The Happy Gnome has recently become our favorite spot to have lunch. When Rob's brother Dan came to visit us a few weeks ago, Rob put together a list of places that had awesome beer selections. We stopped by The Happy Gnome for lunch and loved it so much that we were back again the next day for dinner. They have a huge selection of beers and quite a few hard ciders, as well, but it's the burgers that keep us coming back. Any burger that comes topped with pulled pork is fine by me. The adorable neighborhood and the fact that their mixed greens salad is so good that sometimes I actually want it instead of fries helps, too.

I always get a Bloody Mary and the Angus Cheeseburger without a bun or cheese, and Rob gets a beer and the Game Burger, which is bison and elk and comes with lingonberry mayo. Everything is good.

   

My Bloody Mary garnishes didn't make the photo opp--see a complete picture here.

The Happy Gnome

498 Selby Avenue

St. Paul, MN 55102

Food 5/5

Service 4/5
Atmosphere 5/5
Prices & Specials 3/5
Paleo-Friendly 5/5

Sometimes I feel like a really good planner, with my little editorial calendar and notebook filled to the brim with ideas and paragraphs from essays I want to write, and then sometimes I look at the calendar and realize it's November 8th and I haven't shared my Instagram recap for October, which I know some of you don't care for but I really like. So today I'm wrapping Life Lately According to Instagram into a Friday Favorites post--two series that I don't pay regular enough attention to, but love too much to do away with. I hope you enjoy.

1-4. My mom came to visit and then my cousin and her mom came to visit at the same time.

5. Rob's brother Dan came the following weekend and we toured breweries in the cities.

6. I showed you favorites from all three locations of our engagement shoot: One | Two | Three

7. Discovered one of our new favorite restaurants, which I'll show you more of next week.

8. Spent more time than usual in St. Paul. This cathedral is my favorite.

9. Went to a petting zoo at an apple orchard and met the sweetest donkey.

10. Addressed and sent out our Save-the-Dates! Six months til the wedding!

11. Spent an afternoon with Winona Grey Photography.

12. Been loving our little living room setup lately.

Life Lately According to Instagram is a once-monthly feature in which I showcase my favorite Instagram shots. You can follow along with me in real-time if you'd like--I'm @megan_flynn.

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And now for some links!

Culture and Inspiration
Sleeping Stranger Subway Picture On Q Train Defines Empathy And Is A Lesson In Being Good.
This piece on writing for a living was motivating to me: Slaves of the Internet, Unite!
Loved this sweet baby with passion eyes so much.
Artist Puts Disney Princess Filter On 10 Real Life Female Role Models. This whole thing is good, but I wanted to quote a section here because it really spoke to me: "Fiction is the lens through which young children first perceive role models, so we have a responsibility to provide them with a diverse and eclectic selection of female archetypes. Now, I'm not even saying that girls shouldn't have princesses in their lives...but there should be more options to choose from. So that was my intent, to demonstrate how ridiculous it is to paint an entire gender of heroes with one superficial brush."

Food and Some Reading
I can't get over how awesome these Epic Bars seem. I need to get some and try them out!
An interesting read: Broccoli's Extreme Makeover.
This looks like a really interesting read--I'm putting it on my list!
A new blog to check out: The Happy Type

Other Stuff
I want this pumpkin chai candle!
Sponsored: I'm working with Bing's Smart Search this month. Do you use it?
I thought this was so interesting: Swedish cinemas take aim at gender bias with Bechdel test rating.
Anyone have any ideas for Tara?
Edward Cullen is the worst boyfriend ever--but I think we already knew that. Here are 19 reasons why.
I can't wait to meet up with Eliza and do some collaborating with her photography business a bit when I'm home for Thanksgiving.

Quote of the Week
Those who make compassion an essential part of their lives find the joy of life. Kindness deepens the spirit and produces rewards that cannot be completely explained in words. It is an experience more powerful than words. To become acquainted with kindness one must be prepared to learn new things and feel new feelings. Kindness is more than a philosophy of the mind. It is a philosophy of the spirit. --Robert J. Furey

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What's everyone up to this weekend? 

We have nothing planned and I think it's going to be great.

Happy Friday!

After we went apple picking the other weekend, we had a bunch of apples in our kitchen. Imagine that. I spent a few days slicing one up and dipping it in almond butter, but I really felt like we couldn't go through fall without a dish that at least somewhat resembled/tasted like an apple pie. So I made this Paleo Apple Pie-ish Crumble. That's the scientific term for it.

It tastes just like apple pie without the sugar or grains. And it makes your house smell like the holidays.

Ingredients:

Four cups sliced apples

One tablespoon agave nectar

One teaspoon vanilla

The juice of half a lemon

One teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl before transferring to a buttered casserole/pie dish.

3. Top with Paleo crumb topping:

2/3 cup almond flour

1/3 cup arrowroot powder

1/3 cup butter, cubed

Two tablespoons honey

4. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until topping is browned. (You can broil it at the very end if you like.)