Food – Page 2

Urban Eats Grill & Cantina | Indianapolis, IN

July 13, 2018April 10, 2019 Kellye Marie

Urban Eats Grill & Cantina | 250 S Meridian St, Indianapolis, IN | Facebook: @urbaneatsgrillandcantina | Instagram: @urbaneatsindy

This afternoon’s impromptu lunch with co-workers left a little to be desired.

Even though I brought my lunch today, I decided to be social and join a group of my coworkers for lunch. I’m always excited to try new things downtown since I live several miles away from the downtown area. I have never heard of the restaurant before so I had no idea what to expect.

We arrived a little after noon. Other than a large party of about 16 and one to two other tables, the restaurant was mostly empty. We were greeted by a hostess and seated near the rear of the restaurant. The bar is across from the entrance and there are several larger windows facing Meridian St. that let in a small amount of natural light creating a dimly lit atmosphere. The music was a bit loud so we were struggling to hear each other and were forced to almost yell to make conversation. Most of the tables in the center were tall but the chairs at least had a rail to rest your feet so your legs don’t lose circulation while dangling. That was a plus!

So…about the service. I’m not sure if they were understaffed but the servers seemed to be either shy, slightly flustered from the large party in the back or just uninterested in making conversation. Either way it was noticeable.

Our orders were taken in order around the table, but after waiting what seemed to be a long amount of time there was much confusion as to who ordered what when the food came out. My food came last, which was fine.

I ordered the Tacos Dorados lunch special = Deep fried tacos stuffed with chicken, topped with lettuce, tomato, and crema served with a side of rice and beans.

They do bring fresh chips and salsa out for the table. (Yes!) The salsa was really good. The flavors were robust with just the right amount of heat. It also had a great texture unlike those runny salsas that are all too common. I asked for some additional salsa and I’m glad that I did because my chicken was dry and lacked seasoning. The texture was off too & slightly overcooked. So, I used the salsa to add some moisture and flavor to the overall plate. The beans were seasoned well and I enjoyed the delicate flavor of the rice and it’s fluffy texture. Even though the tacos were fried they were a bit too fried for my liking (almost bordering burnt)…which may be why the chicken was a bit dry.

There were mixed reviews heard around the table but overall it was an okay experience that left a little to be desired. While I won’t necessarily pursue this restaurant experience again, I am open to giving another dish a try if it is chosen in the future by someone else.

Food, Home Eats

Breakfast “Street Tacos”

July 2, 2018July 15, 2018 Kellye Marie

I want to start off by saying that these tacos rocked my Sunday!

I had a taste for some eggs which is weird because I don’t usually eat eggs. But not only did I want eggs, I wanted them with some ‘ranchero-type’ sauce. Yes, breakfast tacos! I already had some pico de gallo, avocado, tomatillo sauce and black olives. So, I went to the store in pursuit of eggs, cotija cheese and corn tortillas. As I strolled he aisles I spotted some chorizo and just like that my tacos transformed into these beauties.

I usually get the block of cotija cheese and crumble it in the food processor but they only had it pre crumbled. Unlike Queso Fresco, Cotija cheese is a salty, sharp, robust cheese. It does not melt, but instead is crumbly and dry.

Heat tortillas for 15-20 seconds on each side

I’ve never touched chorizo (other than eating it, lol)…so this was definitely a blind run. I will say this particular chorizo is not a solid sausage like a polish sausage it was more like a seasoned loose meat. I just opened the package and put it into a pan and browned it similar to how you would cook ground beef. it melted down and created a pool of red grease. You may want to wear an apron or a shirt you are not particularly fond of just in case you get popped with red grease.Once the sausage was cooked, I drained the grease off. It was also seasoned very well, so I tasted it to make sure I didn’t over season any other component. It also had enough salt for anything paired with it…so I omitted the salt in the other elements.

You will need:

Eggs
Tomatillo sauce (salsa or salsa verde)
Chorizo
Pico de gallo
Avacado
Cotija cheese
cilantro
black olives (garnish)
Tortillas, ‘street taco’ size (or regular size if preferred)

Instructions

Cook chorizo and drain excess grease (put into a container with a lid)
Scramble 2 eggs in a non-stick pan
Put eggs in a bowl and add about 2 tbsps of tomatillo sauce on the eggs and coat eggs evenly
Slice avocado into 1/2 inch pieces (small enough for a small taco)
Prepare your cliantro
Heat tortillas (I used a flat top, but you can heat on the stove, or in the microwave-following package instructions)
Assemble tacos (eggs, chorizo, pico de gallo, avocado, cotija cheese, cilantro, olive)

ENJOY!

Food, Home Eats

Salad Inspiration

June 29, 2018July 15, 2018 Kellye Marie

You ever see something amazing on Instagram and think, “Ohhh, that looks so good! I’m going to make something like that”..without even trying the original recipe in the first place? Yeah, me too! Haha!

So I saw this amazing chipotle shrimp and strawberry salad by Maggie Jeninga @mfreshkitchen and decided that I wanted to make something similar. So here is my go with my own little spin on it (but I will totally have to try her recipe now that this experiment is out of my system). Hmm, I’m going to call this…

“Southwestern Shrimp Mango Madness”.

This salad has Romaine lettuce, black beans, corn, pico de gallo, mango, avocado, black olives and shrimp. Sadly there is no “recipe”. I just added about how much lettuce I wanted (based on hunger) to a bowl. Then, I rinsed both black beans and sweet corn and set them aside. You can make your own pico, but if you are in a rush or simply don’t feel like making anything just buy some pre-made. I cut up a half of a small avocado, sliced a few olives, and added some mango. About 3 tablespoons of each topping.

Then, I drizzled the shrimp with some olive oil and added some “homemade” taco seasoning.

Taco Seasoning
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon oregano
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container.

Yield: 48 servings (serving size: ¼ teaspoon)

The George Foreman grill made a comeback today for this very special occasion. I couldn’t tell you the last time I used that thing. I have a love for kitchen appliances and somehow it has been overlooked for a while. Anywho, I added a little dash of salt and pepper and squeezed some lime on it and Voila!

Southwestern Shrimp Mango Madness.

You can use any meat you would like. I am so sometimey with meat. Most of the time veggies are enough unless I really have a taste for meat. Experiment with the veggies you like, and fruit, that you like. You can even add rice or quinoa of you prefer. I really like these in the summer. They are full of goodies and are a light option especially on hot days. I won’t generally add a dressing for something like this. The pico, mango, & avocado end up vibing with the squeeze of lime and provide a fresh bite for me. If that is not your thing, just add a dressing of your choosing. I WILL say this is a very low sodium dish the way it is prepared.

Well, that’s all for now. I’ll be sure to try the chipotle shrimp and strawberry salad by Maggie Jeninga and share the deats.

Be inspired. Eat a salad.