road trip!

We're off to Houston for the weeknd tomorrow! The first time we went I didn't think I would enjoy a huge metropolitan city but I loved it! Every time we go we find new favorites and always go back to places we loved from previous trips. It is only a 4 hour drive which seems relatively short compared to other trips we have taken. This trip I am going to attend some STOTT Pilates continuing education but we thought we would make a long weekend out of it... especially since it is Mardi grad weekend in Louisiana so Tuesday is a state holiday.

We are excited to go back to Tiny Boxwoods, the Galleria, West Elm, Central Market & the Omni!

Have a great weekend! I imagine I will have some highlights from our trip when we get back.

 

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veggie baked sweet potatoes

It's meatless Monday! Truly, we ate this on Sunday night but I thought I would share it today. 

4 sweet potatoes, scrubbed

1/4c plain Greek yogurt

1t taco seasoning

1t oregano

1t evoo

1c mushrooms, diced

1/2 red onion, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

salt, pepper, taco seasoning & red pepper flakes

1c grated cheese

Poke small holes in sweet potatoes using a fork. Bake in the oven for 1 hour at 425. 

In a bowl, combine yogurt, taco seasoning, & oregano. Set aside.

Heat evoo in sautéed pan. Cook mushroom, onion, and pepper until slightly crispy. Stir in seasonings to your liking then add black beans. Mix until combined then turn to low heat.

Remove potatoes from oven when cooked through. Slice top and remove some of the sweet potato. Add cheese and veggie mixture. Return to oven for 5 minutes. Top with Greek yogurt and a bit more cheese. Enjoy!

InstaFriday

Happy Friday! How was your week? Here are a few highlights from mine:

1. We went out for dinner and to watch the Olympics last weekend. It was perfect! I love the Olympics and wine so it was a perfect match!

2. I passed the OTR exam! I wrote the exam on Saturday morning and got the unofficial results back yesterday. I was so excited that I passed it on the first try. What a relief. I celebrated by going to spin class.

3. We made a kale ceasar salad this week. It is our new fave way to eat kale. You should try it sometime.

4. I have been cheering on Canada for the past 2 weeks. We have had some intense moments but it has been so fun to watch! I'll be sad when the games are over.

Have a great weekend. Mine will involve going to a pilates class, knitting, and relaxing at home. Hopefully the weather continues to be nice so we can spend some time outside.

asian salmon

We found a new salmon marinade recipe and decided to try it out this weekend. It was a good replacement for the teriyaki sauce that we currently do not have access to.

2T sesame oil

3T honey

4T low sodium soy sauce

4T rice wine vinegar

6 cloves garlic, minced

ginger, pepper & red pepper flakes

1lb salmon

 

Whist together all ingredients except for salmon. Pace salmon in a baking dish, skin side down. Pour marinade over salmon and refrigerate for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350. Bake salmon uncovered for 15 minutes. Remove salmon, pour marinade in a small saucepan, and turn oven to broil. Bring marinade to a low boil to reduce. In a clean baking dish, broil salmon for 8 minutes until the top starts to caramelize. Serve salmon over rice noodles with a side of broccoli. Top with reduced marinade.

 

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kale ceasar

This salad was amazing. It ws simple, rustic, and very filling.

1 bunch of kale, stems removed

1c grated manchego

1T lemon juice

1T anchovy paste

pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced

3T evoo

 

Combine kale and cheese in a large bowl... I finally got to use my new Sophie salad bowl. In a separate bowl whisk together lemon juice, anchovy paste, pepper, garlic, and olive oil. Pour over kale. Massage dressing in with your hands until kale begins to soften. Enjoy with protein on the side, we had seafood stuffed clams.

 

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"orange" juice

B made some amazing juice at home this weekend with our juicer. It was one of those juices where he used up everything in the fridge that needed to be used before it went bad. This juice was delish! Clearly, or I would not be sharing it with you.

Kale

2 small zucchini

1 orange

6 carrots

2 apples

 

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poached egg sandwiches on sweet potato biscuits

This dinner was amazing. Eggs are any anytime food for us! I have been eating cheese biscuits my whole life but we found a recipe for sweet potato biscuits and knew we had to try them!

3.5 oz sweet potato, well cooked and mashed

1 1/2c whole wheat flour

1/2T sugar

2t baking powder

1/2t baking soda

1/4t salt

6T butter, cold and cut into peices

1/2c water (you could use milk but we did not have any)

toppings: poached eggs, cajun turkey, white cheddar, chives, triple berry jam

Preheat oven to 425. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine. Cut in butter with a pastry blender. Stir in water and sweet potato until combined. Knead a couple times on a floured surface, roll out, and cut into rounds with a glass. Bake 10 to 12 minutes on a parchment covered cookie sheet until golden and puffy. Let cool for a couple minutes then cut in half.

Crisp turkey in a frying pan. Add cheese, turkey, chives, and jam to biscuit. Top with a freshly poached egg (with a runny yolk of course) and enjoy immediately!

We have been having longer sunlight hours so I can finally get good evening photos of food when we cook on weekends! The florescent lighting in our kitchen is not conducive to taking good food photos.

kale & eggs

I saw this recipe on Pinterest and knew we needed to make it.  Some modifications were made because we did not have all the ingredients but it is close to the original.

 2T butter

handful chives, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 chopped kale, hard stems removed

1c chicken broth

1T lemon juice

pepper

4 eggs

Over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add chives and garlic then sautee. Add half the kale and cook for about a minute. Add the rest of the kale and cook until slightly wilted. Add chicken broth and lemon juice. Sautee until kale is cooked, about 6 minutes.  Make 4 wells in kale. Crack an egg into each well, sprinkle with pepper, cover, and cook until white is cooked but yolk is still runny, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest until egg is cooked to your liking, I did not need mine to cook any longer as I like my yolk very runny. 

Serve eggs and kale together in a bowl. It's the perfect breakfast filled with greens and protein!

beef & broccoli with teriyaki sauce

I made a discover on Saturday night... the Company's Coming website is gone! Some of my faves from Jean Pare like teriyaki salmon and japanese cabbage salad are gone too! We wanted to teriyaki sauce for our dinner on Saturday so I had to go from memory. I thought I'd share it here so I do not have to stress about finding the recipe in the future!

2T oil

1/4c low sodium soy sauce

2T brown sugar

1t garlic powder

1t ginger
1lb grass fed stew meat, cut into smaller peices

broccoli, cut into florets

brown rice, cooked according to package

Combine first 5 ingredients in a large ziplock bag, mix well. Add beef and let marinate for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, cook brown rice according to package. Ours takes 45 minutes to cook so I always have to remember to start it early! 

In a large frying pan lover medium heat, add beef and sauce. Cook until meat is about help cooked. Add broccoli and cover to steam. Cook until beef is cooked to your liking. 

Serve over brown rice.

P.S. Are you loving the Olympics? I am obsessed. We don't have television but I can watch at the gym so I imagine I will be working out more than usual these next 2 weeks.

InstaFriday

Happy Friday! How is it Friday already? This week went be so quick... especially considering we finally had a full week of classes. This week we finally got on a schedule! Here are some highlights not related to work or school!

1. My new burgundy New Balance shoes came in the mail. I am obsessed!

2. We made chicken with mushrooms and pan sauce along with steamed green beans this week. We love this dish.

3. Sometimes I want a burger but not the bun. Sometimes I want a salad. Fat Cow knows how to make it happen by serving salads with a burger patty on top. Yum!

4. We received new Sophie Conran dishes as Christmas gifts this year. We added 4 pasta bowls and a large mixing bowl to our collection. I love these dishes!

Have a great weekend! Ours will be filled with Olympics and studying!

 

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olympic style

You may think the most wonderful time of the year is Christmas... I think it's the Olympics! I absolutely love the Winter Olympics! Figure skating, hockey, bobsledding, curling, skiing... what's not to love. B and I happen to cheer for different countries so we are slightly competitive with it comes to our favorite sports. For the next 2 weeks there is a strong chance you will see me sporting one of my Canadian olympic tshirts. What sport are you most excited for? Who will you be cheering for?

HBC Canadian olympic tee

 

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taco veggie chili + scones

This would have been a great meal for meatless Mondays, but we made it on Tuesday so we we just going to call it healthy & delicious. Eating meat everyday is not necessary as long as there is still a protein source. For this meal, that source was beans! We enjoyed our taco veggie chili with scones and a little bit of freshly grated mozzarella. The inspiration from this recipe came from Oh She Glows, one of our fave vegan blogs!

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1T cumin

1T chili powder

1 1/2c frozen corn

1 small can tomato paste

1 can kidney beans, rinsed & drained

1 can black beans, rinsed & drained

1 can fire roasted diced tomatoes

1T taco seasoning

1/2c butternut squash cheeze sauce

Sautée onion and garlic in evoo until translucent. Add cumin, chili powder, corn & tomato paste. Mix well. Add beans, diced tomatoes, & taco seasoning. Mix until combined. Let simmer for 15-20 minutes. Stir in cheeze sauce. Serve warm with cheese and scones.

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5 faves

How is your week going. Mine is busy but productive and full of energy!

Here are a few things I am loving this week:

28 days of Pilates - because even pilates instructors need to set aside time everyday for a workout

dutch cocoa somersaults - so healthy & so delicious

 

headphones - these exact ones are in my amazon.com cart to order, I need to get that done

denim jackets - I feel like I really need one of these for spring

yoga - last night at hot yoga I touched my toes while seated... something I have not done since before I started my MS degree, it's been great to be back at yoga classes more often

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lust list

I always have a few things on my wishlist. I am not sure if it is the "cold" weather but based on the colors I am loving I must not be ready for spring.

pixie pants - These have been on my list forever, will this be the year I finally buy them?

ice queen tights - I love these pants in both black and blue! I have been offered a position teaching private pilates sessions a few times a week. Once I know the dress code these might need to end up in my rotation since I spend so much time in workout clothes.

downing tote - The school bag just isn't cutting it anymore. This may make a great graduation gift as it would hold everything I need for my day (lunch, iPad, change of clothes)!

new balance burgundy shoes - I think these are perfect. I love the color and that is can be worn with black, blue, or anything in between.

black patent Birkenstock sandals - I still need to try these on for comfort but I think they would be great for summer.

 

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InstaFriday

Happy Friday! Or maybe Saturday since I am posting late. Yesterday was a busy day after a short week but I am handful it is the weekend again. Before I head off to yoga sculpt I thought I would share some of my fave photos from the week with you:

1. Our snow day... or as I would call it: it barely snowed so everything is closed day!

2. Dinner of homemade sweet potato fries from our new mandoline, asparagus, and smoked salmon that was also a Christmas gift!

3. Anchovies stuffed green olives! I bought these for B but I really liked them!

4. I have been going to pilates at Studio7 and loving it. I am a big fan of equipment pilates classes and this new studio is fully equipped to challenge me throughout my entire workout.

Have a great weekend!

 

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