triple f

family, food, and fun.

 that sums up the holidays for me.  my annual company Christmas party went down last weekend at my boss's home.

he and his wife ALWAYS throw down, always. i didn't even get a pic of the buffet table:( but just know that i made 4 trips to it.  these snacks and desserts were on the kitchen island.

homemade chocolate and vanilla cake balls :shock:  so rich and decadent.

posin' by the tree with Sonny.

my lovely homie & co-worker, Monica, makes THE best vegan pumpkin pie i have ever tasted and i'll love her forever for sharing the recipe!  you should make it for Christmas- i know i am.  thank you, Monicaaaaa

Monica's Vegan Pumpkin Pie

the stuff:

• 10 oz silken tofu
• 1 can pure pumpkin
• 3/4 cup maple sugar*
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ginger
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp vanilla

do this:

MIX! then pour into your pie pan and cook for 45-50 min on 350 deg. keep an eye on it as cooking times and temps vary per oven. you can even go crustless with this- it's up to you.  and no, nobody will EVER know there's tofu in there long as you zip your lips :shock:

for 1/8 slice:

gotta love those stats!  i added a layer of cool whip and crumbled a few sheets of graham cracker on top after the pie was done. did NOT miss the crust one bit.  i'll take pics when i make it again for Christmas.

*tip per Monica: you can switch our your sweeteners and do granulated stevia, honey, agave nectar, etc...you choose your favorite one.  just convert your amounts and adjust your nutritional stats accordingly.

this man clearly took advantage of his off-season diet :lol:

fast forward.  who had a Chiso-less date night recently? we diiiiiiid!  i had seen this mexican restaurant countless times and finally paid Diego's Cantina a visit.  why does my hand look SO BIG?

they seated us by this big bay window and even though it was night time, the view of the lake behind us was excellent.  just across the water was the hospital where Chiso was born.  we just can't escape him. LOL.

as if we hadn't already eaten like 3 baskets of chips and salsa, Sonny ordered nachos for our appetizer :roll:

nachos mayas: crisp corn tortillas topped with refried black beans, creamy lump crabmeat, mozzarella, jalapeños, served with guacamole, sour cream and pico de gallo. mucho points for presentation!  yummy? YES.

Sonny got the lamb chops:  grilled marinated lamb rib chops with queso oaxaca topped with tomato and chili guajillo sauce served with nopales, onions and grilled corn.

and i got the mahi mahi.  when the waitress came over to check on us, she gave my plate a puzzled look and said 'wow, it looks so different without the sauce!'  i'm guessing it's normally submerged in it *shrugs*.  anyway, the sauce tasted like lime garlic butter and was fantastic.  however, i want to be in control of how much goes on my plate, please and thank you!  per the menu: grilled mahi filet marinated in garlic and butter on a bed of grilled vegetables and sautéed spinach, served with a pineapple papaya avocado pico-de-gallo with wine butter sauce drizzled on top.

mine came with a side, so i got the sweet potato mash.  they added raisins to  it which was new to me.  a good new. then we ended the night at our fro-yo spot....it's only right.

my usual sugar-free vanilla and chocolate fro yo with sprinkles, chocolate chips, and whipped cream.

what, more sweets? yep! our last date of the weekend was @ Brios for  my cousin Kandice's birthday dinner. Sprinkles cupcakes were in the building. yesssssssssssssssss.

cupcakes make me dance too :lol: HAPPY BIRTHDAY my love!

red. velvet.

family foto of the evening with my boys.

gumbo and bbq tilapia recipes are headed your way!  nite.

le

dirty & flirty 30

my husband is an event planner by nature.  im so thankful that he ultimately just wants to make me happy, but i really think he enjoys doing this stuff.  i don't, but i'll do it for him. <3

good friday, april 6th

Sonny surprised me with a lunch time visit- he brought along our little one and together with my coworkers they walked in with *drumroll* sprinkles cupcakes!  well let's start this thang off right then!

 i had not been eating processed sugar for the last two weeks and i was SO READY TO INDULGE, yall aren't hearing me. 

my coworker/sweet friend Monica whipped out another bag which contained a vegan red velvet cupcake just for me! i gave the other red velvets to my team to devour.

 had i not known it was vegan, well, i wouldn't know the difference! it was just as moist and delicious.  i have to 'trick' Sonny like that sometimes...if don't say anything at all, he doesn't even notice he's eating healthier.  anyway, i'm loving vegan desserts right now and i plan to make my own in the near future.

s/n- who eats a cupcake like this??  Sonny turns his upside down first cause icing is equivalent to mac n cheese or oatmeal to him. it's that texture thing again.

however it's still a waste of good sugar, SMH.  moving on!

the big day...saturday, april 7th

the dirty (am):

i was excited to hear the word 'fitness' cause that's what i do every saturday morning- go burn some calories. however, before the fitness part,  we drove to a great brunch at Barnaby's Cafe (nope, didn't know we were going here either but soooo glad we did.)

 

my eyes were immediately drawn to 'green eggs' on the menu.  egg whites, spinach, and fontina cheese. im so predictable, i know.  i switched out my wheat toast for a pancake.  the eggs came with smoked apple sausage, potatoes, and a side of fruit.

 great choice, highly recommended, YES, we will be back.

on to the fun-  rock climbing and basketball at my gym!  i'm aaaaaall about activity- i love this kinda stuff.  i actually joked about a rock climbing party weeks ago via a facebook post and i see he rolled with it.  it really was a desire of my heart, deep down!

once at the gym, i thought it would be just us two and rocks.   little did i know that Sonny had invited some of my friends along who were there waiting just around the corner.  they all walked back to where we were to find me sprawled on the floor looking quite foolish and doing what?  making 'snow angels' in the recycled tires.  i made that waaaaaay too easy for everybody, especially Sonny.

everyone climbed up solo at least once, then we did some relay races.  after that, it was onto the bball courts for some more guys vs girls 'drills'.

after all that hard fun, we dined on some true party food- pizza and cake!

the cake was made to mimic my fav shoes- my nike free run 2s!! very nice touch:) thanks, Din! 

and what's a gym party without some lululemon!? i'm slowly building my lulu wardrobe. it's gonna take a while though, lol.

my friends were sore the next day but they were SUCH good sports and i love them to pieces for doing something different and celebrating with me.

one last shot with my balloons before heading out.

the flirty (pm):

Sonny then took me to get my wig split, finally! my bun needed a lot of love.  afterwards, he told me to get ready to break out the dress that i spent three long weeks looking for.

extreme makeover!  i know i live in gym clothes but i do like to get fancy every now and then when the occasion calls for it!

After being blindfolded in the car (i did my best to figure it out though 'ok, he turned left here, drove for 2 miles, turned left, etc.' but yeah i eventually lost it.  we ended up here though:

my family and a few close friends were waiting in the veranda for us!  i have become an emotional MONSTER ever since i got preggo because crying over something sappy is something i just didn't do.  i guess my hormones are still out of wack cause i shed a few tears of joy upon seeing my family :)  after some hugs, hor devoures, and pictures, our waiter led us to Masraff's wine cellar where we enjoyed an amazing private dinner.

Sonny got the soup, so i got the salad.

Sonny got the pork chop, so i got the swordfish.

i wanted to taste everything!!!! every bite of either entrée was fantastic.

the chilled beet salad on top and the veggies were fresh and crisp, and the polenta was filled will cheesy, savory, yuminess.  one fork full of each element was simply DIVINE.

yep, that good. no shame.

 CHOCOLATE CAKE. then, more dessert! why not!?

you already know which dessert Sonny picked...the chocolate.  once you pierced it with your utensil, chocolate ganache oozed out of the cake.

a halved pear was used to hold the sweet, creamy creme brulee custard- first time i've ever eaten it that way.  they were both delicious, and i definitely appreciate the portion sizes. (especially after that, pizza, shoe cake, and slice of chocolate cake, lol)

the only bad thing about this day is that it had to end :(

i have relived my birthday, every day, for the past two weeks and counting.  i thank God for blessing me to see my 30th.  a gigantic THANK YOU, yet again, to my dear husband, as well as my family and friends for sharing this special day with me.  thank YOU for reading!

le