Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/311961
ByAngelHuracha Correspondent It's the beginning of the month. With rent paid and your cellphone bill covered, some of us might be lucky enough to have a few measly dollars in our bank account. Lucky for us, the range of cheap eateries in Chico is wide enough for us to con- quer our hunger. At EJ's Dogs & Subs, you can stretch your dollars just enough to walk out of there with both a sandwich and a large drink. With the tem- perature rising the thirst is often too real. One needs not to be parched for those ex- cruciating summer days. Located on 672 Man- grove Ave., the small eatery specializes in the all-Amer- ican hot dog but also offers a variety of sandwiches. Although wieners are my forte, on this day my stom- ach was craving a chicken salad sandwich. Chicken salad is one of my favorite eats in my household. It's a simple rec- ipe with easy-to-find ingre- dients. It makes for a nice lunch whether it's on a sand- wich or accompanied with some crackers. Plus there something fancy about it. Perhaps it's because of the term "salad" ... who knows? On sourdough bread, this sandwich contained ro- maine lettuce, tomato slices, chicken and mayonnaise. From what my taste buds gathered, there was also a hint of garlic. At a normal size, I did not leave hungry or full. It was just enough to get me through for a few hours. If you have some extra dollars there are some sides which cost extra, like cole- slaw or potato salad. You can alsochooseforanassortment of chips. I decided to quench my thirst with a Sprite. My total came to $6.54. The gal behind the coun- ter was very nice and did a good job providing me with the service I needed. After taking my order she pro- vided me with a stamp card. You have the option to sit inside or outside. I chose to sit outside and enjoy the warm breeze on a nice day. Don't be fooled by the dull decor. It is a bare min- imum effort, a mellow-yel- low paint job and a huge sign that consists of most of their menu hangs on their wall. Sure, you can find simi- lar deals in the same plaza providedbySafewayorSub- way. But it's an inexpensive lunch and it's a good way to support a local business. By supporting locally owned businesses we build a stronger community. Chain eateries get enough business elsewhere. Lo- cally owned businesses en- rich the community and help distinguish us. Angel Huracha is a Chico State University student. Each week he's asked to find a meal that costs no more than $8 (one hour at mini- mum wage) and then write about it. Inexpensive lunch spot keeps it simple STARVING STUDENT ANGELHURACHA—ENTERPRISE-RECORD EJ's has its entire menu on the wall. Address: 672Mangrove Ave., Chico Telephone: 342-3456 EJ'SDOGS&SUBS By Mary Clare Jalonick The Associated Press WASHINGTON Diners could soon see calorie counts on the menus of chain restau- rants. But will they be able to get that same clear informa- tion at grocery stores, con- venience stores, movie the- aters or airplanes? The food industry is closely watching the Food and Drug Administration to see which establishments are included in the final menu labeling rules, which are expected this year. The idea is that people may pass on that bacon dou- ble cheeseburger if they know that it has 1,000 calo- ries. Or on the chili hot dog at the convenience store counter. But nonrestaurant estab- lishments have lobbied hard for exemption, and the rules have been delayed. FDA Commissioner Mar- garet Hamburg told Con- gress last month that writ- ing the rules has been "much more challenging than ex- pected." The agency issued proposed rules in 2011 but has faced pressure to revise them to exclude retail out- lets like grocery and conve- nience stores. The FDA has sent the rules to the White House, meaning they could be re- leased soon. The calorie la- bels may be required as soon as six months after the final rules are announced. Places you may — or may not — see calorie labels once the rules kick in: Supermarketsand convenience stores The supermarket and convenience store industries were perhaps the most un- happy with the rules that the FDA proposed in 2011. The agency proposed requiring those stores to label calories for prepared foods on menu boards and displays. The restaurant industry has pushed for those out- lets to be included, arguing that many of them are pro- moting their prepared food sales and directly compet- ing with restaurants. Nu- trition advocates have also called for those stores to be included, saying that a rotis- serie chicken labeled with a calorie count at a restau- rant should also be labeled at the grocery store takeout next door. Same with baked goods like muffins, pies or loaves of bread. The supermarket indus- try estimates it could cost them a billion dollars to put the rules in place — costs that would be passed on to consumers. Along with con- venience stores, the super- markets say the ever-chang- ing selection at salad bars, deli counters and other pre- pared food stations would make it difficult and costly to nail down accurate calo- rie counts and constantly up- date signs. Both industries argue that the law is intended for res- taurants and not for them. They say the labeling rules will be much easier to put in place at restaurants with fixed menus. "The cost of compliance for a convenience store is dif- ferent than a one-time cost to McDonald's," says Lyle Beckwith of the National Association of Convenience Stores. Restaurants The restaurant industry pushed for menu labeling and helped it become law as part of health overhaul in 2010. Chain restaurants that operate all over the country wanted the federal stan- dards because of an evolv- ing patchwork of state and local laws that require calo- rie labeling and could have forced those outlets to follow different rules in different lo- cations. Not all restaurants are happy with menu labeling, though. Pizza restaurants, led by delivery giant Dom- ino's, say it doesn't make sense to force their franchi- sees to order expensive new menu boards when few peo- ple walk into their brick-and- mortar outlets. They argue for putting the information online. The pizza companies say they need more flexibil- ity on labeling than other restaurants. Supporters of the rules say pizzas are no different from sandwiches or other foods that have a vari- ety of toppings. The rules will only ap- ply to restaurants with 20 or more outlets, so indepen- dent eateries are exempt. Bakeries, coffee shops and ice cream parlors are all ex- pected to be included if they have enough stores to qual- ify. But alcohol most likely won't have to be labeled in any of those places — FDA proposed exempting it. Movie theaters Movie theater chains lob- bied to be left out and ap- peared to win that fight when they were exempted in the 2011 proposed rules. But nutrition groups are lobbying to include them in the final rules, especially be- cause movie treats can be so unhealthy. Nutrition lobbyist Margo Wootan of the Center for Science in the Public Inter- est says many people don't realize they are eating a day's worth of calories when they stop by the movie con- cessions counter and grab a large popcorn and extra- large soda. Airplanes and trains Passengers will most likely be able to purchase food calorie-blind in the air and on the rails. Along with movie theaters, airlines and trains were exempted from the proposed labeling rules in 2011. The FDA said that it would likely exempt food served in places where the "primary business activity is not the sale of food" and that don't "present themselves publicly as a restaurant." That also includes amuse- ment parks, stadiums and hotels, unless restaurants set up in those places are part of a larger chain. Where will new calorie labels appear? THE FDA ED OU — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE This file photo shows the calories of each food item at a McDonalds drive-thru menu in New York. The food industry is closely watching the Food and Drug Administration to see which establishments are included in the final menu labeling rules, expected this year. By Marisa Corley mcorley@norcaldesigncenter. com When I was little, my mother had a recipe book with all types of fun cake and cupcake designs, which she would take out every year on our birth- days. There was many a year when a birthday mes- sage (or my age) would be spelled out individually on cupcakes, frosted quickly with a knife then lettered lightly with a small froster. It wasn't anything elabo- rate, but it was sugar and goodness, even if the cup- cake still seemed a bit flat on top once that thin layer of icing had been added. These days, thinking about cupcakes conjures up a slightly different image. With the advent of cupcak- eries and other businesses dedicated solely to the per- fection of cupcakes rather than bakeries who hap- pen to have extra batter on hand, the image of cupcakes have become a lot more gourmet. Towered with frosting nearly as high as the cake in some instances, with flavors such as pink champagne, gingerbread with zinfandel frosting, butterbeer (a la Harry Pot- ter) and some even stranger ones like pancake with ba- con and iced tea, these cup- cakes are nothing like my typical birthday plain va- nillas. But really, that's the joy of it. For nearly any flavor you can think of these days (and many you might never have thought of), there is a recipe to be found. Espe- cially in this day and age of food blogs, where hob- byist bakers experiment in the kitchen during their off hours and can share results with the wide world of the Internet, rather than just friends and neighbors. Ev- ery new flavor of cupcake has to start somewhere, even if it's just at a home with someone craving a dif- ferent form of avocado. I've been experiment- ing lately with cupcakes mainly because they're so easy to bake and give away to friends so I don't have to eat them all myself. I only recently realized I've kind of become known for them when a friend mentioned it had come up in a college class she had been teach- ing. She had mesmerized her students with some of the flavors she had tried. Which were nothing too far out: Oreo, thin mint and root beer. But she asked if I would be willing to make a batch for the class of hers that did the best on a cer- tain project as a sugary mo- tivator. The winning class de- cided to go with Oreo cup- cakes, which has become a pretty standard offering at most cupcake shops, de- spite repeated assurances I would try to bake any fla- vor they could come up with. They're definitely a crowd pleaser, chocolatey but with a lighter cream cheese frosting that contrasts well with the chocolate of the cake and also with the bro- ken pieces of Oreo baked into the offering. I think the favorite part is the surprise people get when they bite into the cupcake and find an entire Oreo on the bottom. Oreo cupcakes INGREDIENTS FOR CUPCAKES 1Chocolate cake mix (your preferred type) 1package of Oreos (36 count or so) 1package of mini Oreos (for optional decoration) FOR FROSTING 8ounces cream cheese (room temperature) 1/2 cup butter (room tem- perature) 1teaspoon vanilla 33/4 cups powdered sugar OTHER NEEDS Cupcake liners DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 350de- grees. Place one whole Oreo at the bottom of each cupcake liner. Mix cake as you would a normal chocolate cake. Take half of the Oreos le and roughly chop them into chunks. Add this to the cake mix and stir. Fill the cupcake liners about 3/4 of the way with batter, covering the whole Oreo at the bottom. Bake for 18minutes or ac- cording to cake directions. For frosting, mix the cream cheese and butter together until smooth. Add vanilla. Add powered sugar slowly, allowing the first bit to be mixed in before adding more. Chop up the remaining Oreos quite finely (a food processor can be help- ful) and mix them into the frosting. A er cupcakes are cool, frost and decorate the top with mini Oreos if desired. Yield: About 24 cupcakes This recipe is easy to stretch because you have the Oreos taking up space at the bottom of the cup- cake liner. For the choco- late cake itself, the recipe is pretty flexible. Box cakes are quick and easy to use, but purists can bake from scratch as well, as long as they're willing to take the time. I prefer to use more of a fudgy cake, the more choc- olaty, the better. When filling the cupcake liners, I know most usually recommend to fill them 2/3 of the way, but as there isn't as much batter in these cup- cakes compared to normal, full will make them rise to about the right height. Like with most cakes and cupcakes, when you take them out of the oven, you should be able to put a fork or a toothpick through the center and have it come up clean to show it's done. Real- ize that the bake time might be less than you mightthink, again because of the Oreos taking up batter space. Like with the chocolate cake, there are many sim- ilar ways to make a cream cheese frosting, which is one of my favorite kinds. The cheese kind of mutes the sweetness just enough so that it's not overpower- ing. Depending on the kind of froster you are, you may have some leftovers, as I managed to frost about 33 cupcakes with this amount and I'm not very light- handed about it. Extras can be used the way we used them when I was a child — in a graham cracker frost- ing sandwich. Frosters are great if you want to add that fancy touch. If you're a tradition- alist and you want to frost with a knife, go for it, but it's simple to frost even with a gallon zip top bag if you don't have a froster, and it tends to look a lot more like thosegourmetcupcakesyou might see in a shop. I say to use the gallon bag because it's sturdier, and the smaller bags can burst seams. Just put the frosting in the bag toward one of the bottom corners, push most of the air out of it, seal it, and cut off the bottom corner. The smaller you cut, the finer the tip. For these, I cut off about a quarter inch trian- gle, which allows for faster frosting than with a smaller tip. If you don't want to go through the hassle of find- ing mini Oreos (I usually re- sort to the snack packs that have them in a bunch of lit- tle bags), the cupcakes look great with just the white and black speckled frost- ing. I've also seen people put whole Oreos on the top, but I think they're a little too big for the cupcake size, per- sonally. Whether for a birthday party or to give away, these Oreo cupcakes are easy to make, decorate, and enjoy. Expand your cupcake horizons Why stop with chocolate? Make cupcakes that taste like Oreo cookies BAKING MARISA CORLEY — NORCAL DESIGN CENTER Cupcakes come in hundreds of flavors — including pink champagne, gingerbread with zinfandel frosting and butterbeer. These chocolatey treats are jampacked with Oreo cookie goodness. FOOD » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, May 14, 2014 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B4