Slow Saturday Breakfast: Tropical Baked Oatmeal

July 13, 2015July 13, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

And just like that it’s Monday again. They always come back around so quickly don’t they? Robert and I had a great, full weekend. We went on a dinner date Friday night, spent Saturday on the boat with friends and spent Sunday at the beach celebrating the first birthday of a friend’s darling daughter. It doesn’t get much cuter than a baby at the beach. Except maybe a baby Renly at the beach

On a serious note, I realized today that summer break is half way over Four weeks down, four to go. Most of last summer was so full of wedding craziness that this one has seemed so much more laid back and relaxing. A girl could really get used to this! I am always ready and excited to start the new school year when it is time, but I will definitely miss all the sleeping in extra time in the kitchen.

During the school year I typically go to the gym in the morning on my way to work. This means waking up VERY early and packing my breakfast to eat at school. I relish weekend breakfasts during the school year because I actually get to take my time making something a little more laborious, and enjoy it with my husband!

Baked oatmeal is a great dish to enjoy slowly on the weekend, fresh out of the oven, BUT it is also perfect for the work week because it re-heats beautifully. Mangoes can be tricky to cut, so if you are struggling (and haven’t youtube’d it yet) let me show you how I do it. The easiest way I have found to cut a mango is to basically slice it into thirds. The pit of a mango is flat and in the middle. You will want to place the mango upright on the cutting board and cut along the sides of the pit (from top to bottom) so you are left with three pieces. The middle piece which contains the pit, and the two outside halves.

These halves are where you will get your fruit. I then like to score the halves, vertically and horizontally, taking care not to cut all the way through the peel.

Continue reading →

Creamy Cucumber Soup

July 7, 2015July 8, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! I loved visiting with my parents and we all had a fabulous 4th!

After spending the day roaming around town with my parents on Friday, we grilled out at home for dinner and then took the boat to get ice cream with Robert’s whole family. On Saturday we had a fantastic cookout on his sister’s new porch and watched the annual neighborhood 4th of July golf cart parade. All the kids in the neighborhood decorate their bikes, scooters golf carts and then caravan around the neighborhood and throw out candy while everyone watches from their lawns. This was my first year experiencing it but I thought it was such a cute tradition!

It rained Saturday evening which was kind of a bust and delayed a lot of the fireworks, but we did manage to catch a few and enjoyed our time together nonetheless.

Festive Family — My adorably festive Aunt & Mother in Law

On Sunday my parents and I took a day trip to Savannah to celebrate my dad’s birthday in one of his favorite cities. He used to travel to Savannah often for work so he toured us around the city and then we came home and met Robert for a casual dinner out. Happy 61st Dad!

I am missing my parents already but I am happy to do a bit of detoxing after a weekend full of barbeque, birthday margaritas and red white and blue desserts. Fun, delicious and oh so worth it, but it IS nice to get back on track.

Remember those herb pots my mother was bringing down, aren’t they great looking?

She had my dad make these cute wine cork labels, which I thought were adorable and will probably be replicating in the future.

Continue reading →

Simple Summer Lunch: Sweet Pepper Tuna Poppers

July 2, 2015July 2, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

Happy Thursday! I am so excited for the weekend, who’s with me? I LOVE the 4th of July! I mean come on, who doesn’t love to celebrate our beautiful country and sweet freedom by dressing up in flag themed apparel, eating red white and blue themed everything and spending time with friends and family at your closest beach/lake/pool/backyard? AND you get a day off from work? Hallelujah, America you sure are beautiful.

Robert and I have spent the last few “Fourths” with my family either at my grandparent’s beach house in North Carolina or my aunt and uncle’s in Florida. Both are two of my very favorite places, but it was high time we spent an Independence Day here in Hilton Head. My sister had to work since she took off for our Chicago trip a few weeks ago, but my parents agreed to come here for the weekend and are getting in tonight, I can’t wait! Next year my goal will definitely be to have all of us together somewhere sandy!

I can’t wait to spend time with my parents, and I am almost equally as excited about the gift my mother is bringing… my very own herb pots! I love to cook with fresh herbs but have never had a lot of luck growing my own on our little back patio. Unfortunately I didn’t inherit a green thumb (or even a green pinkie) from my mother or grandfather who are both avid gardeners. My sweet mama must have finally gotten sick of listening to me complain about the price of fresh herbs because a few months ago she started two big pots full of a variety of herbs for me. Best Gift Ever! I can’t wait to smell them, use them and hopefully not kill them. Fingers crossed! It gets hot down here on the South Carolina coast and I am not always the best at remembering to water….

Second to extra Renly cuddles and waking up an hour later, my favorite thing about having the summer off is no lunchbox. During the school year, to save money and remain mindful, I pack my own lunch for work every day and it gets really, really monotonous. I eat a lot of kale salads and a lot of apple slices and string cheese. And by a lot I mean I eat that every day, literally. I’ve gotten very good at cooking just enough dinner to feed two people so the rare occasion I get to bring leftovers for lunch is a special treat. Sometimes by Friday I’m out of salad and end up eating oatmeal at my desk. My lunch game during the school year is pretty sad so lets not dwell on that. Instead we’ll focus on the beauty of actually cooking lunch during the summer time…hooray!

Continue reading →

Super Spinach Pesto

June 24, 2015June 24, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ Leave a comment

Happy Wednesday! I’m back in toasty (and I do mean toasty, hello 90 degree heat and sweaty armpits, I did not miss you) South Carolina after our jaunt in the Windy City. We had such a fabulous trip and packed A LOT into our brief stay. I can’t wait to share it with you!

Since we’ve been back I have been catching up on laundry, and Renly cuddles.

Goodness I miss that sweet face when he’s not around.

I’ve also been getting back into my gym routine and buying lots of healthy groceries after an indulgent weekend away. Fancy dinners and deep dish pizza lunches call for zucchini noodle recovery. Confession…. You know those annoying people who say things like “I would order a cheeseburger but I just LOVE salad” when you go out to eat? I might be one of them. I know.

I actually do love salad, but not because I’m an annoying health nut (or at least I hope not) but rather because I eat salad a lot and I think they taste delicious. I have definitely discovered over the last few years of eating better, that I tend to crave whatever I’m in the habit of eating, be it healthy or less so. Humans are creatures of habit and if you are in a routine of eating whole, good for you things, you want to continue eating whole, good for you things and not just because you know they are good for you, but because they actually start to taste good to you. I think this is why the most successful diets are those that help you cultivate new habits that stick with you longer than the prescribed 21, 30, whatever number of days. Once you start enjoying the good for you stuff, you’re going to want to stick with it.

Now, that isn’t to say you shouldn’t enjoy the moment and indulge when it’s worth it, I certainly enjoyed my deep dish pizza, BUT it is nice to be back home and get back on track. So now we’ll get to the recipe

I adore pesto (and pretty much all things Italian) and have been making it from scratch ever since I realized how simple it was. Store bought pesto can be pricy (thanks pine nuts) and loaded with calories. You can make your own less expensive, equally as delicious and much better for you version at home. All you need is a food processor (or a good blender would probably work too).

Continue reading →

Watermelon Caprese Skewers

June 15, 2015June 15, 2015 ~ atastytrip ~ 3 Comments

Happy Monday! Today marks the first full week of summer break and it is glorious! Renly has mastered sleeping in, I’m still working on it.

Robert and I had a big weekend; a family cookout Friday evening, a trip to Savannah Saturday to celebrate a friends wedding and we stayed busy Sunday celebrating our own first anniversary!

Robert surprised me with gorgeous flowers, a beautiful gift and our wedding pictures when we arrived home from Savannah. He is so thoughtful and romantic (most of the time ).

After exchanging gifts we spent the afternoon paddle boarding and then went out for a delicious dinner. When we got home we watched our wedding video before bed, so glad we had that made to be able to re-live the day every year! If you are planning a wedding and are on the fence about a videographer, do it, you won’t regret it!

It’s hard to believe a year has already passed since our own walk down the aisle. Despite a little rain, our wedding was absolutely perfect (as everyone’s should be!) and we enjoyed reminiscing about our special day and the past year. Robert and I dated for about 6 years before we got married, 4 of which were long distance, and we both agreed that this past year has been the best and easiest we have shared to date.

Marriage is truly a blessing and there is no one I’d rather have by my side to help me navigate this sometimes tough, usually wonderful and always beautiful and exciting life.

Ok, enough sappy stuff Let’s rewind to Friday so I can share this tasty summer appetizer with you! Robert’s aunt and uncle came to town Friday and we decided to grill out for dinner. I’ve been asked to bring the salad to the last few family get togethers and was getting a little burnt out (not to mention running out of salad ideas!), so I was thrilled when I was asked to bring an appetizer this time.