One of my favorite things to do in the summertime is hang out in my backyard in the evening with my husband, while we listen to relaxing music coming through my patio speakers with glasses of refreshing white wine in hand, while munching on an easy appetizer dinner and laughing at our pup running around chasing her ball like a nut. With temperatures steadily in the 80s and the sun blaring strong every day in the San Diego area for quite awhile, my house has been on the warmer side lately - which means I don't necessarily feel like turning on my oven or sweating over my stovetop to make dinner... or putting all that much effort into meal prep for that matter. We've thought about getting air conditioning, but just when I'm over feeling hot in my house and want to see about getting ... [Read More]
pesto
Roasted Tomato & Spinach Ricotta Pesto Stuffed Shells
Happy Hump Day friends! I'm excited because tomorrow I head up to Manhattan Beach for ShiftCon - a social media conference focusing on wellness, health, and the environment. There are so many sessions that seem so interesting and fun that I'm looking forward to, and it's always great to connect with other bloggers and people in the healthy food industry! I'm sure I'll be recapping all of the fun for you next week, but today, let's talk about this deliciousness: The idea for roasted tomato & ricotta pesto stuffed shells first came to mind when I bought a bag of locally grown beautiful heirloom cherry tomatoes. There's just something about those vibrant colors that makes me want to get all creative with the meal I use the tomatoes for. I roasted them with just a bit of olive oil, salt ... [Read More]
Avocado, Spinach & Walnut Pesto Pasta
Good old St. Paddy's Day is tomorrow, and while I didn't make any Irish soda bread last weekend or have a blast celebrating at any parades, I wanted to share a green recipe in honor of the holiday. My heritage is part Irish, and I have lots of St. Paddy's Day memories: my family getting together at my grandma's house (who was Italian, but loved any excuse to celebrate!) for corned beef & cabbage (hold the corned beef for me), potatoes and Irish soda bread; and day drinking at many Irish parades in Jersey as a college kid. I kind of would like to be wearing green shamrock stickers on my face and day drinking with my girlfriends right about now actually, but any who... here's a fun little holiday tidbit: The color green being associated with Ireland dates back to at least ... [Read More]
Arugula Pesto Linguine with Tomato & Zucchini
Saturday was one of those days when I was all about checking things off my to-do list. Finish schoolwork. Check. Vaccum. Check. Dust. Check. Do laundry. Check. Fold laundry. Check. Clean bathrooms. Check. Walk the pup. Check. Do an at-home workout. Check. Purchase a car dog seat cover so that my pooch doesn't ruin my car. Check. When Saturday evening rolled around, I decided that it was a nicely productive around-the-house day, and now it was time for some weekend fun. My hubby and I had plans to go to a luxury movie theater with another couple, but first, it was time to check this off my mental checklist: Make an awesome dinner using the farmer's market pasta sitting in my cabinet. The week before I had met a girlfriend for a smoothie date, and afterwards we walked around ... [Read More]
Avocado Walnut Pesto Tofu Salad
When I was younger, I didn't eat nuts -- no cashews, almonds, walnuts, pine nuts, nada. I can't decide which came first: me deciding that my tastebuds weren't a fan, or me putting them on my silly can't-eat-because-of-the-high-fat-content-list. Well my friends, I've gotten older and wiser, and now am a firm believer in including heart-healthy fats in my diet on a daily basis. Nuts (and most definitely nut butters!) are a frequent part of my eats. I'll throw a half-serving on top of my yogurt, or eat a serving as a snack here and there. So when California Walnuts contacted me asking if I'd like to try a bag of their walnuts to play around with in the kitchen, I gladly accepted. The nuts came in a kind of earthy feeling burlap sack, which I thought was a cute touch. To check out some of ... [Read More]
6 Dip Ideas for the Super Bowl
With the Super Bowl coming up in a week, I know that there are plenty of people out there trying to come up with easy but tasty (and hopefully somewhat healthy!) munchies to bring to a party or have at their own place. As I mentioned in my last post when sharing my recipe for queso fresco black bean dip, I am most definitely an appetizer and dip lover. So, without further adieu, I thought I'd share 6 awesome dip recipes with you today: French Onion Dip I just whipped up my take of this classic yummy dip for the first time last New Year's Eve. I liked it so much, I just may make it again on Sunday! Serve it with carrots, celery, pretzels, or (homemade) potato chips. You can check out the recipe here. Spinach & Artichoke Dip A lighter version than what you'll find in restaurants all ... [Read More]