Local Soup

February 15, 2011 By Laura

When people think of roller derby, I doubt the first thing that comes to mind is “family.”

Families beat each other up…

However, one of the biggest components of my league is the family aspect. Becoming one of the Atlanta Rollergirls = 80+ new family members.

Getting injured is a great reminder of that! From the calls/emails/texts to the treats courtesy of a league-mate and baker, I feel like one lucky girl.

Last night I received another special delivery. This was from my teammate, Polly Atomic, and Local 3. Local 3 is one of the newest restaurants in Atlanta and has received some rave reviews. Lucky me – Polly and her husband, Chris Hall, are a couple of the founders of this fine establishment. 🙂

The delivery?

2 massive containers of soup: Creamy Tomato and Creamy Butternut Squash.

Chris even included straws!

I couldn’t decide which soup to try first… and then I thought

“Why limit yourself to eating one at a time?”

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Polly, Chris, and the awesome kitchen at Local 3!

Local 3 is definitely my first stop when chewing resumes!

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In honor of Valentine’s Day, I brought Mom some treats from International Bakery.

It is this little hole-in-the-wall Greek Bakery with a curmudgeon of a man behind the register and baklava so fantastic it could make you cry.

This dreamy box of goodness was a big hit. At least I hear it was good…

The trip did include a treat for me. This Greek bakery also carries a few authentic packaged goods, straight from Greece. I came home with a big tub of authentic Greek yogurt! OMG – it is so, so good. American Greek yogurt is good, but this is much ticker and rich – almost like eating a dessert.

***

I can’t wait to chew.

What is your favorite tiny local find?

Any cool ethic bakeries/shops to do some International food shopping?

TGIF

February 5, 2011 By Laura

I almost posted “TGIF.” Nothing else.

It had been a loooong week, but it did end well.

Dinner @ Sufi’s Kitchen tonight was really good. I got to catch up with an old friend and tried a new dish.

We ordered the Sufi’s Special as an app – sauteed eggplant with onion, garlic, chickpeas, and spicy tomato sauce. The server kept warning us that it was really spicy. It wasn’t. There was just a tinge of heat on the end.

Source: www.sufisatlanta.com

It was served with a fantastic flat bread (made fresh in-house). It was baked in a stone oven that gave it a perfect crunchy char. This was accompanied by the traditional dish filled with thyme, basil, mint, feta, butter, olives, walnuts, cucumbers, and radishes. My favorite thing about Persian restaurants is this hodge-podge dish. It is fun to try different combos with whatever app you order.

For dinner, they offer a Chicken Kabob Salad. Normally, kabobs are served over a giant place of saffron rice. The rice is good (I love saffron), but I’m not a huge rice fan so the salad offering was perfect. I loved the chicken – it was perfectly grilled. Plenty moist (ewwww… she said moist!) and still retained it’s lemony-marinade flavoring.

We ordered the Pomegranate Cheesecake for dessert at the urging of our waitress.

***Warning*** They give you the hard-sell bringing out the tray of pornographic irresistible desserts.

Pass on the dessert. It wasn’t worth it. Go next door to R. Thomas for that chocolate chip-banana cake instead.

Their wine list is sub-par… BUT you can BYOW and there is no corking fee.

I’ll take that any day!

No pics – we got caught up in conversation and flat out forgot. 🙁

Verdict: Worth a visit. Don’t miss out on the appetizers. Pass on the dessert. Next time I’m trying the chicken-pomegranate stew.

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This coming week is the Atlanta Rollergirls’ Debutante Brawl.

All are welcome! We can’t wait to debut our new rookies to Atlanta the world!

***

Apparently it is Super Bowl weekend. I don’t watch pro-football (love college ball… can’t get into NFL).

Who should I bet on???

Souper Saturday

January 22, 2011 By Laura

Getting out of bed is the hardest part of going to Saturday morning practice.

I got out of bed at 7am. I don’t get up that early for work.

At 8am this morning we began a 3 hour derby practice. SO glad I woke up.

A couple of amazing guest skaters – Rice Rocket and Varla Vendetta – were in town to lead a workshop. I’m not gonna lie – I was derby crushing. We learned some new drills and were able to do a quick scrimmage with our teams.

Then – because I am extra crazy – I came home and ran 3 miles. In 26 minutes!!! This is pretty fast for me. It is freezing outside and I think my body was just trying to get warm. 🙂

I love a souper-motivated Saturday. I also love Souper Jenny. Jenny makes creative, tasty soups fresh daily, along with salads and a couple of sandwiches. I have been known to:

Drive 30 miles from my old office to eat there for lunch
Save her daily email menus to remember a particularly interesting flavor combo
Completely change my plans to eat dinner there on Thursdays for Grilled Cheese Night

All this to say that I finally attempted my own soup.

(I did make the Butternut Squash Apple, but I’d read like 40 recipes first. This one I just went into the kitchen and threw stuff together. 🙂 )

It isn’t half bad. In fact, it is pretty damn good!

Perfect for lunch after a frigid run.

White Bean, Butternut Squash, and Kale Soup

EVOO
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 jalapenos, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 C (1 can) vegetable broth
3 C chopped tomatoes (I used Pomi)
1 C (1 can) cannellini beans
3 celery stalks
1 sweet potato
1/2 medium butternut squash
4 C kale
3 stalks fresh rosemary (~3 T)
1 T fresh lime juice
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp red pepper
1 tsp roasted cinnamon
S & P to taste

Chop all veggies into bite-sized pieces. In a large pot, heat EVOO over medium heat. Add the onion and jalapeños. Saute 6-7 mins until onions are translucent and soft. Add in garlic and cook for another 1-2 mins.

Add in sweet potato, butternut squash, and celery. Stir to combine with the saute mixture and allow to cook for 10-15 minutes.

Pour in the vegetable stock, chopped tomatoes, and spices. Bring to a boil. Add beans and kale to the soup. Stir to combine, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cover pot with the lid slightly ajar to let steam escape. Simmer for 15-20 minutes.

Salt & pepper to taste. If you like a thinner soup, add water or more stock and adjust spices.

Makes 5 servings (1 cup each).

My creation has approximately: 250 calories, 6 g fat, 42 g carbohydrates, 12.5 g fiber, and 10 g protein. It is also rich in Vitamins A and C.

***

My favorite thing about soup? It is souper (I know I know… I’ll stop) filling and can easily be made nutrient-rich and low-cal.

What is your favorite soup creation?

Calories on Your Menu

January 17, 2011 By Laura

There has been a recent push to include the calorie count on menu items at chain restaurants. New York City chains have been doing this for quite some time, but I haven’t seen a lot of it in Georgia. At a recent visit to IHOP was the first time I’d encountered it (thus ruining an already mediocre experience).

Did I really want to know that my Harvest ‘N Nuts pancakes were 1020 calories before adding syrup?!

Honestly, it is really rare that I eat at chain restaurants. I love food and I generally find that local restaurants have more interesting items made with fresher ingredients. I know there are exceptions to this – hello, Seasons 52 – but as a general rule, my belly supports the local economy.

All of this to say that I was ambushed surprised by calories on my Longhorn menu last night.

I was in a small town without many other options for food, so to the chain we went. As far as chains go, Longhorn isn’t terrible. What is terrible: trying to order food at Longhorn when you know how caloric it is. They even listed the calories in desserts (Caramel Apple Goldrush = 1640 calories) and specialty drinks (Pomegranate Margarita = 440 calories).

30+ minutes later, we finally settled on dinner items. My Sierra Chicken was one of the lowest calorie items on the list (410 calories). It wasn’t terrible… except that I think the Dead Sea has less salt content than my dinner did.

Given the impact calories staring at us in the face had on my dinner companion and me, I asked the waitress she has noticed a difference in the way people order since the menu addition. She said it did a little on dinner items, but dessert sales were the most hard-hit.

On one hand I think its great to know what you are eating (the calorie counts for the salads were SCARY). On the other, do I really want to know?!

What if my local, independently-owned restaurants began doing this? It would certainly put a damper on my experience.

Another problem is that calorie counts aren’t all that matter. My chicken, for example. 410 calories isn’t terrible, but the sodium content must have been out of this world. What about fat? Or carbs? How about the redeeming qualities like protein and vitamins?

The impact could have a really cool effect – will restaurants began offering healthier options or adjusting current items to improve calorie content? Or here’s a novel idea – how about offering single-serving portions?

As a country we could obviously benefit from better food options, or at least hard-to-ignore information about what we’re about to eat.

At least Georgia isn’t the worst…

***

What do you think? Do you know to know or is ignorance bliss? Would this impact they way you order?

Free Chick-fil-A

December 6, 2010 By Laura

On December 27th, Christmas will be making a return.

Go to this website on Monday, December 27th to reserve your FREE Chick-fil-A Spicy Chicken Biscuit.

The chicken biscuits will given away to those with a reservation from January 3 – 8th.

Make a reservation early! When they did this promo with the Spicy Chicken Sandwich (it is GOOD), they ran out.

Top Flr + Jackie Warner DVD

December 5, 2010 By Laura

Yesterday turned out to be a lot warmer than it looked!

I am so glad I got my run in then becasue it is COLD and windy today.

The run:

Distance: 6.15 miles
Time: 52:03

I’m pretty happy with that! The ING Half-Marathon this spring is seeming like a better idea…

After that run, I deserved a good meal. 🙂

Last night I went to one of my favorite restaurants, Top Flr, with one of my favorite people.

Added bonus: I only paid $35 + tip for a $80 meal thanks to The Green Half.

Here’s what we ate with some notes:

Pan Roasted Chicken, Brussel Kim Chi, Soy Reduction – The brussels were great – just right right amount of heat. The chicken was ok… I would have liked a little more meat and less bone.

Garlicky Chinese Long Beans in a Oyster Mushroom and Miso sauce – Long beans may be my new favorite veggie. They retained a nice, crispy bites after being cooked lightly and coated in the mushroom sauce.

New Zealand Lamb Chops, Minted Syrup – I love good lamb, and this was perfect. The outside was encrusted in salt and pepper, giving it a good crunch. They were not overdone (lamb is best on the rare side of medium-rare). The minted syrup was a little too sweet for me, but I really liked that they left the mint nearly raw.

Night & Day Quinoa, Tomato, Curried Onion & Raisin Chutney – This black and white quinoa mix was served cold, but I think they could have gotten a better “pop” from the flavor if it had been warmed. I barely got any curry flavor and the chutney was non-existent. Should have gotten the kale.

I enjoyed a 2006 Burgundy (forgot to write down the name = fail), and my dining partner-in-crime had my favorite cocktail: Yellow Roses. Yellow roses is a martini made up of Top Flr’s house-made lavender-infused vodka, honey, and a fresh lemon juice.

Dessert: we split a chocolate peanut butter bar with strawberry jam. It was okay… there are better choices there. The jam made the dessert, but there wasn’t enough of it. They should have given it its own layer in the bar. That would have given the dessert the sweetness needed to make it the jam.

The sad thing about Top Flr is the lighting – it is impossible to take a good picture in there. Sorry. 🙁

We were going to a movie, but after an eventful dinner (our whole corner of the restaurant ended up becoming dining BFFs and sharing tastes) we felt like keeping the energy level up. So we went country dancing.

Confession: I love to two-step.

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This morning I had time to make one of my favorite breakfasts. The good way.

Oatmeal on the stove top.

I shared this pot with a friend before testing out Jackie Warner’s new workout DVD.

Our topping selection:

Blue Diamond Crunchy Almond Butter
TJ’s Valencia Peanut Butter
MaraNatha Cashew Butter
Merrilly Pumpkin Butter
Almonds
Pecans
Pumpkin Seeds

In my oatmeal (makes 2):

1/2 C Multi-grain Oats
1/2 C McCann’s Irish Oatmeal
2 C Water
1 Banana
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Ginger
1/2 tsp Nutmeg

I topped mine with almond butter, pumpkin butter, pumpkin seeds, and pecans. Delish and filling!

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The Jackie Warner Xtreme Timesaver DVD was a good one. Definitely a go-to full-body quickie workout when I don’t have to hit the gym.

It was only 30 minutes (with a warm up and stretch!) and I worked up a little sweat. Lots of full-body moves so you are getting the most bang for your buck.

It was pretty quad and shoulder intense, but hit all the high points.

It would have been harder if I had heavier weights… since I was in my living room, I was using soup cans.

***

Bet I looked really hard core with my chicken noodle! 🙂

Figgy Wild Rice and Mushrooms

November 14, 2010 By Laura

My favorite day of the week is Funday.

Ok, it’s the only day I really adore.

It all started with sleeping in, which I LOVE. I can rarely stay asleep past 9a any more, which was the case this morning. However, I turned back over and didn’t wake up again until 1030a. *insert sigh of happiness*

This luxury was followed by a hot cup o’ tea and Man vs. Food – in Atlanta! Adam Richman ate the Double Bypass burger at The Vortex. This burger is “topped with 2 fried eggs, 6 slices of American cheese, and 8 slices of bacon.” Served between 2 grilled low-fat cheese sandwiches.

Mr. Richman needs a cleanse after that one. 🙂

After drooling over red meat some TV watching, I made a tasty salad with grapefruit, daikon, cucumber, guac, and grilled chicken.

Mmmm… chicken returns!

And a little bit of my new favorite soup for dessert.

Butternut Apple Soupy Goodness

Then it was looking rainy… so I went shopping. It couldn’t be helped – it was Gap’s 30% off Friends and Family! Reusable and good at Gap, Old Navy, and Banana Republic

You better believe I made good use of it at all 3! 🙂

Tonight I adapted KERF’s Stuffing. The SP Cleanse doesn’t allow bread or nuts (oh sweet peanut butter, how I miss thee…), so I had to make a few adjustments.

Cooking on the stove top

Now that I’m on the the lean protein portion of the cleanse, I added grilled chicken. You could easily leave it out though. My version is gluten and nut-free.

This dish was one I’ll definitely make again! The wild rice and mushrooms had a great earthy taste. I was tempted to just serve it as a stir-fry without adding the broth and putting it in the oven. That would have been a mistake – those additions gave the dish a creamy texture you don’t want to miss. The figs provided just the right amount of sweetness, too.

Crisped in the oven

Served with sauteed garlicky mustard greens

Wild Rice with Figs & Mushrooms

1 1/2 C Wild rice (cooked)
2 T EVOO
2 T butter (I used black truffle butter)
3 Celery stalks, chopped (about 1 1/2 C)
1/3 C Yellow onion, chopped
3 C Mushrooms, sliced (I used a mix of shiitake, baby bella, and oyster)
2 Garlic cloves, minced
2 Rosemary springs, chopped (about 3 T)
4-5 Sage leaves, chopped (about 4 T)
1 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
6 Fresh figs, quartered
2 Chicken breasts, grilled and chopped
1 1/2 C Vegetable broth

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt butter and oil in a large iron (oven-proof) skillet over medium heat. Add celery and onion. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until celery and onion are tender.

Add garlic, rosemary, sage, salt, pepper and mushrooms. Cook for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender.

Add cooked rice and stir. Then add figs and chicken, tossing evenly to combine. Pour in broth. Cook until just warmed through, about 3-4 mins.

Cover the skillet with foil and bake for 10 mins. Remove foil and bake 10 more mins, until top is slightly crisped and broth is (mostly) absorbed.

***

Figs are fun.

Are you a fig-fan?

Do you ever sleep in?

The final day in San Fran

November 7, 2010 By Laura

We didn’t want to leave, but if you have to end a trip this was the way to do it.

Laura arranged for us to have massages at her spa. I got the hot stone massage and Mallory got wrapped in eucalyptus leaves. The ladies lounge had a misting room, hot tub, sauna, and steam room. Naturally, we spent and additional hour lounging after our massages. If you are in the Bay Area, I highly recommend checking out Burke Williams. Ask for Taylor or Tuesday!

After a light lunch at one of the cafes in the Ferry Building (and some dessert sampling), we walked around Pier 39. Check out the sock store. Before we knew it, it was time to get back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.

Proud side note: I Whittled My Middle before we left!!!

The Sumos enjoyed the Trolley

Did I mention the Giants were in the World Series?!

Classic San Fran – Giants, Trolley… and a German flag?!

Dinner was something totally different – raw food at Cafe Gratitude.

Everything on the menu was raw and vegan (except for 3-4 items… but they were still vegan!).

I am grateful

You order an item like our appetizer – nachos. But the nachos are called “I Am Honoring.”

And they consist of flax chips with sunflower seed “refried beans” over mixed greens with guacamole, salsa, & cashew nacho cheese.

I am Honoring

Then, when they bring them out, the server places the dish in front of you saying “You are honoring.”

Side note: raw refried beans are wayyyy better than the real thing.

My favorite was the lasagna Laura ordered: layered zucchini, cashew mozzarella, olive tapenade and pesto topped with marinara, cashew ricotta and Brazil nut Parmesan.

I Am Fabulous

Mallory’s was good too – a sushi bowl consisting of quinoa tossed w/kale, avocado, cucumber, nori, scallions & herbs in sesame-ginger sauce.

She said she couldn’t believe how much it tasted like sushi.

I couldn’t believe she ordered something called “I Am Accepting.”

I Am Accepting

Since I can never get enough Mexican, I ordered the enchilada – a live vegetable tortilla with sprouted seed filling, topped with spicy salsa verde & cashew sour cream. It was served with cilantro coleslaw and quinoa.

It was good. Better after they brought out the hot sauce.

I really just wanted to say “I Am Elated”

Then there was dessert. Why stop the gluttony on the last day?

I didn’t get a picture of mine, but I can declare that I AM SUPER. At least when it comes to the dark chocolate nugget I ate.

Mallory was Devoted in the form of a coconut cream pie.

I Am Devoted… to dessert 🙂

Laura was the winner (IMHO) with a scoops of vanilla and chocolate nut-milk ice cream. I was praising her choices.

Verdict: I wish we had something like this in Atlanta. I will always prefer “real” cream pie, but this is a great alternative. The lasagna is crave-worthy and I am happy anytime I can get a good quinoa dish.

Something cool happened while we were in the restaurant…

The GIANTS won the World Series!!!

The city erupted – it was really neat to be there and watch everyone (literally) go nuts.

Go Giants!

I would tell you what we did next… but I’d have to kill you.

We went to one of those super-secret unmarked bars. We knocked on the door and have to give a password to get in!

It was well worth the effort – I had the best cocktail of my life. The Citizen Cane.

And just like that, the awesomeness was over. 🙁

Back at the ranch… the cleanse update…

Day 3 was better. My headache was gone, but I was still feeling pretty low-energy.

Despite this, I completed P90X Biceps and Back – with the Ab Ripper X at the end. Then I promptly fell asleep for 45 mins.

If you haven’t tried it, I recommend the DVDs. I’ve never followed the program exactly (would LOVE to hear if anyone has!), but they are some great workouts when you aren’t motivated to pull together your own.

We were starving before dinner, so I made baked kale chips as an appetizer. They have been written about ad nauseam in the blog world – for a good “how to” check out Smitten Kitchen’s play-by-play.

Washed, dried, and coated with EVOO, salt, and red pepper flakes

These didn’t last long around Baby Sis and Mamma

On to the main event… I tried my first spaghetti squash! I couldn’t get over how much like real spaghetti this was! The consistency of the squash was such that I almost didn’t miss the noodles.

We prepared an awesome tomato sauce to go with it. (Kale chips are delish dipped in tomato sauce, btw.)

Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti

1 Spaghetti squash
2-3 T EVOO
1/2 C Yellow onion
2 Garlic cloves
750g (~24 oz) Tomato puree
1/4 C Parsley
1 tsp Oregano
Red pepper flakes, sea salt, and pepper to taste
3-4 Basil leaves

Cut the squash in half (can soften in microwave first). Remove the seeds. Place in a glass baking dish, cut side down, in about 1 in of water. Microwave for 7-8 minutes, or until shell is tender when pierced with a fork. (Yes, we were lazy hungry… you can also do this in the oven at 350 for about 45 mins. I thought the microwave worked fantastically.)

Remove the flesh with a fork. Place in serving bowl and toss with olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, warm olive oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onions and garlic. Saute until softened and beginning to brown(about 4 mins). Add tomato puree and adjust heat until sauce comes to a simmer. Cook for 10 minutes. Add the parsley, oregano, basil, red pepper flakes, and salt and pepper to taste. Keep warm over very low heat.

Top with sauce, fresh basil, and chopped onions.

Other potential adds: Parmesan, capers, olives, rosemary, peppers, carrots, wine.

I would also have used chunky (not puree) tomatoes (San Marzanos are my fav), but Baby Sis doesn’t like the big pieces.

Now for the most exciting news… We found a cleanse-approved dessert!!!

No one said it had to be pretty…

Pineapple-Raisin Crisp

1 Pineapple
1/4 C Raisins
2 tsp Coconut butter
1/2 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice
1/4 Cinnamon
1/8 tsp Cayenne pepper

Core pineapple and cut into 1 in rings. Toss with pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon, and cayenne.

Heat coconut butter in ridged grill pan over medium heat on stove top. Add pineapple rings and grill for ~4 mins on each side (until grill marks form and the pineapple becomes fragrant). Add raisins just before pineapple is done.

Top with granola or flax/chia seeds for extra crunch! My topping as a roasted mizture of flax seeds, chia seeds, cacao nibs, cinnamon, and coconut oil (remnants of a partial fail I’ll disclose tomorrow).

Verdict: I would eat this again, cleanse or no. Grilled pineapple is satisfyingly sweet and the bit of heat from the cayenne is enough to keep it interesting. 🙂