Bites of My Life

June? Already? How did we get here so fast. How are we halfway through the year? Mind boggling I tell you mind boggling. Days, weeks, months are flying by at super speed. I'm trying so hard to hold on to each moment, but they are flashing by, especially lately.

Work is moving at rapid fire these days (more on that later), but I can honestly say I'm loving every minute of it, so I can't complain. Although, sweet Take a Bite has taken a bit of a back burner because of it. I apologize for the lack of anything but a wimpy "bites" post each week. But come July I'm hoping I'll have some extra time on my hands for more TAB love. I couldn't even tell you the last time I cooked a real meal. Now that is depressing and a clear sign of how busy I am. 

-I haven't had a chance to blog much on TAB, but I did guest post last week on The Well. Read my post here. 
-On a weird turkey burger kick. Cutting corners and using TJ's frozen patties, but loving this deconstructed burger version I've been serving myself. 
-Finalizing our dessert menu for The Jones Assembly means ice cream for lunch! Blueberry, watermelon, cucumber and grapefruit sorbet. Yes cucumber sorbet. It was amazing.
-Training has begun for The Jones Assembly. Which just means things are getting closer and closer to opening!
-Pro tip: ask for plantain chips with your guac at Barrios, and definitely order the salmon ceviche!
-My work here is done. Successfully turned the texan into an OKC lover. *pats myself on the back*
-Work on a Saturday ain't so bad when it involves your bestie and matcha lattes.
-Could shower this cutie bridey for days! Cannot believe you are about to get married! 
-The brussels caesar is low key my favorite thing at The Drake. 

Annie

Bites of My Life

Winding down from a weekend I don't want to end. Nothing crazy happened and that's exactly why it was so great. Started with a solo sesh dinner, just me, my book and my you-pick-two then joined some friends for Girl on The Train. I didn't read the book which consensus says was a good thing; left for more suspense during the movie. 

Saturday woke up for breakfast and barre with Lindsay then football and bowling with friends. Ended the day making loaves of pumpkin bread and settling into the couch for a triple feature of You've Got Mail, Friends With Benefits and A Walk to Remember. 

Today consisted of the new season of Barefoot Contessa starting, a neighborhood kitchen tour, trip to Trader Joe's, walk with my mom, and a delicious dinner cooked not by me, but for me. A weekend of r&r that I want to repeat ASAP!

-New fav snack: handful of TJ's semi-dried frozen figs microwaved for 20 seconds with AB and CB drizzled on top.
-Celebrated the amazing company I work for with killer views and tasty treats. 
-Cheers to The Social Order Dining Collective being offish!
-I love sneaking over to my parent's house for lunch. Even when my mom thinks there is nothing in the fridge I feel like it's always full with the best goods. 
-Shared my go to work week lunch last week, did you catch the post? Another one of last week's posts here.
-Recipe test round one of Carrot Pecan Muffins. First round came out good, but I'm still perfecting the recipe.
-A perfect delivery of Perfect Bars. I'm a Perfect Bar virgin and can't wait to try these! 
-I hadn't had Panera in about a year and the craving came on strong. Pulled up a table for one before joining my friends at Girl on The Train. 
-Saturday gameday went from football to bowling with a gameday brat on the side. 
-No better smell than loaves of pumpkin bread baking in the oven. Made a huge batch of my mom's pumpkin bread this weekend, recipe will be shared this week!
-The dreamiest pantry in one of the houses on the Nichols Hills Kitchen Tour.
-When you and your UT roommate make a bet on the OU/Texas game and you come out the winner! Bet was if Texas lost, Lindsay had to make me dinner, if OU lost...well we don't need to go there. 

Annie

My Go To Work Week Lunch

Work week lunches are hard. It's the point in the day when you are starving and have to have something that will satisfy you all the way through dinner. It needs to give you energy to power the rest of the day without making you want to take a nap afterward. Lunch is asking for a lot and usually falls short. 

I used to be a basic salad girl. If I loaded it up with enough goods it would usually fit the bill. It's a good filler meal for when I need to clean out the fridge, but nothing excites me for lunch when I know I just have a salad packed. 

When I was doing Whole30 back in August, lunch was hard. A salad would definitely not cut it. I came up with this easy work week lunch that has stuck with me for the months to follow. It's easy to prep the night before and so filling/satisfying. I eat it about 3 times a week and with a few ingredient tweaks here and there I'm not getting sick of it. 

It's a healthy take on a charcuterie/crudite/cheese board. My "lunch board" as I like to call it! 

Basic components include:

2 hard boiled eggs
1/2 granny smith apple
3-4 pieces of charcuterie (prosciutto, salami, chorizo, pepperoni etc)

Items that change depending on taste and what is in season:

4 figs
stem of grapes
handful of snap peas, tomatoes carrots or bell peppers
crackers if you need the carbs
veggie dip or almond butter if you need the extra protein
 

Pictured above is how I take it to work. Hardboiled eggs unpeeled (I make a bunch at the beginning of the week), 1/2 apple uncut to avoid overly browning, meat, veggies and a side of veggie dip. I pack a little baggie of salt and pepper for the eggs and a small knife to cut the apple and eggs when I put it together at lunch. 

Give this lunch a try. It's well balanced and hits on all the taste buds. Tart apple, salty meat, sweet fruit, bright veggie, and filling eggs! It's just the thing to get me through the day and I get weirdly excited for lunch when I know I have this packed.

Get creative and make your own version of my lunch board! Share your lunch board pics with me via snapchat or tagging me on insta and using the #takeabite hashtag!

Annie