Sunday Cooking

Zucchini Nut Bread

Black Bean soup on the left for lunches during the week and Horchata (turned out nasty so I tossed it) on the right. Anybody have a good Horchata recipe?

Pasta with bell peppers, capers, parsely, pine nuts, proscuitto and EVOO.

After a week of eating out while car shopping I was desperate to get back in the kitchen. I spent most of Sunday cooking.

Plus I was able to get back to training for the 5k. I'm up to 2.5 miles with some walking when I get too tired. I'm trying to get a routine going but I'm too lazy to get up early and by the time I get off work it's really hard to find the motivation to run. Anybody else struggle with this? I know training on the weekend isn't enough but daily workouts are hard to fit in. Ugh, ok no more whining. Thanks for reading.

My New Car

It is my pleasure to introduce you to my new best friend- PT Cruiser. Isn't it cute? I've wanted one for so long and now I finally own one. yay!

I'm so glad I didn't settle for just any car and bought what I really wanted. It was totally worth all the haggling and stress.

Is there a car you have always wanted? Do you currently drive something you love?

A Quick Meal Before Car Rentals and Car Shopping

It's super early, I'm tired and I have to pick up a rental car so I can get to work. Thankfully, I had a new sample box of cereal to try- Fiber Plus Antioxidants Cinnamon Oat Crunch. I really enjoyed it dry and had it with milk the next day. Easy, quick and nutritious.

That night, still in my rental, work day ends and I have to go car shopping YUCK! I picked up my sample of Buitoni chicken & mushroom ravioli at the grocery store for a quick meal before the dreaded shopping.

Delicious! You would never know this was frozen. I will definitely have a box stashed in my freezer for emergency meals.

Story time: I'm driving on the freeway in my beloved (but very old) car and "BOOM"- I thought it was the tire until I saw clouds coming out from under the hood. Pulled over, called my wonderful brother in-law to save me and turn outs my radiator cracked and it was steam that was billowing out of my car.
A tow truck and another inspection of my car turned out to be the end for it. I sold it as it was and said goodbye to my wonderful car. One of the reasons I had kept it for so long was because I HATE car shopping. There are too many choices, the salesmen are so pushy and somehow I always feel like I'm not quite getting the best deal.
However, today I prevailed. After many days of looking I finally bought a car. I was confident, stubborn and I got exactly what I wanted for the price I was willing to pay. This was not without a few rejections on the first cars I tried for but it was all worth it. I love my new car. My husband has named it the schmoopie-mobile. LOL He's too funny.
Can you guess what kind of car I bought? I'll give you a hint- I was adamant that I would not buy what I consider a boring car.

Training for a 5K????

Hurry, get to Target. Bob Harper's new workout DVD is on sale and with your purchase you get a subscription to Fitness magazine. Normally, I stick with Jillian (she's my fav) but I read that Bob's new video is a really good workout and decided to give it a try. It is INTENSE! My arms were shaking and I was sweating like a pig within 20 minutes. If you try it, let me know what you think.

As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker program, I received a sample of Kellogs new cereal. I don't usually have cereal in the morning, but if I'm in a hurry I pack some for work. I sampled it the morning and it was tasty. I like my cereal to be sweet and without the fibery cardboard taste. I normally buy Kashi Strawberry Fields (which has 9g sugar per serving) but I might be tempted to switch to this one (8g sugar per serving).

Get Well Soon cookies for a little boy who just had eye surgery. Say a prayer for him that his vision is restored. These are baked from the Nestle TollHouse recipe but instead of chocolate chips, I used M&Ms. I may have swiped one...yum!

I've decided to try out my first 5K and I'm nervous. Any advice for my training? I'm not a big runner but I've always wanted to try one. I have until October to get my booty in gear. Have you ever run a 5k? Was it really hard? Also, do people normally run with their iPods? I don't think I could make it without music.

My New Favorite Toy- Magic Bullet

Yay, a new toy!

Organization before play.

One of the perks of being a blogger- giveaways and contests. I won a Magic Bullet by entering a recipe contest from A Feast For Your Eyes http://foodiewife-kitchen.blogspot.com/2010/06/we-have-four-magic-bullet-winners-plus.html#up_source_language=en

Please check out her blog. She takes the most beautiful photos.

A few things about the Magic Bullet:

-The box it comes in is HUGE and there are many many parts. I bought a special basket at Michaels to put everything in. I must have an organized pantry or it makes me crazy trying to find anything.

-Read the directions carefully before you try to use it. I spent a frustrating half-hour trying to figure it out on my own. Why do I do this? Saves more time by actually following the instructions.

-Malibu Rum, Pineapple Juice and Ice blended in the Magic Bullet is pure bliss. I even topped my cocktail with a little umbrella and took it to the pool with me.

-Less cleaning than using your blender. Since it's a compact version of your blender, it takes less time to clean, and since the cups are plastic (important for a clutz like me) there's no fear of breakage.

So far I have made lots of cocktails and pureed tomatoes for spanish rice.

Do you have a Magic Bullet? What do you make with it?

A Few New Recipes

I love grilled cheese so I fancied this up. It is sourdough bread from Sprouts (so yummy) with mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, basil and a little mayo. I pan-fried this in EVOO then had a little balsamic on the side for dipping. Delicious.

I tried this recipe from Cookette's blog http://cooketteonline.blogspot.com/2010/07/spicy-noodles.html
It is quite spicy but tasty. I hope you check out her blog.

Still cooking my way thru the Barefoot Contessa cookbook. This is her Mexican Chicken Soup. Really yummy and great to make a lot and freeze some for later.

Root 246 in Solvang

Root 246 in Solvang

Brunch Menu

Dill Cornbread Muffins, delicious. One question, 2 people, 3 muffins, hmmmm? Can we have one more please? Thankfully, we had a really nice waiter who kept us fully stocked with muffins while we waited for our food.

Peach & Apricot Sangria, couldn't taste either fruit and had an odd licorice taste. It was also really strong so I followed it up with some coffee.

Strawberry souffle pancake. A little bit of heaven.

Steak & eggs in desperate need of salt & pepper. Fancy, snobby restaurants, do not put shakers on the table and then look at you funny when you ask for some.

Guess who had to pee on the way home and just happened to stop at McConnell's Ice Cream in Santa Barbara. Best peach ice cream in the world.

Time for a day trip. I surprised my hubby with a massage at the Chumash Casino in Santa Barbara while I did a little gambling. If you've never been, try it. Their spa is amazing. The casino is really smokey but I don't mind since the slot machines put me in a trance. I usually stick with the nickel slots, but I had a little birthday money and tried the $5 machines. BIG MISTAKE. $40 later I was a loser for the day.
On to brunch. I have always wanted to try Bradley Ogden's restaurant Root 246 in Solvang. We sat outside and enjoyed watching all the tourists take tons of tons of photos. Then I whipped out my camera and embarrassed my honey by taking my own set of photos. You'd think he'd be used to this by now. LOL Food was good but I don't think I'll be going back. It was a little too pricey and snobby for me.
On the way home, I desperately needed a potty break. Even though we only live an hour away. So where did we stop? McConnell's! Best ice cream ever. The bathroom is in the back and the owner was kind enough to let me use it. I got to see where all the ice cream is made and can I just say, very clean and smells amazing. Love the cream-sugar scent combo.