A Hello to You!

Hello to all of you foodies out there!

Welcome to my food blog - Miss Munchie's Gossip Corner! :o)

I would like to share recipes, tips, ideas, stories & great finds that I come across with YOU! Aren't you lucky? I think you are. ;o)

Some of my favorite things in the whole entire world are food. Strawberries, ice cream, pretzel bread, dark chocolate, tiramisu, the perfect sandwich, sweet corn in the summer, falafel & couscous with homemade hummus, Ben's Noodles, carrots.....the list goes ON. I enjoy picnic-ing, creating new recipes, fine dining, trying new ethnic foods & baking for the heck of it.

Since it is my specialty creation, I would like to introduce to you, PRETZEL BREAD. :o) It has been a popular topic around here lately, not only because I recently opened the "doors" to my online shop, but because it is all I hear ALL DAY LONG! I am not even exaggerating.....

"When are you making pretzel bread next?"
"OH. MY. GOD. This is AMAaaazing."
"Holy crap! This is heaven."
"PB2 please!"
"MMMMMmmmmmm."
"Can you wrap these things with bacon?"

This is what I hear after anyone devours a plate of my homemade pretzel bread nuggets. Pretzel bread has now acquired the nickname "PB." PB2 (squared) is also often heard around the household (pretzel bread + peanut butter). People have even been dreaming about new toppings. Thanks to those dreams, "Everything Bagel" has been tested & approved & Cinnamon Raisin is now being tested.... :o) And of course, more are in the works!

How did I start making such delicious artisan bread? It began with a love of pretzels & pretzel bread.

I first remember discovering pretzel bread while on the road.....somewhere in Virginia. It was at a gas station-type place called _______. Blitz? Schlitz? No, that's a beer. I forget. Ugh. Well anyway, they had a nice food area where you placed your order with a touch screen menu. I ordered my sandwich on a pretzel bread bun. And believe me, it was so tasty that I made my friends stop there on a few occasions during our trip. :o) It was SO amazing! But I was unable to find it again for a few years...

I rediscovered pretzel bread at Trader Joe's in Tinley Park, Illinois. Then found it at Whole Foods in Chicago. I would buy ten or so small $1 loaves & stock my freezer with them for convenience. And FYI: those two stores have them (at least in the Chicago area), but they usually run out by early evening.

I now live in New York where pretzel bread is NOT found at Whole Foods OR Trader Joe's. Trust me, I've investigated. I just get confused looks from workers. After searching online for pretzel bread recipes, I found one - made it, loved it & altered it to be my own. Next came the creation of the nuggets. Not breaking any historical ground here, but they are the absolute perfect snack size & taste wonderful heated up. People absolutely go nuts for them. I began making them for get-togethers, then for guests, then just anytime I felt like it.

Then I had a grand idea to open a food shop on Etsy.com (my FAVORITE website - support handmade, not mass made!). I appropriately named it Miss Munchie & have been selling pretzel bread & other tasty treats ever since! I love that people can enjoy edible things that I make with my hands (I also make non-edible things).

And you know what? One day I found a pretzel-shaped hair in my sink. Weird, huh?! Is it a sign? Here's a photo to prove it. :o)


Ta-Ta for now!

♡ Miss Munchie