“If it’s not Scottish, it’s crap!”
I kept thinking about Mike Myers saying this line in a Scottish accent while making breakfast yesterday, he he
I came home Tuesday night to roses, Scottish oats and a very excited boyfriend with a very special surprise…
A construction paper creation telling me I’m now officially entered in the Denver Rock’n’Roll Half Marathon AND I’ll be joined by Joey himself. This was quite the shock considering he’s been training to do the full marathon. He’s already done longer runs than my training calls for but he wanted me to have someone by my side to keep me going (I’ve been telling him I’m nervous that if I’m by myself it’ll be easier for me to just stop and walk) and he also wanted some company himself even if that meant doing a half instead of a full.
My first trial with Scottish oats went well. They’re as, if not more, fluffy as steel cut but only take ~10 minutes — major plus in my book! Topped with Justin’s Chocolate Macadamia Butter, mixed berry compote, regular peanut butter and a sprinkling of cocoa nibs.
I may or may not have licked the plate clean…
Scottish oats = perfect running fuel
6 miles: 3 outside and 3 inside because I was too hot (noon is not a good running time). 9:25 average pace, yay!
Lunch was a burrito of sorts. Started by cooking 1/3 cup of millet then added a few cherry tomatoes, lemon juice, green onion and fresh sage leaves — wasn’t sure about this mixture but it turned out REALLY good!
Layered on a Ezekial wrap
Layer of garlic hummus
Wrap — I can’t get over how good this lunch was. Thank goodness I saved half the millety concoction!!
Peaches on the side
Thanks for the peaches Dad!
Shopping ensued — I hate coming home and having to re-stock on everything!! This guy was new and pretty tasty if you like pumpkin seeds and believe me, I do.
To try in the future — I think I overdid it on Larabars because I cannot even think about eating them anymore 😦 Hence the new bar purchases.
Loot from WF and the FM:
- Beets!
- Corn
- Tomatoes (pretty excited to eat a yellow tomato for the first time!)
- Basil (that smelled out.of.this.world. good)
- Multigrain pizza dough
- Dates
- 2 types of granola
- sesame seeds
Can you tell I have a sliight obsession with the bulk bins aisle??
Came home to a surprise dinner 🙂 Lobster bisque — Joey is fancy. Twas thick, creamy, perfectly spiced and truly delicious. A+ boyfriend!
Ahhhh I guess having to come home from vacation isn’t so bad 🙂
As promised
How To: The New Orleans Edition – Part Duex
1. How to breakfast in NO:
Watch your step on the way to Nola Beans, our favorite local coffee shop. Every visit to NO includes many a visit to Nola Beans. It’s bright and fun and boasts some pretty colorful treats.
Fleur de lis cookies
Turtles! We bought more turtles at another bakery and conducted a “Turtle Taste Test” and these were the hands down winners. Yummy sugar cookie topped with a fudgy blob and pecan feet (I don’t like pecans so good thing these were easy to remove!)
Brunch at the Ruby Slipper was goooood and I was MORE THAN STARVING.
Being able to mix breakfast with lunch is the glory of a brunch menu! Our schedule for the day got all messed up so this was the first real meal of the day at 2 pm and I needed a mimosa to revive myself. Followed up by sweet potato fries.
Confession: The above pictured meal was not actually mine. I actually had a mushroom, thyme and brie omelette with grits and multigrain bread, ALL of which was delicious and really hit the spot. Anything multigrain is wonderful if you ask me 🙂
The BBQed Shrimp and Grits belonged to my mother. This seemed more like a broth to me than a bbq sauce. It was scarfed right up!
2. How to spend an afternoon in NO
Make sure you get a chance to see all the important New Orleans landmarks, like the Real World House.
Kidding, wasting time on such a site is only for those who have been to NO numerous times and have previously seen everything there is to be seen.
Cool off with an authentic New Orleans snowball
Let’s get some facts straight:
- Snowballs are made with FINELY shaved ice, it’s like snow
- Dowsed with syrup that comes in almost any flavor — Red Velvet Cake, check! Wedding Cake, check! Tiger’s Blood, che– wait what is Tiger’s Blood?? I don’t know, but it’s good!
- Served with both a straw AND spoon so you can eat the ice and slurp up anything that melts
- This is NOT a snowcone, a slurpie, an icee or anything of the like
- They do not have these in Colorado (I’ve only seen them in NO actually) and I don’t know why but it’s highly depressing
Above are lemon lime and white chocolate chip. DO.NOT.LEAVE.NEW.ORLEANS.WITHOUT.HAVING.ONE.OF.THESE. May I suggest you try one from Pandora’s
3. How to spend an afternoon in the French Quarter
The Cafe du Monde serves up beignets and coffee. If you don’t know what a beignet is just imagine a big donut covered in powdered sugar — they remind me of sopapillas! If you’ve never had one go ahead and give them a try. I decided to skip out on the sugary snacks this time 🙂
4. How to re-fuel after a hot walk in the quarter
Slice on Magazine Street serves up some pretty pleasing salads
I got the Mesclun — organic greens, walnuts, goat cheese and local fresh berries. I like the sound of that! And the taste too!
Beanie “doesn’t do dairy” so we shared a veggie pie sans cheese. It may have been better cold the next day…
5. How to survive a almost 6-mile run in humidity city
It took a mile or so before I felt like I could actually breathe. My uncle and I did a couple laps in the park and then he said “keep going, see you in 13 minutes” and I was off on my own. A quarter of the way around it started to rain, then it started to POUR!!!! I could’ve stopped but my family was waiting on the other side and the rain actually felt pretty good so I kept on going. Was joined by my uncle for the last quarter of the lap and ended up SOAKED but proud of myself for finishing, even if it was a little short of 6 miles (5.56 miles at a 9:35 average to be exact).
What a wonderful uncle I have who would come find me and join me in a rainy run 😀
Southern Soul Food: Red beans and rice. This is one of those throw it in the crockpot and let it be meals. Every Monday night my uncle dishes up some tasty rb&r for what has become known as “Bean O’Clock.” This was JUST what the doctor runner ordered!! The sausage and pickled pork MAKES the meal.
My mom’s red beans are much thicker and she uses ham. Both versions are so good, I just can’t pick a winner!
6. How to make the most of your last day in the Big Easy
Indulge in one last bowl of homemade bread pudding. Beanie and I have a new obsession
Jackson was having a well-behaved moment in the background
Talk.about.yum!
Doesn’t he look sad that we were leaving?
Beware of caterpillars crawling on your rocking chair
I already want to go back 😦 On the upside I’m so happy to be back in charge of when I get to eat — this girl needs her meal schedule!
A BIG THANKS to my wonderful boyfriend for taking on a huge blogging responsibility 🙂 🙂
Happy Thursday!
Back from the Big Easy
SHE’S BA-ACK! Aw, coming home from New Orleans is always so bittersweet. I feel like I leave a piece of my heart there every time I leave 😦 I hope to live there at some point in my life, but for now I’m limited to short visits packed full with family, food and fun.
And oh is that food good!
DISCLAIMER: The food I have eaten in the past week was not 100% organic and at times was less than nutritious, but life is too short to get hung up on those details. If you go somewhere known for their decadent food and skip out on all it has to offer just because it’s not “healthy” you’ll be miserable. A week of eating in NO won’t kill you and considering how many temptations there are I think I did pretty good!
And without further ado I give you…
How To: The New Orleans Edition – Part I
How to survive your grumpy sister at the airport: Purchase an iced chai
How to ensure safe driving: Place a snowman “slowman” outside your house. I’d never seen one of these before and thought it was so funny, until Joey told me they’re actually not that rare…
How to eat a soft shell crab: Fried and shared at Middendorf’s. My sister and I had never had soft shell crab before so naturally it was a must to order one. It’s crazy looking! I think I ate a couple legs and a bite of the body (that’s weird to say!). The meat in the body of the crab is so weird because there’s hunks of yellow fat, which may have grossed us out a little.
How to avoid fried shrimp: Get it stuffed and broiled. Beanie and I shared and were so impressed! This restaurant has been around for 75+ years so apparently we aren’t the only ones who think it’s good.
How to commemorate your experience at Middendorf’s: Take a picture on the almost-to-narrow-for-two-people-to-stand-on dock, and…
Watch out for water snakes…
How to survive Southern heat and allow your uncle some vacation time of his own: Excursion to Florida. See how the water gets darker closer to the shore? It’s seaweed and lots of it! But the water is so warm and hey, it’s even oil free!
Turns out I can only drink a few sips of pina colada before it starts to taste wayyyy too sweet 😦
How to get the most out of your hotel’s breakfast buffet: Have a little something different everyday!
Day 1: Scrambled eggs with bell peppers and salsa, grits, fruit and pancake that I didn’t end up eating because a mini blueberry muffin was calling my name instead he he
BTW, I LOVE GRITS (almost as much as oats!)
Day 2: Chef-made omelette with bell peppers, tomatoes, green onion, mushrooms and salsa + fruit on the side
Oh and a glass of OJ because I needed some juice after my uncle and I conquered the Florida heat/humidity on a morning run! Oh yes, running was done on this vacation. I managed to rack up ~7 miles while in Florida, success!
Day 3: Waffle made on the spot and topped with banana slices + eggs, grits and strawbs. Shared the waffle with Beanie but ended up only eating half of my half, so filling!
How to take advantage of a rainy day in Florida: Hit the outlet mall and ham it up in the Sunglass Hut 😛
How to celebrate your last night in Florida: Head to The Crab Trap for dinner. This restaurant was only a few minutes down the road from our hotel and it was RIGHT on the beach. It had huge open windows inside so you could see out onto the beach — such a cool location and atmosphere! We ordered crab cakes as an app and they totally put the ones we ate in Sausalito to shame!! SOOOO good 🙂
I ordered shrimp and crab legs. It comes with hush puppies (they were just okay) and two sides: corn and veggies. I’m such a crab leg novice. My mom had to help me. I rarely get to see her NO upbringing in action so it was fun to watch her crack those legs like a pro! I only managed to eat about half of all of this but somehow my plate was empty by the end on the night, hmmm I wonder who ate it all…
How to return to New Orleans: By eating boiled shrimp and stuffed artichokes from Kjean Seafood. These shrimp are boiled with spices so the end product is delightfully spicy. These had such a better texture than any shrimp you could buy here. My mom told us after she moved to Colorado she used to bring back 100 lbs. of shrimp in styrofoam coolers everytime she made a visit home!!
Trust me, you do not want to see the ingredient list for this artichoke…
I have no idea how my mom managed to eat all of hers, I was losing steam 1/4 of the way in but rallied and made it through half of this choke. Every nook and cranny is stuffed with, well, stuffing. Really good but really filling!
How to end a night in the Big Easy: Spend quaility time on the front porch accompanied by a nice rocking chair and a cute but slobbery dog 🙂
I’ll be back with more tomorrow! So glad to be back amongst the living blogging 🙂
Lauren Loves Good Food 
