Valentine's Day 2013

The day before Valentine's Day Mark comes home and says:

"I've got all three meals planned for tomorrow."

"All three? Why?" I ask.

"For Valentine's Day." He exclaimed.

This took me by surprise because up to this point we hadn't even so much as mentioned the holiday. I was/am ok not celebrating. Was I aware Valentine's Day was the next day? Yes. Was I hoping and praying for flowers, chocolates, or a card? No. His announcement made me giddy nonetheless. Anytime he goes out of his way to do something nice is always appreciated.

So I asked what we were doing for breakfast and he told me we would be eating downtown. I inquired as to where we would be eating and he sent the following text:

Cute, right?

Valentine's Day morning I went into work early to make sure we would have time to meet up. Luckily, I correctly deciphered the text and we headed to the Classic Cookie Company for some sugary goodness. I was excited because we had talked about going since Mark first noticed the place a few months prior. In the morning they have muffins, but in the afternoon they have cookies. What's not to love?!

Restaurant Review: Heidi's

Have I mentioned before how much we love going to brunch around here? The multitude of choices at reasonable prices, its like the best of both worlds. Our friends Ben and Angie also enjoy brunching so we sometimes meet up for a double date. One Sunday morning this Fall we all met at Heidi's on my "suggestion" as a place to try out (I will have to give props to Mpls - St Paul Magazine for the heads up).

Being smart we decided to go on a Sunday morning in hopes that it wasn't too crowded. Score one of us, it wasn't! After we were seated everyone (except me) ordered bottomless coffee, reminding us of college when people would drive 45 minutes to the nearest Perkin's at 11 pm at night and do the same thing. To put into perspective as to why anyone would drive that far that late for coffee: We went to college in a small town where everything closed at 8 pm. Got it? Thought so.

Back to Heidi's, after receiving our drinks the waiter brought us out Banana Muffins with whipped salted butter on the house! You heard that right: On. The. House. Just because. Score two for us. They were delicious to say the least. The tops were as crisp and sweet as muffin tops get, and the middle was chewy and full of banana flavor. I'm not sure what kind of salt they use in their butter but that butter was AMAZING!

Garlic Shrimp Pasta

This is the kind of dinner you're thankful for turning out. This is the kind of dinner that you pull out of your ass because its 7 o'clock and all you have in front of you is thawed shrimp. This is the kind of dinner that makes you want to blog it for the next time your ill prepared.

I know this isn't anything new or inspired, but its just what we needed after a long day. Not to mention, it was the perfect dish to break in our new 12 inch All-Clad skillet!

Isn't she a beauty?

Retail price: $180.

Store price: $99.

Final price after using $50 gift card: $57.

Who's winning at life now Charlie?

I'm done now.

Chocolate - Peanut Butter Oatmeal (Stovetop Version)

Want a breakfast that tastes a whole lot like a no-bake cookie? I'm talking the ones that pop up around Christmas time and consist of oats, cocoa powder, butter, peanut butter, and sugar. Those have always been one of my favorites. So imagine my delight when I unexpectedly bit into its breakfast-y doppelgänger after making up measurements of ingredients in my head hoping for something edible. 

I like to think this version is a bit healthier, as it contains just a smidgen of oil (its optional at that) and not too much sugar. I was in a hurry, so I used pb2 (powdered peanut butter) instead of regular peanut butter. You can certainly use regular peanut butter, it will probably just be a little harder to incorporate. Dollops of peanut butter floating around a bowl of hot oats? Nothin' wrong with that!

Just as a side note: the longer you let it sit, the thicker it gets but its delicious either way.

Chocolate - Peanut Butter Oatmeal (Stovetop Version)

Serves 1

Ingredients:

1 cup milk of choice (I used Almond Breeze: Almond Coconut. Has anyone else tried it? Addicted, I am!)

Pinch of salt

1/2 cup oats

2 tablespoons pb2*

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1 teaspoon coconut oil, optional

2 tablespoons maple syrup

Directions:

Combine milk and salt in a saucepan and heat over medium heat. Once it starts boiling add oats, pb2, cocoa powder, and coconut oil; stir to combine.

Cook for 3-5 minutes, or until desired consistency. Remove from heat and stir in maple syrup.

Pour into a bowl and serve.

Enjoy :)

If you want a more peanut butter-y oat breakfast, check this recipe out!