Germany was kind of our home base while we were in Europe.
Our wonderful friends lived in the tiny town of Otterberg which was about an hour southwest of Frankfurt. Germany really is exactly how I imagined it to be…lots of stucco, brick and terra cotta roofs:
There were a few things that kind of surprised me about Germany:
-The autobahn is crazy, yet efficient…I believe our average speed was about 90mph!
-People do not drive old cars.
(Every car we saw was made within the last ten years, or maybe even less. They have super strict standards.)
-Eventhough the houses are super old, a ton of them had solar panels on their roofs.
-Wind farms are everywhere.
Our first meal in Germany consisted of Schnitzel, fried mashed potato log things, and gnocchi with a creamy gorgonzola sauce:
(don't judge.)
The oldest house in Otterberg:
Sunset:
They had an awesome bakery at the end of the street:
(I'm pretty sure we had a chocolate crossaint every day while we were abroad)
We took a day trip to Heidelberg which is where Gage and Jessica had just moved from and they said we had to see it. Heidelberg has a river that runs through it and a castle up on the hill…it really is as beautiful as everyone said it would be.
Us with Remi:
Coffee in Heidelberg:
(our first stop of course)
Kisses for Remi:
A view of the castle on the hill:
The outdoor shopping area was awesome and huge:
(Chris and I even splurged on some sweet European kicks!)
Lederhosen are sold in the department stores in Germany:
Ladyhosen:
(not the technical term, but I'm sure mine is better anyways)
Our lunch spot:
Pretzel-shaped bread:
Not the castle…just someone's house:
(no big deal)
Back at the house in Otterberg, Chris took me for a ride in Gage and Jessica's bakfiet:
He's serious about it:
(this always reminds me of Flight of the Conchords)
Jessica made a raclette dinner for us. We had no idea what it was but we were pleasantly surprised.
Raclette is in the same vein as fondue, but instead of dipping, you cover the grill with cut up veggies and sausage while your slice of raclette cheese gets warm and gooey in your little tray slot under the grill.
Once everything is cooked, you take whatever you want and put it on top of your potato, then scrape the melty cheese on top of the veggies, then you top it all with hollendaise sauce.
Not something you would eat all the time, but it was amazing and fun.
(Chris and I actually re-created this a few weeks ago with our griddle and broiler…an actual raclette grill would be so much easier but our makeshift way worked great in a pinch.)
And our last meal in Germany was a kebab salad of sorts, with the best tzatziki sauce for the dressing. It was from a little hole in the wall gyro place down the street from Gage and Jessica's house...apparently the same restaurant has a cart somewhere in Portland and I'm determined to find it.
(It's amazing we didn't come back home 50lbs heavier, but we walked everywhere for 9 days so I guess it kind of cancelled it out. The food in Europe was also a major factor for me deciding to get my gall bladder out…there's no way I would've been able to eat anything I did on our trip otherwise. Also, we never eat like this but we were on vacation!)
And because we hadn't had a true pretzel in Germany, we got one at the airport and ate it on the plane as we were taking off to head home:
(we flew out of Germany at the very end of our trip…but I still have more places to share!)
Next up: PARIS!
Stay tuned...
I've been sick all week and today I'm finally feeling back to normal.
I think the fact that the sun is out in Portland is helping.
I can't wait for the boys to wake up from their nap so we can go to the park!
Last weekend Buck started becoming super mobile, he can pretty much get to anywhere he wants by scooting on his butt. Maybe I'll try to upload a video so show you guys because it's the cutest thing ever.
So happy to be at his toy box:
Friday night we took Bennett to The Old Spaghetti Factory and he loved it.
(what kid doesn't)
The balloon man came to our table and made him a train and he got an Itallian soda and ice cream.
I'm pretty sure he thought it was the best night ever:
Saturday morning we hosted a brunch birthday party for my mom.
Our house is pretty small and we literally have to pull chairs from every room in the house when we have a big group over, but it works and no one seems to mind.
How cute is my grandpa Leo:
Buck loves puffs so much and they always get stuck to his face.
It never gets old:
Speaking of Buckley, he's getting huge:
He turned 9 months on Sunday!
Bennett also got his first
Kiwi Crate over the weekend:
We have only done one of the projects so far, but Bennett loved it.
(and he especailly loved getting a package in the mail)
Look at his cute little playground for his puppy:
(kind of dorky I know, but kids love this stuff)
Earlier this week I made my first ever chicken pot pie:
(I used this recipe and used a lot of suggestions in the comments and it turned out so good!)
and these were my tiny valentines yesterday:
Happy Friday Friends!
I promise I'm not going to make a habit out of posting these things at the end of the week, but I'm also not going to beat myself up if I do. It is what it is.
Last weekend was great, but Bennett had a fever for about 4 days.
I'm not even surprised anymore when someone gets sick.
All I can do is laugh at our sicky-streak and give them lots of cuddles...movies don't hurt either.
Thursday we got a little snow:
Buck turned 8 months:
(so crazy!)
Friday was grocery shopping day:
Chris and I grabbed food at New Seasons for date night:
(I could probably eat there every night.)
After dinner we went to Washington Square to spend some giftcards from Christmas.
(How romantic of us.)
Saturday morning Bennett woke up with awesome bed head and a 103 fever:
We took it easy all day and watched a family movie after dinner:
(bro time)
I tore out our hydrangea:
(The first of our landscaping adventures. We are hoping to put in an awesome new gate this spring.)
Sunday these guys were being cute at breakfast:
We went to the toy store with a
Chinook Book coupon, which I set in the car seat with my phone for a couple minutes while I decided what to get.
Then Buckley ate it:
(I had to pull it out his mouth. He had eaten all of the vital information out of the center of it. Luckily, they still took it.)
Sunday morning we all got our hair done by our friend Lindsey and we took a silly mustache picture:
This clearly wasnt part of last weekend, but last night I made fettuccine alfredo, except the sauce is mostly made with veggie or chicken broth and pureed cauliflower.
I didn't have very high expectations but it was so good:
Everyone is healthy and the sun is shining...
Happy Friday Friends!
One of my favorite things is finding a new recipe that we all love and is healthy. A meal that meets that criteria immediately gets put into our regular dinner rotation. Now that it's cooler out, I'm not afraid to turn on the stove/oven so I've been cooking a lot more comfort food (and who doesn't like comfort food?!).
Also, it's been forever since I've shared my recent favorite recipes!
Here are a few meals I think your should try out asap:
Roasted Zucchini, Black Bean and Goat Cheese Enchiladas
I have been making a creamy chicken enchilada for forever, but wanted to find a healthier alternative.
I tried these ones out (with the TJ's enchilada sauce) and they were so good that Chris said he didn't even miss the old ones (his all-time favorite meal) and now wants me to make these every week!
Cashew Pesto Pizza
We love pesto and homemade pizza, so a while back I tried out this recipe
(that just so happens to be my friend Elizabeth's own recipe) which uses cashews instead of the traditional pine nuts for the pesto 'sauce'.
The cashews give the pesto so much flavor, I will never use pine nuts again!
Oven Baked Chicken Fajitas
If we've had you over in the last couple of months, chances are this is what I made. I have turned on the oven on hot summer days in order to make these fajitas and it is SO worth it! I add strips of zucchini because I am obsessed with it and must add it to everything.
Top with avocado, greek yogurt and a squeeze of lime.
Peperonata Sandwich
I made these for the first time a couple of days ago.
Super tasty.
Sandwiches definitely don't need meat to taste good!
(especially when there's crusty bread)
Black Bean, Sweet Potato and Quinoa Chili
This chili on top of TJ's cornbread mix on a cold day is dangerously good.
Black Bean and Veggie Baked Potatoes
Baked potatoes are the ultimate comfort food.
These are really tasty, while still being nutritious.
Pan Seared Honey-Glazed Salmon with Browned Butter Lime Sauce
Everyone needs to try this recipe.
There are a lot of steps in the prep but it comes together quicky and easily.
Probably the best salmon I've ever had!
(I know that butter sauce isn't the healthiest but you only need a tiny bit to get the full effect)
I haven't tried these next two recipes but they are on the menu next and they sound so good!
Double Bean Burgers with Avocado Basil Cream Sauce
Sweet Potato Burgers
Also, I made
veggie sloppy joes lastnight and was reminded of why they are one of our favorite meals!
Okay that's it for now.
Do you guys have a favorite recipe you can wait to heat the house up with?
