Easy Tortellini Bake

You guys.

I seriously meant to blog this weekend. Truly, madly, deeply, I did. And then... it was like vacation mode. I didn't even open the blog. I didn't read any blogs. I just watched football. And it was wonderful.

Granted, it was technically a terrible weekend of football. Just terrible. The Duck's had an ugly game on Saturday, and let me tell you, the Steeler's on Sunday was no picnic either. But it was nice to just relax. Drink some wine. Yell and throw my slippers at the TV every so often. 

But now it's Monday and I haven't posted in almost a week. Eek. Luckily, I've got something on board that is easy. Delicious. And most of all, comforting. 

January in Review: 2016

Did January fly by... or did January fly by?

I cannot believe the first month of 2016 is already gone. It's going to be another one of those years, I can feel it. It'll be gone before we know it. Now, I know I was a very bad blogger and I started my monthly wrap-up's again in November. Then I skipped December. Me oh my. 

I'm just going to pick right up where I left off. Let's talk about January!

We started off the year with Oregon vs TCU in the Alamo Bowl. The hubby and I were on point with our spread-

2015: By the Numbers

Oregon Trip 2015

Happy New Year! I hope everyone had a healthy, happy, and safe holiday season. Let's wrap up 2015 by summing up last year in numbers, shall we? Here we go!

1- Oregon finally has a Heisman Trophy!
59- amount of points the Ducks scored in the Rose Bowl (new record!) against Florida St. on January 1st

25 Things You May Not Know About Me: October 2015

Happy Wednesday friends!

I was all set to post a roundup of 25 chocolate recipes. Yummy, right? Then, I had a change of heart. We can get to those chocolate recipes at anytime. I decided to do something fun instead. Everyone likes to get to know the blogger behind the blog. I actually haven't done a post like this since June 28, 2013. I really tried to dig deep this time. So, enjoy! I'll be back with a new recipe on Friday :-)

Oregon 2015

Oh my goodness. I took quite the break!

It's been more than a month since my last post. And let me tell you, time off did me good. I definitely feel invigorated and refreshed. The hubby and I got back from our Oregon trip on Thursday night, but it's taken me a while to find my bearings. It always feels like that coming back from vacation. However, the house is back in order, the laundry is all done, the fridge is stocked with veggies- which means it's time to get back to writing. 

Boozy Salted Caramel Milkshakes

It's a sad day in our house today.

The Oregon Ducks fell to the Ohio State Buckeyes last night, and our house is now in mourning. Even though we live squarely in Buckeye territory, we proudly ran our errands yesterday in our Duck gear. And yes, we got comments everywhere we went. Especially at our little bar we always stop at. We popped in yesterday for a couple of beers, and were definitely ribbed by some good-natured Ohio State fans. I was pretty surprised that no one was ugly, everyone we encountered was a good sportsman. 

My FaceBook friends? Another story. Ha!

Seafood Stew

Unbelievably, this is a leftover dish.

Yes, it's true! I had a handful of frozen bay scallops in the freezer, waiting for something to be used in.  I had one, lonely cod filet also hanging out in the freezer. And then, after the Ducks won the Rose Bowl (woot woot!), I had leftover shrimp. The last clue to this puzzle? An extra can of clams from making clam dip. 

Mom's Famous Family Clam Dip

Let's talk clam dip. Because talking about clam dip leads us to talking about family. And football. And holidays. Special occasions. 

But seriously, let's talk about it because it's delicious!

Clam dip has been in my family since the beginning of time. I remember eating this stuff as a toddler. I believe my grandma used to be the one to make it, but for as long as I can remember, my mom has been the one to make it. There wasn't a Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Super Bowl where clam dip wasn't served. Our family clamors for it (Get it? Clamors? I'm such a dork, I know).  

Lately: November 2014

Happy Sunday from two warm and cuddly Chihuahuas! This is truly how these guys like to enjoy the weekends. Curled up in their favorite spots. Happy as little furry clams :)

I thought I would squeeze in a little weekend post here. I've been overflowing with food ideas lately, and haven't been thinking much about the in-between. But I do have a life outside that wonderful kitchen of mine. I read books in between batches of cookies. Scatter bird seed while concoctions are chilling. Or roasting. Or cooling. I run to get my creative juices flowing. I kind of wish there was an invention to dictate what goes on in my brain while I'm running, because I write some of my best stuff as my feet pound the pavement. A new techie idea perhaps? C'mon, doesn't anyone from Apple read my blog? Hehe. 

Anyhoo, it's been a great weekend thus far. The hubby actually had a 3 day weekend of Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We don't get these traditional weekends very often! We took full advantage last night by getting together with one of our couple friends. We watched the first half of the Oregon game (Go Ducks!) and sipped margaritas before heading out for Mexican food. There may have been a tad too much tequila last night, but eh, life is short. I'm currently hard at work on pie crust, my first batch yesterday having been a dud. Rest assured, by the time this pie is completed, I'll have lots of "don't's"! I made a new batch of dough that chilled overnight, so I'm soldiering forward today. Fingers crossed. 

I hope everyone is having a relaxing weekend so far. I've got a few pictures to share of what we've been up to lately-

Haloti curled up in the hubby's sweatshirt. If you leave clothing on the furniture, the Chihuahuas will find it. 

The affair continues. It's been going on for almost 4 years now. We are venturing into common-law marriage territory at this point. 

My beautiful new FoodSaver! It arrived last week and I am so thankful! I literally squealed with joy when the UPS guy left it at my house. Thank you Mom and Dad! There was no hesitation- Out went the old FoodSaver, and in its place went the new. Immediately after getting the new machine set up, I sat down to write my totally overdue big-box store grocery list. 

Ah, the fruits of my labor. I picked up loads of chicken, ciabatta rolls, and bacon in bulk to freeze at aforementioned big-box store. And what did I do as soon as I got home? Vacuumed-sealed it into 2-person portions. I cannot say it enough, I LOVE that machine. I cannot live without it. Love it. 

So, I've been using FoodSavers for 8 years now. I do have a common-law marriage with my FoodSaver! :)

I think this poor little dude flew into either the side of the house, or the living room window. I heard a soft thud, but not the hard thud that usually kills these kids. I went outside and looked on the ground, and didn't find anything. However, when I went to empty my compost buckets, I found him sitting on our large composters. And he didn't move. He did let me pick him up, though. I was having the hubby set up a nesting box on the front porch for him to recover in when he decided he'd rested enough, and he took off. 

I'm just glad he ended up being ok :)

The snow everyone was so worried about getting around our parts. Can you even see this dusting? Not especially. 

Contrary to popular belief, not everything I cook winds up on the blog. Sometimes the recipes are too awful. Sometimes, the recipes are too good, like this Garlic, Lemon, and Fresh Herb Stuffed Chicken.  This bird never made it onto the blog because the hubby and I devoured it. I mean, we really scarfed this one down. All before I took an after photograph. Oh well. A similar recipe may make it onto the blog someday. That is, if I can keep my hands off of it long enough. 

Cheese enchiladas that never made it on the blog. I'm still playing with my chile gravy recipe, and I don't get to play very often. The gravy on these ended up being too heavy, too thick, and too salty. The hubby is not the biggest enchilada lover, so I only get a shot at this one every couple of months. I hope I perfect this recipe in 2015, though. That will be one of my New Year's resolutions.

Asian Roasted Asparagus. What can I say? Also scarfed down without many pictures.

Broccoli and Chard Garlic Spaghetti. This recipe may still make it onto the blog, however I wasn't 100% satisfied with the pictures. It was delicious, don't get me wrong. It might take a repeat making with new pictures for me to publish it, though.

The hubby and I's favorite tequila we brought back from Mexico. I love this stuff! We broke it open last night for Oregon's last home game of the season. It must have been a good luck charm, because the Duck's pulled out the win! The hubby and I were happy campers. We were told by an employee at duty-free in the Cancun Airport that they only sell this tequila in Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City. He tried to talk us into buying a more expensive tequila that they only sell in Mexico, but we quickly informed him we didn't live anywhere near any big city and this was the bottle we wanted. I highly recommend trying this tequila if you ever see it anywhere. It makes the BEST margaritas.

Cue to the internet razing. Nickelback snuck a brand-new album out on Monday with absolutely no publicity. I had no idea they were even working on a new album. Some fan I am, right? Anyway, once I discovered their new album, I snapped it up. I've been listening to it on repeat. For days. Multiple times a day. I love running to this album. Most of the album has a really funky beat running though it and combined with Chad's voice, well, I've been tearing down miles. Well maybe not tearing them down, I did take a month off running. And lost a ton during that month. I really don't care that everyone hates Nickelback, I'm definitely not a person who follows the crowd anymore. That's one thing I love about getting older- the sheer inability to really care what other people think of your Nickelback addiction :) #iamunashamed

Here's my lazy morning. Finishing off one of my library books while loving my morning coffee. And pretty soon, I'll be rolling out my 2nd batch of pie crust dough. Oh man, oh man, I hope it's not crumbly!

I hope you all are having a lovely weekend! Ciao!

Udon with Thai Pickled Cabbage and Grilled Chicken

Ohhhhhhh. 

This cold pasta salad is gooooood. So good. I'm a big, big fan of pasta salad. I have a friend that can't stand the taste and texture of cold pasta, and I'm afraid I can't relate. I can't even relate a little bit. I could eat cold pasta salad for breakfast, lunch, dinner, 4th meal, and beyond. The taste? Yum. The texture? Hits the spot. I can sympathize with my friend though, because there are plenty of yummy foodie things that I can't stand. Rosemary, for one. Beets. Liver. The hubby's green juice he makes in the morning. It's funny how one person's filet mignon can be another person's, well, liver and onions. 

Let's talk Thai Pickled Cabbage. I saw the recipe on one of the blogs I follow, Sidewalk Shoes, and I knew I just had to try it. Pam made it sound right up my alley. And it twas'. We've got lots of access to cabbage right now, with it being proliferous at the farmer's markets. Plus, the hubby's uncle grew some. I thinly sliced a whole head, and got it into that delicious pickling liquid as soon as I could. I ended up letting it pickle for 2 weeks, mainly because that's how long it took me to get to it! That 2 weeks did that cabbage good. Upon opening that jar, I was hit with sweet, salty, and earthy scents wafting up at me. And wow, does this cabbage ever have flavor. It adds so much to the salad. If you decide to make this dish, do not (under any circumstances) skip the pickled cabbage. 

When I first made the cabbage, I wasn't sure what I was going to use it for. I finally decided on a pasta dish, and since the pickled cabbage is cold, I deduced that the dish should be cold as well. I picked up a package of udon at the grocery store, a thick Japanese buckwheat noodle. All that was left to do was add a chopped, grilled chicken breast and some shredded carrot. Oh yeah, and make some sauce. I ended up making a saltier sauce to balance out the sweet and spicy of the pickled cabbage. It worked perfectly, the taste ended up an exercise in balanced Asian fusion. I sat down with a plate for lunch one day, and after a few slurps, it seemed the pasta had disappeared. Almost embarrassingly fast.

Oh, how I heart Asian food!

Happy Friday of a long holiday weekend! What does everyone have on tap? The hubby and I are nutty coocoo, and we are running another race tomorrow. I'll be running my first 10K. Funny how I ran a 7-miler before I ever ran a 10K. I'm excited, and a little nervous. The course is a little hillier than I'm used to, but hills are good for you. I really need to run more of them, I just get so comfortable at my little training spot. I haven't made a goal, because I'm not sure of what it should be.  The hubby and I ran hard last weekend, resulting in a little fatigue this week. We ran twice, and both felt hard. We did some cross-training at the gym yesterday, and today is just yoga. I'm going into the race with fresh legs, but I'm still unsure. Especially with a hilly course. I'd like to come in at 1 hour, but again, I'm not sure if that's realistic with the hills. I guess we'll see, won't we? We've also got a family cookout later after the race. I'll be preparing cupcakes today, yay for baking! I'm going with classic chocolate cupcakes, with vanilla frosting and sprinkles. Perfect for the kids.  After the cookout? The hubby and I will be parked on our couch, either asleep or awake cheering on the Ducks. I can't believe the Ducks are playing at 10:30 Eastern time. It'll be a miracle if we are able to stay awake for that. Then, there's Sunday...

Sunday is draft day! 

Yep, it's that time of year again for fantasy football! I can't wait to pick my team, because as of this very moment, I have not one clue of the direction I'm going. And I love that. One of our couple friends participates in the league with us, so they'll be here with us and we are making a tail-gate worthy spread. My girlfriend is making a taco dip and salsa, and I'm planning on whipping up bacon and cream cheese-filled jalapeños. And of course, there will be beer. No draft is complete with a cold brew!

Happy Labor Day Weekend friends!

Ingredients (serves 4-6):

Thai Pickled Cabbage-

1/2 cup lime juice

3 tbsp fish sauce

1 tbsp kosher salt

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp ground ginger

1 garlic clove, minced

1 head cabbage, thinly sliced

1 small jalapeño pepper, thinly sliced

Salad-

10 oz udon noodles, prepared according to package directions

1 cup carrot, shredded

1 chicken breast, grilled and chopped

Sauce-

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 tbsp rice vinegar

1 tbsp hoisin sauce

2 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp honey

sesame seeds, thinly sliced scallions (optional-garnish)

Directions:

1. Prepare pickled cabbage- in a large mason jar, combine lime juice through garlic. Put lid on jar, and shake thoroughly. Open jar, and shove cabbage and jalapeños in. Cover, and shake. Place in fridge for 2 weeks, shaking every once in a while. 

2. In a large bowl, combine noodles, carrot, and chicken. Drain cabbage, and add to bowl. 

3. Prepare dressing- in a small bowl combine soy sauce through honey. Whisk to combine. Drizzle dressing over salad, toss to combine. Top with sesame seeds and scallions, if using. Serve immediately.

Printable Recipe

Thai Pickled Cabbage recipe adapted from Sidewalk Shoes.

Love this recipe? Try these!

Grilled Chicken Chow Mein

Hoisin Chicken with Spicy Cucumber Salad

Szechuan Green Beans with Ground Pork

Linked to: Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party, Treasure Box Tuesday

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

I cannot believe it's almost the end of August. Wasn't it just yesterday I was planting seedlings, heading back outdoors to run, and dreaming up new popsicle flavors? That's the tough part of having a favorite season, it goes so fast. However, there's something that begins at the end of summer that (in my mind) is almost a consolation prize for summer being over...

FOOTBALL.

Oh yes. We love football in this house. Our fantasy football draft is on Sunday! I love me some fantasy football. We play in a small, 8-team family league that's just for fun. We are no "The League" here. We are goofy, we take kickers when want, and no team is complete with 3 defenses... I'm just kidding about the defenses, but we don't take ourselves seriously. Most girls aren't that interested in fantasy football, but I think that's a travesty. I've found I'm more into football since I started playing fantasy. It gives you a reason, a purpose to watch games and it's made me expand to watching other teams that I usually wouldn't watch, just to root on a player. Girls, I highly recommend playing. I swear, you'll want to watch some football on Sunday. With some beer and a piece of this pizza in your hand, right??

This pizza is perfect for football season. We first started making it years ago, actually a couple months after we got engaged. The hubby and I went to Whistler, BC with my brother and his girlfriend, for some much needed skiing and relaxation. We always stay in our timeshare in which every room has its own little kitchen, and it was on this fateful trip that Buffalo Chicken pizza was born. In those days, the pizza was modest. Made with a can of Pillsbury pizza dough, a chicken breast, a bag of shredded mozzarella cheese, and a bottle of buffalo sauce. Simple and to the point. The recipe has definitely evolved over the years into the magnificent work of art that it is today. It's homemade dough, all the way now. By happy mistake, I left my pizza dough rising in the fridge for 3 days. It turned out to be the best dough I've made. It was perfectly elastic, yet held it's shape. All I did was put the pizza dough on my board, and used my hands to knead it into the perfect circle. Not too thin. No tears (tears, like cuts, not tears that I cried!). It was pizza dough nirvana. 

I may just let all my dough's rest for 3 days now :)

So... the draft. I'll be the first to admit I paid no attention to the offseason. None. I found the hijinks of Donald Sterling and the Clippers more newsworthy than the NFL's offseason. HA! I'm just kidding, but seriously, I don't know what's going on. No clue who my first draft pick with be, no running-back must-haves, and really, I'm not up to date on the injuries. I've got some studying to do. That probably won't happen. I say I'll study every year, only to never actually realize the goal. I fly by the seat of my pants every year, and take whoever sounds good at the moment. My strategy is bona-fide, I've even won a couple of years. It's most likely the road I will take again this year. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. As far as fantasy players goes, I fall somewhere between Taco and Ruxin. I'm into it enough to care and tinker with my roster every week, not so into it I over-think everything (You "League" fans will appreciate that reference!).

There's one more awesome thing that comes with football season every year... College football! No fantasy football there, just good, old-fashioned, teeth-gritting love of the alma mater. Our first game is on Saturday, and the hubby and I can't wait. 

Make this pizza! And, GO DUCKS!

Ingredients (makes 1 large pizza):

Basic Pizza Dough

buffalo sauce

1 chicken breast, cooked and shredded

1 celery stalk, finely chopped

5 mozzarella bocconcini balls, halved

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

Directions:

1. Prepare pizza dough through Step 4.

2. For Step 5 of making the Pizza Dough, spread buffalo sauce over the unbaked dough. Sprinkle the pizza with chicken and celery. Place mozzarella balls haphazardly over the pizza. Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella and blue cheese evenly over the pizza. Drizzle a small amount of buffalo sauce (1-2 tbsp) over the pizza. 

3. Bake under broiler for 5-7 minutes, or until mozzarella is melted and crust has begun to brown in spots. 

4. Slice and serve!

Printable Recipe

Looking for other buffalo sauce recipes? Try these!

Buffalo Shrimp with Creamy Blue Cheese Slaw

Buffalo Ranch Popcorn

Buffalo Chicken Mozzarella Melts

Linked to: Treasure Box Tuesdays, Weekend Potluck, Foodie Friday, Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party

Everyone Gets Homesick...

A funny thing happened. I was editing photos for this week's recipes in iPhoto. I had just finished up the work I wanted to do that day, when an older photo album caught my eye. Actually, it was the first photo album the hubby and I have on iPhoto. I'm not sure why, but I felt compelled to browse through the photos. That album happened to be the first trip the hubby and I ever took to Hawaii. Looking at that album inevitably led me to looking at quite a few other albums. Which led me to feeling a touch homesick. I've been here for 3 1/2 years, but I still get pangs of homesickness that are as strong as they ever were. It's hard living so far away from everything you grew up around. Don't get me wrong, I love living in Kentucky. I love the weather, the wide open spaces, the old-fashioned politeness people still have around here. But, I love everyone and everything I left behind too. Well, maybe not the weather, but you know what I mean! I'll be back with recipes tomorrow, but here's what's on my mind today:

Well,  duh. The main reason I always get homesick. My parents and little brother. Yes, I said little brother :)

Boating with friends at Fall Creek Reservoir.

Grilling out at my parents house.

Autzen Stadium!!!

Oregon football. It's tough watching games out here on the East Coast. First of all, you're lucky if the game is on a channel you have. Second, you're lucky if the game starts before 11 pm. Damn prime time!

Multnomah Falls.

Haloti loves the falls :)

Going to the coast whenever you feel like it. Heck, having fresh seafood whenever you feel like it!

Being so close to California. I was only a {long} day's drive away from San Francisco.

Camping at Detroit Lake.

Fresh crawfish from Detroit Lake. I didn't eat them, but the boys sure gobbled them off. Could be all the cocktails they downed with them... :)

I miss all the evergreens! Taken from a bridge that my brother jumped off. Yep, the hubby and I watched the little brother bungee jump from here. I stayed up high with my feet safely on the bridge.

Dog parks. Actually, I think both Haloti and I miss the dog parks.

Uh, my friends. Another duh :)

So many gorgeous parks. This park was near the hubby and I's last house in Beaverton. 

One of the last sight's the hubby and I saw as we were leaving Oregon in December 2010. 

Annnnnnnd, I think it's time to book my trip home this year!  

Happy Monday everyone!