Friday, February 25, 2011

E: Taco Salad- Two Ways & Honeycomb Cafe

Wahooo for Friday! I’m so excited that its finally here!! How has your week been? Mine has been pretty busy (work wise) but good.

This week, I made taco salads on two separate nights, once for me and once for Josh. My version involved Hokan’s Chili Sauce with Garlic:

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I had never used this sauce, but was excited to give it a go! I boiled up a batch of fresh shrimp, tossed them in a tablespoon or two of the sauce and put them in the refrigerator to chill.

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Later that evening, I chopped up half of the shrimp and placed them on top of a large taco salad of sorts (spinach, broccoli slaw, chopped apple, salsa and a broiled tortilla):

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Not pretty, but delicious :)

Later in the week, I used Crisco extra virgin olive oil (disclaimer: I received this olive oil for free from Crisco and Food Buzz), to make a steak marinade for Josh.

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I followed a simple marinade recipe from Simply Recipes: olive oil, lime, garlic, cumin and chopped jalapenos (I eliminated the cilantro). After the steak had rested in the fridge for a few hours, I cooked it up in a pan with a touch more olive oil. I also added corn and jalapenos to the mix. I then placed the steak/corn/jalapeno mixture on a bed of spinach and broccoli slaw with broiled tortilla chips:

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Josh really enjoyed this salad.

And last, Mandi & I tried a new brunch spot recently, Honeycomb Cafe on Daniel Island (yes, we felt like we were cheating on Charleston’s cafe ;)).

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The restaurant is still relatively new and was very quiet.

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They have a great, traditional breakfast menu that includes everything from pancakes and French toast (which I heard a few people raving about) to huge omelets:

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M & I started with coffee (decaf for me, regular for her). I loved their mugs and that they offer skim milk instead of cream (if you’d like it). My only complaint was that the coffee was just warm…I like HOT HOT coffee ;):

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They also have free wifi (as you can see by the cords in the above picture ;)). We both were “boring” and got the yogurt, fruit & granola bowl. The difference? This bowl was made with GREEK yogurt (YUM!) and topped with honey. The fruit was very fresh and the granola was tasty:

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The restaurant was also super clean and the service was fabulous. Mandi & I plan to visit Honeycomb cafe again!


Honeycomb Cafe on Urbanspoon

Do y’all have weekend plans?? Tomorrow, Mandi, myself, Bryan & Josh & friends are headed to a beer festival. On Sunday, we have a blogger brunch! Enjoy your weekend :)

36 comments:

Gen said...

That granola/yogurt bowl looks delicious!!!!
We have no major weekend plans yet...but something will probably come up! =D

Lauren said...

Yum, taco salads are always so filling and delicious. I made something similar last night but it was more like a burrito bowl with tofu. Delicious!!

The Honeycomb cafe looks super cute! I love new little cafes. And the granola and yogurt is NOT boring. That is my breakfast every single day! :) LoL but its so cool that they offer Greek Yogurt. I hope more places get on the Greek Yogurt bandwagon soon.

ashley nicole said...

WOW! That granola bowl looks amazing! Have an amazing weekend. It sounds like a blast!

Stephanie @cookinfanatic said...

Happy Friday momma!!! :) Lovin' the Greek yogurt bowl, of course. This weekend we're taking a trip to some wineries just north of us and staying at the B&B that we stayed at on our first out of town trip together a few years ago. I'm really looking forward to it!

Renee Paj said...

My mom is like you with her coffee...she likes it super hot...me...I like to let it sit and get tepid...lol and when it gets cold, i still drink it! haha

enjoy your weekend, Erica! sounds fun.

Heather said...

I knew you'd get the yogurt and granola!! :)
Not too many plans for the weekend, which is good because we just got a HUGE snow storm last night!

Heather (Where's the Beach) said...

Oh that chili sauce sounds great. YUM I love that you made taco salads 2 ways. Mine are always pretty much the same ingredients. I hope you have a fantastic weekend!!

The Purple Carrot said...

I agree, warm coffee just isn't the same!

Sounds like you have a really fun weekend ahead of you ... enjoy every second of it!! :]

Anna @ Newlywed, Newly Veg said...

Sounds like you have a great weekend lined up! Enjoy it, girl!

Christina said...

oh darn, that granola & yogurt looks good! awesome that they used Greek yogurt. i'll have to check it out. i like HOT coffee too :)

CaSaundraLeigh said...

Oo that sauce looks super good--I am all about trying different kinds, and especially when they're spicy hot! Enjoy your weekend--hope you have nice weather & can relax a bit! :-)

Kerr said...

the menu looks good! see you sunday!

Jenna said...

I haven't had a good granola/yogurt bowl in a LONG time. Now I am craving one!

I am headed to warmth... Dallas, to help my brother move into his new house!

Beth @ DiningAndDishing said...

Sounds like you have a nice little weekend coming up! I'm exhausted from my past few weekends of being out of town/having people in town so I plan to stay put and relax.

Hope you enjoy yourself Erica!

Heather @ Get Healthy with Heather said...

I love how versatile taco salad can be. Jacob would love that steak on his (and me too in about a month!).

The beer fest sounds like fun, hope you all have a great time!

Maria said...

The fruit and granola looks so good! Greek yogurt is the best! Have a great weekend!

Tracey said...

That chili sauce looks so good! I would put it on everything. I'm a sucker for sauces ;)

Annie said...

ooo what a killer sauce!

i love little cafes!

have a great weekend erica!

Anonymous said...

No weekend plans and I love it!

salah (My Healthiest Lifestyle) said...

THis weekend should be relaxing....got a long run on sunday and an hour meeting on saturday, a little studying but at least I"m not working the whole time! haha those taco salads look bomb!

thehealthyapron said...

Oh I LOVE trying out new restaurants! Last weekend we tried a "Tapas" style restaurant and it was so fun trying little bites of a bunch of dishes!

Laural (bhealthier) said...

what a darling place! hope they do well long term, especially with blog posts like yours that make them shine!

omg, hope you have so much fun at your blogger meet up! I have never gotten to meet up with bloggers in real life yet! Although I did start a trend at Meredith College- one of my professors liked my blog so she made everyone start their own for a class project after I graduated! Shouldn't I get royalties or something? haha, anyway, I knew all those bloggers before they became bloggers. Doesn't count.

hope that baby is kickin and movin and growin!

Averie @ Averie Cooks said...

Your weekend brunch sounsd sooo fun!

The taco salad looks wonderful. Fast and delish looking!

Thanks for the link to your sloppy janes, checked them out...so easy, perfect!

Take care hon!! :)

Corey @ the runners cookie said...

I think those salads look very pretty! Love all the different textures you have going on. The granola bowl looks perfect too - I could eat granola and yogurt for breakfast everyday :) Hope you have a great weekend, Erica!!

Naomi(Onefitfoodie) said...

ive never mastered the taco salad thing mainly because I never know what dressing to put in it then im nervous that if i serve it to others, the tortilla strips will be soggy, its a whole saga but yours looks SO good!

and you are the queen of brunch :) looks DELISH!

Simply Life said...

oh that fruit and granola combo looks amazing!

Paige said...

That sauce sounds delicious :)
And honeycomb cafe sounds so cute! Makes me want to go out for breakfast :)

teresa said...

i actually have some shrimp that i've been wondering what to do with. that salad looks amazing! happy weekend!

Unknown said...

ooh, love that they used greek yogurt!! i'm always on the lookout ;)

Pound said...

love me some taco salads!!

i'm with you on the coffee temp, needs to be HOT HOT HOT!

Unknown said...

i love taco salads!! and shrimp!! MY FAVORITE!! Have a good weekend!! I wish I could join in on the blogger brunch! Have fun!

Katie said...

Taco salad looks delish! I always forget that marinating things makes the flavor so much better and can really amp up a salad. I'll have to do that!

Honeycomb Cafe looks SO cute. I'm always looking for new places to study... to bad it's in Charleston!

I'm working today (double) then studying tomorrow for a math test on Monday! Hope to watch a little of the Oscars, too.

Krista said...

Yummy salads, Erica! My weekend is realtively quiet which I am looking forward to. We have a nice dinner out planned for tonight. Can't wait! Have a good one, hun!!

Michelle @ Find Your Balance said...

Ah, a beer festival while pregnant. Have a few sips and enjoy!

Lea @ Healthy Coconut said...

I like your "light" taco salad. I love taco salad but I don't make it often because I put a lot of toppings, but if I make it more simple, I'll probably make it more often.

I love eating Dim Sum with garlic chili sauce, it makes it really tasty.

I have never been to a restaurant that served greek yogurt, how lucky for you to have that option at the restaurant :)

Julie said...

thats it i'm coming to your house for taco salad night. i'll bring the margarita! virgin obvi haha

i thiiiink you liked honeycomb better then charlestoonnnnnn EXCEPT for the warm coffee. that's just the worst feeling in the world because there's seriously nothing like hawt raging coffee! enjoy your weekend girly!!!