You had me at warm bacon dressing...

I am STILL obsessed with the food truck y'all!

Recently, the food trucks around town have been the subject of a news story because one of the vendors in my building thinks it's unfair that they roll down here and feed us awesome food.

Whatev, haven't we been around this block before. Didn't the food trucks win?

I personally think it's unfair what this woman is doing to the name of Mexican-ish food. THAT is why no one eats at your janky taco stand.

/end rant.

I have enough faith in SpoonFed Grill to order new items off of their ever-changing menu. They've never done me wrong. I am also a sucker for the power of suggestion and when I see a tweet about a new item or I am suggested it I'll order it. I am weak.

Today I tried a spinach salad with roasted spaghetti squash, tomatoes, chicken, feta cheese and warm bacon dressing. Oh snap. Warm. Bacon. Dressing.

As with everything else I've ever had from them I was not disappointed!

I'm going to take a nap under my desk now :)

Fruit Salsa

This is one of my favorite things to bring to any family or friend function. I've even made it for my girlfriends on our weekly TV watching night! It's so quick and easy to make and a very healthy alternative to some of your other party foods.

I came up with this idea a couple of years ago for one of our football parties. I wanted to bring something sweet but healthy. The thought of fruit salsa just sprung into my head. I wandered through the grocery store and picked out a bunch of fruit I thought would go well together.

Fuji apples
Kiwi
Strawberry
Mango
Lemon juice

Oh yea.

I just chopped everything with my Pampered Chef hand chopper and threw it into a bowl.
That's it.
No extra sugar.
Nothing.

I used to be all fancy and make my own cinnamon chips to eat with it. Plain flour tortillas cut into about inch wide strips, sprayed a little Pam on them to make the cinnamon sugar stick and baked on a cookie sheet at 350 until golden. You have to watch them carefully though!  I've since become lazy and I now grab a couple of bags of Stacy's Cinnamon Sugar Pita Chips.

People rave about how awesome this is ans it's so amazingly easy! Make a batch for your next gathering! People will rave about your skills too ;)

Adventures in mockery

Long time no food blog!!

It wasn't until tonight when I made this massive comment on facebook about this quesedilla that I said "dammit, that was like, a blog post."

Sooo my favorite local Birmingham food truck the SpoonFed Grill took their apple cranberry quesedilla off of their menu some time ago and I find myself thinking about it and its tangy goat cheese deliciousness quite often. I'm sure they'd probably whip me one up if I asked real nice but I was also sure I could make one for myself.

So I did.

This hit my craving upon it's head and drug it into a shallow grave. I'm sure my ol craving will zombify itself and I will make more because this was delicious and easy as hell.

I didn't know exactly how they make this but I knew what it was constructed of.

Chicken
Apples
Cranberries
Jack cheese
Goat cheese
Onions

Yay. Seemed easy enough.

I omitted the onions. I hate onions.

Wait, come to think of it this may not have onions on it for reals. I dunno.. whatevs.

So I pretty much just threw some chicken in a skillet with some olive oil. When it was half way cooked I added some apples and craisins and a sprinkle of cinnamon (I know there's some cinnamon in theirs). I cooked that until the chicken was done, apples soft and craisins plump.

Then I piled some jack cheese onto a tomato wrap, added my chicken mix and a generous amout of goat cheese (mmmmm goat cheese). Fold and cook until everythings all melty on the inside crispy on the outside.

Serve with sour cream.

Nom.

This took no time to cook up and I'm pretty sure the truck probably cooks their apples separate I dunno, I'm pretty lazy I like my shortcut ways lol.

Snack Time!

I'm always snacking at work, I have a desk job and I rarely take real lunches, I'm always eating on something! I've been on a mad fruit kick recently and growing kind of old of some of my go-to snacks. Like, I'm sitting there whining because I'm hungry when there's an apple, orange, almonds and cup of yogurt in my lunch bag. I decided while cruising through the grocery store to pick up some veggies I liked and try to mix it up a bit with them.

Behold my most favorite snack! Radishes are so good as are carrots, alone they're kinda blah. Then I paired them with some Sabra Greek Olive Hummus! Such an awesome alternative to dipping veggies in ranch dressing or veggie dip!

TACOS !!

I. Love. Tacos. I love Mexican food. I love the fancy tacos from the food truck. I love the hole in the wall Mexican restaurant. I love fish tacos, taco sald, taco soup. OMG TACOS !!

I have not however made tacos as good as I can get out and about. I don't know what it is.

Pictured above are two of the best tacos I've eaten recently.

Left: FOOD TRUCK! Y'all know I love the food truck. They have great tacos! My favorite happen to be the chicken kind, they're in a soft tortilla and have rice, lettuce and cilantro. They come with some pico de gallo but I loathe raw onions. I always ask for it without. They have a great salsa to go along with it, I can only assume they make this. It's just the right amount of too spicy. Delicious. Spoonfedgrill.com also has fish tacos, steak, and pork! I've tried all, but I keep going back to the chicken.

Right: Rosie's Mexican Cantina in Huntsville, AL. Oh my yum. This was the SUPER TACOS! from their lunch menu. They were HUGE and packed full of taco innerds. Chicken and sour cream and tomatoes and lettuce and cheese and then I put guacamole on there and nomnomnomnom! Rosie's is always a treat when I visit Huntsville.

Please people! I want to make great tacos! Give me some of your recipes and suggestions for taco greatness!

Tomato wrap.. mmmmm

It may not look too delicious but this contains so much goodness omg.

I've been trying to come up with quick and easy meals I can throw together when I'm not in the mood to really cook. Sandwiches are OK, but these wraps have become my favorite!

I picked up these tomato wraps at my grocery store because they looked pretty (I'm a sucker for visual appeal) but I can't really tell the difference between these and like the wheat wraps. I had to nuke the wrap in the microwave for a couple of seconds just to get it to become more bendy and contain all of this goodness.

Contents:

Sabra Roasted Garlic hummus

Boston lettuce (because it looked pretty...)

Roma tomato cut into slices (I like romas because they're small and I won't have half a tomato sitting around)

Fresh Mozzarella cheese (the skim kind.. blah it's dry. I think I'll splurge for real moz next time) A generous dizzle of balsamic vinegar.

Sooooo good !! I'm trying to perfect some way of containing the juiciness of the tomato and balsamic. It's rather messy to eat so you have to hold it over a plate. So worth the mess though!

Taco Soup Goodness

Taco soup is pretty new to my rotation of comfort foods. I’ve had many different varieties! All contain different ingredients or embellishments. I say just throw a bunch of stuff in a pot and cook it! It’s probably bound to come out edible..

I’ve adapted this recipe many times. I’ve made it with ground beef, and thrown some Rotel in the mix; I’ve also omitted Rotel and just used a couple of cans of diced tomatoes. Every time I make it it always comes out different.

The wanted to cater the last batch I made more towards the Weight Watchers program I’ve been following. I used chicken instead of ground beef, I also omitted the can of corn I would normally put into the soup. Since Weight Watchers seems to be very carb-based I decided that if I didn’t add corn, I could add corn chips! I wouldn’t miss the corn, but the corn chips will add texture and flavor. It was a major success!

Here is the recipe I use:

1lb cooked ground beef, or boiled shredded chicken breast.
1 can of no salt added diced tomatoes (trust me you’ll be putting enough salt in here)
1 can of Rotel (mmm Rotel…)
1 package of low-sodium taco mix (here’s the salt)
1 package of Hidden Valley Ranch Dip Mix (here’s more salt!)

Sometimes I get fancy when I’m feeling less lazy and sauté an onion and garlic in a little olive oil before cooking.

Basically dump all of that into a pot, you may need to add a can-full of water depending on how soupy you want your soup. Serve with corn chips, cheese, and sour cream! NOMNOMNOM!

Drunk Foods

Everyone has their favorite go-to food when intoxicated. Usually it’s of the fried and carb-laden variety. I mean, how else are you supposed to sober up? Requirements for quality a drunk food establishment include:

Fast service: You can’t be making drunk people wait for food.
Fried options: To absorb all of that gut wrenching alcohol.
Atmosphere: You must blend in with the other guests, can’t be making a fool of yourself falling over in line for your cheese fries. If you pass out in a booth, you probably won’t be the only one.

For me it’s a grilled cheese and fries basket - add honey mustard, from The Purple Onion.. With an iced mint sweet tea. *omggg drool*

The Purple Onion is a staple of Birmingham cuisine that caters to the drunks. It’s open 24 hours a day seven days a week and specialized in everything from salads to burgers and gyros. There’s always a hunk of lamb behind the counter basking in its own juices, none of the staff speak English, and there’s a nacho cheese dispenser in plain view. How could you go wrong?

I’ve been a long time fan of their grilled cheese.. I love me a grilled cheese period! I don’t know what kind of mystery processed cheese or fat they use on these but they’re so good! I used to dunk them in ketchup (Hey, I was drunk here, and it’s like tomato soup!). One night long ago I got bold and decided to try some honey mustard, a condiment I’ve always held an irrational fear of due to my absolute hatred of mustard.

I don’t know what brand of honey mustard this is, where it comes from, or where it’s been. It is hands down the best honey mustard I’ve ever had. Nothing will ever beat how deliciously tangy, and creamy this stuff is.

I. Would. Eat. It. On. Anything.

Their fries – just your standard crinkle cut fries, but they are so coated with so much yummy seasoned salt goodness it could burn a hole in your tongue. That’s why you need the honey mustard for the fries too; the sweetness really balances things out!

Their mint sweet tea, OH MY YUM! You know mint tea; you drink it all hot with some honey when you have a sore throat. Yeah brew that mess up southern style with about two cups of sugar per gallon and you’re on your way to heaven in a styrofoam cup! Hell, throw the grilled cheese and fries in a to-go box and it’s like a meal floating on a cloud sent from above!

Man yall, just typing this I feel the need to throw down and few Jim Beam and Cokes followed by some Bud Lights so I can have an excuse to eat this!

I did learn my lesson from this.. obviously all of the karaoke-ing and drinking lead me to make some horrible choices in food and I actually GAINED weight last week. Oh noes.. No biggie though, you live and learn!

A New Direction!

Yo Food Blog! What is up? Long time no blog about food!

So things have changed in my life and with the help of Weight Watchers I'm choosing to eat better things and make better decisions with food. I've learned a lot! I feel great! I'm also down 10 whole lbs! Woop woop!

So you may not see anymore chili bacon cheese burgers around here (I don't think I've ever eaten such a thing, but it sounds delicious haha!). I hope to share recipes and adaptations of foods to fit a healthier diet! Real foods that don't come frozen in a box (I don't believe in those things, if you're into them heateatreview.com is an awesome little site about them!). I'll also continue to dine out from time to time and I hope to share meals I get on the go that are a better option from the norm.

Now I'm no inspiration for health here, but I do what I can do. Hopefully I can show people that little changes can make a world of difference!

Ramen: Meal of champions.

If you're going to eat ramen outside of a dorm room you have to have fun with it right?? haha! Seriously, we eat ramen all of the time in the house...

I received this bowl from one of my best friends for Christmas and I LOVE it !! I cannot eat ramen or any noodle soup from any other bowl...

I pose this question to you all:

Do you eat & enjoy ramen??
How do you prepare it?
Do you add anything to it like cheese or hot sauce?

I WANT TO KNOW PEOPLE!! Really, I need reassurance that we're not the only ones with this still in our cabinets hehe.

Fried Green Tomatoes: More than just a movie...

I always crave fried green tomatoes when they're not in season. Like my stomach has a timer that must receive fried green tomatoes once every six months or something. I was very surprised to see the freshest looking green tomatoes in the produce department of my local grocery store in the middle of January!

Oh yes, I took them babies home, coated them in buttermilk, flour and cormeal.. then fried them up! In a cast iron skillet of course.

This was actually my first attempt at fried green 'maters and I was pleased! They were simple and tasty just like I've always eaten them. I don't need no coating mix or whatev pssssssh!

Next time I make them, I'll put them in a BLT. BOOM your mind has just been blown!

Oh my yum...

Chocolate covered bacon.

'Nuff said.

Spoonfedgrill dot com AKA THE FOOD TRUCK!

If you are a friend of mine (and if you're reading this you probably are because I haven't really branched out.. boo..) you know I'm always tweeting or Facebooking about the food truck!

Recently food trucks have been all the rave yo. There's a show on the Food Network about them, and well, they're just everywhere now.. This food truck specifically comes around my place of business at least 3 days a week and has never disspointed me.

The meal pictured is a turkey rollup with thyme roasted sweet potatoes. I love this wrap! It has turkey, greens, tomatoes, sauteed apples, apple butter, cheese (I think it's provolone) all wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla and grilled to perfection. It is for reals one of my favorite things on the menu.

They also offer delicious quesedillas! I have had one with steak and bleu cheese, also they have one similar to the turkey wrap, but it has chicken, cranberries, and GOAT CHEESE! I think I have said enough.. you must track down this food truck!

Check out their site and follow them on Twitter to find out where they're going to be!

Zoe's Kitchen, I heart you...

I cannot express to you guys how much I love Zoe's Kitchen. I have never been dissapointed by anything I have ordered from them.

Recently (well in the past 6 or so months) Zoe's Kitchen has added hummus to their menu. I've always been confused as to why they didn't have hummus on there before, being that they're a Greek-ish restaurant. I love me some hummus. Whether it's from the Purple Onion at 3 A.M. after a late night at the bar, or from a grocery store with some pita waching Lifetime movies :P

Zoe's Kitchen has paired my two favorite things into one meal here. Hummus and their greek salad! Their hummus is really fresh and bright tasting! Their greek salad is no joke also. I'll often order a large greek salad from them and eat the whole box.. I think it's the salad dressing.. oh yes.

When it comes to Dr. Pepper, this household needs an intervention.

No joke y'all.. Dr. Pepper is a must in our house. Seriously. When people were running out for bread and milk during our last snow "storm" my sister went on a Dr. Pepper run.. We are fuelled by Dr. Pepper.

Somebody at the local Elk's Lodge where my sister works gave her a bottle of this BBQ Sauce. Now I'm a huge BBQ sauce fan.. I like to make my own when grilling chicken and stuff but any time chicken nuggets come into play I must have a puddle of the stuff on my plate. I'm pretty picky about it too, there is such thing as bad BBQ sauce.

This sauce is pretty damn good. It really does taste like Dr. Pepper! It's sweet and tangy and I bet would taste way better on a grilled pork chop than some frozen nuggets. I bet it would also help to pair this with a cold can of DP, like wine pairing.. mmmm

My sister has been looking around because she also hears there is a Dr. Pepper marinade which she wants to bathe a steak in.. We haven't seen this in the stores. Keep your eyes open if you see this and let me know! We'll buy up a few bottles!

Homemade Lasagna Attempt: SUCCESS!

I've had a day off work so I've sat around and watched Food Network all day.. this gave me an itch to cook something yummy!

I remembered a post my friend Shanna made in her blog with a recipe for a pizza lasagna that her husband and her son love! I also remembered that I wanted to give that a try when I saw the post months ago..

I am VERY pleased with how this turned out! I did make a few tweaks to call it my own, I made the tomato sauce from scratch with just an onion, and three cloves of garlic chopped in my little chopper.. I also added some Lipton Savory Herb & Garlic mix to the ricotta cheese, I had another pouch leftover from a pizza dip that I made. I thought that would give it more pizza taste since I used such a simple sauce..

I plan to make more lasagnas in the future now that I know that I can make a delicious one! I love vegetable lasagna and would like to give that a whirl..

MMMMMM I'm going to be eating good for a couple of days with these leftovers!