Dog Eared

My current issue of Cooking Light is dog eared and looks a bit worn! 

Probably due to the fact that I want to make every single recipe in this months issue and have already flipped through the pages with dirty cooking  hands! 

Yup, it has been a well loved issue! 

Sunday night I made this Tomato Ricotta Tart from Cooking Light for Derek and I.  It was absolutely delicious and paired with a green salad made a great light meal (the tart would be an excellent edition to any brunch spread as well)!

Not to mention the tart reheats well and has been a perfect light lunch at work!   The tart was light and had just enough flavor.  And lets be honest who doesn't love a good tomato basil combination?

I followed the recipe almost to a "T."  I ended up subbing in sunflower seeds into the crust instead of the called for pine nuts and used mozzarella cheese instead of the called for gruyere.  

I highly suggest making this but keep it mind it is a little time consuming with the crust!  But if you make it I guarantee you won't be sorry! 

Happy Wednesday!  

Brunch - Blueberry Muffin Pancakes

Oh man, do I have a brunch recipe for you! After hearing about this Blueberry muffin pancake recipe from Derek's cousin on Friday night, there was just no way I was going to let the weekend end without making them!

These pancakes are light, fluffy and packed with that delicious blueberry muffin flavor. These blueberry pancakes are also so easy to make! The secret ingredient? A pack of Betty Crocker Wild Blueberry Muffin mix!  You can find the recipe here but I used the recipe off the back of the muffin pack. 

Blueberry Muffin Pancakes 

Ingredients 

1 pack Betty Crocker blueberry muffin mix

1 Tbs flour

2/3 cup water 

1 egg

2 Tbs oil

Directions:

1-combine muffin mix and flour. Stir to combine

2 - add your water oil and egg. Stir to combine. 

3- heat griddle/skillet and pour 1/4 cup batter into pan. Flip once tiny bubbles start forming. Repeat until batter is gone

Makes 12 pancakes! Enjoy with syrup or your favorite pancake topping! I had peanut butter and bananas on mine. Derek enjoyed maple syrup!

Not a huge fan of blueberry muffins? Try your favorite muffin mix in place! I thought apple cinnamon would be delicious or lemon poppyseed! 

Weekend Recap - Road Trip Ediion

Wow! It's Saturday! An entire week has passed and I have yet to give you a road trip recap from our past weekend! Not sure how the week got away from me! Bit here is a brief recap from our road trip to Louisville! 

We headed out of town Wednesday afternoon to hit up Chicago! We stayed with my friend Sam and her fiancé Ryan!  It was great to be able to relax and enjoy sometime catching up with them! 

Thursday after a quick and yummy brunch with Sam, Derek and I hit the road for Indianapolis! It was time to visit butler!

Derek and I took a quick campus tour before catching up with my former boss and lovely friend Amanda! 

It was great to being back on campus and to be able to show Derek my Alma Mater!  So many good memories at Butler! 

As Derek and I left Butler we made a small detour at the flying cupcake...

More amazing then I remember it! 

And then hit the road again for Louisville - Just an hour and a half left!

Upon arriving in Louisville we quickly checked into our beautiful room at the Brown Hotel  

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and freshened up so we could meet the bride to be, her family and some friends for dinner at ! 

The veggie pizza was amazing! 

After a few drinks and laughs at the hotel bar we all called it a night! 

Friday- Derek and I headed out for a scenic 6.2 mile run around Louisville where we ran across this amazing bridge to Indiana! The Big 4 Bridge -

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Running is seriously one of the best ways to see a city! 

 Once we returned from our run we quickly cleaned up and headed out for a delicious lunch at 301 Bistro! 

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Amazing food! Derek enjoyed crab cakes while I had a greek wrap!  Yum! 

Post lunch we were off to explore and our first stop was The Louisville Slugger museum! 

So cool! 

After that we wandered around a bit more before heading back to the hotel to meet my friend Ashely and get ready for Kari and Russ's rehearsal dinner! Loved celebrating the couple!

Saturday started with a nice run, a walk to Starbucks and a 2 mile walk to brunch! 

After that it was time to get ready for the wedding! 

Kari and Russ's wedding was beautiful!  There was so much love in their day and you could truly tell how happy they are together!

Congrats you guys!

Didn't she make a beautiful bride?

I had so much fun celebrating the lovely couple, catching up with old friends and dancing the night away! 

Saturday night ended with a trip to 4th Street Live for some more dancing and fun!

All in all it was a wonderful weekend full of friends, memories and lots of celebrating! 

Hit the Road...

My bags are packed (very full), my Out of Office is on and I am ready to hit the road! 

So where are we headed off to on this fine Wednesday?  

Well... lots of places! 

We are heading to Chicago, Indianapolis with our final destination being Louisville! 

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We are driving down to Louisville for my beautiful friend Kari's wedding!  

I am so excited to see her and Russ get married!  They truly are a great couple! 

Derek and I will be breaking the trip up by spending a bit of time in Chicago!

Touring my old stopping grounds in Indianapolis! 

Yes, we will be swinging by Butler

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oh and all my favorite hang out places and of course getting a Red Velvet cupcake from my fav. cupcake shop!  The Flying Cupcake!

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After all those fun stops we will be Louisville bound for some exploring (Churchill Downs, Louisville Slugger Museum) and wedding festivities!

Stay tuned for a fun filled recap! 

Weekend Recap - 4th of July Edition

This past weekend was glorious! 

A lot of relaxing, a bit of celebrating, grilling out, sun and lots of togetherness with friends and family!

Here are a few highlights from the holiday weekend!  

Wednesday evening Derek and I walked the mile and a half to St Anthony Main! 

Where we enjoyed a bottle of wine, and an amazing dessert (a brownie sundae) at Wild Roast Cafe.  We must have gotten to the restaurant right at the perfect time - we didn't even have to wait for a table outside!  The weather was beautiful and the view amazing! 

Thursday (Happy 4th) Derek and I woke up fairly early and hit the gym! A few hours later we had a picnic packed and bikes in the car!  We were off to meet my friend Bri for a day of bike riding around the beautiful Minnesota lakes! 

We ended up riding about 15 miles around Lake Harriet, Lake Calhoun and Lake of the Isles!  

The weather was perfect and the lakes were buzzing with 4th of July activity!  

We met up with Derek's cousin Nate and friends around Lake Harriet - Nate and his friends were spending the day biking to each beach in Minneapolis and jumping in the lake at each stop! 

Once they had all splashed around in Lake Calhoun we ended up heading to Urban Eatery  for a few drinks before Derek and I headed home to get ready for Nate's cookout! 

I told you in this post that the 4th just isn't the 4th without a cook out! Pre fireworks we grilled out at Nate's enjoying where we sat on his back porch enjoying the beautiful evening!  

After dinner all of us wandered down the 2 blocks to Lake Calhoun to watch the fireworks over the lake! 

Friday I unfortunately had to work but after a quick 5 hours and a little packing Derek and I were off to his aunt and uncles lake house!  Derek and I spent the rest of the weekend relaxing with his family, soaking up the sun, and water skiing!   It was a great way to end the weekend! 

Now its back to work - but only for a few days stay tuned Derek and I are off on a road trip adventure! 

Happy 4th of July

Wishing you all a wonderful and safe holiday!

Source: goodrecipesonline.com via Peggy Banks DIYCraftyProjects.com on Pinterest

Go enjoy a day of celebrating, grilling out, and fireworks!
Happy 4th of July everyone! 

Recipe Round Up - 4th of July Style

Hard to believe that in just a few days we will be celebrating the 4th of July!  4th of July in my mind stands for celebrating our nation, enjoying time with family and friends, fireworks and an amazing cook out!

Source: topdreamer.com via Michel on Pinterest

I have never been one to make huge 4th of July plans (I am a more low key sorta girl) but grilling out and being with family and friends is always a must on our nations Birthday! 4th of July just wouldn't be the same for me without grilling up a great meal and of course some fireworks!

Source: ourhumbleabodeblog.com via Claudia on Pinterest

So in honor of the upcoming holiday, here are my must make 4th inspired recipes!  Read on for the recipes- but I am warning you these recipes do look mouth watering!

Weekend Recap - Out and About in Minneapolis

This past weekend Derek and I were busy out and about on Minneapolis and Stillwater! 

I feel like our weekend truly started on Thursday when we met up with another couple for dinner and drinks at The Union!

We enjoyed a lovely evening on The Union's awesome roof top overlooking the beautiful Minneapolis skyline!

Friday I headed to Stillwater so we could enjoy the lovely weather on Derek's friends boat! We enjoyed a relaxing evening chatting, drinking wine and enjoying the scenery!  

Saturday I hit up the Minneapolis Farmers Market with Nikki, Katie, Bridge and the babies!  The Minneapolis Farmers Market is a nice 10 minute walk from my apartment which is convenient - no need to try and find parking!

I was extremely impressed with the farmers market on Saturday! The farmers market was absolutely huge with rows upon rows of gorgeous produce, delicious baked goods and beautiful flowers!  I picked up a ton of fresh produce including some wonderful strawberries, blueberries and the best tasting cherry tomatoes! Once we were done wandering around we headed back to myplace to meet up with Derek for lunch!

We all hit up Lunds and enjoyed lunch out on the Lund's patio!  Of course lunch wouldn't have been complete without a little Sebastian Joe's Ice Cream - the cookies and cream was the best I have had!

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Once we said goodbye to the ladies and the babies Derek and I decided to rent a few Nice Ride bikes (read about them here) and tool around Minneapolis!

We ended up going for a 9.5 mile bike ride around the city before it was time to get ready to attend the 15th Annual Jazz Fest in St. Paul with Derek's cousin Nate!

Jazz Fest is one of the largest jazz events in the Twin Cities and is a free event for anyone to attend!   The event took place in Mears Park which is tucked away in downton St. Paul!  The event was packed with people enjoying the music and beautiful weather!

It was great to be outside enjoying music, experiencing something different and enjoying the company of  good friends!

Our weekend wrapped up with church, a lazy afternoon by the pool, a short and sweet run, grilling and a movie!

Happy Tuesday All!