Cause down the shore everything's all right...

I've said it before and I'll say it again...there's nothing like the Jersey Shore. It's silly, sweet, fun, unpretentious and one of the best guilty pleasures around. Oh yeah, and the food's pretty good too!

The RRR's and I spent some time down at our beach house last month. One of the cornerstones of our trip was a return visit to the sixth annual New Jersey State Ice Cream Festival in downtown Toms River. RRR and I take full advantage of Mr. RRR's peanut allergy by helping ourselves to his peanut-laden samples. Hey, whatever it takes to make an informed decision.

If you don't remember from the last time I posted about this event, the premise is simple. You pay a few bucks, get a spoon and some tickets, and make your way down the street picking up samples at the various vendor stands. After sampling the creamy treats, you then place two votes: one for best national and one for best local flavor. Of course, there's entertainment and other craft stands to occupy your time while you contemplate your decision.

The contestants this year? Vying for the title of best local flavor were Applegate Farm's Frozen Hot Chocolate (Upper Montclair), Baskin Robbins' Chocolate Orea (Toms River), Friendly's Hunka Chunka Peanut Butter (Toms River), Farley's Homemade Ice Cream's Cinnamon Buns (Jackson), Mrs. Walker's Blueberry Pie (Beachwood), Sweet Kate's Cookie Crunch (Lacey), Springer's Homemade Ice Cream's Oreo (Stone Harbor), Gifford's Ice Cream's Lobster Tracks (Maine), and The Sprinkle Shack's Praline Fudge (Berkeley).

It seems that the ice cream festival is also feeling the effects of the economy with this year's samples being about half the size of the previous year's treats.

It also seems that proper food hygiene has gone at the window for one of the vendors. At Applegate Farms, one of the workers was a class act and had a lit cigarette dangling out of his mouth as he doled at samples to waiting patrons. In my mind, this should have been an immediate disqualification, even more of an issue than their poorly stored samples. My sample was complete liquid, RRR's frozen solid and Mr. RRR somewhere in between. One word sums up Applegate Farms: disgusting!

We were all close in our picks for favorites but we weren't totally in sync with the rest of the crowd. Enough of the hype, let's get to the winners!

People's Choice Local Brand
1 Praline Fudge, Sprinkle Shack
2 Blueberry Pie, Mrs. Walker's
3 Frozen Hot Chocolate, Applegate Farms

People's Choice National Brand
1 Hunka Chunka Peanut Butter, Friendly's
2 Chocolate Oreo, Baskin Robbins
3 Lobster Tracks, Gifford's

Judges Local

1 Praline Fudge, Sprinkle Shack

2 Oreo, Springer's

3 Cinnamon Buns, Farley's

Judges National Brand

1 Lobster Tracks, Gifford's

2 Hunka Chunka Peanut Butter, Friendly's

3 Chocolate Oreo, Baskin Robbins

Next up in the long overdue posts, a trip to NJ wine country! Yes, NJ wine country!

A ziti filled Easter

Today, I spent Easter with my Dad and Marie. Our normal holiday routine is to go to one of two local Toms River restaurants, Jack Baker's or the Old Tyme Tavern. What can I say, my Dad is a creature of habit and it's one of his many traits I've inherited.

Marie decided to shake things up a bit this year and make dinner instead. She served what she calls a 'simple' meal of baked ziti served with meatballs, sausage, pork (the usual Italian Sunday meal accouterments) along with a mixed salad with olives and tomatoes.

Let me take a moment to talk about Marie's ziti. First off, I am not a huge baked ziti fan but there is just something about her ziti that sends me into a cheesy carb frenzy. Perhaps it's the soft noodles, the gooey cheese, the hearty tomato sauce or the right amount of seasonings. I don't know and I don't care. All I know is that it's magically delicious and the only baked ziti I'll eat.

Today was no exception. The ziti was "downright kick ass" (a recent quote I borrowed from Unc) and after Dad and I polished off a bottle of wine we went back for a bit more.

Equally amazing was the strawberry cheesecake I purchased at the last minute at the Garden of Eden. Who knew? Light, creamy and the perfect size for three people. And with a nice piece to take home!

The best part of the day was what I find most rewarding as a home cook (and one of the main reasons why I enjoy writing this blog). There is something so deeply satisfying when someone enjoys a dish that you've put your heart and soul into, and in this particular instance, a recipe you've spent years perfecting.

I've experienced that myself when friends and family go ga-ga over a dish I've served and I can tell Marie felt that appreciation today as I was freaking out over one of her signature recipes. A cook can never hear too many compliments! The large hug that I received at the end of the day made me realize that my gluttony provided some happiness in what has been a tough and emotional period in her life as of late.

And just knowing that you have brought some light to someone else's day sends good karma and positive vibes back to you instantly. Sometimes that's all it takes.