Tennessee, I love you: Tim, Taylor and Keith

Here I am again telling you/bragging about my trip to America and my new favourite place in the world Nashville, Tennessee.

I was there for this! It was so awesome. 

While in Nashville I did a lot of things for the first time. I went honky tonking, western horse riding, ate deep fried pickle chips, fan girled*. Some of you maybe thinking that I fan girl all the time and I thought that I did too! That was until I was watching Taylor Swift at CMA Fest and she bought out Tim McGraw and Keith Urban to perform with her.

I freaking lost it. 

There were screaming and profanities coming out of my mouth that even surprised me. I full on fan girled. I must admit that I'm kind of proud of that fact that I freaked out over something so awesome. It was so completely exciting and unexpected that if you were there you would've freaked out too..... maybe. Below is the official music video for Highway Don't Care (their amazing song) and a fan video of the actual performance. 

Make sure you check out Taylor, Tim and Keith's music and Tim's latest album featuring Highway Don't Care.

*In case you don't know what a fangirl is this is the Urban Dictionary definition: 'Girls who are fanatical about a particular person, group of people, or idea.'

Tennessee, I love you: The Loveless Cafe

I just got back from the US and I have fallen right into the post holiday blues. I miss Tennessee so much. I miss the long, hot summer days. I miss the southern charm and that fact that being from New Zealand makes you really exotic in that part of the world. I miss hearing country music everywhere you go. I miss drinking sweet tea constantly. I just miss it all.

One of my favourite parts of my trip was when we had a free afternoon we decided to go to The Loveless Cafe. The Loveless has been running for over 60 years and it one of the most famous restaurants in Tennessee. Serving delicious southern food to more than 450,000 guests a year.

Coming back to work was a bit depressing I must admit but I was really excited when I saw we had the dessert cookbook from the Loveless! I never actually got to have any of the desserts from the Loveless as I was too full of chicken and biscuits so I can't wait to try some of these out!

"This long-awaited cookbook offers recipes for all of the famous cakes, pies, puddings and crisps that the Loveless Cafe serves daily to throngs of hungry diners. The recipes highlight traditional Southern flavours such as peaches, pecans, bourbon, buttermilk, and sorghum. Including fruit, nut, and custard pies, layer and pound cakes, cheesecakes, pudding, bars, and cookies, the recipes are easy to follow, but the updated flavour combinations make them suitable for even more experienced bakers. Derived from southern traditions, the recipes come with interesting stories, which are conveyed in chapter introductions and recipe head notes. Essays extolling the virtues of Southern ingredients and food customs are scattered throughout the book. The down-to-earth charm of the Loveless Cafe is reflected in the full-colour photos and the design of the book."