No grits here

I have received dozens of emails asking me to write a post about the foods I’ve been eating while here. Actually, that is a lie, but I’m going to write about it anyway.

Each day we have breakfast provided for us in the hotel. It consists of cereal, toast, assorted jellies, water, and orange juice. This suits me just fine, but it is incomparable to the full English breakfast we received while on our coach tour everyday. Every morning I had fried eggs, English bacon (what we call country ham), tomatoes, baked beans, toast, and sometimes mushrooms. I miss biscuits, grits, and sausage gravy but all of those will make my homecoming trip to Waffle House in Conyers all the better (and yes Waffle House does now serve biscuits – but they don’t have ovens in any of their restaurants…).

Now that I’m living in a hotel I have sandwiches for lunch a lot otherwise I just grab a sandwich out, a Cornish pastry, or a hot dog/sausage from a cart by the tube station. Saturday I was at the Portobello Road market and I had some Ghanaian food – my best lunch so far. I noticed on the sign that the food had been featured on the BBC and when I looked at the guy serving me I grabbed my camera and started snapping. Just the night before I had seen this guy and his wife on a reality TV show called “The Restaurant” where teams try to have the best restaurant. If they don’t, they get kicked off Donald Trump style. The night before he had gotten kicked off, but the food was great and he was excited that I had seen the show.

Each night we usually go out to dinner and pretty much choose a different ethnicity of food each night. Italian, Chinese, Mexican (no free chips and salsa), Kebab shops, American, Pubs, or just wherever we find that looks good. I haven’t had any restaurant blow me away with their food yet, but I’m waiting on my parents to arrive next Wednesday and then I’ll begin to really start eating good in the neighborhood. My favorite appetizer was the authentic garlic bread we had at an Italian restaurant. If it didn’t cost the equivalent of $6 a slice I would’ve ordered more. My favorite food I’ve had that was unique was at and American diner here that had a sign that read “Hi Y’all Come on in”. I had the breakfast burger which was a hash brown, burger patty, bacon, fried egg, and brown sauce. It was very good and I intend to bring this recipe back to the States. Yes, I have had fish and chips. I don’t have dessert often but I do love getting Haribo sugar covered gummy treats at the corner stores and trying the chocolate bar assortments, of which Cadbury Flake is my favorite so far.

When I travel to Italy I anticipate better food stories but this is all I have for now. I’m going to China town soon to try fried Pigeon which I read in the local paper is quickly becoming a popular dish as chefs are encouraging restaurant goers to try wild game meats. Finally, if you’ve read this far you either really love me or you are getting hungry so here is the recipe to my newest favorite dessert that I learned to make this summer. Courtesy of church members in Section, Alabama:

Krispy Kreme Bread Pudding
2 dozen Krispy Kreme Donuts
Can of Sweetened condensed milk
2 cans fruit cocktail drained
2 beaten eggs
9 oz raisins
2 teaspoons cinnamon
Icing
Box of confectioner’s sugar
Stick of butter
¼ cup of water

Start by mixing all of the ingredients besides the donuts and icing items into a mixing bowl. Then chop up the donuts and put them with all of the other ingredients and let soak a few minutes. Bake on 350 degrees for one hour. While it is cooking bring the mix of confectioner’s sugar, butter, and milk to a boil and pour it over the product when it comes out of the oven.

It won’t kill you, I’ve tested it on many people.