We've spent our last month on or near the Atlantic, which while that isn't quite Ireland, our time in Maine felt dang close. Well, at least for two people who have never been to Ireland. Thanks to a request from some friends who actually have been to Ireland (and who also happen to own a giant book of folk songs-- thanks, Megan and Ryan!), we can pretend a little bit more. "Cockles and Mussels" is considered the unofficial anthem of Dublin, and features an ill-fated fishmon

Oh Canada. Now, we had heard of poutine before going to Canada. We’d even eaten poutine before going to Canada. We lived with our favorite, angry Irishman bass player, Mike Shannon, for a couple years, and every time Canada was mentioned in that house, his eyes lit up like Christmas morning and he told us about this magical dish: poutine! French fries covered in cheese curds, covered in gravy. To hear Mike speak of it, you’d almost think it was proof that the universe wasn’t

We booked Michigan as we were sweating in Florida's heat a good year or so back. Mallory hates the heat. She really hates to sweat. "Michigan," she gritted her teeth. "We are spending next March in Michigan." And then, she furiously began sending booking emails. And then, she got responses. And that's how we found ourselves trudging through the cold and snow of Michigan in March. We haven't felt a drop of sweat for weeks, not even on our hikes. Mostly, we've been mass

And suddenly, we had all of the mushrooms. Listen, we're a folk band, We aren't talking about anything psychedelic, here. As we were winding down our down time, between recording a new album and releasing our new EP (Cardboard and Christmas Lights! Head to Spotify for a listen) and filming music videos, we needed a little something to keep the credit card from building back up to astronomical levels. So, we picked up a few babysitting gigs and a couple shifts at one of ou

That's the thing about secret recipes. As much delight as one person can get from being the only one to provide a very special treat, there's a cap. And when the delight expires, it's time to post a blog revealing the not-very-special-reasons why this particular recipe has been a secret. Because food, much like secrets, are always better when shared. Truthfully, Mallory has been making this chili for years, and only recently decided it a secret on account of the fact that

Mallory hates to make omelettes. You can ask her. She will scowl at you and make suggestions for a number of other elaborate, more time consuming breakfast options. She will pretend she is vegan again or change the subject to lunch. She will suddenly need to do another hour of morning yoga-- anything to avoid making omelettes. And truthfully, as a traveling folk band with minimal fridge space, we only indulge in them a couple times a year. Usually at a restaurant. With

It's tradition! And one of our favorites. Since becoming vegetarian, Mallory has been making Hoppin' John's (or, if you prefer, Hoppin' Jane's) every New Year's Day. Seeing as her previous tradition of pork and kielbasa and sauerkraut wasn't going to cut the new dietary restriction, The R&T has been enjoying this spin on a classic Southern good-luck dish for the last five years. Brown rice topped with spiced black-eyed peas topped with sauteed collard greens topped with s

"So what are your favorite things to make on the road?" she asked. We met our pal John's mom in the Ingles parking lot the night before, and she was starting to write a blog about her time on the road-- and the people they met along the way. We were in Black Mountain, NC-- our old stomping grounds-- which means we were always running into people we knew or kinda knew. And John's mom kinda knows us. And we were the people on the road she met along the way. We've been camper