Donuts, Tiny Burgers, & Cocktails!

My friend Lily's vegan donut business, Darling Donuts, has exploded! She's been doing once-a-month orders on her Instagram for special holiday boxes, and they're selling out so fast. For Halloween, the special boxes were sold out by Oct. 3! I tried to get one, but it was too late. So when Lily finally got caught up, she left a surprise box of random donuts on my doorstep. She is an amazing human! This box was actually my reward for getting to 900 points in my point tracking system (where I give myself a point for healthy actions like running, yoga, foam rolling, etc.). I started this in January, and I get a cool treat for every 100 points. 

These were amazing! I saved one apple fritter for the freezer, but the rest are long gone!

Here are some Gardein Beefless Sliders that I had for a quick dinner on Saturday night. My mom bought these while she was house-sitting a while back, and she left them in my freezer. Such a fun meal!

One day last week, I had a lunch meeting, so I grabbed a quick avocado toast from French Truck Coffee (no photo, sorry!). But I was still hungry afterward, so then I picked up a very non-photogenic cup of Chickpea-Lentil Soup from Juice Bar in Crosstown Concourse. It's nice to have so many dining options where I work!

And finally, speaking of where I work, our bar — Art Bar at Crosstown Arts — is open to the public again (after a long pandemic closure), and they're back to making beautiful cocktails. This one is called I'd Smoke That and it was very similar to a margarita (it has Dr. Stoner's tequila).

This one is called Stiff As a Board and has bourbon, reishi, and lotus bitters. Very lovely!

Lots of Takeout!

My friend Greg was in town last week, and we did lots of eating out! Way more than usual for me. One of our stops was at the new Plant-Based Heat, a totally vegan restaurant that's really knocking it out of the park with their delicious food! I tried the Agave Gold Vings (vegan wings) with fries. These wings were super crispy and coated with a tangy-sweet BBQ sauce. They offer Vings in so many different flavors. I can't wait to try more.

Greg is a big fan of Vietnamese food, and we have lots of that here in Memphis! When he arrived in town on Saturday, we went straight to Pho Binh and ordered Green Bean Tofu and Mushroom Tofu takeout. Unfortunately, Pho Binh is doing takeout only. I soooo miss their amazing tofu buffet. But the bonus to takeout is that they give you so much food that it lasts for days.

Paul loves Pho Binh's Tofu Pho, so he ordered some of that. But he never finishes an order, and I always end up with his leftovers, as seen here! Again, they give you enough for at least two meals!

We also stopped at Pho Saigon so Greg could order Bahn Xeo, which is what I would typically order as well. But I really wanted to try the Bahn Out (rice pancake) this time. These chewy white rice pancakes are topped with fried onions, fried tofu, fresh carrot and daikon, fresh basil, and cucumber. They serve this with fish sauce, but I asked to have that left off and then used soy sauce for seasoning.

And finally, here's a LuLu's Wake Up Wednesday breakfast of a Tofu Breakfast Sando with sauteed oyster mushrooms (that Don foraged locally!!) with a coffee from Boycott Coffee.

Brats, Pizza, & Baked Potatoes!

A couple weeks ago, when we were solidly in mid-October, I got into the fall spirit with an Oktoberfest-themed meal of Vegan Beer Brats and German Potato Salad, served with a Crosstoberfest beer from Crosstown Brewing. I used Simple Truth Kielbasa for the sausage, and I simmered them in Crosstoberfest beer. The potato salad was made with veggie bacon and cooked onions in the traditional German way (with a touch of added mayo, which is not traditional but delicious).

Paul and I love to go to the Wiseacre Brewing taproom downtown because Paul loves the pizza at their in-house eatery, Little Bettie. Typically, he orders pizza, and I just get beer. But they do have a vegan pie on the menu, so I finally tried The Slightly (that's the name of the pizza). It's a very simple thin crust pizza with tomato sauce, shaved garlic, olive oil, and chili oil. No cheese. I was a little skeptical of a cheese-less vegan pizza with very few veggies, but it was a good. More a flatbread with sauce on it. But good! I did add vegan cheese to my leftovers the next day. 

Here's a recent Baked Loaded Sweet Potato with chickpeas, kale, and tahini sauce. I love a simple and healthy meal like this!

I recently made the Don't Waste the Good Stuff Squash Soup from the No Meat Athlete Cookbook, which uses all bits of the squash (including seeds and stringy bits). It was really yummy, and you couldn't even tell the seeds were blended into the soup. I served this with some toasted sourdough from Lucy J's Bakery.

And finally, here's some Purple Hull Pea Soup made with fresh, local peas and tomatoes (the last red ones for the year!). I made this in the Instant Pot and served with some frozen cornbread that I'd put up after baking a batch a while back.

Goodbye Pancho's!

Pancho's, a chain of Memphis Mexican restaurants, is a local institution, and they're closing for good in about a week. My friend Andy and I had to make one last stop at the iconic West Memphis Pancho's (which is actually in West Memphis, Arkansas — just over the bridge). 

When I was a kid, growing up in Jonesboro, Arkansas, trips to Memphis for Pancho's were a big deal. My parents used to go on dates to Pancho's when they were young, and they continued the tradition with me after I was born. Pancho's is best-known for their cheese dip, which is served with free chips and salsa before every meal. Here's my chips and salsa (without the cheese dip) from last week's visit. They have excellent salsa!

I used to LOVE Pancho's cheese dip, and it was probably the hardest thing to give up when I went vegan in 2004. Seriously. If I could eat one dairy product again, it would be Pancho's cheese dip.

After I went vegan, I still met my parents at Pancho's for dinner a few times a year. They'd drive over from Jonesboro, and I'd make the 15-minute drive from my house in Memphis to Arkansas. My mom figured out how to make a vegan version of Pancho's famous dip, so she started sneaking in vegan cheese dip in her purse so I could enjoy "Pancho's dip" at the restaurant. 

I even discovered a vegan menu item around that time! Pancho's had a Spinach Mexican Pizza on the menu that can be ordered without cheese, so it's just a fried tostada with steamed spinach, olives, and scallions. I usually topped that with guac and Pancho's dressing (a mustard-y sweet dressing that is just about as awesome as the cheese dip! But it's vegan!). 

Last week, when Andy and I made our last Pancho's trip, I ordered one last Mexican pizza. They were out of guac that night because they've been slammed since the closure was announced. Everyone is sad about losing our beloved Pancho's. Luckily, they did have plenty of Pancho's dressing, so I drizzled that all over my pizza, and it was perfection.

Thankfully, they weren't out of margaritas! We had to have one last drink!

For those locals who still eat cheese, never fear. Pancho's is closing to focus on the dip business, and I've heard the dressing will still be sold in stores too. I'll have to make sure I stock up on the dressing to always have a little Pancho's in my house. 

Samhain Feast!

I had a fun Halloween/Samhain weekend! I started my celebration on Friday night with my annual Feast of the Dead, when I enjoy a meal surrounded my photos and mementos from friends, family, and pets who have passed. Pot roast is a traditional Samhain meal, so I made a Seitan Pot Roast using Julie Hasson's recipe from Vegan Diner. But I added sliced apples to the veggies mix (which also had red potatoes, celery, onion, and carrots) and some apple butter and cloves for a super fall flavor. On the side, I had some slow-simmered local turnip greens. 

On Saturday morning, I went for a nice run and attended a yoga class downtown and then came back home to carve my pumpkin. I'm never great at this, but I think this year's pumpkin was my best yet!

Later that night, my friend Greg arrived in Memphis! He lives in Kentucky, but he came down to spend a few days at my house for the holiday. We had plans to go to a drag show at the Hitone for Halloween (and later to a Halloween party at the Pumping Station). I dressed as Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek this year. There's an episode where she wears a trash bag dress, so I attempted to make one myself. It turned out okay, I think!

And Greg also went as Moira! He opted for Moira from The Crowening!

Paul was Deadpool (AGAIN! Ha! He wears this costume every year). Here we are the drag show!

On Halloween night (Sunday), Greg and I went to the HauntedWeb of Horrors haunted house, and it was fantastic. Best haunted house I've been to yet! It was super-long, and there were lots of spooky things to get the heart racing!

Race Recap: Big Buffalo 50K

I ran my second official 50K race last Saturday (but it was my third time running the 50K distance since I did it once virtually last year!). And not only was it my second 50K race, it was my second in a month's time. I typically don't plan long races this close together, but pandemic race rescheduling has led to a bunch of long-distance stuff being bunched together for everyone! Oh well! What can do you do but run it anyway?

After my last 50K — the Stanky Creek 50K on September 18 — I took a five days off of running and then took it easy for a few days with a few short runs, and then I jumped back into the end of a 50K training plan. So I was ready to run on Saturday morning! I started my day with coffee and a pumpkin spice bagel with vegan cream cheese, and then I packed up my car for the race and headed to Shelby Farms Park.

My pre-race photo before the 8 am start!

The Big Buffalo 50K was supposed to happen in March 2020, but the pandemic hit Memphis the week before, and the race was canceled. I was super-bummed since I'd trained for months for this race, so I went out to Shelby Farms on "race day" and ran the course by myself. The race this Saturday was the rescheduled Big Buffalo 50, so it was a long time coming. 

The course was a 10K loop around Shelby Farms that was part-paved, part-trail, and mostly open field. For the 50K, you had to run five loops. There was also a 50-mile race (that started at 6am) with eight loops. And there was a 50K relay, which involved teams that set up tents and basically partied while their teammates ran the 10K loop. That looked way fun, and I think I'd like to do that last year! 

My friend Amy did the relay with her friends.

The worst part was the lake around the dog park section, which was angled and had high grass. It was tough to run. Here I am on that section. But at least we were in the dog park, so there were lots of cute dogs around. At one point, I saw a three-legged dog catch a ball, and I teared up. I get a little emotional when running long distances.

The lap around this lake was the worst part.

The best section was the mile that went through the Tour de Wolf Trail. This section was shady and lovely! But it only made up about five miles of the 31-mile course. Well, they said it was 31 miles, but my Garmin said 32.8, and most of my friends' watches said something similar.

My favorite section on the shady Tour de Wolf trail

I carried my Plant Bites (made from dried fruit) and Muir Energy Gels (made with molasses and nut butters) in my hydration pack, along with LMNT electrolyte water and a full hydropak of water. I also stashed some almond butter & dandelion jelly sandwiches in a big plastic tub near the start/finish area. You came through that area after every loop, so people sat up chairs and tents with their drop bags and any items they might need during the race. It was nice to have a home base to pass by every loop.

There were lots of aid stations along the course with fruit and candy. The main aid station near the start/finish had the largest selection of snacks, plus mini smoothies from Smoothie King. I grabbed one of these after every lap. The cold, sweet fruit was so hydrating on this hot, sunny day!

I was hoping for pickles and coke at the aid stations, but I was out of luck. My sweet snacks started to taste gross to me, and I was craving salt. I always crave salt during long runs. I did score a bag of plain potato chips at the main aid station, and that was just what I needed going into the fifth and final lap. 

My friend Karla did the relay.

It felt so great to cross the finish line, and hear the announcer say "Bianca Phillips, 50k finisher!" And my time was almost a full hour faster than my last 50K time. That said, it was much flatter course and not nearly as technical. But still, I'll call it a PR! 

Another medal to add to my collection! Next up, I'm running the Nashville Rock & Roll Marathon on November 20!

Coach Kevin from Can't Stop Endurance was near the finish line, and he offered me a beer. And then I used my free beer token from the race for another from a beer food truck. The race had several food trucks onsite, but the only vegan-friendly food truck — El Mero Taco — had to leave early, so there wasn't any food for me. But beer was fine! And I snacked on some Protein Plant Bites on the drive home.

After the race, I enjoyed my beer with my friends Peter, his girlfriend, and his friend Allen

I would love to tell you that I ate something ridiculous and decadent after the race. I really wanted to drive out to Da Guilty Vegan food truck that was parked in Midtown that day. But I just didn't have the energy, so I popped a Daiya Meatless Meat Lover's Pizza in the oven and settled into my recliner. 

What I Ate the Day Before My 50K!

I ran another 50K this past Saturday, and spoiler alert, it went great! I plan to post a race recap tomorrow when I have more time. But I've only got time for a quick post tonight, so I wanted to share a rundown of what I ate the day before my race. 

I start really focusing on my nutrition two weeks prior to any long-distance race. Two weeks before, I try to just make sure I'm hydrating well and eating lots of healthy, complex carbs. And then one week before, I start focusing on limiting sugar and alcohol and getting the majority of my carbs from roots and fruits. And then the day before the race, I try to limit fiber while still maintaining a heavy carb load. Too much fiber the day before a race can cause GI issues, and that's the last thing you want out on the trail. 

I started Friday morning with a blueberry-mango-banana smoothie with flax, spinach, and walnuts. It was early, and I forgot to take a picture. But I didn't add protein powder since I didn't do much of a workout Friday morning (just a 2-mile shakeout run). Later in the morning, I had this Wicked Foods Very Berry Porridge with oat flakes and barley at my desk. I'm loving the new stuff from Wicked Foods (the company from vegan chefs Chad and Derek Sarno)! I added fresh blackberries to this.

For lunch the day before a race, I almost always have an Amy's frozen burrito. This was an Amy's Bean & Cheeze Burrito with brown rice, and I topped it with a little Kite Hill queso and Tofutti sour cream. Plus, some air-fried potatoes on the side. Yay carbs! The beans provide a little fiber, but it's not like a full-on salad. These frozen burritos are just easy on my stomach, and that's what I want the day before a race.

I also always try to front load a lot of electrolytes the day before a race, so I enjoyed this Harmless Harvest Coconut Water at my desk. This stuff isn't cheap, but it's fair trade and has no added sugars (many coconut waters have some added sugar). It was worth it to splurge on the good stuff for pre-race day!

And finally, here's my standard, pre-race dinner — Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Mushrooms and Sourdough Garlic Bread! Pasta just works! I know I can eat this meal the night before a race with no GI issues, and it's loaded with carbs. Paul always enjoys my pre-long run and pre-race nights too because spaghetti night is his fave. 

I typically have one drink the night before a race to calm the nerves. This time, it was a glass of red wine with my pasta. And then it was an early bedtime! I'll be back tomorrow with a race recap!