Five Lessons From The Road
It’s been almost two years since I quit my job and we moved out of our apartment to live on the road in an ’86 Dodge Ram commuter van. Since then, we have transitioned into a truck and visited over…
Month November 2016
Read MoreFive Lessons From The Road
Southwest Baked Egg Breakfast Pastry
Sometimes, I look in my cooler and think I have a good idea. "Hey, there's some ham to finish off." "I've got a few eggs." "We didn't finish all the crescent pastry when we made hotdogs." "When did I make this pico de gallo?" That's when I come up with a recipe with the sole aim of consuming as many leftovers as possible. Such an approach is the origin of many a classic recipe over the centuries. So, I thought I would try an experiment which I call the Southwest Baked Egg Breakfast Pastry because it really is just a bunch of stuff I threw together.
Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum
Check out any Tennessean's driver's license and you might notice holographic music notes. Nashville is the Music City, complete with the Grand Ole Opry, a street of honkey tonks, and many a music museum. Yet, towering along side the Nashville Convention Center, shaped like a bass clef with a keyboard inspired facade, is the mecca of country music history: the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
Pastry Hot Dog
Hot dogs have always been our fallback when we want to cook over the campfire but aren't up to a big production. But what if we want to cook over the campfire and have a mini production? This recipe for the Spit Fire Hotdog Wrapped In Pastry can be as simple or as complicated as your heart desires. Add cheese, role in herbs, dip in aloe, it's all good and makes for a great camping activity for both kids and adults. Kids can stick with their boring dogs while you can hunt down the hickory smoked sausage with gourmet catsup.
Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art
I like art and I like the outdoors. Lets bring those hands together at the Cheekwood Botanical Garden and Museum of Art.
Down Home Shrimp & Grits
Shrimp and grits originated as a hearty breakfast for southern fishermen. Over time, there has been many varying interpretations on the dish, but I've started with a pretty common recipe including cheddar cheese and bacon. My own contributions are little tweaks to better accommodate our nomadic limitations.
Cummins Falls State Park
There are several ways to approach the breathtaking waterfall of Cummins Falls State Park. One can stroll to the scenic vista. There is the relaxed trail to the top of the falls. Or, one can take on a mile long trudge through a creek to the base of the falls. My feet are wet, so you can guess which way we took.
Dutch Oven Breakfast Ring
Traveling on the road, even when it's the two of us, can get kinda lonesome. I have a brilliant, kind, rational, hard-working, funny, and adventurous travel companion. But sometimes, we want to also have friends. Traveling does allow us to visit friends who have scattered all over the place, but there are also long friend gaps, were it's just us. So, when I can convince a friend to join us for a few days, I get really excited. And I express this excitement with cooking. (That and, I want them to have so much fun eating and exploring with us that they will join us again.) So, once I had the confirmation that some friends would be visiting for a long weekend, I started launched into overdrive to come up with some memorable recipes. Of course, I made the Campfire Bacon And Eggs Hash. But for this special occasion, I also concocted the Dutch Oven Breakfast Ring.
Burgess Falls State Park
Roughly half way between Nashville and Knoxville, Tennessee, a series of magnificent waterfalls bisect the state in a line running North to South. Given their position, they make for excellent day trips from both major cities in Tennessee.* We ventured out to hit as many as we could in one day. That number wound up being two. But they were an amazing two and were accompanied by pleasant hikes through the fall foliage. First stop was Burgess Falls State Park. Which has not one, but four beautiful waterfalls.
Grilled Sweet Potato, Kale, & Goat Cheese Baguette
We are curious omnivorous. We are ready to try new and odd meals. If we see some animal on the menu that we have not tried, that will be our order. Even so, we are not above a mammal free meal. If it is tasty, we will eat it, and that includes vegetarian fair. One of my favorite examples of such a meal is the Grilled Sweet Potato, Kale, & Goat Cheese Baguette.