Bites of My Life

Poor Oklahoma weathermen are wiping their tears after predicting an ice apocalypse that was supposed to hit our state over the weekend, but decided to come in the form of a light drizzle instead of an ice storm. After packing the grocery stores and gas stations in preparation, us Oklahomies were actually able to step outside our houses this weekend. Thank goodness, because after the holidays and being cooped up in the snow two weekends ago, I'm going stir crazy of just sitting on my couch.

This past week was full of lots of spiralized vegetables (duh), lots of Whole 30 bites, and some not so whole 30 approved moments...oops! Just keeping it real! On that note, Whole 30 hasn't been so fantastic this go around. I haven't felt any positive changes, and I'm a little bumski. Hoping for a good feeling week this week! Are you doing W30? How has it been going for you?

-Monday morning eggs and a never ending to do list.
-A serious "clean out the fridge" salad that got so many questions and comments on my insta story about how good it looked. Funny how nothing can really be something! 
-New favorite Whole 30 snack. Celery sticks and tahini, preferably straight from the jar. 
-My first cheat on Whole 30. I'm sorry, but it was for a good reason. Keep reading to see why.
-Despite my cheating by drinking alcohol it was paired with a W30 approved snack of plantain chips and salsa.
-The booze and snacks all came while recording my second appearance on the local podcast, OKC Over Easy. I don't want to give away much, because you can get all the details by listening to our episode here.
-Made a riff on Barre3's Golden Milk Smoothie and it's seriously insane. My recipe is on instagram, but I think I need to perfect it into a recipe post. Do you agree?
-Last week's spiralized culprit, the sweet potato. 
-My Turmeric Chicken Zoodle Soup made it's way to the blog!
-Load the bowl, for a loaded bowl lunch.
-Who else's favorite part for going out for Japanese is the carrot ginger dressing on the house salads? I love it so much I recreated it in a recipe post a while back. 
-Sunday morning consisted of shooting these gorg brunch items. Coming soon here; one of the restaurants from our collective at The Social Order.

Annie

Bites of My Life

Happy halloween! Are your tricking and treating yourself? I sure did over the past week. Delicious bites, new recipes, handfuls of candy, matcha lattes, loads of junk food and all the proper halloween snacks were indulged in over the past few days. I do believe the holiday season of eating is here!

Last week was quick and fun and this week is shaping up to be the same, but I'm wishing it away with the anticipation of our family trip to see Claire this weekend. We have an itinerary set and I have a list of to-dos, but please send any NYC musts my way!

-BOOM! Easiest butternut squash soup coming this week!
-Ombre pumpkin sugar cookies to get in the spirit!
-I found another matcha to add to my list! Take my word and go try the one at Okay Yeah! 
-The yummiest modern mexican joint opens it's doors tomorrow! I was lucky to sneak a bite early.
-Happiest wedding day for my dear Lexy! 
-Try it --> savory oatmeal seasoned with s&p, turmeric and a poached egg.
-My cookie loving instincts helped channeled my halloween costume this year.
-Got to go behind the mic & be featured on the local food podcast, OKC Over Easy! Listen to my episode on Soundcloud or iTunes.
-Love celebrating this mom on her birthday and everyday!

Annie

P.S. Don't miss last week's recipes including Gingersnap Cookie Pizza and Savory Granola!

Bites of My Life

Yesterday evening after finishing up Sunday dinner at my parents, I had such a feel good moment come over me. I blasted Van Morrison, put the sunroof down, and took the extra long way back to my house as I watched the sun set. It truly feels like summer now. The mornings and evenings are warm and sunny. The days seem longer and summer food/activities/vibes are all streaming in. Gosh summer is good. I wrote a few times about my winter slump. I love me some cold weather, but there is nothing like the arrival of summer to lift your spirits. Summer spirits for the win!

-Has anyone tried Rocksbox? I've been doing it for the past month and I'm loving it! Read more about it here, and use my code annietuckerxoxo to get your first box free (normally a $19 value).
-My week usually always starts green as a way to recuperate from the weekend. Mornings are even more fun with my new nutri ninja I was gifted for my birthday! Kicks my 7 year old magic bullet's butt.
-On a podcast grind. Here are my faves, what are yours?
-Dinner this week looked like this: turkey meatballs with zucchini noodles and ramp pesto that mom and dad made.
-A massive London Fog and a change of scenery helped get through a rainy Wednesday. 
-Spent my Thursday evening getting schooled in hand lettering. I've been doodling ever since.
-#NationalDonutDay.
-My roommate is an engaged lady! 
-So so special having all my best friends in town to celebrate our Mads girl's engagement! We even got our Londoner to jump the pond for the weekend! 
-Successfully finished The Hills all the way through for about the 10th time. 
-Give me all the navy home decor. Dreaming of the day I have a pocket book that can afford this style.
-Looks like/tastes like summer! Peach cobbler and homemade vanilla bean ice cream.

Annie

My Current Obsession: Podcasts

Are you a podcast listener? I used to think it was so grandma to listen to a podcast, it seemed so book-on-tape. My thoughts have changed and I recently jumped on the podcast bandwagon. I was a serious Serial listener when it first came out, but had never really gotten into podcasts besides then. When Molly and I met up a few months ago she mentioned how she would be passing the time of her leg of the trip by listening to podcasts. I had a Spotify playlist loaded up, but podcasts? Hmmm. Being inspired by anything Molly does, I researched top podcasts and got my iPhone ready to go for my road trip.

Podcasts are still a little book-on-tapish, but far more intriguing. Since working again, music hasn't been fueling me. I need something more motivating. I love listening to them during my commute, while at work, and I especially love them while going on walks. It's crazy how they can help pass the time.

Podcasts I'm currently listening to...

Blissful Bites Podcast - In this podcast Nicole Culver of Blissful Eats interviews food entrepreneurs and female bloggers. I'm so inspired by the startup stories from people such as Jessica Merchant of How Sweet Eats and Samantha of Emmy's Organics!

The Edible Happy Hour - This is a local podcast just started by some of my favorite foodies. It is a roundtable discussion about food, drinks and local fare. 

Mystery Show - In this lighthearted podcast, Starlee Kine solves funny but curious mysteries. I won't giveaway much so we can keep it a mystery, but trust me, it's just a fun one!

Bon Appétit Podcast- Commentated by Andrew Rapoport, the editor-in-chief of Bon Appétit, this podcast interviews, chefs, foodies, and writers alike. They have guests such as Ina Garten, Bobby Flay and David Chang. 100% obsessed.

Podcasts I'm excited to listen to...

Being Boss - For creatives and entrepreneurs. One of the hosts, Kathleen, is a local okie!

Lady Lovin' - Co-hosted by my Laguna Beach favorite Lo Bosworth, she joins besties Jilly Hendrix and Greta Titleman to talk about the basic realness of life. 

Burnt Toast by Food52 - For those who never stop wondering about food.

Lady Gang - A celebrity driven podcast that is supposed to be a hilarious telling of what it is like to live in Hollywood. 

Any other podcasts favorites I should know about?

Annie

Serial in my Cereal

Disclaimer: this post has nothing to do with cereal I just thought it was funny. I was always a fan of homophones in grade school.

image via P.S. Remember This

I've been sucked into the Serial sect, serial for real-ial. It has been on my to do list to listen to the podcast for a while now, and with a three hour flight in front of me, it seemed like ample time to start. Oh and if you don't know what I'm talking about, come out from under your rock and Google Serial, it's taking over. Created by The American Life, reporter Sarah Koenig goes week by week investigating the murder of Baltimore high school student Hae Min Lee. Was it Adnan, was it Jay, was it the man in Leakin Park? Who knows who did it or what really happened, but the podcast has me on a roller coaster I can't get off. 

I ask myself why Serial has gotten so popular and I really have no idea. Yes it's a thrilling mystery on who really killed Hae, but I'm still puzzled on why this 15 year old crime is resurfacing now and catching people's attention nation wide. I guess that's beside the point because I'm totally one to give in to what's popular at the moment so I too am now a serious Serial listener. I'm only on episode 8 though so don't give anything away!

The Everygirl wrote an article called "Life after Serial," a hilarious list of 9 ups and downs you may face once you get sucked in to the podcast. StyleCaster also has a list of 20 similar podcasts to kill the time until season 2 comes out. Listen to Serial here or download the episodes from the podcast app on your phone or iPad. Both ways are free.

Annie