Goat Cheese Guacamole

Remember when I disappeared for a couple months.  Well, I kept cooking but stopped taking pictures.  In case it isn’t obvious, I’m not big on the staging portion of the photography part of this whole blogging thing.  Eh. Instragram is about as good as it gets for me.

Instead of learning how to take killer photographs, I’ve been getting the most out of summer now that Minnesota weather is finally cooperative.  Exhibit A: dancing on the boat on the way from dinner.

dancing on the boat on our way home from dinner

And I’ve had my fair share of meals made for me.

brunch

It’s been great.  How can you not love Minnesota summers! With the fresh herbs growing in our garden, guacamole has been my go-to side dish.  While I LOVE guac, I wanted to mix it up.  After seeing a guacamole with goat cheese on a menu at a local restaurant, I had to try to recreate it.

goat cheese guacamole

This guacamole is far richer than traditional guacamole.  The kind of guacamole you’d have at a fancy restaurant.  A fun twist.  The goat cheese makes it much thicker and not really cheesy.  I really loved it, but I personally prefer traditional guac.  Matt likes them both the same.  Try it for yourself and let me know which you prefer!

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Olive Pesto

Matt is a big snacker.  This snacking habit has only been encouraged by my particular “house rules” when it comes to dishes in the wood shop.  No glass, no fiestaware, and no silverware near the power tools.  So Matt made his own wood bowls that he fills with chips (that later become full of wood chips. somehow that doesn’t deter him from eating his potato chips).

Periodically, I like to surprise Matt with new dips for his chip addiction.  Last week was Matt’s half-birthday so I decided to try this olive pesto.  I know, I know.  Who celebrates half-birthdays?  But it all started several years ago when Matt went out to his friends for a couple beers.  It just so happened to be his actual half-birthday.  Somehow, the guys started saying it was Matt’s actual birthday and despite the reality that bartenders look at your ID–the bartenders bought it.  He had a night of free drinks, dancing on the bar, and running around ringing the birthday bell.  Ever since, we celebrate Matt’s half-birthday.  Complete with a half-cake and special dips.

Olive Pesto

This olive pesto was a fun twist on the traditional pesto that I love so much.  It was quick and easy to make, and it would probably taste delicious mixed with pasta.

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Buffalo Meatballs

Wow. Has it really been that long? Since my last post, we celebrated a new years, a birthday, and a month of working far over 200 hours.  To say the least, it’s been busy.  And yet, despite early mornings, late nights, and not enough sleep, I have no complaints.  January kicked ass.

starting out 2013 on the right foot.

First, January is my birthday month.  I never say no to a reason for a themed-party so this year my birthday party was Prom.  Complete with a cheesy background and spiked punch, we slow danced, played beer pong, and slammed shots. One of the greatest parts was my actual prom date from my junior prom came–so I was wearing the same dress, the same jewelry, same shoes, same tiara, and the same date. We had to reenactment our prom photo.  That and a bunch of friends that were willing to dress up with me in prom dresses, suits, and tuxes and just let loose, get drunk, and play some beer pong until 4 in the morning.  It was the perfect birthday celebration.

prom
the husband and my prom photo.

And well, with working and planning a prom, not much time was left for cooking.  So we survived on salads, pasta, and cereal.  No new recipes.  No grocery shopping–seriously–we didn’t go grocery shopping for a month!  But now it’s February.  And while work hasn’t slowed down, my party planning has so I finally have some time to try out some new recipes.  And I have missed it!

Since this weekend was the Superbowl, I decided to make a healthier version of buffalo wings–buffalo meatballs made with ground turkey.  It was delicious, easy to make, and no where near as messy as wings.  Hopefully you all will enjoy it as much as we did!

 Buffalo Meatballs

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Skinny Taco Dip

Ok. Truth time.  I do not like the movie Elf.  I find no redeeming qualities in the movie, irrespective of the reality that I love Zooey Dechanell.  The movie is just not funny.  There. It’s out there.  Just had to get that off my chest.  BUT even though I will not spend my Christmas season watching Elf doesn’t mean I’m not excited for winter because…

It’s party season!! And this girl LOVES parties.  Eggnog. Christmas cookies. Ugly Sweaters. Love Actually (now that’s a movie!).  Wow, my heart is fluttering as I type this.

With all these parties, it’s likely that you’ll get an invite to a party where you need to bring something.  Here is a great taco dip recipe that is SUPER easy and CRAZY delicious.  Million gustas.

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Kopanisti (Whipped Feta and Roasted Red Pepper Dip)

It’s been a while! I have so many new recipes to share and so many pictures to edit.  Hence the lack of new recipes.

I don’t think I’ve ever been more excited for Thanksgiving.  Now that I have a full-time job, long vacations are far and few between.  No more month winter vacation or no class Fridays.  Eh.  The growing pains of becoming an adult.  So a 5-day weekend–it felt like winning the lottery!

This long weekend has been a great opportunity to make new, fun side dishes.  Honestly, with working every day, making multiple dishes each night is a bit of a handful.  So in my effort to learn to cook, my focus has been on main dishes.  Thanksgiving was a great chance to master some appetizers.

IMG_0365

Matt has always been a dip-guy.  He loves chips.  So when I found this kopanisti recipe, I had to try it.  This dip is great for pita chips, carrots, celery, and other finger veggies.  A great change from the usual french onion dip Matt has been devouring.

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