June 2012

June Foodie Pen Pals

June 30, 2012

How is it almost July? Where did the month of June go? A look back at the calendar explains why it went so fast. 2 work trips, a weekend out of town, a wedding, quite a few social events. Crazy busy! One of the things I look forward to every month is my Foodie Pen Pals box.

 

This month was filled with delicious treats and a few great pieces of chocolate. I so rarely buy it myself but it was so good. Things were spread out through the 2nd half of the month and Scott and I enjoyed every bite. My pen pal this month was Jessica who is a busy graduate student trying to make the best out of a tiny kitchen. I have been there and really understand!

 

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The Wild Beach Plum Jam was from Vermont and so delicious. A new flavor to me. Sweet and a tiny bit tart. Yum!

 

 

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If you haven’t joined yet, please do. It is so much fun and I love seeing what others pick to send.

 

Foodie Penpals

1. On the 5th of every month, you will receive your penpal pairing via email. It will be your responsibility to promptly contact your penpal for a  mailing address and any other information you might need like allergies or dietary restrictions.  (This means you need to send out an email within 72 hours to make contact!!!) I’m not really sure how else to get this through your heads. I get TONS of emails from people saying they haven’t been contacted in a timely manner. Please remember that this is part of the terms and conditions. 3 days is plenty of time.

2. Please be mindful of your matches dietary restrictions if they have them. ie, if they’re gluten free, don’t send them wheat bread…or if they’re vegan, don’t send them bacon…it’s also nice to ask if there’s anything they really don’t like, so that you’re not sending them a package full of coconut stuff if they hate coconut…Consider asking your match if they would like to receive healthy snacks, treats or a mix of both.

3. You will have until the 15th of the month to put your box of goodies in the mail. This will ensure everyone receives their goodies in time to post about them. PLEASE make sure you get your box in the mail on time. Feel free to mail it earlier if you can. It sucks if someone can’t post on the day everyone else does because they haven’t gotten their box yet. 

4. At the end of the month you will post about the goodies you received from your penpal!  I will also hold a linkup party on my blog so that everyone can add the links to their posts and they’ll all be in one spot, making it easy for you to hop around and check out what other people got! Feel free to write your post as soon as your get your goodies if you want, just don’t publish it until the end of the month.

 
5. The boxes are to be filled with fun foodie things, local food items or even homemade treats! The spending limit is $15.

6. The box must also include something written. This can be anything from a note explaining what’s in the box to a fun recipe…use your imagination!

7. You are responsible for figuring out the best way to ship your items depending on their size and how fragile they are. (US participants- Don’t forget about flat rate boxes!) If you’re mailing something breakable, please make sure it is well cushioned to avoid breaking!

8.  If you’re a reader and you get paired with a blogger, you can choose to write a short guest post for the blogger to feature on their blog to show off what they sent you. If two readers get paired together, no one has to worry about writing a post :) Just enjoy your goodies.

9. BE SURE TO THANK YOUR PENPAL FOR ALL OF THEIR THOUGHT & EFFORT!  Also not really sure how else to get this one through your head. Seriously, this should be a no brainer but you’d be surprised how many people I hear complaining that their penpal never even said thank you or even let them know they got their box.

10. If you’re on twitter, you can use the hashtag #foodiepenpals when tweeting! Tweet up a storm, friends. Don’t forget the "s" on the end- #foodiepenpals, not #foodiepenpal.

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With more work travel on the calendar for June, I had the opportunity to read more on flights. Thanks to the iPad I had a few months worth of Kitchen Reader Book Club picks to read. June was Smart Chefs Stay Slim: Lessons in Eating and Living from America’s Best Chefs by Allison Adato. I read the description and was intrigued but wasn’t expecting to like this book as much as I did. I read it on 2 flights, a pretty quick read and I found myself highlighting quite a few pages.

 

 

Now that I have been reading on the iPad for almost 6 months I have found it hard to not use it, I flip between pages, highlight passages or things I want to remember. In the case of Smart Chefs Stay Slim I highlighted 10 recipes and loved the casual approach and storytelling that the author took. She reached out to world renowned chefs and asked them how they stayed healthy. Many had lost weight and were on a healthiness journey. Yes the struggle, yes the try to workout and yes the eat food. It is part of their job but a few of the key lessons really made sense to me:

 

Eat food you love. Why eat something you don’t, this seems so simple but how often do you find yourself eating just to eat.

Eat vegetables. We hear it over and over again but really, eat your vegetables.

Season your food, things like lemon, salt, pepper, herbs and spices go along way to really brighten food.

Eat the amount you need. Don’t be intentionally wasteful but do you really need half a pizza or 8 pieces of chocolate. Eat until you are satisfied, if that means leaving food on the plate maybe box it up for another time.

 

 

This book was worth it for the recipes alone; unique and healthy recipes that I can’t wait to try a few of. I really recommend this for those looking to be a bit healthier, are just curious how chefs eat or love anecdotal type stories.

 

July is Blessed are the Cheesemakers by Sarah-Kate Lynch (I hope this is good! I am a Wisconsin girl and love cheese)

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Cilantro brings a beautiful and vibrant flavor to a dish, it is even better in a pesto. Of course traditional pesto is delicious but sometimes basil is +$3 for a small bunch at the grocery store. Cilantro is only $0.99 cents. A big savings!

 

Thanks to Everyday Food for the inspiration, I was able to create a great spin on pesto that has some unique ingredients. Soy sauce, red pepper flakes, peanuts, cilantro and ginger. I usually have all of them on hand and can easily stop to get fresh cilantro if I need it.

 

The lemon pepper pappardelle from Trader Joe’s makes this dish, more flavorful that traditional pasta and great as leftovers.

 

Cilantro-Pesto

 

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Cilantro Pesto with Lemon Pepper Pasta

 

by A Fit and Spicy Life

Prep Time: 10 Minutes

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Keywords: vegetarian pasta

 

Ingredients (Serves 4)

  • 1 bunch cilantro
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
  • 1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and cut into a few pieces
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • Zest and Juice of 1 lime
  • 1 tsp brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup peanuts
  • 2 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1 bag lemon pepper papparadelle
  • Salt/Pepper

Instructions

Cook pasta according to directions and set aside, reserving a few tbsp of the cooking liquid

In a food processor combine all the ingredients except the pasta. Process until combined and pour over pasta.

Top with salt and pepper. Serve hot or cold.

Powered by Recipage

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Vino in the Valley

June 27, 2012

Imagine you have a few bonus hours on a Saturday that were supposed to be  booked and they are magically open. What would you do? Scott and I had that happen to us on a recent Saturday. It was the best feeling! So what did we do? We headed to check out Vino in the Valley.

 

About an hour and a half away, in Western Wisconsin, Vino in the Valley in an outdoor wine experience and restaurant. Nestled in a valley with beautiful land, a great dinner menu, a great bar and a pretty good wine list. They are open for dinner Thursday-Saturday evenings in the summer with a  few special event weekends in the fall.

 

Scott and I stopped there for a glass of wine with our bonus few hours. We didn’t have a chance to have dinner but it was worth sharing the pictures because it is just an incredibly beautiful place.

 

Wisconsin Wineries (2 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (3 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (4 of 46)

 

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Wisconsin Wineries (10 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (13 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (17 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (18 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (19 of 46)

 

Wisconsin Wineries (20 of 46)

 

We will be back for dinner!

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Freezer Full of Chicken

June 26, 2012

Thanks to Golden Plump we now have a freezer full of chicken brats and sausages. I have a few recipes I am working on with the sausages but the brats and chicken breakfast sausages were enjoyed right away.   I was really impressed with the brats, traditional brats can be fatty but these were 30% [...]

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Grilled Spiced Rubbed Pork Chops

June 25, 2012

I sing the praises of pork over and over; flavorful and affordable. Pork chops can be one of those tricky to get right dishes but with a spice rub in a grill you get something so delicious.   The marinade only takes a few minutes to mix together and it is easy to add it [...]

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New Vintage Wine Club

June 23, 2012

I have been looking for the right wine group to join, one with education, unique tastings, genuine and interesting people. I think I finally found it! New Vintage is a Wine Club organized my Minnesota Monthly magazine for people in their 20’s and 30’s. That would be me!   In partnership with some great theatre [...]

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Fitness Friday Yoga Challenge Week 3

June 22, 2012

The yoga challenge continues with a goal of 15 classes in the month of June. How is it going? Really well. I am at 12 classes, a little over a week to get 3 more in. I can do it! This challenge has made me realize just how much I love yoga.   A few [...]

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Watermelon Salad

June 21, 2012

Summer eating makes me so happy, fresh fruit, grilled meats, wine or beers out on the patio. All those fresh flavors make for some delicious short few months of eating.   Sweet, juicy watermelon is so often thought of as just a snack or dessert; but it is so good as part of a savory [...]

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Beer Wednesday: Build Your Own

June 20, 2012

A deviation from Wine Wednesday, but for beer. A delicious beverage in the summer, or any time of year, but so good on a hot summer day. Heading to the local liquor store to try some unique smaller breweries from around the U.S.   My friend Bobby was coming over for dinner and I tasked [...]

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