Herbed Two Potato Home Fry Hash, AKA Breakfast Crack

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You are reading my blog, so clearly you trust my ability to identify something that is seriously freaking good. Here you go:

You know how some restaurants have the most delicious home fries? I did not truly discover this magical madness until my husband and I started frequenting The Breakfast Club. They have created the most amazing home fries using large chopped potatoes and tons and tons of herbs. (P.S. Live in Chicago? Go there. It is understated and unassuming and DECORATED LIKE IT'S STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BREAKFAST CLUB MOVIE.

Anyway. Moving on in 3... 2... 1...

I recently was in a bind to make a side dish for four people, but only had half of the amount of potatoes I really needed. So, I chopped up some sweet potatoes as well, and made this two potato home fry hash. It was delicious, herby, and yumstown.

Herbed Two Potato Home Fry Hash

Ingredients:

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 1 1/2 cups yukon potatoes (or any regular potatoes)
• 1 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• Green onions or chives
• 1 tbsp Olive oil

Directions:

1. Cut ingredients into 1/2-1 inch thick pieces.
2. Toss potatoes and chopped onion with olive oil and italian seasoning.
3. Sautee for 10 minutes over medium heat. 
      
4. Add as many chopped green onions and/or chives as you'd like.
5. Increase heat to high and let sit for a few minutes until the potatoes are browning, then stir and do the same thing again, until most sides are browning or beginning to burn. 
6. Serve!

Notes:

• This is DELICIOUS with some eggs and meat mixed in. Try using leftovers with some chorizo or taco meat and a few scrambled eggs, topped with cheese for a delicious breakfast!

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

• Any recipes people have told you are so amazing they are crack-like in their ability to keep you coming back for more? I've been told that about this chickpea cookie dough dip (and it also happens to be the recipe that brings me the most search results hits, so people must be spreading the word!).
• What's your go-to breakfast side?

A Night at Untitled

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On Thursday night, my husband and I went to Untitled with our neighbors for dinner and drinks. My husband tends to strongly dislike places that give off a pretentious feel, so when they charged for coat check and made us wait a few minutes to be seated (despite having a reservation and the dining room having obvious empty tables), I was a little worried that he would hate it. It did manage to redeem itself by way of delicious food, though.

The restaurant and bar is divided up into a number of different rooms, and we were seated in the Champagne room.

The food was delicious. We started with beef and lamb meat balls, and they brought us three meat balls for a table of four. Bizarre, but it ended up working out alright because two of us wanted to split one, anyway.

While we waited, our server also brought us a salmon dish. It was surprisingly sweet, and sat on a bed of what they called couscous, but it was larger than most couscous I have eaten in the past. I enjoyed the dish a lot and it was very surprising, but most of all I was just impressed that they must have noticed a little bit of irritation on our part and sent something out to smooth it over. Worked like a charm.

For my main dish, I had the hanger steak. I pretty much always order hanger steak when I find it on a menu, because I have found that chefs almost always nail how I like it cooked, as opposed to other steaks, which are frequently either too tough or too rare. This hanger steak was covered in a delicious sauce that had a chipotle flavor to it, and sat on a plate covered in fingerling potatoes. It was a lot of food, so I focused on the meat.

At around 10:00, the show started. On Thursday nights, Untitled has live jazz during dinner, followed by a show called "Unbridled." It is basically an upscale burlesque show in the main room with a lot of fireworks involved. I failed at snapping pictures of this on our way out, so here's a blurry group shot to make up for it.

What About You?

• Do you have any restaurant quirks that easily win you over or irritate you? I am easily won over by free dishes or waiters who are super friendly and silly... easily irritated when they stick you at a bad table and won't let you change to a new one. 
• Would you try out a restaurant with a burlesque show? I am typically not very into that kind of stuff, but it was done very classily and didn't make us feel awkward in any way.

Eating and Drinking My Way Through The City

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As I gathered my pictures from the weekend, I realized that the majority of my photos are of food. Go figure. Apparently I ate and drank my way through the city of Chicago.

Before my condition worsened...

We kicked off Friday with Delirium Day at Paddy Long's. The Irish restaurant is known for its bacon laden menu, so we combined delirium tremens with everything bacon. I had a bacon quesadilla. It was delicious and filling.

As luck would have it, I have developed an allergy to some beer (Dear God, don't let this spread to Guinness...). So, thirty minutes into the event, I was suddenly a snot ball (glamorous, I know) and could hardly breathe. We stayed as long as we could, but when our friends decided to change venues, we had to call it quits and cab it home. 

Handsome husband :)

The next morning, we were feeling lazy. After our weekend in Holland, we still hadn't had the time to properly grocery shop, so we were out of supplies. The logical answer? Breakfast date.

Entirely mismatched. The Carly Brunch Special.

After a delicious (read: HUGE) meal at The Breakfast Club, we walked around for a bit and ended up stopping to by a chocolate bar. After said huge breakfast. At my behest. Because I apparently needed it at the time. It's not what you think.

A few hours later, after I realized how much junk I'd put into my body, I decided to get some fresh air and took the dog on a jog. We headed toward Wicker Park, spent some time drinking from the fountain there (just her... not me), and eventually came home about an hour and a half later.

It's fall, isn't that enough of an excuse?

...which was just in time for me to put more food into the machine. I made gluten free, upside-down apple pie and topped it with organic vanilla bean ice cream. Recipe coming tomorrow...

How much leopard is too much leopard?

Sunday morning, I woke up to a clean apartment. No, the cleaning fairies didn't visit during my slumber -- we spent a few hours cleaning the day before. We headed out on a walk with the dog, and I continued to shamelessly wear my leopard print Aerosoles. Seriously, it's like walking on a cloud.

Husband-made. Wife-approved.

My wonderful husband (are you reading this, babe?) had gone grocery shopping during my jog with the dog (dogjog, anyone?), so we had all the supplies we needed for a delicious breakfast. He made me egg whites with sauteed veggies, and I sprinkled nutritional yeast on top. Compared to the day before, I was getting an A+ for nutrition.

New specs!

A few hours later, after a run at the gym and, yes, more cleaning, we headed back to Wicker Park to meet my parents for dinner at Mana Food Bar. It was amazing the first time I went (after a girls spa day), and I was still impressed this time. The men weren't quite as excited, but it was a meatless dinner, so I don't know what I was thinking bringing them there.

Pineapple and Ginger Sake Cocktail at Mana... and my dry cleaning label that I didn't realize was on my jacket until we arrived! Oops...

My mom and I both tried their Pineapple Ginger Sake Cocktail, and it was amazing. I also love their Coconut Water and Lime, but this may have been better. It's hard to say. Either way, that's a good tie in my opinion!

Last but not least? We stopped by Shit Fountain. Pardon my French... but it is engraved on the fountain!

What about you?

• Have you ever been to a Vegan restaurant?
• Do the men in your life require meat for their meals?

Can I Have Some Food... And A To Go Box?

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Sometimes, you just have to order a to-go box at the same moment you order your food.

When it comes to life in a big city, the food options are nearly endless. I feel like I have my choice of food at any time of the day, and I will never feel that I have tried all that Chicago has to offer.

But seriously. Portion sizes. Why are you so big?



Sometimes, it's hard to stop yourself from finishing the whole meal. I recently had a lunch date with my lovely Aunt, and we hit up Native Foods Cafe. It's a very creative food joint, but their portion sizes blow my mind.



I ordered the Sesame Kale Macro Bowl, which was absolutely delicious. I've ordered it a few times before, and always end up eating most of it.



This time, I gave myself a rule. I drew an invisible line down the center of my bowl and went to town on only the right side. I dared not touch the left.



Guess what? It worked! I also ordered my to go box before I was done with my meal, so I had it sitting there, on the table, staring at me, just begging to be used.

And now? I have a delicious lunch left over. Less money spent, less calories consumed, more happy Carly.

 

What about you?
What are your tips and tricks for saving money or cutting portion sizes? I tend to try to save half the meal for later, or sometimes I order an appetizer portion instead of a meal portion.

Recipe | Skinny Spinach and Asparagus Dip

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Let's talk about things we love, shall we? Ok, I'll go first... You know what I love? I love the taste of the totally-bad-for-you spinach dips you can get for $6.95 at T.G.I.Fridays or Applebees or some equally unimpressive yet easy restaurant. But I never order them.

In fact, I can't even remember the last time I walked into a T.G.I. Friday's, sat down, and ordered a Spinach and Artichoke dip. Really. I know it exists... but I can't remember doing it.

Why? Because it's so bad for you. Like, ridiculously bad for you, throw your diet out the window, you're overdosing on sodium kind of bad.

That's crap to me. Why do those restaurants insist on sour cream and butter and salt (oh my!)?

There's got to be more to life than that, right? (Am I dramatic enough yet?)

Okay, so that's my first favorite thing (and a total tangent about the health content of chain restaurant dips). My second favorite thing? Greek Yogurt. Why? It's good for you. And you can put it in just about anything.

Do you see where I'm going with this? Unhealthy spinach dips + super healthy greek yogurt = ???

Any guesses? Did I just hear you say "Skinny Spinach and Asparagus Dip?!" WOW! Good guess. That's IMPRESSIVE!

And so, by using Greek Yogurt instead of the typical sour cream base, this comfort appetizer goes from HORRIBLE to HEALTHY.

Looking for other healthy appetizers to use? Check out the food section of my website or go specifically to Lettuce Wraps, Grilled Eggplant Nachos, Spicy Pumpkin Fries, or Whole Wheat Quesadillas.