Five Things Friday

Hi friends! I wasn’t sure I’d get a post up today, but I decided that since I have some time, I wanted to drop in and share a few things.

1. Just My Imagination is having a huge semi-annual sale. Today through August 25th, you can get 40% off your entire order using code 40OFF at checkout. You don’t want to miss this!

2. Nathan and I are in concert mode this week. On Tuesday we cashed in his birthday gift and went to see Buddy Guy and George Thorogood. [Buddy was the jam!] Tomorrow we’re spending our day at Hot August Blues. What beats an all day blues concert outside when the weather is gorgeous?!

3. Speaking of the weather, I can’t believe it’s August. What is this 60 degrees when I wake up and 80 as the high?! It’s beautiful sweater weather but I’m not quite sure I’m ready for fall yet.

4. I absolutely loved making so many recipes from my pinterest boards this past week and I’m currently scouring to figure out what I want to make this weekend! Maybe some more roasted veggies and quinoa?

Roasted Veggie Quinoa Salad – The Talking Kitchen

Also considering a chicken salad. Which one do you think? [Nathan? ;)]

– Honey Chicken Salad with Grapes & Feta
– Lemon Roasted Chicken Salad
– Avocado Cashew Chicken Salad

5. As far as this past week’s recipes go, I’m needing to finish up this post so I can melt down a piece of chocolate banana peanut butter fudge to spread on a piece of toasted paleo bread for today’s snack! So on that note, I’m out! 😉

Have a great weekend!

Food for Thought

What are your weekend plans?

Which chicken salad would you make?

Foodie Friday: Roasted Squash Stew with Turkey & Baby Kale

Between the cold weather and feeling a bit under the weather this past week, I’ve been jonesing for some soups and stews to warm me up. As always, I head over to Pinterest and browse my most recent 3000 recipes that I’ve pinned (out of control!) and this baby caught my eye.

Squash stew? Done! I was missing a few of the ingredients from the original recipe so I took a stab at my own version and was rather pleased with the end result.

Roasted Squash Stew with Turkey & Baby Kale

Serves 4
Adapted from Cookin’ Canuck

Ingredients
2 tbsp EVOO, divided
2 small delicata squashes, diced [About 3 cups]
1 medium sweet onion, diced
1/4 lb ground turkey or chicken [I used Jennie-O Extra Lean Ground Turkey Breast]
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 14oz can diced tomatoes, not drained [I used Muir Glen Organic Red and Yellow Diced Tomatoes]
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp smoked paprika
Salt and pepper to taste
4 cups baby kale or spinach

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss your diced squash on a baking sheet with 1 tbsp EVOO and a sprinkling of salt and pepper. Put the sheet in the oven and roast for about 30 minutes, tossing a few times.

While your squash is roasting, heat a large pot over medium heat with the remaining 1 tbsp EVOO. Once heated, add your diced onion and saute until translucent. Add the ground turkey to the pot and season with salt, pepper, oregano, chili powder, and smoked paprika. Once the turkey is completely cooked through, add the minced garlic. When the garlic becomes fragrant, add the can of tomatoes and chicken stock.

By this time, your squash should be just about finished roasting. Remove from the oven and add 3/4 of the roasted squash to the pot. Smash the remaining 1/4 squash until smooth and add to the pot. This is used as a thickener in the soup. Make sure everything is well incorporated and finally stir in the baby kale until wilted. Adjust any seasonings to taste and feel free to add more stock or water if you want the soup to be thinner.

This soup is great with a scoop of quinoa mixed in or with some crunchy roasted chick peas on top!

Nutritional Information
Per serving

198 Calories  /  8g Fat  /  26g Carbs  /  15g Fiber  /  7g Sugar  /  11g Protein

Just My Imagination Giveaway Winner!

Congratulations to Joanna Murnan for winning a pair of custom hammered metal earrings from Just My Imagination!

Joanna Murnan said :
The triples are adorable in the mixed metals – very cute!

Please email me at Brittany@BarrAndTable.com within the next 48 hours with your mailing address as well as which pair of hoops you want and in what metal; silver, gold, or mixed! And don’t forget, it may be too late for holiday shopping, but it’s never too late to treat yourself to some new one-of-a-kind jewels 😉

What I Ate Wednesday #27 – A Day of Rest

I’m extending my Just My Imagination giveaway! You now have until Thursday, 12/20 at 11:59 PM EST to enter! Get your entries in 🙂

Who’da thunk running around non-stop for 2 weeks would completely wear you out? It just doesn’t make sense, right?!

Sunday was the first time we actually had a chance to rest and even though we planned on going to the outlets (the week before Christmas, no less) we never made it out of our PJs. I have no idea the last time this happened but there were no complaints! And I’m not sure I even realized that we literally did nothing all day until I went to lock the door before bed and it was still locked from the night before.

I happily laid around on Sunday and made some delicious meals. But before sharing them with you, I have to congratulate Jenn for celebrating her 100th WIAW “birthday!” And thanks for including everyone in your fun parties 🙂

[Breakfast]
I just can’t stop! The Sweet Breakfast Scramble is a habit hard to break.

[Lunch]
Kale & quinoa salad with a baked omelette on top! For whatever reason, I was in an egg kinda mood, so I decided to try and recreate a baked HUMONGOUS omelette I had in Florida. Unfortunately, it was not even close to as fluffy and large as the one I had before, but it was still delicious.. filled to the brim with sauteed broccoli and feta cheese. Yum!

[Dinner]
Another kale salad! This time topped with roasted delicata squash and a lightened up version of chicken cacciatore. I started with a Martha Stewart recipe and added tons of extra red bell pepper, red onion, and a splash of white wine. It was full of flavor and so easy.. definitely recommend trying this recipe!

[Snacks]
Clementines, celery, peanut butter, dried figs, and dried apricots were consumed over the course of the day. I could eat those things all day long!

As this week continues, I find myself hoping for another Sunday in my PJs. Oh how I love the holiday season 😉

Food for Thought

Have you been running around like crazy lately or have you found yourself with time to relax?

Roasted Squash & Chick Pea Baby Kale Salad

Have you entered my Just My Imagination giveaway yet? Only 2 more days!

I am an absolute squash fiend; winter squash in particular. Butternut squash is currently my favorite, but I’ve recently found out about so many more kinds to try! Over the weekend I finally got my hands on delicata. I’d say in terms of flavor, it compares to acorn squash, but it’s so much easier to prepare which instantly wins me over. Not to mention you can eat the skin which also makes it great for salads.

I don’t know about you, but during this time of year, along with some fun new desserts, I’m always looking for an equally fun and tasty salad to bring to holiday gatherings. And nine times out of ten, mine include squash!

Roasted Squash & Chick Pea Baby Kale Salad with Lemon Dijon Vinaigrette

Serves 4-6

Ingredients
6 cups baby kale greens
1/3 cup raisins, craisins, or dried cherries
1 medium delicata squash; sliced
1 can chick peas; drained, rinsed, & thoroughly dried
3 tsp coconut oil; divided
3/4 tsp salt; divided
3/4 tsp ground black pepper; divided
1 tsp McCormick Fiesta Citrus Seasoning

For the Vinaigrette
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 375°F. Place sliced squash on one baking sheet and coat with 2 tsp coconut oil, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp black pepper. Place chick peas on another baking sheet with the remaining 1 tsp coconut oil, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/4 black pepper, and 1 tsp fiesta citrus seasoning. Bake squash and chick peas for about an hour, flipping the squash 1 or 2 times and tossing the chick peas around. When finished, the squash should be golden around the edges and the chick peas should be nice and crunchy! Let cool completely.

While the squash and chick peas are cooling, place all of the vinaigrette ingredients in a bowl and whisk to combine. After everything has cooled, throw kale, squash, chick peas, and raisins (or other dried fruit) in a large bowl and toss with about 3/4 of the vinaigrette. Make sure everything is equally coated. Drizzle the last bit of dressing over top of the salad and top with a little freshly cracked black pepper. Serve immediately.

To make it into a more substantial meal, throw 4oz of your favorite protein on top!

Nutritional Information
Per serving, for 4 servings

218 Calories  /  6g Fat  /  35g Carbs  /  8g Fiber  /  12g Sugar  /  8g Protein

Food for Thought

What is your favorite holiday salad to share?

Boxes and Jewels: A KIND Winner & Another Giveaway!

I just can’t stop! Giveaways are my favorite.. I love being able to share things with you that I enjoy, whether food or otherwise. And this week’s giveaway is an otherwise.. but first, to announce my KIND Bar Snack & Give Back giveaway.

The lucky winner of the Bobbi Brown Eat Pretty Powerful box is… FireRunner2379!

FireRunner2379 says :
I would choose Grace Potter benefiting the Alzheimer’s Association, I’ve had a few family members stricken with this awful disease.

Congratulations and a huge thanks to the wonderful people of KIND for hosting a delicious and purposeful giveaway! And don’t forget, you can still purchase one of the three Snack & Give Back boxes to help these great causes.

One of these giveaways is not like the others…

This may be a bit of an unconventional giveaway for my blog but it’s definitely a fun one! If you follow me on Instagram or Twitter, you may have seen a couple weeks ago I posted this picture:

Check out those super fun earrings! I’ve recently decided to be a grown up and actually change my earrings on a normal basis rather than leave in the same little earrings everyday. It’s been quite a revelation!

It just so happens that I know the jeweler that made these earrings and when I asked if she would do a giveaway, she didn’t hesitate to say yes! Thanks, mom! 😉

Just My Imagination is a one-woman jewelry-making operation that focuses on a minimalist approach. Recently added to the collection of wire-wrapped semi-precious stone earrings, pendants, and bracelets, are hammered metal earrings and wire-wrapped rings.

Each piece is one-of-a-kind and can be purchased for a limited time online or in person at craft shows across the East Coast. And if you’re the lucky one, you could win a pair of the hammered metal earrings above!

The winner will get a choice of the single hoop, double hoop, or triple hoop. And because they’re all handmade, you can choose whether you want 14K gold-filled or sterling silver, or even a combination of the metals (that’s what I have!).

How to Enter

You have up to 5 chances to enter! Be sure to leave separate comments for each entry. Entries will be accepted through Tuesday, December 18th, 11:59 pm EST. A winner will be chosen on Wednesday, December 19th.

1. Leave a comment telling me which earrings you would choose. (Mandatory)

2. Follow @JMIJewelry and @BarrAndTable on Twitter and leave a comment telling me. (Optional)

3. Like Just My Imagination and Barr & Table on Facebook and leave a comment telling me. (Optional)

4. Follow Barr & Table on Pinterest and leave a separate comment telling me. (Optional)

5. Tweet “I entered to win a pair of @JMIJewelry handmade hammered metal earrings from @BarrAndTable! http://wp.me/p2mo7x-dC #Giveaway #Jewels” and leave a separate comment with a link to your tweet. (Optional)

*Winner has 48 hours to contact me and claim prize, otherwise a new winner will be chosen.