Celebration: Coconut...

Morning, everyone!  How was your weekend??  Mine feels like a bit of a blur at the moment, since it went by so fast (cause, ya know, I'm sure I'm the ONLY ones who feels that way on Monday morningsJ)  It was a pretty gloomy and overcast one around these parts, but thankfully all of the 'celebrating' we planned on doing was inside. 

First stop Saturday night was a trip to one of my fav restaurants, El Tule, in Lambertville, NJ...

Now just pretend the above picture was taken at night after a drenching rain storm that left the area in a bit of a gloomy fog and that would be more accurate photo of our eveningJ

Thankfully it was nice & cozy inside.  And to start the night, the one thing I KNEW I needed in my life at the moment, and the reason I finally narrowed down my birthday dinner to El Tule, were THESE:

Chirizo Nachos, you have my heartJ  The chorizo gives em just a little extra hit of spice that makes these oh-so-happyJ  These could have just been my dinner entree and I would have been happy.

But what made me even HAPPIER was when I realized my favorite 'brunch item' was actually part of their dinner menu, just disguised as 2 entire entrees rather than a little of each.

The Aji de Gallina is tender, shredded chicken in a mild, yellow pepper sauce.  Something about it is just so dreamy when mixed up with the white rice to soak up all the sauce.  So glad to know it's on the dinner menu (and you can also get the 'other half' of the brunch menu in the lomito saltiado aka. meat & onions in a red sauce)

And for dessert, the entire table got a round of tre leche cake (cake soaked in three milks) and let's just say no one went home unhappyJ

And the party continued right on till Sunday morning with some Coconut-crusted french toast with coconust syrup (which was pretty unphotogenic, so it's not pictured hereJ) 

And after a dinner of FAB garlic & honey BBQ boneless wings from Wings on the Go, we finished off the weekend with some COCONUT POKE CAKE... 

Coconut cream & condensed milk soaked vanilla cake topped with coconut-laced whipped cream and MORE coconut....ohhhhhhh, I was one happy girlJ

And thankfully Scott masted making Half-a-cake, so we don't have tooooo much of this little guy laying around since it could EASILY be breakfast, lunch & dinner todayJ  But, as usual on Mondays, it is BACK to the grind today, no coconut involvedJ  Hope your weekend was just as tastyJ

Have a great Monday!J

Jersey gems...

Morning, all!  Sorry I had a couple of days that got away from me, but figured the blog would come roaring back with a vengeance this morning after the day we had yesterday of celebrating my birthday down the Jersey shore.  And considering I feel like I may never eat again, I feel like that's a good indication of how many treats were hadJ  

I feel like we pretty much traversed the entire coast by 3pm yesterday, and we still barely scratched the surface.  Just goes to show ya how much there is to do on Jersey's east most pointsJ

Our first stop was for one of my favorite treats, that I'm blaming on genetics.  My Grandmother & I loveeed to stop for the occasional donut when I would go to church with her, so what better way to start my dayJ  We made our way to OB-CO's Donuts in Tom River...

...and were happily greeted by the lights strung to the front of the building being illuminated, which means they still had donuts available for the day...J  (you can see em on the far right of the pic...)

Besides the cute lights, I LOVEEEDDDD this old-school building.  Scott & I were talking on the drive over about how the more east-ward you drive, the more the buildings take on a VERY distinctive line of VERY vintage/classic or very modern.  You can take a guess at which is my favJ

Even though they were out of a lot of their specialties, like their sugar-raised & crumb cake varieties, we still were able to pick up quite a gaggle of assortments that we sampled our way through... 

My fav part of these 'nuts were the dough, which you could just tell was an original recipe.  It just had that old-fashioned, yeast-y taste (does that make sense???) and the CRISPY EDGES.  I JUST ADORE the CRISP!J

And speakin of crisp, it was highlighted especially in their delectable cinnamon knots... 

....and, um, I'm almost embarrassed to post this, but it was one of their specialty treats that they still had available for the day and how could we NOT give it a sample??  Not to mention it's one of Scott's favs.  It's just the USUAL Apple Fritter is not the size of your head.  I mean, literally... 

Scott said "People are going to think something is wrong with us" for even considering purchasing this guy, but when in Rome...  It had crispy edges, top & BOTTOM and was filled with chewy, yeast-y donut and apple bites.  Oh man...it was good, but a little of this thing goes a LONG wayJ  This could honestly be breakfast for 2 for a week!  Let's just say we came home with A LOT of it, but REALLY enjoyed all the bites we had.  ...but I'll be happy not to see any more of it at the present moment J

We had other plans besides donuts in Toms River, but since they got a little diverted from the snow & ice we had lately, we took a detoured trip to our usal fav: Point Pleasant... 

...where Katie was MORE than happy to greet the beach for the year with a little happy danceJ 

It's CRAZY that a week ago we were waiting for a blizzard, and this week we were prancing on the beach in mid-60 degree weather.  It was certainly not un-welcomeJ

Then after a trip to the "A-core-ium"...J

...and a lesson in Jersey shore arcade game prize-winnings...

We headed to our next stop in near-by Neptune, NJ... 

I have to thank my yogi friend Kaitlyn, for giving me a slew of shore-food recommendations this past weekend!  She totally set-up my whole birthday plan without even knowing itJ  Cause one mention of "the best thin crust pizza" and I'll be THERE to try it out!  

Pete & Elda's totally has the vibe of CLASSIC pizzeria and its claim of being the originators of the thin crust was worth the trip.  We started with the Kaitlyn-recommended chopped antipasto salad... 

Mmmmm....didn't mind paying the extra $1 to have it chopped, since each bite gave you got a taste of the cheese, salami, roasted red peppers, cucumbers & chickpeas.  Total party salad.

And then it was time for the main event... 

On first bite, the one thing I definitely noticed was missing was a charred-crust, which is a central Jersey staple & pretty much a religious experience in the pizza realmsJ

...butttttt the more you ate (and trust, we ate A-PLENTY!), the more you could just devour the taste of the sauce & smattering of cheese.  It was so flavorful, that it totally pulled it all together, despite the missing flavor the char usual adds.  Not to mention, I think this was THE most GARLIC-laced pizza I ever tried (we asked for garlic, fyi!) and I was A-OK with this!  Make sure you're a fan before you place that order...and if you are, you will NOT be disappointed!  The whole experience was certainly swoon-worthyJ

Pete & Elda's was definitely worth the trip.  While we are SURROUNDED by incredible places (Delorenzo's & Federici's being our two house favorites), Scott said it's SOO hard to compare and say who is the best, since they are just ALL so damn good!  There's room for everyone, I say!  I'm gonna make the very bold statement and say Jersey has some of THE best pizza in the country and Pete & Elda's is definitely one of the best.  ....and now that I said how you can't compare, I'll be anxious to try Kaitlyn's also recommended rival: Vic'sJ  Soon enough, I'm sureJ  

And even though I was STUFFED TO THE GILLS after the pizza, Katie's chant of "ice cream, ice cream" proved to be too great.  Again, we were going to make a stop at another Kaitlyn-recommended place, but found them not to be open for the season yet.  Sooooo we headed to our all-year favorite:  Hoffman's... 

...aka-BACK to Point PleasantJ  I had to go with a one-scoop of my now-favorite:  Jersey Monkey (banana ice cream, laced with peanut butter swirls & chocolate chunks....topped with toasted coconut for good measureJ)

...and, um, I'd say Katie was VERY happy with her choice of strawberry topped with rainbow jimmies & Swedish fishJ

Definitely a day for the books....even though, like I said, I may never eat againJ  I was sooooooo BEYOND stuffed from this day, but one where I would say I def had all my favsJ  Most importantly, a fun time with Scott & KatieJ

BACK TO GREEN TODAY!  I kinda think Scott & I already committed to two-days of smoothies for dinner since we both felt sooooo BLAH by the end of the day...and still have 2 more 'party' meals in the near futureJ  OY...moderation is SOOOOO tough right now, but I'll pull it together!!J

OK...and after THAT epic post:  ENJOY YOUR THURSDAY!J

A PINK birthday weekend recap...

FAIR WARNING:  There isn't too much food on this particular blog post.  Today's blog may need to be changed to MY PINK DECORATIONS JOURNEY.  Apologies in advance!

So Katie's birthday weekend went off without a hitch...

..OK, make that ONE HITCH:  An ice storm that rolled through our area and came out of near nowhere on Sunday afternoon.  Grrrrrrrrrr...but we couldn't have been more grateful to all our family & friends that trudged right on through to celebrate the day with usJ

My Mom & I had so much fun Sunday morning when we got to see all of the little details we had planned finally come together...

We even were able to get Katie in on the action, helping up decorate the cupcakes on Saturday afternoon...

And who could blame her that, after we tormented her with cupcakes in her face ALL day on Saturday, that she couldn't help sneaking a bite of treats before the party really started on Sunday morning...J

And, of course, our favorite part was seein all of the kids running around having A BLAST!  That was THE ONLY thing we needed to celebrate.  They all had so much fun togetherJ

Definitely a day for the books and one I'll remember foreverJ  Makes all those tough and LONNNGGGGGGG days worth it x's a ZILLIONJ

And of course we had MORE celebrating to do yesterday, on her actual birthday.  Starting with a requested pancake breakfast....

Followed by a trip to our current fav, The Kibitz Room, where Katie CRACKED us up by housing CORNED BEEF...  HUH??

I guess one can only survive on cupcake frosting for so longJ  We couldn't get over how much she enjoyed it.  Whatever her head tells her, I supposeJ  I'll take itJ

And here's my ONE actually food picture of the day, which was my lunch of a Reuben hot dog...mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm....

I had been wishing for a hot dog for about 3 months and this one totally hit the spot, topped with sauerkraut, Russian dressing and my requested swap of American cheese over traditional Swiss.  Scott said he knew I liked it when he still had half a sandwich (same one as last time) left and mine was already G-O-N-E!J

And, of course, after it was time for the BIG GUNS...

The Kibitz Room's EPIC portioned desserts seemed like the PERFECT way to say "Happy Birthday" and Katie was VERY happy to pick out this confetti cookie for her special treat.  (And NO WORRIES, we took about 90% of it homeJ)

And even though Scott & I had been dreaming about sampling their Red Velvet & marble cake since our last visit, we both felt like we hit our SUGAR MAX by Sunday afternoon and just COULDN'T. DO. IT.  I'm sure we'll be back soon enough...especially since I could go for one of those hot dogs again RIGHT now.  (ummmm...at 8:30amJ)

And finally it was time for what Katie had been looking forward to for DAYS:  Digging for dinosaurs bones at the Garden State Discovery Museum in Cherry Hill, NJ!

That and about a zillion different other things since she didn't slow down a BEAT for 2 1/2 hours...

"Let's go somewhere else!" was heard after 5 minutes at each play station, since there is SO much to do...

I may or may not have had just as much fun watching her and she did running aroundJ  Love those types of places where you can just let em ROAM FREE.  BONUS was that we even got FREE admission through our local library.  NJ folks, check your local library's websites to see what local attractions offer free passes.  You can't freakin beat FREE, especially in this day & age where even going to THE MOVIES can break the bank.

OK, OK...sorry this was SUPER kid overload today!  I'll be back to my regularly scheduled program tomorrow.  And by regularly scheduled program, I mean:  AN EXCESSIVE AMOUNT OF GREEEEEEEEEEEEN!  Since this ENTIRE weekend went to pieces after doing pretty darn good lately.  I feel like I haven't had one nutritious thing to eat since Friday.  MORE than ready to get back at it today, with NO SUGAR ADDEDJ

Have a great Tuesday, everyone!

The big 4-0...

Tuesday Recap:

Workout:  30 minutes dance + 2 sets of weights + leg lifts & squats + 1 minute planks

Ohhhhhh...I think I tried everything in the book to talk myself out of this one, especially after feeling a little beaten up from 2 rounds of Power yoga, Body Pump, Cardio Kickboxing & Yin Yoga all within a few days span.  But my biggest selling point to just get it done was that I was already awake and falling back to sleep for those extra few minutes wasn't going to do me any good.  And with nearly all workouts you're not looking forward to:  I was VERY happy I did it once it was overJ  Hahahahhahaha

9:30am:  Perfect fit pancake with sliced strawberries

11:00am:  Snack-  Peach (are you surprised??J)  + 1/2 of a 2% cheese stick (not pictured)

12:30pm:  Smoothie Bowl

And despite that mid-morning snack, I was STARVIINNGGGGG by this point.  Like, 'feeling my energy deplete by the second' kinda hungry!  Thankfully this came together PRONTO.

• 1/4 cup skim milk
• 3/4 cup cold water
• 5-6 strawberries
• Handful frozen blueberries
• 3-4 sliced frozen mango
• 1 scoop protein powder
• Topping:  Coconut butter & granola

3:30pm:  Snack- 5 'hollow pretzels' with a scoop of hummus

And then it was time for the fun to start as we got to celebrating Scott's birthday properlyJ

Starting with his requested meal for the night:  Coffee & garlic roast pork, roasted broccoli & twice baked potatoes!

Those potatoes were the piece de resistance of the meal since they were mixed with ROASTED GARLIC, shredded cheese, Parmesan cheese, butter & milk...AND topped with ROASTED GARLIC SOUR CREAM! (just mixed sour cream with 2 heads of mashed roasted garlic and a little salt & pepper...ACES!)  It was TOUGH not to go back for the other half of the potato...let me tell yaJ  

But I knew there was MORE to be had in the form of CAKE!

Salted caramel Mocha, to be exactJ

Overall, a successful night of celebration with more to come over the weekendJ  VERY EXCITED to keep the party goingJ  

And now back to business today...aka- no cake for meJ  

Hope you guys have a great Wednesday!