Weekend in Blacksburg

This past weekend, I headed down to Blacksburg, Virginia for my little brother's graduation from Virginia Tech.  While I give my brother a hard time for going to VT (as I went to UVA), I am extremely proud of him and know that this was the right place for him to go to school.  I've only visited him down at school once before and while Blacksburg will never compare to Charlottesville in my book, I have surprisingly enjoyed both of my visits quite a lot. 

I drove down with my parents Thursday afternoon.  We arrived to (gasp) an extremely clean apartment and visited with my brother for a little while before dinner.  Mark (my bro) and his girlfriend (who also graduated) had whipped up a feast for their families:  whole roast chickens with vegetables, chickpea salad, and a green salad.  I threw together some guacamole from avocados my mom tossed in the car at the last minute.  Tip:  My "secret ingredient" for simple, yet amazing, guacamole is CUMIN.  My foodie friend taught me that adding this common spice to mashed avocados makes for a great guacamole when you may not have fresh garlic, cilantro, tomatoes, or whatever else you normally mix into your guacamole.

I did not partake in the the chicken, but the chickpea salad was fantastic, filled with the flavors of dill and pickles which remind me so much of summer.  I was happy (but not at all surprised) to hear that my brother's girlfriend got the recipe from one of my favorite blogs.  Head over to Oh She Glows for the recipe - I know I will be making this one soon!

After dinner we had Deep Dish Cookie Pie - another one of my go-to dessert recipes.  This dessert, like the Chocolate Fudge Pie, is from the creative Chocolate Covered Katie, and, like the Chocolate Fudge Pie, this is a crowd pleaser that no one will believe is healthy.  Spoiler alert: its made with chick peas and can be completely sugar free!  We all went to bed stuffed but very satisfied.

Coffee + Coconut Milk Creamer

On Friday, I woke up and went for a run, making my way to main campus and the downtown area.  Blacksburg doesn't have a very big "downtown" area, but there are a few streets with cute shops and restaurants.  The forecast was calling for rain, but the skies were clear and the temperature was starting to warm up as I finished my run.  I returned to my brother's apartment (where I stayed) to find freshly made coffee along with coconut milk creamer.  I was touched that he bought this special for me! 


At little before noon we headed to the university-wide graduation ceremony that was held outside at the football stadium.  By this time, it was HOT out.  While I was enjoying the sunshine, I was happy for the graduates' sake that the ceremony did not last very long (I know from experience that it is no fun to be sitting in the direct sun in a black cap and gown with no water).  After the ceremony, we grabbed a late lunch and spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing.

Friday night we had dinner reservations at the Blue Apron Restaurant and Red Rooster Bar, located about 45 minutes away in Salem, VA.  I called ahead and explained my dietary preferences, and the chef said that he was more than happy to accommodate me.  When we arrived our waitress had ready the chef's suggestion for me which sounded fantastic: quinoa with spring vegetables plus an Asian-inspired. salad.  The salad was refreshing - crisp butter lettuce with a miso-ginger dressing.  I also tried my brother's salad which was arugula with blueberries, Marcona almonds, and a lemon-honey vinaigrette.  Both were unusual and very tasty.

The Blue Apron offers most of its dishes in both appetizer and entree portions, so you can have a typical meal, or try many small plates.  Since many items on the menu looked good, most everyone else got appetizers (mussels, scallops, shrimp, crab cakes to name a few) and I did not hear one complaint.  Shortly after our entrees came out and I was immediately wow-ed by the beautiful plate placed before me.  It tasted as good (if not better) than it looked - perfectly cooked quinoa with assorted mushrooms, golden peas, asparagus, zucchini, topped with a sun-dried tomato chutney and fresh sprouts.  Although I was not super hungry, I ate every bite.   Everyone else also polished off their entrees and agreed that everything was amazing.

Saturday morning we were up bright and early - Mark graduated from the School of Engineering and the diploma ceremony was at 8 AM that morning.  After the ceremony, we went to check out the Blacksburg farmer's market (you know I was so stoked when my brother suggested this).  While the market was small, we all found some goodies: fresh almond butter and fruit + nut treats (me), cinnamon roll and coffee (mom), burgers with avocado and yam biscuits (Mark and dad).   We also picked up some produce to take back with us.

Farmer's Market treats

My parents were eager to get on the road and get back home, as they are leaving the country this week (my mom's first time to Europe)!  I was also ready to go since I still needed to prepare for my upcoming trip as well.  So we packed up our stuff and our goodies and got on the road.  It was a fun weekend, and I know my brother was happy we could all make it down (although I'm sure he was also happy to see us leave and have so me time to himself).

In the past 6 years I have gone to 5 college graduations (two of which were this past month).  Its always fun to spend time with family and celebrate the graduate, but the ceremonies all start to sound the same!  I think it is safe to say that I am graduated-out, at least for the time being.  Good thing I don't have any close friends or family planning to graduate in the near future... well at least not from college.  I imagine a yoga teacher training graduation is a much different experience.... =)