Bites of My Life

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First off, take a bite now has its own domain! No more blogspot attached to my blog address. I'm now official at www.takeabiteblog.com!
Secondly, this weekend wrapped up my last weekend of summer. I move back into my sorority house on Friday to start prep for recruitment. Goodbye to one of my best summers. It seems crazy that summer is coming to an end, but I can't wait for all of my friends to be back in town! 
I actually don't have any pictures from last week except for food pictures, naturally. Enjoy my foodgrams and some of my favorite pins from last week!

{Food Bites}
 -Quinoa cakes for an easy weeknight dinner last week! So easy and made on the panini press. Served on a spinach salad and topped with the best yogurt sauce (so good we licked the bowl clean).
-Got my thai food fix Friday night. I could eat curry every day.
-My favorite snack. Apples and almond butter.
-Made the PW's watermelon pico de gallo last week for my parents as an appetizer before our black bean and corn quinoa tacos. I halved the recipe since there were only three of us yet we still ate every last bite. This stuff is addicting to say the least. The tacos were just as good. My dad admitted he was skeptical, but ended up going back for seconds! 
{Pinterest Bites}
-I'm having a major denim and converse moment right now and my pinterest is showing it. I love how these outfits are all as equally chic as they are comfy. 
-Using these pictures as inspiration and wearing my jean vest and monogram converse today.
-All images via my "fashionista" Pinterest board
here's to the last week of summer!
xo annie

Hooked on Houses

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My aunt introduced me to the site Hooked on Houses a few years ago and I've been waiting for the right time to blog about it. The other night my mom and I got to watching Sleepless in Seattle. I love the houseboats featured in the movie like the one Sam (Tom Hanks) and Jonah live in. Anyone remember Jason Mesnicks season of the bachelor? Jason was the present day "Sleepless in Seattle" while he and his son lived, just the two of them, in a houseboat like the one in the movie. You can see an inside look at the houseboat on Hooked on Houses.

{Overview of Sam and Jonah's houseboat}

Hooked on Houses is a website created by Julia, a self proclaimed "house swooner." She gives you an insight into some of your favorite celebs, movie and TV houses! The site features houses such as the Hampton estates from Revenge, the ever-so famous "Bachelor Pad," everyones dream house, the Father of the Bride house, and my personal favorite, Meryl Streep's Santa Barbra cottage in It's Complicated.

{Swoon. This is the actual Father of the Bride house located in Pasadena, CA. The front was filmed here, but they used a different house's backyard to shoot the basketball scenes.}

Julia uses pictures from the movie and ones found online to show off the famous movie houses! I could spend hours on this site looking at these iconic houses.

{The Bachelor Pad like you've never seen it. An ex cast member describes it as a "compound." What they don't let you see on the show is the 7 ft cement wall surrounding the mansion.}
        
   {Dan in Real Life is one of my favorite movies. The Rhode Island river house they spend Labor Day weekend at in the movie is actually a real house that you can rent out. I wouldn't mind spending a cozy weekend here!}
{Iris's cottage in The Holiday is actually a movie set. Everything was custom built for the movie.}
{Meryl's kitchen in It's Complicated}
{The house in It's Complicated is a real house in California, but all the interiors were filmed on a movie set in Brooklyn. Here is the the kitchen in the real house that was used for exterior views.}
Head over to Hooked on Houses and you can see some over my other favorite on-screen houses from The Proposal, Sex and the City, The Parent Trap, Something's Gotta Give, Gilmore Girls and The Blind Side.
xo annie

The Staples

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White jeans and a jean shirt are staples in my opinion. Apparently they are for Emily and Helena too. They both featured the classic pairing on their blogs last week. 
via Cupcakes and Cashmere
I wear my jean shirt a lot. I even had to by a second one because I got a hole in my first one...
via Brooklyn Blonde
I wear my jean shirt as a cover up at the beach, as a jacket over a striped t-shirt, or like these two ladies and pair it with crisp white jeans or shorts.
via Pinterest
How great is this dark denim shirt? The perfect thing to pair with your white jeans to transition them to fall. I don't believe in that whole "no white after Labor Day" thing. Who decided they could make up rules when and what colors I can and cannot wear?
Here are my staples. This Madewell shirt is the only jean shirt you ever need. I recommend it to everyone. I love how Emily styled her outfit with my favorite Zara heels!
Embrace these simple staples and sport this classic outfit!
xo Annie

Foodie Crush

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Monday morning the newest issue of Foodie Crush hit the web! I had actually never heard of Foodie Crush until my sister tweeted at me about it. Foodie is my middle name, so I instantly started researching to find out what this "Foodie Crush" was all about. 
Heidi Larsen is the mastermind behind this online food magazine. She came up with the idea from combining two of her favorite things, food blogs and food magazines. Heidi has her on food blog, but puts together this seasonal online mag to feature her recent foodie crushes. 
The summer's issue includes an article on Teen Bloggers, recipes for summer popsicles, Fair inspired food and a feature on The Big Potluck (a forum for bloggers on the West coast).
The Teen Bloggers section was my favorite. Out of the 6 featured, all are under the age of 20. I discovered Izy from Top With Cinnamon a couple weeks ago. Izy is 17, lives in London, and has the most drool worthy pictures on her blog. 
Lisey was another favorite I discovered. She is 10 years old. Yes, 10, and already has her own food blog. My favorite thing on her blog is the "About Me" section. Lisey is home schooled, has an older brother and two younger sisters, likes to fold origami, read American Girl books and is a lot like her mom. Lisey sounds like me at age 10. I was just starting to bake and was an American Girl fanatic! I can't wait to try her recipe for chocolate chip coffee muffins.
I love reading about Heidi's foodie crushes, but I have my own as well. My top three foodie crushes are consistently The Pioneer Woman, Joy the Baker and How Sweet It Is! These are the sites I go to first when looking for a recipe!
Read the current issue of Foodie Crush here.
Foodies Unite!
xo annie

Crunchy Quinoa Granola

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My quinoa kick is still going strong. This stuff rocks and is so good for you. Black bean quinoa tacos are on the menu sometime this week! 

I'm a huge granola person, but since my sister started making her own granola I've completely switched over to homemade granola. It's so easy and this way you can control the ingredients and flavor. I used my sister's recipe as a base, but as always adapted it as my own. 

I made it with a few ingredients, partially because it was all I had, and partially because I like it simple so I can add fresh fruit and other flavorings.

All mixed up, ready for the oven

The first batch of granola I made this summer burnt to a crisp, but it was still delicious. 

My quinoa granola came out much better and was baked perfectly.

I prefer plain greek yogurt or vanilla greek yogurt topped with honey, blueberries and my crunchy quinoa granola! 

 

Crunchy Quinoa Granola
Makes about 7 cups... halved it (yes it has only one egg, but if you whisk it up you can pour half the egg white in)

Ingredients:
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant!)
1 cup unsweetened shredded or flaked coconut
1 cup uncooked quinoa
1/4 cup toasted wheat germ2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons vanilla extract ( I like a lot of vanilla)
1/4 cup maple syrup (or more if you prefer a sweeter granola)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 egg white

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Combine all ingredients but the egg white and, tossing to coat evenly. Whisk the egg white in a small bowl until frothy.

Stir into the granola mixture. Spread it in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes. About halfway through, gently stir the granola, carefully turning the granola, breaking it as little as possible. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and onto a cooling rack until cooled.

Store in an airtight container and will stay fresh for a long while!

Annie