Phoenix Food Blog

Here at Chow Bella, we try to follow food trends as they pop up. So when we started seeing little peanut-sized lumps of cheese at farmers' markets and groceries around town, we figured it was time to stop and find out how and why they're made.

Superstition Farms' cheese curds at Oakville Grocery.

​ ​If you're from the Midwest (especially Wisconsin), cheese curds are likely a throwback to childhood. Apparently, they're a popular snack food. Dairy farms are plentiful there, so that's no big surprise. What is a surprise -- at least the first time you pop one in your mouth -- is that cheese curds squeak. Yes, food that squeaks. Awesome!

The question is, why do cheese curds squeak when you eat them? And what the heck are they made of, anyway? We popped by Tempe's Milk n' More Store at the United Dairymen of Arizona processing plant on Broadway and Hardy to find out. 

​How well do you know your favorite cookhouse contraptions? See if you can guess today's gadget and check back next week for the answer.

Here are a few of our guesses, add yours to the comment box below:

- Karl Malden spittoon.
- Renaissance-Fair-Ready earthenware glug-chugger.
- "Mr. Saddy" suicide mug (does not include handful of sleeping pills).

​What the heck was this?
Find out last week's answer, and winners, after the jump.

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Eli Kluger

The video producer of Phoenix Rising has a slew of other films at www.youtube.com/beatfilms

What'd you eat for dinner last night? I ate a granola bar.

Favorite food: My favorite food has to be pizza, or Peter Piper Pizza buffet, more specifically. I can't resist all-you-can-eat deliciousness at a reasonable price.

Least favorite food: I hate broccoli.

Favorite dessert: The candy at Sweets and Beats is fantastic; I especially enjoy their gummy section.

An early morning serving of food news, with no preservatives or additives. ​

In the weirdest food news we've heard in a while, two men robbed a pizza delivery guy and were caught by the trail of pizza sauce and wings that led police right to them. Read the Arizona Republic's story here.

Who wants breakfast? Today is the day Denny's wants to feed you...for free. In case you missed the commercial during the Super Bowl, Denny's is handing out a free Grand Slam to everyone between the hours of 6am and 2pm.

Pizza on a stick? Pie on a stick? Yes please! Everyone should know by now that everything tastes better when you put it on a stick.

Make whoopie! These Heart Shaped Whoopie Pies are a perfect way to sweeten your Valentine's Day.

http://annies-eats.com/2010/02/08/red-velvet-whoopie-pies/

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​St. Francis

That's because he's waiting to see what kinds of exotic organic produce farmer Patrick Duncan will drop off for his Brophy Farm to Table Dinner.

Chamberlin will cook up a four-course feast ($60 per person, $90 with wine) made with just-picked ingredients, in celebration of that night's blessing of the restaurant, conducted by Father Eddie Reese, SJ, and Father Dan Sullivan, SJ. The president of Brophy College Preparatory and the pastor of the St. Francis Church, respectively, will break bread at the restaurant in observance of the Jesuit "haustas" tradition.

www.twigandthistle.com

​OK, so you've got those Valentine treats baked, and they're too cute for a Ziploc.

No worries. The blog Twig & Thistle has an adorable goody bag for you -- and all you have to do is download the design and print it on bags. No charge. T&T has created a "brownie bag" design, as well, and cleverly offers sweet little paper bags for sale on its etsy shop.

www.twigandthistle.com

​Might be too late to get the bags in time for VD, but no worries, we think these patterns would look good on the lunch bags you can find at the grocery store. (And while you're there, pick up some brownie mix -- we'll never tell.)

​The evolution of Mill Avenue continues. While retailers might've taken the biggest economic hit along downtown Tempe's walkable stretch (witness the sad row of empty storefronts just north of P.F. Chang's), the restaurant scene is burgeoning.

Open since Friday, Robbie Fox's Public House is the newest addition to the mix, giving Rula Bula some competition with fish 'n chips, corned beef sandwiches, cottage pie, and other Irish dishes, as well as several all-American offerings. And in the oyster department, Casey Moore's gets a challenge, too -- Robbie Fox's has them on the half-shell, fried, and Rockefeller.

That's what restaurateur Lobby Syregelas is betting on with his new concept, Lobbys Beef, Burgers, Dogs, which opened late last year in the Basha's Center at McClintock and Southern in Tempe (3141 S. McClintock). Sure, there's competition from the chains, he says, but so far the neighborhood is supporting the indie fast-casual spot.

The menu is all about straightforward Chicago-style eats -- homemade burgers, Italian beef , grilled Italian and Polish sausage sandwiches, chili, and hot dogs with everything, served in poppy seed buns.