Fun at the Tide Pools

There is so much to explore here in San Diego. The weather is gorgeous so there is plenty of time to get outside. My husband and I revisited the tide pools at Cabrillo National Monument last weekend. We saw lots of cool marine invertebrates including sea anemones, crabs, snails, gooseneck barnacles, and chitons. 

There were lots of little kids running around. They were so excited to interact with nature. As a science teacher, it makes my day to see kids asking questions about the world around them. It was a lovely morning

Cafe 222

I am pretty much obsessed with peanut and/or almond butters. I eat one of them almost everyday, and when I saw Bobby Flay on the Food Network talking about his favorite breakfast, I was in heaven — Peanut Butter Banana French Toast  I was super excited to hear that this delightful dish was served in my hometown– San Diego — at a restaurant called Cafe 222.

A few weeks ago my husband and I visited this establishment to try Bobby Flay’s favorite. The place was packed, and we had to wait for a bit. We ate at an outside table on a beautiful day, and I have to say that I enjoyed my breakfast. There was a lot of it, and I ended up giving half of my plate to my husband.

Cafe 222 has an awesome website! There is a video with the recipe for Peanut Butter Banana French Toast so you can make it at home! Enjoy

Corn, Walnut, and Feta Salad

I am sorry that I have not been posting regularly! I got a job teaching 8th and 9th grade science! I am excited to get started, but there is a lot of work that needs to get done before the kids arrive

Earlier this week I made a terrific corn, walnut, and feta salad. This recipe is so-oo good! The only modification that I made was using 1 tablespoon of oil instead of 2. Seriously, try this salad. You will not be disappointed

Tip:

I would recommend wearing gloves when dealing with the jalapenos. Last time I cooked with this spicy little pepper I did not wear gloves, and I got some of the oil in my eye (Yes, I washed my hands before touching my eye). It stung like crazy!

And the winner is…

Tish!

Please send me your mailing address, and I will get the snacks out to you ASAP. For those of you who did not win, check out the Somersault’s website to request a sample or see where you can purchase them.

Spa Cuisine

My friend Sabrina and I whipped up a fantastic spa cuisine supper the other night. It was a lot of work, but totally worth it. First up was an edamame and avocado salad topped with some sauteed shrimp. This salad was AMAZING! I usually only top my salads with a bit of olive oil, but this dressing rocks! I think that I am going to make some and leave it in the refrigerator for my salads this week.  

Next on the menu were lentil croquettes with a tzatziki sauce! This recipe was another hit. The lentils were super yummy and flavorful. This recipe is close to the one that we used, but a little different. The actually recipe was from Spa Living Magazine, and I couldn’t find it online. The garam masala is an Indian spice blend and is super yummy. I was able to get only a teaspoon from my local Henry’s Market for 5 cents!!! I love living here

Reminder

I will be choosing a winner for the Somersaults giveaway on Tuesday morning. Make sure you leave a comment to be entered into the drawing! Trust me, you want to win these snacks! They ROCK!!!!

I am in LOVE!

This afternoon I had a lovely, relaxing, and much needed nap, and soon after I woke up the UPS lady came to my door with the best package EVER — snacks called Somersaults! These are super crunchy little snacks that are all natural. I had to try them immeditatly so I broke into the S.S. Sea Salt flavor. YUM! They are slightly saltly and so flavorful! The bite-sized nugget is covered with sunflower seeds and toasted grains. It is a great little snack, and one serving (15 pieces) has 6 grams of protein!

GIVEAWAY!

I am so super excited about this product that I want to share them with you! The company sent me a sample size pouches of each flavor — SS Sea Salt, Salty Pepper, and Chez Cocoa. If you would like to be entered into the giveaway please leave a comment. I will pick a winner using a random number generator on Tuesday morning (CA time)!

I’m Speechless

Totally California Meal

This weekend there was a lot of cooking happening in my little kitchen. I have two wonderful recipes that I would like to share. The first is for California Iced Tea. I saw this recipe on the Barefoot Contessa and pretty much followed it except I only added about 2 tablespoon of sugar. I would highly recommend trying this one! It’s a keeper.

The other I modified from this recipe on All Recipes. I used one English cucumber, one avocado, two scallions, lemon and lime juice, and a dash of onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, dried cilantro. I didn’t end up using fresh garlic or cilantro. I didn’t have them on hand so I just went with the dried. I let the salad sit in the refrigerator over night, and it was delicious! Try this one too! It rocks

Friday with the Friar

 

After a failed attempt of finding the pottery demonstrations in Old Town, we headed over to Petco Park to watch the Padres stomp the Brewers. Even though the Padres are one of the worst teams in baseball, they seem to win every time my husband is in attendance. The game turned out to be very exciting!

 

 

 

Every Friday after the game there are fireworks (aka Friarworks) at the stadium. It was such a beautiful night, and the fireworks display was pretty great.

Ritual Review

My husband and I like to frequent the Ritual Tavern in North Park. They have a huge drink menu and great food! Although their menu is small, all of their food is extremely fresh and tasty. Last weekend we stopped in for a quick bite after spending some time walking around Balboa Park. I ordered the special which consisted of scallops, mushroom risotto, and fried green beans. The dish was yummy, and there was nothing left when I got through with it