Day Trip || Stormy Garibaldi

There's nothing quite like spending a stormy Fall day on the Oregon Coast. The gray skies, the misty rain, the salty air and the sounds of buoy bells in the distance. My parents and aunt and uncle spent the weekend in Garibaldi fishing and crabbing and I decided to drive my Nuna (grandma) down for the day to reap the benefits of their hard work. My mom sent me a picture of the 44 crab they caught the day before and I assumed they would need help putting a dent in it. Who can resist fresh caught dungeness crab.

The house was located across the street from the Coast Guard station and although it was a little dated it had an amazing view of the Tillamook Bay where we could watch the fishing boats and kayakers. After having some crab for lunch I was able to cozy up in the sunroom and indulge in a little quiet reading time followed by a quick power nap. 

It was a hasty but rejuvenating trip and was just what I needed to kick off the Fall season. The drive home was a little less rejuvenating and I had some white knuckle moments in the dark and pouring rain. Especially the moment when I saw a spider crawling up the windshield and I had to quickly pull over on the side of the road. As the cars rushed past me and I stood drenched by the rain I lost the spider and then had to get back in the car to continue driving. It was anxiety inducing. Needless to say I was happy to make it back home safe and sound. I look forward to the next beach trip that doesn't require night driving. 

What are your favorite ways to cozy up in the Fall?

Tomato Shrimp Linguine

I've always loved cooking and when I have the time I enjoy making extravagant dishes. However, lately my time is limited and I'm always looking for quick and easy ideas. An added difficulty to these meals is my vast amount of food allergies. Most of the items on my list of allergies are easy to get around, but the trickiest (and the things I miss the most) are eggs, dairy and sesame. 
After watching a video of Anna, from Vivianna Does Makeup, making a shrimp pasta dish I was inspired to create my own. I headed to the store and picked up some ingredients to throw together. The outcome was simple and pretty great. 

Ingredients:
2 tbsp - Olive Oil
2 tsp - Chopped Garlic
2 tsp - Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
3 to 4 cups - Tomatoes
1 box - Linguine
12 - Peeled Shrimp (frozen or fresh)
Sprinkle - Nutritional yeast or parmigiano-reggiano

Something to know about my style of cooking is that I tend to estimate when adding ingredients. I only measure when following a recipe, but for the sake of this blog I will do my best to give measurements although they will be approximate and you should feel free to adjust to your liking. 

Warm olive oil in a large pan

Add garlic stirring often to prevent burning

Stir in crushed garlic

Boil water in large pot

Cook linguine

Add sliced tomatoes to the garlic pepper mixture

Add shrimp and cover until shrimp turns pink

Mix into the pasta and enjoy

This would be the point where I would add a ton of parmigiano-reggiano in the old days (before I knew about my allergies). This time I decided to sprinkle a little bit of nutritional yeast on top to add a slight cheesy flavor. This was the perfect dish to enjoy with a sauteed vegetable or garden salad. I packed it up in containers to take as my lunch for the week. 

Exploring PORTLAND FLEA + FOOD

I decided to brave the heat this past Sunday so I could go out exploring. My friend Lisa and I wanted to check out the Portland Flea + Food event going on behind Rejuvenation on Southeast Salmon and Sixth Street. I have been to Portland Flea back when it did not include the Food part of its title and when it was held at Union/Pine, but this was my first time experiencing the expanded space and vendors. The event is held on the last Sunday of the month April through November. 

Our first stop was at the Pip's Original truck to grab some doughnuts to snack on. This was my first time having one of the highly praised Pip's doughnuts and they more than lived up to the hype. They are made fresh to order and are the perfect bite size (although you do have to order at least a half dozen. Fine, twist my arm). We went with three of the cinnamon sugar and three of the Nutella with sea salt. Both were to die for, but we agreed that the simplicity of the cinnamon sugar made them the best. 

After our quick pick me up we started checking out the adorable shops. Right away some treasures caught my eye. Mainly the necklaces from This Fine Day, the adorable cut out cactuses from Scout & Whistle and the wide assortment of products distributed at Made Here PDX.

After awhile our friend Wendy joined us with her adorable samoyed puppy, Yuri. While we grabbed food from Koi Fusion and Bunk Sandwiches we got to experience the crazy amount of people that squealed every time they saw Yuri and the four questions that everyone asked -  What type of dog is it? How old is it? What's his name? Can I pet him?

Yuri was desperate for shade so we went to check out the quaint little florist shop called Anna Mara, located on the loading dock of Rejuvenation. 

When we had thoroughly explored the event and were near heat exhaustion we left to find a place to grab a drink and some shade. 

It was so much fun checking out this Portland scene and I look forward to going a few more times this Summer (and maybe buying one of those funky little cactuses I saw).

Homemade Blueberry Granola

Homemade Blueberry Granola

I found myself buying granola to take to work each day as a morning snack.  After looking at the ingredients and sugar content of my favorite granola I decided I could do better and make my own.  

First I gathered up the ingredients I already had and then headed to the store to pick up the rest. 

Ingredients:

   Old Fashioned Oats

   Coconut Oil

   Honey

   Maple Syrup

   Dried Blueberries

   Pumpkin Seeds

   Dried Coconut 

   Chia Seeds

   Ground Flax Seed

   Chopped Pecans

I combined 

     2-3 cups of oats

     1-2 cups of dried blueberries

     1/2 cup pumpkin seeds

     1/2 cup chopped pecans

     1 cup dried coconut

     1/3 cup chia seeds

     1/3 cup flax seed

                         into a bowl and mixed thoroughly. I'm not one for measuring when I cook, so these measurements are rough estimates.  The good thing is, you can't really mess up the measurements when making granola.  Just throw some stuff together.  

Next I melted the 

     1/3 cup coconut oil

     1/3 honey

     1/4 cup maple syrup

                          in a small bowl and poured over the dry ingredients.  Toss the mixture until the dry ingredients are coated with the wet.  

Then I spread the mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and placed in the oven preheated to 300º.

Bake for about 5 minutes and stir then place back in oven for 5-15 minutes.  Watch closely to make sure your ingredients don't start to burn (unlike mine).  

Finally scoop your finished granola into a container.  I chose the classic mason jar (because, you know, Pinterest). 

Now you can enjoy your granola dry or with your favorite type of milk.  I go for coconut milk since dairy and I don't get along.  

Follow me on instagram (@murphyali) and tumblr (murphyali) 

     - tag me in photos of YOUR homemade granola!