I hope you all had a FABULOUS New Year’s Eve and a great start to 2013!
I decided to take a small break from the blog for the last few days, but there was
NO WAYÂ I was going to miss out on my FAVORITE day of the week, especially since I have a good amount of food-porn to share with you guys from my last weekend in 2012!
Happy What I Ate Wednesday!
 Be sure to pay Miss Jenn a visit over at Peas & Crayons and check out all the other delicious looking link ups for the first week of the new year!
I spent most of this weekend with the man-friend and while my appetite was STILL a bit lost, about mid-way through the weekend, I suddenly found it again…
All the more reason to celebrate, right? 😉
On Friday night, we went to a restaurant called The Looking Glass. It’s what I like to think of as one of the “nicer” places to eat here in Clarksville. They usually have a pretty good variety on the menu and they just recently started having live music! Unfortunately, this night was not one of my best experiences…
To start, we each had a salad and a plate of bread with herbed butter A pretty average house salad, but the warm bread was delicious…the orange-colored slice was a sun-dried tomato and was probably the best part of the meal!
For an entree, the man-friend ordered the lasagna:
A bit disappointing since the menu described it as having meat AND seasonal vegetables, but well, at least they didn’t forget the cheese? 😉
I decided on the “Vegetarian” Diablo Penne since I still wasn’t sure about my appetite and really, I just wanted some warm vegetables…
Too bad there wasn’t any!
I counted three artichoke heart quarters, a couple of pepperoncinis, and a few strips of onion. What they did NOT mention on the menu was the fact that it would come out with half a can of Kalamata olives and capers in it. Now don’t get me wrong, I love me some olives, but I was not really in the mood for anything salty that night…and with the capers on top of it, I swear it was like licking a SALT BLOCK!
Sadly, I had no other choice but to ask for another dish, so I went with something a tried and true dish:
Crab cake salad with Mandarin oranges and toasted almonds
Served with a vinaigrette dressing and cocktail sauce….soooo MUCH BETTER!
My third batch of the week and I could STILL eat them again!
We got together in Nashville on Saturday night, but since it was a bit late and most places had at LEAST a 45 minute wait, we went to a restaurant that is now quickly becoming my favorite place to eat, Athens Family Restaurant.
On the outside, it looks like nothing more than a little mom and pop diner, but HOLY COW do they have some amazing food! They serve Greek and American dishes, breakfast around the clock, and…
They were even featured on Triple D with Guy Fieri!
So far, we’ve been twice, but last time I failed in the food blogger department and didn’t take any pictures of my appetizer trio of hummus, Taziki, and Melitzanosalata (eggplant mousse <- to.die.FOR!) so this time, I made sure to document…
We started with a hummus platter and warm pita bread:
With rice pilaf, pita, and mixed veggies on the side.
Oh yeah, they made sure he did not leave hungry! And can you believe all that was only $12.95?!
Though I managed to sneak little “ninja bites” of everything off of his plates (LOVED the Suzukakia and the veggies), my entree was by far my favorite:
Bifteki (Greek style beef patties) served with Greek salad x 2 (instead of French fries), pita, and LOTS of tzatziki!
And under all that deliciousness is where I finally found my appetite! I only managed to eat half, but you better believe the rest was packed up and eaten for lunch later in the weekend! 😉
Even though I really wouldn’t have minded going back for breakfast the next day (seriously, I saw someone order pancakes that were bigger than my head!), instead we tried a new-to-me place called BrickTops
The man-friend ordered the (blurry) Chicken & Waffles (which were made with malted milk and were amazing!)
I wasn’t sure exactly what I felt like eating that morning having just found my appetite, but as soon as I spied the section of eggs Benedict, I KNEW I had to give them a try!
My very FIRST crab eggs Benedict and the BEST oven-roasted potatoes I’ve ever had in my life!
Ok, so I may be like the worst foodie ever by saying this, but what is all the hype with hollandaise sauce? I thought it tasted good, but really would have been just as happy without it (mmm, runny yolk)!
After breakfast, we walked across the parking lot to Whole Foods and looked around. I thought for sure I was too full to even CONSIDER buying anything, until I saw this:
CRUNNNNNNNNNCH-aaaaaaaaaaaaaay!
With all the eating out we’d been doing, it finally started to catch up with me by midday so for lunch we kept it simple and went with homemade salads:
I had mine with a slice of toast smeared with my new coconut peanut butter while the man-friend whipped up a turkey and avocado sandwich for himself.
And for dinner that night, amid a Netflix-watching marathon, I introduced the man-friend to “blogger oatmeal”…
You should have seen the look on his face once I opened his eyes to the idea of adding peanut butter! Lord, if I showed him KERF’s oatmeal page, I’m sure his head would explode! Lol
What’s the best thing you ate last year?
Have you ever had eggs Benedict? Are you a fan of hollandaise?
Since I started my“detoxing” after the holidays, I found myself in a bit of a pickle…ugh, that does NOT even sound good right now! Umm, errr…I had a bit of a DILEMMA this week.
And that dilemma (not to be confused with a pickle) was that I had absolutely…
NO APPETITE!Â
I know, I know…a foodie who doesn’t want food…sad day!
All week long, I’ve basically been forcing myself to drink protein shakes and steering clear of any and ALL sugary sweets so when it came time to think up a new recipe for this week’s Pancake Sunday, I was at a complete and stomach turning loss.
Maple syrup…eww!
Chocolate…double eww!
Honesty, all I wanted was a green smoothie.
And then it hit me…
Green smoothie PANCAKES!
Now you can have your cake smoothie and eat it too! 😉
And what would a smoothie be without a bunch of fun, colorful, and accidentally festive toppings?
Keywords: blender fry breakfast high fiber high protein no sugar added oats egg whites spinach bananas Pancake Sunday Christmas
Ingredients (Serves 1)
1/3 cup rolled oats
2 tablespoons ground flax
1/2 teaspoon sodium-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups, packed raw spinach
3 large egg whites
1/2 medium ripe banana
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
1. Heat a non-stick skillet or griddle over medium heat and coat with cooking spray.
2. In a small blender or food processor, blend oats into flour.
3. Empty oat flour into a medium-sized bowl, add other dry ingredients and stir to mix.
4. Combine spinach, egg whites, banana, and vanilla in the blender or food processor and blend until smooth.
5. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until flour is incorporated.
6. Spoon batter into skillet forming 4 medium pancakes.
7. Cook 4-6 minutes per side or until the edges start to brown (batter will not bubble).
8. Transfer to a plate and top with yogurt, fresh fruit, and/or nuts.
Good fats, healthy sugars, and an all-natural punch of protein!
And I promise you can’t taste the spinach…as long as you add the banana!
If the color skeeves you out a bit OR if you’re trying to pull one over on someone (not that we would EVER do such things around here), just add a tablespoon or two of cocoa and no one will ever know! 😉
And of course don’t forget the toppings!
I chose Greek yogurt that I thinned with a little water, fresh red currants (new find at the grocery store this week), chopped pistachios, and a few bee pollen granules.
I couldn’t believe how perfectly sweet and almost buttery tasting these turned out and the warm cakes paired with the cool yogurt and the fresh “pop” of tart berries?
Seriously hit the spot!*
*the spot I didn’t even know I had after not having an appetite all week that is!
Just trust me…your body needs DESERVES these pancakes! 😀
What do ya say? Are you convinced?
Have you ever had red currants?
This was my first time trying them…tart kind of like cranberries and SO juicy!
Love ’em!
My name is Heather! I'm a southern gal with a passion for food, fitness, and photography...and alliteration if you didn't notice! Here you'll find a mix of random musings, delicious recipes, and hopefully a chuckle or two! Check out my "About' tab to learn more!
Unless it was that time of the month and that cookie happened to look like this!
