Soufflé Pancakes & It’s Finally Autumn!

Hey, everyone! I am trying to get us all caught up before a super busy (and fun) week ahead 🙂 This morning is a three cups of coffee type of day, but I’m resisting considering I have to get up at 4 am tomorrow morning. Wish meh luck…. sometimes I wonder how I did that on a regular basis for over a year. I think we left off right after Thanksgiving!

November 23rd was a day of utter relaxation for DJ and me. I used to love Black Friday shopping, but now that online shopping is available I would much rather do it from my home than fight the masses. I ran a few errands and then we had a Thanksgiving Round 2 with all our leftovers in the evening (you can see those in the Friday Faves post).

November 24th DJ and I woke up early, went to our local Target, and then grabbed some Starbucks. I still have to try their new holidays drinks. Anyone try the Juniper Latte yet?

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After breakfast I enjoyed a nice long run on a my-kind-of-Saturday-morning grey day!! It actually finally feels like Autumn now. Leaves are falling, I repeat- the leaves are falling!

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After working on some school work I was in a mood for a movie. I am never in the mood for a movie at home, but for some reason nothing sounded better that evening. I usually can’t sit still that long, but I was so exhausted after all the festivities, and with the warm Christmas tree up it all sounded perfect. We chose Manchester by the Sea. About twenty minutes into it we turned it off- it was too depressing for the mood we were in. Instead, we tried Crazy Rich Asians, which I had heard raving reviews about. It was a good movie, we enjoyed it- but were sad they portrayed Christians in a such poor light, yet again, through the Hollywood lens :/.

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Sunday morning of the 25th before church we tried out Koja Kitchen. DJ and I have been drooling over pictures of these soufflé pancakes for a couple months. After our experience at Cafe Jacqueline, anything with the word “soufflé” is calling our names! Within this last couple weeks just started selling them at this particular location by our apartment… serendipitous I do say!

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DJ had their mixed berries ones, and there was not a trace left within a couple minutes. Rarely does DJ rave about food in the way I do, but he couldn’t stop talking about how wonderful these were!

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And I concurred. My matcha mascarpone ones were next level fluffy, yummy deliciousness!!! These are crave worthy- the texture & flavor is everything. I don’t know how soufflé pancakes aren’t a staple for all breakfast spots. They are just phenomenal.

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You can see in this video just how fluffy they are when you cut into them…

After church I enjoyed a shorter run soaking up the beautiful day.

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November 26th I went on a nice walk before finishing up my massive paper for the semester. Woohooo!

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On Wednesday November 28th I just continued to truck along with the school work with a run squeezed in between.

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In the evening I posted a whole bunch of stuff on Poshmark and sold a few items. That always feels so satisfying, especially when you sell something that has just been sitting in the closet for a while!

Thursday the 29th was the same ole’, same ole’ for us with school and work, but in the evening I made more of the mac and cheese recipe from Thanksgiving! My goal is to figure out a vegan version of this. But for now- bring on the dairy!

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I classify this as “cry food”: Food so good you get emotional and may even feel the urge to cry tears of joy.

Friday November 30th I went to a new hair salon and had my roots fixed from the fiasco of the last lady now that I’ve nursed it back to health somewhat. I loveeed how it turned out, I paid about half the price as the other place, and definitely spent half the time in the chair. I am so stinkin’ excited about this… y’all know I’ve had a difficult hair journey since moving here, so I’m glad to have found somewhere affordable and high quality! I loved my stylist too- she’s so sweet, fun to chat with & knowledgable.

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We decided to have a formal date night for the first time in a long time! We have been kinda all over the place with work/school/etc. this last few months, so our attempt at a weekly date has fallen to the wayside (although we could consider our weekend breakfast tour a date day I suppose!).

We received a coupon from Steins to try out their new menu. If you’ve been following along for a while this place probably looks familiar. We were excited to try it out!

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I am always skeptical about a soft pretzel since trying the one at Deschutes in Portland. That one was just too good & has ruined every soft pretzel since- nothing ever comes close! However, this one was solid. Not as good still- but close, especially with the dipping sauces of caraway beer mustard, pub cheese, & tomato jam!

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Gotta get those truffle fries!! The lemon aioli they are served with is the most heavenly aioli everrrr.

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We tried their creamed spinach too- and was pleasantly surprised how good this was! Typically steakhouses are the ones with the best creamed spinaches, but this is up there for sure.

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DJ had their chicken tenders with their super spicy hot sauces. Mmm mm! I used some of the hot sauces for dipping too. DJ said these are some top notch tenders.

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I tried their vegan cauliflower & garbanzo bean vegan dish paired with a cold glass of Pinot Grigio (perfect combo). This dish is supposed to serve three people, but when in marathon training….lol.

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The dish was… fine. I wouldn’t order it again, probably will go for the fish next time- but it was still satisfying & is a great vegan option for those that are strictly vegan!

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We came home, watched Arrested Development, and crashed.

On the morning of Saturday December 1st (How is it December?!), we had to go back to Koja…… the cravings were REAL.

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This time I tried their Tokyo caramelized banana option! It was tasty, but I still prefer the matcha mascarpone. DJ had the mixed berries again.

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I had a great long run of 16.75 miles after that carb load. I studied the entire time on the treadmill because it was raining outside. I made a solid dent in the books & actually felt better than I thought after the run. In the evening we had all our leftovers, and I spent the rest of the day resting the legs and blogging.

Yesterday, December 2nd, we went to an awesomeeee church service, then I did the first 20 minutes(ish) of this Youtube HITT routine. I ran some errands and then stopped by my friend Sara’s to wish her a happy bday. I worked on school work for a few hours, spent on hour talking to SheIn customer service (do not order from them- it’s not worth it), and last, to round off a nice, lazy, yummy weekend, we watched a couple episodes of Arrested Development.

Today the 3rd, I made a bunch of returns on my Black Friday orders. I ended up keeping two shirts, but it’ll feel good to see that money come back. Right now I’m enjoying this bowl of overnight pumpkin oats with fresh cranberries, a dollop of Fage, & maple syrup. Holy smokes – I might be on a new kick!

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The rest of the day is dedicated 100% to studying. Watch out Research & Stats, I’m coming for ya. We leave tomorrow for Disney, so I’ll probably be MIA till next week! Hope this week is absolutely restful, joy-filled, & lovely for each of you!

Questions for you:

  • If you have been to Disney, which is your favorite park?
  • What are some of your favorite online stores with cheap(ish) clothes that you can trust? There are so many sketchy sites these days, but all of them seem to have such cute clothes until you get something totally different in the mail, lol!!

xo <3

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Our First Ever Hosted Thanksgiving!

Hi, Everyone!!! Happy Sunday to youu! Currently it’s Saturday night, we’ve got some Elton John playing, and DJ is working on a graphic for work! It’s a goooood night. Time to recap Thanksgiving week!

Monday the 19th I ran on the tready while doing a bunch of reading for school. Then I headed over to Peet’s, chatted with my favorite barista, Connie, and then get started on listening to lectures.

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After studying up, I did the big ole’ trip to Safeway for alllllz the Thanksgiving goodies. I haven’t shopped at Safeway in forever since discovering TJ’s, but there were a few items I wasn’t sure TJ’s would have, so I just did my whole trip there using my Safeway account. I hardcore lallygag when I grocery shop. I love grocery shopping. I look forward to it during my week, and truly get lost in the aisles while listening to my podcast. Anyone else see grocery shopping as the equivalent of going to the park?

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I went to Peet’s again on Tuesday the 20th, and witnessed the most horrendous parking job of all time. It’s super hard to find a good parking spot in this lot- so I was a bit miffed. I truly don’t know why I’m sharing this- but it’s cathartic- so here we are.

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I whipped out my major assignment for the week and wrapped up my discussion boards, so I could focus on Thanksgiving activities the rest of the week!

For starters, Wednesday November 21st I designated as a full on prep/clean/cook day. I relish in days like this. They make me so happy. Also, for the first time in a long time it was raining!! You can hear my reaction in a tragic run-on sentence. tehehe.

This was much needed after the fires and totally purified the air. I will never take for granted fresh luxurious air again! My runs outside since have been filled with the smell of pine and a crispness. Anyways- first, I picked up few last minute items I forgot in my first trip (did you actually host a thanksgiving without multiple trips last minute to the store?). Once home, I grabbed some tea to warm me from the chill outside (I already had hit my coffee limit for the day), listened to Up and Vanished and cooked my heart out! (Also DJ had the day off, which added an element of warmth to the apartment just having him there).

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Now, I am a bit mischievous, I must say. I secretly made a couple vegan dishes- and only waited till after they were confirmed delicious before divulging that they were in fact vegan 😉

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First up- vegan cauli. mashed taters!!! I also made regular mashed potatoes the day of, but I didn’t get pictures. So for these ones, ya just boil your cauli, put in a food processor with butter, salt, and pepper, and then you are good to go! I loveee them, especially with a little gravy on top!

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Next up- my vegan stuffed acorn squash! This was my “main course” for the big day. I was going to use the chicken I discovered at TJ’s, but was craving these even bit more.

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Next- pumpkin hummus ! Mmmm mmm so good! I served it with the pumpkin cranberry crisps from TJ’s. Golden combo (and of course I had to taste test the day before 😉 ).

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Nowwww- some vegan sweet potato casserole!!!

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I waited until actual Thanksgiving day to top with mallows to make sure the mallows wouldn’t get stale overnight or overcook.

Oh, and is it actually thanksgiving without green bean casserole?! This has traditionally been one of my favorite dishes (although this year I think I even liked the sweet potato casserole more!). I used this vegan recipe from Delish. I will say it does need a dash of salt at the end to top it off- but besides that it was scrumptious!

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And totalllly not vegan, but totally necessary- mac and cheeeeeeseeee!

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DJ rated this a “10” and said it was the best mac and cheese he has ever had. (He doesn’t blow smoke either- always gives it to me straight!). He even said it was better than Homeroom’s *gasp*. I mean it was great, but I don’t know if I’d go that far….

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And the last thing I made that day was DJ’s requested dirt. I love/hate when he requests it because the stuff is so darn addictive!

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I don’t have a rolling pin to crush the Oreos, so I use a wine bottle lol. Works like a champ.

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I also de-grouted my kitchen floors. They needed it badly!

Before

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After- Not perfect- but much better!

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Ready to go 🙂

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I topped off the evening with my usual nightly ice cream cone (I just rotate through flavors year round- currently we are on a chocolate brownie kick, and always have to add the cashews).

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Thanksgiving morning I had a stellar 15-mile run in the clear air under beautiful blue skies.

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I returned home around 11 am and then got started on the Turkey. My mom was a lifesaver answering my questions over the phone about the giblets and whatever-the-heck else I didn’t understand for my first turkey roast haha.

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And now for the final spread left to right: roasted multicolor honey herbed carrots/corn muffins/green bean casserole/croissants/regular hummus, grape, and pecan pumpkin butter, pumpkin hummus/turkey with stuffing/stuffed acorn squash/mac and cheese/mashed potatoes (vegan & regular)/sweet potato casserole/apple pie (Amy’s homemade!)/pumpkin pie/deviled eggs!

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Amy and her boyfriend joined us for the feast!! (Yes, that was only for only four people, haha). If you want leftovers please stop by because we have sooo much.

Unfortunately, I did make one boo boo. I forgot to take the chilled cranberry sauce out of the fridge. How do you forget the cranberry sauce??!!?!

After stuffing ourselves to the brim, we played the first season of Hunt a Killer. It’s a detective subscription box where you try to solve a murder (Amy and I are total true crime junkies). We actually solved it fairly quickly with four minds working together.

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After, we played Office trivia while eating Amy’s amazing apple pie and then they headed back to the city.

Ah, so much to be thankful for. God is so darn good. I think where I was mentally & emotionally this time last year, and it’s amazing to see all the goooood that has happened since. Even though we missed a big part of our family this year, I was reminded just how grateful I am for them and the small blessings of each day. Love to you all.

Questions for you: 

  • I gotta know- favorite Thanksgiving dish?

xo <3

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