Papa John's Pizza in Lakeland, Florida

It has been rather a standing joke that everywhere we have lived one of the first things we do is seek out a good pizza delivery service.  At home we can take our time but vacation homes the rules change.  We camped in a self contained RV for about 15 years.  Pizza consisted of homemade, quick pizza and very rarely take-out.  There are some areas we camped that pizza could have be ordered for delivery but we never did.  This vacation home is different because it really is the same as a permanent home only being used part of the year.

The second night we were there and being totally exhausted we ordered Papa John's delivery pizza.  What is really nice is this pizza can be ordered and paid for online so all you need to do is sit back and wait for delivery then tip the delivery person.

We decided to try Papa John's through a recommendation.  When we were out shopping we checked out the location and liked what we saw.  Their prices were good and ordering was about as easy as you could get.  We really like what we saw from the website so that was the final deciding factor.

We ordered an extra large original crust 7-Topping Pizza (beef, grilled chicken, mushrooms, ham, onions, three cheese blend, sausage) and BBQ chicken wings with special garlic and barbeque dipping sauces.  The total cost including delivery, tip and taxes was $25.  As a comparison we would pay about $40 for this order where we live at home (ON, Canada) so the price was more than reasonable.

The wings came with a nicely flavoured barbeque sauce along with 2 dipping sauces.  At $6.99 for the wings it was a good deal.  We will definitely be including wings with our next order.

The pizza was well worth the $12!  The crust was excellent as were the toppings.  It had a gorgeous eye appeal and even better flavour.  The rich sauce was nicely seasoned.  The pizza was wonderfully cheesy and I really liked that it came with a hot pepper.  This definitely is a pizza worth ordering.  The service itself was great with painless ordering and quick delivery.

I was really surprised that we were able to find a pizza delivery service that easily.  When we are at home pizza more often than not means homemade pizza from making the dough, homemade sauce and then topping from there.  At the vacation home cutting out a couple of steps might be desirable.

I'm debating buying a stand mixer for the vacation home that would be available for use to us and family but not anyone who rents the house.  So home baked yeast products will continue mainly as normal so homemade pizza will become a norm on longer stays there as well but our experience makes me feel quite comfortable ordering this pizza occasionally and recommending this pizza delivery service.

Frugal Kitchens 101 - Food Safety in the Kitchen

Food spoilage and contamination not only cost money but can lead to food borne illness.  Much of this can be avoided by using effective ways to reduce harmful bacteria in the kitchen by developing good kitchen safety practices. When it comes to food safety an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure!  This weeks Frugal Kitchens 101 focuses on food safety in the kitchen.  Most of these tips are very low cost but they are in combination quite effective.

• wash your hands -  Wash your hands before, during and after any food prep in hot, soapy water for at least 20 seconds.  I keep a pump bottle of liquid soap by the sink for easy use while doing kitchen duties.  Using a soap with antibacterial properties is not necessary and the use of these types of soaps have been shown to be detrimental.
• clean your cutting boards - Plastic cutting boards can be put in the dishwasher for effective, safe cleaning.  Wood and bamboo cutting boards can be bleached to kill germs.  Undiluted vinegar is an eco-friendly way to kill germs on cutting boards as well.  I prefer using a 50% to 70% rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle that effectively sanitizes most surfaces.  Of note bamboo cutting boards are not only eco-friendly but have antibacterial properties that help kill bacteria so if replacing a cutting board consider buying bamboo.
• sanitize your sink - Did you know the kitchen sink can have more bacteria per square inch than a garbage pail or even a toilet?  It's true!  Sinks should be washed after each use with hot soapy water to eliminate bacteria.  I use a 50% to 70% rubbing alcohol in a spray bottle to bring the sink and tap to a sparkly shine while killing off any germs that escape washing.
• sponges vs dishcloths - Sponges are second to the sink for bacteria levels.  While microwaving or boiling sponges are often recommended for sanitizing sponges I feel it is too easy to overlook sanitizing them often enough.  I do not use sponges in the kitchen.  Instead I have an amble supply of 100% cotton dishcloths both purchased and handmade that I use.  I use a fresh dishcloth each time I do dishes.
• wash produce - All produce whether store bought or home grown including those with inedible rinds and peels should be washed before consuming.  Spray with a 3:1 vinegar to water solution then rinse under tap water.  This is as effective as the expensive commercial fruit and vegetable washes.
• don't rinse meats unless brined - Rinsing meat and poultry is more likely to spread any contaminants around the sink area.  Brined meats should be rinsed before cooking.  Clean the sink and surrounding area before and after rinsing brined meats.
• use mis en place bowls - Placing ingredients for a recipe into small glass bowls rather than using directly from the larger container helps prevent cross-contamination.
• use barriers - Kitchen items (eg. cutting board, scales) that come into contact with both raw and cooked foods should be lined with a protective barrier such as plastic wrap or tin foil.  An eco-friendly alternative is to wash these items in hot soapy water.
• don't recycle used marinade - Used marinade is contaminated with raw meat juice so is not safe to consume as a sauce unless cooked.  A small amount of unused marinade can be set aside to used as a sauce. 
• defrost in the refrigerator or microwave - Meats and poultry should be defrosted in the refrigerator or microwave not on the counter at room temperature. 
• reheat rapidly - Foods should being reheated should be brought through the danger zone (40ºF - 140ºF) as quick as possible.  Sauces, soups and gravies should be brought to a boil while casseroles should reach an internal temperature of 165ºF or higher. 
• use a refrigerator/freezer thermometer - The refrigerator compartment of your refrigerator should be set to 35ºF - 40ºF and the freezer set to 0ºF or lower.   Higher settings risk food spoilage and possible food borne illness.  Lower settings can result in some food spoilage in the refrigerator as well as waste electricity.
• use a food thermometer - Use an instant read thermometer to ensure cooked foods reach the proper temperature before consuming.

Ling's Buffet in Lakeland, Florida

What impresses me most about vacation eating is how very quickly it differs from our eating habits at home.  At home there is a big emphasis on red meat and local caught fresh water fish.  At the same time there is the emphasis on cooking from scratch and not eating out much.  When we are on vacation the emphasis becomes seafood and depending on accommodations eating out is the norm.  With the purchase of our vacation home in the sunny south there will be more of an emphasis of homecooked focusing on seafoods (more on this to come) but for the first couple of days of our vacation we ate out.

Ling's Buffet is located at  4947 U.S. 98, Lakeland, FL 33809-3610  in a small plaza.  There are 3 other locations in the Lakeland area.  Ling's is a sushi bar combined with Chinese buffet.  The atmosphere is extremely friendly.  The buffet was $11.75 each that included all-you-can-eat with refillable drinks.  There are no alcoholic drinks available at Ling's but the food more than makes up for that.  The food offerings were more than substantial.  This restaurant is one we will be visiting again and one I would recommend if you are in the area.

Crab legs are one of my absolute favourite foods!  The only thing better is all you can eat crab legs.  Just look at this beautiful plateful of crab legs.  Ling's buffet had both hot a cold crab legs and let me tell you I did have a crab leg feast.  They also had hot and cold shrimp, shrimp dishes, raw oysters and shushi.

Sushi is a bit misunderstood in that sushi does not mean raw fish as some think it does.  Shushi refers to the presentation and surprizing may not even contain fish.  To the top on the left is the Californian sushi with avocado and to the right is a crab meat coated sushi of the day.  Both were quite good and something that would be easy to duplicate at home.  I've made sushi a few times so will share the how-tos shortly especially the Californian sushi. 

One of the most important things to remember when cooking crab legs, lobster or shrimp at home is to not over cook it.  Overcooking will cause this type of seafood to turn rubbery.  The shell will be a greyish blue when raw.  Place in boiling water until the shell turns an orangish red and no longer.  The colour change is like a built-in doneness indicator.  As soon as the shell turns colour, remove from the pot for serving.  Serve with drawn butter or in the case of shrimp serve with home canned seafood cocktail sauce.

Our Vacation Home Kitchen

Over the next few days I will be sharing some of the great foods we ate while recently on vacation.  This was a bit of a different vacation for us because we were setting up our vacation home.  That meant buying everything needed in a kitchen for home cooking.  While we were on vacation and wanted to eat out we also wanted to experiment cooking at home as well.  This differed from our normal vacations where we are forced to eat out the entire trip.  Don't get me wrong as we really do enjoy eating out and discovering new foods but as foodies doing a bit of home cooking is always welcomed!

Our vacation home is a manufactured home in a gated community located in the southern USA.  This presents the problem of us not being able to bring certain food products that we are used to using into the US either due to Custom's regulations or logistics (especially when flying) and visa versa .  Driving gives us more leeway as to what we can take but the drive itself is long, costing us about 2 days in travel time.  At the same time relying on local foods in our new home away from home gives us an amazing opportunity to explore new foods!

The kitchen is spacious but compact.  The appliances are Maytag and include refrigerator, self cleaning range, microwave oven and dishwasher.  To the right of the refrigerator there is a small counter then door leading to the laundry room.  The patio leads to the only access to the lanai (screened in porch).  The kitchen opens onto the family room.  It is actually a bit larger than my current home kitchen (move still in progress).  It is amazing light, bright and airy so I know I will enjoy cooking in it.

As far as the colour them for the house goes I think we really lucked out!  Most of the colours are the same as our permanent home except the valances highlight hunter green rather than navy blue so anything I bring from home will match right in.  The former owner left the dinette, patio furniture, tv/stand, family room furniture, one bed and a bedroom set.  When we arrived we quickly realized a shopping trip was in order as we didn't even have a glass!  We had been up well over 24 hours and were exhausted from entertaining the night we left so shopping was not a real welcomed idea but it was one we could not put off.

We hit the clubhouse for lunch then headed out to do a bit of shopping.  We picked up cleaning supplies, a lot of kitchen essentials and enough groceries to make coffee and breakfast the following morning.  Breakfast was a simple coffee, eggs, toast and ham steak.

We bought a drip coffee maker which gave noticeably different results from our accustomed percolator so will be buying a percolator our next trip.  We bought a set of non-stick Wearever pots and pans.  If we were going to be the only ones using this house I would have went with stainless steel but we intend to rent the house out from January through March or April so I'm taking that into consideration when making our purchases.

The non-stick flat pan did a reasonable job of cooking the ham steak.  Ham steaks are generally inexpensive coming in around the $4 mark that is enough meat for 4 adults.  They can be used as the meat component for any meal.  We like ham steaks for breakfast or dinner either pan fried or grilled.  This ham steak had the bone in but some have the bone out.  We fried the ham steak in a little butter turning just as it started caramelizing.  It was a simple meal to start our new kitchen in our vacation home.