Four Foods on Friday?

Okay, I know it isn't Friday. Maybe, like Kate, I'm just early...but it's a meme about food, and I can't pass that up.

1. How do you like your eggs cooked? Any special ingredients?

I like my eggs in one of three ways.

--Scrambled hard, with cheese and herbs mixed in (much akin to Kate's way of fixing it, sans the cream since I can't eat it).

--Mixed in with corned beef hash and pan-fried potatoes, and plenty of tobasco, OR mixed in with a really good, fresh chorizo and lime. Either way, eat with a tortilla.

--Omelettes, with a variety of things in them, are one of my utmost favorite things. Chili, cheese, veggies, or even fruit are all excellent things to add to an omelette. The thing is, though, the omelette has to be juuuuust right or not only is it not good to eat, it is highly nasty.

2. What's your favorite cold sandwich, made on two pieces of bread?

Hands down, that's gotta be the one made with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving, with cranberry sauce, dijon or brown mustard, bean sprouts, provolone, mayo, and whatever else I can come up with at short notice. I particularly like that on a really dark Russian rye bread, but that's me.

3. What is your favorite pie?

If I'm eating in a restaurant, that's going to be lemon meringue, any time.

If I'm eating at home, honestly, it's a toss-up. Red makes pumpkin pie around this time of year that is to die for, and I've eaten enough of it in one sitting that I thought that might actually happen. The one my family goes for, though, and one that actually got me threatened with bodily injury if I ever brought it again, is Tollhouse Pie. (Note: fair warning - it is physically impossible to eat small portions of this pie. If you are trying to lose weight, don't make it.)

Tollhouse Pie:
1/2 C butter, melted
1 C white sugar
1 C brown sugar, packed solid
1 t salt
2 eggs, beaten until submissive
16 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 t vanilla

Optional - any one of the following:
1 shot of spiced rum

Substitute half of the chocolate chips for cinnamon or mint chips - butterscotch is not recommended unless you have a sweet tooth that knows no limits.

Walnuts (I don't add them, as I think they're icky) or another nut you like, such as hazelnuts.

Mix all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Preheat oven to 375F. Pour into two unbaked 9" pie shells - I make my own crust, but, again, that's me. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

4. Name one food you refuse to eat and why.

Anything with more limbs than me, because they're gross and fit into the general category of "bugs", whether they live in the ocean or not.

5. What's the name of your favorite restaurant, and is it small or part of a chain?

Given that I have a number of food allergies that restrict what I can eat, saying I have a favorite restaurant is impossible. I generally like authentic Mexican and Italian food because they generally aren't heavily based in dairy or nuts, which I have a real problem with. I can usually find something to eat at a steakhouse or a seafoood restaurant, and I often enjoy eating in such places. In general, though, uncomplicated food fixed by people who genuinely love to cook from things I can eat will win me over every time, and that usually leaves the big chains out of the running for first place.