SPICY THAI NOODLES

For most of my life, I was never a super adventurous eater. If a meal had meat and pasta or potatoes I was good to go. Fruit wasn't so much my thing, but I loved broccoli. Shrimp freaked me out, and I didn't like most seafood other than salmon. Thai, sushi, and Indian were definitely off the table.

However, in the past 3-4 years I'm glad to say I have expanded my taste buds soooo much more. The past week I was strangely craving Thai, which pretty much never happens, so I made these spicy thai noodles I found on Pinterest. It was so easy and tasted just like something I would get from a thai restaurant. 

Spicy Thai Noodles 

recipe from Domestic Superhero

1 pound linguine

2 tbsp olive oil, divided

2 large eggs, beaten

1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

1 zucchini, cut in half vertically, then sliced in half circles

8 ounces mushroom, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce

1 tbsp Sriracha hot sauce

2 inches fresh ginger, grated

1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped

green onions, chopped

Boil water and add linguine, cooking according to package directions. Drain and set aside. In a medium bowl combine brown sugar, soy sauce, sriracha, and ginger; whisk well to combine; set aside.

In a large skillet, add 1 tbsp olive oil and heat over medium heat. Add beaten eggs and red pepper flakes and stir to scramble the eggs. Once cooked, set aside with pasta. Heat the remaining 1 tbsp oil over medium heat. Add zucchini, mushrooms, and garlic. Saute over medium high heat for 5-6 minutes or until veggies are cooked through.

Turn heat down to low, add pasta and eggs back to pot, then pour the sauce mixture over the top. Using a wooden spoon, stir well to coat pasta and vegetables with sauce. Remove from heat, add green onions and cilantro; stir to combine.

SRIRACHA LIME CHICKEN CHOPPED SALAD

Oh my goodness y'all, I just love the feeling of spring and summer. The days are longer, the nights are warmer, and doesn't the food taste so much better? I find myself eating so many more fresh vegetables and lighter meals in these warmer months, and this salad is a great example. I saw a version of it on my friend Whitney's blog and knew I had to make a variation for myself. The original recipe called for grilled pineapple, but I don't have a grill and don't like pineapple so I removed that. Still, so, so yummy... This will definitely be a repeat in the coming months!

SRIRACHA LIME CHICKEN CHOPPED SALAD 

1 lb chicken tenders (or chicken breast if preferred)

1 avocado

1 red onion

Cherry tomatoes 

Choice of lettuce (I picked arugula)

1 lime

3 tbsp sriracha

LIME VINAGRETTE

1/3 cup light olive oil
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 limes, juiced
2 tsp raw honey
Dash sea salt

Marinate chicken in sriracha and lime juice and add salt and pepper to taste. Cook chicken at 350 for 20 minutes. Dice avocado, cut tomatoes, and finely chop red onion. Add over bed of lettuce and add chicken. Toss with lime vinagrette and enjoy!

NASHVILLE EATS - THE SOUTHERN

Ya'll. It's Wednesday, which means another Nashville Eats - this time featuring The Southern. This restaurant is awesome and I can't just go without sharing raving about it!!! The Southern is new in town - located on 3rd Street, just past Bridgestone and the massive-almost-here-beautiful convention center, and a few blocks from Broadway and the honky tonks. I've now been there twice - once with Patrick and his mom, and another time for a work dinner. Holy moly, my meals get two thumbs up.

Pretty cool design on the floor

Old doors and chairs create a place for diners to sit while they wait for a table.

So what makes The Southern so good? Well first, the atmosphere and dining experience is great. Everyone is seated in a large room with a gigantic bar with more types of alcohol than I care to count at the center. It's got this neat tiling, the fans are all connected by some engineering genius. Not to mention, the ad agency I work for designed the menus, which kind of makes me love it even more. Please excuse the poor iPhone photography... my pictures don't quite capture the essence of the restaurant, but hopefully you get a good idea.

General eating area, with huge bar in the background. If you look close enough, you can see the fans!

And the food - WOW. On my most recent visit, I literally felt like I dined like a queen. We had oysters for an appetizer (yes, this typically picky eater actually tried one!), along with the Saphire Steak Biscuits and the Dominican Pork, a Caribbean-spiced pork that came with mango pico on top of a sweet potato grit cake. If you are in for lunch, I highly recommend getting one of these two things. For dinner, I had the filet. I don't know if I just hadn't eaten steak in so long that it tasted so delicious, but I think it was actually that good. It comes topped with a complimenting red balsamic glaze with mashed potatoes and asparagus on the side. You seriously can't leave disappointed and I'm most definitely looking forward to the next time I can go.

 

If you like a sauce so much, you can buy it and take it home with you!

 

So many sauces to try and buy!