Back at the homestead…

We made it back home, but not without having had enjoyed just a few more Southern BBQ meals along the way.  We stopped in Knoxville Tennessee for lunch and were lucky enough to bump into a restaurant called “Famous Dave’s”.  They have five varieties of BBQ sauces at every table and encourage samplings with your meal.  It is interesting to see how different BBQ sauce can be based on individual preferences and various regions throughout the United States.  If you are ever traveling through Tennessee, this is a place worth visiting.  The meat was very tender and the sauces are delicious.

While in Christiansburg Virginia, a local recommended we try a restaurant called “Due South”.  This was also good and I had the awesome opportunity to try fried green tomatoes for the first time.  Even though this is clearly not a “Delicious & Light” side dish, I just couldn’t resist.  They were really good and I am determined to try to re-create some light version of this at home in the summer when our garden is up and growing.

Back home and back to cooking.  I know there will be a roast turkey breast on the menu tomorrow and will let you know where I go from there with cooking it.

Until then, enjoy and happy samplings…

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Eating In Tennessee

We were on the road a few days and are finishing up our fun trip to Nashville.  I love going to places I have never been before to sample the delicious tastings that other parts of our  big  beautiful country has to offer.  I have to say that the food in Tennessee did not disappoint and even though we are in BBQ country, there were low fat options available (even if they aren’t advertised that way).  Nick had smoked turkey for lunch one day and BBQ pork loin for dinner another.  Dean and I changed it up a little and went for the BBQ pork ribs and beef brisket BBQ but then ordered a lighter item for the next meal.

If you are traveling and trying to keep things on the low fat side, you can choose lower fat cuts of meat and still enjoy the local cuisine.  Chicken breasts, turkey, pork loin and sirloin steaks are just a few options to choose from.  The nice thing is you still get to enjoy the local flavors through BBQ and other sauces, just stay away from creamy sauces or sauces that have butter written in the descriptions.

However, I must say that my favorite dish in Nashville was the shrimp and grits.  The grits had a very subtle hint of parmesan cheese in them and the shrimps were pan fried with bacon and scallions. I just took a few bacon pieces for the flavor but knew to keep away from eating all of them.  I am not sure if this is a standard local dish but it is worth trying to create a low fat version of this and I expect that when I get home, I will be shopping for grits & shrimp.  Don’t be surprised if you see a recipe for this dish in the coming days after we return.

Next stop…Roanoke, Virginia.

Until then, enjoy and happy traveling!