Happy Friday!

Happy Friday lovelies!

I am thrilled that my roses are finally coming back to life! I was getting a little worried, but with the little bit of rain we are getting, it has helped them start blooming! The roses are called knock out roses, which makes them easier to take care and easier to keep alive.  :) They are also absolutely gorgeous!

Speaking of flowers/plants, my sweet co-worker made the most adorable succulent plant holders out of pretty cups! Isn't that such a good idea? I adore it!

Now that things are slowing back down a little bit, I have had the opportunity to check out a couple shops around town.

I stopped at one of my favorite places - Bradley's (A/K/A Knoxville Chocolate Co.)! The home decor is so cute, it's difficult not to buy everything in sight! It is fun to stop in and see what new items they have. Plus, they have scrumptious homemade chocolates! I was craving chocolate, so naturally I picked up one of their mini chocolate sampler boxes. We will see if I can just eat one a day...although it is more likely I will eat all four today! Haha!

Right next to Bradley's is a new store called Zi Olive. Instantly, I fell in love! There are endless flavors of balsamic vinegar, olive oils, as well as stuffed olives, Himalayan salt blocks, spices, pasta, and more! You can taste test each flavor of the balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Flavors range from fig balsamic vinegar to bacon olive oil! There really are so many options for each person's flavor preferences! They offer samplers of mini bottles! I picked up the "The Employee Sampler," which contains some balsamic vinegar and some olive oil: Fig balsamic vinegar; traditional style balsamic vinegar, white raspberry balsamic vinegar, Meyer lemon olive oil, house EVOO, and Italian herb infused olive oil. I was also very lucky to receive a delicious mini bottle of the blood orange olive oil. Yum!! Besides those items, I had to grab a packet of dipping herbs/seasonings in the Mediterranean citrus herbs flavor. I am looking forward to cooking more with these items! Now I can cook more healthy meals at home, but not miss out on flavor!! It will be fun to experiment with different recipes with the new oils and balsamic vinegar!! :) Zi Olive has the perfect goodies to put together for gift baskets, or to just try out for yourself! I highly recommend checking this awesome store and trying their products!

On Saturday, April 30th from 11 am to 1 pm they will be having a tasting event featuring Chef John Alunni!

For more information on Zi Olive, check out their website: Zi Olive - Knoxville

Question Time:

* Which local shops do you love to visit?

* Do you cook with flavored olive oils?

* Would you try unique flavored balsamic vinegar? Which would you want to try the most?