Tag: grilling

Weekend Things

Lauren2 Comments

PRO LIFE TIP: Tell your job you’re taking an entire week off for vacation then actually return on Thursday and you get to enjoy a staycation of sorts from Friday-Sunday.  Probably one of the best life decisions I’ve made thus far.

Also, I promise to tell you all our trip to Oregon — including a cute little stay in Portland — very very soon but I’ve got lots of pictures to sort through first, so in the meantime, please enjoy a little glimpse at those three days back in Denver before we had to return to work/real life/the daily grind (which isn’t so bad, but you know, vacation > anything).

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Odd13’s n00b and Codename: Superfan?!  Best wedding ever! // Congrats, DJ & Alyssa! ♥

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Had the morning & all the new Heart coffee to myself on Friday // The fridge was a wasteland but I burnt caramelized some bananas I found in the freezer and breakfast was a dream

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Post-vacation garden harvest // The biggest radish // The prettiest beet //  A surprise squash // Roasted em all up // Lunch perfection that was 90% from our garden and that made me insanely happy 

P.S. First taste of my newest kombucha (carrot-orange-turmeric) and it was mega-delicious and super-carbonated!

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Un-pictured Saturday events: Friday breakfast repeat, bike ride to the Farmers’ Market, veggie sandwich lunch, watching E.R. reruns on TV, evening run (why don’t we do this more?!)

Pictured: grill dinner of my dreams and a spontaneous trip to Ice Cream Riot for the creamiest Cookie Butter (me!) and White Russian (Joey!) scoops // Joey and Ned are ice cream buddies, for sure

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Joey chose The Noshery for our Sunday Breakfast Date and he chose wisely // Lori joined us, so everything about breakfast was really really good

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Garden gazing // stress baking (because real world events are horrifying)

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Sometimes wish Joey had a cookie for a head // Summer Bliss Bowl with Sweet Potato Falafel & Jalapeño Ranch was SO good (again) but it’s three days later and my house still reeks of oil // Also, GoT was kind of a yawn this week (IMO) but hell yeah to that band of misfits coming together to face the Army of the Dead at the end!  I need to see that flaming sword ASAP!

Make This Now: Summer Time Recipes!

Lauren1 Comment

It’s summer and every meal must be eaten outdoors!  Okay, not every meal (sometimes something really good is on TV!), but as many as possible.  Mainly to escape the heat of our house, but also because sitting at an actual table without our distraction, surrounded by natural light and the lovely sounds of summer — aka, the kids next door setting off fireworks, but also birds chirping and a slight sweet breeze through the trees — is the epitome of happiness.

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Simple Flaky Crab Cakes + Roasted Carrots and Red Leaf Lettuce Salad with Buttermilk Herb Dressing

Two recipe repeats that I had been dying to make again since last spring!  They were every bit as delicious as I remembered them being.  Get that good crab from Slidell, LA and maybe put some of that buttermilk dressing on the crab cakes too then let that wave of euphoria wash right over you.  Because Katie Lee is my food spirit animal, she is a trusted salad recipe resource!

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BBQ Chicken Burgers

I’ve had these burgers pinned for SO LONG and we just finally made them.  What a mistake that was!  I should have made them so so long ago and I could have been enjoying them for so much longer.  DO NOT MAKE THIS LIFE MISTAKE.  They could not have been fatter or juicier or more BBQ flavor-packed.  We loved them SO MUCH!

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Sesame Soba Noodles + Ginger-Miso Grilled Asparagus 

I’ve made about 50 iterations of sesame soba noodles in my life but I really and truly loved this version!  The ingredient list was short and I had it all on hand, plus the noodles were perfectly coated.  Also, soba noodles only need to cook for something like 3 minutes, which is key if you’ve yet to install your window A/C unit and are looking for things that minimally heat your kitchen.  All sesame soba noodles aside, THESE ASPARAGUS!  I love a ginger-miso situation and I’d never grilled asparagus before so it felt life-changing.

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Summer Bliss Bowls with Sweet Potato Falafel

I’ll be upfront and tell you this recipe does not provide clear falafel frying instructions.  Is it a pan-fry?  A deep-fry?  How hot does the oil need to be??  Ahh!  But relax, because I’m here to guide you to sweet potato falafel success.  Put a 1/2″ of vegetable oil in your cast iron skillet, turn that heat HIGH, then fry each falafel for 3-4 minutes, flip to the other side and repeat.  But these babies are just half the fun because jalapeño ranch, grilled corn, goat cheese, heirloom tomatoes and a sprinkle of fresh dill = a bowl of pure summer… uh bliss.  Okay, this recipe is aptly named!

Curried Grilled Chicken Thighs + Curried Cauliflower Salad with Yogurt

Remember when I came home from a weekend facial and Joey was in the kitchen, making yellow curry paste from scratch and I was like “who are you and what have you done with my husband?!”  This is where that curry paste went and HOLY MOLY so worth making from scratch and so very delicious.  Chicken thighs for president!  It’s maybe not cauliflower season but whatever because these two recipes went together so well.  We were both so delighted by this dinner.

In conclusion, Summer ’17 is off to a delicious start.  Where can we go from here?!