Tag: dessert

Weekend Things

Lauren4 Comments

I got some questions for ya.

When did Lafayette get so hip?

Why didn’t anyone tell me how incredible Manchester by the Sea was?

How do you cheer up a broken-hearted Cowboys fan?

Why didn’t I sign up for that dang Women’s March?

Why does the weekend always end too soon?

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After exchanging Christmas gifts and watching that very informative video — child Josh had the moves! — the four of us set out for dinner at Community in Lafayette and oh my gosh, it was so good.  From the decor, to the service, to the food, it was all a knockout.  It reminded us all of Work & Class, what with all those small share plates of meat and sides that were so hard to choose from.

Remember when Brussels sprouts were just that gross mini-cabbage your mom always made on Thanksgiving and now they are the It Girl at every restaurant?  And remember when Lafayette was just a little town where your best friend lived and now it’s got trendy restaurant and packed breweries?  After dinner, we hit up Odd13 and though my Cultural Chameleon — a South African-hopped IPA — was interesting, I’m still all about that Codename: Superfan.

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On the Saturday side of things, PEPPERMINT MOCHAS & PANCAKES!  But actually it was peppermint mochas in thee cutest mugs from Hannah and Josh and Greek yogurt pancakes with thee fluffiest results from this recipe.  I was pretty delighted by all of it.  And by having the entire morning to lounge and watch The Kitchen on Food Network until 11:30 when I headed out for yoga at an urban winery?!

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Okay, so Jenn, Samantha and I — plus a million other people — went to a yoga class at Infinite Monkey Theorem and it was so fun (but also cold!) and afterwards we hit the wine bar then walked ourselves over to the Denver Central Market for lunch.  And this is the part where I tell you I spent four hours with the girls and took ONE PICTURE… OF MY LUNCH SALAD.  What is even wrong with me?  Fail.  But from a non-photography standpoint, the day was a huge success.  Ain’t nothing like yoga, wine and high school reunion talk with your girlfriends.

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Later that night, Joey and I made pizza then took ourselves to see a movie.  The theater we went to has complimentary popcorn and soft drinks and when I told Joey that, his eyes almost bulged out of his head.  He was just a tad excited.  All popcorn excitement aside, what I really want to tell you is GO SEE MANCHESTER BY THE SEA!  We thought it was incredible.  I heard it was “good, but really depressing” when actually, it was “depressing, but really good.”  I really liked La La Land but you know what?  I liked Manchester by the Sea even more.  Don’t hate me!  Go see it, then report back 🙂

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We started Sunday with breakfast at Jelly.  Specifically, we started with a small order of donuts and then I realized I am powerless to chilaquiles and will order it anytime it’s on a menu.  Mostly, I think this place is overrated, but we had to try it out one more time before we made that call.  The service exceeded the food, but I guess that’s not a bad complaint to have.

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After breakfast, we went home and Joey worked on his current house project — fixing all the cracks in our house, which mostly involves a lot of drywall dust EVERYWHERE — while I tackled salads for lunch this week, roasting red peppers for dinner and making dessert.  Then we headed to Joey’s dad’s to watch the Cowboys game, which did not go as planned.  1) Because they lost 😦 and 2) Because I thought if there was another Cowboys fan in the house, Joey would leave me alone when they scored… wrong.

So what I thought was going to be celebratory soup and dessert ended up being consolatory soup and dessert, but I still thought both were fantastic.  We hadn’t made that Chicken Sausage, Roasted Pepper and Whole Wheat Orzo Soup in far too long and though it was my first time making those Salted Peanut Butter and Jelly Blondies, I think they’re a keeper!  I tried to convince Joey to give up football by telling him I’d NEVER felt sad on a Sunday because of a sports team but he didn’t listen and went to bed at 8:30 instead.

Just realized it was a real good eating weekend — can’t be mad about that!

Summer BBQ Recipes 2016

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I first started drafting this post at the beginning of the summer when — after a BBQ-packed summer the year before — I was sure we’d be BBQ-ing all summer long.  Turns out we didn’t go to OR host many BBQs this year, but we DID turn on the grill plenty of times for ourselves and these were the things we made and loved.  I’m sharing with you in the hopes that it’ll help you (and I!) out NEXT year when we’re faced with that age old question: “WHAT DO I MAKE?!”

Apps/Sides:

Stuffed Mini Bell Peppers // What’s not to like about mini bell peppers stuffed with cream cheese and fresh herbs?  For what it’s worth, I’ve also made these in the oven (400° for 25 minutes) and it worked like a charm, but if you have the time and the weather is working in your favor, definitely go for the grill.

Cranberry-Almond Broccoli Salad // Have you had the Broccoli Crunch salad at Whole Foods?  Because this tastes EXACTLY like it, except making it yourself is way way cheaper and much more satisfying.

Lemony Millet Salad with Chickpeas, Corn and Spinach // Except we always use orzo instead of millet and arugula for the spinach.  Leave the greens out altogether for make-ahead-of-time-without-fear-of-sogginess ease. (Note: Literally just cut and pasted that blurb from last year’s BBQ recipe round-up :P)

Charred Shishito Peppers // It was the summer of the shishito pepper for us.  But they’re so easy and all they need is a little oil, salt and maybe a sriracha mayo to make them taste incredible. 

Grilled Corn with Sriracha Aioli // I think I already made it clear how good this was.

Super Clean Broccoli Salad with Creamy Almond Dressing // The dressing was A+ but if we’re being honest, and I always am, I liked the Cranberry-Almond Broccoli Salad (above) better.

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Mains:

Grilled Chicken with Honey-Chipotle BBQ Sauce // Got rave reviews on this chicken, plus the BBQ sauce is quick and outstanding.  It’s fun to brag that it’s homemade.  Chicken thighs are where it’s at!

Spinach Goat Cheese Turkey Burgers // These were in one of my “Make This Now” posts but I made them a second time on a Friday night when Bob and Becca were over brewing beer.  I loaded my burger up with lettuce, tomato and onion which I almost never do and I was kinda sad that all the fixins covered up the burger and most importantly, the goat cheese.  So, in other words, these don’t even need any doctoring up to taste their best.

Grilled Chicken Wings with Shishito Peppers and Herbs // Can’t stop won’t stop with shishitos.  This was my first time ever grilling wings — actually Joey did the actual grilling — and though I didn’t LOVE them, I liked them A LOT.

Grilled Lamb // Simply put, this was INCREDIBLE!

Tequila-Glazed Grilled Chicken Thighs // Oh the advantages of always having a bottle of tequila on hand!  It’s a toss up between these and the honey-chipotle thighs for best chicken I’ve ever grilled. 

The BA Burger Deluxe // All summer, I wanted to make a classic cheeseburger and this was the one.  The “recipe” is insanely easy and you probably only need to glance over it once to know it by heart.  

Green Chili Chicken Burgers // A loooong time favorite.  But there’s cheese, a green chili topping and they’re really easy to whip up.

Grilled Steak and Tomatoes with Tofu Ranch Dressing // Tofu and steak together?  I know, I know, but hear me out.  The dressing is so good and goes wonderfully with the steak.  Especially if you cook the steak to that perfect medium-rare like Joey did when we ate this.  We used green tomatoes this year and they held up MUCH better, though the taste is different.

Grilled Margherita Pizza // Grilled pizza is so easy that you definitely don’t need an actual recipe, but this one was my inspiration for the couple of times we made one this summer.  Kind of loved the addition of pepperoni!

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Desserts:

Vegan Chocolate Chunk Cookies // This is my go-to cookie recipe because it’s SO quick and the result is always incredible.  I brought these to a BBQ early in the summer and got a weird sense of satisfaction every time someone grabbed a second or third one 🙂  I usually skip the strawberries.

Blueberry-Pecan Galette // I’m all about the crust and this crust was INCREDIBLE!  Also, because a galette involves folding the crust over, you get a double layer and I was in crust heaven when I ate it.  Not complete without a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Peach Cobbler // ALWAYS AND FOREVER.  If this was an alternate universe where I actually committed crimes instead of being a steadfast rule follower, this would be my Death Row dessert.  

Rhubarb and Raspberry Crostata // Not gonna lie, this wasn’t my favorite thing I made this summer.  Why do raspberries gotta be so seedy??  But it was super quick and easy to make, so I’ll give it that.  

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Guys, that’s it.  That’s the last of my “summer recap” posts.  So long, Summer 16.  You were good and long and full of good food.  Currently, we are en route to Washington, D.C. for a little weekend getaway/visit with Fletcher and the forecast says “feels like 100°” so I guess summer lives on for me!  Happy Weekend-ing, friends!