Yummy Party Pleaser

As I said before, I get my love of food from my Daddy. So a lot of my yummy dishes are actually versions of his recipes. A REAL crowd pleaser when we have company over, or what we bring when we go to someone's party, is the yummy and refreshing Pico that can double as a salsa. I also make fresh chips to go along with it and you just can’t eat one…lol.

These are the ingredients that you will need. I suggest going to a farmers market to get the freshest items…and you will get better prices thatn you would in the grocery store.

4 vine ripe tomatoes

small red onion (or sweet onion…your preference)

1 clove of garlic (you can add another if you like garlic)

fresh bunch of cilantro (when picking cilantro smell it…the stronger the smell the fresher)

2 limes (when you pick your limes they should give a little when you squeeze them)

1 jalapeno pepper…or if you REALLY like a kick get a habanero pepper

I like to chop my tomatoes into small chunks (which makes it look more like salsa). So slice then chop the tomatoes and put them in a medium size bowl...if there is a lot of juice from the tomatoes in the bowl drain that off. Cut your limes in half and squeeze on top of tomatoes. Cut off a chunk of the cilantro (you can always add more to taste…I like mine really green) and chop fine. Add to the bowl. I use the fine portion of the grater for both my garlic and onion so I don’t have to chop it myself. I like the flavor of them but I don’t want to see them. If you are going for more texture you can chop them….use as much as your taste buds like. If you are using the jalapeno pepper you only need about half of the pepper. If you want to have it a little spicier then use the habanero but you don’t need as much. Add a dash of kosher salt and stir. TASTE IT (ALWAYS taste your food before serving to someone else) and decide if you want a little more spice…or if you have too much add a little tomato and lime.

For the chips all you need is a bag of corn tortillas (yellow or white), kosher salt, and a put of canola oil filled mid way in a pot (you can use a fry daddy as well but make sure the oil is fresh). Turn the oil on medium high and then cut the tortillas horizontally then vertically making 4 triangles (you can cut a bunch at one time). Make sure the oil is VERY hot before putting the tortillas in about 6-7 at a time depending on the size of your pot. If the oil is not hot enough the tortilla will absorb the oil and not get crunchy. You should have a pair of tongs moving the tortillas in the oil around, when they get a little brown take them out, put them on a paper towel to absorb the excess oil and sprinkle with kosher salt. Repeat until you have the amount of chips you want.

As a BONUS to make some quick guacamole at the same time. Take one ripe avocado, take the meat out and put in a bowl. Mash the avocado but not to the point of creamy…it should still be a little chunky. I like to use a potato masher because I like mine really chunky. Add a spoonful or two of the pico that you just made, a little more lime, teaspoon or so of cumin and stir!!!! Yummy Yummmmmm…

Try it out!!! I promise after you have perfected this you will be making it ALL THE TIME!!! The pico is great on nachos that you make at home as well. Let me know how you like it or if you have any questions leave those as well. Maybe I will do a video of me making the pico and the chips…let me know if that will help anyone!!

Happy Eating!!!!

Atlanta

#Chicago hanging out with a buddy

Went out for a new Wild Berry Smoothie and stopped to chat with a friend. Keep an eye out for the intense interview coming up in the future....
#Chicago

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New Age Bowling Alley Food

When I was little and lived in Iowa (yes I use to live in Iowa...lol) my Mom was on a bowling league. Every Wednesday we were in a smoke filled bowling alley...eating not so yummy food. I grew up eating the freshest and yummiest food and one day a week we ate bowling alley crap food...lol. Maybe that is where I get my random craving for nacho's with imitation cheese and jalapenos (that I MUST get when I go to the movies). Those nachos and slim jim's are my crap food weakness...lol.

Anyhoo...back to the topic at hand. In the past year or so I have started to go bowling more often and I have found that bowling alley food has changed!!! For the better!!! This comes with the new age bowling alley's that targets the urban professional. They are nice and swanky...lol. I have been to the Ten Pin Alley in Atlantic Station where you can even order food from Dolche which is below the bowling alley!!! Yes they still have nachos, but they are nachos with fresh chips, seasoned ground beef, sour cream, pico de gallo and guacamole. You only get the jalapenos when you ask for them!!!


So last night I met up with some of our Line Sisters for some sisterly relations at the 300 Bowling Alley. I use to go to this bowling alley in high school when it was named something else...and it was one of those old school bowling alleys where you get the typical bowling alley food. Well when I got there it was no longer that run down bowling alley I remembered but a new swanky bowling alley. That carried top shelf liquor, has big screen tv's and lane side waiters...that bring yummy goodness!!

I ordered some salt and pepper onion rings...and boy oh boy were they good!!!! They were HUGE...with a great batter that was nice and crispy!!! Definitely yummy yums!!! I tried someone's sweet potato fries that were just okay...I could tell that they fried them in the same grease that they fry everything else in. I also ate a piece of Florentine Flatbread that was SOOOO good. It has tomatoes, spinach, mozzarella, Parmesan, and ricotta cheeses!!! And of course...swanky nachos!!!! But I would have to say that I preferred my crap food nachos over their nachos...any day of the week!!!!!

But overall the new age bowling alley food is definitely an upgrade!!! 

Eat on...
Atlanta

Welcome to the Food Movement!!!!

This is the beginning of what we hope to be a wonderful food journey. We both LOVE food...and have decided to share our experiences with all of you. We share them daily on FaceBook but we wanted to make it official. And our friends have also convinced us that we need a show because we would be too entertaining and we are normal everyday chicks that can dish out the reviews in the realest of real ways!!!

We met while attending Tennessee State University and becoming members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority...we were both very silly and very...maybe a little too...honest about how we felt about things. It was pretty easy for us to connect. Over time we have become better and better FRIENDS...beyond the sisterly bond that we share.

A little about who we are individually:

Aja: Was born in St. Paul, Minnesota but has been a self proclaimed "Ga Peach" since 1989. While pregnant with her second child she went from Executive Director to Stay at Home mom of 2 little boys. She is in a 5 year relationship with a man she has known more than half of her life. She loves to travel, spend time with family, hang out with her FamFriends (a term coined by our GREAT friend Micky), and of course EATING!!!! I LOVE to eat...whether it is food I have cooked or found I eat out. I get my love of food from my Daddy.

Cherish: Raised in Detroit, Mi on a strong diet of fast food - you name it she ate it. Three decades later she is now employed as a restaurant design engineer in the corporate offices of her favorite (and the WORLD'S favorite) fast-food restaurant. Currently living in "The Windy City", she takes every opportunity to try new places, whether with friends or on solo ventures. Like Aja, she loves to travel and has an awesome group of family and friends, many of whom are shared between them! She comes from a family of EATERS and plans to someday (in the distant future) have her own family of eaters.

So stick around as Aja and Cherish take you to Chicago, Atlanta, and plenty of places in between! Bring a napkin and feel free to leave your suggestions of places to try. Restaurant owners and managers: Hit us up if you have a meal to offer up! You treat, We eat.... and we'll blog about it, of course!

HAPPY EATING!!!!
Aja ("Atlanta") and Cherish ("Chicago")