Attention world!!
It is NOT TOO LATE to get a booth at East Nashville's premier community event, the 5th annual Tomato Art Fest.
BUT IT IS ALMOST TOO LATE.
Artisans? Food vendors? Busineses? Nonprofits? People with cool stuff and ideas to share?
Download a booth application and contract here, now. Preference is given to applications received by Friday, July 25. That's the day after tomorrow.
Today Ashby [I gave up coming up with a cute name for him. He's stuck with the real thing.] asked me for the instructions to check our voice mail on the home phone. I emailed him the number and password, then I wrote,
"I haven't checked it in. Umm. Two months."
Eek.
I don't like voice mail in any form. It scares me. You never know what's hiding in there. It could be any kind of bomb. [Sure, I know this is irrational. Nonetheless, it's true.] So I avoid it at all costs. At work, I screw up my courage to check every time the message light comes on. I am at least responsible about that. But at home -- well, if you really needed me, you'd email, wouldn't you? Or call back when I'm home?
In fact, I'd prefer a phone without voice mail, but it came with the phone service. And Ashby seems to like it. So tonight, I put him in charge of it going forward.
But if you need me, just send some smoke signals or a telegram, mmk?
So I had the best weekend. Haha you are going to laugh. It's OK, everyone else has, even the 9yo.
I made a list of about 50 products that we buy a lot. Everything from milk to laundry detergent to tomato paste. And I went to Kroger, Target and Costco to compare the prices. Then I came home and entered them all into the spreadsheet I'd built to see which was cheapest.
It was so awesome.
The upshot: I've learned that of the things we buy most, except for laundry detergent, Costco is the cheapest -- in most cases, lots and lots cheaper. Of course, there are a lot of things you can't buy at Costco. And we'll still be buying all our fruits and vegetables fresh (and organic) at the Turnip Truck. But I will be making at least a weekly trip to Costco from now on -- many of the things we will buy there are perishable.
It's awfully close on the laundry detergent, but it does make sense to buy it at Target.
Next up: Checking Harris Teeter and Publix against Kroger. I have a feeling I know what I'm going to find, but we'll see.
That's what I decided after a lunch meeting today. Cheese dip doesn't taste good enough to make up for how crappy I feel after I eat it.
While I'm at it, here are a few more things I've decided never to do again:
I feel like such a dramatic pronouncement should have more dramatic content, but that's what I've got for you tonight.
I was very pleased with the tomato sauce I made last night. It was easy and you can make it, too! To complete this dish, I prepared some fettuccine, topped it with the tomato sauce, and added some fresh summer squash that I'd sauteed in butter over high heat. Delicious!
Tomato sauce
1 large onion
1 pt. fresh Roma tomatoes [OK, my pint was overflowing]
1 bell pepper
1 t. salt
1 t. dried basil
1 t. dried thyme
1 t. dried oregano
1 can tomato sauce
1 c. water
3/4 c. wine
1/4 c. capers
4-8 cloves garlic
Submerge the tomatoes momentarily in boiling water then plunge them into ice water. Slip the skins off. [It doesn't take long and is more than worth it.]
Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Chop the onion and bell pepper and add to the pot. Stir in spices. Stirring frequently, cook until onion is soft.
Roughly chop tomatoes [into largish-bite-sized chunks] and add to the pot. Stir well and reduce heat to low. Add tomato sauce, water. Let the sauce simmer over low for about an hour.
10 minutes before serving, add wine, capers and garlic.
Let me start here by saying to my skeptical Texan friends -- I know, I know. You won't believe me until you've eaten it yourself, and frankly, you're not that inclined to come all the way to Nashville [just to find out I'm right].
But I am -- this is the best Mexican food. Ever.
The details:
Los Rosales
1307 Bell Road
Strip mall, corner of Blue Hole Road and Bell Road [just west of I-24's exit 59]
Open 7 days, 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
I first heard of Los Rosales from some other local bloggers. Now I can't remember -- was it on Twitter? On a website? I know it's been discussed on Bites, the Scene's food blog.
At any rate, I dragged the then-fiance all the way down to Antioch earlier in June. And we thought we'd died and gone to heaven.
One more disclaimer: The now-husband is from Texas and he thought it was great, too. He adds: Good presentation. I agree.
So, enough already. What's so great about Los Rosales?
It's all homemade and fresh, that's what. And I'll bet most Nashvillians don't have a clue they're missing that in their Mexican food. But when you taste the made-when-you-arrive creations at Los Rosales, you'll immediately see the difference.
When you arrive, they'll bring out some fresh, homemade chips, and a dish with some pico, salsa and bean dip in three trays. All are wonderful.
Here, I ordered the spinach enchiladas. Rich and creamy, with a delicious avocado spread on top. The meat-eaters in our crowd loved the fajitas.
Please do not fail to order a margarita.
We enjoyed talking with Carlos Moncayo, the manager, who used to own a taco stand, but told us he'd always dreamed of having a restaurant. He says the recipes are all his mother's, what she cooked at home when he was growing up. Absolutely fabulous.
I'll just wrap up by saying that I have already been to Los Rosales twice in the last month. That's a 30-mile round trip from East Nashville -- about $5 in gas each time. It was well worth it.
P.S. Don't go when you're in a hurry. Remember, they're starting from scratch for you.
And: I KNEW I'd heard about this from my blogger friends. Lesley's been twice, too.