DIY Chipotle’s Salsa

August 27, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 8 Comments

Just another perk of living in the city of Philadelphia (or, I assume, any city) – Sometimes you come across something like this:

Fancy meeting you here.

A mid-day salsa tasting and technique class in the middle of the garden? Don’t mind if I do.

I’ll admit, I’ve attempted to make salsa before. It involved a food processor and resulted in a big watery mess, which I tried to remedy with some hot sauce… Hot sauce in salsa?

I know, I recognize how ridiculous this is in hindsight. Luckily, I let the pros show me how to do it right before this attempt.

First cut is the deepest….

The Chipotle employee showed me that the best way to chop an onion is by not cutting it all the way apart at the end, that way it stays together when you cut the other direction.

Like this:

Safety first, she had a chain-mail glove on

She dumped a perfect pile of chopped onion into the bowl before moving onto the next ingredient.

That’s how she gets her jollies

She sliced the jalapenos into itsy bitsy bits, not bothering to remove the seeds. I’ve never heard of such a practice, but who am I to argue with greatness?

I forgot to snap shots of the chopping of the tomatoes, distracted by this little jewel.

Freebies flock to me on my birthday

A miniature order of chips and salsa distracted me just long enough to miss the (vine-ripened) tomato chopping BUT don’t worry, I developed laser-like focus when it came time to watch the cilantro be chopped finely as I’ve ever seen cilantro chopped.

Beautifully green, and grown in Jersey!

Apparently, Chipotle’s done a great job of trying to focus on as much locally sourced and organic ingredients as possible. About 80% of the cilantro they use is organic, so you know it’s good.

Let’s mix it up! Squirt some lime in there and….

Got that cilantro sprinkle…

Since they couldn’t serve me the good stuff they’d just showed me how to make, I had to take matters into my own hands. Luckily, the Rittenhouse Farmer’s Market was the next day and, since the Chipotle folks gave me my own little recipe card, I went to work.

Ingredients from the market!

I got everything but the cilantro from the market, and got to chopping.

I love how Chipotle uses red onions (my favorite of the onion family) for color and taste, and all that chopping, though tedious, resulted in a MUCH more successful salsa.

The final product!!

I halved the recipe here, but here’s the version they gave out:

6 vine-ripened tomatoes
1/2 a red onion
2 jalapenos
1/3 cup of chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon of sugar (which I did not use in my version)
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

Dice the tomatoes, onion, and jalapenos (and go super fine with those jalapenos). Combine all the ingredients and season to taste!

Serve with your favorite chips or do as I did and top your favorite taco salad with this chopped salsa.

Or, if you’re tired and lazy, go to your nearest Chipotle and get the pros to serve you some…

Tomato, to-mah-toe.

Ever make your own salsa? What’s your recipe??

If not, where do you get your favorite salsa?

The Bracket Jump Birthday

August 25, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 7 Comments

On Thursday night, after being in a car for approximately 18 of the previous 48 hours and sending my baby brother off to college, I found myself a little weepy. Maybe I was a bit grouchy, my emotions were running fairly high, and I was exhausted. This, as everyone knows, is an ideal time to have a quarter life crisis.

Jealous of my Ugly Cry?

Since my 18th birthday, I’ve always been one of those chicks that makes her birthday a national holiday. Whether it’s jumping out of a plane, having a “That’s So Jordan” themed party, or dragging my buddies to a food and craft beer tour-de-Raleigh, I make sure my birthday is a true celebration. But, being in a new, unfamiliar city and knowing very few folks with whom I could celebrate, I was feeling a bit lost. I also couldn’t get the “bracket jump” out of my mind. No longer was I going to fall in that “18-24” age group. Nope, I was shifting into the “25-29” bracket. It seemed symbolic of some big change, which is ridiculous and very demonstrative of how I read far too much into things. Whatever it was, I was not my typical JOYFUL JORDAN.

Then, I woke up on Friday morning (August 24th, the day of my birth 25 years ago) to my mom BLASTING 50 Cent’s iconic “In Da Club”, with the telltale lyrics:

Go, go, go, go
Go, go, go, shawty
‘Cause it’s your birthday
We gon’ party like it’s yo birthday
We gon’ sip Bacardi like it’s your birthday
And you know we don’t give a ****
It’s not your birthday!

She danced into the room, and any fears of a bland, “blah” birthday where whisked out of my mind.

We U-Hauled the last of my junk into the apartment and I was on my own for the day. I headed to one of my favorite spots in the city, the PHS Pop-Up Garden by Rittenhouse Square.

Rainbow in the garden!

I nabbed some free chips and salsa and learned how to make Chipotle’s tomato salsa (which I’m attempting later today), and then grabbed something I’ve been dying to try for a while.

Little Baby’s Ice Cream!

Ever since being scarred for life by their (viral and terrifying) commercial (you’ve been warned), I was itching to get some of the good stuff (though preferably not scooped from someone’s skull.)

Sweet treats and reads

This chai snickerdoodle ice cream sandwich filled with coconut chai (non-dairy) ice cream was much more my style, and I toted it along to the book store for a bit of light (re)reading.

After getting through a serious chunk of the book (and demolishing the sandwich), I decided I wanted some pampering and some girl time.

Burt’s Bees and Say Yes to the Dress: Match made in Heaven.

Scandalous! (I was wearing a towel, I promise.)

I wasn’t trying to star in an off-Broadway performance of the 1997 classic, Face/Off (tempting as that sounds), just enjoying a cooling Cucumber Aloe mask. It was just what I needed before I left the pampering to someone else.

Enter: Nail Bar. Simple concept. Salon, offering manis, pedis, and complimentary bevvies!!

All I need in this life.

Thanks, random stranger, for snapping my picture!

I came out with a sparkle on my nails and some bubbly in my belly. But, other than the ice cream sandwich and some cereal earlier, I didn’t have too much else in my belly.

YELP ELITE TO THE RESCUE!

Sweet spread, right?

Yelp’s Great American Happy Hour, hosted by ING Cafe, was my very first Yelp Elite event, and it certainly didn’t disappoint.

I considered the whole night a surprise party for me. The surprise, of course, was for Yelp, who didn’t know they were sponsoring my party!

There were delicious Underdogs (which, as I already mentioned, I’m a huge fan of…)

Dog bonanza!

My favorite was the My Thai (with spicy peanut sauce and green papaya slaw), and I even tried the mustardy Chicago style. Delicious, despite the fact that I am not a fan of mustard.

I got a chance to meet some new folks and, surprise surprise, there were two other birthday babes at the party. Despite the event limiting attendance only to the Yelp Elites, it didn’t feel elitist at all, and I was so amped to get myself out there and meet new people. For a social butterfly like me, an event like this is the ultimate adrenaline rush, so I jumped at the chance to join the after party at Devil’s Alley for a baby flight of beers.

Yummy x 4

Maggie M. and I, the birthday girls!

I rounded out the night the only way that made sense… My beau, a bottle of Epic Brewing’s Big Bad Breakfast Stout, and a pint of Butterfinger ice cream. And was treated to this little present when I checked in on Untappd:

DOUBLE BADGED!

500 unique beers? That makes me LEGEN (wait for it…………..) DARY!

I went to sleep with a buzz, not just from the booze (though that helped), but from a night spent with new friends and the love of my life. And though it was DEFINITELY a little different from some previous birthdays (Tequila balls and feather boas, anyone?), it was a successful bracket jump. And maybe I’ll get a little silly tonight with Krissie… Who’s to say I can’t celebrate twice?

And there’s nothing in the rule book that says a 25 (or 46) year old can’t wear a tiara on her birthday…

Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll: Bang for Your Buck

August 17, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 2 Comments

I’m pretty sure that, as I was plugging in my “dinner” to MyFitnessPal last night, the little elves that work inside the website were asking themselves “WTF, where IS this woman, and how is she eating what she’s eating?”

Samosa, spring roll, vegan cookie, mac & cheese, pulled pork, a banana whip, stuffed grape leaves… Nope, I didn’t sneak into a multi-cultural food court and run around grabbing everything in sight. Instead, I hit up the Baltimore Avenue Dollar Stroll to spend the best and most diverse $9 I think I’ve ever dropped.

This particular stroll allows shops and restaurants on Baltimore Avenue from 42nd-50th Street to offer small bites, toys, treats, and trinkets for a buck each, as well as allowing attendees to rock out to some fun live music.

I went to visit an old buddy from college, Kurt, for a trip to West Philadelphia, a virgin area to this Philly newb. According to Kurt, it’s a lot of Penn alums, hipsters, and cool kids. The Carrboro or Brooklyn of Philly, perhaps? I don’t know, I’m not an expert, but that’s definitely what it reminded me of, down to the skinny jeans and PBR cans everywhere you looked.

Since I arrived around 6:40ish, the party was already in full swing and the lines were nothing to laugh at…

Hey there, 50 new friends!

Luckily, we had nothing but time and, since Kurt had done a lap already, we began to make the rounds. Up first?

Better than the Olympic Village?

Fried Foods are Friends

The Samosas from Desi Village were warm and a little spicy, a great first few mouthfuls as we took our initial steps onto Baltimore Avenue.

Aksum, noted for future reference.

Mediterranean melee!

While I didn’t think that the hummus and pita from Aksum were worth shelling one of my precious dollars, the stuffed grape leaves called my name. I answered, greedily grabbing some covered in tzatziki and gobbling them both. I was licking the cucumber yogurt sauce off my fingers as we moved onto the next line. Luckily, it was long enough to allow my tummy to settle. But not for too long…

Not my finest photography… Sorry.

It’s probably the paper thin wraps, or the general off-white coloring, but these spring rolls refused to look good in any pictures. What they lacked in being photogenic, they more than made up for in being DELICIOUS! These were honestly probably my favorite bite of the evening. Cool, crisp, and surprisingly vegetarian, Vientiane Café’s fresh spring rolls were off the chain. I’ll be back for more of these next time, no doubt about it.

Truly the Gold Standard…

…in pulled pork sammies.

Juicy, with soft white buns that soaked up the tangy sauce, these pulled pork sammies were small enough that I wanted more, but large enough that I knew I didn’t need any more if I didn’t wanna be stuffed! We also got lucky here with no line, which I think is RIDICULOUS considering how delicious they were… Then again, if no one else wants to wait for them next Stroll, that’s A-OK with me.

They had Soul, but no chicken.

As I’ve always said, a failure to plan is a plan for a ridiculously long line of hungry, annoyed patrons. (I’ve never said that, but maybe I should start…) Elena’s Soul was offering dollar portions of yams, peach cobbler, mac & cheese, and fried chicken. Only, after waiting in arguably the longest line of my trip, they were all out of chicken. And it was going to take them at least 15 minutes to make more.

Jojo don’t play that way, so I grabbed a mac & cheese to go. It wasn’t bad, but it was NOT worth that line. Lesson learned: Confirm chicken before subjecting yourself to the never-ending line.

Hello, new friend!

That’s right, dollar craft beer!

While the cups were small, the flavor was big in Dock Street Brewery’s offerings, especially their Summer Session. I’ll be honest, I was double fisting these beers (long line, didn’t wanna wait again) SO I didn’t get a picture of the actual beer itself BUT it was light and summery, with a citrus hint and a lip-smacking lingering that left me wanting another one. But, my sweet tooth had other ideas…

Whipping those bananas into shape.

Vegan?! For ME(gan?)!

I never thought I’d type this but: This totally vegan dessert was AMAZING! Mariposa Food Co-op was offering vegan chocolate chip cookies and banana whips, so I decided to get creative and go with an open face vegan “ice cream” sandwich topped with coconut shreds. I was so pleased and never ONCE thought “Ew, this tastes far too vegan for this carnivore.”

I’m not saying a tiger’s gonna change it’s stripes, but maybe this tiger will occasionally head over to nibble on some grass.

I don’t know, that’s a horrible metaphor. I couldn’t help it, I was remembering tasty memories…

I didn’t even break $10 with this meal, and left full as full can be. And, so you know, it’s happening again September 20th…. Anyone wanna join me?

Maybe we could even make this spring roll look pretty:

Don’t mind the hair, just call me Pinky.

If you’re feeling courageous, check out the listing of all the foods they had this time around and share what you’d spend your first $3 buying!

If you’re not, are there any nibbles and bits from a favorite restaurant you wish would only cost a buck for the night?

First Philly Finds

August 14, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 7 Comments

Being in a new place without a job or schoolwork leaves you with a lot of time to explore. And, since my roomie is off being a lab rat, I’m fending for myself. Luckily, I got a good pair of walking shoes, so I’ve been hoofing it around my little neighborhood. I’ve found a few bits and pieces worth noting.

I found that one of the perks of strolling around the city is that, more often than you’d like, you end up being a cigarette puffing co-pedestrian. And, though that sucks, sometimes they’re smoking cloves, and that’s the lesser of the evils.
I found out that Shake Shack makes delicious custard. And it’s even more delicious when it’s free and served in a pop up garden.
Yummy.
I found myself spending three hours in Barnes and Noble reading a Young Adult novel. Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver, the second book in a little series I started this summer. Yup, it’s a little silly, but it’s nice to read some pleasure literature before things start getting grad school-y.
I found my first Philly craft beer event to be delicious, though I also found that I shouldn’t attend an all-you-can-drink event on a fairly empty stomach. The Brew and Chew at Cavanaugh’s was a tasty foray into some new River Horse beers and a few tasty tapas. I also met a few folks, and feel like there could be a Philly Beer Family out there, just waiting to fill the void in my heart that exists ever since leaving my beloved NCBeer crew.
River Horse Hop-a-Lot-Amus

Special Ale paired with a short rib flatbread topped with Havarti cheese, tomato, and arugula

Double Wit paired with a Mahi Mahi taco, purple slaw, avocado (yay) and a spicy lime drizzle
I found Heaven in a hot dog bun.
Ay, chihuahua!

Oh, sweet delicious sausage. Underdogs is this tasty little joint on 17th Street. I got the Chihuahua, a chorizo sausage with sautéed onions, chipotle mayo and queso blanco and fries with that same chipotle mayo. My GOODNESS, talk about delicious. And yes, I chowed every one of those french fries soaking that bag with grease.

Chapel Hill friends, imagine a hot dog version of Buns. Amazing fries + dipping sauces, every topping imaginable, and friendly employees. If you try every single one of their 23 dogs, you get your name put on the Wall of Fame.

First Philly goal, made.
I also found that sleeping in a new place with odd hours makes me want to nap constantly.

Gooooood night (good afternoon? Good grief.)

Big Apple Eats

July 31, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 6 Comments

I love being back in the North. The drivers are crazier, the rolls are pork-ier, and the proximity to my friends is at an all time high. So, instead of planning a huge weekend that involves flights and taking off work, I can just hop in a car, then onto a train, and VOILA I’m in the city! Since I saved all that money on flights, I figured that I’d spend it all on food.

Priorities, right?

Luckily, there’s no shortage of tasty treats in the Big Apple, and I take big bites.

First up, Flea Food Under the Archway from the folks that brought you Brooklyn Flea and Smorgasburg.

Yeahhhh buddy!

First up, Landhaus. Farm to Sandwich, this spot’s steak sandwich with cheddar sauce was flavorful and juicy, with a nice salty mouthfeel. I’ll admit, the potato chips were a little soggy, but the star of the show was the sandwich, and that’s what I was in it for, so I wasn’t disappointed. Next time, I think I’d like to enjoy their Bacon on a Stick. That just sounds orgasmic.

Up next: Brooklyn Oyster Party!

No party like an oyster party, right?

There’s the La-la-la-lovely Laura in the top left, nabbing us a fried oyster plate.

And then, on the bottom right, the oyster plate itself, complete with pickled onions and Old bay Aioli. While I normally go for the raw oysters, these were practically bursting with tasty brine and the pickled onions added a fresh acidity to the mix. And you can’t really go wrong with aioli, right?

Right.

Later that night, inspired by one of my very favorite bloggers, Lauren of Sugar Coated Sisters, I made a rez for my brother and I at Mesa Grill. Though her post is SERIOUSLY detailed and delicious, here’s a fun collage of my Restaurant Week Meal!

In no real order. Because this photo collage thing does crazy things to my pictures.

The appetizer (bottom right?): Fresh Tomato Tortilla soup with Avocado + Queso

The OTHER appetizer (NOT from the restaurant week Menu, but we HAD to get it!) (bottom left): Cremini Mushroom Quesadilla with Fontina, Ricotta, Fried Egg + Salsa Verde

The entree (Upper left): Cornmeal Crusted Chile Relleno filled with Roasted Eggplant, Manchego Cheese with Sweet Red Pepper Sauce + Balsamic Vinegar

Dessert (top right): Vanilla Bean Custard with Summery Berry Salad

Though I know that Lauren RAVED about the soup, I will have dreams about that Quesadilla and the Chile Relleno. Seriously, maybe I’m just a cheese fiend, but fontina, ricotta, manchego OH GOODNESS!! And topping a quesadilla with a fried egg?

BRILLIANT!!

My beverage of choice

I’ve already raved about the Chipotle Ale, but seriously, it was that good.

Birreria did me dirty

I have only see La Birreria completely swamped every time I’ve gone. Admittedly, I’ve only been twice, but both were in the middle of a weekday before work lets out, so I was surprised at the crowds (maybe everyone else is enjoying some funemployment like me?) When we asked for a seat for two for lunch, we were told that we could wait for 30-45 minutes OR check out the bar upstairs, which was standing room only. We opted for the bar, to at least grab a drink before lunch time.

When we reached the rooftop, it was hot, sweaty, and crowded, but a beautiful day. After spotting a small family getting ready to leave, we obtained a seat without hardly waiting at all. We ordered our beers, of which they had an excellent selection of Dogfish Head and house-brewed brews, and were offered some homemade bread made from the spent grain from their brewery (Upper Left). We didn’t try any cask beers this time, but next time I’ll be sure to.

Despite getting the text to let us know a table had opened up, we opted to keep our seat at the bar for the bonus of people watching and proximity to the bartender. I’ll say that the Captain Lawrence Liquid Gold was nothing to write home about, but all the other beers I tried were thoroughly enjoyed. For lunch, my partner and I ordered a cheese plate with gorgonzola, taleggio, and robiola bosina (Upper Right) which was served with a sort of honey hazelnut thing (Bottom Left). Along with the spent grain bread, this was the ideal dish before our “main course” the ProBusto sausage platter with coriander potato and mustard greens. While it seemed a little pricey initially, the sausage was more than enough for the two of us, and was plump and juicy (Bottom Left). Not usually a fan of mustard, this was especially fantastic to enjoy and the potatoes were so well seasoned and well mashed.

And now, I’m on an all salad and omelet diet.

Well, until Happy Hour tonight…

The Doughman Race 2012: We Ran, We Ate, We Conquered

May 30, 2012May 30, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 8 Comments

I never thought I’d say this, but I ran one hell of a race (dressed like a bloodthirsty honey badger after eating a vegan tako).

Yeah, I think the whole sentence is what I never thought I’d say. MAYBE I thought I might have run a race (or swam, or biked, or crawled one)…. but NOT dressed like a honey badger, and NOT with a tummy full of treats.

Saturday morning, I met at my teammate’s house bright and early to put the final touches on our costumes (ok, let’s be honest, mostly my costume… I’ve got a flair for the flamboyant) before carpooling in the direction of downtown Durham. Our goal? The Doughman, an event that may have been the first thing I put on my Triangle Bucket List.

Note the honey…. gotta stay true to form.

We registered our team bike (a road bike… remember that, as it comes into play later) and checked out the scene.

The closest I came to the trophy, don’t worry

The sweet slap bracelet that served as our “baton” to pass from person to person

There were amazing costumes by some of the other teams. It was clear that folks had gone all out and, despite the fact that I probably looked like a road-killed skunk, I was channeling my inner bloodthirsty honey badger. And I was feeling great.

Team BHB aka Team 38! Jordan, Katie, Ben, and Paul

The organizers of the race called the teams together for a few announcements. First things first, they covered the rules. I can get behind that, everyone needs to know the rules. Then they covered some other stuff.

For instance, if you’d raised $250 or more as a team, you got a “time bonus” of a 2 minute head start. If you raised $1,000 or more, your head start was 5 minutes. We’d raised $160 as a team and, in my opinion, that’s awesome. I’m so thankful for my loved ones who donated, and I LOVE that we raised money for SEEDS. But the entire time the organizers were talking about the time bonus, I felt a big whopping pile of guilt being ladled onto those of us who didn’t raise enough for a time bonus.

Look at all those teams hopping up to the start early, all of you other teams… Maybe next year, you’ll think of that when you’re raising money.

Whoah. Wait a minute. Is my money not also doing great things? That wasn’t all that was said to us, and I feel like we were basically made to feel like second-class citizens for not meeting THE QUOTA. If there’s money you NEED us to raise, make it a requirement. Otherwise, don’t give us hell for not doing it.

ANYWAY, Team 38’s lead leg, Paul, faced a daunting meal before his 8.5 mile bike ride. From Dain’s Place: Peanut Butter & Banana Sandwich with Homemade Marshmallow Fluff on Fresh Bread (contains nuts)

A worthy foe

He chomped it down, hopped on his bike and got to getting. And then, the unthinkable happened.

EEK!

The chain on Paul’s bike fell off the moment he started riding it. LUCKILY this happened inches away from the starting line, so Ben QUICKLY jumped into action and fixed it. But it didn’t bode well for the bike ride.

See, the thing is, according to Ben we “broke the first rule of races”. Don’t change something on Race Day. Paul had never used a road bike before, just mountain bikes. Uh oh.

I waited. I was the second leg and, after 27 minutes, the first speedy racers came in from Leg 1. I was getting fired up. I stretched. I jumped around. I ran through the course in my brain. And I waited.

And waited.

According to Paul, since he wasn’t accustomed to gear changing, every time he had to go up a hill, he had to walk the bike. And then re-mount it. Translation? Slow and (semi-)steady.

Result?

Mercy rule, they let me go at 1 hour in…. And THEN I was off! Ahead of me? 1.8 mile run followed by a “water activity” (paddling across a pool in an inner tube!) after eating a treat from Kokyu. Ahead of me was their V-Tako: Soy Nuts, Sprouts, Vinaigrette, Cilantro, Kokyu Chili, Sesame Kimchi’d Radish.

Hello, nemesis.

I ran the short distance from the corral to the table and had at it. My first instinct? TAKE A HUGE BITE!

The many faces of eating Jordan

WOW! That was a spicy tako! The initial HUGE bite was the hardest to chomp on, knowing that every time I bit down, a burst of spicy Kimchi was coming at me. I wised up after the first half of the taco, ripping it into small pieces and chasing each bite with water. FINALLY, I got it down. Well, mostly down. I had to take a last few swallows when the judge asked me to show him my mouth. Oops…

The run BEGAN!

I jumped out of the gate FAST, much faster than I’m accustomed to running. I knew the course, I was ready for this. What I was NOT ready for was how very lonely it is out there when there aren’t any other runners. Since that whole “mercy rule” was instituted, it was just me and one other runner, one who was faster than I was. He sped by me (though, I WILL say I ate my tako before him, HA!) and, since I didn’t bring my iPod, I was alone with my thoughts. I know it was only 1.8 miles but, for me, that’s more than I’d ever run before practicing the route earlier in the week. After speeding the initial uphill + downhill portion, I looked at my HRM. Where I was at 10 minutes in my practice round, I was at 7:45 during the actual race. So when it came to the uphill portion, the quiet, the loneliness, and the TAKO got to me. There were a few portions that I had to walk (namely uphill, right across from the Durham Bulls stadium). I couldn’t help myself, I was sucking wind and thinking to myself “Whoah, there’s phlegm and cilantro in my throat.” I know that is gross, and probably TMI. Sorry. But the moment I saw the YMCA in the distance, I knew I’d made it. So I hauled ass to the Y, yanked all my clothing off (don’t worry, I had a bathing suit on!), tossed my HRM to the side, and hopped in the pool.

I HATE that I don’t have pictures of this, because I imagine it was hilarious. But I placed my butt in the inner tube and paddled my honey badger heart out. And I ran the last 50-70 yards barefoot, clutching my shoes and clothes.

CHAMP!

My final leg time was 20:05. For eating, running, and paddling, that sounds GREAT to me. To give you a range, the fastest time I saw was 12:41 (Damn Bull City track team speed demons) and the slowest I saw for my leg was 30:40, so I feel comfortable in the middle of the pack. I really think I could’ve gone faster if I’d run the whole thing, but morale wasn’t as high without any volunteers out to cheer me on, or fellow runners to feed off of their energy.

Katie’s leg started off with a doozy.

From Nosh, Fried Green Tomato Sandwich with Roasted Red Pepper Spread (contains nuts).

Yummy!

It was delicious. Not that I ate many bites of it….

MOVING ON!

Alas, I didn’t get any pictures of the only meat-item of the race, but Ben had the pleasure of eating Old Havana’s Cuban Sliders on Gugelhupf Brioche with Maduros.

Jealous.

He ran like the wind (the fast wind) and actually had like, the 4th fastest time for his leg of all the teams. If we were ALL Bens, we would’ve won that trophy, I’m sure. We’re not, but I love him for keeping us in a position of honor for the last leg. They saved the best, of course, for last.

The DESSERT LEG!

On the menu?

Leg 5, team sprint: The Parlour, Mad Hatters, LocoPops & Daisy CakesMeal: Salted Butter Caramel Ice Cream with Strawberry Swirl; Chocolate Walnut Whopper Cookie; Water-based Raspberry Coconut Popsicle (vegan); Strawberry Cupcake with Almond Buttercream Icing

I decided to take control of the strawberry cupcake with almond buttercream icing. I knew, if I could dominate anything, it was a cupcake especially with almond flavored ANYTHING.

The two “cold” items not pictured to avoid melting.

I dove right in.

The frosting was FLYING!

I’m pretty amazing at eating cupcakes fast, I learned and, after the rest of the teammies wolfed down their dishes, we sprinted to the finish line.

Team 38/81 came in 58th place…. But I know we’re #1 in your hearts.

WAHOO!!

It was brutally hot, it was tough to down food then go running, and bike issues got us down initially. But, on the other side, it was exhilarating, it was hilarious, it was delicious, and it was a blast! I would TOTALLY do it again. In a heartbeat.

I feel so lucky to have amazing buddies to make up a dream team, and I LOVED the chance to Doughman-ate the Doughman!

I think I wanted to pretend it was a cape?

I am the Dough(WO)MAN!!

Craziest competition you’ve ever been a part of?

Eating, running, racing, swimming, I’d love to hear about it!

Would you ever do something like the Doughman?

Six Pack Sunday: Pizza Gear and Summer Beer

May 27, 2012May 27, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 4 Comments

Now that the sunburn has finally stopped sizzling, I guess it’s official. Memorial Day Weekend is in full swing, and that can only mean one thing: Summer time, baby. The living isn’t really “easy” or even that different, but there’s a shift in my mentality, knowing that I only have about 14 days left at the office, and about a month before I start my gradual move to the North (Philadelphia by way of Ocean City, NJ… quite the exodus, yes?)

Luckily, today also means Six Pack Sunday. So there’s that.

1. Sunshine Wine

The gang’s all here

Before this weekend, I’d never made sangria before. But I a Sangria newbie NO MORE! Following (mostly) this recipe for a “light” tropical Sangria from Cosmopolitan, I put it in the fridge Friday night and hoped for the best. Luckily, what I created received rave reviews from my friends.

I nixed the lime slices in favor of lime juice, added a peach and a bit of Splenda, along with an airplane bottle of lime rum which has been sitting in my apartment for way too long.

I tasted better than that picture looks…

It was the perfect treat for poolside sunning.

2. A Running Fool

So I know I’ve referenced the Doughman a few times, and yesterday posted a teaser of my sexy costume. But it wasn’t all about eating and costumes and silliness. We actually had to run! And so, on Wednesday, I fought some crazy crowds in downtown Durham to practice my route.

Cheesing

The pride you see on my face is from running the 1.8 mile course in 18 minutes, after getting a little turned around, and drenching my body in sweat. TOTALLY worth it to not get lost on Saturday morning.

3. Summer Beer

Ta DA!

Clearly, I’m a fan, as demonstrated by my newest Untappd badge.

4. Chicken… AND waffles?!

That chicken is what my heart looks like, too.

Dame’s Chicken & Waffles.

Oh my gosh.

Triangle Bucket List: Dos Perros in Durham

May 10, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 5 Comments

Dos Perros. Two dogs. Seems simple enough, right?

However, when placed in downtown Durham, NC, these two dogs are transformed into a magnificent Mexican spot perfect for date night or a get together with two ladies. Since my main squeeze is located in Philadelphia (without me, for the next few months), I opted for my other partner-in-(legal)-crime: Melissa. And, though our initial destination was Dame’s, plans changed and we ended up in a different Durham restaurant, but EQUALLY on my Triangle Bucket List.

Solid lineup

The menu wasn’t too long, but it had everything we needed. Dinner, appetizers, and, of course, cocktails!

Bevvies? BUENO!

Melissa ordered the Dos Perros Sangria: “Hibiscus, citrus, seasonal fruit and red wine, mixed into an addictive beverage.”

I opted for the always-popular classic margarita: “Fresh orange and lime juice, just a dash of sugar, and, of course, tequila. If you agree that a margarita should be tart and refreshing, you’ll love it.”

I have to admit, after trying both our beverages, the margarita came out on top. Then again, anything with tequila, fresh lime juice, and rimmed with salt is all I need to be satisfied. I will say that Dos Perros offers a load of craft beers on their extensive drink menu, but, when in Rome…

Speaking of menus, I’d scoped their dinner menu out for quite some time before we headed to our seats (we had a bit of a wait, though nothing too off-putting), so I knew some ideas of what I wanted. What we got was a mixed bunch of goodies (and… not AS goodies).

Chips and (tomatillo?) salsa

Hell of a heap of guac

The guacamole started the meal off on the best note possible. Creamy with just the right amount of chunks (yay corn!), this guacamole order for $5 was delicious and hearty! A rather large serving, that didn’t stop us from virtually (actually?) licking the bowl.

No worries, because our meal came shortly after we’d finished.

Empanadas!

As Melissa and I are both fond of sweet potato ANYTHING, we were all on board for the Sweet potato empanadas with chipotle, fig sauce (for $7).

I’ll admit, the empanadas themselves were actually not all that life-changing. It was the sauce that brought the dish home for me. The sweet mixed with the savory, salty fried pastry completed this plate. We split this order, as well as a “main dish”.

Yeah, baby!

Lamb enchiladas w/ tomato-red pepper salsa. With shredded cabbage, avocado, queso fresco ($16).

The ends of these (3) enchiladas were actually a little dry. That’s all that I can complain about, though. The lamb inside was tender and the queso fresco on top of everything was melt-in-your-mouth delicious. Again, the sauce (or, in this case, salsa) was slathered over all the best bites, and I even enjoyed some of the rice (which I normally avoid like the plague.)

I wish we’d opted to replace the pinto beans with black beans, but the whole plate worked. It worked a-okay.

Since we got a patio seat outside, we enjoyed our dinner outside, lit by candles. However, by 9pm, it was a little too chilly for us (who hadn’t thought to bring jackets or sweaters, in hopes that we could trick our body into believing that it was already summer) so we migrated inside for the grand finale (finale grande?)

HELL to the yeah!

Mole poblano ice cream topped with house-made granola. I don’t remember the price of this, but it was totally worth it, whatever it was.

One bite seemed sweet and sumptuous, the next bite possessed a spicy kick that reminded you what an amazing feeling taste-dissonance can be. This ice cream…. just go get it. It’s ethereal.

Though there were not-so-highs during this dinner, nothing was bad and there were a few standouts that I’d go back again and again to enjoy.

The Triangle Bucket List continues to be a booming success. I can’t wait to see what’s next…
What’s your favorite taste combination? Salty sweet? Spicy and creamy? hot and cold?

Triangle Bucket List: Take Me Out to the Ballgame…

May 3, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 7 Comments

As we all know, the Triangle Bucket List can’t just be about eating delicious honeysuckle sorbets (though that sounds like a tasty bucket list in itself.) It’s about American traditions like Chicken & Waffles, state capitols, and BASEBALL!!

Or, in this case, basebull.

Diamonds are a boy’s best friend, too!

The Durham Bulls are the local minor league baseball team in Durham, NC, and, though I even BOUGHT tickets for a game last year, I’d still never found the time to go. This summer, I knew I had to change that. After checking out the promotions calendar, Melissa and I splurged for a $4.50/ticket Tuesday night game. Deal of the century.

Broads, beers, and baseball!

The craft beers at the Foothills Beer Garden were actually more (per beer) than our tickets! But, at $6 a pop, they were cheaper than the $7 tallboys of Miller, and FAR more delicious. And what we spent on brews, we saved on the glory of BYOD(inner).

Looks appetizing, yes?

Wrapped up in that gorgeous red cling wrap is tortilla filled with chicken, peppers, low fat mayo, tomatoes, and kale. Very tasty (and very messy.) A side of baked Doritos (mmmmmmmmm) and I was ready for action. Mother nature, however, was looking a little worse for wear. We were definitely nervous of a rainout and, with skies like this, perhaps you can see why.

Dun dun DUN!

Luckily, before we knew it, she realized that there was a game to be played, hoots to be hollered, and fun to be had.

I’ll preface this by saying that, growing up, I had no interest in baseball games. They were boring, they were long, I didn’t understand them, and it was normally sweaty. Well, clearly, I was all wrong. I think I just needed an attitude adjustment.

I went into the Bulls game intending on having a BLAST. And that’s exactly what I did.

Since we brought in canned foods from Whole Foods, we were graciously given Bulls hats to rock in the stadium. $0.89 for a hat? YES!

Braids and baseball go hand in hand.

Then, due to me rocking the adorable hat, I was randomly plucked from the crowd (of no one, for a while… but it filled up later) as the Wild Wing Cafe fan of the game! You know what that means!!

Oh.

You don’t know?

Yeah, I didn’t either.

But, apparently, what it meant was that I got my picture taken and received a $20 gift certificate to eat wings!

Cha-CHING!

I’ll take it.

Other highlights included running after a group of kids to get my hat signed by the Bulls mascot, Wool E. Bull, and rocking out on some ballpark peanuts with Melissa.

Now the hat is PRICELESS!

Melissa often gargles with peanuts.

Aftermath

After a brief stretch (aptly during the 7th Inning Stretch), I took a look at the clock, consulted with my cohort, and decided that, while we’d been screaming our faces off all night at the Bulls, we just couldn’t stay to see the result (at least not live). At around 9:30, we left (though I checked online later, and the Bulls came out on top! GO TEAM!)

Seriously, I couldn’t have asked for a better, more affordable night out in Durham. And if I had kids, you better BELIEVE I’d take them.

And then I’d use them as an excuse to run after the players begging for them to sign my baseball.

Bully babes!

Baseball games: love em or hate em?

Favorite ballpark food?

Though I didn’t enjoy one at this game, I love a good ballpark frank. Maybe next time.

Triangle Bucket List: Crook’s Corner’s Honeysuckle Sorbet

April 30, 2012 / foodsweatandbeers / 3 Comments

My Triangle Bucket List is coming together nicely. And deliciously.

This weekend, I had the pleasure of engaging in a two-fer. As in I hit one spot (Crook’s Corner) twiced and enjoyed the most delicious, mouth-watering, and memory inducing dessert of all time.

Pardon the dim image. The dimage?

Crook’s Corner is a Chapel Hill staple, touted by The New York Times as “Sacred ground for Southern foodies.” The head chef and mastermind behind this slice of heaven, Bill Smith, has been in the final four for Best Chef Southeast by the James Beard Awards. And I’m lucky enough that a solid chunk of my buddies work at this establishment (Sunday brunch, it was all I could do to stop saying “HI!” to friends).

The ambiance outside is all pigs and hubcaps, and a kitschy hodge podge of piggies decorates the inside.

Oink!

I’m not sure if it’s the decorations or the food, but the restaurant definitely makes me wanna pig out!

Thursday night, after dining on the tasty mudbugs at the Rockfish Crawfish Boil, I was alerted (via Twitter) that the limited engagement honeysuckle sorbet (the feature on my Bucket List) was featured on the Thursday night menu (their menu changes regularly, I love it, always a surprise.)

After calling to be certain they still had some of the sweet treat (it’s a hot ticket item that goes fast), I dragged Amanda along with me for dessert.

Sweet backlighting courtesy of Amanda's iPhone

Served in a tiny chalice, this nectar was presented with a sprig of mint leaves and two spoons. Talk about romantic….

Anticipation is killing me

I couldn’t wait for the first bite…

Pure joy

Oh sweet mother of all things tasty.

I don’t know how one bite could convey so many tastes… It was sweet, it was fresh, it melted the moment it hit your tongue… it reminded me of sunshine, of bike rides, of summer and the shore. Swing sets in each scoop, my brothers and sister running over to the one bush on my grandparents’ street that always provided ample honeysuckle.

I got the inside scoop on how it’s made from one of my buddies/waiters. Apparently, Bill Smith rides his bike around at night time (the best time to pluck the blooming blossoms) with a beer and a bucket, emptying one and filling the other with tiny flowers. He puts the flowers in cold water and lets them soak for 24 hours, turning the water into a virtual essence of honeysuckle. Then (I assume) he pours the mixture (sans actual blossoms, which have been strained out) into an ice cream maker and VOILA! Heaven.

Cook and Most Popular Student at UNC? I think Bill and I make a good pair.

I Amanda spotted Bill himself, and I made sure to thank him for all he does for the Chapel Hill food scene, as well as for creating numerous meals I’ve enjoyed over my past 7 years in the area.

I loved it so much that I came back on Sunday for brunch, and enjoyed a teensy bit more, due to my secret sneaky hookups in the back (they didn’t have it on the menu that day… but I know a guy, or four). Brunch should ALWAYS come with dessert.

Triangle Bucket List, you are one of my best (and tastiest) ideas ever.

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