best crab rolls ever

Recently Walker and I went to Crab Shack in St. Pete. I told you guys all about it. Crab Shack is the best place for crab legs hands down. I took my mom there for mothers day and we had THE BEST TIME EVER. 

That is a vodka ginger ale... She is a riot. 

When Walker and I went we ordered like a million things. Typical of me and walker eating anywhere, which is what makes him seriously one of my favorite people to have a meal with. 

I mentioned that the crab rolls we tried there were not my fave.

They were really big and seemed a little over mixed. The amount of dough compared with the amount of crab was just not right to me. Also the crab was mixed in with the other ingredients so much that there were no lumps of crab left, it was more like shredded crab. 

I have grown up eating crab rolls form Brocatos. 

It had been a while but somewhere in my memory I knew a crab roll better than the big doughy things crab shack offered. Mothers day weekend I was reminded about what crab rolls should be and the reason I can not be satisfied by a mediocre crab roll. 

We went to visit with my Nana, Aunt Penny, and cousins. Before going we picked up a dozen and half mini crab rolls and a cuban sandwich to share with my Nana. 

We ordered the minis and I personally think that is the only way to go. They are a little larger than an egg and perfect size to grab and eat... again and again. 

I could not wait and had a crab roll right out of the package in the parking lot of Brocato's.

That my friend is how it should be. 

No hate to Crab Shack though I already have another dinner there in the works because of those killer crab legs.

I love south Tampa as much as the next guy, ya know little bars, fancy cupcakes, starbucks. However the authenticity you will find at Brocato's is exactly what Tampa has always been about. So everyone should stop in and check it out. They have a ton of things on the menu and you will not be disappointed with any of them.

#Brocatosdeviledcrab

cheesy sweet potato cakes

I was telling my Aunt Penny and cousin Wendy this weekend about how I learned to cook from pinterest. It is totally true. Basically I found stuff on pinterest that sounded good but required weird ass ingredients or utensils so I modified them to make them possible. Most of the time I took things out of recipes, like a bunch of flour in a recipe... that does not work for a girl getting ready for beach season so I would try it without. Some recipes worked out well and some not as much. It is great though because I learned what goes together and ya know how to make something other than eggs. But holy shit I love eggs. Anyway a couple recipes I was able to tweak just the right amount and they became a go to, this is one of them.

Cheesy sweet potato cakes 

What all you need 

2 Sweet potatoes

2 Eggs

Parmesan cheese

Seasonings 

and the stuff to cook it... you can wing it on most of this but you will need a grater and a clean kitchen towel

As far as how to choose the spices... I just open the cabinet and think about what might go with the cheese... so I usually go italian with the parm but you could make these mexican or any flavor really. 

Peal the sweet potatoes... (I use grated sweet potato for other dishes so I prepared 3 but only used 2 for the cakes)

Grate the sweet potatoes 

This will get messy... you will find little pieces of sweet potato in weird places when you clean your kitchen... its worth it. 

Here is where the towel comes into play... once sweet potato (any veg really) is grated it will have a bunch of liquid that if left will make for soggy cakes so you need to squeeze that juice out. You can add a little salt to the grated potato to get them to start sweating out some of that liquid.

Twist up the towel

This can turn into a bit of a workout....

There are many techniques but I like to press it against the side of the sink and then just lean back.

Thank you mom for taking the photo.. that is her finger in the bottom corner...

Oh shoot I almost forgot... preheat the oven... ok so I put it at 425 and the original recipe was like use a wire rack and all this crap... I just use a baking sheet and some parchment paper. 

At this point out sweet potato is ready for the good stuff... CHEESE

I know that Publix or Kroger or whatever store you go to probably sells grated parm. I promise when you grate it yourself it will be MUCH better. I know it can be a pain but it melts so much better and in this recipe it is part of what binds everything so you need a good melt.. trust me... try it... let me know what you think

The recipe calls for a cup of cheese and this is what a cup of cheese looks like for me... I love cheese.

The original recipe also called for I think 1/4 cup of egg whites. I do not keep that in my fridge so I use one full egg and one egg white and I mix it up a little so it distributes evenly when mixed in.

As for mixing I like to fold in the spices and cheese with tongs.

Then add the egg and at this point its best to get messy and mix with your hands. You dont want to squeeze though because any liquid still in the potato will come out and make it too soggy. However it is normal for the mixture to be a little wet at this point.

As for how much seasoning to add... I don't use measuring spoons or anything so I can't tell you exactly but keep in mind you salted it a little before so add some pepper and seasoning as you see fit. 

Use your hands to form patties. You want the patties to be a somewhat thin so they can cook all the way through without burning on the bottom. They will be similar to small pancakes. 

You will want to bake these for about 15 minutes but you should keep a close eye on them. 

The edges will brown and even look a little like they are going to burn but the bottoms will just brown up a little.

If you are cooking for one or two this recipe makes enough to last you probably all week. If you are cooking for more you might want to double it up because they are great left over and keep well in the fridge.

You can eat them just like they are as a snack or a side to a meal. Last night I had two with some BBQ chicken. I also like to put spaghetti sauce over them. You can take two and put a burger in between. Add one to a salad. And because I love eggs I like them under an egg for breakfast.

Make them. let me know how it goes and how you use them. 

#gratedparmrocks

thank you for the ... cellulite

Mothers day is tomorrow and I am very lucky to have a mom very worthy of some serious bragging.

I have mentioned how smart my mom is a couple times in previous post. She is legit. Honestly both my parents are pretty brilliant. Keep in mind you are not likely to meet someone who is brilliant and completely sane (sorry but true). Although I could go on all day about how smart she is and how much she has accomplished in her life sometimes despite some serious obstacles, this post is not going to be about that. I think some of her best attributes have less to do with degrees earned, money made, or obstacles she has overcome, but more about her incredible personality.

My brother and I both have some serious similarities to our parents, sometimes that is a blessing and sometimes is a curse... just keeping it real.

I think we all probably try to identify the characteristic of our parents we like and dislike and then attempt to emulate the ones we like. I believe in a mixture of nature vs. nurture therefore I would say we may have some success in doing this but some of it is out of our control.

A characteristic of my mothers I have always strived to emulate is her unwavering confidence.

I could go into a long rant about body image and the media and how hard it is to be a confident woman in todays world but I think that sort of sums it up so a mini rant will work instead. I am very interested in health and fitness and I think I have a normal fascination with beautifying. I work out almost everyday, try to be conscious of what I eat, and while I spend little time primping I do not leave the house without mascara. I would say I am probably the most confident I have been right now... and by other peoples standards I am sure I am still relatively insecure. It is a battle and any woman who says it is not... lies... and maybe she is onto something because she might believe her own lie... either way this blog is not about lies good or bad.

I remember being in my very early twenties maybe even nineteen and talking to my mom about how I compared myself to everyone else. Every woman I met had something about her I wished I could have. I was destroying myself by picking parts of people and trying to build myself out of them. This is impossible! I was already built... and I needed to be spending that time appreciating and caring for what I was given. My mom said "someone will always be prettier, someone will always be smarter." She told me about how she was insecure when she was my age and looking back she is pissed at herself for being that way. She says that she never knew how beautiful she was then... she would always follow that with "you are even more beautiful". She told me about how she would do the same comparing but eventually as she gained confidence she would see a beautiful woman and think "wow she is beautiful isn't she" rather than "I wish I was beautiful like her". My mom also made it clear that outer beauty fades and although in your twenties it may hold a lot of value, it should not hold it all. She made sure I knew there were other qualities about myself I should appreciate and spend time cultivating. (Maybe that is why I can't french braid? :) )  I knew she was right and I knew the women I admired most were not always the prettiest but they were smiling and confident. I knew that if I could learn to appreciate other peoples qualities rather than wish they were my own I would eventually appreciate what I have. And it worked.

I would be lying if I said this was it... the moment I stopped comparing. It was indeed the moment I knew comparing would do me no good but, I think it is natural to compare a little and sometimes be jealous. But I always remember that I am happy with what I have and more importantly I know that I am not just made up of my outside appearance but who I am as a person as well. I do think crossfit has been an outlet for me that helps with this issue. As I fell in love with crossfit I also started putting my body to work. And although I still see photos of tiny girls with perfect beach waves in their hair and think what the hell? I remember that I have a body that works for me everyday. I do not attempt to be skinny because it would not suit the lifestyle I have chosen. My hair is naturally stick straight and is usually up in a sweaty pony tail. And that is how I like it.

Today my mom and I sat on the back porch and she was reading something to me about cellulite, that she found on yahoo. Cellulite is one of those "characteristics" I was talking about before that you do not have control over inheriting. She read about a couple procedures you can have to minimize cellulite... the last one required an incision and all kinds of weird stuff. I cringed at the thought and told her "I will just live with a couple thigh dimples... I mean they don't bother me that much" She got up to head inside and looked at me with a smile on her face and said "The nice thing about my cellulite is... it has always been behind me." She laughed on her way in the door.

This video was taken by ashley when we were working on our squat clean form. Which is by no means perfect. It was originally in slow mo and when I watched it all I could think was how crazy my ass was with all the jiggle. After todays conversation with my mom I am reminded that ass jiggle or not a girl working on her cleans is a beautiful thing! So I am posting it shamelessly :)

My mom is seriously one of the most beautiful women I know. She shines from the inside out. She has fun and laughs through life and always does what is best for her... sometimes thats putting on 15 bracelets and sometimes its wearing sneakers with a skirt :)  She takes pride in her appearance and loves to brag about how beautiful her kids are but she knows there is so much more to life than looks. She always keeps it real and enjoys life. We both appreciate pop culture phenomenon like the selfie. But while some women spend an hour applying makeup and fake eye lashes just to post a selfie, I am glad that my mom has encouraged me to spend less time getting ready to go do things and more time going and doing them.

I have so much to thank her for... I will spend my entire life doing so. But this mothers day I will thank her for two things...   My confidence and my cellulite.

Mom you are incredibly beautiful and you freakin rock!

#confidentwithcellulite

easy bar & bistro

I went to Tennessee this weekend to attend a wedding, which was freakin awesome. Of course while there I was able to eat a couple great meals. One of those was at Easy Bistro & Bar.

First a little about my first impression of the place. 

It is located on a cute little corner in downtown Chattanooga. One of the two streets is littered with places to eat but I am confident our choice was the best. 

We looked at the menu online before we chose so I was somewhat familiar with the logo otherwise I may have missed it. But once you are inside you won't miss a thing. This place is super cute. Not all weird and white table cloth fancy but definitely modern and chic. The weather was incredible so we asked for a spot outside and had a drink at the bar while we waited. 

The cocktail list did not disappoint. They make their own infused liquors. I am a total sucker for cucumbers and gin and they had a cucumber infused gin... so I went for some fancy cocktail made with that...it was bomb. 

They had cute little eye dropper things for their drinks kind of like I mentioned seeing at Patterson House, however this place was lay less pretentious about their drinks which I like. 

The bottom left photo is our little outdoor table. A small round table is kind of an insane choice when you are with this group... we all four like to eat, drink, and be merry and that table was not ready for it. 

Luckily our server was super supportive of our over ordering and our table choice so he staggered our food so it was manageable (even still Raven's filet almost ended up on the floor but she is like a ninja and recovered it effortlessly). Although, due to the staggering of dishes my favorite eating partner, who is basically a machine, left dinner slightly "hungry" which was mind blowing for everyone. 

We ordered....

The bread assortment and a meat and cheese plate

and of course OYSTERS.... 

You know how I feel about oysters and oyster shoorters. I have no desire to do another oyster shooter... but Rob had other ideas... Oyster backs? Yeah that's a thing now. So Raven ordered four chilled shots of some fucking amazing tequila and we all got an oyster ready as a chaser. Apparently the trick to it being good is making the oyster super spicy. I am still not in love with oysters so mine was on a big ass saltine cracker.

The tequila was great and put just the right amount of pink on my cheeks... and I have to admit the oyster was tolerable with the cracker, siracha, and chili flakes. We moved on to the next round of apps.

Steak Tartare, Cobia Belly, Pork belly, and a side of trumpet mushrooms. 

The top two did not blow my mind but don't judge them based on that because everyone else was mind blown. I ate some bitter leaf with the piece of cobia I had and it was not the best. As for the steak... I feel some kind of way about steak tartare just not into raw cubed steak...yet.

Moving on to the dish that always makes my heart skip a beat (and might make it stop beating one day) PORK BELLY. This one was an itty bitty little thing but it was over this amazing slice of watermelon with all kinds of other edible garnish. Honestly I probably could have ordered 4 of those but the nice gentleman who picked up the tab is probably very glad I did not. 

We added a side of trumpet mushrooms to the mix and they were incredible. 

The entrees followed and while Rob and Raven ordered heavy here we did our damage early on so we ordered the Mussels and fries to share.

The mussels were super good... I even got blamed for eating too many? whaaat? me? 

Rob ordered the duck and Raven ordered the filet. I did not get pictures but I did get bites... delicious... heavy, but delicious. 

When Walker went to order a SECOND round of the mussels our server informed us that sadly the kitchen was closed... however they were still serving dessert. 

Raven ordered a chocolate cake thing that was very good and I ordered the Macaroon assortment 

I have heard all the hype about macaroons and this was the first time I actually had any. Well my friends they lived up to the hype. I am not typically a big dessert person but these delicious little cookies hit the spot!! I also love the idea of having some variety.

We had a great experience at easy. Our server was awesome and the food and drinks were killer. I highly recommend this place to anyone visiting Chattanooga. It is basically right across from the Tennessee Aquarium, which I did not visit, but I hear good things about. But if you go for dinner they close at like 10 on the weekend which is kind of weird and apparently even earlier on some days so check out the hours before you go.

I would highly recommend all of the items we ordered and next time I am able to stop into Easy I think I will be trying the trout, it is local and sounds super good.

Another delicious meal with some amazing people.

#eatwelltraveloften

gettin crabs

I have gone down the list of favorite foods of mine a few times and crossed things out and added things. I mean a list like that needs editing every now and then. That kind of list also has some sublist. I would say one of my sublist to favorite foods would be favorite sea foods. On the favorite sea foods list crab legs are somewhere toward the top. 

On a hunt for some awesome crabs this Easter Sunday I found myself crossing the Gandy to visit The Crab Shack. I have passed this place so many times going to Ray's games in St. Pete and I should have known that a place looking the way it does can only stay in business by having some bangin ass food. 

The ambiance is definitely St. Pete beach bum. The place is far from fancy but the food is authentic to say the least. And the prices are pretty killer.

The apps we ordered included 

Oyster stew 

Green back muscles with butter garlic sauce

Buffalo shrimp 

Deviled crab rolls

The best out of these were the buffalo shrimp they were seriously amaze balls. The muscles were pretty damn good too. I did not try the oyster stew because I am still a little anti oyster after the shooter experience. Also although the crab rolls were good there are way too big... sometimes bigger isn't better. Crab rolls are heavy as is therefore they should not be larger than like an egg... ish. I am still voting Brocato's as first place for deviled crab. 

The apps definitely were a nice way to start a meal but I honestly could barely contain my excitement for the crab legs.

The server dropped off this little tool kit to get us ready and my excitement grew. They get you prepped by giving you a bucket for the shells of course, nut crackers (not crab crackers haha), kitchen sheers, and a little popsicle stick fork type of thing. you will not find any wet ones here folks. 

So top of this photo you will see two blue crabs... if you are into that get them because they are $2.50 each... I mean that is a deal. But guess what...I am NOT into that shit. Those crabs are full bodies meaning they still have all that orange and brown weirdo brain matter looking nonsense. I like to think I am a Florida girl who can handle sea food but when you can just have crab legs that have the beautiful clean meat why go for something with all the weird!.. no thanks. 

I was all about the dungeness crab legs though. I mean listen these have the creepy hair on the outside which is not ideal but the meat inside... OMG. They were recommended to us by another patron. FYI I would not take advice on much other than which crab legs to order from the patrons at these joint... just sayin. But seriously though the crab legs were AWESOME. 

I attended a Ray's game the same weekend and watched the Ray's kick some Yankee ass... Due to a late departure to the game I ate at the stadium and while the pretzel and cajun boiled peanuts rocked I think next time I will leave earlier and stop at the Crab Shack for sure. 

The location makes it perfect for a pre game meal but if you are not headed to a game it is just right over the Gandy so it really is only a quick trip and you can stop by one of my faves on the way home for a beer.

Hula Bay

That is how I got crabs in St. Pete... the first time. I am pretty sure it will happen again :)

8 incredible nashville restaurants in 1 day

About a month ago a friend of mine mentioned that him and a foodie friend of his were bouncing around the idea of a food crawl... umm... a food crawl? My ears perked up and mouth started watering... I was basically a dog begging for a bone.
He told me all about his friend Jay and Jay's wife Dollie. They are total foodies and because they were about to move out of Nashville for Jay's job they wanted to visit some of the best foodie finds before the big move.

I know when you think Nashville you probably think about what most people know music city for... cowboy boots, honky tonk bars, the Opry, and maybe even the show on ABC. Well all of those things are no joke NashVEGAS is the home of a lot of country music... and on any given night you might see 10 bachelorette parties full of girls in matching outfits that include cowboy boots. But I had no idea that Nashville is also home to some AMAZING food.

Walker and Jay got serious while planning this food crawl... brainstorming about where to go what time etc. They came up with an itinerary and made a couple reservations at the places that required them. Meanwhile my planning consisted of working out and trying to get mentally and physically prepared to eat at 8 restaurants in one day which turned out to be equally as crucial.

That morning we did a little air-dyne sit up workout. I complained about having to wake up and do that crap but 26 plates of food later I was glad I started the day with a sweat.
I would love to go on and on about every little detail at each place but with 8 places on the list... it would be the longest blog ever so I am going to give you some highlights no worries though I plan on showcasing some if not all of these eateries later on in my blog life.

1. Husk

We ordered-

Bone Marrow

The Deviled Eggs

The Husk Cheeseburger

Shrimp and Grits 

Steak and Eggs 

The Pork Belly Monte Cristo 

and some cocktails

You should try-

The Husk Cheeseburger. I had one bite and it was heavenly. Walker describes it as "the best bowling alley cheese burger he has ever had" which sounds gross right? I think this eater.com article does it a little better... sorry Walker. 

Other than the food-

Husk has many interesting little quirks... I mean honestly I want to take a class on the place and then tell you guys all about it. Until I take my Husk course I will mention, the pear trees, the private dining room, and the ham. The pear trees they have are grown and pruned so the limbs stretch out like arms and when they bloom form a fence apparently they are like 3k. There is an unattached little barn building behind Husk that is used for private events and even has its own kitchen (my goal in life is to have a party there). And the HAM! The people of Husk go H.A.M on their ham. They have a case where you can see it hanging and it hangs there for 24 months making it the melt in your mouth amazingness.

Condition of the Crawlers-

I consulted the smartest woman I know before going on this adventure... my mom. Her advice was to pace myself and I took it seriously. Apparently none of the other crawlers consulted their mothers because everyone went heavy at 10:30 am. We all left feeling satiated to say the least and when you have 7 more stops thats not ideal. It would catch up to us later. 

2. Mas Tacos Por Favor

We ordered- 

Horchata 

Plantains 

Tacos (pork and I think Jay and Dollie got fish)

Roasted Corn

You should try-

The roasted corn. It seems so simple but they put seasonings and cheese on it that makes it worth looking like a sloppy mess and having corn in your teeth after eating it.

Other than the food-

This place is a little shack across from our next stop (The Pharmacy) which worked out because we got on the list there while waiting in line for tacos. Food crawlers have to multitask. If you don't already know East Nashville is hipster central. This is a great place to see those hipsters in action. They love the idea of artisan tacos out of a shack... guess what Tampa has you beat because they do tacos out of a bus at the Taco Bus.... Boom. 

Condition of the Crawlers-

The little wait was probably good for us after a pretty heavy morning meal. Mas Tacos does not serve alcohol so we all came down a little from our brunch buzz. Do not worry though stop three brought the buzz back strong!

3. The Pharmacy

We ordered - 

Kielbasa with kraut and tots

and like 3 rounds of beers

You should try-

A burger... and tell me how it is!

We were pretty full around this time but Jay insisted on ordering some food and apparently he has a love for all things sausage. But this place is all about the burgers.

Other than the food-

They have a great beer selection and glassware! I think it is a nice touch when places that pride themselves on beer also serve the beers in their appropriate glass. They claim to be Nashville's original biergarten (aka beer garden.. fancy right?) and who knows if they are or not because lets face it a beer garden is just a little place outside where you drink different types of beer. I will say this... theirs is pretty awesome it is lined with picnic tables so there are plenty of seats and its has a nice outside feel in a normally congested part of the city. 

Condition of the Crawlers-

It is official at this point we are getting a little day drunk. And obviously judging by the small amount of food we ate at this stop we are all feeling pretty damn full. Although we kept our energy up by sharing some great stories. Jay and Dollies proposal story was my fave... this dude sent her on a scavenger hunt... cute right? While she was on it he was hiding in her trunk... WTF? One of the best stories ever!

4. {PUB}licity

We ordered-

The Bacon Sampler

The Pretzel Sticks 

and yet another round of beers 

You should try-

The Bacon. Now I have been there and done that when it comes to candied bacon. I have made it and I have eaten a lot of it. I will say that was not my favorite of the bacons. I personally loved the chocolate covered bacon. But I mean regardless or which was best lets face it if there is a fuckin bacon sampler on the menu... order it. 

Other than the food-

This place is outside of the city in Bellevue. It is in a plaza with Kroger so it really does not seem all that appealing to the foodie looking for a once in a lifetime experience... But I would suggest it to anyone going that way because the menu has a lot of interesting options and the bar itself is really cool inside. They have that table shuffle board shit.. I love bars that have games. 

Condition of the Crawlers-

We went over this way because Jay and Dollie needed to take their dog on a little walk. The drive gave us enough time to realize we weren't even half way through the day and we decided to stop for a pick me up. I chugged a sugar free red bull and Walker got some copenhagen (gross right?)... Do not judge us... everyone has their vice. 

5. The Southern

We ordered- 

Oysters

BBQ Shrimp 

Dominican Pork 

You should try-

The BBQ shrimp. It is a must have everytime! Make sure you ask for extra bread you will need it to soak up the sauce in the bowl. This is another dish that is worth the mess.

Other than the food-

The cocktails at The Southern are sooo great. The Zydeco is a must try. All together it is an awesome place to try and I have a friend Raven who works there... ask for her! She knows food and will make sure your "southern experience" is the best. 

Condition of the Crawlers-

Walker, Jay, and Dollie were all looking forward to having oysters at The Southern all day. So despite the semi-full bellies they were on an oyster high. I personally am traumatized after a bad oyster shooter experience. I tried an oyster at Southern but I swear it tasted like the bottom of the fuckin ocean... not my thing right now. We were feeling a solid buzz at this point and it put an extra pep in out step.

6. The Farmhouse

We ordered-

The fried quail and waffles 

The pork belly and sweet potato gnocchi 

and more cocktails

You should try-

This one is tough but I have to go with the quail. I am such a huge fan of pork belly so let's just make it a rule that it is ordered everywhere. But in this case the quail really was amazing. The breading is so sweet and crispy. Everything in the world should be fried like that quail.

Other than the food-

We ate at the bar so we did not experience a lot of the place. It is right next door to Etch which is awesome. The bar tender was really cool... he made us a bunch of great drinks and even made one with some kind of weird tomato ice cream... I swear. Weird. 

Condition of the Crawlers-

Well you can tell me photos I was falling apart. I forgot to take pictures so I had to take them after we had already torn into the food. Also we all stood the entire time... just could not stand to sit at that point. All of a sudden we realized Walker hadn't spoken in a while and we looked over at him... he was leaned against the wall and it was a bad situation. Dollie and Jay called and changed our dinner reservation to give us some time. Walker managed to mumble "we need to take a walk". We obliged and took a walk on the Shelby Street Pedestrian Bridge.

7. Mason's

We ordered-

Bone Marrow (boys choice)

Deviled eggs

Crab corn dogs

some kind of Elvis themed desert 

You should try-

The crab corn dogs... They are a little heavy but so worth it. They really remind me of an elevated version of the devil crabs at Brocato's in Tampa. So much crab in every bite. 

Other than the food-

This place is located inside the Loews Hotel and we sat in the bar which gave us a great view of people coming and going. Remember earlier when I mentioned the bachelorette parties with matching outfits and cowboy boots... even better I think I saw one in a princess type dress. I mean if this girl was wearing a princess dress for her bachelorette just picture what she will look like on her wedding day! It was great. Mason's also had some wine glasses Dollie and I were obsessed with and a huge projection screen in the bar area that sports enthusiast may appreciate. 

Condition of the Crawlers- 

By this point Jay was getting that look in his eyes... "I am over the fact that I ate all day and I want to drink all night". Walker was still mumbling shit from time to time while doing everything he could to get all the marrow out of the bone. And Dollie was over it. She was full and focused only on getting back home to her bed and her dog. Which is what makes Dollie an awesome wife and dog mom she knows when to call it quits and when her fur baby needs her. They agreed that if there was no wait at the next spot they would join... there was a wait so they skipped out on stop 8. 

8. The Patterson House

We ordered-

Fried Goat Cheese 

Cocktails

You should try-

A cocktail. I was not that impressed with the goat cheese... mind you I was far from hungry. They are known for their cocktails here so order one, two, as many as you can.

Other than the food-

So I have some opinions about this place. I wanted to rally and make sure we hit 8 places like we had planned... so I am definitely glad we made it but the place is too cool for school. It is a "speakeasy"themed place so there is no sign indicating where it is and there are a lot of drapes so that just by walking in you would not know it is a bar... I guess it could be a book store? or maybe a place to buy bad velvet drapes. The speakeasy thing is cool but I think the Vandy kids that go to this bar think those things are just because it is so elite... I think to them prohibition was 6 months ago before they turned 21 and only Chili's would accept their fake ID, so they definitely do not know what a speakeasy is. The drinks are super good and they put herbs and fresh zest and drops of oils or something out of small viles, but it is just too hip for my liking to be honest.

Condition of the Crawlers-

Jay and Dollie were out on this one and honestly I do not even think there were more than 5 words said between Walker and myself. We were over it and ready to pass out. Jay text us when we got home and said he weighed himself in the morning and evening and had gained TEN POUNDS... whaaaaat... worth it. 

The food crawl was honestly one of the best experiences ever. We have already discussed doing another one. Or possibly doing it annually. I love good food and drinks. In this case I can easily say the company was as a good if not better than the food... 

#foodcrawl2014

hangover food revamped

Keep in mind in my first post I hinted that I am by no means a culinary genius. I will also add that I am not a nutritionist. I try to eat healthy though.

Sunday my hungover state led me to make an unhealthy food choice... a couple if I am being honest. I ate chinese take out for dinner. It was delicious and I did not... and still really do not regret it one bit. Yesterday when considering what to cook for dinner I opened the fridge and saw a little box packed with left over fried rice... it was staring at me saying "eat me".  I said "no fried rice I am not hungover and I know you aren't the best decision for my summer body"... and then I pulled the container out of the fridge and decided to stop talking to the food and eat it.

Now I do not know if you have had fried rice from a chinese place lately but they have really let things go in that area. Maybe this is a figment of my imagination but I remember bitching when I was kid about the veggies in the fried rice. It came filled with egg, peas, and onion. By no means was it ever packed with nutrient rich veggies but at least there was something... those days are over. Now you are lucky if it is even actually fried rice rather than some yellow looking weirdo rice.. gross.

This was my fried rice taken out of the box before sprucing.

While I was willing to stoop to the fried rice level I refuse to eat it in its current lack luster state. I decided to spruce it up. This is something I have done before to add a little extra yumminess to boring left overs and it is always a great way to stretch leftovers for one into leftovers for two.

I have done many variations and none of which are really all that complicated... I just open the fridge take a look around and grab some stuff to add to the rice. Easy right?

I usually always add an egg and some onion and I would like to lie here and say some super fancy veggies I get from some farmer on the corner but let me be honest and say... I choose some stuff that might go bad soon. This time the options were limited but I found a couple carrots and some celery. 

I chop it all up.

Then I saute those veggies in some olive oil. When they are cooked to my liking I remove them from the pan but don't put them in the rice just yet.

Although you could just add the veggies in and be done, I like to do a little more.

I then use the same pan add a little more oil or butter if you choose.. just enough to keep the pan stick free... then add the rice. When I say a little bit of oil or butter I am for real this is just reheating not cooking so keep it light.

This time the rice was a little dry so I added some ponzu sauce... I don't use measuring spoons but if I could guess I would say it was about a table spoon. 

This is when I add the egg I make a little spot on the side of the pan and crack the egg right in... then I just scramble it as it cooks... I prefer it still a little separated.

Once it is basically cooked I mix it with the rice

Now it can all be mixed up

Although the final product doesn't look completely different it taste so much better!! And there are some extra veggies... so a little more bang for your buck in the nutrition department.

I grilled some chicken and the two things together made for an awesome meal... I added siracha of course 

Tonight there was still a little of the spruced rice left so I sautéed some diced zucchini and peppers threw it all together in a little chicken rice bowl thing. 

I feel like when I am cooking for one or two it is hard to eat leftovers before they become science experiments and same goes for veggies. This is a mini solution to that issue.