Heading South of the Border

We are heading to Rosarito, Mexico this weekend and I can't wait to be doing this:

{last summer's anniversary trip, Ensenada, Mex.}

We'll be celebrating two years of marriage with margaritas, massages, good food and total relaxation. 

Hasta pronto, amigos! xo

Happy Hour at Home

So, I know on Tuesday I said I was having a detox week, but this evening brought a little retox, in a good way. We've started a new mid-week, post-work tradition and we're calling it Happy Hour at Home. On either Wednesday or Thursday of each week, we put on fun music, drag our camping chairs out of the closet (I never said it was classy), mix up some cocktails (this week we made palomas), and relax outside on our porch with appetizers and good conversation. It's our time to reconnect in the middle of our hurried work weeks and I think it's more fun than any of the (mostly overpriced, mostly hipster) happy hours around.

PS: Here's last week's HH@H drink.

My Best Moment

My favorite thing about blogging is that it helps me remember moments. It's my time capsule, and reminds me to appreciate and record the little things, which in reality, are the big things. As Cesare Pavese put it, "We do not remember days, we remember moments" and I only wish I'd started blogging about my moments sooner. Our two-year wedding anniversary is coming up and I've been nostalgic, watching our wedding video and looking through the photos, remembering all the love, laughter, and tear-filled pieces of that amazing day. It was truly the happiest day of my life. But I've been thinking, if I had to pick one single life moment as my all-time favorite, it would be the moment we got engaged.

Flavio's proposal was perfect. On a whim, Flavio declared he wanted to go to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He is not  Mr. Surprises, but I was thrilled by this totally out-of-character move, and a few days later we were off to the white-sand beaches of Vallarta. When we arrived, our taxi pulled up to an incredible private villa overlooking the sparkling blue ocean. I could not believe my eyes - or the fact that my then-boyfriend had organized such a luxe, out-of-the-blue getaway, and without any real reason to celebrate.  {Note: It never occurred to me that he would propose. Flavio and I had been together for over 9 years at that point, and I had given up on any hope of a proposal. I was also so enthralled by the present moment that I really didn't have time to guess about his motives.} After taking a dip in the villa's rooftop pool (!), we decided to walk down to pick up tacos and cold beer. When we got back up to the roof with our dinner, Flavio said he had to go to the bathroom. I was mesmerized by the golden sunset and too busy adding salsas to my tacos to notice that Flavio had returned and had quietly gotten down on one knee. When I looked over, he was holding up a beautiful ring and had tears in his eyes. He said many sweet things, and then asked me to marry him. I was in shock. And beyond thrilled. And shouted, YES!  We cried, laughed and hugged. We were excited to share the news with friends and family, but decided to keep it to ourselves for that magical moment. We emerged into a perfectly warm, star-filled night. Just the two of us, alone in paradise.

What is your best moment? I'd love to hear.

{Photo note: Sadly, we do not have photos of our engagement night. It was just us and no camera around. The photo above is from our honeymoon to Malaysia in 2011.}

Healthy, Homemade Take-Out: Veggies and Tofu

Flavio is a far better cook than I am. He's one of those natural chefs that experimentally throws random things in a pot and (usually) makes a great meal out of them. I am not instinctively a great cook (I'd much rather bake, obviously) and I definitely need the structure of a recipe. But every once in a while, I surprise myself and create something semi-improvised, delicious, and in this case, quick to make.

This is a busy week. I'm trying to wrap up a ton of grading and lesson planning so we can go out of town this weekend without any worries. When I'm stressed, I fall into a gross cycle of frozen pizzas and take-out, so I wanted to challenge myself to create something quick and semi-homemade, a la Sandra Lee -- but without the hideous tablescapes and bad food. Leave it to Trader Joe's to help me make a healthy Chinese take-out meal at home in no time.

Here's how.  I cooked up a bag of Trader Ming's Asian Vegetable Stir-Fry, and added a bag of broccoli and cauliflower to the mix because they give you so much sauce. Meanwhile, I followed this totally delicious and fast recipe for Mongolian Tofu but reduced the sugar. I plated it all up and topped the veggies and tofu with few peanuts for crunch, scallions and a squeeze of lime.

Seriously, it took all of 20 minutes, was healthy, and tasted amazing.

By the way, tofu was a tough sell on Flavio, but he totally loved this dinner and went back for seconds. I'll be adding this to my quick-dinner repertoire. I was a little wary about cooking with tofu, with all the soy GMO controversy and whatnot, but Trader Joe's doesn't carry GMO products and I bought the organic tofu, so I think we're good. Bonus: tofu is crazy cheap.

Can you tell I'm trying to detox after an indulgent weekend?  I've been eating more bacon and ice cream and drinking more sparkling wine than is justified and I need to re-balance the scales this week. CrossFit, infused water and veggie/protein packed meals it is.

Weekending

It was a luxuriously unscheduled weekend. Saturday morning Flavio got up early to play soccer and I made coffee and brownies then hung out with my brother and nephew before taking them to the airport.  I love, love weekend mornings baking alone in our sunny kitchen. Peace. Saturday afternoon we took our lady to the park and then picked up lunch at bfd (ridiculously good sandwiches) then went home to nap. That evening we put on music and set up a picnic on our porch. Cold rose, warm weather and the summer evening light. And an impromptu card game. Basically perfect.

Sunday morning we made breakfast then headed to Coronado to stroll and play. We picked up In-N-Out in the afternoon, read our books outside, and then cruised out to see the gorgeous sunset in Ocean Beach.

Everything about this weekend was relaxed and easy with sunny days and warm breezes. It felt quintessentially Californian.

A few scenes, some of which try to capture the evening light, which I love this time of year...

{enjoying the sunset as we drove away. she cracks me up.}

Brownies for Alaska...& a song!

My brother and nephew breezed through town today. They were here on a pit stop en route to an Alaskan adventure. I am so stoked for them and can't wait to see photos of glaciers and grizzlies galore! In their honor, I made these brownies to-go. I baked and packed them, then delivered the brownies, along with two excited travelers, to the San Diego Airport. Flavio and I kept two squares for ourselves and topped them with ice cream and berries. Thank god the rest of these babies are on their way out of town. Irresistible hunks of chewy, fudgey heaven are not the kind of thing I want to be left alone with.

Alaska or bust.

PS: Totally not related, but my alarm went off to this song this morning, and left me in the best mood. Brownies and Robin Thicke are not a bad way to wake up. Yum to both. ;)

Some notes on brownie-making: Homemade really is better than the box (if you use the right recipe), are just as easy and don't have any of the scary artificial ingredients. I made these and they are the archetypal brownie, decadent and rich with a crackly candylike crust. I sprinkle a little sea salt on top mid-way through baking. It makes all the sweetness sing.

Summer Cold + Hot Pea Soup

I'm feeling a little under the weather today. A tickle in my throat. A run in my nose. An ache in my joints. But, I wanted to come by and say hello. I promise I won't breathe on you.

I blame this wacky San Diego weather (um, it's been raining  today!); and my students and their summer colds; and the fact that I've been operating at 110% capacity for about 80% of the time for the last couple weeks. I just need a quiet evening in...or three. I also need hot liquids poured down my gullet, stat. Normally, I'd ask Flavio to make his famous Magic Hot Toddy, or to pick me up a bowl of #18 pho, but he's working late, which means it's just Guiri and me. Just a couple of bitches and their Le Creuset. :)

The easiest soup recipe I know of (besides Maruchan Ramen Noodles) is this Spanish Pea Soup from my girl, Ina Garten. It is so quick and cozy. I add extra garlic and top it with Ina's no-fail roast bacon. Ah, I feel better already.

Us ladies are off to eat soup and watch Bridget Jones.

Back soon. xo