Five Years

"The best love is the kind that awakens the soul; that makes us reach for more, that plants the fire in our hearts and brings peace to our minds. That’s what I hope to give you forever."

the notebook

Happy anniversary, my love!

Thank you for simply being the best.

Every day I love you more.

xo

Tasty Tuesday: Salmon with Homemade Sriracha + Lime

Last week I picked up Gwyneth Paltrow's new cookbook, It's All Good.

So far it's totally living up to it's name. I highly recommend it!

Today I not only whipped up a batch of her homemade sriracha, I also gave her salmon with sriracha and lime recipe a whirl. Both were excellent!

That's all I really have to say about it. :)

xo

SRIRACHA

::ingredients::

- 1 1/4 cups peeled garlic cloves

- 1 lb red jalapenos (stemmed and sliced into thin rings - for a milder sauce, remove some of the seeds)

- 2 1/4 cups rice wine vinegar

- 1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp brown rice syrup

- 2 tbsp coarse sea salt

- 1 tbsp arrowroot (or cornstarch)

- 2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce (or fish sauce)

::instructions::

- Put the garlic cloves in a small saucepan and add cold water just to cover. Bring to a boil, immediately drain, cool the garlic under running water, and return it to the saucepan. Cover with cold water and repeat the blanching process. Thinly slice the blanched garlic and combine with the jalapenos and vinegar in a larger pot. Bring to a boil, cook for 3 minutes, and remove from heat. Add the brown rice syrup and salt and stir to combine. Let the mixture sit undisturbed for 1 hour to steep and cool.

- Whiz the mixture in a powerful blender until smooth (it's okay if all the seeds don't blend in). Return the pureed sauce to the pot, bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, skimming off any foam, until the sauce is slightly reduced and has some body.

- In a small bowl, dissolve the arrowroot (or cornstarch) with 1 tablespoon of lukewarm/cool water. Whisk into the simmering sauce and cook for 2 minutes more, or until the sauce is nicely thickened (it should be slightly thinner than ketchup). Remove the sauce from the heat, let it cool slightly, and stir in the soy sauce (or fish sauce). Store in a screw-top jar or bottle in the refrigerator for up to 6 months.

SALMON WITH SRIRACHA+LIME

serves 4

::ingredients::

- Zest of 1/2 lime

- 1 1/2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

- 1 1/2 tbsp homemade sriracha

- 1 tbsp good-quality maple syrup

- Coarse sea salt

- 1 1/4 lbs salmon fillet (or just use as many fillets as you need - I used 2 medium fillets)

- 2 tbsp roughly chopped cilantro

::instructions::

- Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

- Whisk together the lime zest, lime juice, sriracha, and maple syrup along with a pinch of sea salt. Line a baking dish with parchment paper, place the salmon on top, and pour the mixture over it. Roast until the salmon is done to your liking - I cooked mine for about 22 minutes and it was perfect. 

- Serve sprinkled with cilantro.

My Favorite Green Juice

*please disregard my naked finger nails. because of my cooking class i cant paint them. sad, i know.

Happy Monday, folks.

As you may or may not have noticed, I only blogged once last week. 
Since school is nutso right now, that will probably be the case for the next few weeks.
Bummer, I know.
Anyway, lets reflect on the weekend. 
This weekend was awesome!
Joel and I were able to fit in a lot in just two short days and had a lot of fun together!
We spent some time outside playing tennis and basketball, did a little shopping, won some money playing craps, and ate (...and drank) like kings. 
Now that it's Monday again and I have a million things to do this week, I am making sure to detox so I have lots of energy and motivation to get everything done!
Eating super clean and juicing at least once a day is the plan.

Here's today's juice:
- 5 large leaves of kale (ribs discarded)
- 2 celery ribs
- 2 large apples
- 1 lemon (zest and pith removed)
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger
- 1 sprig of fresh mint
(and yes, I put ice in my juices. it's weird, i know)

xo

Weekend Recap

This weekend was perfect.

It was so wonderful having my parents here and I already miss them terribly. 

I was so excited to show them our wedding venue and they loved it!

We managed to fit in a lot of running around this weekend but we were also able to spend a lot of quality time together just laughing and catching up. 

Tonight Joel and I are cuddled up on the couch with plans of going to bed early. :) We're exhausted.

I hope everyone had a good Monday!

xo

Grocery Guide: Eating Clean

Eating clean isn't always easy. I get it. However, it's also not that hard. 

I find that if I keep my kitchen stocked with good, clean, nutritious food - I will eat good, clean, nutritious food! 

I've been asked a few times lately about what I usually pick up at the grocery store.

Because of this, I put together a little list of staples for you guys! 

These are the things you can almost always find in my kitchen.

xo

Tasty Tuesday: Blackened Salmon Tacos with Corn Salsa and Cilantro Lime Ranch

Hey-o!

I apologize ahead of time if this post seems a little rushed and sloppy. My parents are flying in from Oregon on Thursday and I'm desperately trying to get caught up on everything before they get here - including blogging!

Anyway, lets talk tacos. 

Taco night is a staple in our home. We have some kind of taco night at least once a week!

I've had fish tacos at many different restaurants and I've tried a lot of different recipes, but I'm always left disappointed.

Until now.

I can honestly say that these are the BEST fish tacos I've EVER had. 

Oh and since I made them, go me! :)

Since all of the components are made from scratch (except for the tortillas, but feel free to make that from scratch as well!), it might seem a little overwhelming at first when you look at all of the recipes. 

It's not though, I pinky promise. Easy peasy. 

My advice would be to whip up the cilantro lime ranch and corn salsa before you even start the salmon. 

Enjoy!

Blackened Salmon Tacos with Corn Salsa and Cilantro Lime Ranch

makes: 4-6 tacos

::ingredients::

BLACKENED SALMON TACOS

- 2 (6 oz) salmon fillets

- 3 tbsp olive oil, divided

- 2 tbs all-purpose flour

- 2 1/2 tsp chili powder

- 1 tsp paprika

- 1 tsp packed brown sugar

- 1 tsp onion powder

- 1/2 tsp garlic powder

- 1/2 tsp cumin

- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

- Flour or corn tortillas, warmed

CORN SALSA

- 2/3 cup frozen corn, warmed

- 1 medium roma tomato, diced

- 1 small avocado, diced

- 2 tbsp finely chopped yellow onion

- 2 tsp lime juice

- 1 dash garlic powder

- Salt and pepper to taste

CILANTRO LIME RANCH

- 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp mayo

- 1/4 cup sour cream

- 1/4 cup milk

- 1 tbsp ranch seasoning mix

- 1/4 cup cilantro (small handful)

- 1 small clove garlic

- Juice of 1/2 to 1 full lime

::instructions::

BLACKENED SALMON 

- In a shallow mixing bowl or plate, using fork, combine flour, chili powder, paprika, brown sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, cumin, cayenne, salt, and pepper. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Baste salmon fillets with 1/2 tsp olive oil on each side and sip salmon into spice mixture and generously coat each side. 

- Place coated salmon in preheated skillet and cook 3-4 minutes per side until outside is lightly blackened and center of fillet is cook through and opaque. 

- Flake salmon using a fork. Assemble tacos by dividing salmon among tortillas, top with lettuce, corn salsa, cheese, fresh jalapenos and anything else your little heart desires. Drizzle with Cilantro Lime Ranch. Serve immediately. 

CORN SALSA

- Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl!

CILANTRO LIME RANCH

- Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend until all ingredients are finely chopped.

- Store in refrigerator.

*To make this dish even lighter, skip the tortilla and make it a salad!

Have a wonderful rest of your day, everyone!

xo

*recipe adapted from cookingclassy