Hearty Chicken Soup is Love.

Everyone shows and receives love in different ways. Some people show love through quality time, letters, chocolate and flowers, rides to the airport....and how about biking around the city in a heart-shaped route? I prefer food.

For me, this recipe from Chicken Recipe Box is love. It's a two-parter, so it definitely requires planning. But you (and whoever you decide to share it with...or not!) will be so happy you did. To get the base to taste just like your favorite "tong" (broth) made by your grandma, you must make the chicken stock from scratch. Sorry Swanson's! Roast a chicken and use that as meal #1. Save the chicken bones and stick them in a large pot with onions, carrots, garlic and water and let all the flavors develop by simmering the yumminess for four hours. Strain all the veggies and bones out and you have your chicken stock!

Click the link above to find the rest of the recipe! It's super easy, guilt-free, the ultimate comfort food, and doesn't require too many ingredients. Happy Valentines Day!

**Photo Credit: Chicken Recipe Box via Pinterest

Broccoli Blooms

Ah ha! I've never been so excited about broccoli before!

To be honest, I was a little skeptical about the broccoli plants. Our garden plot neighbor had a few extra so we figured, why not try it? It was really happy for a few months with lots of steady growth and humongous leaves. I didn't even know how or where the crowns were going to form until this weekend, voila!, they were there! We're going to let them form a little more before we bust out some stir fry with these. But how cool?! This whole process of "urban farming" (can we even call it that??) has been so rewarding. Just yesterday we had some chard from the garden with steak and roasted peppers. While I was kind of nervous about finding a slug in my food, it tasted delicious! To top it off, this whole experiment as totally paid itself off. We've had lettuce for weeks and it doesn't show any signs of stopping.

Local readers out there -- does anyone know of a veggie swap? It would be so fun to trade some of our butter lettuce, arugula and radishes for peas, tomatoes, peppers...

From the Garden to the Table

It's embarrassing the number of times that we go to Greens Up! in one week. Greens Up! takes the Subway sandwich concept (you choose the ingredients) and applies it to the largest salads you will ever see. They're so generous with their toppings, you won't regret opting for a salad. Jackie always gets the "Sonoma" and since we go so often, we have the menu pretty much memorized. I was craving fresh veggies after a delicious (and heavy) Con/Lum Christmas and luckily our garden was ready for its first harvest! We ended up only taking lettuce and arugula from two heads but we'll have enough to last the week. Free, fresh, organic food! It doesn't get better than that.

If you're stumped for a tasty, hearty salad, this one is a winner:

The Sonoma Salad, adapted from Greens Up!: 
- Fresh Butter Lettuce
- Fresh arugula
- Sliced oranges
- Candied Walnuts
- Turkey (cubed)
- Grapes (halved)
- Mozzerella (cubed)
- Tangy Apple Dressing (*order the dressing on the side so that you can hoard the extras...if this isn't available, I'm not 100% sure but I think this dressing has apple cider vinegar, honey and lemon in it. Still experimenting!)

Gobble Gobble

How did my favorite holiday already pass us by? Our Thanksgiving gathering was small this year, but Jackie bought a proper roasting pan so we just had to cook another 17-pound turkey. It wasn't as fun without mom, dad and Jord, but we managed to eat to our hearts' delight and then pass out on the couch while watching Pocahontas.

Jocelyn put together this short video of the evening to help us remember the night because that's what she does best!

The Seafood Shack

While on a Craigslist mini road trip to pick up a fantastic mid-century modern dresser in Laguna Beach, Jackie and I discovered a little hole in the wall seafood joint along the way called The Seafood Shack. What started as an innocent craving for some shellfish quickly spiraled into a messy, finger-licking, two-hour feast! This was my first seafood boil experience and I loved every moment of it - from the second they put down the paper table cloth (more like drop cloth), scissors, lobster crackers and a huge bowl of lemons, to when I had to go to the bathroom to literally wash all the yumminess off my hands and cheeks (no napkins or utensils!).

We ordered the Taste of the Sea (1 whole lobster, 2 pounds of crawfish, 1 pound clams, 1 pound of shrimp, corn and sausage) and an Oyster sampler as an appetizer.  Our waiter couldn't believe he was taking down an order for two small females. He must have announced it to the kitchen because throughout the entire meal we had waitresses coming to check in and root us on. I have to admit that I was a little nervous about an allergic reaction to ALL that shellfish since it had happened to my brother, but I am happy to say that I am in the clear!



I wish I had more photos of the night, but after this point, our hands were MESSY. That night, I learned how to crack a crawfish. I also learned that crawfish heads are pretty darn gross. Maybe one day I will be cool enough to suck out the heads...
For the record, we finished it. All of it.

Every Morning.

1 Sambazon Açai smoothie pack
1 cup of cold almond milk
3 sliced strawberries
1/2 banana
Your favorite crunchy granola

Breakfast of champions! This is what gets me out of bed in the morning. This and coffee.

My Weird Snacks

I don't want this blog to turn into a weird record of my latest fitness and dieting endeavors, but lately, it's all I can think to write about since life has been pretty consumed with work. In my limited free time, I am trying my best to be active! Today, I thought I'd share with you some of my new favorite snack discoveries ever since I've been trying to cut out extra carbs, fats and sugars. If this whole experience has taught me one thing, it's that what you put into your body is just as important as exercise (if not more!) if you want to see a change. So here's my list of saving grace's:

PB2 -- a powered peanut butter that doesn't compromise on taste but leaves out all the extra oils and fats of regular peanut butter! I haven't tried the chocolate peanut butter flavor but that's next! A few scoops of this + vanilla whey + chilled almond milk = a refreshing post-sweat treat.

Quest Bars -- recommended by our yoga teacher, these protein bars have 20g of protein, tons of fiber and only 1-2g of sugar. Best of all, they have the consistency of a Snicker's bar. Delicious!

Miracle Noodles -- again, recommended by our yoga teacher, these are an easy way to fill your noodle craving with 0 carbs. Warning, these smell really gross and fishy out of the bag because it's some sort of sea plant, but give it a good rinse and they take on the flavors of your dish.

Buffalo Jerkey (from Trader Joes) -- mmmm! Good protein, low-fat, spicy, soft and not dry...

Edamame -- I'm a muncher so whenever I want a good, healthy, hearty (and, lets be real, salty!) snack, this is what I turn to!

Case in point: Eating healthy does not equal suffering! 


**Side note: I promise I'll be back to the normal "programming" with some cat photos soon! With the summer heat rolling in, Moby is going to get a shave this weekend...wish us luck :)

TX.

I can't say that Texas has ever been one of my top destinations, but after watching the most recent episode of Top Chef and seeing this blog post by From Me To You, I may just have to head in that direction one day.

TC highlighted The Salt Lick in Driftwood, TX - apparently one of the best places in the world for BBQ. An hour episode of watching people happily devour plates of slow-cooked and grilled short-ribs and brisket? That's more than enough to convince this girl to head on down south. In fact, I'm getting a little hungry just thinking of it right now.


Don't these images of Cibolo Creek Ranch in Marfa, TX seem like a nice, warm and quiet getaway? As an added bonus, there is limited internet and cell phone access. Now that's a real vacation. How far is Marfa from Driftwood? 7 hours drive? Hmm.

To browse more images, visit From Me to You.

Our little cooking adventure...

I was the official "sous chef" of Thanksgiving this year, so my hands were tied with dicing and dishes throughout the cooking process. Hence the lack of "pre" and "during" photos...

The 17 pound turkey ended up taking 4+ hours, but I'm so happy we decided to tackle this traditional dish! Mmm mmm delicious. Our heavy feast ended up feeding the clan for a few days (*the most amazing turkey and cranberry sandwiches on our Hollywood hike!) but for the record, I was happy to be back to Jackie's light and healthy cooking come Monday.

Le Menu

Oh, just planning the menu for Thanksgiving...

Thanksgiving in LA has been one of my favorite times of the year. Over the years, we have tried many recipes and these are the ones we'll be repeating this year. Warning: do not continue to read this post if you're hungry!


Swiss Chard and Sweet Potato Gratin by Smitten Kitchen


Martha's Mac N Cheese adapted by Smitten Kitchen


Lemon Garlic Green Beans


Sausage Sage and Thyme Bread Stuffing by Gastronomy


Apple Pie by Smitten Kitchen



Pomegranate Jelly with Rosemary (instead of Cranberry sauce)

Instead of doing a turkey, we normally roast a duck or do chicken. Let the festivities begin!!!

Chicken Pot Pie from Scratch

Chicken pot pie has always been one of my favorite comfort foods. Growing up, we always had frozen chicken pot pies in the freezer for whenever us kids were left to fend for ourselves. Now that I know how to make it from scratch, I'm ready to retire Marie Callender's for good!

When Jackie emailed me this recipe from Wit + Delight, I immediately filed it under my "recipe" folder for a rainy day (like today!) but then I noticed the moveable gif and for some reason, that was enough to get me interested to try it immediately! Food photography can do that for ya, right?

If I can pull this off, so can you. Enjoy!

Pizza Time.

Jackie's brother, Alex and his fiancé, Shannon stopped by on their way from Australia to Colorado. Alex had mentioned wanting to try Mario Batali’s Pizzeria Mozza last time he was here so we made sure to get a reservation in and ate all the pizza we could have ever wanted.

We don’t eat out often, so when foodies like Shannon and Alex come to visit, it’s fun to go all out. We got four pizzas for the four of us, two desserts (you must try the Butterscotch budino, sea salt & rosemary pine nut cookies if you visit!) and topped it all off with an after dinner coffee and espresso. Bliss.

Jackie's Specialties...

We're very lucky to live a short bike-ride away from one of the best Farmer's Markets on the westside of town. The Santa Monica Farmer's Market is on the ocean-end of our street and it has become one of our favorite things to do on Saturday morning. Typical of Southern California, we were given another beautiful day of sunshine - ahh, is it really October?! - and we were able to get a nice selection of heirloom tomatoes, pea vine, gai lan (Chinese broccoli) and garlic-roasted pistachios. These photos are from last weekend....maybe if I hint enough Jackie will whip up something equally yummy.

DineLA

Oh my goodness I love this time of year. DineLA is a two-week long event where a bunch of restaurants in Los Angeles offer 3-course dinner and lunch menus at a fixed cost. The list of participating restaurants is extensive this time around (seriously, how am I going to pick just one or two to go to?!)

Last year, I discovered DineLA on accident. Jackie and I happened to be looking for a new restaurant and ended up trying Hosteria. To our surprise, we were presented with an amazing 3-course dinner menu option. Built in dessert? I can't say no. We rolled out of there after two hours of consuming an appetizer, pizza, dessert and espresso (don't worry that's per person). Yeah. I think we surprised the waiter with our pretty awesome appetites. But that's besides the point - DineLA is here and it's my favorite excuse to go out and try new restaurants that are normally outside of my price range.

Here are a few spots and dishes that are looking especially appetizing:

Inn of the Seventh Ray // The Hungry Cat // Tavern // NIGHT + MARKET // Fig Restaurant in Santa Monica

Click here for the full list of restaurants. Anyone have any other recommendations?

A Little Nostalgia Never Hurt Anyone

The independent coffee shop across the street from my office prides itself in its fancy European espressos. Since it's the kind of coffee shop that doesn't offer drip coffee (!) and charges $5 a drink, the snooty atmosphere normally trumps convenience. It wasn't until last week that I discovered their awesome baguette sandwiches, reminiscent of a typical German lunch when I was studying there years ago. Prosciutto, red pepper, a little lettuce...NOM (also, no wonder I got a little pudgy that year). Normally I pile any and every ingredient in my sandwiches, but the simplicity of these ones really allow you to taste the yumminess of the baguette.

Cue nostalgia. Cue wanderlust. Didn't I just go on vacation? After studying abroad in Europe for a year, I thought that I may be "done" with that corner of the world for a while, especially since there's so much more of the globe to explore. Yet something about that baguette changed my mind...I can't stop thinking about those cobblestone streets. Jordan Ferney's recent post on the Parisian Vélib bike-rental system didn't help either. 

Since that first baguette sandwich last week, I've had it again two more times (sidenote: there are so many European-style cafes along the Santa Monica promenade. Who knew?)

Get me to Europe! I'd do so well here...

Image credits: Baguette via Pinterest // Vélib via Jordan Ferney | Oh Happy Day // Photo taken by me in Amsterdam

Weekend Vacation P.2 *Warning: Don't Read If Hungry

Wanna know why I was running a little slow at the gym on Monday? Well, this is why:



If you were paying attention, that was TWO birthday cakes in two days.

...and these are only the dishes I remembered to photograph.

Cons can eat.

Weekend Vacation

Aren't 3-day weekends wondrous?

We decided to stay in town to enjoy the 80-degree weather and beach. But first! Food. My stomach was treated to some awesome homemade meals. The pizza was made by Jackie on our new pizza stone and chef Robinson pulled homemade pasta out of his fancy bag of culinary tricks. I don't think I've ever had homemade pasta before and I gotta say, I am a new woman. I brought my new camera with the intention of trying to take a few photos of his creation, but appetite beat me to it. Such is life.

We brought over special beverages for the chef and I finally opened up one of my precious Muji drinks -- thanks again Akiko, they are so delicious. I'm savoring the second one for a special occasion.

Sorry Neko and Moby...Scratch is the kitty featured on this post! We spent Saturday night being entertained by those crazy eyes. Scratch has such a spunky personality and nails to live up to her name. Her unexplainable interest in tampons is beyond me!

The rest of the weekend included washing and waxing the cars (is it weird that I get so much happiness out of making things shiny?!), beach beach beach, and dying on the Santa Monica stairs. Catching the sunset made it worth it though.

Best thing about a 3 day weekend? Only have 3 more days until next weekend!