The Long-Awaited Visit to Off-Site Kitchen

We finally found time to stop at Off-Site Kitchen for a burger. I've wanted to go forever, but parking at the original location (little more than a shack near downtown Dallas) was tough.

Backgrounder: Off-Site Kitchen (OSK) started as an off-shoot food stand associated with the meat prep facility for a locally owned restaurant chain. The burgers served were soooooo amazing that the owner decided to move into a new location in Dallas' hip Trinity Groves restaurant development.

(Side note: We totally need a Trinity Groves type development in Plano. Someone work on that, ok?)

When we first tried to go for a burger, OSK wasn't open yet. Fast forward four months and we finally found ourselves downtown with time available for lunch.

The vibe is cool. I didn't take any photos outside because it was windy and cold, but there are picnic tables and a variety of outdoor games.

Inside...cooler after cooler of beer, with el cheapo options as well as local varieties.

Plus a cooler full of fun canned soda and cold candy bars. Just like you might keep them at home back in the day.

The drink station has handmade labels and options from the standard Coke to locally made Oak Cliff sodas.

And a host of other drinks - regular and sweet tea, lemonade, punch and more.

The kitchen is open so you can see everyone at work.

We also spotted three frozen drink machines tucked away - full of frozen adult beverages. We couldn't resist the frozen bourbon coke. Or the Oak Cliff Root Beer. Both were delicious.

And the food. OH YUM.

I only ordered one side of fresh cut russet potato fries. That was a mistake that I won't make again. They were flavorful, crispy, not at all greasy with just the right amount of salt.

I ordered the Green Chile Bacon burger. The meat - 1/3 lb - was amazing. In addition to the bacon and green chile, it came with carmelized onions and muenster cheese.

Kelly ordered the Locals Only burger. It came with mustard (no mayo), American cheese, bacon and jalapenos. He was very very happy.

Now I'm super sad that OSK doesn't have a location further north. Maybe that will change someday soon?

Food Friday: Cinnamon Chip Bread

I had time on my hands one Saturday, so decided to make some yeast bread. (It takes several hours to make a proper yeast bread, with the prepare-rise-punch down-rise again-bake series required.)

I've been on a bit of pantry-clean out of late. The discovery of 4.5 bags of cinnamon chips hiding in the refrigerator was definitely a trigger for this sweet bread.

And sweet it is - think of it as a delicious breakfast bread. It would also be nice for French toast. 

Cinnamon Chip Bread

Source

• 2 1/4 t active dry yeast
• 1/3 c sugar
• 1 c warm water
• 1 c warm milk
• 1/3 c vegetable oil
• 1 large egg
• 1 1/2 t salt
• 4 1/2 - 5 1/2 c all-purpose flour
• 1 c cinnamon chips, no more

In a large bowl combine yeast, sugar and warm water and allow to sit for 5 minutes. It should be bubbly and frothy - start over if it doesn't. Add milk, oil and egg, and combine. Slowly add 2 cups of flour, mix and then add the salt. Add remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl. The dough will be very sticky (note from Shannah: This is an understatement - it was extremely sticky!!), but the softer the dough the lighter the bread will be. Use the least amount of flour you can handle.

Add the cinnamon chips and mix just until incorporated. Since the dough is slightly warm, the chips will melt everywhere if you mix it too long. Transfer the dough to a greased mixing bowl and allow to rise until doubled in size. Punch down dough and divide in half. Form each half into a loaf and place into two greased loaf pans. Allow to rise until doubled in size. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes. 

I baked these in small loaf pans and got 4 loaves out of the batch. The bread freezes well.

Dive Expedition: Fish Shack

If a little tiny local place that you've driven by for years is named "Best seafood shack outside of New Orleans," you have an obligation to try it out.

At least that's what I think. So that's why Kelly and I went to the Fish Shack in Plano for dinner.

It is tiny and the lines can get long - always a good sign. And there are signs telling you not to grab a table until after you order.

Tables are simple, no frills. Paper towels, every different condiment that you could want - from standard hot sauce to Tabasco to malt vinegar. Plus saltines. Nice.

We ordered a fried basket to share. The fried goods were crisp-tender and not greasy. Yum. The tarter sauce, always an important element for me, was delicious. The fries were ok, but not a style that I prefer. I like thin-crisp fries, these were fat-tender. To each their own.

We also ordered a side of hush puppies. Yum-o. I'd order those again.

Would we go back? Yes - even though street construction in front makes it extremely difficult to get into the parking lot.  Fish Shack isn't the place to go for Cajun cooking, so it's not the best seafood that I've had outside of New Orleans.

However, it is a great place to get a good order of fried catfish and hushpuppies...East Texas style. We've had a hard time finding that since our favorite place in Noonday, Red Acker's, closed. Problem solved. Thanks, Fish Shack!

Feeling Crafty: A Running Toolbox

Back for a second project designed to get the Dallas Galloway running group a little more organized.

Last season, our medical supplies were tossed into a box.

And our medical supplies were pretty basic: Advil, band aids and a bottle of insect repellent. Hardly as thorough as we would have liked.

So after the season ended, I picked up an inexpensive storage box (just $4). I went with red because that's a universal first aid color.

Then I filled it with all types of things that come in handy during the running year, from avoiding chafing to fixing ripped clothing, and from cuts and scrapes to depleted electrolyte levels.

Contents: 

• KT Tape
• Bandaids
• Non-stick gauze pads
• Non-stick medical tape
• Advil
• Electrolyte pills
• Personal-sized anti-chafing lotion (for the days that runners forget!)
• Vasoline
• Insect repellent
• Safety pins

Now we've got everything we need in one handy small container. More importantly, our runners know exactly where to look if they are in need of emergency supplies.

Feeling Crafty - And Organized

We've learned a lot after our first season leading the Dallas Galloway marathon/half marathon training program.

One thing I learned was that I needed to be a bit more organized with our running supplies.

First up: Organizing the piles of training shirts that our runners receive at season kick off.

To keep the process simple, I purchased several self-seat laminating pouches - the kind you would use to create a quick and easy luggage tag.

Then I used Canva to create tags for each type of shirt. The photo is one our runners took during the running season. I just changed the color overlay to blue for guys and pink for gals. That way we can tell at a quick glance which is which.

Tags go into the laminating pouches, press to close and attach a hanging strap. Very easy!

I fastened each tag to a separate bag of shirts - no more fumbling to find the right size when we're distributing shirts next season!

The Holidays in a Cup

It's an indescribable sadness to arrive at the gelato shop on a 80F Christmas Eve only to find out that they closed 5 minutes before you arrived.

But if you're determined, you'll regroup and return the day after Christmas for a bite of seasonal sweetness...

In our case, that was Paciugo's eggnog gelato. We also tried the peppermint (excellent and highly recommended) for a holiday flavor explosion.

It was worth the return trip. 

The Word for 2016 | Transformational

Our word for last year was "Overcome." When I wrote of selecting that word, just over a year ago, I said:

I think we're entering a season of overcoming what was and beginning to dream about what can be. ... I can't wait to look back on December 31, 2015, to see all the ways we experienced God's promise that we are overcomers.

So what did we see in that look back?

We were overcomers - in ways we didn't expect.

• We paid off our house 5.5 months early.
• I landed in the job of my dreams.
• We dealt with the loss of our beloved Ben and a change in dynamics of adding two new kittens.
• We started work on long-awaited renovations to the Hayley House.
• We met with our financial adviser to have our first-ever "What's next" discussion instead of  a "When we" discussion.

It's crazy.

So when Kelly and I sat outside on Christmas Day (an unbelievably 80F gorgeous day here in Texas, y'all), I asked him what might characterize 2016.

We decided that 2016 will be Transformational.

While we expect a transformation in basic things:

• The look of the Hayley House as we cash flow renovations.
• Our fitness level as we return to our old strength+cardio routines.
• A better life-work balance as we continue to adjust to life-and-work for both of us in Plano.
• An approach to rest, as we start to take vacations again now that the house is paid for.

It's the transformation in other areas that we're curious about.

• How will our level of generosity change? (Being generous - beyond the tithe - is a choice.)
• How will our family reinvent itself?
• How will our connection to community change?
• How will our friendships evolve?

Based on past experience, we know that we can't even begin to imagine what the future will hold - though it's still fun to guess, to dream, to hope and to plan.

2016...We're ready for you.