Music obsessions #6

It's been a LONG time since I have done one of these posts. Chris and I are going to Firefly music festival this year, so that is sort of the inspiration for this post.  A lot of times you go to a festival because there are a lot of headliners/upper tier bands that you want to see that make it worth it, but there are a bunch of bands that play during "down time" that are just as worth seeing plus you get to discover lots of new bands. I'm covering a lot today so I am going to keep the descriptions brief.

1) Vance Joy:
Super fun, summery vibe here. He have an interesting mix of instruments going on as well which is something that I like.

Band site

Right now he just has an EP (God Loves you When You're Dancing) with an album due to be released later this year. He is Australian which is always cool.  Interestingly enough he has a dual degree in both art and law.

Songs:
1) Riptide
2) Play With Fire

2) Jake Bugg:
You will recognize some of his songs from different T.V. shows and movies. Pretty chill music. Not as fun as a band or someone who specializes in different instruments. They are all pretty basic.

Band site

He is an English singer/songwriter. He has three albums with no signs of slowing down. He has appeared on: Conan, Jay Leno, Ellen, Jimmy Fallon, etc.

Songs:
Jake Bugg:
1) Lightening Bolt (you have probably heard this song before in commercials)
4) Seen It All
8) Trouble Town

Shangri La:
4) Me and You
5) Messed Up Kids

3) Twenty One Pilots:
I feel as if I may be a little late to this party. They are a bit more electronic/dancy, but not in an annoying way.

Band site

Two guys from Ohio. They have self-released two albums, but are now signed to Fueled by Ramen.

Songs:
Vessel:
4) House of Gold
6) Semi-automatic
8) The Run And Go

Twenty One Pilots (album):
7) Johnny Boy
9) Air Catcher

4) Fitz and the Tantrums:
Super fun.  Mostly upbeat music. They are pretty poppy, but I would still call them indie pop.

Band site

They have a pretty sizable band (6 members) which makes a nice sound.  They also have a female voice that I think adds a lot to them. They have two albums. I only have their most recent: More Than Just a Dream which was released in 2013.

Songs:
1) Out of my League (you have probably heard this song before in commercials)
2) Break the Walls
4) Spark
8) Last Raindrop

5) Andrew Belle
Pretty generic songs because he writes mostly for T.V. shows/movies and such, but he is a very good singer himself. I like it a lot.

Band site

He is a singer/songwriter from Illinois. His songs have been used on a bunch of T.V. shows including: Grey’s Anatomy, Pretty Little Liars, Castle, and Vampire Diaries.

Songs:
All Those Pretty Lights
The Daylight
I'll Be Your Breeze

Sorry no track numbers, but his albums don't have names in my iTunes right now.

6) Bronze Radio Return:
Little bit of a Mumford and Sons feel, but not too similar. Fun beats, good to chill out to.

Band site

Made up of 6 guys they formed in Hartford, CT in 2007.  They have 4 albums.  I only have Up, On and Over (their most recent album), so my songs will be from that album.

Songs:
2) Mister, Mister
3) Further On
6) All In

One to watch out for:
American Authors
I don't have their album yet because they just released it in March and I haven't had a chance to download, but their song Best Day of My Life is super catchy and is used in the BEST dog adoption video that would make anyone cry happy tears. 

This will be a two parter, but these should be enough to keep you busy. Enjoy! And as always feel free to let me know if you have any bands you would recommend!

Delicious dinners

It's been nearly a month since I last posted (sorry). I honestly have been a little too busy to do anything too creative :(. I do, however, have a few awesome dinner ideas to add into your rotations. I highly recommend the chicken avocado burger. They are AMAZING.

I'll start with the easiest and work toward the more complicated recipes.

1) Mozzarella, tomato avocado salad with garlic toast
This one is SUPER easy.  It's great for days that you have little to no time to shop or prepare food or just nights that you don't want a big clean up.
What you need:
Avocado
Cherry tomatoes
Mozzarella (the ball, not shredded)
Garlic
Bread (sourdough works really well especially if it is fresh)

What you do:
Cut the avocado and mozzarella into small chunks.
I left the tomatoes whole, but you can cut them in half if you want them more manageable.
Put the tomatoes and avocado chunks into a bowl. 
Salt and pepper the mozzarella. Make sure you really mix it in there.
Add the mozzarella and you are done with the salad.

Chop garlic.
In a pan, melt butter or olive oil and throw in the garlic.
Let garlic cook a little (but don't let it brown too much).
Put toast in and let sit until desired toastiness. Flip and repeat.
Put on plate with salad and enjoy!

2) Caprese Lasagna
Perfect if you wanna do a pasta dish, but want to switch things up a bit.

What you need:
Lasagna noodles
Ricotta cheese
Red sauce (I used garlic and caramelized onion red sauce and it was fantastic)
Fresh basil
Tomato
Mozzarella cheese (shredded)- optional

What you do:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Cook lasagna noodles to the al dente setting on the box (usually just a few minutes).
While it's cooking slice the tomatoes and chop the basil.
When the noodles are done, drain the water and place the noodles unfolded onto a plate or cutting board.
Using a knife, spread ricotta cheese along the length of the noodle. I suggest salt and peppering the ricotta to bring out more flavor.
Place a 1 tomato slice and sprinkle basil at one end of the noodle.
Wrap once and repeat.
When it is done you will have one roll up (the layers from bottom to top should be: noodle, ricotta, tomato, basil, noodle, ricotta, tomato, basil, noodle).
Place roll up in a baking pan.
Pour sauce over roll up and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese.
Bake in oven for about 30 mins.
Serve hot perhaps with a side salad and garlic bread.

 
3) Avocado chicken burgers (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED)
These are a bit more complicated, but honestly not that bad. The one downside is you really have to touch the ground chicken.

What you need (makes 5-6):
1 lb. Ground chicken
1 Avocado
2/3 Lime chips (wheat thins, tortilla chips, avocado oil potato chips, etc.)- crushed
1/2 cup Cilantro
1 clove garlic
Burger buns
Bacon- optional
Tomato- optional
Lettuce- optional
Heavy bottom pan, skillet, or grill (I used my cast iron skillet on the grill side)
Fries- optional*

What you do:
Prep all ingredients: cut avocado into chunks (can be large), crush lime chips, chop cilantro, chop garlic.
Add and mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Stir until mixed completely.
Add ground chicken and mix completely (you will need to use your hands so be mindful to wash them both before and after).
When everything is mixed turn on the grill, pan, skillet, etc. to hot. Let sit for a few minutes to get up to temperature.
While it is heating form patties should be about 1/2 inch thick. It should make about 5-6 patties.
Place on pan/grill/skillet for about 4 mins per side.
Place on bun and add any extra ingredients you want. Enjoy!

Fries:
Several potatoes
Cooking oil
Heavy bottomed pan or pot

What you do:
Thinly slice the potatoes so that they look like match stick fries.
Wash potatoes and dry completely with paper towels.
Heat oil to about 350 degrees (if you don't have a cooking thermometer you can put a small piece in the oil and see if it starts cooking... it will need several minutes to heat completely)
Put fries in and break them up to make sure none of them are sticking together. 
Cook for several minutes until they float and start to brown.
Remove and place on paper towels.
Put in large bowl and add salt and pepper and toss.
Serve hot!