Bites of My Life

Another week went by, but no pictures to prove it unfortunately. I sat down to write this post, checked my camera roll and it was empty from this past week. 

Here's quick recap minus the pictures--

I saw "The Butler" late Tuesday night and it was incredible! Apparently no one else had the same idea because we had the theater to ourselves, but that was no sign for how good the movie was. 

Nashville returned, and now I'm anxiously awaiting this week's episode. My sorority had our first date party of the semester. The night was too fun and was a great start to the weekend. We then spent Saturday watching OU beat Notre Dame!

I ended the weekend by making breakfast for dinner for a good friend and I. We made scrambled eggs with canadian bacon, tomatoes, green peppers, and feta. We are already planning on making this for our next breakfast for dinner!

Now for some bites I've found from across the web this past week...

{Bites}

-How cozy does this outdoor space look? I would die to curl up with a cup of coffee under one of those buffalo check blankets.
-We have been getting a little taste of cooler temps in Oklahoma. I am more than ready to pull out the fur vests and pom pom hats!
-I constantly daydream about how I want to decorate my bedroom in my house next year. I have been loving the idea of a gallery wall mixed with faux animal heads. Here is a great resource.
-All the pumpkin recipes floating around have me already mentally planning out what I want to make for Thanksgiving. For some strange and unknown reason I have become the only person in my family to eat the pumpkin pie anymore. This pumpkin galette may be an alternative I can get the rest of my family to try with me! 

I'll try to do better with taking more pictures this week!

xo annie

Pumpkin Quinoa

You guys know I love quinoa and if you didn't know, I loooooooove pumpkin. Anything pumpkin flavored, gimme. I now have a Pinterest board dedicated to just pumpkin recipes. I know it's cliche to be a girl and love pumpkin things, but sorry, I do. 

So, when I saw a recipe combining two of my favorite things, you know I was all over that. I made this pumpkin quinoa for breakfast last Sunday. It was the yummiest fall breakfast. I'm a big oatmeal person, but quinoa is a fun replacement. 

To make this quinoa, I just cooked about a 1/4 cup quinoa with 1/2 cup water. Once it was ready I stirred in spices and a spoonful of pumpkin puree! Simple as that. This is a super nutritious breakfast and has all the flavors we crave in the fall!

Below is the recipe making enough for 4 people. If making for a group, following these instructions, but if you're making just one serving you can just guestimate on the mix-ins!

Pumpkin Quinoa
serves 4 (about 1 cup servings)

Ingredients:
1 cup dry quinoa
2 cups water
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
toppings-greek yogurt, granola, dried cranberries, pecans etc.

Directions:
Cook quinoa with water and salt according to package directions. While it is still warm, stir in pumpkin, brown sugar, and spices. 

Feel free to eat plain or top with various toppings. Kathleen's fall granola would be perfect with this!

Annie

Open-Faced Smoked Salmon Sandwich

We had a major salmon moment this past weekend. It was salmon for dinner, salmon for lunch, and if we had any leftovers we would have scrambled some into our eggs for breakfast! 

When I was waiting in line at the butcher counter to get our salmon filet for dinner, the smoked salmon caught my eye. I love bagel and lox but rarely get the chance to eat it. My dad and I have been talking about how we need to get some smoked salmon (lox) and do something with it. I picked up a package and then created this super easy sandwich for lunch the next day!

It's a take on bagel and lox (the classic breakfast bagel with cream cheese, smoked salmon and red onions), but I switched it up a little bit to make it more acceptable for lunch. The recipe makes one sandwich, so the ingredients are a little vague. 

Smoked Salmon Sandwich
recipe makes one open face sandwich

Ingredients:
1 slice of whole wheat bread, toasted
Big spoonful of mascarpone cheese (cream cheese will work too)
dash of dried dill
pinch of minced garlic
2-3 thin slices of packaged smoked salmon or lox (I used Spence & Co.)
a few spinach leaves
a few scallion or red onion slices
salt and pepper 

Directions:
While your bread is toasting, mix together the mascarpone, dill and garlic. Spread the mixture on your toasted bread, layer on the spinach, then salmon. Top with scallion slices and garnish with salt and pepper. Slice diagonally and enjoy!

The sandwich was so good and made for the perfect lunch! It was a good change from the standard ham and cheese. I've been thinking about it since last Saturday...

Annie

What I'm Listening To

To save you from a food post overload, I'm giving you a little hump day treat. I can't get this song out of my head (probably because I play it on repeat all day). 

Katy Perry's new song featuring Juicy J came out last week and it is too good. If you haven't heard it, stop what you're doing and take a listen. If you have heard it, you probably know why I love it so much.

I might have thought the lyrics said, "so you wanna play with matches," before I was quickly corrected that it is actually "magic." I'm notorious for thinking a song says something other than it actually is. Despite singing the wrong lyrics I still belt the whole thing! 

Annie

Friday Night Dinner

I know it's Tuesday, but we are talking Friday night dinners today. For all you Gilmore Girls watchers, you know how important "Friday Night Dinners" were. I got home last Friday and I was ready to hit the kitchen. My sister and I took over and made dinner for my mom and dad. We planned the meal and made sure we had all the ingredients. It ended up being a lot simpler than I thought it would be and came together really quick.

We decided on poached salmon with feta and pesto (original recipe here), honey and parmesan roasted brussels sprouts (original recipe here), pear and candied walnut salad and ginger cookies for a late night dessert!

I'm big on meals. I love reading blogs and getting new recipes, but I'm always left with well what am I supposed to serve with this cheesy caprese quinoa bake?? Help me out food bloggers and give me tips for side dishes.

I'm here to help out all you meal planners. I don't have the recipe for the salad because it is tucked away somewhere in the mass amount of recipes my mom keeps, but I can give you the salmon and brussels sprouts recipe! 

Poached Salmon with Pesto and Feta
serves 4 people

Ingredients:
1 lb salmon filet
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cloves garlic, sliced thinly
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup fresh basil pesto
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese

Directions:
Bring the chicken stock and wine to a gentle boil in a large dutch oven (any two inch deep pan with a tight fitting lid). Add the salmon filet and lay the garlic slices evenly over the top to coat the fish. Cover with the pan’s lid and let the fish simmer in the hot stock for about 10-15 minutes, or you’ll know it’s done when it flakes as you press the flesh with a fork (I cooked the whole pound of salmon at once so it took a little longer. Remove the fish from the pan immediately, discard garlic, and spread evenly with pesto while the fish is still hot. Sprinkle with feta and serve!

Honey and Parmesan Roasted Brussels Sprouts
serves about 4

Ingredients:
1 lb fresh brussels sprouts
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
pinch of pepper (to taste)
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1/8 cup honey

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a sheet pan with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Place brussels sprouts on prepared pan and spray with cooking spray (this helps seasonings to stick). Season with salt, pepper, and garlic and onion powder. Divide parmesan cheese evenly over brussels sprouts.

Roast brussels sprouts for 12-15 minutes, or until parmesan cheese becomes lightly golden brown. Remove from the oven and drizzle honey evenly over brussels sprouts and enjoy!

The whole meal came together in about 25 minutes! It is simple to make, but very impressive! Since I don't have the pear salad recipe any side salad would be just as great!

The recipe for my ginger cookies we had for dessert will be coming soon!

Annie