Colombian Vacation: Part II

Let the second and final half of our Colombian vacation recap prevail! In case you missed it, check out the first half of my journey to Bogotá, Colombia.

I’m starting off from where I left off in Part Uno which is Saturday evening, just before heading out to dinner.

Jeff and Ana were really hyping up our dinner/night out joint all day. They said it is the coolest place and when asked to compare it to something from back home, they couldn’t.

“It’s indescribable, you just have to see it, then you’ll get it.”

The destination was called Andres Carne de Res, which basically means it’s a steak house. We drove about a half hour out from Jeff’s place to get there. Upon arrival I knew that this place was going to be incredible.

After parking our car in the lot, we were walking towards the restaurant entrance and passed two small buildings; one being restrooms and the other a room with little cots set up in case people had a few too many mojitos and needed a little rest. Crazy right? But smart.

Next, after paying the cover charge to get into the restaurant and bar, we were given bright red hearts to wear as our entrance tickets. We made our way to the entrance and were led to our table. I took in all of the eclectic decorations and was immediately struck by the lively atmosphere. This place is indescribable. They’re right.

 

The pictures I have don’t even begin to capture the outgoing and energetic ambiance. The energy inside was contagious. They greeted us newbies with crowns and sashes and entertained us with a little song and dance.

We sipped on our mojitos, ate some fabulous appetizers, steak, and desserts while enjoying eachother’s company, but the highlight of the evening was definitely this…

The dance floor. EVERYBODY was dancing. This is what Latin America is known for. They can all move. Every single one of them. I was so impressed and loved shaking it to popular music from the region. I didn’t understand the lyrics but it didn’t matter. The way everyone would cheer at the beginning of their favorite songs let me know if it was going to be a really good one or not.

We danced our little legs off for a good three hours (don’t mind the creepy eyes from a couple of us in this photo) before getting a ride back home.

And I crashed. Andres was amazing.

Sunday

On Sunday we all got well acquainted with the couch. We did get up to go to the market to buy some local fruits, snacks, and chocolate to bring home to family and friends, but besides that, the day was pretty much a relaxing one.

I loved trying the different fruits from the region! The market was like heaven for me.

 

Eventually, we cleaned up and headed out for a late dinner on our last night.

I don’t recall the name of the restaurant, but it specialized in meat mostly: steaks, chicken, seafood, and the special of the day was lamb. I wasn’t feeling too adventurous that night, so I stuck with the chicken. It was in a red wine sauce and topped with fresh herbs. Pretty tasty!

Ana and Jeff surprised me with birthday presents considering they won’t be seeing me on my birthday which was SO sweet and completely unexpected. They gave me a super cute black purse and a scarf. I love them both. I wore the scarf the next day in Bogotá, which is the perfect segway…

Our last morning in Bogotá

We got so lucky with nice weather during our stay. Jeff couldn’t believe how nice it was while we were there. He said it was unseasonably warm and dry. It even hit 80°F one day! Typically it rains just about every day and the temperature hovers right around 65° F. The last morning was a rainy one, but it didn’t stop us from heading out.

We started our day the right way…with Colombian coffee (num) and then made our way to the mall for a brunch time lunch.

Jeff and Ana wanted us to try this burger joint that they enjoy. It was kind of funny to me ending our trip with an all-American meal, but I liked it. I was having a difficult time making a decision (weird) so I ordered a regular burger with tomato and lettuce on a whole grain tortilla.

It hit the spot. We hung out and chatted as I soaked up every last bit of Jeff that I could before he head to bring us to the airport for our departure back to Minnesota.

Our weekend in Bogotá flew by but was filled with so many wonderful memories, sights, FOOD, and friends. I am so happy that we finally made the journey out to visit Jeff to see where he lives, works, hangs out, and to meet his wonderful friends and beautiful girlfriend. Thank you for everything! I love you so much and can’t wait to see you again!

Te amo,

Your baby sister.

 

Continue Reading Colombian Vacation: Part II

Hearty Lentils with Spinach

Hello there! Happy Sunday my friends. What’s everyone have on the agenda? Resting and relaxing or running errands and prepping for the week ahead? Whatever it may be I hope it’s a good one so far!

I still have yet to recap the second part of our Colombia vacation but I was really itching to write a “normal” post plus I have a recipe I want to share with you all, so the second recap will have to wait a little while longer. Here’s the Miami recap, and Colombia Part I recap if you’re interested.

I have a little bit of catching up to do from Friday first so we’re going to be starting off there right at lunch time. To celebrate my birthday (a week early) my co-workers and I went out to Houlihan’s for lunch. I received a free $15 coupon for my birthday to the restaurant so that’s why we decided to go there.

I ordered the french onion soup and a caesar salad with grilled chicken and polenta croutons. I was very happy with both of my selections.

Tasty!

Moving on to dinner…

This is your forewarning that the meal you are about to see is one of the most unappetizing dishes ever to appear on BN. However, I promise you that although unappealing to the eyes, it is very appealing to the palate.

Hearty Lentils with Spinach.

After I plated the lentils over the spinach, I stirred the warm lentils into the spinach and decided that I liked it that way better.

Oh yes I am falling in love with lentils. First the Curry Stew and now this.

Hearty Lentils with Spinach
Print
Ingredients
  • 1 small onion, diced
  • 1 cup carrots, chopped
  • 1½ cups lentils
  • ¾ tsp. garlic powder
  • ½ tsp. ginger powder
  • ¾ tsp. cumin
  • ½ tsp. curry
  • ¼ tsp. paprika
  • 1 Tbsp. brown sugar
  • 3 cups reduced sodium chicken broth*
  • 3 cups spinach
  • *Use vegetable broth if cooking vegetarian
Instructions
  1. In a medium saucepan, saute onions and carrots on stovetop for 3 minutes.
  2. Add in spices and stir.
  3. Add in chicken broth, stir, reduce heat to simmer, cover and let simmer for 2 hours; stirring occasionally.
  4. Before serving, add spinach and stir in until it wilts into lentils.
  5. Serve hot.

It’s such a hearty and healthy dish that I truly enjoyed (and Dana did too).

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Saturday

I enjoyed two cups of Dunkin Donut’s Pumpkin Spice coffee with hazelnut creamer to kickstart my morning.

Have you tried this stuff?! If you haven’t please go buy some. You won’t regret it. NUM.

Next was breakfast. I topped one banana half with Parkers Farm creamy peanut butter and the other half with Peanut Butter & Co’s Dark Chocolate Dreams peanut butter. Yes it is a dream how good that stuff is. A dangerous dream. Thanks to Peanut Butter & Co. for sending me some coupons for their heavenly product.

I gave breakfast time to settle while watching two episodes of Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations, Dominican Republic and Maine. Both episodes were great. His humor cracks me up.

Then it was time to lace up and head out the door and face the dreary morning with a run. Moose surely didn’t care that it was drizzly and dreary, he was so ready to go. We trekked through the neighborhood and covered about 4 miles.

The rest of the day was spent cleaning up the house, “helping” Dana dig out the window well to prepare for egress windows so that we can finish our basement at some point, putting the patio furniture away for the season, hanging out with Moose, and baking up a treat for the worker crew.

Recipe to come soon!

I hope you’re having an excellent weekend. Catch up with you all later!

 

Continue Reading Hearty Lentils with Spinach

Colombian Adventure: Part I

Happy Happy Friday!

It’s time to begin the big Bogotá, Colombia recap! I was going to try to fit it all into one post but it was nearly impossible, so I’m going to break it down into two posts: the first half of the trip and the second half of the trip. I weeded through the photos to condense as much as possible, yet still fill you in on the good stuff. It wasn’t easy, but here’s what I came up with.

The first half of our Colombian adventure

Upon arrival in Bogotá, we met up with my brother Jeff who lives and works in the city and is also fluent in spanish. He had to finish up a couple of things at work, so Dana and I spent a couple of hours relaxing, and I talked myself into a 25-minute yoga session. Denise Austin really makes you work.

Later in the evening, our gracious host was home so we cleaned up and headed out to meet up with some friends for dinner.

The restaurant we went to was called Carta Central and their specialty is ceviche. Jeff said we had to experience their ceviche.

We ordered a couple of appetizers: one was fried seafood (calamari, shrimp, etc.) and the other was ceviche served with avocados. I snapped photos of both of them but they turned out to be pretty hideous, so they got the “x”.

I’m not a huge “fishy-fish” person meaning I don’t like my fish to taste fishy, and I’m weird about textures when it comes to seafood too, so I went the safer route and chose a shrimp ceviche where the shrimp are fully cooked. This particular dish came in a light cream sauce with plantains and chives. It was awesome! My first experience with ceviche was definitely a good one.

It was super dark in the restaurant so I apologize for the terrible flash on this bad boy but you can at least get an idea of my delicious dish.

Here is our wonderful group at dinner…

After dinner we walked back to Jeff’s place and crashed. We needed our rest for the adventures of tomorrow.

Saturday in Bogotá

In the morning we walked over to a restaurant called Bagatelle for some breakfast. Colombia is known for their amazing juices so Dana and I split a guanabana mandarin juice (on the left) and Jeff got pineapple juice with mint. Both were excellent and so refreshing!

I love all of the fresh herbs used in Colombia. It inspires me to want to try to grow a mint plant in my house this winter. Is that possible? Any thoughts?

For breakfast I ordered some type of egg souffle. I was challenged each time we went out to eat considering I couldn’t understand half of the menu. I took spanish back in middle school and freshman year of high school, and I still remember some vocab, but not enough to decipher over the content of the menus and be 100% sure of my decision. 🙂 Also, I didn’t want to bother my brother or Dana each time it came down to it since they were trying to decide on their order as well. I did my best, and the boys (and Ana) helped me too.

Back to this egg dish…what they do is mix the egg whites with parmesan cheese and they whip them up and bake them so it turns into a souffle and in the middle of the puffy mass are two runny yolks. It looked like a TON of food when it was brought to the table, but it was actually very light, yet still filling. Again, the power of eggs and their satiety rate I tell ya.

After breakfast, Jeff, Ana, Dana and I made our way out to explore the city. Our first stop was taking a gondola up to the top of a mountain to visit Monserrate which is a beautiful church in the mountains.

Did I mention I’m claustrophobic? I was happy the packed gondola ride was a short one.

The stunning views on top of the mountain…

The entrance to the market area…

And the market where I tried ants for the first time and the last time. Ants are a delicacy in Colombia. There are only two regions in Colombia where they find these ants. They fry them and salt them and I have also heard they come in chocolate-covered, and people eat them. When in Rome…I tried some ants.

Okay, I tried a single ant. It tasted like a salty dirty soy nut. I may have preferred chocolate covered? I am proud of myself for trying it but am happy to say I never have to do that again.

After our mountain adventure, we walked over to La Candelaria which is a historic area in downtown Bogotá. We all shared a bag of freshly fried plantain chips which were SO good.

The side streets were lined with small cafes and restaurants. We stopped into one and ordered an authentic tamale which we all split.

Pretty tasty!

Next stop, empanadas. Tamales and empanadas were two things on my list of foods to try while in Bogotá.

They were pretty good but not as good as a homemade version a Colombian friend of mine makes. 😉

We ended up having a snacky lunch with the plantain chips, the tamale, and empanadas which I actually prefer to one big meal. That way I am able to try more foods and not be completely stuffed.

I bought a sweet treat while we were at the tamale place. I am not 100% sure what it’s made of but I do know the outside is candied guava. The inside is sort of like a thick caramel. I really enjoyed this guy.

I’m going to stop there and save Saturday evening-Monday for the next Bogotá post. I am having so much fun reliving the memories! We seriously had such an incredible time and were able to see so much of the city in such a short period of time.

More to come soon!

Have a wonderful day my friends!

 

 

Continue Reading Colombian Adventure: Part I

The Beginning of Our Journey: South Beach Style

Hi to my amazing readers! I’m back!

We made it home safe and sound from our vacation to Bogotá, Colombia. We had deemed this vacation as an extended part of our wedding anniversary celebration. We had a layover in Miami, so we planned a couple of days in South Beach to enjoy the weather and relax before heading to Bogotá. We had the greatest time while we were away.

I am going to start the recap of our trip and do my best to condense our day and a half stay in Miami into one post today. It might be a dooooozy! You have been forewarned.

Miami Recap: Day One

Wednesday morning we flew out of Minneapolis and began the journey to Miami. Coffees in hand were necessary being we were up at 3 am.

Bienvenido a Miami. We stayed at the beautiful Hilton Bentley right on south beach. We were greeted by the friendly staff as well a complimentary bottle of Prosecco. Our room was gorgeous; complete with white robes, a kitchen, living room, and a stunning beach and city view.

      

The weather was perfect the entire time we were there; about 80° F and sunny. I was anxious to get out and enjoy the sun and we were both pretty hungry at this point, so we changed into our swimsuits and shorts, heading down to the walking path by the beach, and walked to a restaurant called The Front Porch. I couldn’t help but keep singing Vanilla Ice’s,  Ice Ice Baby lyrics, “the block was dead yo, so I continued to A1A Beachfront Avenue!”

I ordered the chicken satay omelett which was made up of eggs of course, basil, grilled chicken, mozzarella, spinach, and a satay sacue made from peanuts, red curry paste, coconut milk, cilantro, and lime.

It was such an unusual combination that I never would have imagined but it was AMAZING.

The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing and enjoying the sun. We laid by the pool, went in the hot tub, enjoyed our Prosecco, and later headed out to explore more of Miami.

On our way to dinner, we made a pit stop at Kardashian’s DASH Miami to check it out and who knows, maybe run in to one of the girls?! No such luck with the celebrity spotting but it was neat to go inside. I really liked the clothing but it was slightly out of my price range!

We ate dinner at Larios On the Beach along Ocean Drive. The restaurant is owned by Gloria Estefan and has excellent Cuban food. I ordered Ropa Viejo which is shredded beef with onions and peppers in tomato Cuban criolla sauce, served with plantains, and rice and beans.

I am a huge fan of Cuban food. My goodness that dinner was great! While enjoying dinner we also were highly entertained by passerby’s who were dressed up in their Halloween get-up.

After dinner we headed over to Lincoln Road which is an area lined with shops, bars, and restaurants.This is where the action was. People were packed in the streets and sidewalks, and the majority were dressed in costume. It was insane!

I was completely overwhelmed as I walked through this area, trying to weed through the crowd, yet also notice each and every costume and take it all in. The energy was incredible, but I was definitely happy once we were clear of the chaos. I should have packed my costume! What was I thinking? Oh well!

I think we calculated about 7 miles that we had covered on foot for the day. The combination of that and being sleep deprived put me right into a sleep coma as soon as we made it back to the hotel.

Miami Day Two

I did my best to follow a gluten-free diet while away on vacation. I gave in a couple of times but for the most part did a pretty great job. On day 2, we ate breakfast at the hotel and I managed to keep it very GF friendly (that’s gluten-free not girlfriend btw). 😉

Eggs, bacon, sausage (not a fan), fresh fruit, and coffee of course.

After our protein-packed breakfast, we laced up and headed out for a long walk to scope out more of South Beach. We made our way to the beach, and to a long boardwalk. We then curved around and covered foot on more of the “city” area as well.

Absolutely stunning views.

We rented bikes for the afternoon and drove down towards Lincoln Road again to scope out a place to eat lunch. To give you some idea of how well our breakfasts held us over, we ate breakfast at about 9:30, and we didn’t eat lunch/weren’t hungry for lunch until around 4:00 pm. That’s the power of protein! So really we were out on the prowl for late lunch/early dinner….Linner.

  

I was overwhelmed by the number of dining options, but knew I was in the mood for some veggies. We peaked at the menus and decided on a restaurant called Nexxt. They served just about everything you could ever want.

I must have been in a Thai food mood while in Miami because I ordered the Thai Cilantro Cashew Chicken Salad (the day before I ordered the Thai peanut omelett). But really how can you go wrong with peanut sauce?

 

I took off the fried tortillas and really went to town on this thing. It was monstrous and I was so glad because I was loving every bite of it. I walked away feeling satisfied. We hopped on our bikes and made our way back to the hotel.

One last trip to the hot tub. I felt like it was our own private hot tub because no one was in there either times we went! VIP baby.

Since we ate a late lunch/early dinner, and neither of us our ones to stay up too late, we decided against going to dinner. We headed out though around 8 pm to walk the city one last time, and to grab some frozen yogurt. Our phones guided us to a frozen yogurt shop about 10 blocks up from our hotel only to lead us to what was now a travel agency of some sort. Thanks a lot. Oh well, at least we had a nice walk.

We headed towards the next location on the map. It was closed. I believe there was a third stop in there. It was open but didn’t look too impressive. Maybe we weren’t meant to get frozen yogurt? Okay, let’s try the very last one on the map. Apparently frozen yogurt isn’t too popular in this area yet. The last attempt led us to a gelato shop called 4D. Hey, they were open, and although it wasn’t frozen yogurt, at this point we were more than ready for a cool treat.

The not-so-friendly gal behind the counter served us up a nice two scoop cup of gelato (caramel swirl and chocolate hazelnut for me), and we walked out of there smiling. Mission accomplished!

Nothing beats Italy’s gelato though I tell ya. Nothing. We headed back to our hotel, packed up our room, and called it an early night. Our flight was taking off early the next morning and we wanted to be well-rested for the next leg of our journey.

I would absolutley recommend visiting South Beach. There is so much to see, it is a great area for people watching (Halloween or not), the weather is unbeatable, and the food is incredible.

We so enjoyed our time in Miami and the Hotel Bentley was wonderfully accommodating. So that’s our Miami vaca in a nutshell. Next up, our trip to Bogota to visit my brother Jeffrey. It may take me more than one post to fill you all in on that portion, but it will be coming soon!

It’s bittersweet to be back. Although I was only gone for 6 days, I missed everyone at home, but now it’s back to reality. Time to make more money to fund our next vacation! 😉

I hope you all are having a great week so far. Happy hump day and happy no more Presidential ad campaigns! Wooooo!

 

Continue Reading The Beginning of Our Journey: South Beach Style

Mediterranean Dinner Table for Two

Happy Friday to you all!

Last night, I was not in any type of cooking mood believe it or not, and neither was Dana. We made the decision to go out and spent the next 20 minutes trying to decide where to go. I was beyond hungry so couldn’t really pinpoint what sounded good.

We ended up at an old favorite, The Mediterranean (<—-another word I need to learn how to spell) Cruise Café, aka Med Cruise. We still had a gift card from our wedding there and decided this would be the perfect opportunity to use it up.

The restaurant offers original creations from Jerusalem, Palestine, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Italy, Turkey and Greece [according to their website]. Besides having AWESOME food, their restaurant is beautiful and has an open spacious floor plan, full of red, gold, and neutral colors and chandelier fixtures, they offer hookahs out on their back patio, and to top it off, they have belly dancers Thursday-Sunday!

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Photos courtesy of Mediterranean Cruise Cafe

We like the place so much that we actually held our groom’s dinner there the night before our wedding. I thought it was kind of neat we decided on the Med Cruise last night since we just celebrated our one year anniversary at the Holiday Inn and relived dinner at Rudy’s Redeye there, now we can relive our groom’s dinner here.

Groom’s Dinner: September 30th, 2011

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Dinner Last Night

Once we were seated both of us were ravenous. We each ordered a Greek side salad to start with tomatoes, onion, cucumbers, olives, feta cheese with a herb dressing. We split a small order of hummus which was the equivalent to an entire package you would buy at the store! Hey, I’m not complaining.

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For dinner we split an entrée whose name I cannot remember, but it had seasoned chicken and sautéed vegetables and was served over yellow rice. It sounds so simple but the flavors were just outstanding. I have never ordered anything from their menu that I haven’t liked.

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We made it through about 2/3 of the plate and both were comfortable after we were done. I usually leave this place feeling stuffed because everything is SO good, but I controlled myself and stopped when appropriate last night. Open-mouthed smile If you’re in the area, I highly recommend the Mediterranean Cruise Cafe if you like Mediterranean food. Delicious.

Obviously, my belly is back to normal. The stomach flu is out of my system (nearly a week later). Blech, so not fun. I can feel that strength-wise, I am not 100%, but I will get there soon. Now that I am feeling better I am anxious to start up the workouts again. Today I’m planning on going for a walk with one of my best girlfriends who is in town for the weekend!! Hint..one of my bridesmaids.

I don’t have too many plans this weekend which is something I am actually really happy about. Since I was out of commission last week I feel like I have some catching up to do around the house, and I am hoping to tackle some organization projects. Also, I am anxious to get cooking again. I have squash and brussels sprouts calling my name from the kitchen. We’ll see what I come up with.

I’m off for now! Happy glorious Friday friends.

Continue Reading Mediterranean Dinner Table for Two

Date at Pittsburgh Blue

Happy Friday to you all!

Last night, Dana and I had a date night. We still had a gift card from our wedding to a chain of restaurants in the area, and it was burning a whole in my pocket.

The chain of restaurants is called Parasole and among their restaurants, we chose Pittsburgh Blue Steakhouse which specializes in duh, steak, but also has a great variety of seafood.

We got all dolled up, had our own happy hour at home with a glass of wine, before heading out the door to the restaurant.

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Moose wanted in on the photo shoot. I want to frame this one below. How stinking beautiful is he??

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He made sure to smile for this one…

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We told him that if dogs were allowed at the restaurant we would so let him come with, but no can do. Rules are rules. Sorry, Moose. Winking smile

While we contemplated our dinner orders, we both ordered a glass of Zinfandel which was perfectly smooth and slightly sweet. By far my favorite wine.

They also brought out a bread basket which I had originally said I was going to pass on, but changed my mind about 7 minutes later. Boy am I glad I did. The bread loaf was made up of 4 large rolls that were incredibly soft on the inside, and the outside had a light crust brushed with garlic butter and sea salt. OH MY. I thought I had died and gone to heaven.

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For dinner I ordered the seafood cobb salad. The salad started with a bed of romaine lettuce drizzled with lemon vinaigrette, and then was piled high with these toppings:

Left to right: fresh lobster, tomatoes, chives, hard-boiled egg, citrus shrimp, cheese, bacon, avocado, and fresh crab.

What an awesome salad. I ate 80% of it and was pretty proud of my accomplishment.

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Dana ordered the prime rib which to me is the most unappetizing thing ever. I’m just not much of a meat person as you may well know by now. He really enjoyed it!

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We also ordered a side of asparagus which were the bomb.

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Although I was feeling pleasantly full after dinner, I really wanted to finish date night with something sweet. I had the bright idea to stop at Whole Foods on the way home and get some gelato.

2 scoops: 1 scoop chocolate brownie and 1 scoop salted caramel.

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Are you kidding me? My second glimpse of heaven that night. I especially loved the salted caramel.

It had been way too long since we have had a date night like this. It was perfect. I loved spending such a nice evening with my hubby. Thanks Brett and Krystle for the great wedding gift!

I hope everyone has a great Friday! My favorite day of the week. Catch up with you all later!

Continue Reading Date at Pittsburgh Blue

Dinner Date with My Girls

This is going to be a short but very sweet post. Last night I met up with two of my great girlie friends, Kate and Heidi (also two of my bridesmaids) for dinner at Emma Krumbees in Belle Plaine.

Emma Krumbees is an old bakery and restaurant that offers everything from burgers, to salads, sandwiches, flatbreads, and has an extensive breakfast menu too.

I decided on the Citrus Chicken Salad and I ordered the half portion because whole salads at restaurants tend to be absolutely ridiculous. In the salad was iceberg lettuce, red onion, avocado, tomato, grilled chicken, and a lemon citrus vinaigrette on the side. It was a very simple salad, and it was pretty tasty. The amount of food was perfect.

After dinner we walked on over to the gift shop and chit chatted along the way. Emma Krumbees also has an apple orchard and in the fall you can come and pick your own apples. I did that a long time ago with my mom and dad, and would love to do it again this fall!

After a couple of hours we were forced to say our good-bye’s and go our separate ways. It has been so bittersweet getting together with Kate lately because she is moving away to Georgia in less than a week. I am attempting to soak up every last bit of her before she leaves. I definitely will be making plans to go visit her out there.

As always, it was so good to be with my girls, and although Kate will be in Georgia soon, we are still going to Skype, and have a glass of wine together that way, and before we know it I will be heading out there to visit, or she will be coming home to visit.

I stopped by my mom and dad’s on the way home and hung out with them for about an hour before heading “home, home”. Mom and dad’s is my second home, and my house is my first home. I love the comfort of each place.

The rest of the night was spent hanging out with my men.

Today has been an absolutely AMAZING Saturday. I have lots to share with you tomorrow, but it’s going to have to wait. I hope you are all having a great day as well. 🙂

Continue Reading Dinner Date with My Girls

Saturday with the Family

Wow, Saturday was a great day. It started off with a pretty amazing 3-mile run. It felt SO good to be running again. When I got home I made myself another green smoothie. This one was similar to yesterday’s but I also added in frozen peaches, a tiny splash of vanilla, and omitted the lime juice and splash of V8 fusion. I was happy to get some greens in first off in the morning. 🙂

In the morning we hung out with my brother and Nicole before we headed out to meet Dana’s parents for a belated Father’s Day celebration. We decided to go to lunch at  Captain Jack’s in Prior Lake. We’ve all been wanting to check this place out for a while and thought this would be the perfect opportunity. It is a casual restaurant with indoor seating, outdoor patio seating right on the lake and fun swings at the bar.

Dana’s mom, Sue, and I split the Hawaiian Chicken Sandwich: teriyaki grilled chicken breast, pineapple, provolone cheese, lettuce, and tomato with a side of sweet potato fries.

We all split a brownie sundae for a sweet bite to end lunch.

The food was pretty good but the best part was definitely being able to sit outside right by the lake and of course catch up with my in-law’s. The weather held up just long enough while we were there because as we were leaving it began to sprinkle. Talk about good timing!

After lunch Dana and I tag-teamed the garden and weeded the heck out of it. The weeds had invaded our vegetable garden and I was not having it, so we slipped on our gardening gloves and got rid of those buggers. My biggest challenge was deciphering weed versus actual plant with the plants that hadn’t gotten too big yet like the peppers.

For dinner we headed over to mom and dad’s for a BBQ. We hung out on the deck and enjoyed the perfect summer weather. Eventually we fired up the grill and got to cooking up some mean burgers. We wanted to keep the meal very simple and planned on a “picnic” type of dinner. I plated myself up an awesome super lean hamburger, some chili cheese dip with pretzels (plus probably five more servings  of pretzels), mushrooms, and watermelon.

I had made a big batch of guacamole but completely forgot to put it out for dinner. Whoops! I realize my plate looks a little lame-o but I did my best to stay low-fiber and this is what I came up with. It sure was tasty.

Plus, I had to save room for dessert…

Rainbow sherbet with whipped cream and a lemon butter cookie. Num. When we got home we hung out with this booger and then called it an early night.

 

I had such a great Saturday with both sides of the family yesterday. I hope you did too. Now on to another day of fun. I’ll fill you in later!

Continue Reading Saturday with the Family

Prada, Gucci, and Larry King

Good morning! Wow, each time I am away from home and come back from being away I remember just how much I love my bed! It hugged me tight last night and didn’t let go until the morning. I was so tired and still kind of am. It usually takes me a couple of nights of sleep to recover from vacation.

Continuing on from yesterday’s post which would bring us to Day #2 in California. Considering we went to bed at 9:30 pm Friday night, we were both wide awake at 6:15 Saturday morning. We took advantage of being up early and got ready to head out for the day. We said our goodbye’s to Dalynn and goodbye to Hollywood and headed out toward Rodeo Drive.

On our way we stopped at a Farmer’s Market area to search for a place to eat breakfast. We ended up going to a little Bakery and Cafe called Du-par’s, which originated in Vegas and has been around for a while. I believe it is still in Vegas, but LA now has one as well. It has an old school feel; the waitresses even wear the old-fashioned bonnet type hats, and they make coffee from a large, old brass- colored coffee maker.

The menu was simple and classic. I settled for two eggs over easy and hash browns. The meal also came with whole wheat toast and  their homemade jam. We tried both strawberry and raspberry and both were delicious. We also drank a couple cups of joe on the side.

After breakfast we continued on our way to Rodeo Drive. We parked our hot mustang at a meter and started walking the ritzy sidewalks. We got there fairly early so it was nice and quiet and peaceful while we were there. We passed Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Cartier, Christian Dior, Dolce & Gabbana, Fendi, Harry Winston, Jimmy Choo, Prada, and more. I bought something at each and every store. 🙂 Ha. I couldn’t hardly even afford to look through the windows of these stores much less step foot in them and buy something. I would have felt like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman and there is no question about that (especially in my athletic apparel that I was sporting that morning).

As we were walking along the sidewalks, we had our one and only celebrity sighting of the whole trip. I walked past a man and did a double take. I smiled at him, he smiled back. It wasn’t until I passed him that I realized it was Larry King. I got my celebrity spotting that I was hoping for! I was pretty jazzed up about it too. I’m a little bit of a dork like that.

We wrapped up at Rodeo Drive and headed to Newport Beach to meet up with my friend (since middle school), Brandon, who is going to grad school at University of California, Irvine. His parents live in Newport Beach and we stayed at their home for the rest of the trip. They have a gorgeous place and were so accommodating and gracious.

We got to their house around noon and then waited for our other high school friend, Will, to arrive, before we headed to the beach. Brandon drove us over to Crystal Cove in Newport Beach and we walked barefoot in the sand under the warm sun. It was so serene and beautiful and I loved every second of our walk.

Brandon managed to get stung by a bee in the process of the walk which was really funny to me at the time (sorry Brandon). The bee got him in the bottom of the foot but that didn’t stop him. We kept on truckin’!

After the walk we headed back home to get cleaned up and grab some lunch/snacks: homemade guacamole, fresh strawberries, veggie chips, etc.

A few hours later we were heading out towards Laguna Beach to a bar called the Rooftop which overlooks the ocean and has a great view of the sunset. It was very pretty! We stayed there only for a little while before heading out to dinner in Newport Beach at the Bear Flag Fish Company. They are very well-known for their fish tacos and I can understand why!

You step in to the joint and the place is packed. In the front there is a closed glass deli case filled with about 10 different fresh fish filets. You chose your fish and place your order at the front. In about 20 minutes or so they make your fish of choice into a grilled blackened fish taco. I chose the Opah and was extremely happy with my decision. Seriously, check this out.

Fresh grilled opah, cabbage, jalapeno, cilantro, tomato, some really good cream sauce, and a squirt of lime juice over the top. I also ordered a side of black beans because I like black beans. These tacos were incredible! I would recommend this place to everyone! The prices were very reasonable too considering the amount of food you got and the freshness of the fish and ingredients.

Dana ordered a grilled artichoke as an appetizer which was also very good. I snagged a couple bites of that green goodness. I want to make artichokes on the grill at home!

After dinner we decided just to head home and relax on their outdoor patio. We called it an early night again and hit the hay around 10:00 pm! Once again, wild and crazy! One more day to share with you and then you will be all caught up!

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A little off-subject food news to share with you. I cooked with Tempeh for the first time last night! I will be talking more about it later but wanted to give you a sneak peek! Pasta with Tempeh marinara. It was GOOD!

 

Happy Tuesday everyone!

Anyone have any fun celebrity sighting experiences to share?

Continue Reading Prada, Gucci, and Larry King

A Special Monday Treat

Well, hello there World! Yay, Monday’s over right?! You know my relationship with Mondays by now. We just don’t always get along so well. However I had something very fun to look forward to later in the evening. But first, breakfast.

This morning I went back to an old favorite, Blueberry Oatmeal. I decided to switch it up slightly and add a tablespoon of egg white in the baking process to bulk up the protein content a bit. This turned out amazingly berrylicious.

On the stove top I cooked 1/4 cup old fashioned oats, 1/4 cup almond milk, 1/4 cup water, 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed, and 1/4 cup frozen blueberries. I cooked this mixture on medium heat for about 2 minutes and then added 1 tablespoon liquid egg whites. I cooked for about 1 more minute, removed from heat and added stevia for some sweetness, along with brown sugar and 1/2 ripe banana. The result was creamy berry oats.

My lunch

Lunch was delayed slightly and cut short, but I had planned on going home for lunch therefore did not pack anything so still went home. I felt like I had to stuff my face which I HATE doing. I don’t like eating so fast because then I end up with a belly ache but knew I needed to eat enough to hold me over until after work. I started off with an Apple Cinnamon Chobani. Num! Then I had some Special K with Berries cereal, the rest of the  banana I had leftover from this morning, and a bite of peanut butter. Good, but random lunch that was lacking in the vegetable department. But I had plans for later that would make up for that.

The afternoon flew by at work and then I headed to the gym to get a quick workout in. I ran/walked 1 mile on the treadmill, then moved to the elliptical for 5 minutes, then headed to do some weights and abs. I don’t feel like I got the best workout in today. I went to a gym that I don’t usually go to so was unfamiliar with the setup of weights, and it was PACKED and wasn’t able to do everything I wanted in the amount of time I had. Oh, well. At least I did something active!

After the gym I headed out to meet a good friend, Courtney! We met at our dietetic internship in Wisconsin but she lives in the Twin Cities as well! We went through A LOT together in the internship and developed a very special bond.

We met at the Good Earth which is a wonderful restaurant that is all about natural, unprocessed foods. They get their food from local farmers and have developed a menu that I dream about. After about 6 minutes of contemplating, I decided on the vegetarian chili and tropical spinach salad and Courtney ordered the Vegetable Enchiladas.

While we waited for our dishes we grazed on some flat bread, whole grain bread and homemade hummus and gabbed away, catching up  on each others lives. Then our goodness arrived:

Vegetarian Chili: Garbanzo beans and seasonal vegetables, tomatoes and spices, topped with shredded cheddar jack cheese, blue corn chips and one of my most favorite herbs, CILANTRO! This was awesome.

And so was my salad. Tropical Spinach Salad was fresh spinach, mango, jicama, sweet red bell pepper, caramelized pecans, and served with a super tasty tahini poppyseed dressing. I ate every bite. I highly recommend Good Earth if you have one in the area. I have never eaten anything there that I didn’t absolutely love… and it’s organic!

I did snap a shot of Court’s Vegetable Enchiladas as well because I thought they looked very nummy. Thanks Court for trying to “rearrange” the dish to make it look prettier haha! In the mix was corn tortillas stuffed with zucchini, corn, tomatoes, poblano peppers, Monterey Jack cheese, and cilantro topped with their homemade enchilada sauce, brown rice,  lettuce, and black beans.

Two thumbs up Good Earth! Great as always, and even better company to enjoy the experience with. Thank you. Once dinner was over we continued to chit chat and then headed our separate ways. What a nice way to spend a Monday evening. I loved catching up and hope we can do it again soon Courtney!

Once I got home I turned out Bachelorette and that is where I am still! Oh the drama. We DVR’d The Next Great Baker Season Finale tonight and plan on watching that within the next couple days. Go Nadine! I am going to try and keep my head out of the entertainment world so I don’t find out the results before I watch the show but I have a feeling I won’t be able to avoid it.

Sleep well everyone! Good night.

Continue Reading A Special Monday Treat