We spent part of the past weekend visiting the Bup's aunt. We try to go a few times a year, so you might remember some of the past posts about our visits. Last time we were there, we had Tapas & Thai. It's always fun to visit & an adventure trying new foods.
As usual, we made a stop at Trader Joe's. My favorite new finds this time were the Pumpkin Greek Yogurt & the Roasted Coconut Chips. After shopping, we headed to dinner at Great Sage Organic Green Cuisine. We dined there once before, almost 2 years ago, & I think they've increased their selection since then. I got an email with their specials, which inspired us to try it again. It was busy, which was great to see!
We started with some appetizers. I got the Autumn Apples & Baby Spinach side salad, which came topped with "roasted apples, tempeh bacon, toasted peanuts & butternut squash, tossed in a smoky maple vinaigrette & topped with crispy onions." It was delicious! I was almost wishing I had ordered the large as my meal, but when the rest of the food came, I was glad I'd ordered other items, too.
The Bup ordered the Fireside Orchard, a yummy drink of hot organic apple cider mixed with peach-mango rum. It was so good! I want to try to recreate it at home.
The three of us shared the Vietnamese Spring Rolls, which were stuffed with "raw carrot, cabbage, scallion, sesame, peppers, cashews, cilantro and herbs." They were served with a sweet & spicy chili sauce & a rich peanut sauce. I could eat that peanut sauce by itself! The spiralized beets on the side were good, too. I put some on my salad.
For our main courses, we all tried something new. The Bup got the Roasted Vegetable Bolognaise,
which was "roasted butternut squash, eggplant & spinach in a robust herbed red wine tomato sauce tossed with rigatoni & topped with cashew 'cheese' & fresh basil." The flavors in this were amazing!
| Roasted butternut squash, eggplant and spinach in a robust herbed red | ||
| wine tomato sauce tossed with rigatoni and topped with cashew 'cheese' | ||
| and fresh basil. (Gluten-free option) | ||
I ordered the special that sparked our interest in the first place. It was Sweet Potato Gnocci in roasted garlic-pepper sauce topped with grilled vegtables. The gnocci was super creamy & paired so well with the sauce & roasted veggies. It was delicious!
Connie got the Green Lentil & Pumpkin Buger, a "pumpkin seed crusted vegetable burger made with green lentils, pumpkin, quinoa, green cabbage, caramelized onion, carrot and spices." It was "topped with tempeh bacon, micro mustard greens & roasted garlic aioli, & served on a toasted Kaiser roll with roasted sweet potato fries." She requested that they leave off the aioli, & when they brought it out, it was still on the burger. They took it back & made her a new one, but it was unfortunate that we had our meals & she was waiting. We all wound up finishing about the same time, but it was still frustrating.
For dessert, the Bup & I split the Four Layer Chocolate Cake, "a towering slice of moist chocolate cake with fluffy chocolate frosting, topped with rich, dark chocolate ganache." It wasn't quite what I expected, as the frosting wasn't fluffy at all, but it was sooooo chocolatey, just how we like it. :-)
The next morning, the Bup & I took a walk around the lake near Connie's house. The sun was still coming up & the air was crisp.
We went almost 4 miles & I was thankful for the cool air once we got moving!
By the time we finished, it was a gorgeous sunny day.
After our walk, we showered & went to breakfast at the local diner.
I had blueberry pancakes, the Bup had a vegetable omelet, & Connie had a mushroom omelet. The servings were generous & the service was excellent. Our waitress even made me a half coffee-half hot cocoa mix!
We spent the day playing with the kitties & working on fixing the lights around the house.
The cats were super helpful!
We had dinner at an Asian restaurant near Connie's house. I had the tofu & vegetable soup with spring rolls. The bowl of soup was huge & filling, & the broth was perfectly seasoned.
After dinner, we packed up the car, said our goodbyes, & headed home. Great weekend! Thanks to Connie for the wonderful time.
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