you know how this is a healthy living blog?  and believe me, i work very hard to bring you the healthiest options my kitchen can produce.  i do research.  i make better choices.  i walk the walk.  i talk the talk.

except for this one. little. post.

if you are on a diet (who isn’t) you might want to avert your eyes.

my mother and i went on a little tour of the amish/mennonite communities in central missouri, not far from my hometown of jefferson city.  we were going to stretch this out over a few days, but one day of sausage gravy, fried foods, and pie was enough!

i like to think of myself as an honest person ~ a person who tells the whole truth ~ not just part of the truth.  so, i feel compelled to show you what i ate this last week.  (sigh)

brace yourselves ~ there is absolutely no kale or any kind of green juice in the following pictures.  you may be shocked by my behavior, but rest assured, EVERYONE needs a vacation!

okay, that’s just gross.  country benedict, with biscuit, local ham, runny egg, cheese, and topped with gravy.  this place is called “BURGER HAUS”.  (pronounced hoss by the locals ~ and i did somewhat feel like a hoss after eating that).  not my finest hour.

moving on to lunch at lehmann’s ~ an amish restaurant near versailles, mo (pronounced VURRR-SALES, naturally). so as not to confuse it with the versailles in france.

this may or may not have been my mother’s meal.  sorry mom.

i got the salad bar.

that’s the salad bar.

ha ha ha haaaaaa.

actually, there was a real salad bar, and this was the buffet attached to it.  the salad bar was great!  i put fresh cottage cheese all over my salad, to serve as a creamy dressing.  a great trick if you don’t like mayo.  i know i know ~ who doesn’t like mayo?  me!

that sauerkraut was a work of art.  truly delicious.  bbq pulled pork, black eyed peas, green beans, chicken fried steak, and that white blob on the lower left side was a baked italian fish.  it was heavenly.  i asked the server how it’s made and came home and made it the first night i was back in kc.  i’ll post the “recipe”.  although, it’s just fish baked in italian dressing.  but good idea, right?

there’s a closeup of that lovely fish.

but wait, there’s more…

introducing…

the best thing that has ever happened to me…

crunchy..

buttery…

perfection.

apple crumble.

you all might already know that i feel very smug about my crumbles and crisps ~ i use almost no sugar, and no flour whatsoever.  i don’t even use butter!  instead, i use coconut oil, crushed nuts, gluten-free oats, and a little honey or coconut sugar.  it’s really exciting to eat a guilt-free, delicious dessert.

and then i had this pie.  i hang my head in shame.  this apple crumble goes down in the top 5 best desserts i’ve ever had.  (1. my mom’s raisin pie, 2. a sticky toffee pudding i had in st. louis a few years ago, 3. THIS CRUMBLE, 4. any gelato ever eaten in italy, 5. family friend bonnie singleton’s sour cream cinnamon twists from circa 1980)

i don’t want to go on and on.  but, i could go on and on about this crumble.

moving on!

maybe we should think about something else.  here are some pretty pictures of mid-missouri in the spring.

there’s nothing like that hue of green.  these people have a type of wealth i’ll always aspire to have ~ serenity.

there was a lot of plant/herb/flower worship, too.

honey, can you make me one of those flower boxes?

the amish KNOW what they’re doing, y’all.

we literally paparazzi’d this house.

i ran across a busy street just to get some good pictures of that gorgeous house.

we also shopped.

don’t worry ~ we didn’t buy any of those deviled eggs found in the candy bar section.

after our pilgrimage to the land of plenty, we came back to jeff city and lounged at the canterbury hill winery.

if you think you can’t afford a nice vacation this summer, consider visiting your own state!  do you live in missouri?  missouri has wineries and beautiful landscapes.  we even have our own version of vegas!  (don’t knock branson till you try it)

if you love food and wine and beautiful scenery, you don’t have to go somewhere like california.  it’s closer than you think!