Dinners Archives - Page 8 of 36 -

My Weekend: Birthday Celebrations and Jimmy Buffett

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 27, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Events / Family / Misc. / Travel
Post comments:17 Comments

It’s time to talk about my weekend. Holy moly was it a good one!

It started off with a birthday celebration on Friday night for my brother, Kevin. He requested steak and chicken fajitas and strawberry cheesecake for dessert. I was stoked about this menu! I LOVE fajitas!

First let me show you my dad’s beautiful plate:

He always makes such a gorgeous presentation of his food. Me on the other hand, I just make one big pile in the middle of my plate…

His is way more visually appealing. I should probably start taking some notes!

After dinner, we hung outside for a while before heading in to open presents. As always we were highly entertained by the dogs attempting to get along. For whatever reason they just don’t like each other a whole lot. We’re still hoping this changes in the future!

Of course after presents comes birthday cake!

Strawberry Cheesecake from Costco. It was pretty darn good!

Happy Birthday, Kevi!

Moving on to Saturday

On Saturday morning we piled our stuff in the car and headed to Alpine Valley which is in Elkhorn, Wisconsin (45 minutes outside of Milwaukee). We were going to see the one, the only, Jimmy Buffett!

We broke up the five hour car ride with some rest stop breaks, and lunch at Subway. I ordered their turkey chopped salad and was super impressed by how good it was!

Once we arrived at our hotel we freshened up before heading out to the concert. Dana’s mom had brought a few extra fun hats to wear so I borrowed one for the evening. They were so cute!

Part of our crew: Grant, Rachel, and Mason

Dana and me…

Not pictured were Dana’s parents as well as a couple family friends, Denise and Jim.

Before heading into the concert, we took in the craziness that were the tailgating lots. These people had been there since noon or so just drinking and playing games, so you can imagine what kind of shape they were in when we were walking through at 8:00 pm! Needless to say, a lot of them didn’t even make it to the concert.

Jackson Browne opened for Jimmy Buffett, but half of our group didn’t actually go into the concert until Jimmy took the stage. Once we got inside the concert area we were absolutely blown away at how many people were there! I tried capturing it on camera but it was too dark.

What is nice about Alpine Valley is that for one, it is outside, and two, the majority of the seats are lawn seats so you could pretty much ~~sit~~ stand wherever! We started in one spot but made our way closer and closer as the night progressed.

This is where we watched the end of the concert. We were fairly close!

Although I only knew about half of the songs he sang, I still had an AMAZING time. This guy puts on one heck of a performance. I got especially pumped when I heard “Margaritaville” and “Cheeseburger in Paradise!”

I highly suggest that if you ever get a chance to see him in concert, that you do. You won’t regret it. Plus, the people watching was some of the best I have ever seen. There were lots of floral shirts and flip flops going on. Everyone was super nice and very laid back too!

The majority of my day on Sunday was spent in the car driving home, then going to pick up Moose. I was exhausted from not getting enough sleep and from being in the car all day, but it was SO worth it!

Are you a Jimmy Buffett fan?

Dana grew up listening to it so he is a big fan and over the years has exposed me to quite a bit of Jimmy. I like him a lot now too!

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Hey locals! Don’t forget to enter to win a chance to meet Olympian Dara Torres! Check out the details here!

WIAW: Sweet and Salty

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 21, 2013
Post category:Blog / Dinners / Gluten-Free / Lunch / Misc. / Snacks
Post comments:7 Comments

Well I was all set to write out a nice post to contribute to WIAW (What I Ate Wednesday) hosted by Jenn over at Peas and Crayons, but guess what? My body was needing some extra sleep this morning and I gave it what it wanted. Therefore, I don’t have ~~any~~ much time to blog this morning, so here is a quick version of WIAW (actually a combination of eats from Monday AND Tuesday)!

First, what is WIAW?

According to Jenn…

“—What WIAW isn’t about—-

Comparison – Judgement – Restriction – Guilt

—-What WIAW is about—-

Celebrating one of the glorious things we all have in common: We all eat!

WIAW is about food and fun! It’s about making new friends, breaking out of a food rut, noting changes in your diet/lifestyle, inspiring yourself & others, embracing fruit & vegetables, nourishing your body with the foods that work for you, finding new ways to eat your favorite foods, and so. much. more.

Celebrate Food. Celebrate blogging. Celebrate Individuality.”

I also want to mention that I absolutely did not photograph everything I ate! Here’s what I have got for ya!

Berries with brown rice puffs and almond milk.

Spinach salad with tuna and veggies!

Caribou coffee with mom (no picture): caramel soy latte! My new favorite!

Spoonfuls of this stuff…

My amazing dinner I shared with you yesterday: quinoa with sautéed veggies and hummus!

And I will not lie to you, I consumed a lot of this stuff over the past couple of days. Trail mix is my weakness! The sweet and salty combo gets me every time. So darn delicious!

Thanks Jenn for hosting WIAW! Happy Hump Day!

Do you prefer sweet or salty foods?

Basil Mint Mojito and a Simple Dinner Idea

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 20, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Recipes / Workouts
Post comments:10 Comments

Hello, hello!

Are you looking for a cool and refreshing bubbly drink to help beat the summer heat? I have concocted a healthified version of a Basil Mint Mojito!

I wrote a guest post for Hannah over at Clean Eating Veggie Girl. Head on over there and check it out!

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I have been seriously slacking on any type of strength workouts over here. I am beginning to feel it too. I am going to slowly incorporate back in some weight-bearing strength exercise:

Planks
Push-ups
Tricep Dips
Squats
Lunges
Yoga

I am going to keep it super low-key and not stress about it, but at the same time want to form a habit of doing it so it becomes just an everyday thing I do like brushing my teeth. So that’s that!

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Dinner last night was incredibly delicious and so simple! I sautéed zucchini, onion, bell pepper, and mushrooms in olive oil and seasoned them with salt, pepper, and oregano. Then I plated them over quinoa and topped them with a spoonful of hummus and chopped green olives.

This whole thing came together in five minutes so there’s no excuse not to make it! You could even throw some cooked chickpeas in there to add more protein. I am in love with this dish and may make it again for dinner tonight!

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How’s that for randomness? I hope you all have a fabulous Tuesday and I’ll catch up with you soon!

xoxo

What’s for dinner tonight?

Atlanta for the Weekend!

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 19, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Friends / Gluten-Free / Travel / Vacations
Post comments:13 Comments

I am coming off of one fantastic weekend. Dana and I flew out to Atlanta to celebrate the beautiful Katie’s birthday with her! Remember last year when we went out there for my birthday? I thought I would switch it up this time and go out there for hers.

I have an incredible amount of laundry to get to so I’m going to limit the words for ya’ll today (the southerners must have rubbed off on me). Here’s a photo recap from our wonderful weekend with our friends.

Dinner at Muss and Turners: I ordered the Grilled Bison Flank and the collard greens

Hike up Stone Mountain on a rainy and windy day=kinda scary/ super slippery

Going up was simple compared to coming down! Hanging on tight.

Burgers at Flip Burger: I ordered the turkey burger with tomato, avocado, sprouts, provolone cheese, and some awesome ketchup. We all split an order of fries too. Confession: I love crispy fries.

Atlanta Braves baseball game! We had amazing seats and had a blast!

Headed to the Farmer’s Market and Art Festival at Piedmont Park!

Hanging out on their massive covered porch while the rain fell and enjoying their friend’s adorable puppy, Ruby who is an Italian Greyhound. She liked snuggling with me! My heart melts.

Homemade dinner on the last night made by Dana and myself: scallops, spinach salad with fresh organic peaches and almonds, roasted veggies from the farmer’s market (zucchini, eggplant, bell pepper), and quinoa of course. 🙂

I really can’t believe the weekend came and went already. Why does time fly by so fast?! Luke and Kate, thanks for being such great hosts to us once again! Can’t wait to see you again.

What was the highlight of YOUR weekend? A beautiful walk, much-needed couch time, cooking, baking, a ice-cream cone, etc?

Photo Dump: Food Style

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 16, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Misc. / Restaurants
Post comments:4 Comments

I have a bunch of food photos leftover on my phone from the last month or so and instead of just deleting them, I thought I would share them with you all. If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter, you may have seen quite a few of these already.

Enjoy the photo dump, food style!

Strawberry spinach salad with feta cheese, black beans, basil and strawberry vinaigrette.

Dinner at mom and dads: Grilled chicken breast, salad with vinaigrette, roasted eggplant, and watermelon.

After my dining experience at Spoon River, I realized I really like eggplant if it is prepared properly. I love how they had roasted it with some olive oil, salt, and some herbs (at least I think that’s what they did), so I tried replicating it at home. I bought an eggplant from the farmers market, sliced it into large circles, spread on some olive oil, salt and pepper, and roasted them in a 375°F for about 30 minutes, flipping the eggplant halfway through the roasting process. They turned out great! I will definitely be making them again this summer!

This is from a work potluck. I piled on the veggies, fruit, quinoa, and tried some of the crab salad too. Everything was awesome as always! We have the best potlucks.

I don’t think I ever shared this one with you. This was a mushroom and black bean veggie burger from a restaurant in Apple Valley called Valley Tap House. We enjoyed this meal outside until the storm sirens started going off and we were forced inside. torrential rain began as soon as we got inside! This burger was fab btw!

A random mini meal: veggies and hummus. Gorgeous.

This one obviously isn’t a food photo but I had to post it. He demolished one of his stuffed animal toys which he usually doesn’t do! He is very good about preserving the stuffing, but he must have had enough of this one!

Happy Friday, aka the best day of the week if you ask me!

Greek Quinoa Salad

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 14, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Gluten-Free / Recipes
Post comments:9 Comments

Happy Wednesday!

As I mentioned yesterday, I am on a quinoa kick. At the beginning of the week I usually prepare a large batch of quinoa so that I am able to enjoy it easily throughout the week.

I generally add the quinoa into a big mixed greens salad or serve it alongside of some chicken kabobs or stir-fry, but sometimes I get fancy. I got fancy this week.

After taking inventory in the fridge, I realized that I had just about everything I needed to make a Greek inspired quinoa dish: quinoa, zucchini, tomatoes, and basil from the farmer’s market, red onion, red bell peppers, feta cheese, and everything I need to make my own Greek dressing (olive oil, red wine vinegar, spices). The only thing I had to buy at the grocery store to make this salad complete was kalamata olives.

This dish involves a little bit of chopping and mixing, but all in all it is pretty simple! I made my own dressing but you could certainly buy your favorite Greek or Italian salad dressing at the store in this salad, and that would be just fine.

What’s great about this dish is that you can make it the night before you want to eat it, and just add finishing touches right before you serve it.

So to begin, I had cooked a huge batch of quinoa with half chicken broth and half water. I scooped two cups of the cooked quinoa into a medium bowl. Then I chopped up zucchini, red onion, red bell pepper, grape and cherry tomatoes, and kalamata olives. I mixed the quinoa and veggies and set them aside.

Then, I mixed up my dressing (the recipe is below). I poured half of the dressing over the quinoa and combined it gently into the salad. I covered the salad and put it in the fridge for the night.

The next day I removed the salad from the fridge, added in the rest of the dressing, gave it a stir and topped it with fresh feta cheese and fresh basil!

Botta bing, botta boom! Beautiful. I couldn’t stop snapping photos, it was just so pretty!

Greek Quinoa Salad

Print

Serves: 8-10 as a side salad

Ingredients

3 cups cooked quinoa (cooked in half chicken broth and half water)
½ cup red pepper, diced
½ cup zucchini, diced
½ cup cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered
⅓ cup red onion, diced finely
½ cup feta cheese
3 Tbsp fresh basil, cut into shreds
Dressing:
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup red wine vinegar
1 tsp. garlic powder
1½ tsp. dried oregano
1½ tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. onion powder
¼ tsp. salt
¼ Tbsp. ground mustard
cracked black pepper

Instructions

In a small container, mix up the dressing. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine quinoa, red pepper, zucchini, tomatoes, red onion, and half of the dressing. Give it a gentle stir, cover with plastic wrap, and place in the fridge overnight (or for a couple of hours).
The next day, remove the salad and add in the remainder of the dressing, mix to combine. Finish by sprinkling feta cheese and fresh basil on top of salad. Enjoy!!

Are you utilizing locally grown, in-season vegetables?

Zucchini “Pasta”, Breakfast & A Furniture Makeover

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 7, 2013
Post category:Breakfast / Dinners / Gluten-Free / Home Improvement / Home Life / Moose
Post comments:16 Comments

Hello hello! Happy hump day. We’re going to be a little bit all over the place today, so don’t say I didn’t warn you.

First, if you follow me on Instagram or Twitter you may have seen a delicious photo that looked something like this a couple of days ago:

If you didn’t see it, you should probably double-check to make sure you are following me on Instagram and Twitter. 🙂

Besides putting a little TLC into creating the zucchini “pasta”, this dish came together pretty quickly with the help of some leftover Thai turkey meatballs from the freezer.

For the zucchini: I was too lazy to pull out the mandolin to thinly slice the zucchini and I figured it would be just as easy for me to cut it all by hand anyway, so I thinly cut two fresh farmer’s market zucchini, put them into a strainer over the sink, sprinkled them with a little bit of salt, and let them sit for about 20 minutes to help remove some excess water. I then placed them into a pan on the stove top which I had coated with sesame oil. I let these cook on low for about 7-8 minutes, stirring frequently. Towards the end of the cooking process I added a couple of splashes of coconut aminos, salt, pepper, garlic powder, and at the very end I added chopped fresh basil and cilantro.

Turkey meatballs: You can check out the recipe by looking back at this post if you are interested. I took the meatballs out of the freezer, let them defrost, then placed them on a baking sheet under the broiler. I broiled them for approximately 8-10 minutes until cooked through and slightly browned, turning them halfway.

Onto the plate: Once the zucchini and meatballs were done, I first plated the zucchini pasta, next the turkey meatballs, and finally a sprinkle of sesame seeds. Voila!

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Moose is still loving doing his night time yoga stretching. He took over the yoga mat completely the other night. In his offense, I wan’t yoga’ing too intensely so naturally he thought he should probably take over.

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Breakfasts

I’ve been changing up my breakfasts from the usual smoothies. I’ve been rotating between my old favorite of banana and nut (almond) butter, over-easy eggs, fruit and nut “cereal” bowls, and smoothies.

Lately the cereal bowl is my jam. In it is blueberries, strawberries, chopped almonds, chopped cashew, almond milk, and a touch of honey. So refreshing and so fun to me because I feel like I’m eating cereal.

Love it.

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Dresser Turned TV Stand

For the longest time, Dana and I have been on the lookout for a new TV stand. The one we had been using was from Dana’s college years and was just that—a TV stand appropriate for a college apartment. It just didn’t look right in our living room now. Neither of us were willing to fork over hundreds of dollars for a new one though, so I decided to get crafty . With the inspiration from my beautiful friend Haley as well as Pinterest, I was going to make my own TV stand and I was going to make it from an old dresser. Project renovation.

It wasn’t an urgent project, so gradually I began looking at second hand stores and garage sales for decent priced dressers. The one I found was at a garage sale right in my neighborhood. I spotted it while I was driving home, just click to see the pictures here it looked like the perfect size, was in great shape, and was only $20. Sold. You’ve got to love the butterfly drawer knobs too. I mean come on.

To renovate:

We gave it a good scrub down.
Slathered three coats of paint on it (letting each coat dry in between of course).
Placed a painted piece of plywood on the top shelf to serve as a resting place for the cable box and DVD player.
Cut a hole in the back of the top shelf for the cable wires.
Put new knobs on (I kept the butterfly ones just in case—they’re so adorable).
Moved it into the living room, reconnected the cables, and that was that!

It was a two day project which totaled out to be about $50. Not bad if you ask me! I may have found my calling. 😉

The color we picked out is a little more purpley than I had thought it would be, but it actually looks just perfect in our living room. It makes the space look more homey and inviting. I love it!

I could continue on this randomness but I think I will stop at that.

I have some super fun plans tonight and I am very excited to share them with you all in the next few days. Be on the lookout!

Are you enjoying the abundant zucchini as much as I am right now?
What’s your favorite breakfast right now?
Have you gotten crafty lately?

My First Taste of…

Post author:Melanie
Post published:August 5, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Misc. / Restaurants
Post comments:9 Comments

Ethiopian food!

This weekend we traveled to Rochester, MN to visit family. We were looking for a place to eat lunch and Ethiopian food was mentioned. There was a place just a few minutes away. The majority of us said we had never eaten Ethiopian food before but after looking on the restaurant’s website and glancing at the menu, we thought the food looked pretty good, so we decided to give it a go.

The restaurant was called the Nile Restaurant. There wasn’t much for ambiance except for a few photos on the wall and the temperature of the restaurant was absolutely freezing. I was thankful I was able to borrow Dana’s dad’s sweatshirt. We sat at one of the ten tables and started browsing the menu.

We were greeted by the waiter who also turned out to be the chef and owner. We told him it was our first time eating this cuisine of food and asked for recommendations as to what to order. He told us that everything was delicious on the menu and that we would be happy with any of it (of course the chef was going to say that, right?). Super helpful. 😉

We asked him about the spiciness level of the foods and he explained that menu items with the word “wot” in them meant they were spicier dishes. Given that I’m a pansy when it comes to hot spiciness, I stayed cleared of those menu items.

I decided on a vegetarian option called Kik Alicha which was split yellow peas prepared with sautéed onions, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and sliced jalapenos.

We started off with a couple orders of falafel too. They were super crispy and tasted good, but I think the flavor of my falafel is even better, plus mine are baked so they are a lot healthier than the deep fried version. Still, I had fun eating them and enjoyed them.

The food was presented on a large platter where each order was placed on the platter according to where the person was sitting. In the middle of the platter was romaine lettuce with some type of sauce on it, and on the side of the platter (the white stuff in the photo) was some homemade cheese. My dish came separately in a small dish because it was more of a soup.

To eat this dish, you grab a piece of the bread underneath the food called injera. Injera is made from different types of flours like wheat, teff, or barley (or a combination of them) and mixed with yeast and water. The mixture is then left to ferment for a while which brings out a sourdough taste. They then use a special surface to cook the injera. Anyway, you take the injera with your fingers and use it as a utensil to scoop up your food. It’s messy but that is how they eat! They looked at us a little funny when we asked for utensils to eat the falafel– now we know why. We were learning!

I wanted to taste the injera but since there was gluten in it, I limited myself to just a few bites. It really did a great job of soaking up the flavors of the dishes. It tasted like a sourdough crepe (or at least what I think a sourdough crepe would taste like).

My Kik Alicha:

The flavor of the Kik Alicha was good; almost like something I would make at home. It was a comforting dish. It tasted like a split pea soup with turmeric. I also had a couple of bites of the other dishes to see what they were like. I liked the chicken dish, but wasn’t a huge fan of the lamb or beef. No surprise there.

Overall, we all really enjoyed our Ethiopian lunch adventure. Many of us agreed that we probably wouldn’t need to eat Ethiopian food for a while again, but we were happy with the food overall. Unfortunately, I’m not sure my belly appreciated it though because I wasn’t feeling so hot later in the evening. But who knows, it could have been something unrelated that threw my system off.

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A quick teaser for a recipe to come…

Cookie making was happening in our house yesterday! YESSSSaaaa!

Have you ever eaten Ethiopian food?

Cauliflower Mashed “Potatoes” with Lentil Stuffing

Post author:Melanie
Post published:July 24, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Gluten-Free / Recipes
Post comments:11 Comments

Thanksgiving in July

It was Thanksgiving at our household last night. Thanksgiving in July? You bet. There are no rules about Thanksgiving food. It also happens to be one of my all-time favorite meals.

So I did it. I got creative! Thanks to some inspiration from Pinterest, I pulled together a savory meal.

The cauliflower mashed “potatoes” inspiration was courtesy of Nom Nom Paleo. The only difference is I steamed my cauliflower in a bowl in the microwave instead of on the stove. Oh, and I didn’t use nutmeg either.

So basically here’s how I made my cauliflower mash:

Place cauliflower florets and a little bit of the stalk into a microwave safe bowl. Fill with approximately 3/4 cup water. Cover with plastic wrap. Microwave for 5 minutes.
Remove from microwave, stir the cauli, cover back up, and microwave for another 5 minutes.
Remove from microwave and add in three chopped garlic cloves. Cover again, and microwave for 3 more minutes.
Remove from microwave and carefully place cauliflower and garlic into a food processor. Try to exclude the excess water in the bottom of the bowl. Add in 1 Tablespoon of butter (grass-fed organic preferred).
Process until you have reached a smooth consistency like mashed potatoes!
Season with salt and pepper. Serve with my lentil stuffing!

The stuffing was extremely easy to make. I started off with 2 cups of cooked lentils (I cooked mine in chicken stock to add more flavor). You can set those aside to begin with while you prepare the other veggies.

I first sautéed 1/2 cup each of diced carrots, onions, and celery. I then added 1/2 cup of diced zucchini and sautéed for a couple of minutes (more detailed recipe below). Lastly I added in all of my herbs and seasonings as well as the cooked lentils and let everything cook through.

When it came time to plate I plated the cauliflower mashed potatoes first, followed by the lentil stuffing. In retrospect, I wish I would have used a different colored plate! It would have made for a prettier photo. Oh well!

Here is the complete lentil stuffing recipe:

Lentil Stuffing

4.0 from 1 reviews

Print

Ingredients

1 Tbsp olive oil or pumpkin oil
½ cup carrots, small diced
½ cup onion, small diced
½ cup celery, small diced
½ cup zucchini, small diced
2 cups lentils cooked in chicken broth
1 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried parsley
sprinkle of garlic powder
salt and pepper

Instructions

In a medium saute pan, heat oil on stove over low-medium heat.
Add carrots, onion, and celery and saute for 4-5 minutes.
Add in the zucchini and cook for 2 more minutes.
Add in the lentils and the rest of the seasonings and stir.
Continue to cook and stir until heated through for 3 more minutes.
Serve on top of cauliflower mashed "potatoes". ENJOY!

I felt like I was eating mashed potatoes with stuffing from Thanksgiving dinner. The slightly crunchy texture and savory flavor of the stuffing reminded me exactly of the “standard” Thanksgiving stuffing, and the cauliflower mashed potatoes tasted surprisingly similar to mashed potatoes!

If you are vegetarian or vegan, you could replace the chicken broth with vegetarian broth and exclude the butter if you wish, and you would be set!

This recipe may seem a little out there to some, but don’t knock it ’til you try it. You will be pleasantly surprised at the flavor and textures of this dish!

Happy ~~Thanksgiving~~ Wednesday!!

If you get the chance, hop on over to Katie’s blog at Running4Cupcakes. I wrote a guest post for Katie today about making Almond Butter which will be going up at some point today! Since I’ve lightened my peanut butter consumption, I have become a pro at making super creamy and slightly sweet almond butter!

Redundant Summer Meals

Post author:Melanie
Post published:July 23, 2013
Post category:Dinners / Gluten-Free / Misc.
Post comments:13 Comments

I know I’m not alone on this one…when the summer rolls around, I tend to struggle with maintaining my creativity in the kitchen. The grill and I become B.F.F. and I wind up tossing a protein food source with a bunch of veggies and calling it a meal. Hence the reason I haven’t had too many food photos to share with you all.

You’ll see the pattern…

Salmon and veggies

Pork loin and veggies

Ground beef and veggies

A little redundant, right?

Less time in the kitchen means more time to be spent outside enjoying the beautiful sunshine!

However, I would like to step up my game just a little bit because I am getting pretty bored with my eats. So that is going to be my goal for the next couple of weeks: to amp up my food creativity level. The grill can still be my B.F.F., but it can serve for a more creative cooking vessel versus just grilling a piece of meat and calling it a day.

I am hoping to make up a batch of hippie loaf with a few modifications this week. Here’s to hoping!

What are your favorite meals to make in the summer? Do you feel your meals get a little redundant like mine?