Carrot Bread

This recipe is from one of my favorite chefs - Michael Symon. In his recipe he used pistachios, I changed it out with walnuts.

• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup carrots
• 1/3 cup toasted walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 350 and prepare bread pan for oven
2. Cream butter and sugars till combined.
3. Add egg, milk and vanilla and beat till combined
4. Whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a separate bowl.
5. Add carrots to dry mixture and stir till combined
6. Add dry mixture to wet mixture slowly, stirring till combined.
7. Stir in walnuts.
8. Pour batter in bread pan and bake for about 1 hour.
9. Let cool slightly before taking out of pan

Creamy Garlic Pasta

I found this recipe on pinterest and used another shape pasta, and this recipe is amazing. Great side dish for just about any meal.


http://iowagirleats.com/2013/03/06/creamy-garlic-shells/

Shrimp Lo Mein

We love Chinese food and when we were in Hawaii we had this amazing noodle dish that had me thinking of making lo mein. I got the noodles at a local Chinese supermarket we have, but a regular supermarket should also have them.

• 12 oz pack lo mein noodles
• 2 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil
• 2 lbs shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 cup chopped carrots
• 1 cup chopped broccoli
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms
• 2/3 cup clam juice
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce
• 2 tbsp chinese rice wine
• 1 tbsp honey

1. Cook noodles according to package directions, drain and rinse in cold water and shake well to remove excess water. Toss with sesame oil and set aside
2. Combine clam juice, soy sauce, oyster sauce, rice wine and honey in a small bowl and set aside
3. Heat wok or skillet and add vegetable oil.
4. Once warm add shrimp and garlic, once cooked pour out of skillet and set aside.
5. Cook vegetables in same skillet (I added a little vegetable broth to help cook them)
6. Add shrimp and garlic back to skillet.
7. Add noodles, sauce and mix well till combined.
8. Cook over medium heat till dish is warmed up.

Hawaii Pictures

We had an amazing trip to Hawaii for our 10th Wedding Anniversary. We stayed in Kailua- Kona on the Big Island at the Sheraton. We were right on the water and the grounds of the hotel were beautiful. We had an amazing time snorkeling, going whale/dolphin watching, checking out the local shops and farmers markets, and the Volcano. The weather was amazing, low 80's, except of course by the volcano it was cooler in the 60's. Still a nice change of pace from this cold weather we have here. Of course we got snow at home the day we came back. I can't wait to our trip back, we went to an awesome restaurant that we heard about on Food Network called Da Poke Shack. Here are just some of the pictures I took on our vacation.

Volcano

 Kailua- Kona Airport

 Beach we went snorkeling

 Local Surfer

 Beautiful flower

 Dolphin in front of our boat

 Whale

 Our hotel

 Our Hotel

 Our hotel

 Part of hotel pool

 Drinks at hotel bar

 Sights on way to Volcano

 Also had lunch at southernmost restaurant

 Cow I scared when I tried getting it's attention for a picture

 Sunset

Snorkeling in Hawaii

I love the water, so when we planned this trip to Hawaii I knew to sign us up for a snorkeling trip or two. Here are some pics, they arent' the best quality since they are from a cheap waterproof camera and a lot of the pictures I had to take blindly because it was tough to see the back of the camera screen underwater. Was an amazing experience and made me start counting down the days till the water gets warm enough here to go in it. Even though our local water isn't as beautiful as in Hawaii. I can't wait for our next trip back.

Sweet and Sticky Drumsticks

I let this marinate for about 9 hours while I was at work, you don't have to let it marinate that long, just a few hours is fine. I took this picture before I added the extra marinade (Kyle got stuck in traffic coming home from work and the chicken was done, so I waited to add the sauce till he got home)

• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 5 fresh rosemary sprigs
• 5 garlic cloves, halved
• 10-12 drumsticks
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds

1. Combine the vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, rosemary and garlic in a large ziploc bag.
2. Shake and squeeze bag (once you seal it of course) to combine ingredients
3. Add chicken and marinate in the fridge for 2 hours
4. Preheat oven to 450 and line cookie sheet with foil
5. Remove chicken, saving marinade and put chicken on cookie sheet
6. Bake chicken 30-35 minutes.
7. While chicken is baking place marinate in small saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer. Cook over low heat till thick, about 15 minutes.
8. Brush marinate over cooked chicken and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

Our 10th Wedding Anniversary

Today is our tenth wedding anniversary, can't believe it's been ten years. Right now we are relaxing on a beach in Hawaii (yes I wrote this post in advance, lol). I'm so glad we planned this trip to Hawaii. These 10 years have been amazing and I look forward to many wonderful years to come. We've dealt with our share of heartache with infertility and loss, since we started trying to get pg as soon as we got married. But we've emerged stronger than ever. I do hope that we still get our miracle one day and get the child we want more than anything. I know I'm lucky to have married my best friend and not everyone gets that amazing experience.