Best EVER Egg Salad

I have a confession.  My husband and I have become food snobs. We were sitting at TGI Fridays tonight enjoying the company of family and friends, when Kevin decided to order Shrimp. All he said was shrimp. 15 minutes later they brought him fried, tail on shrimp with a side of fries. He isn’t a fan of fried food, and I could instantly see he was disappointed. I tried to tell him to send it back but he insisted that since he ordered it, he would eat it. I ordered an appetizer steak skewer and I was equally unimpressed. I didn’t think my husband who loves to dine out would ever say this but tonight he said “babe, you cook way better than this.”

We came home disappointed and unsatisfied. Finally at 2am I needed something to make my taste buds happy. I looked in the fridge and started tossing things together and I came up with the best egg salad I had EVER eaten. Thank God. If it would have been bad, I don’t know what I would have done.

To be honest, I am bloging it so I remember what I put in it. So delicious I may never eat out again {yeah, right]

Best EVER Egg Salad

For Two Sandwiches:

4 eggs, chopped small
2 pickle spears
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
2 tablespoons bacon
1 teaspoon dill weed
sea salt and black pepper to taste

Combine above ingrediants in a bowl and season to taste. Spread mixture on whole wheat toast. Enjoy!

Dreaming of [a first married] Christmas

Don’t shoot me! I know we JUST got to spring in Minnesota BUT…

I have been dreaming of December 2011 since we got engaged in April 2010. You can call me silly because I am excited to bake Christmas cookies for my husband, decorate a tree with him, pick out a tree with him, etc. I don’t know why this is one big “first” for us I am so excited about but I am. I was searching Apartment Therapy last night [ http://www.apartmenttherapy.com ] when I came across a BUNCH of Christmas posts and I got even more excited for our first Christmas together. In my mind, there is something SO special about cuddling under a blanket with my love, watching Elf. This is me just sharing a little bit of my heart with you.

I thought I would post a couple of pictures of what I am excited about… to get me through the next 6 months 🙂

– Tree –
I love little “Charlie Brown” trees but a little bit fuller. I am thinking of all white deorations with little pops of purple and teal. A star at the top of course 🙂

– Wreath –
HOW CUTE IS THIS?!? I am going to try to make one of these myself!

– Stockings –
My mom & dad have had the same stockings since they were first married and every year they fill them for each other. We will be keeping this tradition alive.

– Christmas Cards –
Dirty Secret: I haven’t even sent out our wedding thank yous [waiting for pictures] and I am excited to send Christmas cards.

– This Ornament –
I am SO happy. I am SO in love with my husband. This is going to be the first of many Christmases spent together!

Chocolate Covered Potato Chips

One night I had a craving for chocolate covered potato chips. There is enough power in those 4 words for me to stop typing and start posting. And so I will.

CHOCOLATE COVERED POTATO CHIPS

You will need:
One bag of chocolate chips or chopped chocolate
One 16-ounce bag ridged potato chips

Prepare a baking sheet by lining it with aluminum foil and set aside. Place the chocolate in a saucepan and stir until melted. Using a rubber spatula,  paint one side of a potato chip with a thin layer of chocolate onto the chip.Repeat the painting with the remaining chocolate and chips. Depending on how thickly you paint on the chocolate, you may have chips left over.Allow the chips to sit until the chocolate is set. You can refrigerate the chips for 10 minutes to accelerate the process, but don’t keep them in the refrigerator longer than that or they might become soggy. Enjoy!

When is it going to suck?

Warning: This post is raw and real. No bull.

There is a movie I love that leaves me on the edge of my seat every time I watch it. It’s called Slumdog Millionaire and I first watched it when I returned from a [and I am not exaturating here] intensely life changing trip to India. The movie is about a man in love with a woman and she is always out of his reach. The two of them saw each other a few times in their lives and every time the man [Jamal] would see her [Latika] he thought he had finally found her and would be with her forever.

However every time Jamel thought “This is it, I am finally here. Right where I am supposed to be!” someone or something would pull Latika away and he would begin his search again. This happened so many times to them in the movie that you eventually ask the question “When is it going to suck again?”

I found myself asking this in my own life lately. It feels like I am so happy I am just waiting for it to suck. I just got married 2 and a half months ago and I am SO happy I waiting for it to suck. I know that sounds crazy, but I have had so many things happen in my past that identify with this situation. I’m happy then BOOM. I lose a job, a friend, something. I am not saying I will lose my marriage because I would fight like a mama bear if we were ever in jeopardy but do all marriages eventually begin to suck?

I also started a new job at Famous Daves Calhoun Square. It is a dream job. Live music every night, fun people, and so much more. I LOVE being a server there and recently got promoted [to my absolute shock, only after 2 months] to bar server. At most restaurants, being a bar server means you are a wonderful server. When my manager asked me to “move up” I was SO happy. I love the restaurant industry and one day hope to be a manager. This was the next step for me and I was so happy… but when will the managers will realise that I am not that great? When will I mess up? When will it start to suck?

You may be thinking “Are you kidding me?” but no, I sadly am not. The reason I am writing this post is to make myself wake up and realise that if it is going to eventually suck, at least I enjoyed the ride.

I was praying about this “When is it going to suck” question today and I realised that if I ask myself this question about everything then I don’t have alot of faith. It says in Hebrews 11:1 that “The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd.” Faith is what sets me apart from what could be a suckfest. I need to have faith in myself. That is the way that I don’t have to keep asking “When is it going to suck?” because I’m tired of waiting for it to suck. And like I said before, if it does eventually suck, atleast I enjoyed the ride.:)

Modern/Shabby/DIY/Comfy

We found it!!! We found the apartment that will be our first home together! I move in next week and yes, I am already thinking decor 🙂 Just some thoughts…

Bathroom Insiration

 Bedroom Inspiration

Living Room inpiration

I am a little bit modern with a twist of shabby. I like everything to be comfy with some DIY self expression. I think when you walk into someones home, it should be a place where you can unwind, laugh, and love.

I am so excited about this place because its ours. Not his, not mine, ours. That is a great feeling.

Taking out the trash

Oh my dear, poor neglected blog. I must apologize. I have been in a crazy season of life called being engaged. I don’t have a kitchen of my own or any time to cook but I need to start blogging something. I’m going to make this blog about my life – not about my food. Yes, it will still contain recipes [mostly recipes probably] but it will also contain thoughts on marriage [have I mentioned, 67 days & counting!], decor [we are currently looking at apartments], food [Yo. I like to eat.], travel [Vegas in May!], and lots of ideas. 2011 is a year of new beginnings for me. A year of taking out the trash & not rummaging in it. Lots of positivity. Lots of variety. Lots of blog posts.

2011 Resolutions:

• Pray everyday
• Be the best wife I can be
• Blog once a week
• Travel A LOT
• Face life head on
• Accept challenges
• Live, laugh, LOVE.

Date Night.

About a week ago my incredible fiance brought me to one of Minneapolis’ best restaurants = Cosmos [http://www.cosmosrestaurant.com/] at the Graves 601 Hotel. The food was unbelievable, so amazing it deserved a blog. Yes, I did take pictures. 🙂

Appetizer – Ahi Tuna Tartar
*Our server suggested this dish and said “It will blow your mind.” He wasn’t kidding.

Salad – Grilled Heart of Romaine
*The croutons had dressing in them. This is the best salad I’ve EVER had.

Entrée – New York Strip Steak with wild mushrooms, garlic mashed potatoes, with a red wine reduction
*This steak melts in your mouth. During this course the manager brought us wine that when perfectly with my steak and a white wine that paired with Kevin’s chicken.

Dessert – Raspberry French Macaroon
*I was told I could not leave without having dessert. Well, I had always wanted to try a french macaroon, so why not. It was the cherry on top of a GREAT date night.

If you live in Minneapolis and you haven’t been to Cosmos, what the heck are you waiting for???

Worry.

Philippians 4:6-9 (The Message)

 ^6-7Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Before you know it, a sense of God’s wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It’s wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the center of your life.

 ^8-9Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse. Put into practice what you learned from me, what you heard and saw and realized. Do that, and God, who makes everything work together, will work you into his most excellent harmonies.

Folks. Today – I got a job as a shift supervisor at the Caribou Coffee in Osseo, MN. I feel AMAZING like I am finally going to have a life here again.
I am currently taking a break from splurging on groceries and instead, eating Ramen Noodles & Rice a Roni so for a while this blog may not be about cooking but that’s ok because I feel like life should be full. Full of love, hope, laughter, food, and most of all people. However life should we never revolve around a worry that you will not be ok, that God will not take care of you, or that everything will not turn out in the end. Today the Lord put the verse about on my heart and I have been thinking all day the simplest thing – God WILL take care of me. He always has. He always will. End of story.

Prosciutto Panini

It’s been awhile folks! I haven’t blogged since October I think – when I was living in an entirely different state, house, etc. It feels nice to be back in Minnesota but sadly I am in no way settled in yet. I have been spending loads and loads of time with Kevin [loving being in the same town!] and job hunting like a mad woman. In the craziness of all this – there have been days I have forgotten to sit down, or even eat. But I am taking this step by step and have decided that if Minnesota is now my home, I need to be the one to make it my home again. Starting with – yes. Cooking. My new roommates have a Panini maker and I am LOVING the possibilities of what I can make with it! The first thing I made – prosciutto Panini. Soooo yummy. If you don’t have a Panini maker you can also toast it, the same way as you toast a grilled cheese.

PROSCIUTTO PANINI

What you need: [For 1 sandwich]

• 2 slices of lean prosciutto, torn into small pieces
• 4 fresh basil leaves
• 4 small balls of fresh mozzarella, torn into pieces
• 4 small cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 2 pieces of italian bread
• butter

Heat Panini maker to 350 degrees and spray with non stick oil. Butter the slices of bread on one side and stack the ingredients in this order [so they don’t fall out of the sandwich – bread [butter side down], prosciutto, basil, tomato, cheese, second layer of bread [butter side up]. Press in Panini maker until golden brown and cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Pantry Week – Spinach & Artichoke dip

I. AM. MOVING!!!

In exactly one week I will be on the road in my Sable – 94 Eastbound. I’m moving back to the Twin Cities! I am super excited/nervous/anxious/etc.

This week, I am only making things that are in my fridge/freezer/cupboard. I have a bunch of stuff that is kind of random – like cans of tomato sauce, frozen peas, lots and lots and lots of coffee and loose leaf tea.  I will not eat out and I will be creative! I am going to blog what I come up with & there will be a giveaway on Sunday so stay tuned 🙂

I will start this week off with spinach and artichoke dip – I had leftover artichokes from the pizza I made during veggie week and I also had spinach in my freezer. Love the easy recipe & the combo 🙂

SPINACH & ARTICHOKE DIP

• 1 can artichoke hearts
• 1 package  frozen chopped spinach, thawed, well drained
• 3/4 cup  Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 3/4 cup  Mayo Reduced Fat Mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup  Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/2 tsp.  garlic powder

Mix all ingredients together & spoon into a 8 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, enjoy!