and why don’t i share my lunch with you while I am at it:
Sushi Bowl. Recipe from Heidi Swanson- Super Natural Foods
It will satisfy your sushi cravings! I imagine eating on a rainy afternoon….or topping with some grilled salmon. What a nice treat! I bet the leftovers will be good too!
This morning, Cooper and I shared some lovely Zucchini Bread. The recipe came from Jen Altman!! Her pictures make me daydream and I get especially excited when I see a food recipe! There’s something so Alice-In-Wonderland about her food photos. I imagine eating a slice at a Mad Hatter’s Tea Party 🙂 Will it make me big? Will it make me small?
Anyways- It’s a perfect way to get a dose of vegetables in a child. And he didn’t know the difference. It was especially nice after I BATTLED last night feeding him veggies. Apparently Cooper thinks he’s on a carbs-only diet…..
It’s also a great way to fuel a sleepy adult in the morning…or a pick-me-up afternoon treat.
Thanks Jen! We enjoyed it so!
So tonight might be the night we officially say goodbye to summer round these parts. As we sat down to eat, a cool breeze hit us and leaves fell all over the back deck. At one point I contemplated getting a sweater, but I decided to savor this one last time eating outside at night.
Although, this is the Bay Area and we are known for our Indian Summers…so maybe this might be a lil premature. Either way, autumn is coming and I am super excited to start hibernating and make some comfort food!
To celebrate a beautiful day, I made a Sweet & Spicy Rubbed Salmon with a Chickpea Spinach Salad with a Cumin Dressing.
The orange dressing was PERFECT on top of the salmon.
I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate! Soo healthy, refreshing & tasty. I am looking forward to leftovers tomorrow! I bet it will taste even better.
(recipe Ellie Krieger- The Food You Crave)
-Cooking spray -2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar -1 tablespoon chili powder -1 teaspoon ground cumin -1/8 teaspoon salt -1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper – 6- 5 ounce salmon fillets, skin & bones removed – 1 tablespoon olive oilDirections:
Coat your grill with cooking spray and preaheat over medium heat. While the grill is heating, combine the brown sugar, chili powder, cumin salt & pepper. Brush each salmon filet with 1/2 teaspoon of oil then rub each fillet evenly with the spice mixture.
Grill salmon, flesh side down, until charred, 4 to 5 minutes. Flip the salmon and cook for 5-6 minutes for medium doneness. Transfer to platter and serve immediately.
(Recipe Ellie Krieger- The Food You Crave)
-1 15 oz. cans chickpeas drained & rinsed -2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley -1/4 cup diced red onions -2 tablespoons olive oil -2 tablespoons lemon juice -1/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest -3/4 teaspoon ground cumin -Pinch cayenne pepper -Salt & Pepper to taste -3 tablespoons plain nonfat yogurt -1 tablespoon orange juice -1/4 teaspoon grated orange zest -1/4 teaspoon honey -2 cups lightly packed baby spinach leaves -1 tablespoon chopped fresh mintDirections:
In a medium bowl, combine the chickpeas, parsley, & onion. In a seperate bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, oil, lemon zest, cumin, cayenne salt & pepper. Pour the dressing over the chickpea mixture and toss to coat evenly. In another small bowl, stir together the yogurt, orange juice, orange zest, and honey.
Serve the chickpea salad over a bed of spinach leaves. Top with the yogurt sauce and garnish with mint.
Every time I visit my dear friends up in Oregon, I always come back with great ideas, good organizing tips as well as cool new products to try.
My friend Jessica let me in on her lil secret. Martha Stewart’s Lunch Cube.
I couldn’t find a link for one at Macy’s, but this is the brand that makes it.
It’s GENIUS. Look how it fits my items. And look how easy it packs up!
This will come in handy when Cooper and I are out and about and he’s at the sandwich eating stage. I am really looking forward to it! I bought one for myself for work. At $4.99 each at Macy’s how can you beat that?
I spied these beautiful products over at my friend Erin’s house….and immediately fell in love with the packaging! After doing dishes with the Dish Soap, I was convinced I NEEDED some.
J.R. Watkins Apothecary Home Care Dish Soap & Hand Soap
Imagine the scent of a lemon cake filling up your sink as you work on the dishes!
It makes dish washing tolerable. That’s for sure! Now I don’t have ugly bottles sitting on my sink counter.
I just picked up this book from Amazon, and I am soooooo excited to work in the kitchen with it!
Super Natural Cooking, by Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks
I’ve been wanting to expand my horizons in the kitchen- add more greens and more GOOD-FOR-YOU food. This will do just the trick!
Speaking of Healthy…..
I am also in love with Pop Chips. The BBQ flavor is sooo tasty & there’s hardly any guilt to eating them!
And the other night I spent almost 4 hours working on a spreadsheet of my staples/favorites at Trader Joes. I am happy to report that it made grocery shopping yesterday much easier!
It pays to have a game plan when you go grocery shopping. It’s my new favorite.
I also got some Butternut Squash from my neighbor. It’s one of my favorite foods she grows!
SCORE!
How about you? What are your current faves? Let’s share!
I just got back from Oregon. I LOOOOOOOOOOOVE it up there. I’m get nostalgic for Oregon as I went to college there waaaay back when.
I met up with a dear friend in Portland before my visit to Eugene and we had a lil food & shopping adventure!
We went to Pine State Biscuits! I’ve been wanting to go FOREVER.
You are almost 11 months old. Eek! That means we have to get a move on with your birthday party planning! Yikes.
This past weekend was your FIRST OFFICIAL VACATION!
We went to Lake Tahoe with your Nana, Papa & Uncle Ryan.
Isn’t it funny to see food items that expire on your birthday? I started this glorious day over overindulgence by eating some greek yogurt that expired today. Today being my birthday. It was meant to be eaten by the year older me. It’s like that fancy little computer knew that I would enjoy it by my birthday- and they were right. The year older Tracy added some blueberries & ground flax seed cuz I’m like totally wiser or something. A year younger Tracy would probably not be such a smartie pants.
Today was filled with morning fog, afternoon sun (typical SF weather), silly voicemails, lots of loving texts & emails, number crunching, a million nibbles on my baby’s cheeks, a floral bouquet shaped like a birthday cake, a scrumptious lunch with my dad, pound cake & strawberries from my coworker, a traffic free commute home, babysitter, a wonderful evening out with my husband, drinks, appetizers, pizza & the movies!!!
We saw Julie & Julia and I loved every second of it.
Turning 30 today totally rocked.
