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Strawberry Sensation

26.2.13

This weekend was full of great weather.  And I'm talking upper 60's.  Yeah.  In February.  Nothing like living in the South!  That's for sure.  
 
We had the strawberry kolsch at Avondale, and then headed to Publix, where they had a fantastic sale on strawberries.  And then to Lowe's to buy some knockout roses and assorted other fun flowers to plant in our front planters.
 
My weekends are becoming more and more cherished.  As my work days have become worse and worse, I have never so much looked forward to weekends as I have lately.  It seems that nothing is going right there, and it's only getting more and more stressful every day.  And I know that I should be thankful that I'm gainfully employed, but what is the use if I'm miserable every single day I walk into that place? Then the fact that they may not hire someone from inside the company to replace my supervisor makes me even more upset!  I would prefer to not have to train someone who is getting paid more than I am.  There are so many emotions that I have about all of it.  It's so frustrating to me that no one there seems to care about all the work I do, while we have someone on our team who is not a team player, and yet seems to think it's ok to brag about everything.  All.  Day.  Long.  
 
Oh well, onto the recipe. 
 
This weekend I made Strawberry Shortcake Muffins (healthy!)


Ingredients:
2 1/2 cup old fashioned oats
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup sugar alternative (I used Truvia baking sweetener)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cup strawberries, sliced and dried.
1/2 cup extra strawberries to place on top.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.Line 12 muffin tins with foil or silicone liners.
Place all ingredients (except strawberries) into a food processor, and blend until oats are smooth.  Pour mixture into a medium sized bowl and stir in strawberries.  Divide remaining 1/2 cup strawberries over the top of the muffins.
Divide batter into cupcake liners and bake for 20-25 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clear.

   Yummy!!
And why not make some chocolate strawberries just because you have some strawberries and leftover chocolate morsels?  


It was a prettier picture until B took one from the middle . They were quite delicious.  I look forward to making some more summer berry recipes.  

I'm hoping that I'll continue to use baking as a good outlet for my bad week.  Maybe I'll do something a little more complicated this weekend.   
  

















































                             

41st Street Pub & Airplane Parts

25.2.13

This weekend we had heard about a new beer being introduced at Avondale Brewery via Facebook.  So of course we had to go try the Strawberry Kolsch.  And it was fantastic.  It wasn't quite as good as the strawberry brew in New Orleans; it wasn't as fruity, but it was still just as good.  And the place was packed at 2pm.  I didn't know there were so many day drinkers.

But I guess it was a Saturday.  Also enjoyed a Mr. Todd's Double IPA.  Delicious.

Yums.

But then we discovered something more awesome and less crowded.  And right across the street.  Enter 41st Street Pub & Airplane Parts.  I was only slightly disappointed to not see a single airplane part in there.  But it was definitely a nice friendly atmosphere without the, "I'm here only to be seen" scene.  

The bartender was definitely my favorite part of the whole place; he sounded exactly like Seth Rogen was was so so sweet and knowledgeable.  

Here are a few pics from the place:
 

What they call a "Moscow Mule"  Delicious.
The ginger beer they put in the drink.  This is what makes it.  I don't even know how to describe...just good.  And potent.

It was just a neat little bar.  They had cute little private booths, and big round tables for larger groups.  And even a couple shuffleboard tables.  
 
Needless to say, that won't be our last time there.

Doggie Outtakes

21.2.13

It is currently storming like crazy.  While I like a good thunderstorm every now and then, I am still pretty much afraid of them (yes, I am aware that I am almost 30), but the booming and thunder do nothing for me.  So I'm forced to drink a glass or two of wine to calm my nerves.

In case you don't know me all that well, let me take a minute to explain what is going on in my life right now.  Last week my supervisor at work quit.  My coworker's wife had a baby; my other coworker turned in her two weeks today.  When I say that I have been stressed out this week, that is pretty much an understatement.  I have been trying to prove myself to these people for as long as I've been there; when I first tested there, my Personality Index placed me as a recruiter.  Outgoing, good on the phone, pay attention to detail, all that stuff.  So when I wanted to switch over to operations, the upper management had a whole lot to say about that.  

Turns out they were wrong about me, and I work hard every day to prove that they are. 

So when things go wrong, I tend to just look at pictures of my furry boo.  And it's even funny when I get them in succession...my own puppy follies.







Is there anything cuter than upside down dog??  I don't think so.

Happy Almost Weekend.

More Mobile Seafood? I think so.

20.2.13

After a night of drinking and dancing, the next thing I'm thinking about is food.  I'm sure there is no surprise there.  So after showering, we hit the car fast, because we knew if we didn't get out of downtown we would be blocked down there until the next parade was over.

Good news?  We did get out.  Bad news?  We got stuck at a light waiting for all the floats to approach the starting line.  So we eventually made it to lunch around 1pm . I was starving.  And I needed grease.  And caffeine.  I was getting grumpy.  I am told that I get grumpy when I'm hungry and when I've missed my morning caffeine.  So you can imagine how upset I was this morning.

Our Mardi Gras host told us about a place with great po'boys, so instead of hitting a place with cheeseburgers (what I was craving), we decided to go here; Yes suck sucky picture, but that says R&R Seafood Restaurant.  At least you can see how gorgeous the weather was...



 He wasn't joking about the po'boys.  They were delicious.  As were the parmesan oysters.  Best thing about the Gulf is of course, the oysters.  This place was best known for their crawfish, and we were the only table in the place without them.  But honestly?  Hangover = fried food.

I just wish we could have stayed longer.  :)

Gordo's - Homewood, AL

19.2.13

This past weekend we went to Gordo's in Homewood.  It's a truly Mexican taqueria, carneceria, and tortilleria.  It's incredibly authentic, and was a great way to spend lunch on a Saturday.

It's a 3-tier place; on the first floor is a Mexican shop; second floor is the place to get your tacos and all the meat you could possibly ever want; and the third floor is the tortilleria and bakery.  That place smells absolutely amazing when you walk in there.  Like hot doughnuts, churros and fresh bread.  Just all of the best smells in the world in one place.  




 There were a ton of people at the bakery, so I didn't want to take too many photos, but did manage of course to get one of the amazing al pastor tacos, and the guys behind the counter.  They put the meat and cheese (if you want), and then you can decide on the condiments, which range from chopped cilantro, onions and at least five different kinds of salsas.

I think we will start to make this a regular weekend event.


Valentine's Done Right..

18.2.13

I am aware that I am late in posting these pictures.  I mean, I could have done it on Friday, but no.  I didn't want to, so you get it now.

B did a great job for Valentine's Day.  He pretty much always does.  As you know, the boy can cook.  First he surprised me with some goodies from The Naked Art Gallery.
 

 A cute little fridge magnet made from a bottle top and a picture of some graffiti with a cute twist.  All of these are courtesy of local Birmingham artists and things I was currently coveting.  

Snuggling with my furry Valentine...

Really yummy steak (cooked medium rare, delish!) from Publix topped with a shrimp alfredo sauce.  With the best garlic bread on earth and broccoli...

And for dessert...


The cupcake on the left is the Grapico cupcake.  I have talked about this thing, and I finally got it!!  And it was sooo worth the wait.  And the one on the right is the Hunka Hunka Burning Love.  Banana cupcake with peanut butter frosting topped with bacon pieces . It does not get any better than this you guys.

B didn't make out too bad either.  Although I did lose his card ( I'm pretty sure I took it into work, and then it just disappeared), he did get these...

Collar stays with a sweet reminder that he is awesome.  I figured during rough days or tough interviews or what not, he could always use a reminder...

It was great to celebrate with a good meal, a bottle of wine and settling into Big Bang Theory when all was said and done.  I do love that guy, that's for sure.

USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park

15.2.13


I don't even know if this post requires too many words.  This was a great way to spend our last day in Mobile.  My dad can tell you that I used to hate being dragged to museums.  It was so boring, and I would just end up walking around not really paying attention or reading anything, and praying that it would all be over soon.

Not so much the case in my old age.  I actually spent the money to do this awesome tour.  It's an actual battleship, still in the water, and you get (yes, get) to actually walk around on it.  Plus, there's a fantastic aviation center and a submarine.  One of the coolest things on the planet was actually having a war vet inside the submarine to tell us how they lived in there.  There were over 72 men, in a very, and I mean very, cramped space.  But he did say there was an ice cream machine, and they could eat all the ice cream they wanted.  Very very cool.  





















For more on the park, visit here.

Be my Valentine

14.2.13

I love Valentine's Day.  Always have.  It didn't really matter if I was single or not; it was always still fun for me.  From buying stuffed animals for myself, or getting a sweet surprise from B last year ( a Jimmy John's #9 Italian Night Club tied with a balloon), to eating an entire heart-shaped box of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups all to myself.

I guess sometimes, I'm just a hopeless romantic. I love people in love.  I love watching people in love.  And I just love, love.

And I realize how lame this makes me, but when you find that someone who loves you regardless of how many funny noises he hears your stomach make, and that he knows that he will never again sleep in again on the weekend because his crazy wife insists that if we don't get up early, we'll waste an entire weekend day, and what kind of fun would that be, you don't really want to let him go.  Yes, I realize that was probably a pretty big run-on sentence, but, love will make you not care about grammar errors.  Or spelling errors, so if you find either or both in this post tonight, just ignore it and contribute it to love.

I can't wait for B to open his present; I am pretty proud of it.  It was something he asked for for Christmas, but couldn't pull it off before the big day, so it was something I thought would be perfect for Valentine's Day.   Can't wait to show pictures!

Any way, now that I have rambled on and on about the one thing that probably makes people sicker than anything in the world, I'll end this with a pic of my sweet B.

I know that you don't read this B, but I love ya and so excited to spend yet another Valentine's Day with you!


Yes, be jealous that I get to spend the rest of my life with this.

Felix's Fish Camp - Mobile

13.2.13

You didn't honestly think that you were not going to get food posts from Mobile right?  I mean on the Gulf = awesome sea food.  So awesome that we did it twice.  

We were searching for some great stuff from the minute we left Birmingham.  B and I.  We love being near the beach; any where that smells of salt air and where we can walk in sand is pretty much our heaven.  I guess you could say our dream retirement home will be on the Gulf.  I mean, nothing prettier than the water and sand of the Alabama Gulf Shore.  One of the things that I would have missed moving to Austin would have been being only four hours from that amazingness.

Good with the bad though.

So of course, we consulted our best friend Yelp! and he told us about this great place, Felix's Fish Camp.  And it was definitely all those amazing reviews it had and more.





One icky think about this place; Bloody Mary was no good.  Too much pickle juice and citrus.  Not to even mention the name of it was "Red Tide."  Just not very good at all.  I made B finish mine.

B had the crabcakes over fried green tomatoes with fritters and succotash.

I had the soft shell crab panini.  So delicious.
After this we headed to check in to the hotel.  We had brought flasks (those call out things take forever!), and decided we needed some mixers and a case of beer.  We walked to the convenience store next to the hotel and they were charging $23 for a 12- pack of Mich Ultra.  Um, no.  So we got in the car and headed to a CVS.  That we're both pretty sure almost got robbed while we were there.

Plus their credit card machine didn't work.  Again, thanks to my handy dandy hubs, he had cash and all was well.  We were just glad to get out of there.  Before it almost got robbed again.