Happy New Year! I hope that 2017 is off to a great start for you. I'm back in California after a week and a half on the east coast for holiday vacation, and ready to see what wonderful things this year has in store for me. Since I love to reflect on the positives of the year at the start of a new one, today we're looking back at my 2016 favorites! Recipes. When I think about favorite recipe posts, what pops into my mind are the recipes that I shared with loved ones, made numerous times and couldn't get enough of! My top 5 recipes of 2016 that were popular on the blog are... Mini Pretzel Twists with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce. I had a thing for soft pretzels in 2016! Mediterranean Feta & Lemon Hummus Dip. After creating this dip for a health coaching event, I ... [Read More]
vegetarian recipes
Vegetable Mac & Cheese Ramekins
Happy Thanksgiving week! Throughout the entire year, but especially during the holiday season, one of my main diet principles is portion control. So many people ban certain foods from their lives, only to "fall off the wagon" and binge when their willpower wanes. I promote the idea of balanced eating and moderation because it is what works in the long haul! Take pasta for example. Do I eat it daily? No. But do I eat it when I'm in a carb-y pasta mood around every couple of weeks? Hell yea! I just never eat a huge bowl of it (well, unless I'm in Italy...) and I try to sneak some veggies into my pasta dishes to make them heartier and more nutritious. I recently came up with this idea of making ramekin macaroni & cheese - because ramekins are perfect for built-in portion ... [Read More]
Chocolate Pumpkin Spice Cereal Bars [gluten free]
As a traveler, I'm not usually the person that seeks out the best shopping spots in a given area. I'm not huge into shopping and my husband absolutely loathes it, so shopping is never on our vacation checklist. While I prefer making memories, taking photos, and going on adventures while traveling, I do enjoy nabbing a souvenir that reminds me of the trip and is unique to the area. For instance, I picked up coasters in New Orleans that have the city's symbolic fleur-de-lis design on them. When I put my drink on one, memories from my time there come to mind. The last time I was in Italy, I bought a bracelet from a street vendor. Every time I wear it, I think of the magic of Venice. During my trip to Ireland a few months ago, the souvenir that I took home was a jar of locally ... [Read More]
Italian Spaghetti Squash Casserole {gf}
Hi friends! How was your weekend? Highlights of my days off were visiting Temecula wine country with my cousin on Saturday, who visited for the afternoon to spend some time with me... ...and watching the NY Giants beat the Philadelphia Eagles (good for this Giants fan, and much to the dismay of my Eagles' fan husband) + practicing some yoga on the beach on Sunday. And I'm feeling very antsy about tomorrow's election. During this election season, I thought I'd do a post about where each candidate stands when it comes to women's + health issues, but it became so glaringly obvious to me which one should become president and which one is idiotic beyond belief, I decided there was little need to write that type of post. It probably isn't hard to guess which side I'm on in this ... [Read More]
Peaches & Cream Muffins [gf]
All of us have a few pretty useless talents up our sleeves, and one of mine is knowing the lyrics to about a million songs. I can hear a song once or twice and forever have the words in my vault of a brain. For some reason I'm especially good at remembering lyrics from songs that came out when I was in middle school and high school. I attribute this partly to my strange but good memory, and partly to my musical abilities thanks to playing the piano from age 4 up. Do you know when my lyrical memory comes in handy? When I'm driving with my hubby listening to the Pop2K and 90's stations on Sirius XM radio. They play nonstop music from all of the 90s and 2000s, and it's nothing short of awesome. Usually as I rap Ashanti and Ja Rule tunes, A looks at me and shakes his head as he asks, "How the ... [Read More]
12 Recipe Ideas for the 4th of July
Happy (almost) 4th of July weekend to all of my fellow Americans! Despite the adversities that we as a country face (ahem, one of which is a certain person who has diarrhea of the mouth running for president), I'm proud to be an America. I'm proud to live in a country where a woman like me can be whoever she wants to be. Looking for 4th of July recipe ideas? In honor of our celebration of independence, today I'm sharing 12 recipes that make a great fit to whip up over this long holiday weekend! #1. Let's kick this list off with my most patriotic looking recipe: red, white & blueberry pancakes! Made with oats, banana, and ground flaxseed, and topped with a maple blueberry sauce, fresh strawberries & shredded coconut, these pancakes are a dreamy holiday brunch idea ... [Read More]