Bountiful Baskets

When I started this blog, my intent was to highlight events/people/places that make Tulsa such a unique place to call home.  This week I’m going to stray from that just a wee bit and highlight something that I think is just fabulous, even if it’s not Tulsa-centric.  Besides – it’s my blog and I can do what I want.  Plus, if you're a loyal reader and don't live in the Tulsa area, consider this a special post just for you!

Some time ago my very dear, sweet, friend B. turned me on to a service called Bountiful Baskets.  Personally I found the name a little on the hokie side but honestly, what else are you going to call it.  Bountiful Baskets is a food co-op that operates throughout the US.  If you’re unfamiliar with a cooperative, it’s a really great concept.  A co-op is a group of people who pool their money (or resources) and work for the betterment of the group.  In this case, everyone is contributing towards the purchase of fresh fruits and vegetables, purchased in bulk, directly from the supplier.  In most cases, the produce you receive is grown locally and because of this, the quality is so much greater than what is available to you from your local grocery store.  Most produce available at the neighborhood market has been shipped in from all over the world and has been sitting in cold storage.  It’s not bad but there are other options available to you.

Bountiful Baskets Food Co-Op (BBFC) is an all-volunteer organization with no contracts, no employees, and no hidden catches.  In participating, you have the opportunity to get fresh, healthy fruits and vegetables at a significant savings.  In addition to fruits and vegetables, you also have the opportunity to purchase “add-ons”.  The most common add-ons are:

Ø  Tropical Granola ($10) – a mixture of oats, honey, sugar, coconut oil, dried pineapple, dried papaya, and nuts

Ø  Assorted bread pack ($10) – three loaves of 9 grain bread, one loaf of hot cross buns, one baguette

Ø  Hostess Pack ($13) – the week I placed my order they were hoping for red potatoes, dill, avocado, yellow onion, rosemary, asparagus, radish, sage, celery

Ø  Minneola Tangerine ($19.50) – approximately 40 pounds

The most popular item is the standard basket.  The standard basket is half fruit, half vegetables and will run you $16.50.

I picked up my first standard basket last weekend and I have to say, I was super impressed.  It’s an efficient system with minimal waiting and the quality of produce I received was phenomenal.  My basket contained the following: 

Ø  Broccoli

Ø  Cauliflower

Ø  5 huge baking potatoes

Ø  3 large grapefruit

Ø  Asparagus

Ø  7 blood oranges – I love blood oranges and these have been so good

Ø  Bananas

Ø  Living Butter Lettuce

Ø  Cucumber

Ø  3 Yellow Onions

Ø  Pineapple!! – not gonna lie, I was over the moon about getting the pineapple.

I priced the items in my local grocery store and if I had purchased everything there, it would have cost me almost $30.  So not only is the quality better (I think) but the savings is significant!!  Between BBFC and my local Farmer’s Market, I’m not sure I’ll ever buy produce at the grocery store again. 

BBFC is a great way to get fresh, quality produce at significant savings.  And let’s be honest, unless you’re a vegetarian, chances are you are not eating enough fresh fruits and vegetables.  This is the perfect opportunity to start taking better care of yourself and get back on track with that New Year’s resolution you made three months ago.

Check out http://bountifulbaskets.org/ for all the details, locations, prices, ordering instructions and everything else you need to know.  I promise you will not be disappointed.

 

 

Cain's Ballroom

courtesy of Jeff Mitchell
https://www.etsy.com/shop/BoxingBear

If you enjoy live music and you live in Tulsa for any length of time, it’s a given that you will find yourself at the Cain’s Ballroom.  I strongly believe there is nothing like the Cain’s anywhere else in the US.  It’s been recognized by CNN as one of the top 10 music venues in the US and one of the 10 great places to see a concert by Yahoo.  Not only is the building a throwback to another time, but because of the size, you can’t help but have an intimate music experience.  The furthest you can be from the stage at any given time is maybe 40 feet.  And how great is it that the place features a four-foot neon star AND a silver disco ball?!?!

The Cain’s was constructed in 1924 to actually serve as a garage for W. Tate Brady, one of Tulsa’s Founding Fathers – hence that whole Brady district thing.  It didn’t operate as a garage for long though.  As the country was in the grips of prohibition, Tate started opening the building up to the public as a speakeasy for Tulsa’s oil elite.  In 1930 the building was sold to Madison “Daddy” Cain and became Cain’s Dance Academy where, for one thin dime, you could receive a dance lesson.  



photo courtesy of CM

  
Although it seems foreign to us now, at the time a new genre of music was becoming popular in the southern states – commonly referred to as “western swing” – a combination of country music, jazz, blues, big band swing, and jitterbug.  The dance academy soon became the site of the Texas Playboys’ regular radio broadcast of this new sound.  Bob Willis and his Playboys broadcast their midday shows via KVOO from coast to coast for almost 10 years, thus the ballroom is often referred to as Home of Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys.  Even today his portrait, along with the portraits of other prominent musicians of the day, still graces the walls.  In 1976 the building was sold once again and received a complete refurbishment and reopened under its current name – Cain’s Ballroom Dancing. 

 

In 1978 Cain’s earned its place in the history of Rock and Roll by being one of only seven venues to host the Sex Pistols on their one and only American tour.  Now that’s something!

Today the Cain’s is host to such a variety of acts, it would be almost impossible not to find someone you enjoy.  I’ve seen an odd assortment of acts at the Cain’s – from Citizen Cope to Willie Nelson to Alice In Chains.  Some of my personal highlights though, are seeing Beck bust out a Bob Wills tune in the middle of a set, Billy Bob Thornton working the crowd like a mad man (yes, I know….Billy Bob!), and Scissor Sisters tearing it up to a packed house.

So if you’re in the mood for a concert experience like no other, check out the Cain’s.  You will not be disappointed!

Visit http://www.cainsballroom.com/ for all upcoming acts, venue information, ticket prices, etc.

 

My New Favorite Thing....Lone Wolf Food Truck

And we’re back!  The winter months found me hibernating way more than I should have but Spring is right around the corner and it’s time to get the word out about what is going on in Tulsa and why it’s one of the best places to live.

This week’s installment is all about my new, most favorite thing in the whole, wide world – the Lone Wolf Food Truck.  Lone Wolf has been around since last September but lately it seems you can’t turn around and not hear about the fabulous French-inspired Vietnamese food that is coming out of this truck.  The staple items are the banh mi sandwich, kimchi fries, and beignets.

The traditional banh mi is so simple and amazing.  Take a freshly baked, crusty baguette, pile on a protein of your choice (pork, chicken, or, for my hippie, vegetarian friends - tofu), and add vegetables like pickled carrots and daikon radish, cucumbers, jalapenos, and cilantro.  Top with a creamy aioli and you hold in your hands a culinary masterpiece.  It is so fresh and full of flavor and unlike anything you’ve tasted before.  One sandwich is more than enough for two people, especially if you get an order of the kimchi fries and believe me when I say you MUST get the kimchi fries. 

Pork Banh Mi

As good as the banh mi is, it’s the fries that I dream about.  Seriously – they are THAT fantastic.  Take an order of hot fries, top with kimchi, cilantro, cheese, some thai chili aioli, and some candied bacon and you are about to dive into the most flavorful, most stupendous, most amazing order of fries you have ever experienced.  The first time I tried them, my date and I didn’t get more than 10 steps from the food truck before we ripped into them like a couple of starving hyenas.  It was almost embarrassing.  Almost. 

Kimchi Fries

Recently Lone Wolf has added Wing Sunday to the rotation.  On Sundays you can get an order of wings (sauce flavors vary, depending on the mood of the chef, but previous flavors have been Asian buffalo, habanera hellfire, and sweet and spicy BBQ) and let me say, they are just as good as you would expect!

You can usually find Lone Wolf parked by Soundpony most weekend nights (Main Street, just down from the Cain’s) and they’ve recently started a lunch service – but being a food truck and all, locations vary.  To get all the updates and information, “like” them on Facebook and follow them on Twitter. 

 

I say this all the time and I will continue to spread the word – quit eating at chain restaurants, step out of your comfort zone, and support your local establishments!  The food is amazing, the people are friendly, and you’re helping to support your local economy.