Sprizee :: A simple girl replete with complications

Places I will eat in 2015. Maybe. Probably. I hope.

I'm just gonna put this right here as a reminder to revisit this list of James Beard finalists from time to time..

Seattle:

• Joule
• Canlis
• Rock Creek
• Canon
• Altura
• Mamnoon
• Spinasse
• Art of the Table

Portland:

• Pok Pok (Duh.)
• Blue Star (Double duh.)
• Clyde Common
• Davenport
• Departure
• Roe
• Aviary
• Castagna
• Nodoguro
• Kachka
• Langbaan
• Little T American Baker

A heavy dusting of powered sugar over nearly every flat surface.

It took me 3 months but I finally wrote a little bit more about my trip to New Orleans back in March. Cafe Du Monde to be specific. I'm telling you, that town is magical. I found a place in Seattle last week that had beignets on the menu. They were good, but no comparison. None.

Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much.

Fresh, local veggies, fruit and flowers all for $25/week!, originally uploaded by sprizee.

Guess what I just signed up for?  Fresh, local veggies, fruit and flowers every week!  Delivered to a neighborhood near you via Helsing Junction Farms.  Yes, just like last year.

Hopefully this will help with the little problem I have with eating out for almost every single meal.  I mean, really, I've been back from Costa Rica for over a month and I can literally only think of one meal actually cooked at home.  It's not that I don't enjoy cooking.  It's just that I hate going to the grocery store and meal planning.  This is why I love the concept of a local farm share.  Also, FRESH FLOWERS!

Fuel.

Last night around 10 PM, having just dropped off a couple friends after seeing Atonement (great movie), I flipped on NPR.  Bill O'Grady started talking about the general notion that bringing your lunch to work was much healthier and better for your wallet.  I tend to agree with that.  But then Bill O'Grady totally freaked me out when the next thing out of his mouth was the name of a friend, followed by the name of his new shiny business, Skill Street Food. 

Apparently today around 2:50 PM they're featuring Skillet on air.  If you're so inclined, you can listen to it live, and I highly encourage you to do so, because that friend of mine has a smooth southern accent that will totally make you melt.

Tigertail

Tigertail is an upscale, pan-Asian-themed joint (think Chop Suey with a face-lift), boasting an extensive sake menu, a rice room, and a former Lark chef on staff who designed a menu influenced by organic, local, and slow-food philosophies. 

Also, it's walking distance from my house.  Grand opening tomorrow.  I didn't think it was possible, but I just fell in love with my neighborhood all over again. 

Get in line.

Yay, more Skillet PR!  (Previously mentioned here.)  Next Friday, I'm so there.

Farm Fresh.

Last weekend I was happy to find an email in my inbox announcing a few extra shares were open at the Helsing Farm Junction.  Earlier in the summer I had sat on the fence about signing up, and then, before I could say yes, it had sold out on me.  Of course this time, I hopped on the opportunity to have fresh, local, farm food AND FLOWERS! delivered just a few blocks from my house for only $25/week.  So I emailed them back and they setup my account before I had even sent them any money.  Trusting people, me likes!

Tuesday was pick up day.  It is A LOT of food and it all looked delicious.  It looked delicious because it is delicious!  I know no one cares what I had for lunch (or dinner) but I'm writing it down, right here, so when it is the middle of the winter I can look back and torture myself with all the spoils of summer that I didn't take nearly enough time to stop and appreciate. 

For dinner last night, I started with some stuff from the box, a head of romaine lettuce and some beef steak tomatoes.  Then I scoured my fridge looking for additional things to add, articoke hearts, green stuffed olives, capers, salami, and shredded romano cheese.  I tossed it in a mixture of mustard, balsamic vinegar and olive oil.  I should have taken a picture.  It was pretty, so pretty. 

The Dude had a tuna fish sandwich on the side with celery, onions and capers, and I ate 2 of the 4 ears of corn since he is not a fan and I love the stuff.  But this corn, holy moses, so good.  Oh, and then The Dude had a brownie with fresh raspberries from the box too.  Y to the um.

If you're smart you'll sign up for Helsing Junction Farms next year, BEFORE it sells out.

Order Up.

It was a bit surreal this morning to find the following Daily Candy in my inbox.  Mostly because I know one of the founders of Seattle's newest meals on wheels offering, Skillet Street Food.  His name is Danny and he's one of my favorite people.  I'm so happy to see him following his dreams.  Also, his food is to die for.  Yes, it is that good.  (Sally can totally back me up on this one.  We spent many a night over at his house drinking wine and letting him feed us, and lord almighty, yum!) 

I've already requested he cook my last meal.  So get in line.

Seattle? Marry me.

Going to Pike Place Market never gets old.  Which explains why I wandered down there on Saturday morning, and then again on Sunday.  Actually it was probably the candy sweet donut peaches that lured me back on the second day. Well those, and the cinnamon sugar snickitty snacks from Daily Donut.

On Sunday I treated myself to a falafel from Mr. D's Greeks Delicacies, some russian tea cookies from Three Girls Bakery, a tub of Beecher's Blank Slate Honey, and half a flat of melt in your mouth handpicked raspberries.  Ah, this is the life.

That must be the secret ingredient.

On the way back from lunch with some coworkers, we stopped at Cold Stone Creamery.  I wasn't planning on getting any ice cream but the cake batter flavor sounded intriguing so I asked for a sample.  Seconds later I couldn't stop saying yum.  Minutes later I had ordered and was holding a small cup of the stuff.  So good. 

But don't do what I just did and google "cake batter ice cream" because you'll only see pages and pages of stories about how 14 people died from Salmonella Typhimurium in 2005.  Mmm salmonella.  Bring it, I say.