And to think I once thought Sloppy Joes could never be classy.  Psssssssssh, you guys these are so classy they should be featured in Anchor Man 2. Should I send a batch down to San Diego? It turns out when you mix together green onions, a little soy sauce, ginger, tomato paste, brown sugar, and grass-fed ground beef  you’re in for the tastiest, Asian inspired sandwich EVER. I say sandwich because I feel like Sloppy Joe has a negative connotation? No? Ok, Sloppy Joe it is.

If you’re like me and think Sloppy Joes are kindaaaaa gross, think again. This. recipe. will. blow. your. mind. And by mind I mean tastebuds.

You guys, are you subscribed to Real Simple magazine? Because you should be. This recipe stems from there, and I can’t tell you HOW AMAZINGLY DELICIOUS these Sloppy Joes turned out.  Actually I can tell you, because here I am typing this out and telling you right now. Duh. But seriously, every recipe I try from Real Simple always, always, always turns out to be a winner. The weeknight meals section is like the highlight of my month (I have such an exciting life),  and when I receive my  Real Simple, I get cozy on the couch and pick out which recipes I want to try. More often than not, I end up trying all five recipes they feature and am never disappointed. So there’s my Real Simple pitch and I hope I’ve convinced you.

In other news, do you hoard Asian ingredients like I do? I feel like whenever I go to the store and see a rice vinegar, low sodium soy sauce, and toasted sesame oil I just buy it. And then I come home and realize I have three bottles of each have to figure out how to use them. So if you’re a hoarder like me, always make sure you have green onions, ginger, and garlic on hand. Because that’s your trifecta for Asian infused dishes. And then make these Sloppy Joes. Oh if you have rosemary rolls put this meaty goodness between them.

Also I tried my first Diptic!

Boom.

Now go get sloppy.

Welp, this recipe would’ve been perfect for your Cinco de Mayo festivities, but here I am posting it on Ocho de Mayo. Oops. But hey, it’s salsa season so you’re going to want to make this every. single. day. until summer is over. You’re welcome. By the way, did anyone else notice how insanely cheap avocados get the week leading up to cinco de mayo? I wish they’d freeze well, I would’ve stocked up for the rest of the YEAR. I paid 49 cents per avocado. WHAT? Yeah, forty nine freaking cents you guys. I felt like it was the black friday of avocado shopping.  I don’t really get why we are ripped off the rest of the year paying triple that, but  whatever. I do it. You win grocery store, you win.

So this little avocado number is pretty darn simple. Chop the fruits and veg, and toss! I had never tried mixing pineapple and mango together in salsa, I’d always just choose one or the other. But mixing both fruits really made this unique. And tasty. So tasty. I’d eat this for dinner with a big mound of salty salty chips every night if I wasn’t trying to look my best in a wedding dress soon. And by soon I mean we haven’t even set our date yet. But I bought my dress already soooooooo is that weird?

I feel like we are totally procrastinating planning our wedding because we don’t want to actually come to grips with how much money we’ll be spending. WHY ARE WEDDINGS MINIMUM $20,000??!?!?! I’m a corporate event planner for a living so I get it, I know events are expensive. But for some reason I’m not ready to justify $20,000 on a 6 hour event that half of our family and friends will consume so much alcohol at they probably won’t remember much of it anyway.

Any and all cheap wedding ideas/non-traditional wedding ideas/wedding advice is ALL welcome in the comments.

Now go make a batch of this salsa and eat a bag of chips for me.

 Whole wheat flour + bananas + butter + agave syrup = heaven. Ok so maybe if it was real maple syrup it’d be heaven, but I’m trying to stick to healthy eats over here you guys and agave was the closest thing in my cabinets I had to the real deal. Who am I kidding, I have a jug of Log Cabin stashed deep in my pantry for emergencies. And by emergencies I mean weekends.

Anywayyyyyyssssss you like totally for realsie need to start making your pancakes with whole wheat flour. I honestly think they taste better. Like they have more depth you know? Ok pancakes can’t really have depth, but they just taste better.

Banana pancakes are my favorite, and not because Jack Johnson sings about them in his songs.  I like to use bananas that are more on the ripe side because ones that are still greenish are superrrrr gross. Sooo yeah, that was profound! But seriously, use ripe bananas. ALSO, instead of mixing the banana slices into the batter, I first pour batter onto the griddle, and then top the pancake with several slices as it’s cooking. I find the pancake cooks more thoroughly this way, and it’s easier to tell when your pancake is ready to flip. 

How do you know when your pancake is ready to flip you ask? When the bubbles on the surface start to pop. Just after popping, get your little (or big) spatula all up in that pancakes business and give it a swift flip. And that’s pancake flipping 101! You’re welcome.

I know you’re probably thinking, “doesn’t everyone know how to make pancakes? ” I would legit argue that a 4 year old could successfully make a good pancake, but I gotta say, I don’t think I knew that trick until well into college. I didn’t used to eat a ton of pancakes in my younger days, so if you’re anything like me when I was 21, these are things you need to start engraving into your brain now. Because when you graduate college, start a 9-5, and sit at a cubicle all day, perfect pancakes topped with a slab of butter, doused in globs of maple syrup, (agave syrup, agave syrup!), on the weekends for breakfast become the highlight of your week. 

Whoa that was depressing. So I guess what I’m really saying is brighten up your Saturday and Sundays with these tasty little flap jacks. 

And here we go.

This. Sandwich. It’s healthy! The first time I made this little sammy I was unaware that I’d totally fall in love with it.  But now we’re in love and now you can be too. I feel like so many chicken salads are the same, but this one has curry powder that’ll make you say whaaaaaaat. Yup, curry powder and it makes this sandwich so not boring. 

Because I buy rotisserie chickens on the reggggg (love when they’re on sale for $5!) we are always tossing chicken into whatever we’re whipping up for dinner. This recipe is super flexible and you can totally adapt it to your taste. I almost always have carrots, onion, and celery on hand (really who doesn’t), which makes this a no brainer when we are thinking of making something quick and easy for dinner. Swap out golden raisins for cranberries, butter lettuce for arugula, carrots for apples. The possibilities are endless! So you kinda have no excuse to not make it. And if you’re one of those that hates mayonaise, use greek yogurt! All the cool kids are doing it.

Oh. And. PS. I’M ENGAGEDDDD. I’m actually still totally not used to it and am calling the boyfriend, “the boyfriend,” but it’s only been a week so I’m sure fiance will catch on soon enough. Kinda like how it’s been 2013 for almost 4 months now but I’m still writing 2012? I don’t get it either. I think I’m trying to hold onto my youth, but I only just turned 26 sooooooooooooo, who knows what I’ll be saying when I’m 50?

So long story short, the boyfriend planned a fabulous proposal all without me knowing or suspecting a thing. He got all of our friends and family together for wine tasting to celebrate my birthday, and popped the question out in the beautiful vineyards of Concannon in Livermore, CA. The day was perfect, the ring is perfect, and I look forward to this next exciting chapter in our lives. Luckily, our friend was there with her awesome camera and took on the roll of paparazzi for the entire day.

Let the wedding planning begin! We are shooting for November 2013, so get ready to go through this hectic (but exciting!) process with me. Please feel free to leave any tips or tricks in the comments! It’s going to be a long 8 months guys. Ahhhhhh

Oh yeah! This chicken salad sandwich.

Some nights just need to be filled with cheesy goodness, so I’m glad you’re here to make that happen. Tonight. Or tomorrow night. Cheeeeese cheese cheese cheese cheese. Alright lets get started.

This all started when I was super duper lazy to make dinner. So we went out to eat, and then I came home and made this. No you guys, I didn’t eat TWO dinners. I made it so that I could have something to bring to work for lunch. Sheesh! But I may or may not have snuck an enchilada into my tummay the night I made these. I had to make sure they were good!

Oh, they were good. Superrrrrrr spicy though. Like it was hard to eat a full enchilada it was so spicy. But, thankfully I figured out why and I’ll steer you into a less spicier version for all of you spicy scaredy cats.

I’m not a huge red enchilada sauce fan. I mean, I won’t turn them down because of course I love a good old fashioned enchilada. But if I have the choice I’m going green. Excuse me, verde.

A lot of the ingredients in this recipe you might already have, which means one less trip to the grocery store (yay!). AND, if you don’t cover these little babies in cheese they are actually pretty healthy. Win.

Let’s just say this was a night I totally blocked out the fact that summer (aka bathing suit season) is rapidly approaching, and got a little overzealous with the cheese. Oops.

Enjoy!

Hi, I’m Dionna and I’m a rice addict. Empty calories, empty calories, empty calories. I don’t care though. This isn’t even (gasp!) brown rice, but again, I don’t care. Sometimes I just need pillowy, starchy, jasmine white rice seasoned to my liking. And this coconut rice hit. the. spot.

You know that thick coconut milk that comes from a can? Yeah, I didn’t use that for this recipe. It reminds me of sweet condensed milk and I’m not really into that. Sorry coconut milk from a can, I’m just not that into you.

You know the coconut milk that comes in a box and is near the soy and almond milk at the grocery store? Yeah, that’s more my style  (I love it in cereal!) so I used that. Now, don’t expect a burst of overpowering coconut flavor in your mouth with this rice. It’s subtle and sneaks onto your taste buds here and there with each bite. But I prefer it that way. Oh and can I just say I felt so hydrated after eating this? Ok, I didn’t really, but I’m pretty sure it has to be somewhat hydrating because that’s the whole hype over coconut water right? But this is coconut milk. Does that matter?

Feel free to top this rice with whatever herbs or spices you’d like to give it that extra oomph. I topped mine with chopped cilantro and a dash or so of marash pepper that was given to me by Suzanne Drexhage, the owner of Bartavelle Coffee & Wine Bar in Berkeley. She told me that marash pepper is pretty impossible to find in the Bay Area, and that she gets hers from a friend in New York. So I’m pretty much hoarding the little bit I have left because I’m sadly not heading to New York anytime soon. It’s SO tasty sprinkled over hard boiled eggs, avocado toast, and marcona almonds. Side note: If you’re reading this and live in New York and want to ship me some marash pepper I won’t stop you.

Sorry that was a lot of information about a spice you probably don’t care about. I almost forgot! I’m doing my very first giveaway in this post. I’m giving away a hard copy of the book “Blog, INC.: Blogging for Passion, Profit, and to Create Community” by Joy Deangdeelert Cho.

Photo by Hooray Blog

This book has taught me so much about blogging and served as a big inspiration to me when it came to revamping my food blog. So if you’re a new (or even seasoned) blogger, and want a wealth of information enter to win! Just simply leave a comment on this post about what blog you’ve started (or have always wanted to start). I will randomly choose a winner on Wednesday, March 13th (my birthday!). Good luck, and have a great weekend!

You guys, I didn’t realize how bad I needed a tan until I uploaded the picture of my hand below into Photoshop. Whoa. I. am. pale. I can’t wait until it starts heating up around here so that I can soak up the vitamin D I’ve been lacking for the past 4 months. So let’s celebrate the warm weather comin’ our way by whipping up these healthy little fish tacos!

I get a little weirded out cooking fish. Something about it raw in my kitchen, on my countertops, grosses me out. And then I’ll eat sushi. Hi, I’m crazy.

Ok but these fish tacos were super tasty. You don’t need to fry them to make them edible, and grilling them will make you feel better about how quickly bathing suit season is creeping up on us. The spices are a MUST on this one you guys. It gives the fish a perfect little crisp, and makes it so flavorful. You can substitute whatever spice rub is your favorite, but I liked this one because it had a good amount of heat to it.

By the way, how was everyone’s weekend? For the first time in forever we got to stick around our apartment and lounge. The boyfriend and I walked down to the farmer’s market, got our juice on at our favorite local juice bar, and played a little tennis. We also watched The Perks of Being a Wallflower and LOVED it! If you haven’t seen it, head straight to your grocery store’s Red Box and rent it. You won’t regret it! Unless of course you hate great movies, but that would be weird.

The weekend was incredibly relaxing until we decided to deep clean today. At least clean sheets are calling my name right now. FTW.

This recipe was derived from the “Cook This Not That” cookbook, which has kinda been my bible lately. I mean, how can you not love classic recipes like hearty lasagna and chili for way less calories? I made my salsa with pineapple instead of mangoes, so if mangoes are your thing feel free to sub it in. I had frozen pineapple in my freezer I had to use up, and thought it came out pretty amazingly.

I want to hear about your weekend! Tell me about it in the comments.

Spring, meet Asparagus.

Here in California, these yummy little green stalks come in to season right around March, and there are ENDLESS recipes to experiment with. I tend to throw poached eggs on top of almost anything I cook (see champagne risotto here), but there’s something about runny yolk and asparagus that get’s me extra excited.

This salad is simply, healthy, and seasonal. So you pretty much have no excuse to not make it. I’ll eat this once or twice a month as a light dinner so that I don’t feel guilty later when I’m scarfing down muffins, cookies, or anything else sweet. But I can’t. I WON’T. I’m in my brother’s wedding in June. I can’t have flabby arms, and I’m wearing light purple. Light. Purple.

Do you guys work out? Why am I the worst when it comes to gym motivation!? I seriously have to talk myself off the couch every. single. night. I’m blaming cable for having way too many shows I have to keep up with. So, maybe you all can be my gym motivators? LEAVE YOUR WORDS OF WISDOM IN THE COMMENTS! Puhhhlease and thanks.

Maybe cooking food and sweets and snacks for a blog isn’t helping?

But this salad. Have it tonight. And think about the gym with me.

You guys, I couldn’t stop eating these pecans.

Aren’t simple recipes just the best? These tasty little pecans just need sea salt, olive oil, and rosemary. And let me tell you, when you suddenly find out you’re going to be entertaining and having people over, this is a life saver. Because who doesn’t love a good salty handful of nuts?

Get your mind out of the gutter my friends, I know you’re giggling.

Ok but in all seriousness, make these. Even if you’re not having people over they are a great snack to have around the house, or to bring to work. They kept good for about a week for me in a tightly sealed container. But let’s be honest, they’re so good they probably won’t last longer than a week anyway.

Oh! By the way, this was my first freelance food photography job! Scene Magazine (a women’s fashion magazine in the Bay Area) commissioned me to take photos for this recipe out of the Clean Plates Cookbook by Jared Koch with Jill Silverman Hough.

So the recipe below comes from them! Enjoy =)

Is it too late for squash recipes? Well I’m still seeing them in my grocery store so stock up on the acorn squash because this. is. deliciousssssss. And healthy. Because who doesn’t want to look good in a bathing suit this summer?

I’m on a quest for 6. And I’m not talking about what the 49ers just lost on Sunday (sorry Niners fans), I’m talking about a 6 pack! Something I’ve been talking about all year now (ok it’s only February so the last month really) but I’m serious. This tummy needs fine tuning before I shimmy into a bridesmaids dress this summer for my brother’s wedding.

Did I tell you he’s getting married? He’s finally tying the knot this June in Columbus, Ohio. I’m excited. Sort of. Excited for the wedding, not excited for the plane ride. Why do I hate flying SO much? How do you all cope on long flights? I’ll be flying from good old CA, so it’s going to be a solid 5 hours of torture. But hopefully the multiple cocktails/movies stocked on my iPad will help ease my nerves.

Ok so this recipe.  It has tons of versatility, aaaand it’s kind of fun to eat. Think clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl how you scrape the sides and scoop the filling. Except minus the bread add the squash and minus the clam chowder and add the quinoa mixture. You can cut the calories on this dish even more by ditching the cheese. But the cheese makes it taste extra yummy soooo yeah. Maybe don’t do that?

Although squash can be kind of intimidating, I promise this is super simple to make. Like fool proof really. The hardest part might be cutting the squash in half. And I’m pretty sure the only requirement for knowing how to cut something in half is being over the age of 12. So you should be good!

Let me know if you try any variations of this recipe! Here are a couple of other ideas for Stuffed Acorn Squash around the web:

• Chorizo-stuffed acorn squash from Real Simple
• Roasted Acorn Squash with wild rice from Chow
• Quinoa stuffed acorn squash from Love and Lemons

And here’s the recipe for my version. Ciao!