closing time

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end.  Also, unfortunately, this includes frozen custard.  Well, not for good, but just for the season.

With the range of hot + humid in the summer to bitterly cold in the winter, St. Louis doesn’t exactly provide the best climate for frozen custard stands to stay open year round.  Of course, there are those few stands that do stay open year round because they serve indoors, but the classics (Ted Drewes, Fritz’s, etc.) must come to a close come December.  Luckily, February is the typical opening date, so we don’t have to wait very long!

We decided to go on the very last day Fritz’s was open because (1) I’ve had a very busy weekend with my church Christmas program, (2) they were closed yesterday for their staff appreciation day, and (3) I wanted to get it the last chance I could so I don’t have to wait very long until February.

It was almost the trip that didn’t happen given the weather conditions:  bitterly cold (high 22* and low 6*) with gusty winds and SNOW!  But, with the store being less than a mile from our house and the fact they have a drive-thru, we braved the cold to get in my car and get some delicious frozen custard.

I’ve been eyeing their newest concrete for a few weeks now – vanilla custard mixed with pumpkin pie filling + cinnamon granola.  Seriously, my 3 favorite things all rolled into one delicious concrete.  However, I was a little disappointed that the granola flavor didn’t come out more.  The pumpkin flavor was of course amazing, but that’s all I could taste with the crunch of granola.  Don’t get me wrong through, it was still yummy!

The Hubs decided on the Caramel Apple sundae, which pretty much explains itself.

It might be cold outside, but it’s warm enough in here to eat some frozen custard!

And don’t worry, there are still a few stands that will be open through the winter, so we will definitely be hitting those up… along with hopefully a few homemade concoctions I have in mind.

But, it is a sad day to know that I have to wait until February to get my delicious Fritz’s concretes again…

red velvet

It’s officially winter weather in St. Louis.  The blue box in the right hand corner of my computer reads 24 degrees.  COLD.

So, what does a couple do on a boring Tuesday night in blistery cold weather?

Go get frozen custard of course!  Well, drive through to get frozen custard…

This is the last week Fritz’s will be open for the season, and seeing as we have only been twice this year [probably the least amount ever], we definitely had to make a trip.

And after I saw this on the sign, I knew we had to try it!

I’m pretty sure this is the only time Red Velvet Cake has EVER been the Flavor of the Day.  It definitely didn’t exist when we worked there, and believe me, we tried EVERY combo possible.  Red velvet cake was NOT one of them.

However, seeing as this is one of my favorite flavored cakes [and remember, I am NOT a cake person], we absolutely had to check it out!  And that meant breaking the habit of always getting a concrete.  Sorry if I no longer live up to my “concrete runner” name after this…

After we got settled in back at home, I plopped down on the couch to taste the deliciousness that is red velvet cake.  And Fritz’s definitely didn’t disappoint!  Smooth + creamy as always, with just the perfect amount of red velvet chocolately flavor.

It definitely didn’t warm me up, but it certainly tasted delicious!  Too bad I’ll have to wait until the spring to get it again…

a frozen custard love story

Earlier this week [Wednesday to be exact], I celebrated my 26th birthday.  Although I spent the day at work and most of the evening at home by myself, I still had a wonderful birthday!  Thank you so much to everyone for all the Facebook messages, emails, texts, and cards!  I feel so incredibly loved and wish I could give each and everyone of you a huge hug!

Not only was Wednesday special because it was my birthday, but Matt + I were also celebrating a very important anniversary.  9 years ago, we fell in love…

Matt + I started dating on my 17th birthday.  After spending the summer working + flirting at Fritz’s together, Matt finally got the guts to see if I wanted to hang out after work one night.  [I believe his exact words were, “Do you want to see my new truck?”]  He actually wasn’t the one to ask me out, I actually had to ask him if he wanted to get together on that fateful Saturday, that just so happened to be my birthday.

My parents were a little worried at first, since Matt is 4 years older than me.  A guy in college wanting to date a junior in high school… who could blame them?  But, his intentions were good of course, and he was more than happy to meet them before our date.

Our first date involved dinner at Chili’s, a movie at Mid Rivers [Joy Ride to be exact], and then driving around and walking on Main Street St. Charles.  I think the only time I’ve ever been more nervous was on our wedding day.  I think both of us pretty much knew going into the date that this was going to be for the long haul.

It has been an amazing 9 years… we are still very much in love and I fall in love with him more and more every day!  And, why wouldn’t I, when he takes me out to celebrate my birthday + our “anniversary” at the place where it all started…

Matt unfortunately had Parent Teacher Conferences at his school Wednesday night, so we decided to meet up for our “date” after he was done for the night.  [Don’t worry, we will be doing a real date tonight.]  And of course, the real reason we wanted Fritz’s…

Pumpkin Concretes!  Tonight’s Flavor of the Day was actually pumpkin cheesecake [they ran out by the time I was able to take a picture of the sign, so that is why it is blank], but we figured it was close enough to their “actual” pumpkin.  I decided to “create my own” concrete and went for the pumpkin cheesecake custard with chocolate chunks + caramel.

This was TO DIE FOR!  It was mixed PERfectly, so there were swirls of caramel and a little chunk of chocolate in every bite.  And the pumpkin flavor was spot on!

Matt’s wasn’t nearly as good as mine [I win this time for ordering better than he did].  He decided to get a Caramel Crunch sundae [caramel + pecans + hard shell chocolate] with the pumpkin cheesecake custard.  You couldn’t tasted the pumpkin custard nearly as well as you could in my concrete.

Overall, it was a wonderful birthday!  I could’ve have asked for a better husband + best friend to spend my birthday with!

melty goodness

Just a quick post to thank my mother-in-law for bringing by some Fritz's on her way home tonight. She brought us 2 original Turtles in sundae form (vanilla custard + caramel + hot fudge + pecans + extra cherries). Turtles definitely are NOT my favorite (noted the pecans), but the couple bites of this I had before sticking it back in the freezer was pretty good! (Of course, if you are a loyal Fritz's customer, you know they have pretty awesome pecans... and they are very hush-hush on where they get them. But, I think you can buy them at the stores now!)

It was a tad bit melty (notice that ALL the toppings have sunk to the bottom except the cherries), which is why it is an absolute MUST you eat your frozen custard AT THE STAND! With lower fat content (most are about 95% fat-free), frozen custard tends to melt very quickly, making it almost impossible to enjoy it in the comfort of your own home (unless you buy a completely frozen quart or pint to take home). So, take the time to eat your custard while you are there. You won't regret it.

Mom #2, along with sis-in-law and niece, also bought me this AH-mazing shirt! Can't wait to wear it! Thank you so much! You guys made my day! :o)

Long run planned with my new running buddy, Lauren tomorrow! It's a step-back week, so we are only doing 9 miles. Last long run in single digits until the week before the marathon! AH!