Here’s the second (and last) set of photos from my Christmas vacation in Florida.

1. A somewhat chilly morning in my parents’ backyard
2. One of the Old Navy pickup trucks that my dad owns
3. Homemade potato chips made in the microwave – no oil required
4. Putting my Christmas present to good use
5. Festive manicure with my mom in preparation of NYE
6. Blue skies and palm trees outside Mall at Millenia
7. Snuggling Prince while watching You’ve Got Mail with my dad
8. The sunrise I saw after being awake since 1 a.m.
9. The last sunset I got to see in Florida before leaving
10. Flame dancer performing on New Year’s Eve
11. My sequined outfit for New Year’s Eve that was spent in my college town with old friends
12. Hiking in the Florida wilderness with Mister E
13. A happy message in the bottom of a lululemon bag which previously contained running gloves for Mister E gifted from my mom
14. Prince and Mister E getting cozy together
15. My parents’ dog, Flash, giving a goofy smile after a hike
16. A smoothie to help lighten up my diet after a week of eating cookies, candies, cake, and too much of my mom’s cooking

I got back to Connecticut at 1 a.m. early Wednesday morning, so I’m still playing catch up on chores, work, and sleep. I promise to post more than just phone pictures soon!

January

After returning home to Seattle from a two week Christmas vacation in Florida, I was thrown straight back into the whirlwind at work by taking on additional job responsibilities. I know I was more than a little stressed in the moment by the additional workload and additional hours in the office it required. But, looking back on things now, I can see that January was the start of a pretty exciting and rewarding period of work for me. Between January and May, I was probably at my most happiest with my career (overall, not just for 2011).

Also in January, I made a Sweet Potato and Veggie Quesadilla, which has become the second most popular recipe on More Fruit Please. With good reason too, I would say. It really was delicious and I’ve had it on my list for a while now to make it again.

February

In the second week of February, I decided on short notice to fly to Connecticut to visit Mister E for his birthday and Valentine’s Day. This was quickly followed up by a 24 hour business trip to Arizona. I was really beginning to feel like a jet-setter with all of my travels. Maybe it was because I was on the go so much, but in February, I started to experiment and branch out more with healthy snack options including an easy pistachio nut trail mix and Coconut White Chocolate and Pistachio Covered Apricots. Actually, I don’t think my pistachio nut snackage had anything to do with my travel plans, but rather that my grocery store continuously had pistachios on sale for the month of February.

March

In March, I shared a little bit about me with you guys, including the fact that I’ve  been on MTV and got to touch Akon. I also had an amazing visit from my friend Jenny where we went on a black bean burger binge (say that five times fast!). Behind the scenes, there was a lot of stuff going on the job front that I was keeping hush-hush from you guys. Also in March, I made what has become the most popular (and most searched) recipe on More Fruit Please – Butternut Squash and Quinoa Salad.

April

In April of this year, I didn’t blog once! But here’s all the juicy details of what was going on that I didn’t tell you at the time. I had been job searching in Connecticut for a very long time (over an entire year!). Finally in March, I had received a call back from a recruiter for a position that I very much wanted. I went through the interview process and got the job! A few days before I was about to put in my notice at my current job, I got a call saying that the position I was being hired for fell through. I was crushed. Thankfully, the company was still interested in hiring me, so they scrambled around to find a different position for me. In April, I had to go through the interview process again, and was successfully hired (again).

While all of that job drama was going on, I had the pleasure of getting a weekend visit from a college friend that I never blogged about and a visit from Mister E where we ate at what would turn out to be one of my favorite places in Seattle, Alexa’s Garden Cafe. Also in April, I went on another business trip to Arizona. This trip was a much welcomed break from Seattle’s gray skies and the stress I was feeling from the job interviews. It didn’t hurt either that the food there was basically awesome.

May

May was a pivotal month for me this year. With many tears, I heart-wrenchingly put in my two weeks notice at my company. I publicly announced my decision to move to Connecticut. I packed up my entire apartment that I had called home for the past three years. With the help of Mister E, I drove across the country (read parts 1, 2, 3, and 4). And by the end of the month, I had started my new job in Connecticut. Oh, and somewhere in between all of that, I wrote on of my favorite posts to date, How to Indulge.

June

June was another month that I had taken off from blogging. There were lots of growing pains as I adjusted to my new life in Connecticut. It was tough making the adjustment from a long distance relationship (that had lasted four years, nonetheless) with Mister E to a normal relationship. I lived with my uncle for almost the entire month of June until I finally found an apartment that I was happy with and that was within my price range. I also turned another year older and definitely another year wiser.

July

By July, I was really settling into my new life in Connecticut – especially in the kitchen. I kept a strong focus on summer produce like strawberries, watermelon, tomatoes, and corn and turned out some pretty delicious results, if I do say so myself. I was also adjusting to cooking meals for two now that Mister E was coming over for dinner pretty frequently. And I made what would be the fourth most popular recipe on More Fruit Please, Jell-o Fruit Slices, for a family Fourth of July celebration. I also locked myself out of my place of residency for the third time since moving to Connecticut.

August

In August, I killed my fourth basil plant. I explored new restaurants with my cousin. I got my first glimpse of Pinterest and made Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries, which are the third most popular food item on More Fruit Please. I also went through a hurricane without sustaining any damage thankfully.

September

In September, I discovered Biscoff spread and the full power of Pinterest. Enough said.

Just kidding. My mother came to visit me for Labor Day weekend where we really stuffed ourselves silly with blue corn tortilla chips and Curry Chicken Salad that was healthified with the substitution of Greek yogurt. I watched almost all seven seasons of Grey’s Anatomy on Netflix while Mister E was doing quite a bit of travelling for work. I also tried being fancy by making Mini Blueberry Clafoutis.

October

While Pinterest was being blocked on my work computer, that didn’t deter me from forging ahead with some DIY fall decorations inspired by Pinterest. I also took my obsession with Pinterest to a new, unhealthy level by throwing a party for it. My fall wish came true when I got to go apple picking, not once, but twice. The month ended on a low note when I experienced my first snow storm on Halloween weekend that caused me to go two days without power.

November

November was another busy month in the kitchen. I put all of my apples to good use by making Apple Cinnamon Coffee Cake and  Cinnamon Apple Butter which I spread on Whole Wheat Breakfast Biscuits. I went to a Fall Dinner Party and took a stab at my first photography post. And somewhere along the way, I professed my love for breakfasts.

December

December managed to pass me by far too quickly, it seems. It was only a few short weeks ago that I was decorating for Christmas and attending holiday parties. I found my new favorite party appetizer in Sun-Dried Tomato Olive Tapenade. December also marked a full six months of living in Connecticut. To celebrate the new friendships blossoming and old friendships being nurtured, I threw a holiday brunch for friends. And before I knew it, I was in the car with my dad, on our way to Florida for Christmas.

And here I sit, on the last day of the year, reflecting back on the last 12 months. Dozens of new recipes, several new friends, 24 states traveled through, 2 jobs, and 1 new apartment. It’s funny to think that exactly 1 year ago, on the brink of 2011, I had no idea that I would be living in Connecticut by the end of the year. It makes me excited for all the things to come in 2012 that I can’t even possibly imagine happening yet.

My Christmas vacation thus far:

1. Christmas shopping in Orlando at the Mall at Millenia with my brother
2. Checking out the post-Christmas sales at the outlets
3. Turkey and cranberry sub from Publix
4. Burrito bowl from Chipolte’s
5. Purchases from the outlets
6. Place setting from West Elm
7. Mom’s Italian pasta salad
8. Mahi-mahi lunch at The Elephant Bar
9. Chocolates gifted from Mister E’s parents
10. Reindeer Prince
11. Sunset
12. Sunny skies on Christmas
13. The best Christmas gift ever
14. My mom’s crazy-thick chocolate chip cookies
15. Palm trees
16. The view from my parents’ front porch
17. My parents’ dogs – Flash and Shadow
18. Flash trying to get in the holiday spirit
19. The breakfast that I’ve had almost every day – egg on toast & a blood orange
20. Barney’s Christmas coffee
21. Flash passed out on Christmas morning
22. Shadow’s puppy eyes
23. Fruit bowl filled to the brim
24. My first successful hash brown
25. Poinsettias
26. A gecko caught breaking and entering into the house
27. Mixed CDs made for me by my brother
28. My laptop after Prince knocked it off the teeny-tiny bed we’re sharing.

Be back soon with a more detailed recap!! I hope everyone is enjoying their holidays!

On Friday night, I had my company’s holiday party to attend. It was a pretty swanky event by my standards and I was happy to have the excuse to dress up. Mister E and I snacked on Asian chicken sliders that were out as an appetizer and later on in the evening I demolished a piece of cheesecake. There was a party going on out on the dance floor, but since I wasn’t brave enough to bust a move in front of my coworkers, we mostly hung out on the sidelines and chatted it up with other non-dancers.

On Saturday, I was going over to Mister E’s parents’ house for lunch, so I spent the morning baking up a storm in the kitchen so I would have goodies to bring over. I made another batch of Chocolate Peppermint Snow Caps as well as a batch of my Caramel Maple Peanut Butter Blossoms.

After returning back home from lunch, I got busy again in the kitchen, this time making sun-dried tomato olive tapenade and red velvet cupcakes. For the cupcakes, I used a box mix, but then tried to decorate them into Santa hats after seeing this pin on Pinterest. Mine didn’t turn out as great as the ones off of Pinterest since my strawberries weren’t perfectly shaped, but hopefully you can get the gist of what I was going for.

Oh, and this seemed to be the state of my kitchen for pretty much all day Saturday. I think I either need a larger kitchen or someone who would be willing to clean up after me in the kitchen. Or both.

Later that Saturday evening, I brought my tapenade and cupcakes over to Jennifer’s house for a holiday party she was throwing. Doesn’t she look like a true “hostess with the most-est”? This was her “debut” of her apartment that she recently moved into with her boyfriend and it was decorated so stylishly!

(photo courtesy of Jennifer)

On the table above were my tapenade and cupcakes, a Kahlua and walnut brie, corn and black bean dip, garlic dip, and pizzelles. Later on in the evening, more dishes found their way onto the table including more red velvet cupcakes, candy cane cookies, and a spinach dip. So much good food! The party was fantastic and it was great getting to mingle with new people.

On Sunday (yesterday), Mister E and I originally had plans to go into New York City to soak up some of the holiday festivities. But given how busy our weekend had been during the first half and also the fact that I had lots of work to get done in preparation of my upcoming Florida trip, we decided that it would probably be best if we skipped it. I was kind of bummed to be missing out on New York, but I think that it was the best decision for us to make.

Mister E and I took things pretty easy in the morning and watched National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation while sipping on coffee with eggnog biscotti and later on, the real deal itself, eggnog. The eggnog biscotti recipe came from Angela and turned out really well! The only change I made to the recipe was to omit the dried cranberries (and to use regular eggnog instead of vegan eggnog). Next time I make these, I would probably cut down the amount of nutmeg the recipe calls for since I found the nutmeg overpowered some of the other flavors going on.

After getting some tasks done and counting ourselves as being productive for the day, Mister E and I turned into lazy bums again and settled in to watch the Patriots-Broncos game (well, only one of us was truly watching the game). My fridge was looking pretty bare since I’m trying to empty it as much as possible before my trip to Florida, so we decided to do take-out for dinner to go along with the game. After a little debate, we finally settled on Corey’s Catsup and Mustard, which is really well known for their great burgers and sandwiches. We split the Pretzel Grilled Chicken Sandwhich along with an order of Spicy Cajun Fries and Spicy Sweet & Sour Chicken Wings. After working my way through half of the sandwich and fries, I only had room for one chicken wing, but boy, was everything good!

So as you can see, this weekend was a pretty indulgent one for me. Looking back on everything, I think the healthiest thing I ate all weekend was the strawberry off of a red velvet cupcake, and that’s not saying much. During the next few days, I’m hoping to clean up my diet a bit to help recover from this weekend and also prepare for next weekend which I’m sure will include just as much indulging. I envision lots of smoothies, salads, and soups this week to get back on track. But overall, I’m not too concerned since the holiday season really only comes around once a year, and I have much more important things to do rather than to stress over how many calories might be in a cookie. As much as I believe in healthy eating and its importance, there are just some things in life that it should never come ahead of.

I’m curious, does anyone else avoid the dance floor at company parties? How about the open bar?

This was my first company party where I had to worry about dancing. Honestly, I probably would have gotten out on the dance floor if the music was a little bit more on the conservative side. I just don’t think I would have been able to walk into the office today with much dignity if my manager had seen me shaking it to Sir Mix-a-Lot’s Baby Got Back. (They seriously played that song! At a club? Sure. At a company party? I don’t think so!) I guess I’m just a prude like that though.

As far as the open bar, I adhere to a two drink maximum while out. Again, it may be prudish of me, but I really do enjoy waking up the next morning without any embarrassment or hangovers.

First up, I got an iPhone this week. I also have a new Connecticut phone number. I’m still mourning the loss of my Florida number that I had for almost eight years. Oh, and I’m now on a family plan with Mister E. Big relationship steps, I’m telling’ ya!

I’m still overwhelmed by the plethora of apps and am trying to get used to the on-screen keyboard. Feel free to give a shout out in the comments of your favorite apps. I’m clueless. Does anyone know if there’s an app for Google Reader? I can’t seem to find one.

I did find the Instagram app which means that I can spam people with lots of pictures of Prince and Kaylie now.

I’ve become a Twitter addict. Just goes to prove that anything is possible. You should totally follow me if you want to hear more random thoughts from me that I don’t share on the blog.

Want a sneak peak at my apartment? Check out Caitlin’s recap of my holiday brunch. There are a couple pictures of my apartment decor that even I’ve never shown you guys before!

Like years past, I’ll be going to Florida for the holidays. So, to recap, next week I’ll be going from this weather:

To this weather:

I can’t wait. Oh, and I’ll be driving, not flying. Let the adventures begin!

My first cookies of the season were these Chocolate Peppermint Snow Cap cookies that I first saw from Jenn. I followed this recipe from Martha Stewart except I subbed 1 teaspoon of peppermint extract for the espresso (just like Jenn) and added 1 cup of chopped Candy Cane Hershey’s Kisses.

Mister E swears that they’re the best thing I’ve ever made. He’s also cursing me for only leaving him three cookies when the recipe made sixteen. I’m going to plead the fifth of you ask me where the other thirteen cookies disappeared to.

This midday post has been brought to you be the letter I. As in iPhone. So please no complaints if the formatting ends up all wonky or autocorrect changes all of my words.

A friend from high school chose that quote to go into our high school Senior yearbook next to her picture. The quote is actually part of the lyrics that make up the song, Chicks Dig It.  I wonder why she chose those words as her Senior quote. I know she liked country music, so it’s not too surprising that she would choose a quote out of a country song. And the words do seem to be appropriate advice for someone about to graduate high school and who is on the brink of adulthood. But when selecting that quote, could she have known in that moment just how meaningful those words would become to her?

Our Senior yearbook is over seven years old now. And for almost that entire period of time, this friend has been battling for her life with cancer. On Sunday night, she lost that fight.

We were never close friends in school – more like acquaintances. We were in a few of the same classes and were once in the same group on a middle school field trip and I believe I have a picture of us together at our Freshmen homecoming dance, but that is about the extent of my friendship with her. She was someone who I figured I would see again at our 10 year high school reunion, but nothing more (you have to remember, social media didn’t exist while I was in high school, so there was no concept about staying in touch online).

A year after high school, I joined Myspace and learned that she was joining the Air Force. A year after that, and after migrating to Facebook, I saw her statuses discussing multiple doctor visits and later an update about being medically discharged from the Air Force.

In subsequent years, I saw updates on radiation treatment for a tumor in her leg. I saw pictures online of her nearly bald head instead of her beautiful, shiny blonde hair. I saw more statuses on doctor visits. I saw words of frustration during long periods of bed rest in the hospital. I saw pictures of her going through physical therapy in crutches. One thing was constant throughout every single picture – there was a huge smile flashed across her face. Despite having to leave the Air Force, despite losing all of her hair, and despite all of the doctor visits and physical therapy… she was smiling.

The status updates seemed to be getting better and less focused on her medical condition. Two years ago, while I was home in Florida for Christmas, I ran into her at a bar one night. She didn’t mention her leg or tumor once, so I didn’t ask. She told me a little bit about her time in the Air Force and we talked about my life in Seattle. We took a shot together, exchanged niceties how it was so good seeing one another, and parted ways.

Life seemed to go on normal for her and I assumed that she had overcome whatever battles she was going through. So it was a surprise when pictures came up online at the beginning of this year with her wearing a prosthetic leg below the knee on her right leg. It was jarring to see someone so young without part of their leg. She named the photo album of her prosthetic leg, Bring It On. That certainly seemed to sum up her attitude towards cancer pretty accurately.

In August of this year, she put on a pretty white satin dress and styled her now pixie-cut length hair and married a very handsome man. There were very few pictures or status updates after the wedding, but I am sure that her four months of marriage were filled with as much happiness and love as one could wish for. There was no warning online that her health was failing. There were no public goodbyes. Just a status update on Sunday night from a family member that she had lost her battle with cancer.

After so many years of following her online, I wrote her a message for the very first time yesterday. I told her that I thought she was incredibly brave for joining the Air Force at such a young age. I told her that I thought she was brave for battling cancer with a smile on her face. And I told her that I was so sorry that I never had the courage to tell her those things while there was still time. And it’s not that I didn’t necessarily have the courage to tell her those things, but I would have felt awkward saying those things to someone that I barely knew. As an acquaintance, it didn’t seem like it was my place to be involved in her personal life.

It seems somewhat surreal that someone the exact age as me could die from cancer. At an age when I still feel invincible and take my health for granted, it is difficult to know that someone else was fighting for each and every day on this planet. She is not the first person that I’ve know to lose a battle with cancer nor is she the first young person that I’ve known to pass away too soon. But she is the first person that I’ve known to have cancer at too young of an age. It’s sad and maddening to wonder what dreams she might have had for herself that she’ll never pursue now. What did she want to do as a career? Did she want children? What places did she want to travel to?

Please don’t give me any condolences on her death. As an acquaintance, my day-to-day life remains unchanged by her passing, and it would feel selfish and self-centered to accept anyone’s sympathy for a loss that’s not really mine. Instead, please think of some well-wishes for her family. Think of what a wonderful gift life actually is. Think of the person that you’ve never told how you really feel about them because it might be awkward. And most of all, think of how “life is short so go on and live it”.

It was a nice change of pace having guests over during the daytime and it made for a nice and relaxed setting.

When everyone started trickling in around 10 a.m., I had a few small snacks waiting for them to nosh on while I finished preparing the rest of the food. On the appetizer list was sun-dried tomato olive tapenade…

…and chocolate peppermint pretzels (you’ve been warned: they are tasty and highly addictive).

Later on, a few more additions found their way onto the table including Lydia’s delicious Harvest Loaf…

…and cookies from Caitlin!

To accompany their little bites, everyone sipped on coffee (or tea) and mimosas that were prepared by my friend Lauren. This was my first time having a mimosa and they are so good!! I’m a little disappointed that I’ve been missing out on such a delicious drink for so many years. I would love to try and create a non-alcoholic version using some sort of fizzy drink instead of the champagne to drink on a daily basis.

For the main dish, I made two quiches – one veggie and one meat. The veggie one consisted of a layer of spinach pesto (made with walnuts, not pecans), steamed broccoli, sliced grape tomatoes, and mozzarella cheese. The meat quiche was made up of turkey sausage, sliced red potatoes, green peppers, onion, and cheddar cheese. I used store-bought pie crusts and added about seven eggs whisked together with a small splash of heavy whipping cream to each quiche.

And on the side, we had croissants that Kyle had picked up from a local French bakery…

…delicious (and healthy!) blackberry-lemon and apple scones made by Jennifer…

…and a variety of bagels and yoga bread that I had set out.

To go along with all of the bread and pastry items, I set out regular butter, my cinnamon apple butter, and a cranberry orange cream cheese spread that I made following this recipe. I fell in love with cranberry orange cream cheese last year and several of you suggested that I tried making it myself. Since I couldn’t find it in stores this year, now seemed like the perfect time to give it a go.

Also on the side, I had a large bowl of mixed fruit served along with a yogurt dip made by combining 2% plain Greek yogurt, honey, and cinnamon.

You might have noticed that all of the food had little descriptions next to them written on holiday cards. This was a super easy project. For the cards, I used gift tags that I already had on hand from all of my present wrapping and just wrote a short description of each dish up top. For the stand, I used corks that were leftover from another project and cut a small slit in each one with a knife. I loved how the use of gift tags added to the holiday theme.

Oh, and here’s my plate loaded up with the broccoli and tomato quiche, fruit and yogurt dip, a chocolate croissant, half of a blackberry-lemon scone, and a small piece of bagel covered in apple butter.

It was so much fun hanging out with friends and I’m so happy that we could all find the time to get together in our busy schedules. Even though there wasn’t a lot of cooking or baking involved to prepare for the brunch, I still felt like I was in my kitchen for FOREVER preparing for it! After everyone left, Prince and I crashed hard. I didn’t get out of my bed until a few hours later to sneak some of Caitlin’s cookies and have another cup of coffee.

How cute is this mug that I got from Lydia for Christmas? My inner bookworm absolutely adores it.

Did you guys have any holiday festivities going on this weekend? Do you prefer getting together with friends during the daytime or in the evenings?

Buy Yourself Flowers

Flowers are a total mood booster and help bring life into your humble abode. Don’t wait for someone else to buy you flowers – pick up a bouquet yourself! Most grocery stores sell beautiful arrangements for only $5-10. I got the one pictured above from my local grocery store for only six dollars!!!

Donate

I’ve always enjoyed helping others whenever possible and was a pretty active volunteer throughout high school and during my time in Seattle. But since moving to Connecticut, I haven’t volunteered any of my time nor have I actively searched for any opportunities to do so. I’ve recently found that donating money instead of my time helps alleviate some of the guilt that I’ve been feeling. So, drop a few dollar bills into the Salvation Army collection buckets. Click yes when the debit/credit card touchpad asks you if you would like to donate $2 to XYZ Foundation. Drop off unwanted clothing and household items at collection sites. Sign up to donate to a charity or cause through your employer if it’s offered. I would like to believe that whatever we can give, regardless of how little, can still make a difference to someone else.

Sleep an Extra Hour

Turn off the TV at night, skip washing the dishes, or do whatever else you have to do to make sure you go to bed earlier. Set your alarm clock for 7 a.m. instead of 6 a.m. when you know that you’re just going to hit the snooze button for an hour anyway. An extra hour of sleep can make a huge difference in your mood the next day, so you owe it to yourself (and others around you that have to put up with your mood) to get proper rest.

Love an Animal

There is nothing quite like the love of an animal. Take a few extra minutes to give your dog/cat/hamster/iguana some loving back. Don’t have a pet? Take a few minutes to pet your neighbor’s dog next time you see them out walking (always ask a pet owner first if it’s ok to approach an animal). Take the time to visit an animal shelter on the weekend and ask to see different animals. The animals will appreciate the opportunity to spend sometime outside their kennel and get some attention even if you aren’t serious about adopting.

Declutter

Pick an area in your life that could use a little cleaning up. Throw out all the food in your pantry that expired back in 2005. Buy a file folder and organize that pile of paperwork. Go through your friends list on Facebook and get rid of any people that you 1) don’t know 3) only met once at a party three years ago 2) post pictures or statuses that you find to be highly irritating or offensive 3) will never speak to again. Whatever decluttering you can accomplish in an hour that is going to make you breath a little easier, do it.

Do you know what time it is? Panic time because you can’t figure out what dish you should bring to your next event on your social calendar.

Along with the bustling holiday activities between Thanksgiving and Christmas comes the very busy season of holiday parties, potluck lunches, family dinners, and household guests. I think that the holiday season would be better off being renamed the entertaining season. As you face the prospect of what to make for your coworkers, friends, visiting in-laws, or just for yourself as a midnight snack, let me suggest this sun-dried tomato tapenade. It only requires a few ingredients and comes together in a flash. So much flavor is packed into each bite though that you’re sure to fool your guests into thinking that you hours into making it, not minutes.

Few ingredients = Cheap

Sun-Dried Tomatoes = Flavorful

Prepared in less than 5 minutes = Easy

No Cream = A healthy alternative to the rich, calorie-laden, creamy dips

Pretty much everything you want for a holiday dish!

While shopping for ingredients, I had some difficulty in finding sun-dried tomatoes. It took quite a bit of searching, but I finally found them in a small section of premium sauces hidden off to the side of the tomato sauce jars. Your local grocer most likely carries them, but just don’t be afraid to ask for help if you don’t find them right away. Also, note that mine came seasoned in Italian herbs (which was basically garlic and parsley). For that reason, I choose not to add any additional seasoning to my tapenade as noted below.

Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade

• 1 6-oz can of pitted, black olives (any size), drained
• approximately 1 cup of sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 Tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons of capers
• 1 clove of garlic, minced*
• 1 teaspoon of dried parsley*

Directions:  In a food processor, add drained olives, sun-dried tomatoes, capers, garlic, and parsley (note: you can omit the garlic and parsley if your tomatoes came pre-seasoned). Pulse on low while drizzling in olive oil (note: you can use the remaining olive oil that your tomatoes were packed in). Continue to pulse for three minutes, occasionally stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl and push the mixture towards the blades. Transfer mixture to a bowl and serve at room temperature or chilled.

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I would suggest serving your tapenade with pita chips, but you could also serve it with lightly toasted baguette slices or veggies. For mine, I used the following two variety of pita chips and would have to say that they were equally delicious.

Have leftovers?

If you somehow manage not finish everything to the point that your licking the bowl clean, there are lots of things to do with your leftovers! Top grilled chicken breasts with the tapenade and feta or goat cheese and place under the broiler for a few minutes for an easy, exotic tasting dinner. Or slather some tapenade onto a slice of bread and top with your favorite veggies and hummus for a flavor-exploding sandwich. Get creative!

Just a few days before Thanksgiving, it dawned on me that this was going to be my first Turkey Day with family for the first time in FOUR years! It made me a little giddy just to think about it. For Thanksgiving, the plan was to go over to my uncle’s house for dinner with Mister E where my two cousins, my two cousin’s daughters, and another uncle would be. Later in the evening I would transition over to my mom’s cousin’s house where several other cousins (second cousins? cousins once removed?) would be.

The morning started off hectic at 6 a.m. as I frantically got myself ready and prepared my butternut squash and acorn squash (the two side dishes my uncle put me in charge of). My original plan was to leave my house at 11 a.m. to start driving to my uncle’s house in the New Haven area, but thanks to a head’s up from Caitlin, I realized my street was going to be shut down early in the morning for a Turkey Trot race. This necessitated the madness to get everything ready early so I could leave my house by 8:30 a.m.

It might be a little horrendous that someone who categorizes herself as somewhat of a food blogger didn’t take any food pictures at all on the biggest food holiday of the year! I was so caught up in the moment of being with family that I didn’t want to disrupt anything by having to awkwardly take pictures of my dinner plate. Suffice it to say, the food was delicious.

Of course the real highlight of the day was getting to play with these two munchkins:

My cousin’s eldest daughter had just turned eight years old a few days prior to Thanksgiving, so instead of doing a traditional dessert of apple or pumpkin pie, we capped dinner off with birthday cake! (Some of us where a little neater than others while eating.)

After the birthday cake, I made my way over to my mom’s cousin’s house and was greeted with lots of family members to hug. Thankfully, I arrived just in time for their dessert course and happily accepted a piece of pumpkin pie to work my way through.

(photo courtesy of Crystal, my mom’s cousin’s wife – second cousin-in-law?)

I wasn’t planning on staying for too long, but of course, plans don’t mean much during the holidays. It was so easy getting caught up in the conversation and I stayed out much later than I anticipated. It was so worth it though!

Unlike last year, I didn’t have any Black Friday shopping plans, so I relished the opportunity to sleep in on Friday morning. Still feeling a little “stuffed” from all the food the day before, I kept breakfast on the lighter side, but still decadent, with a pumpkin pie smoothie.

Pumpkin Pie Smoothie

• 1/2 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup milk (regular, almond, soy, etc.)
• 2 teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice (could use cinnamon as an alternative)
• 6 ice cubes
• pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon sticks for garnish

Directions:  In a blender, combine together yogurt, pumpkin, milk, pumpkin pie spice, and ice cubes. Pour into glasses and garnish with additional pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon sticks. Makes two small servings (snack size) or one large serving (meal size).

By the late morning, the allure of a good bargain got the best of me and I ventured out to the mall to check out the Black Friday sales. It was a relief to see that the mall wasn’t too chaotic and I found that I could easily navigate my way through quite a few stores with little stress. I’m also happy to report that I managed to not buy anything for myself and only bought items that will be Christmas gifts for others.

Well, I guess there is one exception. I did buy an artificial Christmas tree for my apartment that was on sale at Target (but home decor doesn’t really count as buying something for myself, right?). This is my very first year putting up my own tree and it makes such a difference with putting me in the holiday spirit!

The tree came pre-light, so the most difficult part of setting up the tree was arranging the branches to try and make it look as full as possible. I would have loved to have put up a real tree, however, since I’ll be travelling over the holidays, it didn’t make much sense to get a tree that I wouldn’t be able to care for while I was gone.

After getting the tree fully decorated, I got to work on putting out some other decorations that I had been working on earlier in the week (I was so sad to have to pack my beautiful pumpkins away!).

I’ll probably do a short recap later on in the week about how I made my winter decorations even though they’re mostly very straightforward.

My other large accomplishment for the weekend was to finally put some finishing touches on my living room by hanging up some pictures and putting up curtains! These two tasks have been on my to-do list for FOREVER so it felt great to finally complete them. Young House Love says that installing curtains is the easiest thing you can do to revamp a room and they are so right! My apartment is finally starting to feel more like a home rather than just a space that I rent out.

Of course no Thanksgiving weekend would be complete without the famed leftovers! My uncle had sent me home with plenty of leftovers from our dinner and I was more than ready to put them in a sandwich form just like last year.

For those that are too lazy to click over to last year’s sandwich, the basic concept is to create a turkey melt using up several leftovers. The secret ingredient is a spinach pesto sauce (this year, I made my pesto using walnuts instead of pecans since that’s what I had on hand).

Also in the sandwich was a hefty slice of turkey breast, cranberry sauce, butternut squash, baby spinach, and sharp cheddar cheese. I used my favorite yoga bread which is filled with cranberries and pumpkin seeds so it complimented all the other flavors very nicely.

And because I can’t resist, here’s a link to the video of the infamous Thanksgiving Leftover Sandwich from Friends!

The rest of my weekend was spent relaxing and also hanging out with one of Mister E’s close friends from college. Even though I’m usually restless by the Sunday evening on a long weekend, going back to work on Monday is always such a challenge! I have to keep reminding myself that there are only a few short weeks left before my vacation for Christmas and New Years.

The countdown is ON!

Again, I know that I’m late to the game, but does anyone have any good Black Friday deals that they want to share?

Even though most retail stores were offering 40-50% off on most items, I found that things were still quite expensive (i.e. a sweater was still $40 after the applied discount – I don’t like paying more than $40 for a sweater at full price!)