This Recipe Will Make You Love Quinoa!

It took me a while to warm up to quinoa. It is a grain very similar to rice, but is packed with fiber. If you haven't ever tried quinoa, or if you are on the fence with it, try this recipe. It has great flavor that I think can persuade you to like this hearty grain. As always, I adapted the recipe a bit, but here is what I based it off of. My version is below.

Quinoa Salad with Avocado, Green Onions, Peas and Lime Basil Dressing
Serves 4-6 as a side or 2-4 as a main dish

Ingredients:

For Dressing:
3 tablespoons olive oil
Juice of a lime
1 teaspoon honey or agave nectar
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon finely chopped basil
salt and pepper to taste

For Salad:
2 cups water
1 cup quinoa
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoon olive oil
1 avocado chopped
1 cup frozen peas
4 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup chopped basil
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
In a small bowl or jar, whisk or shake dressing ingredients together, then set aside.

Add water, salt and quinoa to a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 5 minutes, reduce heat, cover and let simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. (or just follow the directions on your package of quinoa)

While quinoa is cooking, add olive oil to a pan and sautΓ© peas for about 2 minutes. Chop onions, avocado and basil.

In a large bowl combine quinoa and veggies, minus the basil. Pour the dressing over the salad and stir until combined. Season with salt and pepper then add in fresh basil.

Works great served immediately, or stays in the fridge for a couple days! 

Annie

Bites of My Life

Week recap (from left to right):
-Breakfast for dinner Monday night with fresh pineapple, cheddar chive biscuits and spinach, basil, tomato and feta frittata. 
-I finally finished my tassel garlands! I hope you checked out the DIY. I am loving the one above the TV!
-My favorite part of my apartment complex is the twinkle lights strung right out my window!
-Thrilled to find a store in Norman selling washi tape! 3 rolls for me please.
-The garland was perfect used for party decorations!
-We did a repeat of brunch at Stella for Father's Day, just like Mother's Day. Best meal I've ever had round 2.
-Love this guy! 
-Burgers and grilled pineapple to round out the weekend!
Have a good week!
xo annie

Daddy's Day

Happy Father's Day to the best dad around. Thanks for sitting through my multiple dance recitals, teaching me how to play soccer, helping me make countless student council posters, being my personal spell check when my grammar gets a little shaky on the blog and always willing to eat a big bowl of ice cream with me! 
 I appreciate and love you more than you know! I love having a day to celebrate that.
And thank you for doing all these things too.
love you daddy,
xo skidget

Workin' Girl

Today I'm talking about a different kind of work. Although I have loved incorporating more business casual into my wardrobe for my new internship, I also love buying work out clothes. Working out is way more fun when you dress the part. When I was in middle school, a couple of my friends and I got really into tennis so we went to Target and all bought little tennis skirts. We swore it made us better. 
Lululemon has been around for a while, but seems to really be taking off. Lululemon is an addiction. You buy one pair of leggings and they hook you. If you aren't ready to fall down that rabbit hole I advise you to refrain. Unfortunately, I fell down the hole and I'm now completely obsessed. 
I put together a little workout gear round-up to show off all my favorites for the different kind of exercise I enjoy. But let me get you in on a little trick. If you dress in cute workout clothes you can convince everyone you spent the morning working out when really you laid in bed all day then just wanted to dress confortable. I would call this my favorite kind of "working out." 
for the yogis...
burn out tank, my friend has this tank and I envy it every time she wears it
in the flow crop, my other friend just got these seamless crops and they are so comfortable
yoga mat, lulu has a great mat, but a simple Target mat will work
for the barre girls....
tumbler, picked this guy up at class last night
will crop, I have these in pant form and they are without a doubt my favorite, the high rise makes them so comfy
power y tank, simple but looks great and feels great
for the runners...
breeze by short, I'm sorry but how cute are these?
yurbuds armband, the clear screen on this is still touch sensitive so you can change your music without having to take your phone out
nike free, finally got some frees! 

I've recently been trying out hot yoga and have really enjoyed it. I used to think the heat would make me feel claustrophobic, but there is something so cleansing about it. Barre is my number one work out of choice. It is a combination of yoga, pilates and ballet. As a former dancer, it works great for me. Then there is the traditional running outside. Sometimes there is nothing better than getting some fresh air with a morning run.
What is your favorite way to work out? May I suggest barre3 or hot yoga! 
xo annie