Pizza Stuffed Zucchini Boats

December 16, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ 2 Comments

Rush, rush, rush, rush. That has been the theme of my life over the past few weeks as we try to cram everything in before the holidays.

Don’t get me wrong, it has been lots of fun rushing. There have been dinners to attend, holiday parties to celebrate, gift exchanges with friends and plenty of shopping and present wrapping. But on top of all those fun holiday extras we’ve still had to keep up with the normal hustle and bustle of every day life. You know, like work and laundry and dinner. The less fun stuff.

The television played in the background as I cooked dinner the other night and Robert stopped in his tracks to stare at a Dominoes commercial. “Maybe we should just order pizza” he said.

Helpful Husband Hint: When your wife has been standing at the stove for an hour making you a home cooked meal, it really isn’t the best time to suggest ordering a pizza.

I glared at him over my bubbling pot and he quickly back tracked “I mean it would just be quick and easy and then you wouldn’t have to cook!”. Thankfully, once we sat down to eat, he raved over my enchilada casserole and forgot all about the pizza. Smart man.

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Roasted Vegetable Lasagna

December 4, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

This is the face of a dog who doesn’t really like to pee in the cold and would rather cuddle upside down in daddy’s chair.

This is also the face of a dog that could care less that he isn’t supposed to be in said chair. “Busted! But look how cute I am mom!” – Renly

Winter came to South Carolina this week, whether or not it’s actually here to stay remains to be seen. It has not been abnormal to have the temperature fluctuate from 40-70 from one day to the next this year. For now, I’m happy to finally be able to wear sweaters and boots without sweating…whether or not that attitude will last also remains to be seen.

One undeniable winter positive is the fact that I can now make as many stews, roasts and “hearty” dishes as my little heart desires. One of my first orders of business is this delicious roasted vegetable lasagna.

Last year was the first Christmas I spent with Robert’s family and although it was wonderful, nearly everyone got the stomach bug leading up to the holiday. Since no one felt well enough to cook, his aunt’s sweet best friend brought over some delicious vegetable lasagnas for our Christmas Eve meal. They were warm and cheesy and full of healthy veggies so of course everyone was instantly cured!

Ok, so maybe they weren’t miracle medicinal lasagnas, but they sure were yummy and since I magically avoided the bug, I helped myself to seconds and thirds 🙂

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Savory Fall Hash

November 19, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

Every Sunday afternoon, before I make my weekly trek to the grocery store, I ask Robert what he wants to eat that week. And every Sunday afternoon, Robert tells me the same three things: stuffed mushrooms, Salad with fish on top, That stuff in a bowl. 9 times out of 10, I take exactly 0 of those three suggestions. Why? Well for starters, Robert doesn’t really like my stuffed mushrooms. He forgets this, and then when reminded he admits that “yeah, he isn’t really sure why he always suggests them, they are just the first thing that pop into his head.” I burnt both of us out on salads with grilled fish on top last summer, so that is usually out too.

His saving grace, when it comes to meal suggestions, is definitely “that stuff in a bowl”. It is MUCH tastier than my stuffed mushrooms and Robert truly does love it, so it makes a somewhat regular appearance on our dinner table during the cooler months. It has a few too many ingredients to come up with a comprehensive name, so we’ll go with savory fall hash…unless of course you want to just call it “that stuff in a bowl”. Whatever works.

The recipe itself is quite easy, but there is a lot of prep work involved. Chopping, chopping, chopping. You could buy pre-cooked and crumbled sausage, already diced onions and pre-chopped butternut squash and make your life much easier. Or maybe you’re one of those people that finds chopping vegetables cathartic and prefer to do it all yourself. I’m not really into veggie chopping for relaxation but I’ll remain a DIY girl until my local Publix figures out the pre-diced squash bit. Whatever you fancy, the end result really is worth it.

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Slow Saturday Breakfast – Acorn Squash Egg in the Hole

November 6, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

Happy Friday! It’s ALMOST the weekend…hallelujah! I have really been dragging all week thanks to the time change, so I am more than ready for a few less scheduled days to get me back on track. Of course, true to form, Robert and I will be traveling this weekend so I’m not sure how much rest I’ll actually get.

After work today we are heading to Clemson for the Florida State game. This is the first game we have been able to attend all season and for once I may be just as excited as Robert! We are renting a big house with Robert’s parents, aunt & uncle and cousins and are planning a big tailgate with our friends! I am in charge of breakfast on Saturday and although I am planning on crowd friendly biscuits and breakfast casserole, I wanted to go ahead and share this yummy fall breakfast with you!

Growing up, my father’s mother, Grandma Mary used to make us ‘eggs on toast’ (also known as ‘egg in the hole’) for breakfast when we were visiting. She also made them for us whenever we had tummy aches in which case she would add a glass of coke to the side. She swore the carbonation calmed your stomach. I’m not sure if it was her grandmother magic or the fact that the bubbles made you burp, but it really did work! My grandmother passed away nearly 12 years ago but I still think of her fondly every time I see an ‘egg on toast’!

Fast forward to now, when I am not only older, but more into veggies and less into carbs. I’m still not at all into stomach aches, but that’s neither here nor there. I saw a variation of this recipe in an old issue of cooking light and decided to give it a try. The basics are essentially the same, but you swap out your slice of toast, for a slice of acorn squash…genius!

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Birthday(s) in Bermuda – Part 3

November 3, 2015November 3, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

Our final full day in Bermuda began with a big breakfast while we made plans to head to the beach!

Although we had visited the beach briefly on our day of scooter touring, we hadn’t really gotten a chance to relax in the pink sand or enjoy the cool waves. We decided to spend the day at Horseshoe Bay, one of Bermuda’s top rated and most beautiful beaches.

Once we arrived, we discovered that the beach definitely lived up to it’s reputation and was thankfully not very crowded.

The beach was very wide and peppered with wonderful rock formations that created quiet little coves to explore.

Robert and I walked up and down the beach, stopping for plenty of photo opp’s and to admire the “pink” sand.

The sand DOES have a slightly pink hue, thanks to tiny red organisms that grow under the coral reefs and get washed to shore.

When we made our way back to our towels, the rest of our group was hanging in the waves!

I of course had forgotten my swim shirt (bummer) and was nervous about getting too much sun on my back so Robert and I decided to climb some of the tall rocks for a great vantage point instead.