FoodFash

Adventure Begins in the Kitchen

Spring Has Sprung

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Yoga in the park has to top the list of perfect ways to celebrate the arrival of spring.  There’s just something about doing sun salutations in the sun that seems oh so right.  And thanks to Happy Buddha Yoga Lounge and flawless Tampa weather, I get to experience this kind of right (almost) every Sunday.

A sunshiny, 80 degree practice = A crowd of shiny, happy people.

After practice, we headed across the street to Pizza Fusion to take advantage of my Living Social coupon.  At the risk of over-using the word ‘perfect’ in this post, Pizza Fusion was the perfect place for Chrissie, an urban planner, and me, the product of an urban planner, to have our post-yoga meal.

We shared the Farmers Market pizza on multigrain crust with soy cheese.  You could have just changed the name of this pizza to the Kristin Special, cause I wouldn’t have done one thing differently.

Besides having beyond clean plate club worthy pizzas, they are also the most socially responsible restaurant I have yet to encounter.  Hybrid delivery vehicles, giving customers discounts for bringing back pizza boxes, using either 100% recycled or 100% biodegradable everything?  Lucky for me I loved the pizza, but I have to think that even if I didn’t, I’d still return out of principle!

So, So Fly

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Well hello there fries that I couldn’t seem to get enough of tonight.  I don’t even like fries.  Maybe a bite here or there or a guilty pleasure McDonalds fry (yeah I said that), but I’m not a fan of potatoes unless they’re smashed, mashed, or scalloped.  But holy crow, Fly’s fries are good!

Fly Bar is by far (ha!) one of my favorite spots.  When I decided to get a group of girls together to welcome Meghann @ Meals & Miles to Tampa, Fly was the first place that came to mind.

Minus the double order of hummus, everyone ordered something different which made for a colorful table.  But the double hummus order was awfully legit – it was so good.  Even Val, who just tried hummus for the first time last week, made note of how good it was.  So proud of her, by the way!

The spinach and pear salad was good, but would have been so much better if I could have recognized the seasoning that was completely unrecognizable by anyone at our table!!  Between the tasty fries and the taste confusion, I was a bit distracted.

Another distraction was having such awesome company.  Chrissie and I just recently met and will be attending Bonnaroo 2011 together.  Meghann and Val, both Seminoles, had plenty of like college memories to bounce off each other.  And Becca, Chrissie’s little sis visiting from DC, had her own adventures to share.

It looks like this crew will be reuniting soon for weekend-o-fun  since we all have plans to meet up at Rasa-Lila Fest and Taste of South Tampa!

Total Tostacos

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It all started when my long lost Katie friend called me last night to catch up on current events.  As we were about to hang up she mentioned she was on her way to Mexican dinner, which caused an instant Urban Cantina craving on my end.

I was on a mission to find a dinner partner, but fifty percent of the calls I made went straight to voicemail.  Dead phones?  A sure sign that the weekend was entirely too eventful for those of us pushing thirty!

I settled on the idea of take-out, but my plan came to a screeching halt when I realized my car was still parked at Bailey’s from the night before.  How did I not realize this before 7 PM??

Rather…  How did I not realize this before 8 PM?  Time change, doh!

A day later, my cravings were still in full effect.  I secured Urban Cantina dinner plans with Robbie for Tuesday night, but…  I wanted Los Frejoles tacos (sans cheese) ASAP.  Patience has never been my strong suit.

I topped toasted corn tortillas with rinsed black beans, romaine lettuce, sliced avocado, and fresh(er) salsa.  If salsa is in the refrigerated section and I can identify all of the ingredients at first glance – it’s fresh enough for me!

I filled them a little on the full side, they were total tostacos (tostada+taco), but tasty tostacos nonetheless.  Sunday night fail, Monday night win!

BLT. VLT. VLA?

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Last week I deviated from my usual sandwich at Cafe Hey and switched it up by trying the “VLT” – Vegan Bacon, Lettuce & Tomato.  But since I still cringe like a kindergartener at the thought of consuming raw tomatoes, I subbed avocado.

It was amazing.

So amazing that I was determined to recreate this “VLA” at home.

And having just made a fresh loaf of bread, it was the most perfect of timing.

Who needs a panini press when you have a tea kettle full of water?

I can’t tell if I 100% loved the sandwich or if I 90% loved it and 10% loved the MacGyver feeling that accompanied creating a make shift tea kettle panini press.  Either way, it was a gold star ‘recreation of a meal’ moment for this girl!