BERRIES, SNUGGLES AND SNACKS! OH MY!!!

Hello friends!!! 

Christina here...

This weekend the Winkles spent a lot of time in our front garden. We purchased a bunch of berry bushes, each for our own selfish reasons. I dream of making some homemade jam, while Trey dreams of creating his own yeast strain. Not for baking but for brewing. My husband is a bit of a beer nerd... I LOVE YOU HONEY!!! 

So we headed off to Riddle Farm right off of highway 97. The place is huge!!! And we called around and really they had the most reasonable priced bushes. Plus they are right down the road from us. Yes, that is correct, the Winkles are proud westsiders...  They bushes on average were about $20 a piece. We got two raspberry, two blueberry, 2 blackberry and 14 strawberry plants. 

Since Trey only has 1 day off a week I planted the bushes. I love being in the garden. I just don't want anyone to think he is slacking... Actually while I did all of the manual labor outside he was inside sipping his fancy beer!!! LOL JUST JOKES! Seriously folks he was at work. He did however leave me with instructions. He wanted them in a straight line. Those of you who know my husband, you know when he says straight he means STRAIGHT. So I double and triple checked it. I almost went inside to grab the level.... Almost. 

I dug all the holes first, then put the plants in to make sure they were perfectly aligned with each other. I think I did a pretty good job. 

Vivian helped a bit. 

After our planting, we did some snuggling and Vivian took her nap. Yes, I am guilty in the fact I still hold my 2 year old while she takes her nap. I don't always hold her the whole time while she sleeps, but I do for a bit. Who could pass up snuggles from her. She is too damn cute! 

Vivian has a lot of her daddy in her, however, one thing she definitely gets from me is her love of peanut butter. My little bear woke up from her nap and wanted a snack. So peanut butter and apples here we come! 

YUMMY!!! THIS IS ONE HAPPY BEAR HERE!!! 

Eat here // Dilly Deli

Hi friends, Danielle here!

This weekend, we had a grand time - Sesame Street Live, first soccer game, and a nice little breakfast at one of my fave local spots: Dilly Deli!

The soccer game was terribly cute, and I'm happy to report that it *did* go a bit more smoothly for us than the first soccer practice last Tuesday. 

You see, the soccer practice consisted of approximately 75% temper-tantrum-throwing, but the game only had a minute or two of 'NO!' and stomping, but no full-on temper tantrum! #winning

I think Jett played for about five minutes total, and spent the rest of the time running up and down the sideline / flirting with the older girls. At this age, it's all about fun and the "experience", so we all had a good time (and some laughs, too!). (Go Tigers!)

After the game, we decided to celebrate with a fun breakfast, so immediately I suggested the a downtown spot that I love, since we hadn't been there in a while. I had recently suggested Dilly Deli to a friend in town for vacay, and she and her hubby loved it. I had been craving the Green Eggs & Ham since she posted a pic on Insta a couple weeks ago.

I'm pretty sure Ryan and I both get the same thing every. single. time. For him, it's the eggs / hash browns / biscuits & gravy / Fassler Hall sausage. For me it's the Green Eggs and Ham (see below)! The combination of eggs over medium, prosciutto, has browns, pesto, spinach and sun-dried tomatoes can't be beat, IMO!

A couple things to note about Dilly Deli:

The have a kids eat free night, every Thursday from 4-8pm! We've never been for dinner, but are excited to check it out on an upcoming Thursday.

Also, McNellie's-Group-owned Dilly Deli is undergoing some exciting changes this Spring, changing into more of a diner, offering some diner-style dinner options as well as a late-night menu. Sounds fun! Read more about the upcoming changes here.

Enjoy! XO

More than just pancakes!

Hello Friends! 

Christina here.... 

Driving home yesterday, I found myself having no idea on what to cook for dinner. Trey had a brilliant idea of having pancakes. We are pretty strict on what Vivian eats, and she does a really good job eating whatever we put in front of her so I figured why not.However this did mean no dessert for after dinner. This was a trade Vivian was willing to make. She associates pancakes with her birthday for whatever reason. Maybe because there is cake in the word? Not sure... But she kept running around the house screaming "birthday party" and singing happy birthday to herself! She is a funny kid! 

I was raised on pancakes. My father made them for us every weekend. Cooking, eating, seeing pancakes always brings me back to my childhood. Standing in the kitchen with my younger sister helping daddy make pancakes while my baby sister was in her high chair eating the first ones off the griddle. All while George Straight played on the radio. Oh happy days! 

My pancakes are a bit different than my fathers. I don't use self rising flour and I leave the protein powder out! My father at one point was what I would conciser an amateur body builder, hence the protein powder in our pancakes. 

Here are the ingredients. Flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, egg, butter and milk.

Vivian just had to help. So did daddy. It is hard for him to stay out of the kitchen when I am cooking. I would like to say that it is because he just cant stand to be away from me. But, something tells me it has something to do with him being afraid of me screwing something up... Oh to be married to a chef! 

Trey did chuckle a little bit when I was flipping the pancakes.... They are not perfect looking, however they are delicious! 

Okay so I was introduced to putting peanut butter on my pancakes when I was a kid by my Uncle TK. Seriously this might be one of the best things in the world! My love for peanut butter runs deep!!! LOL! However I decided to make something a bit more fancy this time around. I made a mousse??? Sort of. I just combined peanut butter, honey, greek yogurt and cinnamon together. It was delicious! 

Our friends Trevor and Natalie introduced us to this maple syrup from Vermont! It is amazing. It's pricey, but well worth it! 

I think I have a happy little girl on my hands! Funny, she ate every last bite! Hmm... She doesn't do that with her vegetables... 

Here is what pancakes at the Winkles look like! 

Make this // Easy cheesy sauce

Hey y'all! Danielle here.

Today, I wanted to share one of my go-to dinner sides: pasta with cheese sauce! As you may or may not know, we're currently going through the toddler food war. If we had pizza everyday, there would be no complaints. But we can't have pizza everyday. (Or can we?)

The recipe I'll share is a simple cheese sauce, which can actually go with anything: veggies, chicken, rice, pasta... you could even create your own casserole / baked pasta dish around this sauce. The sky is the limit!

Besides the fact that it goes with almost is anything, the other thing I love about it is that Jett LOVES it! And - even though we're big fans of Annie's Shells and White Cheddar - I'm sure it's so much better for him than the powdered cheese that comes with a good ol' box of mac and cheese.

Without further ado, here's how I make it:

First, I'll mention that this recipe is all about winging it. I don't really use exact measurements, and I substitute things when needed (milk for half and half, parmesan for cheddar, etc.). So feel free to make it your own!

What you'll want to do first is melt some butter (I used about 1 1/2 tablespoons here) in a saucepan over medium heat. 

After the butter has melted, add some flour (I used a heaping tablespoon here), and allow the flour to cook. It's time to move to the next step when the flour and butter have browned a bit and are bubbly.

Next, you'll add your half and half (or milk - I just happened to have half and half on hand) slowly, while constantly stirring. This is where you'll want to think about the butter/flour to milk ratio: I like to add just a little milk at first (maybe 1/4 cup), and completely combine until I can get an idea of the consistency. If it's very thick, I'll know that I'm going to need to add quite a bit more liquid to create a nice creamy texture. After adding just enough milk (stirring all the while) to make the sauce just a bit more, well, saucy than you'd like, allow the sauce to cook over medium to medium high heat - It'll slightly thicken over the next few minutes.

Now all the hard work is done and it's time to add cheese and seasonings! I added about 4 oz. of shredded extra sharp cheddar, 1 1/2 teaspoons of pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon salt to create my sauce. Just taste a little bite, though... Does it need a bit more salt? More cheese? More milk even? Feel free to experiment. And don't worry if it's not "perfect" - You'll make it even better next time!

After the cheese is melted, your sauce is ready to enjoy with your yummy pasta or veggies!

Oh, and one more quick tip: When all else fails, turn down the heat! Seriously. It'll give you a little breathing room, and allow you to regroup.

Enjoy!

XO

Don't let the gringos fool you!

Hello Friends!

Christina Here! 

I know that Danielle told ya'll yesterday about a Elote, an amazing Mexican restaurant downtown. But today I am going to let you know about El Rio Verde! We eat there a lot! It is not our FAVORITE Mexican joint but definitely in our top 5.

I was first introduced to El Rio Verde by my friend Tracey. It was a place we use to go to cure a hang over. I don't really think it did anything to help us feel better, however it did help that, god I am so hungry I could eat a horse feeling, after a heavy night of drinking. I remember one night when we had the DREAM team working at The Chalkboard, we all had gone out the night before and were seriously struggling at work the next day. Tracey ordered the whole staff chorizo tacos, as any good manager would! It was like heaven! But these days Trey, Vivian and I usually make it a lunch date! We also ate there a lot when I was pregnant. The waitresses have watched Vivian grow up.

The place is really small. I think there are maybe 15 tables in the whole place. The waitresses are very attentive, kind and speedy. There is a little bit of a language gap. They speak English, but it is a bit limited. The food is AMAZING! They have awards all over their walls. Most from the ABOT's. It is located at 38 N Trenton Ave. It's a tiny little place with a gravel parking lot. 

They are very well known for their burritos. But I love the tacos! However, if you are really looking for that authentic Mexican meal, don't be turned off by all of the gringos that frequent the place, they have plenty of authentic choices too. One thing I do feel I must warn you about, this is not the place to go for chips and salsa. Trey and I have a theory that the best Mexican joints have the worse chips and salsa. If you want chips and salsa go to a chain restaurant!

Eat Here! // Elote

Hey y'all! Danielle here!

On Friday night (Well, it was technically the afternoon, 4:30pm-ish - We were excited it was the weekend!) we journeyed down to Tulsa's Deco District for puffy tacos at Elote!

Jett and I had only been once before, and Ryan had never been, so we looked at it as a mini-adventure.

First of all, the Deco District is pretty neat - lots of big buildings and cool architectural details to look at. There are some fun little restaurants nestled in the area, too (Hello, Atlas Grill! Love that place.).

This place hits my top three criteria for being a fave: 1) It's good (Gotta be good!), 2) It's local, 3) It's kid friendly without being, well, Chick-fil-A (Disclaimer: We love Chick-fil-A, obvi, but you know what I mean). The cherry-on-the-top is that the prices are very reasonable. They're also very proud of their locally-sourced produce and meats (which they should be!), so that's another thing to love about the place!

The marg was super good! Fresh and tart, just a marg should be; Plus they make it from scratch - no too-sweet mixes here, folks!

Last time, I had the chicken puffy tacos with beans and rice, so on a whim, I asked our server how the salmon tacos were. She raved about them, so I was sold. And I was very happy with my choice! OH! And a friend had told me how good the sweet potatoes were, so I was sure to get them as a side - so delish!

Ryan also enjoyed his beef tacos, and Jett, well... Jett like the bite of his cheese quesadilla (I think?). The struggle is real, y'all.

We finished our evening with a little one-man wrestling match, because, really, what Friday evening is complete without one. They have live hipster wrestling here every now and then - check their website for deets.

So, do yourself a favor, and enjoy a puffy taco at Elote this week. You'll also see them at the Cherry St. Farmer's Market, peddling their breakfast tacos! So good.

XO

Pho-real!!!

Hello friends!!!

Christina here!

Let's talk pho! I LOVE pho! Seriously when I was pregnant with Vivian, we ate tacos, or pho! Trey and I have tried every pho place in Tulsa. And this place has our vote as the best in town. So check out Pho Nhi!!!

Pho is not the only thing on the menu, they have rice bowls and a great selection of appetizers too. But if you are taking my advice and going for the pho you will not be disappointed. The pho selection is HUGE.  I usually go with the less adventurous pick like P2, vs Trey goes all out and dives into the Adventure's Choice selection of the menu and gets P11! 

For those of you who have never had pho, let me introduce you... 

Pho [ pronounced fuh ] is the Vietnamese national dish; an aromatic nutritious and delicious rice noodle soup served with a side plate of fresh herbs and sprouts to add as you wish. The addition of these herbs and table condiments (chili paste, fish sauce, hoisin sauce, etc.) is an essential part of eating pho. It adds another dimension to the dish. So add as little or as much as you like. Make it your own, don't hold back!

The kids meal selection is awesome too. Most places give you the normal grilled cheese, processed chicken tenders or a cheese quesedilla. Not at Pho Nhi! The kids menu has two choices, a small pho bowl or eggs and rice. Both of which come served with an egg roll. As much as I would love it if Vivian could eat the pho bowl by herself, I know better than that. We are still practicing on how to use a fork and spoon, let alone chop sticks. But she loves the rice and eggs. 

I am sure some of you are wondering where this amazing place is located at? It is on 21st street on the south side of the street just east of Garnett. So get down there and have some pho. Today's weather is perfect for it!