Restaurant Widow

CSA & Market Report for June 30th

Happy Birthday Dad!!

What a lovely day today.  Just for the record, it's interesting to note that this week last year was also lovely.  Thanks to the rain we got this week, we had a much-needed boost in growing.  The market is in full swing, a few old favorites were back for the first time, and we're off to a great start for the summer growing season.  I am ashamed to say I didn't do anything very exciting with last week's CSA.  I don't know if it was the heat or what, but I was very lazy with cooking this week.  Shame on me! 

First of all, an open letter to would-be line cutters: I know you think I'm so nice and polite and everything, but just because I stand quietly in line awaiting my turn like I was taught in kindergarten doesn't mean you can get in front of me (that means you, middle aged woman with the fanny pack who I learned later works in the church down the road).  The next time I am cut in line, you will get a lesson in stringing together a 45 second, profanity laden insult so blue it might actually take physical shape and follow you around for the next week.  I've been in the restaurant business for years, and I've learned a thing or two about how to bring out the shame.  I'm tired of it.  Grow up.  Don't say I didn't warn you.

Okay!  Now, on with this week's shopping!

Today's CSA included zucchini, eggs, salad greens, a head of cauliflower, and some garlic.

Also from the North Market, I picked up my requisite week's worth of shitake mushrooms from Toby Run.  I was pleased to see that Quiver Full farm was back this year; they mill their own cornmeal and a variety of wheats.  It can be difficult to get locally grown & milled grains, so I always like to support them.  They also had a delicious popcorn blend (pictured above), and I bought 2 bags.  Husband and I are popcorn fiends, and it seems we are always running out.  I also bought my weekly bags of squash blossoms from Comb's Farms; this past week Husband made dinner and simply sauteed 2 zucchini and then added the squash blossoms to the saute at the last minute.  It was beautiful and very tasty.  You might not think, at first, that the blossoms would add anything, but they do give it this je ne sais quois - it might just be that they're so pretty they make everything taste delicious, and if that's the case well then, so be it.  They also provided some arugula.

From H-W Organics, I picked up some nice fat red onions, brown onions, new potatoes, and some sweet peas.

I love to buy things I've never tried before.  This week, that was two varieties of microgreens - fennel (above) and arugula (below).  I love microgreens, and for those of you who haven't tried them yet, then what are you waiting for?  The fennel greens, with the seeds still attached, are intensely fennel-y.  The arugula micros are delightfully hot and would make an amazing addition to a roast beef sandwich.  I'll have to remember that this week.  I'll have to combine them with some of the full-grown arugula and then we can have arugula two ways.  I also picked up some tender young collards.

I swung through the interior of the Market to pick up Husband's croissant from Omega, and for some nice thick cut bacon from Blues Creek.  Have to have something to cook up with those collards!  And some cornbread with the cornmeal from Quiver Full!  I'm so glad we have a few days off this week!

I headed up to the Worthington market, scooping up some of Rohini's hot pepper chutney, the last bag of (shelled!) sweet peas from Cottage Gardens, and loads of cherries from Gillogly Orchards.  This week I bought some bings and some Royal Anne (what Ms. Gillogly referred to as "Ranier wannabes") cherries, just for eating out of hand (above).  Cherries are my favorite fruit for simply eating straight.  Well, they are until nectarine season begins.  By the way, there will be a few peaches and nectarines this year.  Many were lost in the frost, but after speaking with a few farmers, it seems they will have a crop, just a small one.  So get there early.  And I mean early.  By the time I arrived at Gillogly this morning, 1/2 hour after the official opening time of the market, they had already sold out of blueberries!

I bought some ribeyes and short ribs from Up the Lane cattle, some beets from the Golden Beet Farm (where, alas, all of the golden beets were sold to the person in front of me), some zucchini and broccoli from Wenger's Produce, some ground chicken and hot Italian Sausage from Oink Moo Cluck, some purple potatoes (above) and I'm sure something I'm forgetting.

I stopped at Clintonville for a minute because I'd scoured the markets all morning in search of kohlrabi to no avail.  My dogged kohlrabi suppliers, Pop & Judy (who also supply the kitties with catnip sachets and Husband and I with popcorn), have retired for the year.  Fortunately, the Sippels still had loads of kohlrabi, as well as the first baby squash I've seen so far this year.  Alas, I took my out-of-cashedness as a sign it was time to go home, and called it a day.

Then I got home and made this for lunch.  Farm fresh new potatoes and sweet peas, tossed in a little extra virgin olive oil with salt and pepper, topped with leftover brisket from Weiland's, and some of those yummy arugula sprouts (perfect with beef, it's confirmed):

What did you get?

Open Letter to Tinies Adoptors

Dear Parents of Smudge, Chitara, Nibbler, Fergus, and Norman, and what the heck - George, Marble, Tammy, Slayer B, er, and the rest of last year's bunch:

If you adopted a Tiny or Tiny 2.0, please send me a picture!  I will post them this weekend for Weekend Cat Blogging.  If you know someone who adopted a tiny and doesn't read my site (for shame!), please let them know.  I and my readers would like an update!

Cheers,
Lisa

Housekeeping Notes

Dear Readers,

Have I told you lately that I love you?  I really do.  I am a little behind on my e-mails, and I apologize if you are waiting for a response.  Once upon a time, when I worked for Giant Clothing Retailer, I was required to answer all e-mails within 24 hours.  I must be having Corporate Nightmare flashback rebellion.

As a sidenote, I use Gmail, and although I love it, it would be nice if there were a folder feature (got that, Google?  Thanks).  Then I could put all of my "To be answered" e-mails in that folder and feel a nice sense of completion when I move them back to the general pool.

I am going to switch to a respond to questions in the comments section format, so if you are waiting for a reply, you might check the comment section for a group reply.  Of course, if you e-mailed me privately, I won't be posting a response in the comment section.

I promise to catch up on my e-mails over the weekend (that's restaurant weekend, mind you, Sunday & Monday). 

Thank you for your patience and for reading.  Your support and comments keep me inspired and encouraged to keep cooking and eating!

Cheers!
Lisa the Waitress

What to Do with Garlic Scapes?

I've been getting so many e-mails and search hits about what to do with garlic scapes, I thought a brief little post on ideas might be helpful.

First of all, what is a garlic scape?  It is the flowering portion of the a garlic plant; it is a very long and green stem, which is loopy in appearance and has a little bud on top.  The scape is discarded in order for the garlic bulb to grow properly, and until recently, the scape has been fed to the pigs or placed in the compost heap.  I've seen a lot of scapes at the markets this summer, and we will still have them for a week or so.  Garlic scapes have a mild garlicky flavor, almost reminiscent of roasted garlic in mellowness, but without the sugary taste.  Scapes have a texture similar to green beans, and they take a little cooking to soften up. 

My general rule is to cut the scapes into one inch batons and add them after the onions in a dish and before the mushrooms - just to say that the cooking time is somewhere in between the two.  I think you can put scapes into any dish where you would put garlic - although I view it just as another veggie, albeit a flavor-packed one.

• My personal favorite way to enjoy scapes is in stir fry (as pictured above, with broccoli, sugar snaps, plump early red onions and their stems) and leftover chicken, along with a good spoonful of garlic chili paste).  You can add them to practically any stir fry successfully - spicy or sweet.
• Scapes are also nice in pasta; I put them this week with hot Italian sausage, escarole, and green bell peppers.
• A lot of people make scape pesto, with scapes in place of basil.  This is a fine idea: personally, however, two suggestions when making pesto.  First of all, scapes can come out of the food processor a little stringy, so I like to cut them into 1/4" discs before blitzing.  Secondly, although they are mild, I still like to blanch the scapes for a minute and then shock them before making the pesto, just to ensure a mellow flavor.
• Toss the entire stem with a little olive oil and salt and throw on the grill.  Don't bother cutting them up, you can use a knife and fork.  They'll make a fun addition to the plate.
• Cut into 1/2" pieces and and add to soup.
• Cut into 1/2" pieces and blanch one minutes, shock, and then add to salads.
• Chop the scapes, toss them with olive oil, salt and pepper, and top meat or chicken with them.
• Chop and saute until lightly browned with a few chopped onions, then make a frittata or omelet.

I hope I've given you a few ideas to use up those garlic scapes this year.  They are always available from Just This Farm and Elizabeth Telling at the North Market, and From My Garden at the Worthington Market (in the Graeter's parking lot).  Happy eating!!

Things to Do in Columbus::June 27th Edition

Updated Thursday at 1:57pm.  and at 3:20

I think it's officially summer.  Can it be that next week is the 4th of July?  Hm.  I suppose it can.  Do I even need to include Red White & Boom in this week's edition of Columbus events?  Let's just say this: for those of you who aren't into the whole going downtown and being hot and miserable thing, the evening of Red White and Boom is a great time to go to your favorite restaurant where you might not always be able to get a reservation.  No one has to work the next day, so it's almost like a weekend, and you can get really good service and not have to fight crowds.  As always, if you have an event you'd like to mention, please leave it in the comments or send me an e-mail.  No haters, please.

• For anyone with even a passing interest in human anatomy (hopefully, that's everyone), Bodies, the Exhibition is coming to Easton.  Husband and I went to see the big exhibit when it was in Cleveland 2 years ago and it was super cool.  At first - and I'm not by nature a queasy person - my stomach turned a little bit, but my curiosity eventually got the better of me and before long I was ogling the sliced apart fat man along with everyone else (you'd just have to see it to know what I'm talking about).  Tickets are $17 - $22, and the event goes from June 30th through the end of the year.
• Shadowbox Caberet is performing the Rocky Horror Show Sundays at 2:30pm & 7:30pm through mid July.  I have never been to one of their shows but I've heard it's loads of fun.  Being that Husband and I are big Rocky Horror fans, I think we might just have to make this our inagural visit.  Tickets are $20-$30. Other shows are ongoing, visit their site for complete lineup.
• This Saturday's Picnic with the Pops will be Patriotic Pops on the lawn at Chemical Abstracts.  Tickets are $22.
• The film this weekend at the Wexner Ceneter for the Arts is Two or Three Things I Know About Her, directed by Jean-Luc Godard.  Friday & Saturday at 7pm, tickets are $7. High St @ 15th Ave on OSU campus.
• Speaking of classic films, Studio 35 is showing The Wizard of Oz.  No word on if there will be a standard viewing/viewing with the Dark Side of the Moon accompanying double feature (note to Studio 35 staff:get on that).  3055 Indianola Ave in Clintonville.
• This Saturday, 4pm - 10pm, is the Grandview Art Hop throughout Grandview, on Grandview Ave (Near West side).  Visit galleries, shop, eat ice cream, drink coffee, and then buy some wine at Spagio. 
• This Saturday, noon - 7pm, is Riverfest at one of my favorite local parks, North Bank Park (311 W Long Street, downtown).  Take a boat ride, make art from recycled materials, get sold on a Prius, pet animals from the Zoo, etc.  Take the kids!
• It's hard to believe Dragonfly Neo V is 10 years old.  It makes me feel old that I remember when it was the King Avenue Coffeehouse and it was the COOLEST place to hang out when I was in college (so I thought; Husband thought everything tasted like patchouli.  He's probably right).  At any rate, you can celebrate the vegan dining destination this weekend with a peek into their famous kitchen garden, and even a workshop on how to create your own.  There will also be a booksigning with Jennifer Bartley author of Designing the New Kitchen Garden.  Events take place Friday 6pm - 2am and Saturday 11:30am - 11pm.
• This Saturday is another Romantic Canoe Trip in the Hocking Hills.  The canoe trip begins just before sunset and winds through the river for a 2 hour trip, where you will be greeted with wine and a bonfire!  Tickets are $30; don't forget the bug spray!  There's also a torchlit tour of the river on July 3rd.
• I have always wanted to go to the Wilds, but I've never made it (yet).  Throughout the summer, they will features a Sunset Safari.  $60 buys you dinner overlooking the park and a special safari.
• The following events are ongoing, but should be enjoyed when the weather is beautiful: you can hear free music in the park in Gahanna at Friendship park, in Worthington on the Village Green, and at Whetstone Park (all are at 7pm Sundays throughout the summer). 
• The Actor's Theatre Group's production of The Complete Works of Shakespeare (Abridged) resumes tomorrow (Thursday, June 21st) at Schiller park in German Village.  Performances take place Thursdays - Sundays at 8pm and admission is free (although donations are accepted).  The play runs through July 8th, when it will be replaced with King Lear.
• File under: planning ahead.  I will be pouring wine Friday night, July 13th at the preview event for the Ohio Food & Wine Festival at the North Market.  Tickets are $20 (but you can get a $5 discount at local National City branches) and you can sip loads of Ohio wines (don't laugh, wine snobs, there are good Ohio wines) and enjoy nibbles from the Market.  I don't know whose wine I'll be pouring yet, so you'll just have to look for the nerdy bespecticled girl with the long brown hair.  Columbus Underground fans will also be happy to hear that CU hosts Anne & Walker will also be pouring so come out and say hi!
• This Sunday, July 1st, is an OEFFA farm tour of Killbuck Mushroom Farm.  The tour takes place from 2pm - 5pm, and you can learn a lot about mushroom farming.  Call 614.421.2022 for more information.

The Lazy Girl's Guide to Jelly Making

So I bought some currants awhile ago at the North Market (from Comb's Herbs, the only people to sell currants so far that I've seen), and they kind of languished in the fridge for a day or two.  Every time I looked at them, I thought about how much I love red currant jelly, and thought to myself "If only I weren't so afraid of canning.  And surely there aren't enough currants to make a decent batch of jelly."  And then I decided fears were to be confronted - or avoided, rather - because I was going to make jelly!  One pint!  That was the perfect solution.  Then there would be no canning!  Nothing to be frightened of!  Just one pint for eating right away!

It was the perfect solution.  Too often, I think of preserving as this huge process that's going to take all day and be hot and miserable, but it doesn't have to be; you can just use whatever you have on hand.  In this case, I used up the currants and also the sugary liquid from some leftover sliced strawberries for a little sweetness.

Here's my method, which I can no way guarantee will work with all sorts of fruit, and you might want to consult your nearest preserve-making book to see what sorts of fruits might need added pectin, etc.  Here is a more reliable source for jelly-related information.  I just wanted to show how you can make small amounts of preserves without getting in over your head.  I think it should go without saying that you should not attempt to make preserves with anything except the best fruit.  If you can't do that, you may as well buy a good pre-made preserve and just let someone else do the work.

Red Currant Jelly - makes about one pint

1 pint red currants, stray leaves plucked off but stems left on
1 cup leftover juice (I had one cup of juice leftover from sliced strawberries; this is optional)
sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice

Place the currants, stems and all, in a large sauce pan and sprinkle with just a tbsp or so of sugar and about the same of the fruit juice, just to get the juices flowing.  Heat over medium heat, mashing with a pestle or potato masher until all of the currants are mushed and you have a lot of juice - about 10 minutes.  Place in a jelly bag, fine mesh sieve, or chinois set over a bowl to allow the juice to strain out.  I like to set it over a big (one liter) measuring beaker so that I don't have to measure the juice after this step.  You can gently press down on the fruit pulp to extract all the juice, but keep in mind this might make the jelly slightly cloudy.  Allow to drain until all the juice has run off (I like to leave it an hour or so).  Add in the leftover juice, if using, and measure.  I had about 2 1/4 cups. 

Place the juice back into the saucepan, add the lemon juice, and add sugar.  I think the standard on sugar adding is to add 3/4ths sugar to the amount of juice.  Some people even go up to equal parts juice and sugar, but that is way too much for me.  In this case, I added about half as much sugar as I had juice, but that was because there was already sugar in the strawberry liquid.  I like jellies made from sour fruits because I am a sour girl who likes things to maintain their sourness after processing (currants, cherries, rhubarb, Husbands, what-have-you).

Heat the juice over medium heat until it begins to simmer, and keep at a simmer (turn heat to medium low if necessary).  Simmer, stirring occasionally and skimming off any foam, for about 30 minutes and then begin to test your set.  Place a few saucers in the freezer.  Test your set by placing a spoonful of jelly onto a cold saucer and then running you finger through it.  Your jelly is ready when your finger leaves a line in the jelly and you can lick jelly off your finger.  Be careful, because there is nothing hotter than simmering sugary liquid.  Allow the jelly to sit on the plate for a few seconds before you put finger in.  There is a more technical way to do this with a candy thermometer, but this is the lazy, artistically minded guide to jelly making, not the sciency brain way of doing it.  If you want that, you'll have to convince Husband to make some jelly.  Good luck with that.

My jelly took about 45 minutes to reach a set, but you should begin checking after 30 minutes just in case.  You don't want to end up with hard candy.  When the jelly is set, place it in a hot, clean jar (such as one fresh from the dishwasher) and allow it to cool to room temperature before refrigerating.

When the jelly is cool, go to the North Market and pick up a croissant from Omega bakery, bring it home and spread on your new jelly, enjoying it bite by bite as you pat yourself on the back and commend yourself on your amazing housewifery skills.

Tune in later this week for the lazy girl's guide to sour cherry jelly making!  Will it set?  Nobody knows!

Bourdain Cleveland Teaser

This is the first time I've embedded video!  Who knew it would be so easy!

2 of my heroes meet:

Anthony Bourdain meets Harvey Pekar
Uploaded by TravelChannelTV

For those of you waiting with baited breath, the new season of No Reservations begins July 30th, with a visit to Shanghai.

CSA & Market Report for June 23

What a lovely day!  I woke up at 6:30 - I always have a hard time sleeping around the summer solstice, for whatever reason, and I was out the door.  I thought I might have a nice latte and sit in the sun at the North Market for awhile and get some vitamin D.  There's a lot going on in the Short North/Arena District area today, and traffic has been a beast.  But, like the super stealthy urbanite that I am, I made it in and out of the market and the parking lot was still half empty when I left, with 48 minutes to spare on the meter.  In retrospect, I was probably out so early that I missed my mushrooms...

An interesting week at the market this week.  First of all, it was the return of Wayward Seed farm, and they always have something new and interesting to investigate.  They had squash blossoms for 50 cents each, and a nice salad blend, and something very fun: kohlrabi microgreens!  For the uninitiated, microgreens are the first growth of a plant - they typically have an intense flavor profile and make a great garnish; you've probably scooted them off to the side of your plate when presented with them in a restaurant.  You should start eating them!  They are great on salads, of course, and sandwiches.  These taste exactly like kohlrabi, one of my favorite veggies:

This week's CSA box was filled to the brim with turnip greens (with tiny turnip bits still attached!), salad greens, fresh peas, mint, 1/2 dozen eggs, and a bouquet of daisies!  I supplemented this with a few additional things while shopping at Elizabeth Telling - a pint of red raspberries (pictured below), which came with free worm (pictured below below), some lovely broccoli and a nice box full of stinging nettles.  I'm going to take the suggestion of a reader and put Husband to work turning them into a fritatta tomorrow. 

Other market buys included a nice bag of squash blossoms from Comb's Herbs (I promise a recipe with those later in the week) and some frisée.  Frisée is a lovely bitter green which is very underappreciated in this country.  The French have a traditional salad using it, Frisée aux Lardons (Frisee with bacon lardons and poached egg) and it's a fantastic foil for rich foods.  It's well served when dressed very simply with a drizzle of good extra virgin olive oil and sprinkled with a good bit of crunchy sea salt.  All of that to say, it's delicious and you should go buy some.

From Toad Hill Organics, some of these lovely onions.  I love it when I can get local onions:

From the Worthington Farm Market, I stopped by Gillogly to pick up some blueberries:

I also bought lots of cherries - which came early this year and are very scarce, thanks to our early spring followed by second winter.  Bings for Husband to turn into a cherry digestif, and sours for me to turn into some sour cherry jelly, my absolute favorite.  Insert cliché:

Would you believe I also bought what had to be the last bunch of asparagus for the year at Cottage Gardens?  I was pretty excited to see it.

What did you get?

Other Things I Did With This Week's CSA Box

Last week, I pretty much documented everything I did with my CSA in the week's recipes (Greens & Peas in Pasta) yet another salad to take to work.  This week, (click to read about it), I sure got a lot of mileage out of my zucchinis - especially paired with my Costco rotisserie chicken.  I made:

• Using the greens, I made a nice big chicken Caesar salad with chunks of raw zucchini, and Vidalia onions shaved over (pictured above).
• I made two wraps for work Wednesday & Thursday, both the same: Flat Out bread filled with hummus, tzatziki, chicken, and shaved CSA zucchini.
• Husband made yummy gnocchi after work last night with fresh mozzarella and CSA broccoli.
• For lunch today, I am going to make stir fry with CSA snow peas, CSA garlic scapes, CSA eggs, and sesame seeds.

I am making an effort this summer to document exactly how I use my CSA box.  If you don't know what a CSA is, please click here.  Click here to read all of this year's reports, and click here to read last year's reports.  Click here to see what's growing when.

Should I Get a Costco Membership?

I already got one, so the title is the musing in your head.  For some reason, I woke up Tuesday and decided to get a Costco membership.  I was strolling around the giant store, thinking about how it kind of worked for me and kind of didn't, and I thought it might be helpful to offer my thoughts, just in case you were thinking of getting one.  I always think of Polaris as being a drive to another city, and was surprised to find it took a mere 12 minutes to get from 670E/71N to the parking lot.  Of course, there was no traffic, a bonus for those of us who work in the off hours and can do our shopping when everyone else is working.

First of all, watch your fingers around the sample tables - there are loads of greedy people who would probably knock you over just to get to the table of popcorn chicken first.  The same goes for the parking lot, where those of you driving fuel efficient Civics might want to just park far away from the entrance, to avoid the dangerous rush or SUVs angling for the close spots.

Enough with the warnings, let's talk about the deals: #1 deal of the day was Copper River Sockeye Salmon for $9.99 a pound.  That's right.  I bought a 1.8 pound side and immediately brought it home, sliced off a 4 ounce fillet for my dinner, and turned the rest of it into gravlax (more on that later).  Also, I bought one of those famed Costco rotisserie chickens for $5.  It was really tasty.  A very moist chicken, although the skin had a slightly burned taste to it, which was undesirable, but it did keep me from consuming an additional 400 calories in chicken skin, so there is that benefit.  It was a big bird for $5, considering a Giant Eagle bird is about 3/4ths the size and costs $7 (I've gotten 4 meals for one out of it, by the way, and still have some left in my fridge).  If Costco were on my way home from work, I would definitely be picking one of these up at least once a week.  Of course, the Weiland's bird is better than both, but it's only available on Saturdays, and we aren't talking about Weiland's.  I also bought 2 pounds of fresh mozzarella for $6, and a giant barrel of pretzel rods for $6.  They also had large tubs of my favorite brand of hummus (Basha) and Tzatziki, which they also sell at Whole Foods, but it is almost always sold out no matter what day of the week I go, and strangely enough, although it would seem they would go through it fast enough, it's always on the verge of expiring.  Costco's hummus is good through August 10. I have 6 weeks to shove it out of the way in favor of cheese. Perfect.  Box of 20 Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches for $10?  Yes, please.  Costco is also good for people like me who hate buying things like paper towels every week.  I buy so much kitty litter at one time that, inevitably while standing in line, someone looks at me with concern and says "just how many cats do you have?!" If it were up to me, my basement would look like a dry goods store, aisles of TP and lotion and dish detergent, simply so I wouldn't have to do shopping for dry goods every week.  I will always buy the biggest package of paper towels, etc. 

There was a giant display of flat screen TVs as soon as you walk in - screens so big I can't even fathom having a living room so large I might need one.  I can't say how the prices were, as I have never shopped for a flat screen TV.  They had a few digital cameras whose prices seemed in line with other retailers.

In some states, Costco is legendary for their amazing wine prices.  Ohio's picky wine laws prevent Costco from selling anything at a lower price than anyone else can sell it for, so we are sort of luck out there.  I thought their wine selection was okay IF you are interested in primarily big California names (Stag's Leap, St. Supery, Dominus, Mondavi, etc) which are big California wines - those "chewy" (read not ready to drink) Cabernets we are so fond of guzzling in steakhouses, and those overoaked chardonnays.  That kind of thing doesn't really fly here at Chez Widow, but I did find a bottle of Magnificent Wine Company White Table Wine (you might know them for such nice things as House wine) for $11.  My little secret is that I rarely have to pay retail for wine, so it's always painful.

And then there's the produce.  Of course, while we like to keep things as local as possible, there are things that just don't grow in these parts.  But then I'm left in the produce section thinking, "can I really use a flat of mangoes? a bag of 12 avocados?"  There is a large selection of pre-cut fruit & veggies for under $20, which is really nice if you work in one of those offices where bagels and donuts show up on a regular basis - a quick stop to Costco on the way to work will help you get into your Speedo this summer.

There were lot of things at Costco that seemed good for other people - especially people with a lot of processed food their lives - just impractical for our small household - boxes and boxes of processed frozen food, giant packages of Lean Cuisine meals which seemed as though they could only fit in a commercial freezer, endless rows of giant boxes of cereal and juices, gallon jars of mayo and relish; a lot of these things are perfect for families or people with big freezers, but it's just impractical for me to buy hot dogs in 150 dog packs, just for that twice a year when we have to have one.  For those who have to pack lunches, or for those who have a lot of kids to feed - I don't even have the energy to think about keeping enough food in the house for a handful of kids or the army of their friends running in and out of the house all summer, but if you have to, then the boxes of 225 count fruit snack packs and granola bars, I'm sure it's a blessing.  Husband can go through a box of Popsicles in 3 hours flat, so the 200 count box makes perfect sense.

All in all, I think a case can be made that the $50 membership is worth it, particularly for those 100 roll packages of paper towels and flats of kitty litter.