Indy Eats

I spent all of last week in beautiful Indianapolis, Indiana. It was my first time in Indy and despite being there for job training, I was determined to see some sights and eat some authentic, local food. I didn't really have a chance to sight see- I blame the weather and the Big10 conference championship!- but I did enjoy some local fare that you just can't find  here at home.

 The first stop on my way to the hotel was Traders Point Creamery.

Traders Point Creamery

This place was adorable. A functioning dairy farm (you can actually find some of their products at Whole Foods!) with a restaurant called "The Loft." The restaurant is a converted barn with a very rustic, authentic charm.


"The Loft"


The grass-fed burger was highly recommended online, so I trusted the people and ordered the it with a side of roasted vegetables. The burger was massive, but it was late and I was starving so I devoured it! It was delicious, but a little dry. That would have been remedied, I'm sure, by a slice of their made-in-house cheese...unfortunately eating dairy-free got in the way of enjoying any of the creamery's products other than the grass-fed beef. *sigh* This was one of those times when I am envious of people who can enjoy dairy with no negative effects!

The delicious, 100% grass-fed burger and roasted veggies

While my breakfasts and lunches were nothing to write home about, I did manage to visit two other restaurants that I stumbled upon online and on the "Visit Indy" channel in my hotel room: Late Harvest Kitchen and the Canal Bistro.
 
Late Harvest Kitchen is a fine dining restaurant that features local, seasonal fare. It was quite pricey, but worth the experience. I chose the Olive-Crusted Mahi-Mahi and Roasted Root Vegetables (Notice the trend? I'm into roasted vegetables.) which I enjoyed with a fabulous glass of vino. :D

Late Harvest Kitchen. Can you see the massive bowl of veggies in the back?

The photo above is the one that really makes me cringe...not only because it does a sub par job of capturing the essence of the meal, but also because every time I see it I am reminded of the waiters glaring at me as I snapped it...

The last restaurant I enjoyed was the Canal Bistro, a Mediterranean restaurant whose owners are from Egypt and Lebanon. You can't get much more authentic than that! The highlight of my meal was the hummus. I was craving hummus all week and finally was able to enjoy some at the Canal Bistro. I also enjoyed dipping the warm pita bread into a blend of olive oil and Mediterranean spices- soooo good! I managed to save some hummus for my Lenten Friday lunch the following day. Yay me!

Hummus garnished with tomatoes, olive oil, and Mediterranean spices!

All in all, I think the trip was a success. I learned a lot at the training course which I can bring back to my job and I enjoyed some wonderful, local restaurants. Win-win.

AND I was in Indianapolis when the Colts cut Peyton Manning. I listened to him tear up on the radio; I was there when the mayor declared Friday, March 9th as "Blue Friday" in honor of Peyton Manning; and I witnessed everyone wearing their #18 jerseys. Wow. Talk about heartbreaking- that city will certainly miss their quarterback! I certainly hope Andrew Luck lives up to his reputation! ;)

<3 K.E.

Slacking and Vacations

I can't believe I have ignored my blog for so long! I was on such a role- making amazing recipes, trying out new workouts, and writing about it all. The last few weeks have been helter skelter for me and I'm afraid a lot of my motivation wore off during that time. *tear* However, I have learned the best solution to no motivation is....*DRUMROLL* a VACATION! :D So this weekend- which just happens to be President's Day Weekend and, therefore, a 3-day weekend for me- I am taking two days of leave. I'm beyond excited at  the idea of being able to enjoy life again and forget all about work. I'm starting to wonder if all this work hatred is a sign that I need to move in a different direction? Probably. Unfortunately, it takes energy and motivation to move in a different direction- two things I sorely lack at the moment. Perhaps that will all change soon...

Yesterday, the hubby, sister, friend, and I had a little dinner party before the Magic game (both of which were really fun). It was my first dinner for anyone other than my husband since the wedding and I was a little nervous because I decided to try out a new recipe on our guests- Slow Cooker White Chili. I've never had white chili before so I wasn't sure what to expect. Luckily for me, Whole Foods never lets me down and the recipe I found was amazing. You can check it out for yourself here.  

I didn't follow the recipe exactly because, well, I continued my slacker ways and didn't have all the ingredients. So we had a little less corn and 1 green bell pepper instead of two. The biggest change was that I didn't stir the the sour cream into the chili (I'm severely lactose intolerant- if not allergic- to dairy in any form) but rather set out sour cream and Whole Foods' Three Pepper Salsa so everyone could garnish their bowl of chili to their own tastes.

The best part of the meal was that all I had to do was throw all the ingredients in my Crock-Pot. So easy, so delicious, definitely a must try! You won't be disappointed.

Our friend brought over a loaf of authentic Tuscan bread to go with the chili. So good. She said she found the bread at a little, Italian market nearby. Which really translates to torturing me because now I'm dying to go check it out and it might be a few weeks before I get a chance to. Grrr! ;)

Does anyone else have any fantastic, clean eating slow-cooker recipes they've tried? I'd love to hear about them!

And HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

<3 K.E.