homemade risotto + nashville’s best BBQ

Hey there! I wish I could share a run with you, but it is icy outside and the skies are full of sleet. My friend Lizzie and I had to cancel our morning run date! Anthony and I are bundled up at home and hoping that it clears up later in the day so that we can get out there.

How was the rest of your weekend? After our long run, Anthony cooked up a Valentine’s day special: Risotto!

We followed a Cook’s Illustrated recipe for mushroom risotto and threw in some Italian sausage, too. Served with a simple salad and more than one glass of wine

Have y’all ever used dried mushrooms? They’re waaay more flavorful than fresh mushrooms (and about triple the price!). Give them a shot if you feel like doing something special

After dinner we concluded our Valentine’s day with a game night at a friend’s house! Good times.

Other weekend highlights included a meetup with some old friends at Edley’s in East Nashville. I think Edley’s is our new favorite BBQ spot — and that’s a pretty big deal considering there are approximately 1,000,000 places to get barbecue in Nashville.

Outing #2: a trip to the international market, where endless shelves of unheard-of ingredients kept us occupied for hours. I was in search of tamarind paste for a sweet and sour chicken recipe I cooked up last night. It turned out terribly — like, so bad we actually couldn’t eat it — but at least I tried. Ha.

And we tried another new thing this weekend: SHED Fitness!

It was fun. Full review coming tomorrow. Stay warm!

• Nashvillians: What are you doing in this winter weather?
• Anyone have a good sweet and sour chicken recipe?
• Barbecue: sweet and smoky, or light and vinegar-y?