New Beginnings

So I’ve pretty much been the worst at blogging. My bad. For the last week I was home, I really just focused on spending time with family and friends, packing, and just having fun. Not too many pictures of food were taken, but I’ve been having fun photographing everything else. It’s too bad, we had a big Peruvian party the night before I left…but I didn’t take a single shot. Ah! There will be another one in the future I’m sure. Here are some pictures I took before I left.

Seattle sunset.

I think this was the first time I walked around Pike Place at night. Way different than going during the day.

My friends have cool shoes.

Campus.

Okay, in regards to my title I have made some major life changes in the past few days. After arriving to campus on Saturday, and spending all day Sunday preparing for classes, something big happened. Through long conversations and much thought with my parents, I’ve decided to go back home. Journalism is no longer my passion, and I don’t feel the need to stay at this university. I’ll be going home on Sunday, getting a job, and starting school in the spring. I was planning on going home at the end of this year anyway, and we just felt that now was the right time. A lot has been on my mind this week, and I’ve definitely felt overwhelmed at times! But I feel like I’ve made the best decision, and I’m excited for my new educational plans. Seattle is truly my home, and I can’t wait to get back there.

It’s been hard to be a consistent blogger lately, but I’ll try to get back to doing it. I don’t want this blog to be all about food, but more about my life and hobbies. We will see where it goes!

Lo Siento!

Wow, I thought when I came home I’d be even better and more consistent at blogging, but turns out the opposite is true! I’ve just been having lots of fun seeing people, going places, and of course, eating great foods. I’ve been cooking a lot and I actually do have some pictures. Luckily!

Okay…looking back on my pictures it looks like I haven’t captured many meals.

Many bowls of pumpkin oats have been consumed. Sorry about this weirdly focused picture. It’s just the usual mix of oats, soy milk, water, 1/2 banana, and pumpkin. This one was topped with a little cottage cheese, cereal, and nuts. And peanut butter of course!

This was my lunch yesterday. So good! The bread was actually the quinoa bread I made last week. Instead of putting everything into the loaf pans, I made a few buns. I think I liked those more than the others! They’re so hearty and chewy, and the quinoa gives it a great crunch. Inside the sandwich I put Dijon, hummus, smoked turkey breast, and a little goat cheese. After a while in the panini maker, it was hot and ready! On the side, I had some broccoli, onions, and a little acorn squash. Mmmm…

The other night, my brother and I made some homemade pizzas. My sister had made the dough, and we each made our own. Here’s mine before the oven:

Mine was topped with hummus (my favorite pizza ingredient), tons of caramelized onions, garbanzos, tomato slices, broccoli, a little spinach, squash, and goat cheese. A part of the pizza also had my sister’s homemade tomato sauce. Oh boy.

And my brother’s pizza…

Not too shabby.

My sister also made an amazing pizza on Saturday night. I believe the recipe came from the Pioneer Woman’s cookbook. It was a potato-leek pizza, and it was GOOD!

I hope she doesn’t get mad at me for putting this picture in. I think it’s so funny! The first layer of the pizza is thinly sliced potatoes. I think she’s sprinkling salt on them in this picture.

Next, a layer of shredded mozarella and then some sauteed leeks.

And finally, bacon, goat cheese, and a touch of Parmesan.

Voila! This was really good, and also VERY rich as you can probably imagine.

Let’s see…I’ve been up to some baking in the kitchen as well.

Pumpkin bread. Amazing on top of pumpkin oats. Just saying.

I got the urge to bake cookies yesterday, so I went with it.

These cookies are SO good. I can post the recipe if anyone wants it. They contained peanut butter, oatmeal, whole wheat flour, flax, chocolate chips, chopped peanuts…need I say more?!

I sprinkled these with a little sea salt before they went in the oven. Perfect. I tell ya, that’s the key to a good cookie.

Okay, I’m off! Time to get ready for a doctor’s appointment…woo. Gotta fit them all in before I go back to school.

Catch Up Time

Wow, so many pictures I need to share! I don’t know how some people can blog three time a day. Props to all of you. Seriously, I have trouble doing it every two days or so. But I’ve been having tons of fun at home, so it’s all worth it. Let’s see what I have!

Big bowls of yogurt are still my favorite way to start the day. Or oats, of course. But this is just the same mix I always have. Fage, Kashi GL Crunch, cinnamon, cashews, strawberry jam, and peanut butter. Isn’t that bowl so cute?? My mom got a whole set of them in China I believe. Or it might’ve been Japan…

This was SUCH a great dinner I made the other night. I sauteed some broccoli, brussel sprouts, greens, and delicata squash for my dosage of greens. In the Ezekiel wrap, I layered avocado (sprinkled with s & p, and dressed with a little lemon juice), a few pieces of squash, hummus, peppered turkey breast, and hot sauce. I believe that’s it. It was SO good.

Mmm. Avocado, hummus, and hot sauce is a match made in heaven.

Another lunch. Big stir-fry of broccoli, squash, greens, Asian mix vegetables from Whole Foods, caramelized onions, and avocado. On the side, some hummus. Tons of Frank’s was also included in this meal. I absolutely love eating with chopsticks. Either that, or my hands. Honestly, every time you see me eat a big serving of vegetables, just assume it was eaten by hand. I don’t know why I dislike forks!

My brother and I went with some of our friends to the Bellevue Botanical Garden the other night. It was actually pretty sweet! I guess it’s a normal garden all year, but during the holidays, they replace everything with “plants” made of lights. Here are a few of my favorites.

I loved these grapes spilling out of the basket, and the rows of grapes hanging above. So cute!

On Sunday, we had some friends over for dinner. I swear, my family has 3 or 4 people/families over for dinner or dessert every week. Probably just because it’s the holiday season, but we do enjoy cooking for other people and having fun in our home. I volunteered to make dinner. On the menu: Chicken Bouillabaisse, salad, roasted potatoes and brussel sprouts, and homemade bread.

My sister Grace is really good at setting the table. And she actually enjoys it. I really think she’s going to be into interior design when she’s older.

The roasted vegetables. I accidentally chopped up a few too many potatoes for the bouillabaisse so I just decided to roast them!

The couple that came over made the sourdough bread that’s in front. I made this whole wheat quinoa bread, in the back. We grilled it on the stove, and it was really tasty. For some reason, this recipe isn’t working out for me. The taste is delicious, and I love it but after the bread has risen, it sinks! I can’t figure it out. I’m going to keep playing with it.

I used Ina Garten’s recipe for the chicken. It turned out really delicious. The sauce consists of tomatoes, garlic (tons of it), fennel seeds, white wine, and chicken stock. It was awesome with the grilled bread.

Bianca made this salad of spring greens, chopped apple, caramelized pecans and pumpkin seeds, and a homemade vinaigrette. Delicious, as always.

Note the messy bowl. On top of the chicken is a garlic mayonnaise. Totally made the dish! If Ina recommends it, I’m gonna do it. Bianca and I tried to make our own…it failed. The mayonnaise totally broke and was beyond repair. I’m going to conquer it someday though!

Well, I think that’s about all I have. There are more dinner parties on the plan for this week, with one MAJOR one on Saturday. So excited!!

So this is the New Year

I really can’t believe it’s 2010 already. I have vivid memories of celebrating the millenium when I was…8 years old?? That’s so crazy to me. I just remember feeling so young then, and seeing my brother and his high school friends and feeling like they were old. And now I’m 18 and still feel young. But I’d rather feel young than old.

I have thought of a few of my New Years goals for 2010, but I need to think about them more. I don’t want to say “resolutions” because there aren’t many things I want to change necessarily, more that there are things I want to accomplish.

For New Years Eve, my parents, sister and some friends of ours headed to the Space Needle to watch the fireworks. I’ve done this a few times. It’s always fun to people watch and just enjoy the celebrations. I took tons of pictures last night, so here are some of my favorites.

This is inside the Seattle Center, which is just a big building full of restaurants right by the Space Needle. There was a band playing and just a lot of people walking around.

Bianca got some pretty awesome face paint.

There was this cute mini town set up inside the center.

I love carousel pictures.

And then the fireworks began!

And my favorite of the night…

The finale is always the best part of the show.

This morning, my family headed to a friend’s house for a great big breakfast. My sister made some amazing French toast that I snapped a picture of before we left.

The outside is covered in Cornflakes and almonds, so it gets super crunchy. Delicious!

I’m planning on just chilling for the rest of the day I believe. Maybe I’ll see some friends tonight. For now, I’m just going to curl up in a blanket and watch Harry Potter

Family Pictures

As promised, I have the pictures of the tamales that my family made the other night.

In case anyone missed it, these tamales had a filling of chicken and caramelized red onion. I covered them in salsa verde (one of my favorites!), and some Frank’s. Seriously, Frank’s makes everything better.

And on the side I had some random vegetables. Broccoli, green beans, asparagus, mushrooms, and probably some more. And a little bowl full of salsa verde for more dipping. It was an excellent lunch! One that I’ll probably be repeating this afternoon…and again until the tamales are gone

Today, my family is getting our annual family picture taken. Of course, most people do this for Christmas but we weren’t all together in time. We were supposed to do it last Sunday but since my flight got canceled I wasn’t here until Monday. We are going to a cupcake shop in Seattle to take the picture. My mom has an idea in mind, and I really have no idea what it is. We shall see! In the past, our pictures have mostly been outside–in front of the Space Needle, at a park, in the neighborhood, by the lake, etc. Last year, it totally rained the entire time we were taking pictures. It made for some forced smiles, that’s for sure I’m excited to see how this year’s turns out!

For now, I’m just enjoying this quiet morning as all my siblings are still asleep.

Yogurt with Kashi GoLean Crunch, some homemade strawberry jam, peanut butter, sunflower seed butter, cashews, a bit of coconut. And many, many shakes of cinnamon. This mix never gets old.

The sun is coming out, and I couldn’t be happier. Have a great day everybody

International Night

For some reason, my house always seems to be filled with people from all parts of the world. Don’t get me wrong though, I love it! Having such a diverse group of friends and neighbors has definitely taught my family so much about culture, travel, and of course, food. Last night, my brother Andy invited two of his Brazilian friends over, and a Mexican friend as well. We also had a few girls over from Peru! It was funny to listen to all of the different languages and learn that everyone had their own version of the food we were making in their country.

Before I begin, I just have to share this picture of my me and my sisters. This is right after church, so we are kind of dressed up.

Had to show off my new shoes Too bad they were “3 hour shoes” as my mom likes to say. My feet were killing by the end of church!We came home to my brothers and their friends eating fresh ceviche, tostadas, and some interesting desserts. After we all got changed, we got started on dinner–arroz con pollo and homemade tamales. I have been DREAMING of my mom’s tamales since I’ve been at school, and it was on my list of foods I had to have when I was home.

First, the chicken has to be browned. There are a ton of onions and garlic in there, along with many herbs and spices.

Some mixture of blended cilantro in also added and simmered down. While that was working away, we got to work on the tamales.

This is the corn masa made with homemade chicken stock. It can also be made with hot water, but the flavor is not nearly as good as the chicken stock. I swear I could eat this whole thing just as it is.

We made an awesome filling of shredded chicken and caramelized red onion.

Inside of a corn husk, you lay a little masa and a bit of the chicken. You top it off with more masa, fold it up, and tie is it together.

The tamales are in the green pot and they have to steam for one hour. The arroz con pollo is in the other huge pot.

We started with a round of arroz while the tamales were steaming. Somehow, when the tamales were finally done I didn’t take a picture of the two I ate. But they were incredible! Just as good as I remembered. Probably even better, especially when doused in hot sauce. I’ll definitely take pictures of them today when I have some leftovers for lunch

Breakfast today was a lovely bowl of pumpkin oats.

For some reason, since school I’ve liked microwave oats more than stove oats. So weird because I was obsessed with stove-top oats last year! The only downfall is the dirty rims on the sides of the bowl. I topped my oats with some pumpkin bread, raisins, and peanut butter. So good.

I’m off to clean my room (my suitcase basically threw up everywhere…), work out (gym or run in the neighborhood then yoga?), and see what’s up for the day. I predict many fights about which sibling gets to use the car today…it’s already started.

Christmas Eve & Day

After a sad morning on Christmas Eve, my family headed over to our friend’s house for our annual Christmas brunch. Well, sometimes we have a Thanksgiving brunch, but we weren’t all together this year. The spread is always the same, and it is always so delicious.

Fresh fruit with a yogurt-sour cream sauce.

Homemade quiches and the BEST creme brulee French toast. Oh man, I look forward to this every year!

Blinis with cottage cheese and strawberry sauce.

I think my family just kind of lounged around for the rest of the day, and prepared ourselves for Christmas day. But of course, we had a delicious Christmas Eve dinner planned. Somehow, I didn’t take pictures of most of the end products–oops! I think my camera had died or something. Or maybe I just got a little lazy But on the menu–mustard-dill salmon, lemon risotto, green salad, and roasted broccoli and cauliflower.

Salmon, my true love! I missed my Seattle salmon while I was away.

The mustard-dill sauce. It is so good, I love it.

Stirring that risotto…I swear I almost got a blister from doing this

And sadly, that’s all of the dinner photos I have. Luckily, I took many pictures of dessert. It’s a tradition for us to have Peruvian hot chocolate often throughout the holidays. Peruvian hot chocolate is the best. Straight from Peru, we get these bars of chocolate that are 100% cocoa. They are incredibly bitter if you eat them plain, but when you add milk, sugar, and a touch of cinnamon it becomes a heavenly, thick drink that warms you right through.

Grace distributing the goodness

I love our Peruvian mugs. Years ago, when my family stayed at my Grandpa’s farm in Peru, we often visited a nearby orphanage and played with all of the kids. When we left, they made us these mugs. A few of them are personalized with our names. I just love the drips that go down the side.

After dessert, we had some fun singing songs while my brother played piano.

Yes, my brother’s long hair rivals his sisters hair.

Whew, long post but we still have Christmas day!

We came down the stairs to this lovely view. We told my parents to get creative with present wrapping this year, and boy did they ever! Presents were placed in empty spinach containers, lemon bags, inside plastic cups, you name it. It was so much fun to see what my kooky parents came up with.

But breakfast came before presents this year, and it was quite the delicious feast.

Smoked Salmon.

After breakfast was the opening of presents. I got some nice gifts including new bowls, clothes, beauutiful Steve Madden pumps, food, and others. ‘Twas a great morning! I wish my internet and WordPress weren’t being so slow, because I’d upload so many more pictures!

We had to get ready for dinner because we had lots to make and people to get ready for. Here’s our gorgeous table–

I love these little marshmallow men my mom and sister made. They’re covered in white chocolate and just so adorable!

On the menu for dinner: a huge prime rib roast, apple cider roasted sweet potatoes, garlic rice, green salad with pears and candied pecans, asparagus in a white wine sauce, and homemade bread.

And my plate. I had tons of sweet potatoes and salad. Also, the little roll on the side is a spanakopita kind of thing. Our friend brought it. It’s phyllo dough filled with spinach and feta. Really good!

Okay, this post has officially taken like two hours to write and load. Time to get ready for church

Maggie

I wanted a dog for years. We searched for the perfect one at dog kennels, breeders, and more. When one of our friends said she had to give up her 1 year old golden retriever, we found it was the best opportunity to welcome a new member to our family.

She had the most gorgeous brown, almost red, coat. Maggie loved everyone she met. We always joked that if someone broke into our house, she’d probably greet them with a wagging tail and smile.

She absolutely loved the outdoors, and when it snowed she went crazy.

She was the perfect mix of an energetic, and playful dog–

but she was also so calm, sweet, and the perfect pillow.

Maggie never minded when we played games with her, and made her sit still for countless pictures. Her patience was impressive.

Maggie brought us so much joy over the past 8 years. She watched over us,

gave us love,

and never failed to make us laugh.

Thank you Maggie, for the best eight years and for all the love you gave to us. You always made guests feel welcome, and we felt safe knowing you were here. You are going to be missed so incredibly much, but we are happy to know you are in a better place and not in pain. You left us suddenly, but we knew it was the right time. We all love you so much and will see you again someday.

So good to be home.

After a crazy week of finals, having my flight get canceled on Saturday because of a record-breaking snow storm, and eventually getting a flight on Monday evening, I must say…it is good to be home.

Wow, I just uploaded about 1,500 pictures off my Rebel. I’ve been a picture-taking MACHINE since I’ve been home.

I was so excited to come home and see my puppy, but was sad to find out she’d been sick all day. She ate absolutely nothing yesterday and today, and we had to take her to the hospital where she’s staying overnight I’m worried about her and miss her a lot.

Grace and I went to downtown Seattle yesterday. We had a ton of fun taking pictures and shopping for our family.

Pike Place Market

Oh boy. I just love Seattle SO much. Anyone that thinks that all it does is rain here, or the only thing we have to offer is Twilight (you have no idea how many people ask me about that at school), or that there is nothing to do here is sorely mistaken!

My mom kind of has a thing for Nutcrackers. This is only a fraction of the ones we have around the house. I could definitely do a whole post just about them.

I prepped all of these bowls of oatmeal for me, my mom, and my sisters. One of them ended up going to one of my brothers though.

My sister Bianca made these Dutch baby pancakes for herself and her friend. My family is always like “Take a picture of my food!” now. It’s actually pretty funny.

My brother Andy thought his breakfast was blog-worthy. Not bad!

Well, I have a ton more pictures I want to share but it’s time for breakfast. I’m thinking a yogurt mess perhaps?

A Free Moment

It’s currently 9:42 am and I’m finding myself with some time to write a post! I don’t like not posting often, so I wanted to share some things because this will definitely be my last post until I am HOME!!

This past weekend I went home (well home is my aunt’s house but you know what I’m saying!) for the last time. Saturday was spent studying mostly, and then Sunday was the tradition of brunch. So, so good as usual. I didn’t bring my Rebel just because I wasn’t planning on taking many pictures and spending most of my time studying. I can’t wait to play with it when I get home though

Yummy melon. So fresh and great. I’ve realized that I don’t really eat much fruit while I’m at school. I eat bananas, but the only other choices are red apples (I have never liked red apples–too mushy!) and oranges. Not my favorites. I can’t wait for the abundance of delicious Washington apples when I’m home.

The usual bagels from Einstein Bros.I love these because they aren’t like a lot of bagels–way too huge. They are perfectly sized and always freshly baked.

These are my aunt’s beloved Spinach and cheese bagels.

Bacon.

My very favorite part of every brunch. My aunt’s salmon is soooo delicious.

I can’t wait for more brunches when I get back

In terms of other meals, they have been quite random to say the least. I’m just working on eating what I have and getting rid of diner points. Not to mention, I’m just studying like crazy for finals. Ugh. Breakfasts have mostly been big bowls of cereal which oddly I love now. For the past year or so I’ve totally stopped having cold cereal for breakfast because I didn’t think it would keep me as satisfied as yogurt or oatmeal. But I’m in looove with it now. Especially with some sunflower seed butter. Mmm.

Let’s see some things I’ve been eating, shall we?

Stir fries have become one of my new best friends here. Just a lot of vegetables from the dining hall like red onion, broccoli, spinach, carrots, etc. mixed with some frozen shrimp I had. Also, I made some peanut sauce. Delicious and nutritious I swear, ever since school started I have forgotten how to spell. Just spelling nutritious took me a tad longer than it should have. And the other day I was typing up some notes and totally wrote ove and not of. Tell me that’s not a problem.

I’ve also gotten one of my friends into stir fries which is awesome! He’ll go to the dining hall and get a big container of veggies and whip it all up. So awesome!

Breakfast one morning–a bran muffin and banana.

Leftover salmon, broccoli, and half an Ezekiel.

I FINALLY roasted up my kabocha squash! It’s really good, but I have to say I prefer butternut any day! And more frozen shrimp and broccoli. I told you my meals are random and fast!

Well, more studying must get done. Hopefully I’ll be able to make it to the gym sometime today. Sitting down for hours upon hours does not make me a happy girl. My roommates have already both gone home so I have the room to myself which is nice. There are only two finals standing between me and my flight home. Sociology tomorrow and history on Saturday. I feel pretty prepared, but definitely have a lot more to do.

Lalalala, talk to you next time when I’m back where I belong!!