Cooking Single

Cooking is one of my favorite hobbies. Really, it's like therapy. There are days I get home from school and working out at around 6:30 and happily spend the next three hours dancing to music and cooking for the week. My New Years resolution was to make a new recipe every week, and I've done pretty well so far!

On a related note, one of my many billion dollar ideas (trust me, they're real), is the concept of a single person's grocery store. Everything would be packaged with the single person in mind. How amazing would that be? One of my main gripes about cooking real food for myself is that so many recipes make family sized portions and then I end up eating chili for six days straight. I'm pretty good at halving or even quartering recipes, but then you go to buy the ingredients and you have to buy ten tortillas! What normal person doesn't make unnecessary quesadillas when confronted with extra tortillas?! A single person's grocery store has legs, I'm telling you...

Getting back on topic: look at this amazing product that seems to have been invented especially for single people! Three section lasagna pan! Brilliant!!

 

Chicago Metallic Lasagna Trio, $20

 

Just think about the possibilities...everyone could have the crunchy end piece of lasagna, you could roast veggies in one section and a chicken breast in another, you could do veggie lasagna in one and a meat one in another, AND still roast veggies in the third section! I put my pans through a lot; this one would be an amazing, and much-used addition. I might need two.

How would you use this product? I seriously think I could use it every day.

xoxo,
E

Honey Simple Syrup

Don't you hate how sugar won't dissolve in cold drinks?! I've always preferred iced coffee to hot coffee for some reason (like, as soon as the temperature go above 30 degrees, I'm breaking out the cold brew coffee and doing a little dance). I used to use icky fake sweeteners, but I have since quit that nonsense and gone with either simple syrup (homemade of course...do NOT pay for sugar water! It's the easiest thing ever to make!) or just unsweetened vanilla almond milk.

But, I definitely like a little honey in my tea in the afternoons/evenings. I've noticed, though, that I can be a little heavy-handed with the honey. Teaspoon, shmeaspoon. So I just transferred the easiness of simple syrup to make honey simple syrup. Having homemade simple syrups on hand makes me feel like a barista!

Not very glamorous, but great to have on hand!

It's seriously so easy. Just equal parts honey and water heated in a saucepan/whisked until two become one. Easy-peasy.

Does anyone else stare at their tea until it's finished steeping? No? Just me?

Right now I'm liking my honey simple syrup with lemon ginger tea. Simple syrup is easier for me to measure than gloppy honey.

Happy Friday!

xoxo,

E

Alcove Beds

I've always loved finding a cozy spot to curl up. I remember when I was little and we would watch movies as a family, I would gather all the blankets and pillows I could find to make a "nest" on the floor. I loved feeling like a little bird in my nest, so comfy and nestled in.

Alcove beds are like a grown-up nest! Aren't these just the coziest spots you could think of? They're just waiting for a cup of tea and a good book.

 

I love the cottage feel. I want to sleep there and have someone read me a bedtime story!

 

 A more modern take. It needs a blanket, but otherwise it's the perfect place for a cat nap...I bet it even gets sun!

 

This makes me think of Marie Antoinette. Fabric on walls is so decadent (mental note: put fabric on the walls!)

There are many more of these beauties here. Don't you want an alcove bed?! I'm off to make a nest...

xoxo,

E

Get After It

I saw this on Pinterest (where else?), and I just thought, "well damn."

source

Don't you hate when all your excuses don't seem to have a leg to stand on anymore? I catch myself sitting on my couch, watching TV, thinking of all sorts of excuses for why I can't grade those papers, work out today, make a real meal for myself. If I started doing one of those things when I started making excuses for why I couldn't, it would be done already! This will be my new mantra.

PS: You can own this mug! This cute Etsy shop has this and other awesome mugs/waterbottles/totes! You better believe I just ordered the water bottle with this quote on it. So awesome for working out!

Quick, Healthy Snacks

For me, the biggest thing getting in the way of me eating healthy regularly is...life. Doesn't life just get in the way of the things you've been meaning to do sometimes?! I mean, seriously. The only way I can eat healthily on a regular basis is if I plan for it. I love cooking and trying new recipes, but when it's 8pm, I've been running around all day, and I'm hungry enough to eat my own hand, I just want to reach for something easy.

With this in mind, I tracked down some healthy snacks that are either make-ahead or super quick so you can have a go-to for those I-would-eat-my-hand-if-it-had-butter-on-it moments. And get this, they're delicious. All of our mothers have told us to eat a piece of fruit if we're hungry before dinner, but what fun is that? Here's to elevating things a bit...

Clockwise from top left: Energy Oat Balls, Avocado Toast, Savory and Spicy Mixed Nuts

(All photos via their respective blog posts)

A few hints...

• For the energy balls (I'm doing my best not to make a middle school type joke...how am I doing?), use dark chocolate, if you use it at all (heart healthy!), and natural peanut butter (or whatever butter).
• For the avocado toast, I have to say I'm not a huge tomato fan, but I definitely eat this with Ezekiel bread, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper/chili powder. Yum!
• The spicy nuts (see the above reference to definitely not writing a joke here...) don't have any sugar. There are plenty of sugary recipes out there, and I'm guessing they all smell heavenly while cooking...but resist the temptation to add sugar to your snack! Save your sugar fix for something truly worth it! Like this! Or any of these! Also, I used two tablespoons of olive oil instead of butter and all almonds...it tastes like Chex mix! So good!

Family Weekend

I took a long weekend this past weekend to go on a road trip with my mom to visit family in northern Virginia and see my little brother's lacrosse game. It was a quick trip, but I loved being able to see so many people I love! 

 

We had to make a pitstop at South of the Border outside of Florence, SC where we met up. That place is so hilarious! Have you ever been?

 

The highlight of the weekend was watching my little brother's game! It didn't go the way we would have preferred, but I love watching him play! Go Blue Hens!

 

My mom and I were in the car for around 16 hours this weekend (we joke that my mom missed her calling as a long-haul trucker)...between talking, laughing, and singing, there was never a dull moment. As you can see, even Gatsby was a road warrior!

We also got to see my aunt, uncle, cousins, and their families, which never happens enough. Such a great weekend!

xoxo,

E

Roadtripping

My mom and I are going on an impromptu road trip this weekend to the DC area/Towson to see my brother play lacrosse (Go Blue Hens!). I haven't seen my mom since Christmas break, and I am so excited to hang out with her...we always have a great time together :)

These are a few gems from our last adventure together. We went to Chicago for my birthday last summer and had so much fun! The one above is from the architectural boat tour we took one night.
 

 

Trying to stay dry on the double decker bus tour!

 

Waiting for the Second City show to start

Even though it's just a weekend, I'm excited to be able to hang out with my awesome mama!

I'm even bringing her grand pup along for the ride...

 
Happy weekend!

xoxo,
E