Clam Chowdah on a Summer Night

Hello!

I love when CJ comes up with a good idea for dinner that I wouldn't think of with myself.  Clam Chowder in the middle of summer?  Sure!  We made this about a week ago on a chilly rainy evening, and it was the perfect complement to a movie night on the couch.

For some reason, I always thought Clam Chowder was hard to make, but it's actually incredibly easy and not very time consuming.  Give this recipe a try!


Classic Clam Chowder Recipe

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon, diced
1 chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped celery
1 1/2 cups water
3 1/2 cups cubed red potatoes with skin
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
ground black pepper to taste
3 cups half-and-half
3 tablespoons butter
2 (10 ounce) cans minced clams

Directions:

Chop up the bacon, and cook in a large pot.

While the bacon is cooking, chop up all the vegetables.

Have you ever seen a cuter potato in your life?

Check out the pink knife that CJ got me.  He really knows the way to a woman's heart; colorful cutlery!

 Dump all the veggies in the pot to with the bacon, and add in the clam juice and the water. 

Cook for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.  Then add in the half and half, butter, and the clams.  Cook for another 10 minutes and remove from heat. 

Let the chowder sit for about 15 minutes to thicken before serving.

Enjoy with bread for dipping, and a glass of white wine! 

Liz & Jake's Wedding in Stowe, Vermont

Hi guys!

I just got back from the most amazing wedding in Vermont.  My dear friend Liz got married at the beautiful Topnotch resort in Stowe.  I met Liz while working at Mass General Hospital 2 years ago, and we've stayed in touch.  She is an amazing person and I was so happy to get to share her special day with her.  She looked stunning, and I have never seen a couple more in love than her and Jake. 

I took a million pictures, but I tried to narrow it down to the best ones.  

 The flower girl was so cute, and the maid of Honor, Erika looked very pretty. 

Officially married!!

The ceremony was held at St. Andrew's in Warerbury, Vermont (home of Ben and Jerry's Ice cream!) and the reception was held back at the resort.

 The placecards were made by the bride's friend, Lisa.  They were really cute.

 There was an open bar (wahoo!) so I started cocktail hour with a Cape Codder (cranberry+vodka)

Cocktail hour was held in the courtyard outside the tent, and the view was amazing.  So picturesque.
For hors d'oeuvres, I had a chicken skewer, and some eggplant bruschetta.  Delish! It did a nice job of holding me over until the meal was served.

Jamie, Me, and Sarah

I love the idea of having a cupcake tower instead of a big cake.  There was red velvet, chocolate, vanilla, and I heard the best one was the chocolate peanut butter cup, but I didn't try that one!

 The lovely Bride And Groom!  Nice looking couple if you ask me!

The meal started with a salad.  The main course was either chicken, ravioli, or filet Mignon.  I chose the filet, and it was a good choice; cooked to perfection.

 After the meal, it was time for the dances. The couple's first dance:

Father daughter dance!

How cute are they?

Mother Son dance! 

After the dances, the rest of the guests were invited to the dance floor, and we did not stop dancing until the wedding ended!  I had so much fun!

Congratulations, Liz and Jake!  I wish you both so much happiness! Have fun on your honeymoon!

WIAW: Time Flies....

Hi guys!
Today is the last WIAW of July! Eeek.  How has this month gone by already?  I hate that about summer, it goes by way too fast.  I know the rest of the summer is going to fly by wicked fast since I have a bunch of exciting things planned:  weddings, shows, beach days, barbeques, and of course the Healthy Living Summit.

As usual, I want to say a big thanks to Jenn, from Peas and Crayons for hosting this big food diary party.  






Here's a collage of what I ate (on Tuesday) in no particular order:

Breakfast: Oatmeal + PB
Morning Snack: Banana
Lunch:  Moroccan Cous Cous + Chicken from Busy Bee bakery
Snack #1:  Blueberries + Currants(so tart!)
Snack #2: Carrot sticks and hummus (not pictured)
Dinner: Trader Joe's Butternut Squash Ravioli, a side salad with baby spinach, chick peas, olives, & carrots, and a slice of TJ's tuscan pane bread + butter (not pictured)


My favorite part of the day was dinner; the butternut squash ravioli was amazing!

I recently started shopping at TJ's and I am in love.  It has awesome food at reasonable prices.  I only wish they had a deli counter where they slice the meat for you.  I don't know if this is every location, but at mine they only sell their deli meat in pre-sliced packs.  :(  That's my only TJ's complaint!


Workout:
I was thinking of either going for a run, or riding my bike to the gym, but the rain put a damper on both of those plans.  Instead I did an quick little workout in my living room. 

I did the sunset workout from the Tone it up girls.  Love them.  Try it out at home!

Have a great Wednesday everyone!

What I Ate Wednesday: Beat the Heat

Hey Guys!
It's time for WIAW(What I ate Wednesday) again!  Thanks Jenn, over at Peas and Crayons for hosting!




I love the theme for this months WIAW because July really is all about fun, fitness, and food.  I even made a summer bucket list to make sure I can squeeze in as much fun fitness and food as possible!

I named this WIAW "Beat the Heat" because it's been so hot, and it really changes how I cook and eat.  I know some people say they have no appetite in the hot weather, but I definitely do not feel that way.  I have an appetite year round!  All food here was consumed on Tuesday, July 17th.

7:30 am Oatmeal with Peanut Butter (forgot to snap a pic so here's a nice picture of clouds!)

9 am 1 medium iced coffee from Dunkin'.
Today I finally caved and got an iced coffee.  I've been getting a hot coffee everyday! What is wrong with me?  Since today was 95 degrees, I decided that an iced coffee would be more enjoyable.  And it was definitly the right choice.
Side note:  Does anyone else say "Ice" coffee or "Ice" tea instead of Iced?  I usually say "Ice," but some people have corrected me. 

10:30 Morning Snack: Banana

12:00 Lunch- I usually like to pack my lunch, but I've been super lazy due to the heat.
I got a Southwest Tuna Wrap at Au Bon Pain, and it was delicious!  Only $6.  Tracy and I ate outside in the sweltering heat by the food court. 

2:15pm Chobani Yogurt with Cinnamon and Blueberries (not pictured)  This might be my favorite afternoon snack of all time.

Work Out:
I've been following a half marathon training plan, and today's scheduled run was 3 miles.  I braved the heat and got out there.  I was going to go to the gym to do my run, but lately I just don't like the treadmill.  I ran at about 5pm, when it was 94 degrees.  I was a sweaty mess by the time I got back, but it was so worth it.  I felt pretty proud of myself for not wimping out.

This week I have a 4 mile run on Thursday, a 2 mile run on Friday and an 8 mile run on Sunday.

6pm Dinner:  Pulled BBQ Chicken with summer squash. CJ had the day off so he set up the crockpot and made some BBQ pulled chicken.  It was so yummy, and pretty easy to make.  Just set it and forget it! 
We also sauteed some summer squash for our veggie on the side. :)  It was a nice easy meal that didn't require too much time in the kitchen.

8pm Dessert:
We made smoothies  Nothing like a nice, refreshing smoothie to end the day! 

Hope you all have a great Wednesday!


P.S. Tonight I'm going to a Boston Food Blogger's Dinner at Maggiano's in the North End.  I'm really excited because this will be my first time meeting the members of Boston Food Bloggers.  If you are a food blogger in the area, there are still some tickets available!  I can't wait to tell you guys all about it.

Mac&Cheese&Sausage&Peas Reci-pea

Hey Guys! Happy 4th of July eve!
My stay-cation starts today.  I took the rest of this week off of work to just hang out, go to the beach, and enjoy the (hopefully) nice weather.

If I'm not too busy soaking up the sun rays this week, I'm hoping to have a lot of quality time to blog. :)


What does it take for a meal to be complete?
Obviously opinions vary, but for me, I need meat(or meat substitute), a carbohydrate, a veggie, and cheese certainly doesn't hurt.

If this sounds like your recipe for a perfect meal, then boy, do I have a treat for you!

Let me introduce you to the best meal my brain has ever cooked up:

Mac & Cheese & Sausage (!!!) & Peas! (please excuse the not so great photo quality, my fancy camera was dead)

Pros:
Easy
Quick
Fast
Simple
Awesome
Tasty
Speedy

Cons:
a depressed feeling may occur when your bowl (or plate) is empty

A few weeks ago my Mom's coworker made a request for a Mac&Cheese&Peas recipe because I didn't have one anywhere on the blog! I was like "oh yea, I should probably make one since it's the NAME OF THE BLOG."  So, here it is!

Recipe:

1 box Annie's Shells and Real Aged Cheddar
3 Hot Italian Sausages
1 Cup Green Peas
1/4 cup milk


Directions:
Boil water for the shells.
While waiting for the water to boil, prepare the sausage.
Cut a slit down the sausage to remove the casing.  Break the sausage up in a skillet and cook until heated all the way through, and no longer brown.
Transfer cooked sausage to a paper towel to drain off some of the fat.
When the water is boiling, dump in the shells, after about 5 minutes, dump in the peas.
Bring to a boil again and cook for about 5-7 more minutes, then drain.
Follow directions on package to make cheese sauce
Add shells and peas back into pan, and mix with the cheese sauce.
When it's completely mixed together, add in the cooked sausage.
Enjoy!

 I'm obsessed with the way the peas nestle in the shells. <3

                             This recipe tastes best when eaten out of a disgruntled bowl.


Today is my very dear friend Meaghan's Birthday, so I wanted to say:
Happy Birthday, Meaghan!  I love you!