What's on the Menu: Fourth of July (Part 2)

It's actually, officially INDEPENDENCE DAY!! However, we celebrated too hard all weekend so I am celebrating by watching Captain America and trying to force my dogs to snuggle as they run about the house barking at fireworks (high five)!

heh heh heh 'Merica

We did have a great BBQ yesterday and were able to spend time with our wonderful friends, eat some amazing food, and drink too much beer. We were ALMOST outnumbered by dogs since all of us are in that awkward 'we don't have kids yet but treat our dogs like they're babies' stage, but the humans won out in the end.

J and I got up early so he could start marinating the ribs in a new homemade sauce (Pineapple Habanero), and I had to get the biscuits and veggie burgers crackin.

The veggie burger recipe is from one of my all time favs Thug Kitchen. They are super easy to make, and only require a few ingredients that we usually have laying around the house:
-3 cans white beans
-an onion
-cumin, chili powder, paprika
-jalepenos
-bread crumbs

All you have to do is bake them for 30 minutes and they are good to go!

The biscuits are another favorite of ours from the Foster's Market Cookbook.
They are amazingly buttery, and cheesy, and delicious! And, they are good for several days after so you can heat them up and have them with breakfast and dinner.

We also had sides galore thanks to our amazing friends, and everyone was stuffed by the end of the night. I for one will be doubling up on Pure Barre this week, especially since Wednesday is Glow Day at the Pensacola Barre studio! (and who doesn't love doing pilates covered in glow paint??)

Here are some photos from our festivities...

Sweet Friends 

Men & Their Fire Sticks

Dog Pile Up

Poodle Mama

Cop & Tuck 

Lovely Milton Ladies

Happy Fourth of July friends! Hope everyone had a wonderful, safe long weekend :)

Let's Talk Food: Our Fourth of July Menu (Part 1)

If BBQ is not synonymous with Independence Day, then I don't know what it, which is awkward because I'm a vegetarian (most of the time). When we cook any meat in our house I am adamant that it comes from our local butcher so I know exactly what farm the meat came from, how the animal was grazed, and any other horrifying details they choose to give me that day.

J is actually kind of a master griller so it makes my vegetarianism quite difficult sometimes. For this weekend, we compromised though with a menu of delicious dishes and sides that cater to all diets! Even my lovely friend who is gluten/soy free (love ya girl!).

With that being said, here is a list of our favorite cookbooks that we whipped out for the occasion!

1. Foster's Market Cookbook
2. Thug Kitchen
3. 12 Bones Smokehouse: A Mountain BBQ Cookbook

These cook books are staples in our kitchen and you should definitely check them out!

For today's cookout J mixed up some of the 12 Bones Chicken Rub and marinated a pork butt in it over night (thank you little piggy butt!) You slow cook the pork in the oven for 4 hours on 275 so it comes out perfect for pulled pork sandwiches or tacos!

The we made the 12 Bones drop biscuits. This is our first time using this homemade biscuit recipe since the Buttermilk Biscuits in Foster's Market Cookbook are so delicious but I'm excited to see how they turn out. Instead of smoked gouda we used chipotle gouda for an extra kick.

12 Bones Chicken Rub

Gouda Drop Biscuits

Kitchen War Zone

What are you cooking for today's festivities??

Happy 2nd of July!

Let the Festivities Begin...

I'm sitting here drinking a G&T, watching Shark Week, snuggling with my dogs...the usual, and I literally just realized that today is Thursday and not Friday. Which is weird because this morning I knew it was Thursday (according to my FB post) See below...

What I'm getting at is that it is BASICALLY Friday now so everything is good, but things got weird there for a while. 

This weekend will be filled with fireworks, junk food, and lots of red, white, and blue down here in good old Florida and I can't wait to spend time with good friends and pig out (aka wear daisy duke overalls, drinks lots of beer, and yell "MERICA" a lot while holding fiery objects). 

In order to prepare for this weekend of unhealthy eating and laziness I went to Pure Barre, did 3 crunches, and didn't eat any cookies (yet...the night is young...but since I'm calling in Friday early I guess were good). 

I've also been very busy updating my Fourth of July Pinterest board, #becauseamerica and you can check it out here for funsies :)

List of the Day: What makes for a good Fourth of July Experience

1. Friends: this one is obvious. You need people to party with, and who better than people you like to be around!! Especially since people will be drinking and we all know everyone gets annoying when they holiday drink so it's good to surround yourself with people you like regardless of their mental state.

2. Game: Corn Hole, Bocci, Volleyball, flip cup...you name it! This is a holiday celebrating America so obviously we need to incorporate a little bit of friendly competition. And beer.

3. America Jello Shots: Maybe this isn't a must for everyone but I always like to include it to really drive home the point, aaaaand it reminds me of tailgating in college. 

4. Greasy food to soak up the alcohol: This IS a must. Grills must be involved. And it's best to alternate greasy food, drink, greasy food, drink, just to be safe. You know the drill. 

5. Nalgene of water: HYDRATE YOUR BODY SO YOU DON'T HATE YOUR LIFE THE NEXT DAY!!! We are not 23 anymore. Hangovers hurt. They make you sad. AVOID AT ALL COSTS. 

So, everyone stay safe! Don't drink and drive! And wear your protective eye gear if you are the master of firework ceremonies!

HAPPY FOURTH OF JULY WEEKEND!!!

Autumnal Equinox

Happy first day of autumn, everyone!

I made a fall mood board to celebrate my favorite season. 

Can't wait for bonfires, hot coffees, cozy socks, fuzzy blankets, falling leaves, halloween, crock pot recipes, and pumpkin patches...

Tomato Pie Recipe

Mondaaaaayyyyyyy?!?! Okay, glad I got that out of my system. 
This morning as I was making my coffee and trying to find some breakfast, I peered into our fridge and was momentarily stunned by the amount of food in our there!

Yesterday was such a blur that I completely forgot about all of the leftovers from our football cookout. Now, I'm not a huge football fan. I enjoy tailgating, but that's about where it ends. And since there are no Bojangles down here, there isn't much point in tailgating. *sob*

Anyway, Indy and I got up early and cooked WAY too much food, and a group of us spent the day watching football and stuffing our faces like true americans! Haha

I always love a good opportunity to try new recipes and use my friends as guinea pigs, so yesterday I tried two new recipes. One for tomato pie and one for a better version of my churro cheescake. (I have to add that as I'm typing this I'm thinking about how amazing my lunch will be today muahaha). 

The tomato pie recipe was so fun to make because it is easy, and the different kinds of tomatoes make the flavors amazing and the pie itself beautiful. 
Here are the ingredients:

1 pre-made pie crust
2 lbs. of assorted tomatoes (green, sunburst, beefsteak etc...)
1.5 cups of sharp cheddar cheese
.5 cup of mayonnaise
1 large egg
salt, pepper, basil, & other spices at your preference 

Instructions:
1. Slice tomatoes and lay out on paper towels (lightly salt them)
2. Set oven to 425 degrees
3. Mix the cheese, egg, mayo, & spices together
4. Butter the pie crust (optional)
5. Coat the bottom of the pie crust with a layer of the cheese mix
6. Place a layer of tomatoes on the cheese mix
7. Another layer of cheesy goodness
8. Final layer of tomatoes on top (make it pretty if you want)
9. salt and pepper on top to finish it
10. Pop it in the over for 40-45 minutes 

This is a great recipe to try if you are like me and don't have mad chef skills ;)

enjoy!