Last Night's Dinner: Salmon + Lemon Kebabs

Last night was one of those rare evenings that neither Jason nor I had to work so we were able to partake in one of our favorite activities - cooking dinner and actually enjoying a meal together at home.

Chicken and salmon are two of my favorite lean meats to fix as a main course, so I did a little online research and collected some new recipes to try out.  I was especially anxious to try these Grilled Salmon + Lemon Kebabs from SkinnyTaste, and they turned out marvelously paired with Bacon-Wrapped Green Beans, dairy-free corn pudding and a California Red Blend wine.

I was surprised by how easy it was make all three of these dishes simultaneously.  After pre-heating the oven to 375 degrees, I assembled the green bean bundles and wrapped them in a half-piece of bacon.  I placed them on a foil-lined baking sheet sprayed with 100% pure canola oil cooking spray.  I sprayed each of the bundles with cooking spray before sprinkling them with cracked sea salt, black pepper and a little garlic salt.  

Next, I mixed up a box of Jiffy corn muffin mix, a can of whole kernel corn and a can of creamed corn with two eggs and poured the mixture into a small pyrex baking dish with melted Parkay in the bottom.  Since the corn pudding takes 30 minutes to bake, I put that in the oven first, and then began cutting the salmon into small chunks for the kebabs.

Each skewer (soaked in water an hour prior to cooking time) fit four pieces of salmon and three folded lemon slices.  Once the kebabs were complete, I sprinkled each of them with a spice mixture of dried oregano, garlic salt, sea salt, pepper, cumin, cayenne and sesame seeds.

By this time, the oven timer was down to about 15 minutes remaining, so I went ahead and added the green bean bundles to the oven, and then started prepping my George Foreman GRV120GM Electric Contact Grill.  My grandparents bought me the grill a couple of years ago for Christmas, and we have gotten some serious use out of this sucker.  I constantly refer to the little manual it came with to see how long I need to grill different foods according to how well done I want them to be.  It's really quite convenient for those who love to grill, but don't want to combust outside during those sweltering Texas summers.  The grill takes all of five minutes to completely heat up, so I quickly threw on the kebabs, and they were done in four minutes.  

I did run into a slight issue when my kebabs were done, but sadly, the corn pudding was still pretty runny in the middle and the bacon around the green beans was still raw.  I rapidly fixed my mistake by turning the oven up to 400 degrees and letting each dish cook for about 10 more minutes.  That seemed to do the trick because everything tasted perfect and made for the perfect weeknight dinner.

*For full recipes, click the links I have provided in my post!

Homemade Body Scrubs

To me, there are few things better than having super-soft, moisturized skin.  I absolutely hate when my skin is dry, especially my hands.  It weirds me out to touch ANYTHING when my hands are dry and scaly.  I keep hand cream in my purse and on my nightstand, and I am constantly guilty of having too many lotions in the bathroom cabinets and/or counter.  I've always loved body scrubs.  The rougher, the better.  

A few months ago, I went to get a pedicure at a local nail salon and decided to splurge and get the "deluxe spa pedicure."  Oh my word.  It was amazing!  The best part was when she used a sugar scrub on my calves, shins and feet.  I could just feel it scrubbing away all the gross dry, dead skin cells and revealing fresh, beautiful soft skin underneath.  I was shocked by what a difference it made, but I really didn't feel like going over to Bath & Body Works to buy a scrub for $20.  So when I got home, I did some research to find out what it would take to make my own.  

Because I am currently obsessed with coconut oil, the first body scrub I made included coconut oil, brown sugar, white sugar and a couple drops of vanilla extract for a sweet scent.  I just mixed up all of the ingredients and scooped it into a small mason jar with a screw-on lid and put it in the shower so I could use it easily while bathing.  

Last week, I decided to make another one because I had run out of the vanilla one a while ago and was missing my super-soft skin!  This time I used coconut oil, lime juice, honey and white sugar.  This one has a very light citrusy scent, and I'm really enjoying it so far! 

There are no limits as to what you can put in your body scrub - after all, it's going on your body!  I've read about some scrubs that use coffee grounds or lavender or tea leaves, and more.  I can't wait to experiment with other ingredients!  I adore my new hobby.  :)

xoxo

My Hair Care Essentials

I have maintained a love/hate relationship with my hair since middle school, when I started really caring  about what I looked like.  Throughout high school, I kept my hair pretty short - meaning chin length or a little longer.  I occasionally let it grow to my shoulders, but it never got much longer than that.  The first time I chemically-treated my hair in any way was my junior year of high school when I died my naturally auburn hair a darker red.  Senior year of high school was a dramatic year for hair changes.

I went from blonde highlights:

Back to a closer version of my natural color:

To dark brown right before graduation:

In college, I kept it mostly a strawberry-blonde:

And red:

Basically, I've damaged my hair quite a lot over the past eight years, and I continue to damage it by getting partial highlights every eight weeks and using heat styling tools on it at least twice a week.  Despite all of this hair destruction, I manage to get tons of compliments on my hair, and I truly believe I owe it all to my current hair routine and the products I use to keep it healthy.  I am very excited to share what works for me!

First of all, I was blessed with normal/dry hair so I only wash it 2-3 times per week.  I know some people have super oily hair and have to wash it everyday, but if you have normal/dry hair like me, you're really harming your hair by washing it daily.  It's good for your hair to get a little oily - it keeps it healthy.  Because my hair is chemically-treated with color, I use color-safe shampoo and conditioner.  Now, let me tell you, I've tried a multitude of shampoos and conditioners, from cheap brands to pricey, salon brands, and Pureology is the best.  Because my hair is naturally wavy, curly, thick and frizzy, I chose Pureology Super Smooth to help relax the kinks.

After I lightly towel-dry my hair, I liberally spray it with Healthy Sexy Hair Soy Wheat Leave In Conditioner and comb through it with a wide-tooth comb until I get all the knots out. 

Then, I use my all-time favorite product - Moroccan Oil.  I use two pumps of the oil on the ends (driest part) of my hair and then smooth what's left on my hands on the rest of my hair, careful not to get too much of the oil on the top of my head because that can make it look gross and greasy.

After I use Moroccan Oil, I let my hair air-dry for at least 30 minutes, depending on how much time I have.  Before blow-drying what's left of the damp hair, I spritz on some Pureology Heat Fortifying Spray for heat protection and spray my roots with a little Pureology Root Lift for added volume at the crown of my head.  I don't always use the root lift, only if I feel like I need a boost.

After all of my hair is dry, I use one pump of Moroccan Oil to smooth over my hair before curling or straightening.

I hope you all find these products as beneficial as I do, if you should choose to try any of them out for yourself.  This has been my routine for the past couple of years, and I'm happy I finally found the right products that work for my unruly hair!

In Transit

I had a conversation earlier with a friend about how frustrating real life can be.  You don't realize it when you're in college.  Everything seems so fantastic (minus exams and papers and what not), and you just feel as if the world is your little baby oyster to do with what you please.  Then you graduate, and you're probably still hopefully optimistic, rearing to go, "WATCH OUT WORLD, HERE I COME!!!" attitude popping out.  Two years later, it hits you.  I'm still working here at this job that was supposed to be a transition job?!  I'm still in the exact same place I was TWO whole years ago.  What is going on here?  I'm beginning to think this is just how it is in your twenties.  Everything is up in the air, you're on the fence about everything, waiting on opportunities that may never arise.  Life is mythical and absurd and challenging and exhausting and abrupt and weird and spontaneous and scary and the list goes on and on.  When does this awkward stage end? When does life begin?  It's especially difficult for me because, by nature, I'm such a planner and an over-analyzer.  I try to relax and just be content with where I am right now and accept it, but eventually it all starts to overwhelm me again.  It's a never-ending cycle of uncertainty, but I'm doing my absolute best to just go with it and take another step forward and not two steps back.

I'm attempting to get back into writing poetry again.  I dabbled a little in high school and I remember it making me happy so I think I'll give it another go.  Maybe I'll try to publish a small collection.  Who knows what tomorrow will bring?

I jogged/walked three miles earlier out on the Lady Bird Lake Hike & Bike Trail.  I'm pretty proud of myself.  I chose fitness over slothing it on the couch all day watching TV.  Tonight Jason and I are meeting our friends Corey and Helen for drinks on the east side.  It should be a fun time.  One of my favorite bars, Brixton, is over there, and I'm looking forward to trying a couple of new bars as well.

Well, it's time to get all of this disgusting sweat off my body.  Happy Friday & enjoy your weekend :)

Currently

Home Slice Pizza on South Congress - Austin, Texas

Looking forward to: The Nutcracker Ballet on Saturday!  I saw a local commercial for the ballet a couple of weeks ago and immediately felt warm and giddy inside thinking back to when I was younger and would go to ballets and plays with Meme and Papa, particularly around Christmastime.  Sometimes I get so starved for comfort and familiarity up here without being surrounded by family like I'm used to, and seeing the commercial and experiencing the feelings it evoked within me, I knew I needed to do this.  I decided to approach Jason with the idea, and he said he was up for it.  We decided to invite our friends Corey and Helen along, so it'll be a lovely little double-date affair.  I'm definitely anxious for Saturday evening.  We're going to dinner at El Alma beforehand and then to The Long Center for the performance.

Eating: better.  I'm trying to get serious about my eating habits once again.  I know, the holidays aren't the best time for diet modifications. This is always such a struggle for me.  I don't necessarily over-eat; I just love food so much.  I was raised in a family that enjoys food - every aspect of it - the buying, the preparing, the cooking, the eating, the leftovers, etc.  Don't get me wrong - it's a wonderful, potentially beneficial habit to appreciate and love food.  I've just been trying to make sure I incorporate lots of veggies and more fruit into my diet, and I'm attempting to be more aware of when certain produce are in season.  I bought some winter squash, red pears and pomegranates a few days ago, and I'm limiting my sugar intake.  Little by little I'll get there.

Listening to: a variety of different music.  With it being Christmastime, I'm of course indulging myself in A Very She & Him Christmas, Christmas With Coniff, Vince Guaraldi, Frank Sinatra, Elvis, The Carpenters and many more.  I'll probably upload of playlist post of all my Christmas music in the next few days.  We watched an episode of Parenthood a couple of nights ago and had a beautiful cover of Joni Mitchell's "A Case of You" by James Blake.  I've been listening to that on repeat this evening.  That tends to happen to me; I'll hear a song that absolutely stops me in my tracks and irrevocably haunts me for weeks on end.  It's a fabulous curse if you ask me.

Watching: some amazing movies that have relentlessly resonated with me since I watched them.  In my opinion, a film is perfect when it forces you to use your mind and it grabs ahold of your heart and wrings it out like a soaking wet dishcloth.  I absolutely love to feel any and every emotion while I'm watching a movie.  I want to feel it swim through my bloodstream, dig through my bones and crawl across my skin.  I've seen two movies recently that managed to do this to me.

The first was Take This Waltz starring Michelle Williams and Seth Rogen, directed by Sarah Polley.  It's about a young married woman who is seemingly happy and content with her husband of about five-six years, but their relationship has plateaued and lacks the passion she desires.  Enter tall, dark, handsome artist who just so happens to move in across the street.  She falls for him, but struggles with her feelings for him because she doesn't want to hurt her husband.  I really enjoyed the story because it's painfully realistic, and the ending sort of catches you off guard and leaves you unsettled, yet satisfied all at once.

The second was We Need To Talk About Kevin starring Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller and John C. Reilly.  This one involves a super heavy story that switches back and forth in time, revolving around a mother analyzing her past display of abilities and decisions as a parent to her now teenage son, Kevin, who has been disturbed, if you will, since birth.  The dark, deeply thrilling film is visually appealing and artistically shot with red and white color motif from beginning to end.  Needless to say, I was captivated the entire two hours.

Hope everyone is having a great week so far, and, once again, many thanks to Danielle for inspiring these "Currently" posts.

Quick Little Update

Happy Tuesday, friends!  And happy day off to me :)  So far this morning I've been doing a lot of planning and not a whole lot of doing, haha.  Good or bad, that's just how I function.  I'm a girl of endless to-do lists, never-ending website bookmarks, mini-notepads and planners scattered around my apartment, and an array of random notes saved in my phone.  Some of it will happen, but most will not, at least not in the near future.  I've really been trying to watch what I'm eating, and I think I've made some good base decisions for a healthy lifestyle.  I used to drink at least one soda a day, but now I hardly ever drink them unless I have a bad craving and, in that case, I'll allow myself to have one because I don't want to completely restrict anything - that will only make me want it more, and I refuse to be miserable.  I don't eat as many sweets as I used to either, aside from the batch of homemade peanut butter cookies I made just last night, ha!  I've started making protein shakes for breakfast which will hopefully speed up my metabolism, so I am told, and I'm going to start taking my lunch to work instead of eating the employee plates the kitchen prepares.  I'm sure those are loaded with fat and calories.  Each week before we go grocery shopping, Jason and I plan out two dinner meals each to make the upcoming week.  So that's what I've been doing this morning - picking my meals.  I'm really excited to try these recipes I found on EatingWell and Taste of Home.  I'm going to try homemade tilapia fish sticks with sauteed asparagus in a pecan-vinaigrette, and Asian turkey lettuce wraps with grilled zucchini.  Both of these meals sound so delicious and are both still healthy!  Amazing.

I'm on a mission to finally lose a little weight, get healthy and make
good decisions!  I'm ready to look like this: