Little, French Table

As we mentioned before, Jason and I indulge at Mon Amie once a week. This past week was no different! Our Cheat Days this weekend were a little off because Jason had to work 2 shifts rather than just one at the fire department. So, we only had ONE real Cheat Day, GASP!! I find that it just isn't as much fun to indulge when my best friend isn't there to experience it with me! I suppose with that logic if I were a single woman I'd be skinny! Let me just go on record to say, I'd definitely be a depressed woman too! This boasts the question is it better to be Fat and Happy or Skinny and Depressed? Fortunately, I do believe I have found the answer and that is to be neither! I definitely am beginning to think that Fit, Fabulous and Fortunate are the three parameters to strive for! 

So, this week's FABULOUS menu included:

Jason: The Featured Crepe and Egg which included fresh mozzarella, caramelized onions, local tomato topped with egg and balsamic glaze and garnished with home potatoes. 

Audra: The Beef Gourmet Burger which was cooked to order and topped with fresh spinach, mozzarella, red onions, local tomatoes and pesto mayo. This hearty meal was served with frites.

Let me just say, this makes the second burger I have had from Mon Amie and I will go as far to say that it is the best burger I've ever put in my mouth! I'm pretty sure Heaven's gates opened up and blessed this burger with righteousness! It was so good in fact that it became a crime to not eat every last bite. Being the law abiding citizen I am, I proceeded to eat every single, solitary morsel! The perfect medium well patty was so juicy and seasoned to perfection. Also, both meals had locally grown tomatoes, which were by far the best tomatoes we have had all season. I'm not sure who their source is for fresh ingredients, but whoever you are kudos to you!! With all the rain we have had in SC this summer it is hard to get much taste out of tomatoes and those were out of this world. The fresh mozzarella was so light and fluffy, you felt like you were biting into a marshmallow! Often known as "Pizza Cheese," Mozzarella is a semi-soft creamy cheese, easily moldable and mild in flavor. This cheese paired with the burger, spinach and glorious roasted tomato really just set the bar for burgers as far as I am concerned and Jason seemed equally as pleased with it's use in the crepe. 

Thanks Mon Amie for never failing to impress! Does this make your mouth water? If so, we encourage you to check out Mon Amie, you will not be disappointed! Did you love the pairings of ingredients in these dishes? We think they were spot on! In fact, this is something we might try at home! Stay tuned for another great post!!

Creole or Cajun, That is the Question?!

For our summer vacation this year we decided to visit beautiful Alabama and take in the turquoise water and white, powdery sand that is the Gulf coast! We spent a full week enjoying the sun, sand and relaxation by the sea. 

There is definitely something to be said for just a beach chair, sand and the sounds of the ocean. Of course, the sounds of two toddlers and three school age kids are pretty good too!

We had all discussed visiting New Orleans while down South, so when the opportunity presented itself in the form of Mother Nature's volatility, we decided to make the 3 1/2 hour drive to the "Big Easy." After 13 people piled up in 2 vehicles (We all had a seat belts, don't worry!), we headed across the coast. The drive was beautiful and something to really take in. It was interesting and almost a bit emotional to see the remnants of hotels and establishments left from Hurricane Katrina and Rita. We decided to stop in Biloxi, MI at the Hard Rock Cafe and Casino. We left $20.00 in the positive due to a couple of good rounds at the craps table. ;-)

We finally arrived in New Orleans around 1:00. While there we enjoyed a stroll down Bourbon St., the sights and sounds of the city, the French Market and enjoyed true Louisiana cuisine. On the menu for dinner was a well known restaurant, The Gumbo Pot. The Gumbo Pot serves authentic New Orleans dishes including gumbo, jambalaya and red beans and rice! This "ain't no" Zatarain's commercial, no offense. 

Jason had the Creole Combo which featured Louisiana jambalaya, shrimp creole and crawfish étouffée, and Audra had an appetizer of Boudin Balls and a side of jambalaya.

Boudin Balls are a Cajun favorite! It's essentially a deep fried batter stuffed with sausage and rice. Talk about savory.  We had to try them! When in Rome, right?! 

Speaking of Cajun favorites…Many have asked the question what is the difference between Cajun and Creole? Well, apparently it's pretty simple, Cajun cuisine uses tomatoes and Creole does not, according to Louisianan native and BBQ expert Jay Ducote. He goes on to say in his article for the Menuism BBQ Blog, that "an over-simplified way to describe the two cuisines is to deem Creole cuisine "city food" and Cajun cuisine "country food."' Jay explains in his article, that Cajun is a term for French colonists from the Acadia region of Canada, who were forcibly moved from their homes and ended up settling in the swamps of Louisiana. Creole describes settlers in French colonial New Orleans, LA. These were of French and Spanish upper-class. This term also refers to the native-born slaves of African descent and those who were freed. A French Creole has European ancestry and a Louisiana Creole is someone of mixed racial ancestry. Just as the people of Creole and Cajun descent were different so is the food. Creole food tends to feature more exotic ingredients from a wide mix of cultures and Cajun utilizes onion, celery and bell pepper to create dishes. Also, an interesting difference is in the roux. Creole roux is made with butter and flour and a Cajun roux is made with oil and flour. Now that you all know the difference, you can eat at any restaurant that deems itself authentic N'awlins style and be a bonafide food critic!

So, we ended our little road trip to New Orleans full of culture, new experiences and FOOD. It was definitely a city we will be visiting again! Does this make you want to search for an authentic New Orleans restaurant to try out? Or better yet does it make you want to visit the big city itself? We hope so! 

Love and Cheat Days,

J & A

Source:

Ducote, Jay, Menuism BBQ Blog, "Cajun vs. Creole: What's The Difference? "http://www.huffingtonpost.com/Menuism/cajun-vs-creole_b_1447822.html

Bayou Bellies!!

The Back Porch

We love to travel, we love to eat obviously, we love to be together, but one of our favorite activities is to spend time with wonderful friends that you really wouldn't call our friends, but our family. Two of our very best couple friends are Max and Jennifer and Shalon and Kristin. Both couples have a very special place in our lives and Max, Jennifer and Shalon have been around since we started our lives together 10 years ago! Kristin is the newest member to our group and she fits right in! 

This past Saturday we all decided to try out a particularly interesting spot called, The Back Porch. This foodie favorite brings the ambiance and excitement of the "Big Easy" right here to Spartanburg, SC. The Back Porch provides the electricity of Bourbon St mixed with just the right amount of sophistication that is reminiscent of the French Quarter. With it's bohemian, almost prohibition-style design and decor, The Back Porch certainly delivers the atmosphere you'd expect to find if you were visiting New Orleans. A few adjectives we use to describe the decor is seductive, elegant, mysterious, magical. We could name off many more descriptions, but it is safe to say this place is unlike anything in Spartanburg. You fully expect to step out into a New Orleans alley and feel the steamy evening air of the tropical gulf coast waters and smells of the exotic city itself! Colorful walls with fleur-de-lis appliqués, unmatched furniture, exposed brick and intricate ironwork all make this masterful re-creation of one of the most romantic and fanciful cities on point!  

The Back Porch is open Monday through Thursday from 11:00-10:00 and Friday and Saturday from 11:00-12:00. With seating at the Bourbon St bar, French Quarter dining room, or our personal favorite, the back porch rest assured you will relax, unwind and fill your tummy with all things yummy!

Jason had the Mardi Gras, which includes a grilled, marinated chicken breast topped with sautéed Crimini mushrooms, black pepper cane bacon, melted cheddar and Swiss, glazed and finished with a creamy Creole honey mustard and fresh garden herbs. This dish is served with creamy mashed potatoes. The dish was extremely juicy, had amazing seasoning and with all the flavors of the toppings provided a very satisfied diner! Also paired with the Mardi Gras was the Abita Turbodog Draft. A perfect pairing for the dish.

Audra had the Back Porch Signature Sirloin aged, marinated in a secret house recipe, then char-grilled to a medium temperature. This steak dish is also served with mashed potatoes, fried onions and a vegetable medley. This particular steak was impressive enough to fool you into believing it was filet! So incredibly juicy and seasoned to perfection. We always say when it is a good steak you don't need any steak sauce, well we say kudos to the chef because no extra was needed to make this the perfect steak dinner! 

Our friends also enjoyed their entrees as well, including a starter of Fried Pickles, the Cajun Alfredo Ribeye, Mushroom and Swiss Burger and the Cajun Fettucini Alfredo! The servers were personable and effective in giving us the right direction for our food choices. Also, a big thanks to one of the Co-Owners for allowing us to walk around and take all of these lovely images you see. 

Next time we will be getting some dessert!! With options like Lights Out Back Porch Moon Pie Extravaganza and A Peach Bread Pudding that pulls double duty as a cobbler, how could you go wrong. Unfortunately, we were all too full to indulge! 

Co-Owners Tom Maiolo and Frank Bauer, along with Kitchen Manager Marcus McCall create and execute a menu tasty enough for many more return trips! What do you all think about The Back Porch? Share your thoughts and comments! Sound enticing enough to try?! We hope so!

For more information, check out:

www.backporchspartanburg.com also locate them on Facebook for all the details on what entertainment graces the Back Porch's stage weekly.

Stay tuned for another Creole/Cajun adventure when we blog our recent trip to the real "Big Easy," we plan to share all the fantastic experiences and of course the FOOD from New Orleans, LA.

NYC?! Not Quite, But Close!

About 25 minutes from Spartanburg, is a slightly larger town called Greenville, SC. We love to go to Greenville for entertainment, shopping and of course great food! Downtown Greenville is a center for boutiques, art, great restaurants and even a cute little wine bar. We titled this post to reflect the fact that downtown Greenville has a little of the atmosphere that NYC lovers enjoy. It reminds you of that great movie with Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan, You've Got Mail. Imagine that final walking scene where the characters meet; her not knowing and him knowing all along that they were the Internet chatters that had fallen in love and coincidentally were rivals in the art of literature. I know, I know sappy, but so sweet- if you haven't guessed, this isn't Jason writing this! So, to get back to my point, downtown Greenville invokes a sense of class, modernity, and HUNGER! Seriously though, downtown Greenville is known for it's culinary aptitude.

It is a mission for Jason and I to eat, review and blog about every restaurant in downtown Greenville. Believe me that's a lot! So to start things off we'd like to discuss an awesome little place called 21 East.

21 East is a hip, exciting spot that offers a fantastic menu of southern favorites with a sophisticated twist, courtesy of Chef John Acker. Open Monday through Wednesday from 4:30-12:00 and Thursday through Saturday from 4:30-2:00, 21 East offers a chic, SOHO, NYC vibe downstairs with cool violet hued lighting, sleek designed seating, exposed brick walls and a modernized bar to enjoy a cocktail or draft selection. Upstairs, 21 East has a great bar for the party crowd or if you'd like to host a private event that is also available. 

If you've been reading our blogs thus far you will notice that we haven't really given you all a full review of any meal just yet! Well, that's about to change!!

This Cheat Day Menu is as follows :-)

Jason and I started off things scrumptiously with the Truffled Tater Tots, hand-rolled and paired with a white truffle aioli on a carrot nest, these little delights were as if heaven exploded in your mouth!! Just the right crunch on the outside with a perfect tot texture on the inside. A few artfully placed lines of their own homemade hot sauce completed this little snazzy starter. 

Jason and I gobbled those up like two fat kids eating cake, except usually cake has a bit more volume. Out of all the fancy, smancy (is that a word?) digs I have been to, I'm pretty sure this place is the closest you'll get to a good ole' southern portion. Well, I guess a starter is just supposed to be that, otherwise no one would have room for the engorgement that took place next! 

Jason ordered the 21 East Meatloaf. DIVINE!! It is served with whipped potatoes, braised collards and bordelaise. Where the starter lacked in size this made up for it! The meatloaf itself was huge. Potatoes were super creamy and anyone who knows me also knows that I do not under any circumstances eat collards, ugh, but I'll have to admit mixed with the meatloaf and potatoes it had a certain flair that only a great chef would know how to create. 

Paired with his entree, Jason had the Quest IPA brewed straight out of Greenville. He thoroughly enjoyed his meal, which could be observed by the empty plate at the end of the meal.

I ordered the Chicken and Waffles. This is a Southern delicacy once or twice removed due to it being most popular among expatriate, African-American Southerners now living in urban areas. Those urban areas spoken of could be from the West as far as Los Angeles or in the North with locations such as the great NYC! See, I told you Greenville had that big, city thing going for it, ;-) According to John T. Edge, author of Fried Chicken: An American Story, the origin is a little bit of everywhere. From Harlem to LA soul food joints to the great South, this particular culinary combination satisfies many a food eater no matter where you grew up.  21 East's version definitely satisfied this particular foodie with a juicy, fried chicken breast, sweet potato waffle, Crown Royal syrup, whisky butter and homemade hot sauce, I have to admit I was in hog heaven! 

We also ordered a side of the lobster, mac-n-cheese. We actually tried this at a festival called, Fall for Greenville, which showcases restaurants in the Greenville area. We plan to attend again this year so a full write up of that Cheat Day shouldn't be missed! This specialty mac-n-cheese features Maine lobster, asparagus, tomatoes, three-cheese cream sauce and herb crust. It definitely qualifies as comfort food. This alone makes me want to pop on my gas logs, curl up in a snuggie and drink hot chocolate, all while enjoying a big bowl of this phenomenal dish.

After leaving 21 East, we walked around the corner to Marble Slab and grabbed up some ice cream for dessert. I'd say that was a successful Cheat Day. Let us know what you think about these particular dishes. Do you like meatloaf? Do Chicken and Waffles entice the tummy? Stay tuned for a bit of a transplant from the Big Easy, we will be giving you all the Cajun details of the Back Porch in Spartanburg, SC. 

To get all the details visit:

www.21eastbarandgrille.com

Source:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/02/14/172019116/fried-chicken-and-waffles-the-dish-the-south-denied-as-its-own, Fried Chicken And Waffles: The Dish The South Denied As Its Own? By: Maria Godoy

Breakfast For Dinner, Say What?!

Ok everyone, Audra explained that we count calories and try to meet specific goals on our weekdays, so here is an example of what one of our dinners looks like:

Yes, I know that it looks like a bunch of stuff thrown together (and it kinda is) but, these are two of our staple meals during the week. I made my take on IHOP's chicken fajita egg white omelet. It's really simple; 

4 egg whites and 1 egg 

3 oz. of chicken (that we cook in bulk every week)

1 serving of FF shredded cheddar cheese

Topped with a 100 cal pack of guacamole (Market Fresh from Wally World), another serving of cheese and salsa.

I also had another 5 oz. of chicken with some sautéd squash, zucchini and onion (they were sautéed in Pam spray then I added a little VERY low calorie butter spread). I know this seems like a lot of food, but it is really only about 600 calories, and it was quite delicious.

Audra had her take on breakfast burritos. It consisted of:

4 egg whites and 1 egg 

1 serving of Jimmy Dean turkey sausage crumbles

1 serving of the FF cheese 

All of that was scrambled together and served on small Mission corn tortillas. Audra also had some of the squash, zucchini and onions.

We sorta figure out a very loose, but trackable menu for the week. We try to make delicious meals from the ingredients we have on hand. Lately, it's been a lot of omelets and egg scrambles. Anyway, that's a look at one of our "healthy" meals, I hope you stay tuned because we can't wait to share our next Cheat Day!!!!!

J

Not Your Old Fashioned Breakfast

In the past, Spartanburg, SC hasn't always been known for it's culinary endeavors. However, here recently the area has picked up its slack. Jason and I are pleased to spotlight a tasty treat in Spartanburg in the form of a great little morning cafe called, Mon Amie. 

Mon Amie Morning Cafe is an amazing little spot. In fact, Jason and I have become regulars. They're friendly, the decor is beautiful, the food is delicious and the greatest part is we have Cheat Days every week to get to eat this fabulous food! Open Wednesday through Sunday from 8:00 to 3:00, this Parisian themed cafe is sure to please. Located in East Spartanburg, known to locals as Hillcrest, Mon Amie not only offers us cheaters a bit of indulgence, but could also cater to those healthier days. We have never been disappointed. Classier than your average cafe, a mixture of black, yellow and white create a cheerful, lively decor. With options to sit at the semi-circle crepe bar, comfortable seating inside or even patio seating, Mon Amie creates a hip, fresh atmosphere that entices the guest to come back again and again. All of these reasons are why Jason and I dedicate at least one great breakfast a week there.

Culinary Team, Matthew Angelakis and Tony Ahkalil and General Manager, Nita Biven create a fusion of southern and french foods that routinely rally foodies, such as ourselves, with immense satisfaction! Jason and I have decided to spotlight this great little find on our blog every week. They offer a line-up of different specials everyday. Just so you all can get a little taste of what we look forward to every week, we figured we'd give credit where it is due. So, for our first little look-see into this excellent eatery here are a few pictures to tantalize the taste buds. Stay tuned for some great segments on Mon Amie!

Ok everyone, now that you have heard from A I guess it's time to hear the man's side of the story. When Audra and I meet I was a very active and competitive person. I was into every sport imaginable when I was younger and my body paid the price for it. In my sophomore football season (before Audra and I met) I blew out my knee. Now remember I am a very competitive person, so I wasn't going to let this injury keep me from sports. The doctor I saw was very conservative and didn't want to cut on my still growing knee. So, I was sentenced to rehab until my knee proved to be strong enough to play sports again (or so we thought). I missed the winter season of sports that year due to rehab, but come spring time I was ready to go. I joined the track team and started training to pole vault. About a week or two into the season I vaulted and landed wrong…as I am sure you can guess my knee was gone again. Back to the doctor I went, this time he decided that he had no choice but to surgically repair my ACL. After this surgery, more rehab, this time the sentence was much longer and put me out of sports completely….until my senior year. As soon as I was cleared to go and truly felt strong enough to compete again, I decided that I was going to wrestle again as I had my freshman year. Once again I trained hard and got ready to be the best 140 pound wrestler in the state. I was well on my way until (yes it happened again!!!) I got my knee bent the wrong way and POP I was out again. I was absolutely devastated I knew that this was the end of my high school sports career. I went to a new doctor who was more aggressive and had my ACL replaced with a section of the ligament that holds the knee cap in place. More rehab and I felt that my knee was stronger than ever but it was too late high school was over.

Audra and I met in the spring of our junior year and she was with me for the final downfall of my high school sports career. For the next several years we did all the things that young people in love do, and the majority of that included in taking lots and lots of good fatty food. During this time, Audra also encountered one of the hardest things a person ever has to deal with, but I'll let her fill you in on that. The point is, that all the food we had been eating started to take its toll and the weight started to pile on. I had given up on being able to play sports and my activity level plummeted. I gained the freshman 15 and then some (Dang all you can eat college meal plans), but I was happy with myself or so I thought. We finished college and began to search for careers, luckily it didn't take me long to find out what I was meant to do with my life. This was to become a firefighter, just like my dad who has been in the fire service for 30 plus years. When you think of a firefighter I am sure you think of the models in turnout gear with no shirts…. this is not the case for most. The fire service requires a certain level of physical fitness to do the job, but many firefighters slide by with being able to do the minimum and I was no exception. Another thing you may or may not know about the fire service is that we cook ALOT, and the department where I started cooked really good food. We would also usually cook enough to feed the entire US Army (LOL). If you have ever watched a typical fire dept. meal prepared you would know that there is a lot of butter and oil and frying that is used to make this delicious food. When I first went on shift my co-workers told me that I would pack on weight fast if not careful. Well, I was not careful. When I graduated high school I weighted 155 pounds and during all of this time I got up to 200 pounds. People started making comments about how I had gotten "big"(this meant fat) but I thought I looked pretty good. I thought I had lots of muscle under a little pudge and that's why I was big, boy was I wrong.

I slowly began to realize that I was fat, lazy, and really unhappy with the way my body looked…..something had to change. One night I was watching TV and saw an infomercial about p90x and I thought "I could do that stuff easy and it would probably help me trim down some", so I ordered it and got started. I started strong and began to see results fast, but I was just not committed and soon stopped the program. Remember, I am a very competitive person, and I had just failed, this ate at me bad and I knew I had to redeem myself, so when A told me one day that she wanted to start the program and she wanted me to do it with her, I jumped at the chance. This time was different and I committed 100%, both to the workout and the diet. I never cheated on the diet and would not let myself go even one calorie over my set limit. The results came and they came fast, I dropped all the way back down to 145 pounds and 5% body fat. At the end of my first 90 day cycle I had a guy at work tell me that I needed to do a bodybuilding competition (did I mention that I am VERY competitive). I decided that I would do it and continued on my hardcore diet for a while longer. I placed 3rd in the Novice lightweight class and 4th in the open lightweight class. I was proud of myself and the work that I had done and I finally allowed myself to eat some good fatty food for two days after my show. I then went back on a very strict diet until our scheduled beach trip that year (I had to look good on the beach, right). While I was at the beach I gorged myself with as much food as I could and it was so good, but I felt very guilty as soon as the trip was over. This caused me to go extreme again for a while and I was barely eating enough to live normally. You see p90x is an extreme program designed to give extreme results and it works, but it is not designed to stay extreme for a long period of time. At this time I had been eating a very low calorie diet for about 7 months. My body hated me for it, but I couldn't stop because I was scared I would get fat again. I decided to switch programs and try a program designed to build muscle (Body Beast), the problem was that I was still on a very low calorie diet. I stayed very committed to this diet even though my body was telling me it was time to stop. So my current program is a weight lifting program that I hope I gain strength and lean size from. I realize that I need to eat to grow both strength and lean size. I am trying to up the calories slowly and keep the fat down. My calorie range is finally back to a reasonably, healthy level though, its still a little low (but I am working on it), and my weight is up to 147 on a good day with most still being in the 145 range. I am also trying to stay off the scale because at the first sign of weight gain I tend to think I am getting fat (stupid I know). 

Wow, this post it getting really long…lol… I guess I better wrap it up. Audra decided in February of this year that she wanted to get serious about changing her body. I knew that I didn't want her to make the mistakes that I had made with and extreme diet long term (not to mention I still struggle with eating enough calories to maintain a healthy body composition), so we decided to design our lifestyle like A laid out for you in her first post. We feel that we are finally reaching a balanced lifestyle that still allows us to pursue our own fitness goals.  I am also at a new fire dept. now and we are more focused on fitness and cooking good healthy food (for the most part). So, I ask you to stay tuned for some great healthy meals (some cooked, some bought), great fitness tips and stories, travel stories and of course……. CHEAT DAYS!!!!

J

So, Jason and I have been together for a little over 10 years now, 5 dating and 5 married. We have a routine that keeps us pretty busy. Abel, our 3 year old may have something to do with that. So, we have had to find a way to keep a little bit of spontaneity in our lives, and food does this for us. I know that's sad, but it is really good food. So in order for us to not be completely broke and fat, we've created Cheat Days! For as long as I can remember I've had weight issues. I've been through the gauntlet of weight loss programs [some worked; some didn't] however, nothing ever really stuck. I always attempted to lose weight fast, but could never stay with anything for long. I ended up pretty small in high school, but when college hit I started gaining weight. I laugh because I have a mantra that is the reason I gained so much weight and it makes a lot of since. I say I went through tragedy, marriage and baby I deserve to have an extra 5 or 80 pounds attached, right? Jason and I will definitely highlight those three things in more detail if you ever want to know, but it's safe to say we both gained a little, or, in my case a lot, around the edges (and the legs and the waist and the arms and the, well, everything) So, without explaining all of our steps to creating something that actually works, that's for another post- our life is as follows:

      Jason works a 24hr on and 48hr off schedule, which translates to him having a cycle of either working a Friday, a Saturday or a Sunday, giving him the other two days off. So, those two days are our Cheat Days. The rest of the week we both adhere to a restricted calorie diet with a certain ratio of macros. For those of you, like me, who don't know what that means- a proportion of proteins to fats to carbohydrates. 

On top of all of these dietary guidelines we follow, we also workout, very hard may I add. We have a membership a Gold's Gym, here in Spartanburg, SC and really enjoy it. We enjoy the adrenaline we feel when working out and attaining a goal. 

So, to  wrap up this first little intro, we are dedicating this blog to everyone out there that needs to know it's ok to find something that works for you. It's ok to have a french fry every now and again. It's ok if you want to indulge, but don't let it become who you are or define your whole life. The way Jason and I live, and our blood work backs us up, is a healthy way of life! Not only that, but it is balanced and that translates to happiness. Stay tuned for the whole reason that truly inspired us to live this lifestyle….it's a really cool story!

Love and Cheat Days,

A