Reason 143: Quinoa

Tuesday, May 31, 2011.

If you haven't tried quinoa (keen-wa) please do so.  Today.  It is a million times better than rice and could be compared to a mini massage in your mouth.  And the best part?  It is super healthy!  Here is a description I got from WebMD...

"Quinoa is now readily available in many supermarkets and is one of the best whole grains you can eat, according to Zied. "It is an ancient grain, easy to make, interesting, high in protein (8 grams in 1 cup cooked), fiber (5 grams per cup) and a naturally good source of iron," she says. Quinoa (pronounced keen-wa) also has plenty of zinc, vitamin E, and selenium to help control your weight and lower your risk for heart disease and diabetes, she says. Quinoa is as easy to prepare as rice and can be eaten alone or mixed with vegetables, nuts, or lean protein for a whole-grain medley. Try to make at least half your daily grain servings whole grains. In addition to quinoa, try barley, oats, buckwheat, whole wheat, wild rice, and millet."


And to start off (or continue) your quinoa adventures, here is an uber delicious recipe from Our Best Bites (my new favorite website).

Mango Quinoa Salad

(And if you don't like mango, leave it out.  Some readers suggested peaches, avacadoes, or roasted red peppers instead!)

Mango Quinoa Salad

Recipe adapted from Ali Vincent

2 cups cooked quinoa* at room temperature, or chilled

1 14 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 medium mango, peeled and diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

6 green onions, thinly sliced

1 handful chopped cilantro (about 1/2 cup)

4 tablespoon red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1-2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

kosher salt

freshly cracked black pepper

*Quinoa can be cooked in water or broth.  I suggest using vegetable or chicken broth for enhanced flavor, but plain water works great too.

Place cooked quinoa in a large bowl.  Add mango, red pepper, green onion, black beans, and cilantro.  In a small bowl combine vinegar, olive oil, and lime juice.  Whisk until smooth and pour on top of salad.  Toss to combine and add salt and pepper to taste.  Chill for at least one hour before serving.

And in other news, only two weeks left of spring term!  Jake and I are planning a spectacular St. George Adventure with two of our friends, Mary and Marc, after Spring ends.  Oh yeah and the BOC is coming. On that note, I am off to study.  

Reason 140: Homeade Calzones

Sunday, May 22, 2011.

I have been posting about food a lot lately.  Oh well.  Today, Jason surprised me with potentially the best meal he has ever made.  He made a calzone from scratch!  He made the pizza dough, added stuff to make it more calzone-crust like, and filled it with all of our fresh veggies from the Bountiful Basket.

Wow.  It was SO GOOD.  He didn't follow a recipe- he just kind of made it up.  Somedays I try and talk him into going to culinary school.  Maybe after med school as- a hobby?  Then he made homemade alfredo sauce to dip it in.  We also used tomato sauce and a little barbeque sauce (all in separate bowls).

Yep.  Love this kid.

Reason 137: Spaghetti and Meatballs

Wednesday, May 18, 2011.

It has been raining here for about 6 solid months.  Not really, but it has been raining for awhile.  It's awful dreary here which means that you cook comfort foods :).  I've always wanted to make meatballs from scratch, but for some reason I had in my head that it would be really difficult.  Thanks to my new favorite website, Our Best Bites, this was successfully (and easily) accomplished last night!

Looks comforting, eh?  It was surprisingly easy.  And it is always fun to try and make your own sauce (which, in my humble opinion, also turned out quite well).  If you want to check out this recipe, follow this link.

See that garlic bread?  Toasted Costco rolls with garlic salt and parmesan cheese. Haha.

Tonight we are having stuffed bell peppers and cheesecake with our dear friend, and almost missionary, Danni.  She brought a friend to enjoy our *lovely* weather in Northern Utah.  Check out her blog here!

Reason 135: Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Sunday, May 15, 2011

I have a new favorite blog.  It's called "Our Best Bites" and you can find it by clicking on the title.  Tonight we made a chocolate chip cookie pie.  Woah.  Delicious.  Like- amazing.  And SOOOO easy.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie
Recipe from Nestle

1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust, homemade or store-bought.
2 large eggs
1/2 C flour
1/2 C white granulated sugar
1/2 C packed brown sugar
3/4 C real butter, softened (1 1/2 sticks)
1 C chocolate chips (semi-sweet or dark works best, you might find milk too sweet)
1 C chopped pecans (you are welcome to make it without nuts)

Vanilla ice cream, or sweetened whipped cream for serving (a must!  I prefer ice cream)

optional: chocolate sauce (honestly, doesn’t really need chocolate sauce, but it looks pretty!)

Preheat oven to 325° F.

Beat eggs in large mixer bowl on high speed until foamy. Beat in flour, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in butter. Stir in morsels and nuts. Spoon into pie shell.

Bake for 55 to 60 minutes or until knife inserted halfway between edge and center comes out clean. Cool on wire rack or serve slightly warmed.  Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

So there you have it.  We also made chicken and vegetable teriyaki stir fry over rice. Mmm mmm. 

Reason 114: Jambalaya, Football, and Bountiful Baskets

Sunday, January 16, 2011

Productive weekend so far.  And guess what?  There is one more day of it!  YES!  It's late so this will be short. But....here is a list of weekend successes!

1. Bountiful Basket

Do you see that goodness?  Bountiful Baskets is a co-op where you pay $15 and they go to farmers and markets and such and bring in all of these fruits and vegetables, divide them up for everyone that paid, and you pick them up!  Each basket is kind of a surprise- you never know exactly what you will get.  They try to stick with 50% fruit and 50% vegetables.  We also bought the Mexican pack of foods (peppers, tomatillos, onions, etc) and 2 pounds of granola.  Doesn't that all look delicious?  Mmm mmm good.  

2. Green Bay Packers

Packers won!  They didn't just win, they ate the Falcon's for dinner.  In the front of this picture is my Clay Matthews.  HOLY CRAP he is talented.  This picture is from NFL.com with the caption "The old adage is that defense wins championships.  The four teams still standing have the defensive playmakers to prove it." These are four very talented guys right here.
Next Sunday.  One pm.  Packers vs Bears.
NFC CHAMPIONSHIP.

Bears are gonna get killed.  I hate the Bears.

3.  Jambalaya 

Jake and I made jambalaya this week!  We are super cultured like that.  Haha :)  Here is the recipe we used...

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1 pound andouille sausage, sliced
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 large green bell pepper, chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chicken broth
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons dried parsley
• 2 teaspoons Cajun seasoning
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 pound frozen cooked shrimp without tails

It was so good!  We did it in our slow cooker so it smelled yummy all day.  Last night we put it over rice, tonight we put it over butternut squash.  I'd TOTALLY recommend the squash... healthier and way more flavor.

4. Granola chocolate chip cookies.

Yum.

I think I am obsessed with granola.
We also had granola, fruit, and yogurt for breakfast today.

Can you say amazing?

5. Dating and Courtship Class

It is with great sadness that we taught the final Sunday School lesson of our "Dating and Courtship" a.k.a. Marriage Prep class in a singles ward at BYU today.  

This class was SO much fun!  The classroom always filled up, so we got lots of cool discussions going with the class.  We got to teach on things like finances, communication, forgiveness, prayer, challenges, unity, and more.  We loved it and we will definately miss it.  But we also got word today that the renters are moving out of our Springville apartment in about 6 weeks! YAY!  

Reason 107: Ten Thoughts on Life

Saturday, October 16, 2010.

1. Peanut Butter M&M's are one of the worlds most delicious foods.

2. I love classes this semester.  I feel an obvious shift in my attitude towards education.  I feel like I have gone from "Tell me what you know and I will believe you" to "Tell me what you know and I will questions, research, and thoroughly study until I am convinced."  It's been interesting- but it's made me a better student.  And I think I'm a little more annoying now (haha sorry).

3.  Football is awesome.  I've had a lot of great experiences as well as a lot of great conversations with doctors, chiropractors, athletic trainers, and other medical professionals.  I am just continuously fascinated by the body and football has offered a wealth of available knowledge and experience.

The Football Girls :)

4. I love cooking and having a husband who knows how to cook.  He has taught me a lot.

5. I love the show "House."  What a freaking amazing show!

6. I am so proud of Sister Owens and her desire to go serve the Lord in Russia.  What a cool girl!

From left, clockwise.  Hannah, Kelsi, Danae, Val, Brooke, Me.
This was my 16th birthday on January 2, 2006.
We were at the Cheesecake Factory in Las Vegas.
Just a little flashback :)

7. I am grateful for my medical knowledge and my Professional Rescuer certification.  Today I witnessed a motorcycle accident where the rider, who was not wearing a helmet, did a flip on his bike (hit the brakes too hard to avoid a car) and smashed his head on the road with his neck in flexion.  It was scary, but with Jason's help we were able to get to him and take care of the situation until the EMT's came. While we stabilized his neck and head I thought of all those times that we had to practice on a "victim" and I am grateful we did.

8. I have an awesome husband.  He is so willing to help and he is ridiculously hot.  And smart.

See? Ridiculously hot.
Wake surfing in Lake Powell.

9. We have a new calling as the Dating and Courtship teachers in a Glenwood singles ward.  It's actually really fun- we are using the Marriage and Family Relations manual.  We are enjoying it so far.

10. Happy 18th Birthday to my awesome brother Andrew!  So glad you get to celebrate in Disney World.  And I am THRILLED you decided to come to BYU!

'

Andrew is so cute, even when he pulls faces.

Reason 103: Friends and Homemade Pizza :)

Saturday, August 28, 2010.

A little delayed, I know.  But so good I couldn't pass up the chance to blog about it!

Seeing as how we finally got settled into our new apartment, we invited some friends over for homemade pizza and ice cream sundaes.  It was such a great night!  Thanks to Val, Maren, Lindsey, Kyle, Skyler, Jocelyn, and Jake for making it a fantastic evening.

We played a couple of games which was extremely reminiscent of high school.  We definately missed the rest of our group and wish they could've come!  It was fun to catch up and unfortunately say some good-byes.  It's amazing to see where everyone goes in life and to remember the influence each person does- and continues to have- on you.

Reason 87: Homemade Pizza

Saturday, July 10, 2010.

The wedding posts will be temporarily put on hold until I have the pictures.  I know you are all sad, but such is life.  :-)

Tonight's topic?  Homemade pizza.

Today, me and my new husband spent a long time opening and organizing all of our new gifts.  Next, we made pizza dough in our new, awesome breadmaker.  Then we used our new pizza stone and made pizza with mozzarella, olives, pepperoni's, and green peppers.  And now- we are eating it.  Oh my goodness- it is the best pizza I have ever had.

So the moral of tonight's story is:

1. Breadmakers rock.
2.  Homemade pizza is top notch.
3. I love having a clean, organized apartment.
4. I love having a husband.
5. And now we are going to go watch "Valentines Day."

I hope summer never ends.

Reason 75: Waffles!

Thursday, June 3, 2010.

Tonight we made waffles.  And they were delicious.  Waffles was just one good thing about today.  Others include sleeping until 9:45, getting all my homework done, lunch with Jason, a successful amount of replies to Jason's inquiry to do research in a BYU lab, Physiology lab five (of six) is complete, cleaned the apartment, then made these said waffles.  And they were a delicious day to cap off the day.

I also love three day weekends.  Especially when I turn them into 4-day weekends and return to Provo for a 2-day school week.  Hooray!

The wedding is only *SIXTEEN* days away.  Isn't that unreal?  I can't believe it's come so fast.  There are so many emotions- it's insane.  I am grateful for Jason and the life I am about to start with him.  I think life is too good to be true.  

As of right now, my mood is blissfully content.
373 hours and 37 minutes :)

Congrats to Bri and Jordan on their engagement!

Reason 17: Reasons to Celebrate

Have you ever thought about what life would be like if you had no reason to celebrate?  Or what if celebratory occasions were restricted to Easter and Christmas only?  That would be no fun.  So tonight I would like to point out that having a reason to celebrate is a reason that life is good.  

Yesterday was St. Patrick's Day.  I actually forgot to wear green for the first part of the day, but I had an unfortunate run-in with some melted butter that compelled me to change my shirt.  But my clothing is besides the point.  My roommates and I have this tradition of green pancakes on St. Patrick's day.  I found myself looking forward to that the whole entire day yesterday.  I legitimately think that is the only reason I survived physics lab.  

Jocelyn and Hanna making green pancakes :)

We were clearly impatient and had to maximize the use of our stove to make these pancakes.  We added chocolate chips to the pancakes this year.  Good choice cause they were delicious.

The first attempt at a timed picture.  I have a spatula growing out of my head.  

Brownstone #4 :)

We are so cute.  This picture was actually quite difficult to take.  Last night made me ever so slightly sentimental about leaving these girls after this semester-- they've been a lot of fun to have as roommates.  Don't get me wrong- I don't like the idea of roommates and girls living together.  Ugh.  BUT the beauty in that is that they would all agree. And our mutual agreement of not liking living with girls, sharing a room, trudging through compilations of disgusting hair, hearing everyones alarms in the morning, having no fridge space, blowing out fuses with blow dryers, and stealing each others food is quite possibly what brings us together.  

And that is a reason to celebrate.  

"We may not remember the tests that we failed, but we'll never forget the people we were with on the nights we didn't study."

Reason 3: Salad Dressing

Today I realized that salad dressing is a reason that life is good.  After a long day of classes, an even longer day at UVU, a successful (for once) physics test, and a workout at the gym-- I had the best salad.  And as I put a vinaigrette salad dressing on my creation, I paused for a moment of silence to honor this brilliant tradition.   Salads would be pretty dull without salad dressing.  And my bet is that salads would've stopped evolving at green leaves and tomatoes, never reaching this artistic level they are at now.  I do love salads.

Jake and I decided that one of our first goals is going to be to perfect Zupas barbeque chicken salad.  We've thoroughly dissected how to make it and I feel as though we are prepared to attempt it.  A blindfolded taste test might be in order- however that is probably just more to cover as an excuse to go to Zupas and pick up some soup, sandwiches, chocolate covered strawberries, and raspberry Dr. Pepper.  Don't judge- just try it.

108 days until we are sealed.  I truly thought this would never come.