If you live in Georgia - you know just how iconic the Waffle House restaurant is to our great state. For those of you who don't live here - just imagine a brick shoebox shaped building wrapped in a signature yellow banner at nearly every intersection and you've got a pretty accurate picture of the number of Waffle House restaurants in Georgia. 😂 Just in case you were curious - There are 437 Waffle House locations in the Peach State. Don't be deceived by the name. It really doesn't matter if you're a fan of waffles or if you even like breakfast food - if you live in Georgia - you are expected go to Waffle House. 🤷🏻♀️ It always astounds me that no matter what time of day (or night) I drive past the restaurant, there are always people in the booths, indulging in Southern comfort food. 🥓 I'm somewhat hesitant to admit this, for fear of being asked to leave the state, but up until a couple of weeks ago, it had been at least two years since I had walked through the doors of the iconic Georgia restaurant. It's mostly due to the fact that the Waffle House menu doesn't exactly align with my dietary goals. 😬 But, all that nutrition planning got put on hold once we found out that this super cute high school senior, and all around great kid, was working at our local Waffle House. Even though the rest of my family adores the waffles at Waffle House - I tend to look for the "healthiest" thing on the menu. This time, in preparation for our Waffle House visit, I looked up the online menu before we left for dinner - something that my family is relentlessly teasing me about still today. 😅 I just thought I would spare everyone the agony of watching me scrutinize the menu to find something that was "relatively healthy" at a restaurant that specializes in "hearty" and no so much "healthy". 😅 🥞 You might be surprised to know that Waffle House lists a whole selection of salads on their online menu. A fact that only people who look up online menus before going to a restaurant - would know. 😂 Apparently, the menus at individual Waffle House restaurants can vary from the online version because when I asked for a salad - I got some very blank stares. It was a cross between, "No one has ever asked for a salad here" and "Why does she think we have salad?" 🥗😅 I must have had a seriously disappointed look on my face because even though there was no vegetable based foods on their menu, our awesome server offered to craft me a "salad" out of hamburger lettuce and sliced tomatoes. No dressing, no other vegetables or toppings - just a bowl of lettuce and tomatoes. 🥬🍅 How could I refuse? I like to say that I ordered a hamburger - minus the meat, the bun and the ketchup and mustard. Salads are my jam and whether it's a simple bowl of chopped lettuce and tomatoes or a bowl full of delicious greens, fresh vegetables, lean protein, crunchy nuts, salty cheese and ripe fruits with a citrus vinaigrette - I am a fan. This is Grilled Chicken and Nectarine Salad is just about all of my favorite things in a bowl. I hope that you like it as much as I did. Grilled Chicken and Nectarine Salad Marinade 1/4 cup olive oil 2 limes juiced and zested (or lemons) 4 teaspoons honey 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon pepper Salad 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts 2 nectarines (or peaches) 4 cups mixed greens 3 Tablespoons toasted, chopped walnuts 2 ounces crumbled goat cheese
Slice grilled chicken and add to salad. Top with toasted walnuts and goat cheese.
While my Waffle House salad was good and I definitely appreciated the efforts of the team members who went above and beyond to meet my salad requests a reality - this Grilled Chicken and Nectarine Salad is in another league. Hope you enjoy! Ciao!
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Happy Memorial Day!! How do you celebrate/commemorate this special holiday? I make red, heart shaped pancakes on Valentine's Day, green milkshakes on St. Patrick's Day and mashed potato frosted meatloaf cupcakes on April Fool's Day so it should come as no surprise that I'd make something red, white and blue for Memorial Day. 🇺🇸 I'm not so good at putting up holiday decorations around the house but I always make sure that we have a themed, color coordinated meal to celebrate special days. 😊 I mean is it really Easter without Jello eggs and sugar cookies decorated like vegetables? 🥕😅 Traditionally, people fire up their grill for Memorial Day and cook up burgers and meats. 🍔 So if you're looking for a healthy side dish or a vegetarian alternative, consider this delicious Summer Grain Bowl this weekend. It's full of fresh summer vegetables, crispy spinach, crunchy seeds, savory goat cheese and a bright citrus herb vinaigrette. 🍋 I just love fresh summer produce. After a trip to the strawberry farm this morning, I made a quick stop by the farmer's market on my way home. I just can't resist a home grown watermelon, some freshly picked corn or a basket up perfectly ripe tomatoes. Now that my frig is stocked with fresh summer produce, I'm ready to make my red, white and blue summer grain bowl for my Memorial Day. 🌽🍅🥗 Summer Grain Bowl 1 cup pearled barley or farro 2 cups spinach 1/2 cup fresh blueberries 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, halved 1/2 cup fresh corn 1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese 2 Tablespoons roasted pumpkin seeds Lemon Basil Vinaigrette 2 cups fresh basil 2 Tablespoons red wine vinegar 2 cloves garlic 1 whole lemon, juiced and zested 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 cup olive oil
Top with crumbled goat cheese and pumpkin seeds. Drizzle with lemon basil vinaigrette. I'm rarely on time with my holiday blog posts. #obviously Most of the time, I post my recipe 3-4 days AFTER a holiday. 😬 And yes, I'm aware that Memorial Day isn't until Monday - but better to be early than late I guess. 🤷🏻♀️ My excuse is that if I post early, you have time to go out and shop for ingredients and still make this delicious recipe for Memorial Day on Monday. It was my plan all along. 😂
Ciao! I'm crazy about this horse and I'm fairly certain that he shares my affection because Mitus trots to the fence to greet me whenever he sees me. 🧡 I'm choosing to believe that it has nothing to do with the fact that I bring him snacks. 😅 My visits have become so frequent in fact that I've even started to buy those ridiculously giant bags of carrots from the grocery store so that I can keep a hearty supply of Mitus' favorite snack on hand. 🥕 Last week, I decided to switch things up and I brought Mitus an apple instead of his usual carrot. 🍎 I've never been a horse owner but I've always assumed that horses love apples and I thought Mitus might appreciate some variety in his treats. 🤷🏻♀️ Well, apparently not ALL horses love apples. When I offered Mitus the shiny fruit, he apprehensively took it from my hand, rolled it around his mouth for a solid minute and then proceeded to spit it out on the ground - without even a single tooth mark. 😳I stared at the unblemished piece of fruit on the ground in disbelief, while this 2000 pound horse went back to munching on pasture grass. #isthisnormal? Maybe I need to take my dinner cue from Mitus. More and vegetables and plants and less fruit. 😅🥗 I'm not really into eating grass but I would certainly benefit from incorporating more lettuce and veggies into my diet. Lucky for me, I've got a garden full of lettuce and fresh herbs, just waiting for me to enjoy. Nothing encourages me to eat more lettuce than when I can go out and pick it from my own garden. Farro salad with lemon chicken is great as a grain bowl and equally delicious when you serve it over mixed greens as a more traditional salad. Either way you serve it, this is a great salad to add to your spring menu. It's got all the elements of a great, healthy meal that's just as satisfying as it is delicious. 🥒 Farro Salad with Lemon Chicken 1 1/2 cups farro 1 Tablespoon + 1 teaspoon salt 6 Tablespoons olive oil 1 Tablespoon fresh oregano 1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest 2 Tablespoons lemon juice 3/4 teaspoon pepper 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 1/4 cup pepperocini 1 Tablespoon pepperocini brine 1/2 English cucumber, sliced thin 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
Serve chicken over farro salad, drizzling with reserved dressing. In case you were wondering what happened to the discarded apple - it didn't go to waste. This hungry fella was more than happy to gobble it up.🍎 This donkey eats anything - except beets. 😂 Ciao!
Hold onto your hats friends. You're in for a wild ride. We finally pulled the trigger and officially started the process of remodeling our kitchen! 👏🏻 Let's just say that I'm feeling ALL of the emotions. I'm excited about the possibilities, anxious about all of the decisions that need to be made, ecstatic to have a more efficient space, concerned about the cost, blessed and grateful for the opportunity but apprehensive about tearing apart my work space. 😅 So many emotions - so many decisions. Appliances, vents, cabinets, island designs, countertops, floors, hardware, lighting, oh my. There are lots of great choices for kitchens - which is great - but on some level, that just made our decision process harder. There are literally millions of different types of hardware available to put on kitchen cabinets. 😳 Overall, I enjoyed the process of thinking through all the details of our new kitchen but full disclosure - it was a little overwhelming at times too. Let's just say that after a week of designing our new kitchen space, I can't even imagine how stressful it must be to design a whole house. So many decisions that have to be made in a short period of time. 😬 Tackling a kitchen remodel is new for us and as newbies to the process - let's just say, we have a LOT to learn. Making my new pantry space efficient and functional but still beautiful is going to be a challenge but baking ... now that's where I'm most comfortable. Give me some fresh ingredients and I can whip something up in no time. I'm very accustomed to looking at new recipes and even I, get intimidated by a recipe with an ingredient list that seems like it's a mile long. With that being said - don't freak out when you see the extensive list of ingredients for this recipe. (18 to be exact.😅) Trust me when I say that I'm usually the first person to shy away from any muffin recipe with a lengthy list of ingredients. I mean, why in the world do we need 18 different ingredients for a batch of muffins? What kind of crazy recipe uses that many ingredients anyway? The simple answer is - a morning glory muffin. Morning glory muffins are absolutely loaded with whole grains, spices, fruits and vegetables. And despite the intimidatingly long list of ingredients, they come together relatively quickly. I whipped up a batch in just one bowl in less than 15 minutes - honest. These muffins are the tastiest way to get your daily dose of fiber - guaranteed. And if you still feel like the ingredient is too long - simplify it. Add just one type of flour, instead of all 3 or stick to one fruit instead of two. Substitute 1 1/4 teaspoons of apple pie spice for the individual spices. There are all kinds of modifications and changes that you can make to this recipe. Be creative and have fun with it. Whole Wheat Morning Glory Muffins 1 cup whole wheat flour 1/4 cup oat bran 1/2 cup AP flour flour 2 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 tsp coarse salt 3/4 tsp ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1 egg 1/3 cup vegetable oil 2/3 cup whole milk 1/2 cup honey 1 1/2 tsp vanilla 1 tbsp. orange zest 1 shredded carrot 1/2 cup grated apple 1/2 cup raisins 1/4 chopped walnuts
Spoon into muffin tins and bake 17-29 minutes at 375. Buckle up buttercups - cause we'll be starting our kitchen reno project soon. You better believe that I'll be sharing every step of our kitchen remodel on the blog. Did you expect anything less? I'm a little nervous about having my kitchen rendered unusable for a while but I guess while I can't cook - I'll photograph. 📸
Ciao! I do the majority of the grocery shopping for our family but on the rare occasion that my husband does happen to find himself in the supermarket - he finds the most unusual things. 😂 I go to the grocery store at least 3 times a week and I probably walk down the dairy aisle every time I go. I can honestly say that I've never seen the "pancakes in a can" on the shelf just above the butter, until my eagle eye husband pointed them out to me on a grocery date. (Yes, we go on grocery shopping dates.) 😅 My forward thinking husband was so fascinated by the concept of squirting a pancake out of a can - there was no way we were leaving the supermarket without purchasing one. 🥞 As luck would have it, we were headed to meet my family that weekend so he decided to test our new squirtable pancakes out on the group. Spoiler alert - pancakes in a can was a disappointment. It's a novel idea but they didn't really live up to our expectations. To be honest, that wasn't the only time that we've been fooled by genius marketing. Anyone else jump on the frozen dinner bandwagon? They're delicious but holy sodium batman! 😂 I've been fooled by recipes too. There was a one pan chocolate cake that ended up all over the bottom of my oven because apparently, my 8" pan wasn't big enough. And an "easy" apple pie that took no less than 3 hours to assemble. 🤣 I have to admit that when I read this recipe, I had serious hesitation about making a nut bar with only 3 ingredients. I didn't want to walk into another - too good to be true scenario but, in a moment of rare boldness, I decided to tackle this simple nut bar recipe anyway. I had no idea if this was going to work but what did I have to lose? Only 3 ingredients that I already had on hand - nuts, puffed rice and syrup. 🥜 This nut bar took under 5 minutes to put together. Sound too good to be true - doesn't it? Plot twist - it's not. 👏🏻 It's actually super EASY to make and it is DELICIOUS! Nut Bars 1 1/2 cups roasted nuts (I used 1 cup almonds and 1/2 cup peanuts) ½ cup puffed millet cereal ¼ teaspoon salt (optional) ¼ cup pure maple syrup
Let cool 1 hour. Remove from pan using parchment paper. Cut into bars. I've added honey, agave and brown rice syrup to granola bars but I've never baked them using maple syrup as the binder. Who knew that maple syrup gets hard when you bake it? 🤷🏻♀️
There's a lot of room for interpretation in this recipe. I chose almonds and peanuts for my bars and since my peanuts were salted, I didn't add any additional salt to the recipe. Ciao! |
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