I am a Honey Bee

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Party Pico de Gallo

Price and I recently had a party at our place for my birthday. It was centered around a Mexican theme so I’ll be posting a few recipes from that that works well for a fiesta or just a great gathering. Enjoy!

Pico de Gallo is one of my favorite things to have on hand for topping on our dinners because it’s a great addition to chicken, steak, pork, or even a salad. But I really love to share at a party. Chips and dip are classic party foods and there is a great reason for it. They are filling, great finger foods, and can be centrally located on a coffee table while people are gathered around.

I much prefer poco de gallo over a jarred salsa. There is no comparison really. Pico de gallo has such a fresh, vibrant taste from all the fresh vegetables in the mix. The lime juice really helps all the flavors intensify as well. I feel that little home made touches like this really make a meal so much people. Also when you serve this to guests they notice the homemade touch.

With the Super Bowl coming up this weekend this would be great to throw together for the big game, but really making a big batch works well for any sporting event or gathering, especially Cinco De Mayo. I suggest serving it with some tortilla chips, corn chips, pita chips, or celery at your next party.

Party Sized Pico de Gallo

Serves 20-25 people

Ingredients

  • 4 pounds of Roma tomatoes
  • 2 large red onions
  • 4-6 cloves minced garlic
  • 5-6 jalapeños
  • large handful (approximately half a bunch) of cilantro
  • juice of 2 limes
  • salt and pepper

Process

  1. Dice both onions and put into a large bowl.
  2. Remove the tops of the tomatoes. Halve the tomatoes length wise, halve again. Remove the seeds by sliding you knife along the inner membrane. Cut the flesh into long strips and the run your knife through the strips for a small dice. Add tomatoes to the onions.
  3. Add the garlic.
  4. Mince the jalapeños by cutting off their tops, halving them, removing the seeds (optional), and running your knife along the pieces until they are uniformly small. Add to the mixture in the bowl.
  5. Take your fresh cilantro and evenly chop the pieces, stems included. Add to the mixture.
  6. Squeeze 2 limes over the mixture. Gently mix the pico de gallo.
  7. Add salt and pepper to taste. Give another quick toss to incorporate.

Project Life 2012- Weeks 1-3

I had been hearing about Project Life all over the internet. I was not sure if I should do try to take that on this year. What does a 20-something who works on average 45 hours a week document? What does one who spends most of her time at work do? No kids to snap photos of. Don’t often travel.

But I had to stop thinking of the things I didn’t do and to think about all the things that I had the opportunity to snap pictures of and document. This is my 3rd year doing Project 365 so clearly I can take a photo every day (well, almost every day), so I decided to stretch myself a bit and dive into Project Life for 2012. I see plenty of Boston, I have interesting things going on at work, I go to fun events, I eat out at too many places… so many possibilities

I didn’t go with the typical Project Life path in that I didn’t buy a kit. While the Project Life kits are fantastic, I decided to just buy Photo Pocket Pages – Design F, Photo Pocket Pages – Design B, and Photo Pocket Pages – Design E. I was inspired by Kelly Purkey’s Project Life post she did for her first 2 weeks. It didn’t scream kit to me. I love how things match when they are all from the same release or from a kit but life it not all that matchy matchy so I skipped the cards that typically go in the page protectors. And so I dived right in!

Project Life Cover:

Week One:

Week Two:

Week Three:

It’s not too late to join! Or you can even hold off until your birthday and do a Project Life from birthday to birthday. Or you can start at the birth of a child. Or when you get married to document your first year of married life. Oh the possibilities!

The Boys LO- Studio Calico 12.25 Sunday Sketch

12.25.11 Sunday Sketch

I know that for most cases you should use the rule of 3 in photography and in design. In this case my only 3 were the boys in the picture! The page is divided in half but I think the fact that the photo is not centered helps this layout be so attractive and visually appealing.

I don’t typically stamp, which is strange since I have 150+ stamp sets from Stampin’ Up! and so many from Studio Calico. Plus my massive collection of inks. I am really going to try to make a point of stamping in my layouts this year. I am doing Project Life and I think it will start off being manageable in that and them creep into bigger layouts.

I took this photo after my niece’s first birthday. We celebrated right before Halloween, which is her birthday, which is why one of my nephews is wearing part of his costume. He was showing it off. Sure, I can have them stop and pose for me but whats the fun in always doing that? I want to capture these silly moments. In truth this was the best photo out of a dozen+ I took. The others were dotted with tongues sticking out, wide mouth yells, and rolled eyes. At least they are very lively!

Spinach Salad with Shrimp, Avocado, and Grapefruit with Citrus Vinaigrette

I love salads so much. I really hate that we have the tendency to skip over salads in the winter or automatically go for ones that have cranberries in them or whatever to make them ‘wintery’. They are perfectly fine salads but I wanted to make one that was not something that you would expect to see in winter, but that is in season now.

 

 

Citrus is in season in the winter. As much as we enjoy our lemonades and margaritas in the summer the best season for domestic citrus is the winter. The citrus vinaigrette is light since it is mixed with a light vinegar and some water. I felt that the lime and vinegar combination could result with a tart dressing so I cut it will some water to dilute it. If you prefer a more intense vinegar then don’t add water, but you may like to add a pinch of sugar to balance it out.

 

 

According to Produce Pete Florida avocados are in season now. They are in season from late June to February. Why use a Florida avocado? The texture us much different from a Hass-variety so it can stand up well to being mixed into a salad. They are much firmer compared to Hass avocados, which are great for guacamole.

 

Spinach Salad with Shrimp, Avocado, and Grapefruit with Citrus Vinaigrette 

*serves 2 as a main, serves 4 as a starter*

Spinach Salad with Shrimp, Avocado, and Grapefruit

Ingredients

  • 8 oz of baby spinach
  • 1/2 a Florida avocado
  • 1 large ruby red grapefruit
  • 1/2 pound of shrimp, 36-40’s
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Process

  1. Wash and pat dry the spinach, plate.
  2. Halve the avocado. Remove the peel and then slice thin wedges from the avocado. Layer on the salad evenly.
  3. Peel the grapefruit and then carefully peel the membranes away from the segments. Evenly distribute the segments on the salad.
  4. Rinse and remove the tails from the shrimp. Sprinkle salt and pepper on the shrimp.
  5. Over medium heat, warm the oil in a large skillet. Cook the shrimp, flipping after 2 minutes, cook until evenly pink.
  6. Add the warm shrimp to the salad and then top with some of the citrus vinaigrette.

Citrus Vinaigrette 

Ingredients

  • 2 limes
  • 1 orange
  • 1 clove of garlic, minced
  • 2 oz rice vinegar
  • 2 oz water
  • 2 oz extra virgin olive oil
  • salt and pepper

Process

  1. Squeeze the limes and orange.
  2. Add the garlic, vinegar, water, oil, and salt and pepper.
  3. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated.

An Instagramed Birthday

yesterday was my 27th birthday, man I’m old…

I had been harassing Rachel about picking a day when I could visit her and her 3 kiddos since I have so much PTO (paid time off). Last week she happened to pick yesterday and I was delighted since it would be a day off from work on my birthday.

Before heading up to the Granite State, I stopped to get some bagels from Kupels.

We chatted and had some bagels. Then the kids thought my purse was the best thing in the world and went through everything in there. There was some coupon de-organization and Nivea lip care stick stealing. Maybe some was eaten too…

Being silly with my winter headband.

Contemplated stealing this little guy…

Gnome… before she went to take a nap.

I was requested to stay and watch a movie but had to head back to have some dinner with Pricer. Must make a plan for another play-date. 🙂

I was welcomed home by these flowers from my nephews and niece!

Every year (except last year- long story) Price and I make pizza on my birthday. We went to the grocery store and grabbed what we needed to whip up the birthday pizza. It was mash-up of things in the fridge…like leftover taco meat. I forgot my pineapple for it, but it was still great. Already looking forward to the leftovers for tonight.

Then Pricer gave me my presents. He gave me the CHEESIEST card ever. I really can’t believe that 1) someone wrote it 2) it was put into production. I was cracking up because it was so awful. Love it! I had told me that I liked a necklace from Kate Spade when I went shopping in the mall last weekend. He remembered and got it for me. Plus he got me a wrap dress and a shirt to wear with it from Banana. sweet!

It was a great, relaxing birthday.

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5: Vested LO- Studio Calico 12.18 Sunday Sketch

C&l-sketch

12.18.11 Sunday Sketch

Super Simple. Too simple but it’s done. I used some scraps and whipped this up in just a few minutes. I liked that the sketch gave the opportunity to use up scraps since I have a massive box of them. I love any sketch that promotes that.

I used the 5 buttons to act like that vertical like that runs down the side of the sketch. I was thinking that having the buttons in a row would create that linear element on the page. I used the 5 colorful buttons as a play on the  years I have been with The Big G and the colorful strips I used.

I hope to do a better job this year of staying with the Studio Calico Sunday Sketches as they are being posted, so far so good. As for posting them on the blog… soon, I swear!!

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snap another pic 366!

This will be my 3rd year doing Project 365. I have missed a few days here or there but for the most part I have snapped a daily photo. I feel good about sticking with anytime for that long since I have the attention spa…

I have been HORRIBLE about uploading them to Shuttercal, the online service that I use to keep track of all my photos. I store them in monthly photos and name them by date but the uploading part is lost on me. whoops!I’m hoping to take the time every week or so and do a batch upload so it is much more managable than doing 3 months at a time. Fingers crossed!

Here is the start of 2012:

120101

bang bang shrimp! Saw this on Amanda’s blog and had been meaning to make this for months. I would def make these again! We are talking about making chicken tenders the same way. 

120102

our 7 year anniversary! Pricer made us a dutch pancake using a recipe from a cookbook that Chase and Heather gave us and a iron skillet that Elaine gave us. Great start to a relaxing day!

120103

pricer is starting p90x today. he did the fitness test and did his measurements. Looking forward to his progress and my own participation in it. 

120104

my first Celtics game!!!!!!!!!
They played the Nets and won! Sad that Kris Humphries was not playing! ha!

120105

first monthly date night!
I surprised Price with a basics ballroom dance class at BCAE. I was nervous but it ended up being a lot of fun!

120106

dumplings with Em at Dumpling Cafe

120107

Studio Calico kit! Of course I didn’t order a new glue refill and it my old one ran out. booo! Can’t wait for next month already!

120108

our fatties! Love how Jack was laying out!

120109

new pillows that I picked up from Crate and Barrel yesterday that I love. Love getting finishing touches for the apartment.

120110

well yeah… I love working with STI. ha!

120111

up way too early!!!! long day but it was worth it to start to catch up with work and go over the layout on site as issues came up.

120112

day off! did 40 hours in 3 days. ouch! but I loved getting to sleep in until 9.30 and plan out how I will organize things for the party on Saturday.

Are you doing Project 365? Are you using Shuttercal? Or are you doing Project Life? I would love to do that one day. Share your links with me! I signed up for a class at Studio Calico that you should check out to keep you inspired.

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Ultimate Healthier Mashed Potatoes

I am of the camp that worships lumpy mashed potatoes. While I have plenty of issues with the texture of foods I am eating, I love the contrast of a bit of firm potato that is cozy with some smooth, velvety mashed potato. I think mashed potatoes is such a great food since it is a great side and a great starter to other reuse recipes, like potato pancakes or soup. Plus potatoes are so affordable that they can help keep you making great dinners and keeping budget.

With the new year upon us, I thought I would share with you a great mashed potato recipe that is a lot healthier than a lot others out there. Now is the time for everyone to resolve to loose weight or save more so a mashed potato recipe is a great way to start the new year. We are trying to do both so I anticipate making some fun recipes with potatoes like this in the upcoming year.

These mashed potatoes use substitutes to make it healthier while still having great flavor. We pretty much only have skim milk in the house so I use that instead of a full fat milk. I do use butter but not too much considering the size of the batch of mashers. The thing that really makes these mashed potatoes thick an flavorful is low fat sour cream.

Ultimate Healthier Mashed Potatoes

*serves 10-14 people*

Ingredients

  • 5 pounds of waxy potatoes, such as Yukon or Red
  • 2 tablespoons of salt, divided
  • 6 tablespoons of butter
  • 6 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 16oz container of sour cream
  • 1 1/2 cups of skim or low fat milk
  • 1 tablespoon of black pepper

Process

  1. Chop all the potatoes in even sided pieces, approximately 1 1/5″ cubed
  2. Add all the potatoes and 1 tablespoon salt to a large pot of boiling water.
  3. Boil until fork tender, start checking after 15 minutes.
  4. Drain tender potatoes, leaving them in the colander while you do the next step.
  5. Put the 6 tablespoons of butter and garlic back to the pot on low. Cook until butter is melted and garlic is golden brown.
  6. Add the potatoes back to the pot and cook for 2 minutes while stirring .
  7. Add the milk, sour cream, salt, and pepper to the potatoes and combine into the potatoes while mashing.

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Giant Santa LO- Studio Calico 12.4.11 Sunday Sketch

Cards

12.4.11 Sunday Sketch

As with the start of every year we make resolutions. I am taking this opportunity to mak one for my blog… I resolve to have more scrapbooking and craft posts. As I made my 2011 recap I realized that the topics of my blog posts were not equally divided. I was noticing that my blog was becoming more and more like a typical food blog, and that is something I don’t want. I love food blogs but I never set out to have one, and I didn’t like how it was evolving towards that. I want to blog about food, obviously, but I want my posts to be equally divided up among the topics of my life, crafting/scrapbooking, and food.

So, I am resolving to actually scrapbook and craft more and to actually put those projects on the blog. I have so many vacation mini books complete that I never posted because I got busy/lazy/bored/etc. I am warning you now that you will be seeing posts related to the mini books I made for Montreal, Charlotte, and Utah in the coming weeks. And I am starting with committing to more scrapbooking posts right now with this one about a giant Santa!

I started out making cards before I began scrapbooking so I was tempted to make a card when I first saw this sketches. But card making is not really my thing anymore so I went with a scrabooking layout instead. I was inspired by the lower right card sketch because I felt it had great composition for a layout. I love when things run up and down a page vertically.

I did this layout quickly and that is just the way I like it! I used a fun glittery patterned paper for the background, which I misted for a little fun. I used an evergreen colored cardstock for the photo border because it was like the trees in the photo. I pulled out that sticker embellishment because it was black and red, like on Santa, and it was circular, similar to the patterned paper. The cardstock embellishment was from an old Cosmo Cricket Christmas themed elements paper that I cut out from its background. I then added an American Crafts pearlized brad to it. A little piece of scrap paper, a tag, alphas, and a ribbon finish it off.

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Easy Spaghetti with Chickpeas

Easy Spaghetti with Chickpeas- a simple dinner made up with pantry staples. The chickpeas make the sauce extra flavorful & give it a wonderful texture.

Open up your pantry to throw together a great, simple dinner tonight. Easy Spaghetti with Chickpeas will be a new dinner favorite because it’s hearty and so tasty!

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