Gladys’ Bakery

 

Paul’s Fruitcake Corner

Welcome to Paul’s Fruitcake Corner. Here at the corner we will try fruitcake so you do not have to. Everything is bigger in Texas including the fruitcakes. Gladys’ Bakery boasts they have a 150 pound Worlds’ larges Texas-shaped fruitcake. I bought a two pound ‘old fashioned Czech pecan fruitcake loaf’. It is very festive looking with its top arrangement of glace cherries and pecans. It tastes very good with a moist, cakelike consistency. The candied fruits and pecans are generously distributed throughout.  The label boasts; No citron, citrus peel, raisins or spices added. “Hmmmm”. Hey, what’s wrong with citrus peel, raisins and spices? (Citron has a bad rap.) Against my better judgement I looked at the ingredient list to see what was added. High fructose corn syrup, corn syrup and a laundry list of chemicals were found along with cherries and pineapple.

Overall Glady’s makes a very decent cake. I enjoyed it but did not do any somersaults after reading the ingredient list.

DESIGNINATED PIE ROOM

 

 I am really starting to like craft fairs. How could one resist Holiday festival that sells crafts, baked goods, entertainment, pies and actually has a designated pie room? Our local church El Sobrante United Methodist Church has all that and more. This slice of peach pie and coffee set me back all of three dollars. I did not leave empty handed. I bought this pecan pie and assorted jams. Good times!

COLLEGE OF THE OZARKS

 

Paul’s Fruitcake Corner

Welcome to Paul’s Fruitcake Corner. Here at the corner we will try fruitcake so you do not have to. We travel to Point Look, Missouri to try a cake made from students at the College of the Ozarks. College of the Ozarks is a Christian College since 1906. The students sell hand made products to raise funds for the school. This is a 1 pound cake and it arrived in a smart tin decorated with the schools logo. I was really impressed with how moist this cake was. It had the usual suspects of glaced fruits and pecans. It was what I think of a traditional fruitcake. Overall this was a very good cake. Take a look at their on-line catalog because they have a lot of fun food items and a collection of “A Legacy of Love Quilts”.

DOMINICAN SISTERS OF MISSION SAN JOSE

 

Paul’s Fruitcake Corner

Welcome to Paul’s fruitcake corner. Here at the corner we try fruitcakes so you do not have to. Today we have a local cake from the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose. This cake is popular and if you do not hit the small window for mail order or their yearly one day boutique sale you will miss out. I have learned this over the years the hard way. The sisters make only 1,500 cakes and they will sell out.

   This cake is moist and flavorful. It is full of raisins, pineapple; strawberry preserves (unique), almonds with a brown sugar/molasses forward taste. It is cakelike with lots of batter and is crumbly. It has a fruit forward flavor which is very enticing. It does have a hint of brandy but you have to search for this nuance. I recommend this cake. If you do pursue purchase, check out the sister’s olive oil and honey. Good stuff.

COUNT ROCKY

 

 

It's that ghoulish time of year and it would not be Halloween without a custom pumpkin called Count Rocky. My sister is the artist.

GALILEO CAR SHOW

 

The Galileo Italian Club had a car show this weekend. It was a small event were members showed off their 'Pride & Joys'. It was the perfect weather day with the temperature's hovering in the mid 70's. Tony the pirate sold bbq and the bar was open. I would like to share a couple of photos.

NEVER GIVE A SUCKER AN EVEN BREAK

  I do like snacks and peanuts are high on my list. When Planters came out with their "Special Reserve" peanuts, I jumped on the band wagon. These were not the easist to find. Luckily Amazon came to the rescue and delivered several cans directly on my front porch. Opening the sealed can revealed a wafting of a familar peanut aroma. These are going to be good. They were. These are the 'Spanish" peanuts and are on the large side. The red skin is edible and they are pleasantly salty. Would I order these again? At three times the price of regular peanuts I would like to quote the great W.C. Fields" "Never give a sucker an even break"
 

PIG JIG 2024

 

QUEEN'S CORONATION & A SIDE OF RAVIOLI

The Italian American Federation of the East Bay (I.A.F.) holds a Queen's Coronation once a year. The Queen is elected and reigns with her court at parades and other functions. The Queen is choosen from candidates who must be Italian and a member of one of the East Bay Italian Clubs. The Queen also rides in the popular Colombus Day (no-longer called Colombus for some woke reason) parade in San Francisco. The Coronation dinner was held at the Galileo Club. This pomp and circmstance is an old fashioned ceremony that frankly is a lot of fun. The ceremony was finished and we proceeded to have a dinner which included ravioli.

This was a fun event for the participants and their families. These young women get to experience a year long journey that they will remember for a lifetime. I was only there for the ravioli.

 

12 BRIDGES RIB COOK-OFF

We brought our judges badges to Lincoln California for a KCBS rib cook-off. These days a KCBS one meat competion had become the norm. The larger 4 meat competitions may be an event from the past. The smaller competitions are popular because of costs and usually it is more public friendly. The competitors cooked ribs for the public to sample. 

It was perfect bbq weather with the thermometer hovering in the high 80's. The gates opened at 300pm and the public poured in to sample ribs and listen to a band. It does not get any better than this.

 

 

Another fun day of judging bbq. It never gets old eating great ribs and hanging out with friends.

 

 

EAGLES RIB COOK-OFF & CAR SHOW

 

Once a year the local Eagles Club has a rib cook-off and car show. The club is located nearby and the public is invited. Ms. Goofy and I like to attend and leave our judges badges at home. This contest brings out some of the best local backyard cooks in the neighborhood. This is a local gathering that is just plain fun. It is more of the event than an actual contest.

I went and checked out some of the competitors. I asked the gentle-man if he had any bbq secrets. His reply was; I have been drinking all day. That worked for him, I guess. The mood was festive. There was a band playing in the dinning area. It is a little ironic or we are just too old but it was too loud for us and we went to the bar area to eat our meal.

I did find the home made sweets table. This was one fancy display. I tried several of the offerings and was happy. I was not so happy about my brisket plate. The brisket was so tough that I should of brought a sawzall reciprocating saw to cut. The sides were decent. This was the only low point of this fun event. We hope to return next year. I probably will stay away from the brisket.