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~Krista, Jeni & Dayl

It’s a Salsa Party!

It is possible that there are better things in life than fresh, homemade salsa.  Possible, but unlikely.

You might think that Southern California is the land of beaches and movie stars, but really, it is the land of burritos and salsa bars.  It is all about the salsa around here.  I’ve had some amazing salsa at some amazing places, but none compare to my dad’s grilled salsa…  None.  I think he got the recipe from a friend way back, and ever since he has perfected the wonderful tomato-ey, spicy, warm, tangy, cilantro-ey flavor that makes the perfect, perfect salsa.

I am a gardener, and I have a friend, Bruce, who is a KILLER gardener who grows a bazillion pounds of tomatoes every summer (I grow a moderate amount).  So when the tomatoes are ripe, we all get together with my parents and have an annual salsa making party.  Well, this was the second annual, but who’s counting?

It is a super fun time, with lots of margaritas and mariachi music (essential, but unlisted ingredients in any serious salsa recipe).

Here are a few pics, and of course, the recipe.

Most of our tomatoes were home grown.  The tomatoes were Early Girl, and Magnum tomatoes.  We used jalapeño, habañero, serrano, poblaño, and anaheim chiles.

This is my dad- Gary of Gary’s Grilled Salsa- I think he’s squeezing a lime here.

Here I am, hard at work.

Our assembly for the salsa- small batch by small batch my dad added ingredients in the blender, and combined it all- in the (well scrubbed) outdoor sink!

We had I think 80-90 pounds of tomatoes! The gas grill was joined by the old Weber.

The finished product. Now that’s spicy.

Gary’s Grilled Salsa

30 lbs of tomatoes for 8 to 10 quarts of salsa.

12 habañero peppers

12 jalapeños

16 mild relleno peppers (about 2 per quart)

10 – 12 tomatillos

2-4 bunches of cilantro

3 yellow or white onions (raw)

20 good size garlic cloves – raw (about 2 to 3 per quart)

10 limes

Lots of kosher salt

Roast or grill the tomatoes, tomatillos and peppers until they’re really cooked and the skin is black… but don’t let the peppers burn up.

Make it as you go, filling each blender full like a  batch of salsa.  Add grilled tomatoes, peppers, raw cilantro, onions, garlic and squeeze 2 lime halves in each blender full.  Salt each batch to taste while it’s blending.  Pour all the batches together into one large bowl, and stir it all together and taste for seasoning.

Depending upon how spicy you want it you can use more or less havañero peppers and jalapeño peppers.

This recipe is a guideline- and is a flexible, but great start to making grilled salsa.

Enjoy!

-Jeni

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Tadpoles and Wine.

Hood River gets all of the attention and rightly so.  However,  the Washington side of the Gorge is perfect for a day in the sun with your kiddos.   My son and I love hiking at Catherine Creek.  It is twenty minutes east of Hood River and very kid friendly.   The terrain is open and not very steep.  There are many trails to choose from and plenty of opportunities to throw rocks into a creek or build rock art.  But the best keep secret is the frog ponds.  Slimy, mucky wonderful frog ponds.  This time of year you can see frog eggs, tadpoles and listen for frog songs.  There is slime to pick up with sticks and waterskippers observe.  It’s the perfect spot for a junior biologist.  If that’s not enough, every time I go there I have seen eagles and osprey in abundance.  Best of all, it can be cloudy and raining in Portland and sunny, sunny at Catherine Creek.  Worth the hour and 20 minute drive, wouldn’t you say?   If you think that sounds fun, it gets better.  Just down the road is several fabulous wineries.  Now Mama get her treat.  Syncline (YUMMMM),  Cor and Domian Pouillion are just short jaunt from Catherine Creek.  I like to start with Domian Pouillion and end at Syncline Winery.  Syncline has wine by the glass  and has a lovely area to have a picnic.    The wine makers at Syncline have children of their own and the tasting room is kid friendly.  Plus they have chickens, tractors and a friendly dog.

If you are still hungry and thirsty, Solstice Pizza in Bingen and Everybody’s Brewing in White Salmon are both terrific.  The food and beer at Everybody’s is outstanding.  The deck at Everybody’s has a view of Mt.  Hood.  Solstice has a small kids area and a good menu as well.

So the next time you need an adventure,  head east of Hood River and enjoy sun, wine and fun for the whole family.

Go Play Outside,

Dayl

Directions:

From Portland, drive east on I-84 to Hood River. Cross the Hood River Bridge and turn right on Washington Highway 14. Drive through Bingen and continue about 4 1/2 miles to Old Highway 8. Turn left on Old Highway 8, which is also County Road 1230. Drive east on this road  for about 1 1/2 mile to the trailhead.  To find the frog ponds, take the trail to the left on the north side of the Hwy.  To play in the creek, head up the trail on the right.   Have a kid in a stroller, no problem.  There is a paved trail on the south side of the road. 

The wineries are off the Old Hwy 8.  To get better directions, refer to www.columbiagorgewine.com

Icebreaker Friends and Family Sale Today!

You know I love Icebreaker products, right? I do! They’re awesome, and here’s why.

There’s another friends and family sale today, and I’m hoping to make it there to pick up some more essential fitness attire.

Here are the details:

Project Earth Day Ivy Pull in Washington Park

I’m a tree hugger!

Seriously, since my childhood camping in the woods on a regular basis with  my family, I’ve developed a deep and abiding love of trees and nature. So naturally when I saw that Kalso Earth Shoes was awarding community service project scholarships for Earth Day, I wanted to apply and do something great for trees.

Several of my coworkers at Oregon Zoo are raising awareness and funds for Acres for the Atmosphere, which has the goal of planting more trees to combat climate change. Climate change, of course, being the biggest threat to polar bears.

Photo courtesy City of Portland, No Ivy League. The No Ivy League hosts ivy removal projects on the first and third Saturdays of every month. Take the kids!

But instead of planting more trees, I’ve decided to rally around the removal of ivy. I love planting trees – it provides instant gratification! In fact, I’ve been a crew leader, volunteer and board member for Friends of Trees.

But so many of our existing, big giant trees in Portland are being suffocated by invasive English ivy. Ivy in Oregon is devastating and inexorable. Pulling ivy is hard work. Which is why we need to draw more attention to it, and rally people to fight for our urban forests!

So here’s my plan:

WHAT • Ivy removal in Washington Park: “girdle” as many trees as possible!

WHEN • Wednesday, April 18, 3 – 5 p.m.  (I chose this time because most zoo keepers get off work at 3:30, plus kids are out of school. Also, who doesn’t want a good excuse to get out of work early – for those that work until 5?)

WHO • Specific target will be all the staff of the attractions around Washington Park (Oregon Zoo, Children’s Museum, World Forestry Center, Hoyt Arboretum, Japanese Garden, International Rose Test Gardens, City of Portland). Anyone else who can take an hour to come help, plus my kids, your kids, their kids!

HOW • Gather equipment in a central location. Keep a trainer to orient people as they drop in to give instruction and send them to work sites.

COMMUNICATION • insert into employee newsletters of above institutions, targeted online advertising, and earned media via press release to local papers, television and radio stations. Email to neighborhood associations surrounding Washington Park to invite neighbors to join.

AFTER PARTY, 5 – 7 p.m. • Approach local restaurant (Sylvan Steakhouse!) to co-host an after party to celebrate our success – which should help encourage more volunteers!

 

I really believe that most people want to do good for our community, but often we don’t know where to start, or our good intentions just turn into delayed action until nothing happens. By providing this Earth Day opportunity, Kalso Earth Shoes and I will give people a fun and direct way to help wildlife habitats, and the planet itself! I know I am looking forward to pulling some ivy with my family!

 

Thanks to Leah Segedie and Mamavation for making me aware of this opportunity!

Rebirth of the Fairy Garden {Wordless Wednesday}

Special Event Makeup, #MomStyle!

Thanks to Walgreens for underwriting this post. I was paid as a member of the Clever Girls Collective, but the content is all mine. Visit http://www.discoverbeautywithin.com/.

Back in the day – before kids – I had the luxury of spending hours getting ready for special events with my friends. We’d all gather at someone’s house or a hotel room, and do our hair and makeup together, consult on attire and jewelry, drink Champagne… basically starting the party mid-day!

Now that I’m a working mom, I don’t often have that much time before a big night out. I’m either getting ready before the babysitter comes (aka, with kids hanging off me), or rushing home to get ready after dropping the kids off with my folks. Or like this past weekend, I had exactly 45 minutes between getting home from work and when the school auction started.

Here’s how I get fabulous special event makeup when I don’t have much time:

1. Start the day with a fairly neutral base. This makes it easier to add on some drama right before the event. I’m not one to go the whole day without makeup {shudder}, so keeping it neutral gives me some polish during the day, but I’m not competing with the “base” when getting ready for going out.

Emerald green on the lids and crease, with a more olivey-green added in the crease for depth. Oh, and wrinkles.

2. Play with color! I love all the advertisements for bright, colorful smokey eyes, but since I’m old not in my early 20s, I’ve never felt like that was an appropriate look for me in everyday life. But an evening out is a perfect time to play with color, and it’s high-impact! Especially with only about 5 minutes to take my look from daytime to evening, a couple swipes of bright color go a long way!

3. Stock up in advance on some fun, inexpensive eyeshadows in fun colors. I buy the crazy colors at the drug store because they are so well-priced! I can be more adventurous in choosing colors when I’m not spending an arm and a leg for each one.

Smokin' eyes! I pulled the eyeliner and shadow pretty far out beyond my actual eye to make it more dramatic for evening and pictures. A couple extra swipes of mascara finished off the look.

4. Go darker than you think you should. Most of us aren’t photographed often in our everyday lives, but at special events, everyone has their cameras out. I make everything just a little bit darker than I think I should, and it pays off in the photos. I pay particular attention to my eyes, as I think they are my best feature.

Me at the auction with my beautiful friend (and one of my running buddies!) Annie.

5. At the end of the night, absolutely positively remove all your makeup. I know people who never remove their makeup before going to bed. Do you WANT to lose your eyelashes? It’s more important than ever to remove it all when you have dark colors on unless you want to wake up looking like a raccoon with ruined pillowcases! I use Neutrogena oil-free eye makeup remover, which works really quickly and efficiently.

Here are a few silly pics of us (my running buddies and good friends, Annie & Mary)  in the photo booth…

That’s the wrong protein powder! {#Mamavation Monday}

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m running a LOT these days. I’m determined not to get injured again – last year, I had some crazy sh*t going down with my piriformis, which caused my whole pelvis to get out of alignment. It was so bad, I was pronating on one foot, and supinating on the other!

I’ve been feeling some serious tightness around my hip again, so I’m stretching like crazy – pigeon pose, anyone? – and eating an anti-inflammation diet. Mostly.

The basics of the anti-inflammation diet are this:

Eat mostly foods that fight inflammation in your body (dark leafy greens, strawberries, blueberries, fish)

Eat only limited amounts of neutral foods (rice)

Avoid foods that cause inflammation (meat, dairy, corn, wheat, potatoes, alcohol, caffeine)

Not so hard, right? It really isn’t, actually. I have to be honest that I haven’t even attempted to give up alcohol and caffeine. But I’ve made some simple tweaks to rest of my usual diet, and lost 2 pounds in one week! Here’s a typical day:

Breakfast: scrambled eggs, black beans and guacamole {super filling and tasty!}

Snack: Instead of Laughing Cow Light on a rice cake, I use almond butter. The almond butter is ground fresh at Winco – the kind that comes in a jar usually has extra ingredients, like palm oil and sugar. Not necessary! But check this out! The Laughing Cow container is perfect for carting around a rice cake without it crumbling into pieces!

I feel so smart for my clever transport!

Lunch: same as usual: salad & veggies, and since I’ve been eating more fish at dinner, I put some on my salad.

Snack: veggies with guacamole or hummus.

Dinner: fish, rice, salad and/or veggies.

BUT! I had a horrible realization. I’m avoiding dairy (except a little bit of cream in my morning coffee!), yet my protein powder is whey. It’s important to me to have a little protein shake before my 5:30 am runs. When I don’t get that burst of fuel before a run, I really slog through it. I don’t know why I didn’t realize that whey is dairy, but DUH.

I’ll keep eating the anti-inflammation foods the rest of the day, but as soon as I use up all that whey protein powder, I’m looking for an alternative that isn’t on my “avoid” list.  Someone suggested hemp protein, but all the reviews on Amazon say it tastes like dirt.

Does anyone have a favorite non-dairy protein powder I should try?

The One Where I Embarrassed Myself On “Casual Friday”

This series is brought to you by Levi’s® Curve ID. Find your custom fit at Levi’s® stores or Levi.com

It was 1995, and I was working at a PR firm. Our new client, Starbucks, had flown me and my colleague up to Seattle to participate in an extensive brainstorming workshop and “coffee school.” I was so excited, and thrilled to be included. Starbucks had regional PR firms all over the country, and about 12 of us reps were at this workshop. What an honor, right? Day three was a Friday, and our “handler” had assured us that “Casual Friday” would be in effect.

Let me remind you about fashion for a 26 year old in 1995. Friends had been on the air for a good year, and had practically become a way of life.

So yeah. I wore overalls to casual Friday at my big client. With the hotshot PR folks from New York, Chicago and Atlanta. Granted, I had a cute neck scarf – no plain t-shirt for me. But oh, the horror. Everyone was – of course! – in khakis and capris. One gal actually said to me, “Wow! You really took ‘casual’ Friday seriously!” My only consolation – which I tried to OWN, DAMNIT – was that I was the youngest person there by a few years and should be granted some fashion leeway. But my goodness, I didn’t wear denim again for years. I’m still mortified when I think about it.

I swore to err on the side of overdressed rather than underdressed from then on. And I don’t think I ever wore those overalls again! Today, even Levi’s is marketing a cute new set of overalls, but I can’t bring my self to go there. Maybe I’m just too old or too scarred to participate in that trend again.

I’m comfortable wearing denim now, but I tend style my jeans on the dressier side, even when running errands with the kids on the weekends.

My ideal jeans weekend style, whether I’m going to a movie with the kids, grocery shopping, or hosting a playdate: Dark-wash jeans, highish heels, anything other than a t-shirt, and a cashmere sweater wrap. My favorite jeans are mid-rise, straight leg with a dark wash. They are very flattering, I can wear them with anything, and I keep the hem long so I can wear them with heels. Yes, heels on the weekend. That’s what keeps my jeans from being too casual! I always aim for a pop of color, too. I’m loving tangerine lately, although I tend to choose green a LOT. Here’s my typical weekend uniform:

Style my jeans: weekends by kristaswan featuring slim straight leg jeans

Do you ever worry about jeans being too casual? Am I the only weirdo who is afraid of being underdressed again? I want to see how you style your jeans, and/or your best mortifying story of being inappropriately dressed!!

~Krista

I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do.