Feasting on Asphalt - Thanksgiving Edition pt.2

The cafe next door actually turned out to be Cobbler Shoppe Restaurant. And from the picture you see it boasts of Espresso and Cappuccino (and if you can't see that, click to go to the album picture which is much larger).

From Feasting on A...

Directions for this place was in the previous Feasting on Asphalt - Thanksgiving Edition post, its right next to Spices Unlimited.

Ironically, or maybe just humorous we didn't get coffee or cobbler! Once inside we found several options that were more interesting (and we were not ready to eat a regular meal). On the erasable marker board they listed a bread pudding with vanilla sauce that caught both Stephanie's and my eye...so we ordered one to go. And why they were preparing that, heating it up...There was a delicious, moist, and 'good crumb' looking cake on the counter that was calling my name.

I asked one of the ladies what kind it was and she said it was a Kentucky Butter Cake. Oh yeah, give me a piece of that too!

Suspiciously I asked (or was it Stephanie, we often think alike in situations like this) wait a minute, do you make everything yourself or is this 'imported'? Oh no, we make it all ourselves!

From Feasting on A...

In hind site I wish I had took pictures of the cake and bread pudding, DELICIOUS! The vanilla sauce for the bread pudding looked caramel-e but with a definite vanilla taste and appeared to be riddled with vanilla specks like when you scrape a vanilla bean clean after splitting it. The bread pudding itself looked something like this:



But was not as compressed looking as this, notice towards the bottom or the rest of the picture after the top that this bread pudding looks more like a solid? Our bread pudding had more of the 'top' consistency all thru it but still held together for a clean slice...and it was bigger and taller than this one. Ok, I tried to give you a picture.

For the Kentucky Butter Cake I found this recipe from the Allrecipes.com for what I am sure almost exactly covers the taste of what I experienced.

Our cake led you to believe it was made in a big bundt pan and soaked with a brandy or rum icing on the top, bottom, and sides. I know the reason I loved it so much was because it used some of my favorite ingredients; butter, vanilla, and buttermilk. But ours also had the addition of what we believed to be fine ground roasted almonds that you could actually see spotted throughout the cake...almost looked like poppy seeds or cracked peppercorns, but of course I am sure they were not. It looked relatively similar to this one:



Now on to finding the coffee to go with it!

Feasting on Asphalt - Thanksgiving Edition pt.1

Stephanie had viral meningitis (read our other posts to catch up on this) and went back in for an appointment (she was released on the Friday previous from the ER as a patient) to reassess her condition and they request that she not come back to work till the following Monday. If she was not feeling better she would have to come back in for further testing...

That being the case I felt that Stephanie indeed needed more rest and a relaxing environment. Our room that we live in at the IOC at Mercy Ships was quite stuffy and I felt it was time for at least a temporary change. I already had a four day weekend coming because of the Thanksgiving holiday so I loaded Stephanie up in the car and took here for a 'countryside' ride. She had plenty of pillows, medication, and a special neck pillow for our journey.

After researching online for coffee shops I found an interesting place that was called Spices Unlimited that fell under the coffee category even though it was not a cafe or coffee shop. It sold coffee, all kinds of packaged as well as bulk spices...most I had seen before but there were a few surprises. They also had a section in the back called 'The Cellar" or at least thats what I think it was called, it had an extensive collection of equipement, materials, replacement parts, yeast, hops, barley, and other ingredients for the simplest to most sophisticated home-brewer of beer or wine. Very interesting...Although I personally do not care to venture into that region of recipes and what not.

From Feasting on A...

Spices unlimited is located in Texarkana exit 223a off of Interstate 30. That exit deposits you on highway 71 or N. State Line Ave. After about a half mile you should see it on your left. It is in the middle of a couple of other businesses that are attached.

From Feasting on A...

After talking extensively with the Lady who was running it, she also told us that they supplied the coffee, spices, and other supplies for the cafe next door. Actually while we were there the cook from next door came to get a refill of some 'meat seasoning'.

Join me next time as we visit the cafe next door.

I am a lucky lady!!

I am not bragging (well maybe I am) but I am a lucky girl. I was 27 when I got married and I truely have found my match. He challenges me to be a better person every day. He prays for me regularly. One of  my favorite things about him is that I still have my independace. I don't feel like I have to beg to go ut of town with my girlfriends. He has taught me how to be frugal and how to save for our future. I think while I was single the most important thing to me was to find someone that wanted to do Mercy Ships. Man, I hit the motherload on this one. His desire to serve in Africa is huge and for the right reasons.  There are so many reason why he is the best in my opinion, not to mention what woman wouldn't love a chef for a husband. I love that when we travel together we don't eat at chain restaurants and that when I am sick I feel taken care of but not smothered. 

He loves me and I know it. Of course we have our challenges ( which he wrote about last month) but so far we are working through them and trying to have much fun as possible in this stage of our lives.

My head is not going to explode!!

Finally, after 3 long days of thinking it was possible to see my head actaully explode and roll off my neck, my headache is down to just minor pain. Tyrone has been so nice to me.  He took  me to the ER yesterday. I was so dreading going, because I knew they would do an LP and I was sure everyone I knew at the hospital would see me at my worst. They gave me some Versed (conscious sedation medicine) to knock me out. I was most anxious about what I was going to say while I was visiting the land of the Loopy. And I was afraid who was going to come in the room while they were doing the LP, so I gave the nurse a specific list of people who could come in the room, all others were strictly BANNED!!! As far as I know my wishes were granted. Now I am off work until Wednesday which brings me to 18 more shifts in the ER, then Hasta La Pasta, Sianara, WE ARE OUT OF HERE!!!

A note to Sunday School (& faithful readers)

Hello All,

I (tyrone) just brought Stephanie home from the hospital.  On tuesday Stephanie went to get the 'yellow fever' shot for our travel to Africa.  4 hours later she started getting a headache.  It later developed into a burning sensation in her neck, pain, chills, discomfort and a worse headache that was still happening today.

After some tests, IV, and some shots (not necessarily in that order) they took an LP (what is that?) yeah me too, what is that?  They take a long (blunt/dull) needle and extract fluid from your spinal cord and run tests with it...and it was decided she indeed has viral meningitis, and yes its contagious.  So I would ask that you pray that she will start feeling better and heal.  Usually its just a waiting game.

I don't think I will get it because I have already been immunized for it a few years ago.  I am a walking immunization having had all known medical shots for traveling and disease. (not sure if that is something to brag about or not?)

Thanks in advance for your prayers...we probably won't see you Sunday, we'll probably be lying around watching chic flics and feeding Stephanie ice cream to make her feel better.

tyrone