Sorry, usual fare tonight.

 

Accustomed as we are to mainly grey and rainy skies, we've been enjoying unseasonal mild weather these last few days - which didn't deter the local supermarket from stocking up - and me - from buying our favourite Christmas goodies: 'Spekulatius' (spiced biscuits) for me; Domino Squares for my hubby. I'm really proud of myself that I refrained from buying even the smallest chocolate Santa - it is, after all, only September!

I had another hour to kill before it was time to cook something for dinner, so I continued to amble through the aisles, pushing an enormous shopping cart in front of me (I'm fairly small, so this usually merits a few guffaws from fellow shoppers), when I came upon something called 'Toasty'.

Basically, it's a chicken nugget that's been flattened to resemble a Swedish crispbread. You slot it into the toaster and switch it on to the highest level. It pops out lightly browned, hot and crispy -   I briefly wondered if I could get away with serving this for dinner, then immediately dismissed the thought...well, it was one of those days, when I just couldn't be bothered with churning out a three-course meal, so I shuffled along, threw in some pasta, celery, a few carrots, a tin of tomatoes, some ground beef...spag-bol it is. Again.

Asia Supermarket

If you're an Asian food-lover and you happen to live in these parts - good news!
There's a new shop selling everything from instant noodles (can't live without them), Asian snacks, crabmeat, condiments, frozen dumplings, fresh pak choi, gourd, limes, ginger, lemongrass and the odd Asian gadget, i.e. rice cookers (who can live w/o one?). Also loads of rice, rice noodles, spring rolls -  and a rack full of silk gowns! Okay, so this is odd, but if you're planning an Asian theme party, the dress would come in handy...

It's located on a main road about twenty minutes drive south of B-town. The owner is a very friendly and efficient Vietnamese lady (who speaks German really well). She told me she opened the supermarket a couple of months ago and is keeping her fingers crossed that - apart from me - there are plenty more pot-noodle fans out there.

So...PLEASE give this shop a chance - go visit!!! It's clean, it's organized, and who can beat 500gr. of Jasmin Tea leaves for approx. Euro 4,40?!

Remember, unless you prefer the two hour drive to Cologne, this is the only source for yummy Asian snacks for miles around.

email me for complete address.

Gam Bai!

Supermarket Surplus

For a town this small there are an awful lot of supermarkets, and they come in three distinct categories:

1. discounters with short, catchy names like Plus or Aldi or Lidl
    now, this is where 80% of this town's population shop. Everything comes in bulk at economy     prices. Of course, something's got to give and it's usually the quality...

2. Farmshops / healthfood shops
    these are 'green grocers' in the literal sense. Insiders go there; the quality's top notch - so are
    the prices! They have a steady following: 30somethings and the eco-brigade.

3. Last but not least there's Wilger - rated among the top10 best supermarkets in the
    country! It's huge, the staff is well-trained, they carry 'exotic' fruit like mangosteen and     physallis, they have a well-stocked fresh cheese counter and superb meat. There're two aisles     of breakfast cereal and loads and loads of canned/frozen food. I could spend half a day here    and probably spend half a fortune ;-)

And who do you think frequents the last one? Banker types? Dinks? No way! Last time I was
there (I only bought a packet of dried apricots) the place was swarming with pensioners!!!
Just goes to show, huh?