Bites of My Life

July you came too soon! Summer is slipping by FAST. Last week was full of delicious eats, getting settled into my new office space and precious last moments with one of my best friends before her move. There was also a pool party, an A list party per-se, rounded out by a killer Sunday dinner at mom and dad's. 

Now for the awkward 2-day week, twice in one week...

-Loving my morning matcha. Look forward to it each day. Using the new Vital Proteins Matcha Collagen currently. 
-Becoming a pro at cleaning out my fridge meals. AKA ballin' on a budget and won't let myself go to the grocery store as much as I normally do. 
-Healthy snack hack/dessert for The Bachelorette viewing. 50 cal Lesser Evil popcorn back with a tablespoon of cookie butter for dipping and Arbonne detox tea. 
-Got to help with a catered dinner in the park through work last week. Despite the 95 degree temperatures it ended up being the dreamiest setting for a dinner.
-Hello, I work here. Loving my new cube at our recently finished headquarters!
-The most fun giveaway last week with Made by Maddie. AKA one of my besties new biz!
-Said bye to my bestie/roomie Lindz last Friday. We became quick friends and after 3 years under the same roof, and I suddenly had to say bye too quick as she headed west for her next adventure in LA.
-I dub these my prettiest batch of perfect CCCs. The diff; semi-sweet chocolate bar chopped instead of chopped chips. So many chocolate flakes. 
-Snacking on Lesser Evil's new Paleo Puffs with my little crew. Use code ANNIELE10 in check out at lesserevil.com for 10% off your order!
-EnR0ute to Russell Westbrook's hype house. #workperks
-Thanks for the party invite Russell Westbrook!
-Summer food = best food. 

Annie

Bites of My Life

Hi spring!! You bring so much new life! Literally and figuratively. I could really feel spring this week, anyone else? It's like this weight of winter kind of lifts away. I love how the way we eat, gather and spend our time changes in the spring. And any season for that matter. Just the pep I needed in my step after feeling pretty stagnant lately.  

-An archived post refurbished! Loved this update version of "What's In My Bag" that I posted last week!
-New Garden Salad coming to the spring menu at The Jones. 2 words. Biscuit. Croutons.
-Clean out the fridge meal number 1 of the week. Shaved brussels sprouts with lemony hummus dressing, jalapeños and toasted pine nuts. 
-Clean out the fridge meal number2, and my favorite go-to clean out the fridge meal = shakshuka. This Italian version was bon appetitio! Just marinara sauce, 2 eggs, torn basil and some pesto!
-Bribing my church community group with perfect CCCs in case they didn't like the meal I made during our cooking class (more on that later this week).
-Happy baby!
-Have y'all tried Lesser Evil Snacks? LOVE their healthy popcorn. Use the code SpringLE to get 10% off. Locally can be bought at Whole Foods and Natural Grocers. 
-WWE or Kathleen, Chloe and Annie walk into a boxing gym???
-Sunday morning brekkie! With my favorite soft boiled egg cups that make me feel fancy!

Annie

Bites of My Life

Hello Monday morning. Despite waking up at 5:00 am today and already getting a handful of things checked off my list by what is now 7:00am, my productivity is not changing the fact that I'm not ready for a new week. I'm usually not like this, I usually like the weekly fresh start, but nope, just not feeling it. In that case I don't feel the need to blab on, so just keep scrolling for a look at last week. We can check back same time next Monday to see if I got out of my new week funk. 

-Was in Norman for work early last week and got to try the new Stella Nova. The most delicious almond milk latte has me counting down the days until the Oklahoma City location opens.
-Posting these cookies again because I can't get over the cuteness. Used this cookie and icing recipe. 
-My salad situation that is going on week three now. Here is the rundown: spinach, roasted mini chopped sweet potatoes, cucumbers, red bell pepper, sprouts, kraut or kimchi, green onion, drizzle of liquid aminos and tahini, dash of cayenne and topped with everything bagel seasoning. Tip is to prep, chop and have everything ready in the fridge for easy assembly. 
-Blueberry, cucumber and coconut protein smoothie. Weird but it worked.
-What was supposed to be a simple Wine Wednesday, turned into a fried brie, chocolate cake, sparkling rosé, 2 hour long evening with Katie!
-Sharing the quick recipe for these Thai Chicken Lettuce Boats in a Lite Bite post!
-Love the work I'm getting done at this new workspace. Come join me on Tuesday and Thursdays!
-The greenest of green smoothies to detox all the chocolate I ate the night before and fancy soft scrambled eggs cause it was the weekend.
-Never too many cooks in the kitchen when the cooks are all your best friends.

Annie

Bites of My Life

It's the down hill slope to Thanksgiving and the holidays in general for that matter. I have something on the books for every night this week (Thursday being Friendsgiving!!). The rush of the season is here. The busyness helps me stay productive, but also sends little stress waves through me. Regardless, this really is the most wonderful time of the year! *Cue the Christmas music*

-First Lite Bite post! Peppermint Mocha Protein Shake. 
-Fall breakfast quickly taken back inside since the mornings have been so chilly around here!
-Died a little inside when I heard of RX Bars new seasonal flavor Gingerbread, but after trying it, the excitement was gone. Gingerbread is a favorite flavor of mine but these lacked flavor completely.
-The StudioHop crew came to OKC on Tuesday for a Glow + Flow class at one of my favorite new studios. If you haven't checked out The Yoga Box, text me and let's go flow together. They also have a food bar inside and these little dark chocolate pomegranate bites they made are being recreated ASAP!
-New coffees and teas at work make for a caffeinated photoshoot!
-Really proud of my creativity on this. Took leftover spaghetti sauce, added some spices and cracked in two eggs for a version of shukshuka!
-Protein shake #2 of the week is this Gingerbread version. Vanilla protein, frozen cauliflower, almond milk, molasses, cinnamon, ginger and cloves!
-My kryptonite as of recently. It's like a not terrible for you cross between popcorn and Cheeto puffs. 
-My other current obsession is rice cakes. I mentioned them a couple weeks ago. Not sure what my craze is for eating something that resembles Styrofoam, but I think the fact that it's just another vessel to shovel almond butter into my mouth could be why...
-Game day, just like we were students again!
-Spent Sunday afternoon talking plants and healthy eating with my new friend Emma!
-Spicy Roasted Red Pepper and Tomato Soup for Sunday dinner (and lunches the rest of the week). Forgot how good this recipe was...

Annie

Bites of My Life

Last week was really nice. Days were productive, but not overly busy, despite missing three days of work the previous week. I was able to enjoy the amazing fall weather we have been graced with and even better got to enjoy some much needed fall baking. Need as in needed for my sanity. I get off my tracks a bit if I go too long without baking. 

-I was in post-wedding depression the better half of last week so I opted to drink my morning smoothie out of the commemorative "Elmgreen" bar glass that was handed out at as a favor from Claire's wedding!
-Brought back this Fall Panzanella Salad with Cornbread Croutons from last year to have for lunches last week!
-Perfected the best baked salmon. Perfectly seared then baked to perfection!
-Stopped by my parents to pick up a few things on Tuesday and found this stew on the stove. I quickly invited myself for dinner. Mom used this recipe, but subbed quinoa for rice. 
-All the best recipes hide in this book. I love when I get to use it! I gathered all of our family favorite recipes and compiled them into a cookbook to gift each family member last year for Christmas. 
-See all these things... get ready for the end result, coming in recipe form later this week!
-Chili is my favorite food. Hence my love for the event mentioned next. Pictured here is a sampling I had of duck chili with creme fraiche and green onion topping. But nothing beats my momma's chili. 
-A local marketing company puts on a Chili Cook-Off downtown every October. I've attended as a patron the past 3 years, but was so excited to help represent The Jones Assembly as a contender this year!
-I love rice cakes, anyone else? They kind of taste like Styrofoam but are also kind of delicious. Smothered in almond butter and paired with turmeric scrambled eggs leads to a delicious weekend breakfast. 
-Trader Joe's Multi-Grain O's on top or bottom of my smoothies all last week. It is that extra little umph my smoothies were needing and satisfies the "crunch" amongst all the sips!
-After spending Friday night in Tulsa for Octoberfest, I had the most relaxing Saturday. AKA laid on the couch all day (which I never do so it felt amazing). Got up once to go to the store after Lindsay and I settled on making this for dinner. Having the leftovers for dinner tonight and I'm eager to get home to heat them up because it was SO GOOD!
-Did a step-by-step video on my instagram story yesterday on how I store my fresh ginger that I use in my daily smoothies. Not that anyone should care, but hope some of you saw and it found it helpful! If you have questions on how I do this, shoot me a message!

Annie