the hostess with the least-est

I have made it 35 years without it happening…And now it has.

I am hosting a baby shower ***cue suspenseful horror movie music***.

My lovely sister-in-law Danielle is having a baby girl in April, and because I am the coolest person in the extended family (duh)…here I am. Jesus Christ how did I get myself into this. My own baby shower was a joint deal that basically equated to a BBQ. There may have been a keg. In my defense, I was young and dumb.

But back to my current set of problems. I have no idea, I have too many ideas. I want simple, tasteful, understated. I want posh, girly, over-the-top. Decisions! Mom-to-be is not a big fan of pink, but can’t I still do fluffy, feathery, poufy, tassle-y? This could be her only baby. And no one wants a boring beige baby shower for their ONLY baby. So to round out this ridiculous paragraph, here is the baby shower I imagine…

A lovely brunch with healthy delicious food, gray-toned (with pink touches) decor, a white sangria and champagne bar, and no games. Because we are grown ass civilized adult women who don’t smell melted candy bars inside of diapers in order to win a prize. I have already taken to Pinterest to tap into some inspiration…

I feel like I am on the right track. Not that I have any indications what that track might be. But I am feeling good! Help me learn from your mistakes! Or even better, steal and take credit for your successes! What works, what doesn’t…feedback is welcome! Happy Thursday to all 🙂

**All images via Pinterest

{recap} around the world in eight hours–epcot food and wine fest

Every fall as Labor Day passes and Halloween approaches another festive occasion also comes along….Epcot International Food and Wine Festival. I haven’t had the joy of attending in the last EIGHT years, way too long, and was super stoked when some of my co-workers scored some tickets. So, off we went…

You can get into Epcot at 9am, but the “world showcase”, where all the different countries are and all of the delicious food and drinks as well, doesn’t open until 11am. With empty growly stomaches we stopped at the first country that came our way…Mexico.

I kicked off the eating with this shrimp taco. And it did not disappoint. It was crispy and perfect with pico, habanero sauce and pickled onions. I wanted another on our second way around the world, but the line for tacos had become rather outrageous!

The next country to feel our wrath was Norway, and we stopped by the Farm Fresh food station that had local (I guess?) Florida provisions and libations. Being good Floridians, we got a little of everything…

I only had a bite or two of this bacon jalapeño hash with hollandaise so I can’t say too much about it, but the beer flight was pretty well laid out. All Florida beers with a little something for everyone. And they were decent sized cups.

Epcot’s Norway is small in size, so in no time at all we had made our way to China. We reveled in China for a while. Aside from finding an off the beaten path beer purveyor with no line, and maybe getting kicked out of their pavilion area for carrying said beers inside, we also ate the festival food. Dumplings!!!

Dumplings are kind of a thing between my friend Lynda and I. We both love them and have very stringent standards for dumplings, and these hit the spot. They were made with well-seasoned chicken and the wrapper was crunchy, chewy perfection.  The sauce that was served with them was the perfect balance–not too sweet, not too spicy. Well done Epcot, you make some tasty dumplings!

After venturing around and through Africa and playing around with all the toys in Japan, we arrived in the mother land…ITALY. It is was all pizza and prosecco here, and none of it missed the mark. The heat was wearing on our tender sensibilities, and so was the alcohol consumption.

We stopped in Germany to enjoy some bratwursts. They were so legit, on tiny pretzel buns! (Insert an “ask me about my wiener” comment here). And we were off to France for an abbreviated spree of croissant/ham and cheese baguette/champagne consumption that may or may not have resembled a feeding frenzy. We left the mainland of Europe for the United Kingdom where a drink at the Rose and Crown Pub is ALWAYS in order. Then it was on to Canada.

Things got a little dodgy in Canada. We maybe got in trouble in Canada. The movie Epcot shows in their Canada ISN’T THAT GOOD. Was it really necessary for some member of our group (cough cough, Cory) to sneak in?!? We followed that all up with popcorn and waters and started off on what was probably an ill-advised second spin “around the world”. There were churros, more dumplings, and eggrolls had by many. Not to mention beers and cocktails.

At the end of the day, the inevitable departure and return home to the little lady was bittersweet. The rest of our party went on to scream and freak out (Maria) at the Tower of Terror. And we fell asleep at 8:15. Thank you Epcot Food and Wine Fest (and Crystal and Lynda for procuring the tickets!) you were properly eventful, boozy, and delicious!

Until next time!

spicy sweet shoestrings

No, this is not turning into a food-only blog. But yes, this is the second post in row dedicated to deliciousness. I just can’t help it…these spiralized baked sweet potato shoestring fries were just too tasty to keep to myself!

This was my first attempt at using my spiralizer to make fries. Usually when I spiralize potatoes I use them for some kind of hash, almost always breakfast-style. But I was grilling some chicken (which I would blog about too, but seriously…why is grilled chicken so boring when you take pictures of it?) and needed a side dish. I keep sweet potatoes around all the time because they have an epic shelf life and beause they are so healthy and versatile. And fries seemed like the perfect side dish for my chicken. These fries are so easy and so good, you will want them for every meal of the day…

This is all you need:

1-2 sweet potatoes (depending on size of potato, and preferred portion size)

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt, pepper, and chili powder

You are going to start with spiralizing your sweet potato. It’s super simple and just requires a little bit of muscle behind it since sweet potatoes are such a dense vegetable. Cut off the ends and you are set to go.

Before I seasoned my fries, I ran a knife through them a couple times. If you want LONG fries you can skip this step. I dumped them out directly onto a baking sheet and drizzled them with the olive oil and seasonings. I love the spicy smoky chili powder with the sweet potato, it just creates an awesome balance.

Give the potatoes a nice mix with your hands to evenly coat them with the oil and seasoning and bake them at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes. I also recommend giving them a turn at the halfway point.

When they come out of the oven, I let my potatoes rest for a couple minutes. I feel like this helps them to crisp–but I could fully be imagining this effect.

They are like orange strings that have rained down from heaven. Some are crispy, some are tender, and they have a sweet taste with a little kick from the chili powder. I planned to eat half and save half to toss with some scrambled eggs for breakfast, but then I ended up eating the second half right off the baking sheet as I stood in the kitchen. If you are looking for an easy, healhty, and fast side dish–these potatoes are for you!

Have you made other kinds of sweet potato fries? What’s your favorite!?

zoodle carbonara

As you know from previous posts, I get inordinately excited about my spiralizer. This thing is my favorite kitchen gadget and makes clean, healthy eating so easy. Recipes for spaghetti carbonara have been popping up everywhere. It’s been giving me a serious pasta craving. I have been fighting it, and winning. But today, I realized I can have my cake (pasta) and eat it too…I just need to try this out with zucchini noodles! Not every pasta dish translates perfectly when you adapt it with veggie noodles. But this looked so good, and I was jonesing hard enough to risk it. And with only SIX ingredients this one was a no brainer. So let’s break it down. First here is what you will need:

3 large zucchini

2 eggs

3/4 cup parmesan cheese

4 strips bacon

2-4 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2-1 shallot, diced

this recipe is super flexible…add/subtract ingredients to your heart’s content!

This meal comes together crazy fast. I invited a friend over to be my guinea pig and this dish was plated and ready before she could even get to the wine store and back. You are going to start out by chopping/dicing/cubing your shallots, garlic, and bacon. Carbonara is traditionally made with pancetta, but I had bacon around…and, when is bacon not ok?

After everything is made smaller under your knife, you are going to throw the bacon into a pan on medium. Give it 2-4 minutes to get well on its way to cooked, then add in the shallot. Give this another minute before adding the garlic to the pan. With all the carbonara recipes I came across, the starchy cooking water from the pasta is used in addition to the egg/cheese to make the sauce. Since I went with the zucchini, I decided to add a little olive oil to the pan just before I added the zucchini.

After you add the zucchini things happen fast. Give the flavors some time to combine and whisk your eggs with your cheese. After your zucchini has been well tossed and its tenderness is to your preferred taste, remove your pan from heat. (This step is important to avoid scrambling your eggs). Then add in your egg/cheese mixture and toss to combine.

And….boom. Just made some super healthy carbonara! Pasta? Pffffttt. Who needs pasta? Plate it up and top it with more parmesan, parsley, and plenty of pepper. I skipped out on adding salt since bacon is already so salty. But feel free to doctor it up any way you like.

Do yourself a favor and try this lightened up carbonara. And then tell me how you like it!

Cheers, and happy eating!

pour it up and DRINK

Moscow Mules are everywhere. I personally have consumed them at speakeasys, dive bars, gastropubs, and asian fusion (?!?!?) restaurants. So…everywhere. But unlike other trendy drinks of Yor–cosmopolitans, manhattans, even the seasonal mint julep, Moscow Mules are simple to master AND appeal to men and women alike. Traditionally served in the ever-manly copper mug, this vodka based libation is perfect for everyone. In all honesty, I am almost certain that the copper mug accounts for at least 70% of this cocktail’s appeal. Who doesn’t like drinking out of fun cups? Fun fact: Moscow Mules came about back in the 1940’s when a vodka distributor and a ginger beer distributor both ran into trouble moving their products. Two alcohols are always better than one…so they put them together, ordered some special copper mugs from another struggling businessman, and the rest is history. And as a sidenote, I find it hard to believe that it was ever hard to sell vodka.

Ketel One is my personal vodka preference, but anything you have on hand will get the job done. The same goes for the variety of ginger beer. The mint has to be fresh, as does the lime. Put it all together and you have a party in a glass (mug). Easy enough, right?!

Now go forth and imbibe!

holy tostones!

I have been involved in a love affair. It’s been going on for about two months and it’s getting pretty serious. It started at a tiny Cuban restaurant near my work. The Black Bean Deli. Super tiny place with super tasty food. And this is where me and TOSTONES first met. Yes, I am in love with a food. And yes, it’s that serious. If you aren’t familiar, tostones are made from green plantains. You can also cook ripe yellow plantains and these are called maduros. Both are traditionally fried…which, can be heavy. You can’t go around eating fried tostones all the time living in Florida and wearing swim suits, skinny jeans, short shorts…I could go on. I needed a lightened up tostone! I enlisted my lovely, sometimes paleo, always health concious friend Rhia to arm me with an alternative tostone recipe. And these do not disappoint! Baked tostones…mmmmmm……

You start with plantains. You want to buy ones that look like this…

They are pretty easy to peel. I just cut off the ends and make a slice down the length. After that they will peel much like a banana, but will be a lot more firm. From here you can slice them into about 1-inch pieces. I toss them with about a tablespoon of olive oil and a little garlic salt. Arrange them in a single layer on a foil-lined cookie sheet.

Place them in a pre-heated 350-375 degree oven for about 9 minutes. Everything in this recipe is pretty flexible (ie–it’s hard to screw these up). Now here comes the fun part. You take your plantains out of the oven and you are going to need to smash them! Tostones are flat, and so far your plantains are not. I rectified this with a juice glass. You could probably also use a measuring cup, a can, or some fancy plantain smashing tool that I am sure is on Amazon. But a glass will do just fine.

I moved my plantains onto a cutting board and flattened them with my cup. I then used a knife to flip them back out onto my cookie sheet, with the side that had been touching the pan in the first round of cooking now facing up. Plantains are super starchy and they will still be a bit sticky.  Place them back into the oven for about five minutes, or really until they crisp up.  I also give them another drizzle of olive oil for this step.  They might even require a minute under the broiler.

They turn out AMAZING. They are little slices of deliciousness sent down from heaven. I have made these on the side of black bean and rice stuffed peppers, used them to scoop a scramble of eggs+cheese+avocado+salsa, and I am anxious to try baked tostone nachos.  This time i went with some Adobo Lime shrimp with an avocado mash…

SO LEGIT!!!

I plan on having tostones replace any bread/tortilla I can think of this summer.  And I will write up the shrimp from this post ASAP, because it is super fresh and flavorful. Stick around to see what else I do with them! Hope everyone is having a fantastic Memorial Day Weekend….cheers!

things i pin

We have all done it.  Fallen deep into a Pinterest rabbit hole– emerging 7 hours later frazzled, blood shot eyes, and longing for Nutella and bacon (not together. or, maybe together. Both are huge stars on Pinterest and I’m sure pins that marry the two can be found).  I mostly love Pinterest for inspiration.  I’m not trying to source and procure ALL the merchandise I see there, I mostly go for the ideas.  I also love it for recipes.  Working in social media, I look at blogs all.the.time.  So, when I get home I don’t always feel like continuing that process.  Pinterest puts all my favorites together and I can click on the things that look delicious!  Or, I’ll see something delicious and I don’t have time to jot down/print the recipe…so, I pin it instead and go back to it later.

Lately, I’ve been pinning a lot of gluten free recipes.  I know there are wheat allergies, gluten intolerance, and Celiac disease.  All of varying degrees/severity.  Some people can eat certain things and not others. Some people can’t even eat foods that were processed on shared equipment with gluten-y (real word there) products.  I am no doctor, but I do know my body.  And, when it eats too much gluten, it is unhappy with me.  So, to avoid tummy troubles, I’ve been steering clear of bread, pasta, pizza, pastries, etc.  In reality, I don’t eat these things on the regular anyway…so, I’m not mourning the loss of sandwiches.

One blog I love for gluten free food is A House In The Hills.  This chick makes some TASTY stuff.  So, I thought I would share a few of her creations that I have succeeded in RE-creating. First are these awesome sweet potato and quinoa patties…

These are so good! And so healthy too, loads of protein and fiber.

And seriously, tiny polenta pizzas?!?  This is a great alternative for people who don’t eat wheat as polenta is mostly corn meal.  And you can top them up with anything you have on hand.  Who would miss pizza dough with these little guys…

Ok, I’ll end it with this kale noodle bowl.  I’m not sure if kale has reached its saturation point yet, but I’m certainly not over this super food and don’t plan on ending my love affair with it any time soon!…

And gluten free noodles are available in most grocery stores these days!

I’ll keep up posting about my eating adventures and you can keep up with my pins here.  See you on the interwebs 🙂

Have a magical Tuesday!

**all images via A House in the Hills.

caprese frittata

Hi World!…Friends….friend…….Mom?

I’m not even sure my mom reads this.

The show must go on though. Let’s talk about food you can make with eggs…

Tomato. Basil. Mozzarella.  The holy trinity of caprese. These three are a match made in flavor heaven.  At least to this partial Italian girl.  They can go into so many recipes.  And trust, at my house they certainly do.  It helps that growing both basil and tomatoes is super easy in Florida.  To the point that even when my basil dies in the winter it just sprouts itself right back up in the spring. Check out these leaves 🙂

I can’t take any credit…this was all nature. I gave up on all the plants in my container garden after the first big cold snap we had last year.  And in the past month this basil found its way back up on its own. Along with some rosemary and mint, amazingly. Bravo, nature.  Now, if I could just get a mozzarella plant to take root everything would be well with the world.

As I carried on about in my last post, I love savory breakfast foods.  And eggs are definitely one of my all time favorites things to cook.  They are SO versatile.  Quiches, omelettes, tarts, scrambles, burritos…I could go on.  But the star of this show is a frittata.  Basically, a crustless quiche that you cook off right in the pan.  And since I am a strong believer that breakfast is good all day, this was actually dinner (and I am sure will also be at least one breakfast, maybe two, because these little guys portion and re-heat very well.)

Here is the break-down:

–6 eggs

–2 tablespoons cream (or half and half, or whatever you have)

–1 teaspoon pesto

–1 diced roma tomato

–3 abnormally large basil leaves (or 5 regular sized)

–1/4 cup mozzarella cheese

–salt and pepper to taste

From here it is truly as easy as beating the eggs, cream, pesto, basil, and salt/pepper together. Drop all of that into a greased (I use non-stick spray) non-stick pan over med/high heat.  Give the eggs a swirl or two with a spatula.  Drop in the tomatoes, they will sink a bit and this is ok.  After a minute top with your mozzarella.  Let the eggs cook until the outer edges seem set.  Now you are going to pop the whole pan under your broiler (4ooish degrees.)  Watch it carefully so that your cheese doesn’t burn.  A nice golden brown is the goal.  Take it out, with mitts of course, and after a couple minutes of cooling it should slide right onto a cutting board to be served!

If you are feeling creative this would work just as well if you added spinach, prosciutto, sun-dried tomatoes, or you could switch it up and top it with parmesan/provolone.  What I’m trying to say is…it’s a hard one to screw up.  So eat up!  Happy Wednesday 🙂

{random recap} buns, brinner, and a weekend mani…

This was going to be a weekend post about a much needed low key weekend. But, it’s Tuesday now. And really, I would be a much better blogger if the wifi at my house would just work from bed.  Alas it does not.  So, no blogging from bed for me.

And low key, unfortunately, around here is defined as a spring yard cleaning that includes mowing, trimming, raking, pressure washing, edging, and sweeping.  Dude, I am getting exhausted just typing about it.  Not to mention the usual laundry and cleaning that comes with the weekend (I refuse to do this stuff during the 2-3 hours a day I get at home on weeknight evenings!).

After careful grocery shopping for both Friday night dinner and Saturday morning breakfast I decided to scrap our dinner plans and just make brinner instead on Friday night.  Breakfast+Dinner=BRINNER.  Also known as the most awesome meal on Earth.  I don’t love sweet breakfast foods so morning food at night really translates well for me.  And let’s be real…bacon is ok at any hour of the day.

In what turned out to be a useless act (see yard work referenced above) I also did a little manicure. Spring has sprung but I feel like red is season-less.  This color is a favorite and I am even willing to wait a longer dry time for it.  It’s another cheap find, NYC (could not find the exact color online…but at least I got the brand!)

These nails looked good for all of about ten hours.  At which point the yard work took their life.  I’ll get over it.  And really, since this post seems to be on an irrelevant downhill slide, I’ll wrap it up with just one more random point.  Buns.  My hair is getting long and unruly and I live in buns at least 1/3 of my time.  I sleep in a bun.  I wear a bun to work at least twice a week.  And I put my hair in a bun every time I go to the gym.

And really, I just want an excuse to evangelize for a moment.  How many bobby pins do you use, JJ?  Well….none.  I use this little cork screw guy and that is it!  My buns stay in while I sleep, work out, shower, whatever.  My hair is fine(ish) and long and I only use one of these little tools for an all-day bun.  it’s my all time favorite hair item.

Ok, I’ll let you get on with your day now that I have confused you with this scatter brained recap about nothing really.  Happy Tuesday!

 

it’s pancake day

Pancake Day! Fat Tuesday! Shrove Tuesday!  The eve of the lenten season is upon us…and it has so many names.  But because “Pancake Day” has the most delicious possibilities, I’m gonna go with that.  Pancake day is rooted in Christianity and signifies feasting before Christians give up rich, indulgent foods for Lent.  While this blog (and myself) does not sway in the religious direction I will TOTALLY take any excuse to write about pancakes.  So let’s break it down with some delicious pancake recipes!

Mexican Hotcakes

How amazing do these look?!  They are light, fluffy, and cinnamon-rific.  Imagine a churro, in pancake form.  This is my idea of pancake heaven.  You can find the recipe (complete with syrup-making instructions) right here.

To take a more classic approach, here is a true American classic.  Pancakes fall into the same category as apple pie, hamburgers, and fried chicken. Pretty much as American as it gets.  And buttermilk pancakes are the traditional take on this American breakfast staple.

Buttermilk Pancakes

Gluten free Pancakes

I try not to eat a ton of wheat.  But alas, pancakes are about as wheat-filled as one can get.  And then I googled gluten free pancakes….and behold!! These look glorious, and just as tasty as their wheaty counterparts.  All the goodness in these will not leave you feeling dissatisfied with your pancake experience.  For all you gluten free eaters, you can find the recipes for these tasty little guys here.

And last, but certainly not least in my book, a POTATO pancake here.  Those close to me know this, and you should too…I am a wannabe Jew. I love the culture, I love the traditions, and of course I love the food! And I have a deep and abiding love for latkes.  These latkes take it up a notch further with jalapeños and cilantro.  I really hope that this potato pancake does not have a superiority complex as it sits in this blog post next to its syrupy relatives.  Because savory pancakes need love too!

Jalapeño Cilantro Potato Pancakes

I don’t know about you, but I am definitely making pancakes tonight.  And maybe tomorrow.  With all these recipes I could find ways to work pancakes onto the menu for days.  Happy Pancake Day to all!