Memphis, TN

Dear Memphis,

You take good care of me :) You remind me how cheap and delicious food should be. You take me back to my partying roots. You surround me with friends and family I love so dearly. But, mainly, you are and always will be my first home. So Memphis, I will love you forever - even if you sucked the life out of my camera's battery the first day I was there. So even though this post is a compilation of iPhone photos, the pictures are still wonderful since there is some Memphis love in them.

I ended up staying a few days longer than expected and my long weekend trip turned into a week long trip! I spent my time helping my sister move into her new apartment downtown, hanging out with loved ones, and eating all of my favorite Memphis food - including Pho Binh's lunch buffet three times...yes 3/6 days I was there I ate Pho Binh (their lemongrass tofu is addictive). 

This trip made me feel as if I never left Memphis to begin with. It was hard saying goodbye since I don't know the next time I will be back. Safe to say I didn't want to leave my wonderful friends and pretty city :) Yet, as my train pulled away, I was satisfied knowing that the next time I visit I will be greeted by open, loving arms! I can't wait!

^^Annie's new patio with views of the river

^^Best chicken in the world - Gus's

^^Mango lemonade and a nerve racking game of Jenga at lunchbox eats!

 Dog picnic at the river - which included dog selfies and long walks

Taste on Taste on Taste

The Taste of Chicago is always a good time! Even when you have to limp and lag behind everyone else as a result of a stupid orthopedic boot that you have to wear because you sprained your ankle ;) My dad, Luke, and I went together and nommed up a storm, which is why I didn't take too many pictures of the food! My favorite tastes we had were BJ's Market & Bakery Mustard-Fried Catfish (my favorite for the past 6+ years) and the Tamales from Carbon Live Fire Mexican Grill. Unfortunately, I don't have photos of those tastes since we ate them so fast! Here are a few shots from our short, gimpy morning at the Taste and here is a post from last years Taste of Chicago!

 Can you see an orange theme here (^^ and below)?! Above: Panades from Garifuna Flava. 

The guy demanded we take a picture with him :)^^ Cafe Vienna's Schnitzel

Kentucky style vinegar based BBQ sauce - Pulled Pork Sandwich from Wishbone

Key Lime Cheesecake!

Downtown Sound - Dawes

This past Monday, Luke was home for a quick 24 hours (he was in between vacations - that lucky man). We tried to make the most of it and went downtown for Chicago's Downtown Sound, which is when the city hosts free concerts at Millennium Park all summer long. This week Dawes was playing and I couldn't have been more excited since I had never seen them before! We packed a picnic, made a date of it, and enjoyed the short time we had together :)

The weather started like this ^^ and it rained a little at first, but we didn't let that ruin the concert!  

My semi-beautiful and clearly staged picnic photo ^^ And what our picnic really looked like...

twenty two

On the morning of my birthday, I sprang up and began to jump on the bed and prance around to Taylor Swifts song 22. Yes, that's embarrassing but, yes, it was awesome! How often can you dance around to a song thats whistles your age?! My dance-a-thon was followed by a well-deserved brunch, good drinks, and dinner with my mothers fall-off-the-bone ribs :) It was a very low-key, happy day! Thank you to everyone for sending birthday wishes my way!! 

P.S. You know you're getting older when you are excited that your birthday presents consist of a blender, some pans, and a spatula ;)

meatball and veggie soup

Nothing much is going on around here besides the fact that I am almost done with my senior thesis (yay!) and that I'm feeling a little under the weather. When I feel sick all I want is tea, soup, and Netflix. Luckily, I have the most delicious soup recipe and I swear it cures all things. My aunt originally made me this soup when I visited her in Austin and I have not stopped making it since. It's so easy and I bet you three bucks that you already have all the ingredients on hand!

Ingredients:
-1 T of oil
-2 finely chopped garlic cloves
-2 T of freshly grated ginger
-4 cups of chicken broth
-meatballs of your choosing*
-1 or 2 freshly grated carrots
-2 green onions (thinly sliced)
-2 stalks of celery (thinly sliced)
-1/2 cup of bok choy (thinly sliced)
-1 package udon noodles or brown rice*
-salt and pepper to taste


*I use Nate's mushroom meatless meatballs - I'm not a vegetarian I just think they are delicious. Since these meatballs tend to be a little smaller I usually use 5 meatballs per serving.
**I put udon noodles or brown rice because the original recipe calls for udon noodes but I try to make a healthy swap and use brown rice instead.

In a large pot add the oil and sauté the garlic and ginger until fragrant - usually about 1 minute. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and stir in meatballs, carrots, green onions, celery, and bok choy. Simmer 10-15 minutes or until veggies are tender. Serve the soup over udon noodles or brown rice.

Feel free to play with the recipe until it is to your liking! Once I used mushroom stock and added sauteed mushrooms and hot sauce to the mix - it was delicious. Just work with it till it works for you :)


To see where this soup made its original Wildflowers & Whiskey debut click here!

Lunchbox Eats!

This past weekend my dad came into town to visit my sister and I. It's always nice to have a weekend where you are taken care of and surrounded by people you love. The weekend involved a lot of amazing Memphis food - as if I don't talk about it enough! After a night of beer at the flying saucer we reconvened the next day for a late lunch at Lunchbox Eats. It's got a grade school themed interior complete with rolling chairs and board games on the table. The menus are printed on lined paper and you mark your order on a quiz - getting asked what you want to eat is the easiest quiz ever! They have a new flavor of homemade lemonade everyday, the food gets a definite A+, and we got to eat outside because the weather was 75 and sunny!! Perfect start to the day.

Peach Lemonade and a Meatloaf Sandwich

Chicken n Waffles

Beautiful Sister