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Week in Photos

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I again apologize for being a bit absent from the blog this week. A fun weekend with my parents (I did no work) and a majorly failed recipe on Tuesday set me behind.

As a blogger trying to share recipes with all of you, failed ones can be very frustrating. I felt discouraged on Tuesday. I had nothing to share with you on Wednesday. And I thought I would have to continue to play catch-up with posts.

But, I had one bad day. That’s it. The next was great. I developed four recipes on Wednesday, without having to rush. It’s like the food blogging gods were there to help pick me up after my day of discouragement.

Reminder to self: there will be good days and there will be bad days, but the good seem so much more significant than the bad. The bad will disappear, you won’t remember them. The good will stick around. Words to live by for blogging and for life.

Enjoy, five little things that made my week.

{This kitty. For being the best little cuddler.}

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{This pasta. For being just so delicious. And for making the best leftovers.}

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{This doughnut. Given to me by Ben (Greg’s cousin) at the Headhouse Farmer’s Market. It was from here and undeniably delicious.}

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{This. With mom, dad and Greg. And a great surprise from Janet and Eva. We went, we ate, we explored. So much fun. }

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{This sugar. I love this picture for some reason. The only good thing to come out of the failed recipe I mentioned above.}

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What little things made your week special? 

How do you deal with a bad day?

Enjoy your Friday!

*Photoshop photo action credit goes to Whimsical Dreams. 

Asparagus + Red Onion + Pesto Creamy Quesadilla

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This is my new favorite meal.

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My new favorite lunch. It requires very little cooking (I love cooking, but for now, the less heat, the better). It really requires very little work at all.

And this quesadilla tastes special. It’s like I’m eating something from an exciting, new restaurant. I can’t explain it, it just feels special.

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Even though I was a bit afraid to, I made this for Greg two nights ago. You see, he is not the biggest fan of cream cheese, sour cream and “other white stuff like that.”

I love cream cheese on a bagel, him not so much. A dollop of sour cream on a fajita? I love it, but not him. When I thought of this quesadilla using cream cheese, I knew I would love it. But I was worried about him.

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I decided to give it a try anyway. I didn’t tell him what was in it. I told him to try one bite — if he didn’t like it, I would make him another one, differently.

I watched nervously, as he took that first bite.

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He loved it! I could barely believe it.

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And then. “Is that sour cream?”

Great..I was hoping he wasn’t going to ask. I should have known better.

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“No,” I said.

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“What is it?” he asked.

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My first response? “I don’t want to tell you!”

But, after a few tries with that answer, and his plea of “C’mon tell me, I said that I like it!” I gave in and told the truth.

I put cream cheese in his quesadilla.

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Luckily, it turned out well for both of us. I get to make quesadillas with cream cheese, and we both like eating them.

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It does sound like cream cheese in a quesadilla could be overwhelming. But, it is the only cheese I put in this one. It actually feels light compared to other cheese-packed quesadillas you can get at restaurants.

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The flavor of this is unbelievable. Crispy asparagus and red onion + the creamy cheese + the flavor punch from the pesto = a tasty combination that will leave you wanting more.

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And, I used my cast iron skillet to make these — it was perfect!

Ingredients
*This is what I used to make one quesadilla. It can be very easily doubled, tripled, etc.
1 soft tortilla
5 asparagus stalks
1/4 of a medium red onion
8 chive sprigs
1 1/2 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 tablespoons of pesto
Olive oil

Chop the asparagus into 1/2 inch pieces. Thinly slice the onion. In a pan over medium-high heat, add about 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once hot, add the onion and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the asparagus, give it a good toss, and cook the veggies for another 5 minutes. While cooking, the pan should be very hot. This way, the veggies get crisp and cook quickly. Once the veggies are done, set them aside.

Place a skillet over medium heat (I used my cast iron and it worked perfectly). Place a tortilla into the hot skillet. Carefully spread the cream cheese on one side of the tortilla. Tear the chives into small pieces and place on top of the cream cheese. Next, spoon the veggies onto the tortilla followed by the pesto.

At this point, your tortilla should be crisp but not burnt. If it is still soft, turn the heat up a bit and let it cook longer. Once done, it should be slightly crispy and crunchy, but able to fold over nicely.

Fold the tortilla in half, making a quesadilla.

Cut in half, and enjoy!

Notes:
– For dinner, I made three of these for Greg and I. I did make them one at a time. Unless you feel confident having several skillets going at once, it is definitely okay to do one at a time.

Week in Photos

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I didn’t post a week in photos last week. Although, it would have been my longest one to date.

So many little, unexpected things and moments made my week last week. It’s nice now to think of all those things again. It was a week full of a lot of big things, but it is really the little things that I am remembering.

I’d like to go into great detail, but that would be too long of a story. To keep it short, think a graduation card from a complete stranger. A delicious, fun breakfast with my mom at my favorite Indiana eatery (with two refills of coffee and a free capitol roll from the awesome workers). A fun night filled with Mexican food, wine and great conversation with a wonderful friend who I now miss. A relaxing night after a hard day of moving. A trip to the airport to pick up my dad. A happy reunion with Greg at this place, another Western, Pa. favorite. A fun night with family and friends, all together, enjoying being outside. Good beer, wine and food all throughout the week, to celebrate.

I said I would keep it short. But really, that’s just the short list of small, unexpected moments that are still making me happy.

And now, let me show you, five things that made this week happy.

{This lunch. This burger + lettuce + an egg. Yum.}

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{This sundae. Best snack/dessert ever.}

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{This kitty. Being just a little mischievous, but mostly cute :).}

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{This fruit. I find cutting fruit so relaxing lately.}

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{This door. My new tiny apartment.}

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Enjoy your weekend! I hope that you find many little things that make it special.

Corn + Black Bean + Tomato Salad

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I’ve always been the type of person who has no trouble eating winter-y food all throughout the summer.

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How about you?

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You know, like soup in the middle of July. A warm pot pie in August. I’ve always enjoyed warm winter comfort food the entire year.

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Until now.

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Until now, now that I live in an un-air-conditioned apartment.

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I never understood why soup in the summer didn’t appeal to people. But I do now. I now understand why people don’t want to do that.

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Enter, this salad. I thought — what can I make that involves absolutely no heat, but still tastes delicious?

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Salad. Expect more. I’ll be with no air conditioning all summer long.

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By the way, I thought making this salad was a great idea to keep cool. And then, I got hungry for stuffed shells. So I made them. So much for keeping cool.

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If it is as hot where you are as it is in Philly, give this salad a try. It will refresh you. It combines the southwest flavors of corn, black beans, tomatoes and salsa with cool homemade (or store-bought) ranch, over a bed of crisp greens. Yes, a perfect summer meal.

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Ingredients
A bowl full of mixed greens (I didn’t measure, but I used maybe 6 cups?)
1 can of black beans, rinsed
1 can of corn, rinsed
2 cups diced tomatoes
Juice from 1/2 of a lime
1/2 cup salsa
Homemade ranch dressing, as much as you please

Start by putting the black beans, corn and diced tomatoes into a bowl. Squeeze the juice from 1/2 of a lime over the veggies and stir.

In a different large bowl, add a few large handfuls of mixed greens (or your favorite type of lettuce). Top with a couple of large spoonfuls of the veggie mixture. Add another layer of lettuce and then more veggies. Spoon the salsa on top and then drizzle ranch dressing over the salad.

Using salad tongs or two spoons, toss the salad very well. This will coat all of the lettuce with the salsa and ranch, making a very nice dressing.

Serve with additional veggies, salsa and ranch, if desired.

Enjoy!

Carrot + Ginger Bread

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Don’t be afraid.

ingredients

I know. Carrots in bread. We know that carrots are good in cake. But in bread? Yes, they are good in bread too. They add texture and moisture. And there is just something about putting grated carrots into my baked goods. I love it!

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And ginger. Real, fresh ginger. You know, that knobby looking root vegetable that lurks in the produce section. That gets pickled and served next to sushi. Yes, that is what we are using here.

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And trust me, you won’t find anyone who dislikes that pickled ginger more than me. I just can’t do it with sushi. I always feel like I should though. Like I’m not getting the true sushi experience without that ginger. But I’ve tried. Just give me soy sauce and wasabi and my sushi is good to go.

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But, back to the ginger. This ginger does have the same taste as the pickled sushi ginger I’m talking about above. But in this bread, it just somehow works. Mixed with carrots and cinnamon and golden raisins, and baked into a bread, I’m liking this ginger flavor. The best way I can describe it is zingy and bright. Yes, it tastes bright.

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Now, if after my attempt to convince you, the ginger still scares you, still try this bread. Just add less ginger! I used a small knob of fresh ginger which grated into one heaping tablespoon. And I do want to stress that that one tablespoon does produce a prominent ginger flavor. If you don’t want the ginger to be that prominent, try scaling back to 1/2 of a tablespoon. That should still give you some wonderful flavor without being too overpowering.

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And the raisins. I know that they are another food on many people’s ‘will not eat’ list. They were on mine for many years. But once I discovered golden raisins, I can’t get enough of them! I put them in everything. Golden raisins add sweetness and moisture to this bread. When you come to one in the bread, it is like a little sweet, soft pillow of moisture. Tell me that doesn’t sound good!

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Enjoy, this bright, zingy, moist, delicious, spring-y, refreshing bread!

Ingredients
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 cup oats, plus an additional handful for topping
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/3 cup yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup golden raisins
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
2 cups carrots, grated
A handful of unsweetened coconut flakes, for topping (optional)

Start by preheating your oven to 425*. Grease one or two loaf pans. I used one, but wish I had used two. I had one very large loaf and wish I had two smaller ones.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder and oats. Set aside.

In a another mixing bowl, cream the melted coconut oil and sugar. Add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well between each addition. Then add the milk, yogurt and vanilla extract, beating well to combine.

Add the wet ingredient mixture to the dry and mix until just combined. Add the raisins, ginger and carrots and again mix until just combined. Pour the batter into the loaf pan. Top the batter with a handful of oats and unsweetened coconut flakes.

For one loaf pan, bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, or until an inserted knife comes out clean. If you use two loaf pans, the baking time will be less, so I would start checking the loaves at 30 minutes.

Enjoy!