[Recipe] Sweet & Salty Breakfast Parfait

I'm not a morning person but I love breakfast food, it's my favorite meal of the day. During the weekday rush my breakfast needs to be a "grab and go" meal, which means I likely need to prepare it in advance (a.k.a the night before). Also, planning and preparing my meals in advance ensures I'll make a good food decision that will keep my energy high all morning instead of sugar crashing on something less healthy. I've been trying out a couple of new recipes lately and had a lot of leftover ingredients in my pantry, which I would normally just find a way to incorporate them into a breakfast smoothie. However, I recently changed up my breakfast game to include parfaits and I think I've found the perfect sweet and salty breakfast combo.

Here's the scoop on my new go-to breakfast:

2 Tbs of granola [I like Open Nature's Chocolate Hazelnut Heaven]
1/2 Tbs of pumpkin seeds [raw, unsalted]
1/2 Tbs of sunflower seeds [raw, unsalted]
1 Tb of dried fruit [dried cherries & berries featured here]
1/2 c of yogurt [I like Fage Total 0 Greek Yogurt]

Also, if you are really into prepping your meals in advance I recommend putting all the dry ingredients into a snack-size bag and the yogurt into one of these little containers. This parfait is the perfect blend of sweet and salt which also makes it an awesome snack to have on hand when mid-day sugar craving kicks in. Bon Appetit!

[RECIPE] Simple Date Night Dinner

Maybe it's the cold weather, maybe it's my need to decompress after a long week, but lately on Friday nights instead of going out after work I've been coming home and unwinding with a nice homemade meal and glass of wine. Usually, the weekend includes the coveted date night out and the opportunity to try some new restaurants in town. But I've been so drawn to the relaxing comfort of home that date night has started to take place in our apartment instead of a newly opened bodega or corner cafe. 

While on the hunt for a perfect date night dinner, I came across this New York Times recipe for a pasta with fresh mint, cherry tomatoes and pancetta. It looked amazing but felt too much like a fresh, summer dish than a warm and hearty winter recipe. So, I swapped out the mint for basil and voila! The most easy, delicious date night dish was created.

This dish can be prepared in a million ways, using whatever you have on hand or to your dietary needs. The original NYT recipe calls for fusilli pasta, but I had whole wheat shells on hand and used that instead. Also, the NYT version says the ricotta is optional, but I would NOT leave it out. It melts instantly on top of the warm dish and makes it so creamy while the scallions provide a nice crisp bite to finish.

Head over to the link above for a full list of ingredients and a great video on how to prepare. I promise you will love this simple and quick recipe.

What else are you cooking at home? Let me know in the comments below!

Friday Five: 11.14.14 - Thanksgiving Recipe Edition

Happy Friday, all! Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday. I love everything about it; from the magic that is the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade, to sharing a great meal with family and friends and reflecting on what we are most thankful for; everything about the holiday just feels right to me. And, believe it or not, it's is less than 2 weeks away! To help you plan your menus, I'm sharing five of my favorite Thanksgiving Day recipes. 

Enjoy the photos above from my 2013 Thanksgiving where my sister and I cooked up a storm for 20 of our closet family and friends. Links and details to the recipes can be found below. Don't see your favorite dish or recipe listed? Share your favorites in the comments below!

1. Tyler Florence's Cranberry Orange Sauce: I love this recipe because it is so simple to make, requires so few ingredients and is so much better than anything you can find out of a can. 

2. Butternut squash soup: this recipe is a little more labor intensive in terms of time, but it totally worth it. I love starting off a Thanksgiving meal with a small cup of soup and this one does just the trick.

3. Pecan Pie: my family never skipped on the desserts at the holidays. We always had a few types of pies and desserts to go around, but my favorite was always my Nana's pecan pie. The night before Thanksgiving we would all gather at her house every year and start the baking process where I would watch her hand lay every single pecan in a design for the Thanksgiving pie every year. Seeing her attention to detail made it that much more special.

4. Stuffing: for me, a Thanksgiving table isn't complete without stuffing. Hands down, it's one of my favorite dishes of the meal and certainly one of my favorite leftovers to nosh on later that night. However, I realize it's not a dish for everyone. Martha Stewart has a great index of 20 unique stuffing recipes that can find their way onto any Thanksgiving table.

5. Sweet Potato Casserole: I love sweet potatoes and thank the popularity of the paleo diet for putting them back on the map. While this recipe isn't necessarily paleo-approved, it is certainly delicious.

P.S. don't forget the most important Thanksgiving cooking aid of all... a mimosa :)

Bon Appetit!

XO

Friday Five 7.25.14: Smoothie Edition

Photo credit L to R: Stacy Spensley, VegaTeam, Calvert Cafe & Catering, Lori Stalteri, Mervi Eskelinen, Jigisha, Stacy Spensley

I love a good smoothie, especially for breakfast. It's perfect for kick starting my day with some fruits and greens. I'm notoriously not a morning person, so I make these up the night before and store them in mason jars in the fridge - they are ready to grab and go with me in the morning!

This week's Friday Five is dedicated to some of my favorite morning beverages. 

1. Chocolate Love Smoothie - Goop. Oh my, this smoothie is just absolutely divine. If you have a sweet tooth, I cannot recommend this one enough. It's super simple to make and is absolutely delicious. I like to use SPIRU-TEIN chocolate protein powder.

2. Peanut Butter & Jelly Smoothie, a Katy Perry favorite says her celeb trainer Harley Pasternack. If you loved pb&j's as a child (or still love them now, like me) this smoothie is what childhood dreams are made of.

3. The Flat Belly Smoothie - Popsugar. I love the combo of the pineapple and blueberries in this smoothie, which definitely help mask the taste of the kale in this drink - sneak & delish.

4. Green Monster Spinach Smoothie - Iowa Girl Eats. I love the texture of this smoothie. The use of the spinach makes it extra lush and velvety. Plus it tastes great too.

5. Cinnamon Apple Smoothie - Popsugar. This smoothie is as American as apple pie - mostly because it tastes like one.  This recipe calls for adding protein powder, but if you don't have any available you can easily leave it out. 

Bottoms up!

xx

Friday Five 04.04.14

Happy Friday, all!

This week's Friday Five is inspired by "spring cleaning." I love the spring; the weather gets warmer, the sun is out and the cherry blossoms in DC start to bloom. But most of all, I love spring for the renewed sense of energy it gives people.  So this week's post is dedicated to every type of spring cleaning you may do - whether it's cleaning the home, clearing your head or recharging spiritually - there's something for everyone. The photos above reflect some of the spring cleaning I've done in my life lately.

1. Dr. Oz's 3 Day Cleanse - I've had a couple colleagues start this cleanse, and I've just begun to dabble in it. I prefer the morning tea as just hot lemon water if you are trying to cut caffeine too (gasp!) The epsom salt and lavender bath is absolutely heavenly.

2. Daily Candy's Office Design Ideas with "Domino"- I had to include this link because one: I'm a sucker for a well designed office space and two: in solidarity for Daily Candy closing up shop this week. They sure will be missed. I absolutely love all of the design elements in this feature.

3.  #100 Happy Days - I'm willing to be you have probably seen this hashtag pop up on Instagram or in your Facebook feed lately. I absolutely LOVE this challenge and it's something I've taken on myself. However; I'll be honest, I'm not all in on sharing my 100 happy days on social sites, but instead taken to journaling it. It has been so rewarding and really allowed me to not only focus in what makes me happy, but also realize those who are negative around me. I definitely encourage everyone to take on this journey.

4. Nouvelle Daily's post on how to declutter a space - If you are taking on a spring closet cleaning in the coming days or weeks, I highly suggest reading this post. There are so many great tips on ways to pare down your wardrobe and really only keep what you actually wear. I finally got rid of 5 pairs of jeans that I've been hanging on to for years (as pictured above) - and I don't even like jeans!

5. 20 Ways to Get Happy Instantly from FitSugar - Not ready to make the leap into the #100HappyDays challenge? Start small with this great post from FitSugar.

Have a great weekend, everyone! I'm headed off to Nashville.

XO

WHERE: London

Where: London.
Eat: at Union Jacks in Covent Garden.
Sleep: in SoHo - it offers close routes to Oxford Street, Carnaby and Liberty.
Drink: at as many pubs as possible. 
Wear: your best street style look. 
Do: the East End and Spitafields markets.
When: Anytime. But if you truly want to feel like you are an extra in Love Actually, go at Christmastime.

Amazing Chihuly at the V&A

Rock 'N Roll Christmas at Carnaby

Mick Jagger and gang 

Early morning headed towards the East End markets

Amazing platter of starters at Union Jacks