how about a PB&J rice cake...

GUYS, this is my favorite little snack. i'm sure we all remember classic PB&J sandwiches from back in elementary school, & well...they are back!! sort of.

i remember reading in some health magazine that women who eat peanut butter as a part of their diet actually weigh less...when i told my mom this she kind of gave me that 'are you crazy' look, but i think 1 tablespoon of peanut butter won't hurt ya & it may even mean you are skinnier than you thought? ;)

but honestly a rice cake with a thin layer of PB & some homemade raspberry jam? perfection. {especially when you use your mother in law's amazing raspberry jam!} this is one of my favorite mid-morning snacks or a quick breakfast when i am running out the door. & ya i could use a piece of whole wheat toast, but sometimes i would rather keep things lighter and save myself an extra 100 calories. >> rice cakes are only 35 calories! depending on how much PB&J you like, this snack can be as little as 150 calories & will fill up an empty tummy quite nicely.

what are your favorite snack foods????

a touch of green

>> once i began actually cooking for fun {& enjoying it} i began to understand & appreciate herb gardens. my mom & dad both had awesome gardens {& still do} full of herbs, veggies & flowers. i was never interested in weeding with them in the hot sun, but now i'm starting to get it. i would LOVE to have my own little garden where i could grab a handful of basil for free instead of paying $3 for like 4 leaves. isn't funny how we all, at some point, start to notice little bits of our parents in us?? ;) >> mark & i are heading out to san francisco in a few weeks to celebrate my brother's graduation from law school! we couldn't be happier for him & we are really looking forward to spending a long weekend with family in one of the coolest cities in the country. great food, wonderful company, a unique setting, wild people...let's just say i will most definitely be bringing my camera. >> OKAY! i have some exciting news. it isn't quite official yet, the contract is in the process of being signed, but i have booked my first wedding! i am beyond excited to finally put my skills to the ultimate test & photograph a wedding on my own. wish me luck! >> lastly, mark & i have been pretty obsessed with these flank steak street tacos i have been whipping up lately. grilled steak, fresh guac, homemade salsa with a bit of a kick to it, lime juice, a pinch of shredded cheese all wrapped up inside of a warm tortilla! there is probably nothing i would rather eat every day. fresh, simple & tasty.

a visit from family & a recipe {apple tart tatin}

sunday night we made homemade pizzas & i attempted a new recipe for an apple tart tatin, which is like an upside down apple tart of some sorts. the recipe is below!

what you'll need >>

6 granny smith apples

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/2 lemon, juice

6 tablespoons of salted butter

puff pastry

9" deep dish, oven proof pan

directions >>

1. peel & cut the apples into quarters. add lemon juice & 1/3 of the sugar. mix & allow to sit for 15 minutes. 

2. cut a 9" circle out of the puff pastry & set aside.

 3. melt butter over medium heat in pan & add 1 cup of sugar. whisk until the carmel is light brown in color.

4. remove pan from heat & arrange apples rounded side down. place pan back onto medium-high heat & keep pressing the apples down with a spoon.

 

5. allow apples to cook for about 15 minutes. keep basting the apples with the carmel & you can move the apples around if some are getting more cooked than others.

6. preheat oven to 400. place the uncooked puff pastry on top of the apples. cut 2-4 slits in the pastry. bake for 15-20 minutes until puffy & golden brown.

7. place a plate that is larger than your pan on top of the pan & carefully flip the tatin onto the plate. serve while hot/warm & with some homemade whipped cream! i also like this dish cold the next day.

this weekend mark's dad came down from washington to spend the weekend with us. i wish i had taken more pictures, but sometimes it is just more fun to be in the moment & not trying to capture everything on film!

just to give you a taste of some of the things we did this weekend >> 

mark got a much needed, brand new suit - which happens to look AMAZING on him

i resisted buying anything from anthro

had an appetizer, main course & dessert while dining out - this never happens!

the boys went fishing

we caught a movie - 42, have you seen it?
took mark's dad to some of our favorite restaurants around town

took a trip to salt lake

easter festivities with friends

we started our easter off with church & a baby blessing for one of mark's friends which was then followed by brunch. then we headed back home & took a much needed nap after waking up early & then stuffing our faces with food. in the afternoon i baked off some fresh bread that MC had made & we headed up to our friend's cabin for dinner!

^^^such a gorgeous & perfect spring//easter table!^^^

 ^^^how many boys does it take to turn on a grill? 5.^^^

 ^^^it was important to document these boys cooking because it is such a rarity!^^^ 

^^^our besties, the cooks!^^^

the night included a light & fresh dinner, trampoline bouncing, races of many sorts, a photoshoot with everyone :), egg dying & dessert!

if you can't be with family on holidays, good friends are definitely the next best thing!

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eva's bakery & a day in the city

when you live somewhere for long enough you get into routines. you work in the same place, eat at the same restaurants, drive the same routes...it's nice to purposely mix things up every now and then. so in honor of this idea, a few friends & i spent friday afternoon out & about in salt lake!

after a trip to the new & beautiful traverse outlets, maryclaire, madi & i headed up to salt lake to pick up a few things at the city creek mall & visit our friend lauren at work. it was such a nice day out that we sat in the sun next to some fountains & chatted for a few minutes while she was on her break. it really was a treat to see lauren two days in one week! i miss my old roomie.

to end our little outing we stopped by eva's bakery. it was the cutest little french bakery that i probably would have never noticed on my own. i tried an apple croissant & grabbed an almond one to take back for mark. i love finding new treasures like this in the city! getting to know the area you live in can really make a new place feel more like home.

recipes {ratatouille}

i have to admit, ever since watching ratatouille as a kid, i have been so curious to know what this dish would taste like. i know it is a bunch of veggies, but in the movie, & yes i know it is a cartoon, it just looks so good! so to keep with the french theme of mark's birthday back in february, i made this side dish!

i had a lot of fun making this dish. i used a mandolin to slice all of the vegetables & it took about 5 minutes to go through an eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash and red pepper. hello, FAST! you can use a really sharp knife instead of a mandolin, but if you use a knife you most likely won't get a consistent thickness. once all of your veggies are sliced you can really be creative & layer everything however you'd like. it did take a while to layer all of the thinly sliced vegetables but it came out looking so pretty! this is definitely a dish to make if you want to impress your guests & get a few compliments :)

what you'll need >>
recipe adapted from smitten kitchen
2 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1 cup crushed tomatoes
2 tbsp olive oil, divided
1/2 egg plant
1/2 zuchinni
1/2 yellow squash
1/2 red pepper
a few sprigs of thyme
salt & pepper

directions >>
1. preheat oven to 375.

2. using a round baking dish, about 9 inches, pour tomato puree in the bottom of the pan. add onions, garlic & 1 tbsp of olive oil. salt and pepper generously & mix gently to combine.

3. trim the ends off the eggplant, zucchini and yellow squash. trim the ends off of the red pepper & remove the core, leaving the edges intact, like a tube.

4. using a mandoline, or a very sharp knife, cut the veggies into very thin slices, approximately 1/16-inch thick.

5. on top of the tomato puree, arrange slices of veggies from the outer edge to the inside of the baking dish, overlapping so just a smidgen of each flat surface is visible, alternating vegetables. you may have a handful leftover that do not fit.

6. drizzle remaining tablespoon of olive oil on top of the veggies and season generously with salt and pepper. remove the leaves from the thyme sprigs and roughly chop them. then sprinkle over the veggies.

7. bake for about 45-55 minutes until veggies are cooked but not totally limp. the tomato sauce will be bubbling up around the edges.

8. serve on top of a grain with a dollop of goat cheese or as a side dish with a yummy protein!

happy friday, y'all!

recipes {spicy peanut noodles with chicken}

oh my. the recipe i have for you guys today is HOT! if you love peanut sauces you have to try this & if you are a big fan spicy asian dishes you will just swoon. the sriracha hot chili sauce really gives this dish a kick but it is oh.so.delicious.

mark loves peanut sauces so i thought i should finally try to make something he would approve of so we don't have to get take out every time he is in the mood for a spicy peanut dish. i have been on a spice kick when it comes to asian food lately {i guess i may just be my father's daughter after all!} & i seriously loved everything about this meal. my favorite part was the heat, of course. but if you aren't a huge spicy person then feel free to cut back on the amount of sriracha you use or you can even take it out all together! i also wanted to mention that the noodles i used were rice noodles, you can purchase these from any grocery store, but if you don't have any on hand you can definitely use a basic linguine pasta as well!

what you'll need >>
adapted from skinnytaste

peanut sauce:
14 oz chicken stock
6 tbsp peanut butter
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp sriracha hot chili sauce
2 tbsp honey
1 tbsp soy sauce

chicken:
16 oz chicken breast
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 lime, juice
1 tbsp sriracha hot chili sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated
1/2 tbsp sesame oil

veggie topping:
11/4 cups broccoli slaw
1 zucchini, cut into thin strips
1 cup carrots, grated
1 cup bean sprouts
2 tbsp peanuts, chopped
1 lime

directions >>

1. combine chicken stock, peanut butter, ginger, garlic, sriracha, honey & soy sauce in a pan. stir occasionally for about 5-10 minutes until well combined. set aside.

2. cut chicken into thin strips. combine lime juice, sriracha, garlic, ginger & soy sauce in a bowl. mix the chicken with the marinade and allow to sit for 5 minutes.

3. boil water & prepare rice noodles as package instructs. i boiled my noodles for about 10 minutes. then drain.

4. heat wok or large skillet. once hot, add sesame oil & cook chicken on high. this will only take 2-3 minutes. once chicken is done remove from the pan & set aside.

5. heat up a little bit more oil in the same pan used for the chicken & then add broccoli slaw, zucchini, carrots & bean sprouts. saute for a few minutes until all of the veggies are tender but still crisp. remove from heat.

6. add cooked noodles to peanut sauce & combine. {if sauce is too thick you can use a bit of chicken stock to thin it out} then add chicken.

7. serve with the fresh veggies on top with a sprinkle of chopped peanuts & a slice of lime.

recipes {cookie dough greek yogurt}

i have a sweet tooth. period. & i go back and forth all of the time with wanting to be healthier and then just giving into temptations! but i recently came across this awesome idea of cookie dough greek yogurt. i think this is the perfect mid day snack or after dinner treat if you are still hungry but craving something that will satisfy your sweet tooth.
{NOTE: greek yogurt & peanut butter are FULL of protein so this mini meal will most definitely fill you up.}

much like most healthy options, of course this doesn't taste as good as cookie dough. i mean duh. but it is full of creamy peanut butter, some sweetness from honey & vanilla, and chocolate chips. it also has a slight tangy taste from the greek yogurt. 

i was curious enough to give it a try & maybe you will be too!

^^^ easy clean up too! ^^^

i'll take you to the doughnut shop

growing up in a los angeles suburb, krispy kremes were a rare treat for most people in my community. there wasn't a krispy kreme store close by, so little mom & pop doughnut shops were where we got our saturday morning doughnuts from...oh, & on the rare occasion, a quick before school treat ;) but since i've moved to utah i have found the complete opposite to be true! if i'm in the mood for a doughnut then i will typically make the 5 minute trip the the local krispy kreme store...when i first got here i loved having those melt-in-your-mouth treats so close by, but it is now 4 years later & i am kind of over krispy kreme {yes, i said it}!! i just want my NORAML doughnuts back!

so, i did a little search for local doughnut places & decided to try some out. {what a hard job, right?} these beauties are from a place called beyond glaze in draper. aren't they just the prettiest doughnuts you have ever seen???? i almost didn't want to eat them because they were so fun to look at. but that thought quickly passed & i dove in!

^^^ i was so close to getting the maple bacon but decided i would come back with mark & we could try it together ^^^

i would give this place a B+ because they cost double what normal doughnuts typically cost & i thought the they looked better than they tasted. but i only tried one...if i go back then i'll take a couple bites from a few different ones & maybe do an update if i need to :)

what are you favorite guilty pleasures?????

life lately {iphone edition}

well, hello there march! 

february went by so fast! here is a little look back on some of our adventures last month. i often forget to take pictures of the day2day stuff...i will work on that! this month was full of baking, eating, hanging with friends, mark's birthday & helping with a wedding!