spilling grease down the front of them.
I toast both sides of the bread when I make a grilled cheese
I think that the discovery of black and white cookies subconsciously made me want to recreate the reuben sandwich experience; I kept tasting it while I imagined making grilled ham and cheese
I want a pumpernickel bagel; do they have them around here?
My cat also broke my thin glass Japanese tea pot (he breaks things when we go out of town) so I kept the metal filter and the only jar it works with is a Le Parfait Super with the top removed. Once the tea is brewed you have to pick it up with a towel because it’s boiling hot and then it spills everywhere when you try and pour it into a mug. I’ll probably keep making tea like this for the rest of my life. I’ve started putting the mugs on a towel before I try to spill the tea into them. Is this why they are called tea towels?
February 5, 2026 (Thursday)
8am: Counter Culture coffee with half & half, made at home.
10am: Grilled Swiss cheese on olive oil toasted rustic rye, made at home.
1:30pm: Whole Foods restaurant tortilla chips and Tacodeli mild queso with Texas Pete hot sauce.
2:30pm: Three black and white cookies.
4:30pm: Chicken soup with scallions, garlic, ginger, and basmati rice, made at home.
7pm: Two black and white cookies.
Horrendous grilled cheese on mismatched sized bread, one side burnt, not enough cheese. Swiss cheese really needs salt. It tastes like wax or water.
I went to Tacodeli in Austin once with a friend who put a ramekin of the doña hot sauce on the table and I put it all over my food.
The unlabeled black and white cookies from Whole Foods are completely dipped in white icing, then half dipped in chocolate, leaving the chocolate side double iced, so I eat that side last. Essentially an upside down cake or half of a Little Debbie / Drakes / Hostess snack cake. Like a swiss roll. Two black and white cookies sandwiched together with cream in the middle would be my dream dessert.
Chicken soup modeled after the sweet Pho broth that seems to be more prevalent in Chicago than other cities (totally possible that it’s just a coincidence). I never liked pho until I started having Chicago pho. Still chasing that flavor in NC.
Chicken stock
Half an onion
8 cloves of garlic
Large knob of ginger, sliced
1 dried star anise
1 tablespoon of lump sugar
1 tablespoon soy sauce
Packet of Sapporo Ichiban soup mix (unknown origin)
1 bunch of scallions, cut into 1” pieces
Chicken, cut into 1” pieces and tossed with salt
Rice for serving
February 6, 2026 (Friday)
7:30am: Stok cold brew with half & half and a bowl of cornflakes with milk.
9:30am: A cup of coffee with half & half at the office.
Cake room: NYT Page-a-Day calendar recipes for Sheet-Pan Chicken with Artichokes and Herbs and Bricklayer-Style Nachos.
11:30am: A drip coffee with half & half and a breakfast burrito from 1922 by Carolina Coffee Shop in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
5pm: Whole Foods restaurant tortilla chips and Tacodeli mild queso.
7pm: Leftover soup and a cup of earl grey tea with half & half, made at home.
Carolina Coffee Shop is the oldest sit-down restaurant in North Carolina; next door is its sister restaurant, “1922 by Carolina Coffee Shop”, which is confusing.
Breakfast burrito had hashbrowns, egg, cheddar and a packet of Chinese restaurant hot sauce
Much like fashion, food has stagnated
Bricklayer nachos: bacon, chorizo, and beef is insane
February 7, 2026 (Saturday)
9am: Counter Culture coffee with half & half and two sunny eggs with melted swiss cheese over a slice of heritage grain sourdough toasted in butter, made at home.
12pm: Kettle jalapeno potato chips.
2:30pm: Shane Confectionary Buttercreams.
5pm: Half of a chicken salad sandwich with onion, pickled banana peppers, and romaine lettuce on heritage grain sourdough toasted in butter, made at home.
7pm: Blue Bell coffee and oatmeal cream pie flavored ice creams.
I’m just eating different cheese and carb combinations in an attempt to satisfy my want for a huge slice of greasy cheese pizza.
Shane Confectionary Buttercreams are insanely small. Each chocolate is about the size of a Hershey’s kiss. The flavors are odd and somewhat soapy. One flavor tasted like coffee and soap. One was clearly coconut, and then there’s vanilla. Official flavors: Coconut, Maple Walnut, Raspberry & Vanilla Bean. I would never buy this again.
Chicken salad: Half of a leftover chicken from making soup, Duke’s mayonnaise, Edmont Fallot grain mustard, diced onion, diced pickled banana peppers, pickled banana pepper vinegar, garlic powder, salt and pepper. The bread has a nice sourness to it for generic Whole Foods bread, which I tend to avoid. It's hard to get good bread that uses organic flour at a grocery store. I’d go to Strong Arm Bakery near me, but for the price that they charge, I want it to be made from organic flour.
February 8, 2026 (Sunday)
8am: Stok cold brew with half & half.
10am: Fried basmati rice with peas, scrambled eggs, onion, and romaine lettuce, made at home.
12pm: Whole Foods restaurant style tortilla chips and Tacodeli white queso with jalapenos.
2:30pm: A bit of pot roast from Brians’ parents and a handful of Kettle jalapeno potato chips.
5pm: Shawarma spiced baby back ribs with thinly sliced onions, made at home.
Brian’s parents sent food over since Brian is sick: Pot roast, green beans, mashed potatoes, carrots stewed in a reddish liquid, a pumpernickel bread, two slices of chocolate chess pie, and a pint of Haagen Dazs caramel ice cream.
2.75 pound rack of baby back ribs. Rubbed with chicken shawarma spice from Sassool and set into the fridge for 2.5 hours. Cooked at 225 for 3.5 hours, then at 275 for another hour. I served with thinly sliced onion and a sauce made from the pan drippings, ketchup, apple cider vinegar, worchestershire, cornstarch, sugar, and salt. My parents recommended the Smitten Kitchen recipe; I did a deeper dive into the Seriouseats recipe and people were arguing about the salt in the comments to the point that the author edited the recipe.
Watching people starve on Alone while eating a rack of ribs is insane