Sisters in Crime Writers Blog Hop. What Is Your Writing Process?

Laurie is a travel writer; a mystery writer with some Murder She Wrote books to her name, and baseball guru. Take a look at her kid-lit baseball book, Catcher in the Sky. She's also the daughter of the guy who wrote Coffee, Tea or Me?

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Six New Flavors: 2014 Epcot Food & Wine Festival

We gallivant--or schlep, weather-depending--around the Epcot Food & Wine Festival every year. Themed marketplaces sell piping hot foods from several different countries. What's more, complementary wines and beers enhance each snack with satisfying finesse.

Epcot Food & Wine Festival logo

The stews, curries, dumplings and pastries change somewhat every fall, which is only a sliver of the reason the Festival seems fresh, even in its umpteenth go-round since 1996. (The Festival has WAY more than just themed marketplaces. Visit the official website to get a taste of the tastes available.)

Here are six newbies out of the 35 added to the line-up, fresh off the grills for 2014. All seven were very good, although I put my two tippy top favorites first.

Griddled "Yard Bird" with braised greens and housemade habanero sauce

Creme brulee caramel fleur de sel: sea salt-caramel creme brulee with caramelized sugar. Unbelievably delicious.

Roasted Verlasso salmon with quinoa salad and arugula chimichurri

"Ensalada de carrucho"--Caribbean conch salad with onion, tomato and cilantro. This is at the newly expanded and rethemed Puerto Rico marketplace.

Pork goulash with sauerkraut pierogi

Baked lobster Alfredo--this is a pasta casserole with macaroni and a chunk or two of lobster.

This year's Epcot Food & Wine Festival is a week longer than in the past. Lace up your walking shoes and arrive hungry, again and again, from September 19 thorugh November 10. Please share your favories, and your disappointments, in the comments area to help your fellow readers.

Eat enthusiastically, Rona

www.ronarecommends.com

 

Here's a Sneak Peek at the Ritz's Highball & Harvest

Instead of frou-frou, the new restaurant, Highball & Harvest, will go for earthy. The menu will be thoughtfully created and the foodstuffs carefully sourced. But the offerings will be relaxed, more like a farm-to-table restaurant and less like a sophisticated coffee-shop-slash-steakhouse. The

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A Manly Meal, an Italian Feast, and Dinner with the Philharmonic -- Have We Got Dining Deals for You

Orlando -- Compensate for the searing summer sun by having truly good food at a lower price than usual. These three so-called Dining Deals offer value at places with great food. I talked about them recently on Orlando's Fox 35 with David Didzunas, executive chef of the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport, and anchor Lauren Johnson. Here's the clip. David Didzunas, executive chef of the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport, will join me. Manly Mondays Head west, hearty eaters. The Crooked Spoon, a gastropub in Clermont, will match your appetite with a Manly Mondays basket guaranteed to fill you up. The “Man-Sized Meat Baskets” will be filled with three or four house-smoked meats, such as ribs, wings, and smoked and grilled sausage. The selections will change weekly. Extras like grilled corn, corn bread, fritters or French fries will be in there too, all for $19.

Crooked Spoon photo small

A Manly Mondays basket

I allow myself no Manly Meals, as I want a Small Waist, but I’d say a Manly Meal plus a doggie bag sounds like a fine idea. 200 Citrus Tower Blvd., Clermont, 352.404.7808, thecrookedspn.com Estate Italiana Peperoncino is a sweet little Italian restaurant on Restaurant Row in the Dr. Phillips neighborhood. It’s offering a three-course dinner on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays for $30. Here’s the catch: You must mention Rona Recommends to receive this package. You’ll be entitled to an appetizer such as cozze pepate (peppery mussels) or arancini (fried rice balls); a “primo,” which is a small entrée; sorbet or a homemade dessert; and a glass of house red or white wine. The menu changes daily, but your primi choices might be pasta with a Bolognese ragù sauce or pasta alla Norma, made with roasted eggplant and fresh ricotta cheese.

Peperoncino 3 small

Fried rice balls

Peperoncino 1 small

Pasta Bolognese

Peperoncino 2 small

Pasta with eggplant and ricotta

Dellagio, 7988 Via Dellagio Way #108, Orlando, 407.440.2856, peperoncinocucina.com Liberty Weekend Food & Wine Experience The chefs at the Hyatt Regency Orlando International Airport put together gourmet wine-pairing dinners several times a year. This month, they’re having a Liberty theme. The four-course dinner will be served while the Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra performs live. The entire meal is $105 including tax and tip. That’s quite a value for the combo.

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Diners sit on the balcony and watch the orchestra below.

The meal will begin with seared Idaho rainbow trout topped with a Zelwood corn creme. Cedar-roasted quail will follow, plated with smoked barbecued cannellini beans and an heirloom tomatoe confit. For the entrée, expect a strip of roasted bison loin with a roasted plum demi-glace and fingerling potatoes, bacon and baby Swiss chard. The meal will end with a warm blueberry and blackberry cobbler topped with ice cream. These summer flavors will be accompanied by Grgich Hills Estate wines paired with each course. Valet parking will be free and a lodging package is available. Saturday, June 28, 2014. 9300 Jeff Fuqua Blvd., Orlando, 407.825.1315, orlandoairport.hyatt.com Eat enthusiastically, Rona www.ronarecommends.com

B Resort Orlando -- Value-Priced Chic at Disney World

Orlando will welcome B Resort next week, a Lake Buena Vista property a short walk from Downtown Disney. B Resorts are cheap-chic. In other words, they have a suave, contemporary flair, yet they're midpriced. The decor is a spiffy, bold white palette with vibrant splashes of color.

When the restaurant American Q opens, it will feature barbecue from all over the Americas. That means salmons as Native Americans cooked it, jerked meats from Florida (well, really Jamaica), and brisket from Texas. Look for that in about a month.
 
Here are some photos of this snazzy hotel. I have my eye on those lanai rooms for a little staycation.
 
 
The lobby, which has several seating areas
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
This is the bed in a junior suite.
 
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This junior suite sofa folds out to a bed.
 
 
Two queen beds
 
 
The outside of a lanai suite. There's a sofa on the side you can't see. These suites are right by the pool, and the staff considers the seating areas "private cabanas."
 
 
The pool. It's zero-entry, which means you can walk right in starting at pool deck level.
 
 
The rooms come with Aveda amenities. When the spa opens in a few weeks, it and its salon will use Aveda products.
 
 
Room snacks are a mix of upscale, generously packaged items. Each is $5.
 
 
Candied bacon, deviled egg and crudite. I don't know if this will be a menu item or a catering option, but it was very good. So was smoked brisket,a seafood salad, and a white chocolate-covered cookie. I'm excited about the food.
 
I'll report back when the restaurant opens.
Eat enthusiastically and lodge with style,
Rona 
 

Craft Cocktails, Orlando-Made

"We would love to hear your opinion of our drinks," said an email that came through my website. "We are asmall business here in Florida that is providing a culinary experience by way of our line of premium cocktail mixers."


And so I came into possession of three colorful bottles of Bungalow 23 cocktail mixes, each in trendy, inventive flavor: 

...

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Gear Up for Orlando's 2014 Chef's Gala

Orlando -- Chefs are cooking and vintners are pouring at Chef's Gala, anannual food-and-wine extravaganza. Attendees don cocktail dresses and heels, or jackets (don't worry gents, you can leave your ties at home). They peruse silent-auction items, then sample all the appetizer-size creations they want from more than 20 local restaurants. Paired wines are poured generously.  It's fun, and the proceeds help our neighbors in need.


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