Super Easy Vegan Falafel Pie

Geez Louise has it been an insanely long time since we posted a recipe! Yikes! We've been cooking and eating yummy, healthy, meals all winter. But with the shorter days and lack of sunshine by the time the dinner hours rolled around, it prevented us from taking photos in the natural lighting that we prefer. So now that the days are longer we hope to share lots more recipes here. In Jersey the month of March is never predictable. We'll get a day that feels like Spring, and then wake up to super freezing temps. Which reminds me…tomorrow we are expecting 3-6 inches of snow!! ughhhh. 

Ok, back to the food…we just had to share this super tasty, super easy, recipe with you guys. Even though we really enjoy meals with lots of totally homemade sauces, batters, and dressings…this one just seemed so simple, quick, and perfect that we had to give it a try on one of our busier days. This Vegan Falafel Pie  comes from an adorable food blog called The Vegan Stoner. 

And the other day was suuuuper busy. We were working on so many projects at once...cutting out our diecuts, sanding, painting, walking to the post office, cleaning, yep...one of those days. The perfect day to make a dinner that takes barely any time and almost zero effort. 

This recipe starts with a package of falafel mix, which you can find in the International aisle of your grocery store. Sure, it's super easy to make your own...and we have…but again, we loved this recipe for it's shortcuts. 

This recipe couldn't be easier…

You'll need:

Falafel Mix

Your favorite hummus (we went with Sabra roasted red pepper)

plain soy yogurt 

tomatoes

1 cucumber

And any other topping you would like! We added diced red onion. 

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a pie dish (we misted ours with olive oil).

Mix a cup of falafel mix with a half cup of water. You can add a bit more water if necessary. Spoon the mixture into your prepared baking dish, and bake for 15 mins. 

While your falafel bakes, slice your tomatoes and cucumber, and dice your onions and any other toppings you will be adding. 

In a blender, or cusinart, combine 1 cup of yogurt, a tablespoon of lemon juice, and half of a cucumber.  We also added some fresh minced garlic. Blend until you have a smooth dressing.

Once your falafel is baked, top with a layer of hummus (as much as you'd like), followed by a layer of sliced cucumbers, and tomatoes, and diced onions. 

It was ready in under 20 mins! And it was SO SO tasty!  We actually killed the entire pie in a sitting. Don't judge us! wink. 

And even though we cheated a bit with the store-bought falafel mix...we still made a bright fresh super tasty dressing from scratch. It was a great meal! We will be making it again soon! It's so simple that the recipe is already committed to memory. You really just have to grab very few things at the grocery store, and then throw it together in a pinch. 

Whether you're vegan, vegetarian, or a meat eater…this is a super tasty dish! 

Hope you'll give it a shot! And if easy meals like this are up your alley… Definitely check out The Vegan Stoner.  You'll love their hand painted illustrations!

Thanks so much again for reading! Happy cooking and eating!

xo, Jenny & Aaron

Super Yummy Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hey everyone! This is Aaron writing this one. We figured that I should be the one to share this recipe being that I'm the one doing the baking. Yes it's true, I used totally dislike baking. I love cooking, but baking always intimidated me. Most likely because I was always watching Jenny bake, and she is really really good at. But sorta recently I got over my fear and started baking things whenever I got the chance. I really like the idea of Vegan Baking. It's really not all that different from traditional baking, but I love all of the creative substitutions that are used in vegan recipes. Namely, the "flax egg". To make a "flax egg" you just combine a certain amount of flax meal with a certain amount of water…whisk together, and let it sit until it thickens. This will take the place of an egg in most recipes. I know it's a simple concept, but it still impresses me (I'm a cheap date). And there is another big bonus to vegan baking…you can ALWAYS lick the batter bowl…never ever a chance of salmonella from raw eggs. :)

Anyway, we had a very flavorful dinner the other night and we needed to finish the evening with some chocolate. I found this awesome recipe for Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies, and within minutes I had the ingredients prepped and was popping the dough in the oven. There are lots of vegan chocolate chip cookie recipes out there, but Jenny and I can totally vouch for these. They're really really good, and they stay soft and moist. Lots of other chocolate chip cookies get hard, and I'm not really into that type of cookie. These were so easy to make, and we've already added them to our stack of reliable go-to recipes.

Here's what you need:

2 Tablespoons flax meal

3 Tablespoons water

2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

¾ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon cinnamon

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cups + 2 Tablespoons or 1 ¾ sticks Regular Vegan Butter or margarine, at room temperature

1 ½ cups sugar

2 teaspoons molasses

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 350F, and line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

1. First prepare your flax mixture, or what is often referred to as your "flax egg".

 In a small bowl whisk together the flax meal and the water. Allow it to sit for 10 minutes so the mixture thickens. 

2. Now it's time to combine the dry ingredients. In a medium mixing bowl whisk together the all-purpose flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt until well incorporated. Set aside.

3. In a separate large mixing bowl cream the Vegan Butter and sugar until well mixed. Then beat in your flax mixture from step 1, followed by the molasses and vanilla extract.

4. Now add your bowl of mixed dry ingredients into you larger bowl with the creamed butter and sugar mixture. Mix until combined. I used a wooden spoon, but being that the dough is pretty thick, you may want to use your hands to really get in there. Lastly, stir in the chocolate chips.

5. Form the dough into 1 ½ inch sized balls. Space the balls out on the cookie sheets so that they're about 2 or 3 inches apart. You should get between 22 - 24 cookies. 

Bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the cookie sheets halfway through the baking time. Being that they really don't turn golden brown, it's a good idea to keep a close eye on the clock. When they're done, take the cookie sheets out of the oven and let the cookies rest on the sheets for a few minutes. Then transfer to a cooling rack.

The cookies will have a perfect, moist texture. We stored ours in an airtight container, and three days later they were still perfect.

Again, these cookies will definitely be in our regular rotation of trusted recipes. We hope you love them as much as we did! Thanks for reading!

xo, Aaron…and Jenny says hi!

Italian Bean Balls & Spaghetti Squash

We have been meaning to share this recipe with you guys for a while. We've made them a bunch of times and we kinda feel stingy for keeping the yumminess to ourselves for so long. Honestly, we love these bean balls! And we think the recipe is perfect just the way it is. Many times we'll come across a recipe, or a few similar recipes, and we'll use them as just a loose point of reference. But this one is right on the money. It's from one of our absolute favorite food blogs, Oh She Glows. 

Aaron's childhood favorite was good ol' classic Spaghetti & Meatballs. This dish is kinda like the responsible adult version. And when I say "responsible adult",  being vegetarian or vegan has nothing to do with it…I'm referring to the idea of sneakily replacing red meat and pasta with wall-to-wall vegetables…and you still get your protein, by way of kidney beans and walnuts. But the health benefits of this meal seriously take a back seat to how deeeelish it is. So many layers of great flavor!

Every time we had this dish we made it just like you see in the pic above…with spaghetti squash and spaghetti sauce…but the awesome Italian Bean Balls are the focus of this post. We are big fans of spaghetti squash, but you can certainly use pasta…or heck, you can even make an Italian Bean Ball Hero!

When we prepared ours, the first thing we did was roast our spaghetti squash. We blogged a quick how-to here. Once it was ready we kept it warm, covered in foil, on top of the oven.

And as far as sauce, just go with your favorite homemade or jarred variety.

Here is what you'll need for the bean balls:

3/4 cup walnuts, finely chopped and toasted

3/4 cup rolled oats, processed into a coarse flour

1 cup shredded carrot

1/2 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

1/3 cup fresh basil leaves, finely chopped

2-3 tablespoons finely chopped oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (about 2 large)

3 large garlic cloves, minced

1 (15-ounce) can kidney beans, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons ground flax + 3 tbsp water, mixed

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon dried oregano

3/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt, or to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and toast your walnuts for 7-9 minutes, until fragrant and golden.

Meanwhile, add the oats into the food processor and process until finely chopped. You want the texture to be like a coarse flour.

Now add your oat flour, grated carrot, chopped parsley, basil, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, walnuts, into a large bowl. Stir to combine.

Add the drained and rinsed beans into the food processor and process until finely chopped. You want the mixture to be a coarse paste with some beans still intact, but don't completely puree the mixture. 

Stir the processed beans into the bowl with the vegetables and oat flour.

Now you can make your flax "egg". You can buy flax that is already ground, but we usually have seeds that we pulse in the food processor until ground. 

Just whisk together the ground flax and water in a small bowl. Let it sit for only 15-20 seconds, any longer, and it will get too thick. Then stir it into your bean mixture until fully combined. 

Next, stir the oil, oregano, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes (if using) into the bowl, adjusting amounts to taste if necessary.

Shape the mixture into 18-20 balls (the size of golf-balls), packing each ball tightly between your hands so it holds together well. Place each ball onto the prepared baking sheet an inch or two apart.

Bake for 20 minutes, then gently flip the balls and and bake for another 15-20 minutes until golden on both sides.

While ours baked in the oven we made one of our fave sauces. It's called "Spicy Slurpy Spaghetti Sauce", and it's from one of our favorite cookbooks, Isa Does It. 

All of the ingredients are right there in the pic. Crushed tomatoes, a chopped onion, minced garlic, brown sugar, a little salt, a handful of herbs & spices, including a generous dose of red pepper flakes. It is so delicious!

After baking, place balls on a cooling rack for 10 minutes to cool slightly.

Ready to serve…just sprinkle some ribbons of fresh basil on top, and you are set! We have made this exact meal many times. The bean balls really have so much depth of flavor…and the texture is perfect. They are delicious, and I think it would be hard to find tastebuds who would disagree. 

We hope you love them, and we'd love to hear about your experiences in making them…any things that you changed…or if you do in fact serve them as an Italian Bean Ball Sub. We'd love to see pics too!

Happy Eating!

xo, Jenny & Aaron

Crazy Good Vegan Sloppy Joes

Me and Aaron cook a meal together every day, and we try to share pics on Instagram and Facebook whenever we can. For a while now lots of people have been asking us to share the recipes. Since we tend to be very detail oriented, we really like doing full step-by-step recipes, with pics to go along with each step, like all of the previous recipes we've shared here. But sometimes we're in a bit of a rush or it's too late in the day to get good lighting for all the pics. 

But we've been eating so much good stuff that I'd love to share with you guys…So I figured- What the heck...we'll share the simplified versions! I wanted to start with these Crazy Good Vegan Sloppy Joes because they are the epitome of simple. We made them last night and as the title states...they were Crazy Good. They are so good, that while eating them you will already be planning when and how you're gonna eat the leftovers. 

Yes, they are vegan…but you lose none of the tasty goodness of traditional sloppy joes. I'd say the only thing lacking in these is grease. And that's something we could all do without anyway. 

Me and Aaron like really good food…we are foodies for sure. So I promise that most meat eaters will wholly enjoy our meat free meals. These are a great option for Meatless Monday.

We've seen recipes for meatless sloppy joes made with veg/faux meat crumbles, but we really liked this one because it was made with lentils instead. We love lentils. They have a great taste before you even add any seasoning…sorta peppery and broth-like. Plus they have great texture. So we took the aforementioned recipe and added some of our own flavor touches…and we love how they came out.

Here's what you'll need:

1 cup uncooked green lentils
4 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, diced small
1 green pepper, diced small
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons chili powder or ancho chili powder (we prefer ancho chili powder)
2 teaspoons oregano (we used Mexican oregano)

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon smoked paprika

1/2 teaspoon black pepper (optional)
1 teaspoon salt
8 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 cup tomato paste
3 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon yellow mustard

We served ours on ciabatta rolls that we toasted in the oven, but when it comes to rolls and breads it seems like everyone has "their thing". And I get it. So go with whatever you'd like…kaiser rolls are great, burger buns, maybe go open faced, maybe go with biscuits!

1. Ok, first put the lentils in a sauce pot with four cups of water, cover, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, lower the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes until the lentils are soft. Then drain and set aside.

2. Now, in another pot, heated medium, add your olive oil. Once the oil is hot, sauté the onion and green pepper until softened, about 7 minutes. Now add the garlic and sauté for a minute more. To this add your cooked lentils, chili powder, oregano, cumin, smoked paprika, black pepper and salt. Stir to mix through. Then stir in the tomato sauce and paste, and cook for about 10 more minutes.

3. Add the maple syrup and mustard and stir until heated through. Then turn off the heat and let it sit for a few minutes so the flavors meld. Then serve!

We plated ours with a simple spinach side salad with cherry tomatoes, sliced carrot, and red pepper dressing. The fresh greens were a great contrast to the yummy indulgent sloppy joes. We love the signature sweetness of sloppy joes, and for us the smoked paprika made all the difference.  Also, as I said above, we really loved the texture of the lentils…they're soft but have a teeny bit of bite.

And our rolls weren't huge, but they weren't tiny either…so both of us felt like we could eat more but not an entire sandwich more. So we dished a little extra "Joe" on our plates right next to our sandwiches to eat with a fork. I recommend this tactic. :)

Ok, hope you love these! Let us know if you do!

xo, Jenny & Aaron

Raw Vegan Brownie Balls

This weekend was spent mostly in the studio. We're trying our best to get all open orders out this week so that we can get to work on new designs. You'll never hear us complain about working on orders. We love the work, we love our collectors, and there's a very specific peace that goes along with being busy. It's so extremely hot outside, but we've got the air conditioning cranked, music playing, good candles…and snacks! Snacks are key!  

Currently, we really need to go grocery shopping. We've haven't be able to get to the store, so the cupboards are pretty much bare. We didn't think we had the makings to whip up a sweet treat, but then we came across this recipe that looked and sounded deelish, and it just so happened that we had every ingredient in our pantry. These Brownie Balls are raw, vegan, and there's no added sugar…just dates to bring the sweet. 

So this afternoon we took a little bit of time out to make them…and by "little bit" I mean about 10 minutes total! And that includes the time it took to gather the ingredients. They are so easy...and SO GOOD! So much rich, deep chocolate flavor...and that bit of sea salt makes them! 

You will need:

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup almonds

1 cup chopped dates (Medjool or regular)

1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons good quality unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

This seriously couldn't be more easy! Add your walnuts and almonds to your food processor and process until it starts to resemble "dough".

Now, add your dates, cocoa powder, and salt…and process until well combined and resembling chocolate cookie dough.

And remember…these are raw! No baking! All you have to do at this point is roll your mixture into balls. I used some little truffle cups…but you could just put them on a plate. Then pop them in the fridge for about an hour…and Enjoy! In mid summer, why turn on the oven when you can make these balls of goodness in mere minutes!

These are so good, and we just had to take time out of our schedule to share this recipe today! We're just about to unwind for the evening with a couple of our fave shows…and I think it's also time for a second serving of dessert.

Thanks for popping in!

xo Jenny…and Aaron

Vegan Date Bars

The past 3 days with Lieutenant Dan here at home with us have been a dream. He already feels like Family...with a capital F. It feels like he's always been with us. We can't believe how much the little guy has already adapted to our daily routine. Carlos is loving having him around, and we couldn't be more happy about that. Zero aggression at the food bowl, and there doesn't seem to be any territory issues. We actually feel like Carlos has a sense of just how small and delicate Dan is.

But jeez, with all this dog stuff the week has flown by! We are doing our best to work on orders without being distracted by that cute little guy staring longingly at us. We want to just eat him up all day! We could go on and on...but this post is actually about baking! We were in the mood for something sweet, crumbly, and wholesome tasting. Something sweet that's mostly nuts, oats, and fruit. We had just picked up some dates on our last shopping trip and wanted them to be the base of whatever dessert we'd decide to bake. So we found this recipe for Vegan Date Bars and just had to give them a try!

We really didn't veer too far off course from the original recipe. Just slight adjustments. In the end they turned out to be exactly what we were craving. Sweet but not too sweet, crumbly, crusty, filling...and easy!

Here is what you will need:

lightly greased or sprayed 9" x 13" baking pan

Date filling:

2 cups pitted chopped dates

1/2 cup coconut sugar (we used light brown sugar instead)

1 1/4 cups water

1/2 cup almonds finely ground

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Crust:

3/4 cup vegan butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups Quick cooking oats

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

First, we prepared our filling. We chopped our dates into fine pieces in the food processor.

Then, in a skillet we added the chopped dates, the water, and the 1/2 cup of light brown sugar (again, feel free to use coconut sugar instead) Next, we stirred and cooked it over medium high heat. Then we turned the heat down a bit and cooked it until it thickened. Once thickened we added the vanilla and almond extracts, and the finely ground almonds. We stirred it until it looked like the pic above. Next, you'll transfer it to a bowl to cool for a bit.

Now for the crust. We creamed the vegan butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. We used our Kitchen Aid, but you can always use a hand mixer.

Next we added the flour, baking soda, and salt...and mixed it some more.

Then we added the oats and mixed well. Don't expect it to turn out like dough...it will be crumbly.

But the crumbly texture is exactly what you're looking for. Next you'll sprinkle half of the crust into your prepared pan. Then press it down with your fingers.

The next layer is the filling. It's pretty thick and sticky, so your best bet is to drop spoonfuls of it all around. Then you can use a spoon to smooth it out in an even layer over the entire bottom crust. Press and spread carefully so that you don't pull up the bottom crust. 

Then cover the filling with the remaining crust mixture and press down. You'll pop this in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. Then remove and let cool for about 5 minutes. Then cut into squares while still warm.

They really turned out great. We think there is a perfect ratio of sweet filling to nutty/oaty, just-ever-so-slightly salted crust. We have them stored in an air tight container in the fridge. We each ate one first at room temperature and then today had one straight from the fridge...and both of us liked the chilled version even better. The original recipe says they freeze well, and can thaw on the counter for an hour. Aaron's mom had one with coffee and said it was perfect. 

We highly recommend these! I was just about to try to formulate some terrible pun/joke about not having to go out to a Bar for a Date...that you could stay home and have the Date in the Bar or whatever...terrible idea...but too late now! Anyway...enjoy some Vegan Date Bars! They are no joke! derp.

xo, Jenny & Aaron

and Carlos and Lieutenant Dan 

Around here...

This pic kinda says it all. Sunny pleasant day...and yeah, this is Jack's demeanor out in the sun. He's a basker. The eyes slowly close until he appears to be asleep on his feet. 

You may be wondering why we favor one chihuahua over the other when it comes to picture taking...well, it's no fault of mine!...Carlos just so happens to never ever stand still. While this pic was being taken I believe Carlos was investigating Walt's kayak over in the corner of the yard.

Beautiful day...warmer outside than inside. Which is a very big, and very welcome change for us. 

So the mail man was bearing joyful tidings this week. Two packages that I've been eagerly awaiting arrived on my doorstep. The first being this super cute tote bag from our talented friends Beca & Doug over at Tumbleweeds Handcraft. It's a collaboration with Screenprint artist Strawberry Moth. I Love it. And the awesome wood burned coasters are perfect. I believe that this tote will be traveling to Memphis with me next week. 

And Oh. my. gosh. I have been patiently waiting since January for this Astral Crown from the sweet and talented Sue at Giant Dwarf. Sue is retiring all of her trademark glass glitter star headbands and crowns. When she announced this news she received over 500 orders! I am so happy I was able to get some golden stars! 

And she was so sweet to include this lovely red glitter heart brooch. I love them both so much! With these awesome items being subtracted from Sue's repertoire I cannot wait to see what she creatively graces us with next!

This has been the daily scene around here. The two of us packing up lots of The Sweet Life orders! We shipped a bunch yesterday and more will ship tomorrow! Thank you very very much if you placed an order! We are so excited to see what everyone creates with the collection! 

Would you look at this! We pretty much assaulted the craft store gearing up for our trip to Memphis. We shipped all of this and so much more down to Dixie today! The boxes weighed a ton. We are SO EXCITED for Art is...You! So crazy to think that in less than 5 days we will be in Memphis, TN! We cannot wait to make art with everyone. And it will be amazing to see old friends and make new ones! 

When we were picking up supplies for the trip we hit the dollar bins at Michael's and found these adorable little macaron notecards. I couldn't pass them up!

So you know that we love to cook, and we love to try lots of new recipes. We just really love to mix up the menu...try new flavors and spices. We do a lot of meals that include a bed of fresh greens...which are very saladesque...but do much more than salad. Our favorite part is making homemade dressing.

Well tonight we tried out a recipe for a Macro bowl that we had come across on pinterest. We can think back to being in NYC a whole lot about a decade ago when the macrobiotic thing was hitting hard and there were new restaurants opening up all over the city...many of them riding the wave of Gwyneth Paltrow, who was all about the macrobiotic diet. We've tried a few macro bowls over the years at veg restaurants, but we haven't made any at home. So this Vegan Macro Bowl was a great start!

We both love tempeh. It is sooo darn delicious! If you aren't familiar with tempeh...it's a vegetable based protein but isn't like tofu which is kinda soft and pillowy. Tempeh is made of grains and is firmer and sautés very nicely. It can be marinaded, and man does it get nice and crispy in a skillet. In this recipe it comes out perfectly glazed and caramelized on the outside.

Then there is brown rice and white beans that are tossed with nutritional yeast, which gives them an awesomely cheesy flavor. There are shiitake mushrooms...and I'm not a fan of mushrooms usually...but in this dish the flavor works so well. Jeeez, there's so much good stuff...kale, sprouts, broccoli, a deeelish homemade tahini maple dressing, a satsuma laid on top for a sweet contrast, and sauerkraut...which Makes it. And when sauerkraut is done right...meaning raw and without vinegar...it's  far from being just a hot dog topping. It's actually a probiotic, it's got cancer fighting properties, and its loaded with vitamin C.

It was one of those meals that made both me and Aaron stop and say "seriously?...we can eat this good whenever we want?" I totally recommend this recipe for anyone who wants to eat dinner and then walk around the house feeling energized and ready for round two.

And it was fun to cook together. 

How is tomorrow Friday?! No... really...how?!

well, regardless...I hope yours is fabulous!

Thanks for popping in! 

xo Jenny & Aaron

Recipe Review: Roasted Sweet Potato, Wild Rice, and Arugula Salad

Easter Sunday was quiet for us, and this was a welcome change of pace. Its very very rare for us to take a day off. And even when we say we're taking a day off, a little bit of work will sneak into the day...like packing some orders, or priming boards for the next day. But this Easter was an actual day off. And being that it was a sunny day we decided to go for a walk. All of the boardwalks and amusements parks up and down the Jersey Shore open up on Easter Sunday, including our very own right here in town. So the two of us walked up there to check out the festivities. It was very crowded, which is great. All of the boardwalks are still in the rebuilding phase after hurricane Sandy, so the more business the better. But at the risk of sounding like a downer, it was sad to see that so much of the old charm was gone. Everything is rebuilt and new, so the kitsch value is lost. The owners of the stands definitely did their best to add some fun with bright paint colors, but for me, so much of what I love about these sea shore fun spots is their vintage appeal. But I'm confident that with time it will all be restored to its former glory. A couple things did not change at all. The signature smells. The pizza stand smelled exactly the same...and so did the French Fry stand. But as great as those smelled to us, we weren't going to be stopping for a bite. Why? you may ask...

Well, because we really couldn't wait to get home to make our dinner. Which was Roasted Sweet Potato, Wild Rice, And Arugula Salad from Pinch of Yum. 

Now make sure that you don't take the word salad at face value. I guess the underlying bed of greens makes it a salad...but this dish is real hearty and bursting with flavor! It is so bright and fresh and comforting. And it was perfect for the day! When you get glimpses of sunny Spring weather you instantly start thinking of fresh, healthy meals. This was a great dinner but would also make a fantastic lunch. I know this because we had it for lunch the following day! The star of this recipe is the homemade lemon dressing. It is just plain magical. The big dose of lemon zest is wonderful.

Ok, first...can we pause to acknowledge the awesome size of this organic sweet potato. Aaron instantly was striking Heisman trophy poses with it. You could totally round up the kids to play a game of Easter touch football with this. 

So the recipe started off with peeling this beast.

And then after you dice it up you get it coated with some olive oil and the spices. Roasted sweet potatoes are just sweet and buttery and work great as the foundation of a meal.

And once the potato is seasoned and oiled it goes for a ride in the oven to roast until it's tender and the edges brown a bit. Would you believe that a single potato filled this entire cookie sheet?! 

And while the potato was roasting we whipped up the awesome dressing in the food processor. I don't know about you...but I get absolutely invigorated when I zest some lemons. That's probably the element in this dressing that makes it far superior to any dressing you can buy already bottled. The fresh lemon zest! It's all about the Zest!

And while I was doing the dressing Aaron was getting the wild rice made. We added some classic spices like sage, thyme, pepper, etc...And once it was ready we added some of the dressing to it in order to marry the flavors.

When everything comes together it lays atop a bed of Arugula and other favorite Spring greens. The warm wild rice and roasted sweet potatoes make the dish so comforting...and by gosh, it's topped with a handful of cashews. The cashews are the perfect finishing topper...and then you drizzle the whole bowl with the dressing.

Oh my goodness! I can't get over how good the dressing was. Our mouths were so so happy! It was the perfect meal for our Easter day. It was just us two, a nice walk in the sunshine, a quiet calm day, and the punctuation of this fab meal to cap the afternoon and bring us into a relaxing evening. We wouldn't change a thing!

If this recipe seems even a tiny bit your style, you just have to try it!

So, bolstered with this fab meal we finished our night with a few episodes of True Blood...yep...we are late to that party. We just never got around to watching it. The two of us aren't the hugest vampire fans. We definitely consider ourselves zombie people. ha! So we honestly weren't sure if True Blood would be for us. But after 2 episodes we were hooked. Its really entertaining. We also thought we were watching a show that was over and done with. So when we saw a commercial this weekend for a new season we were shocked. We have a whole lot to watch in order to be brought up to speed so that we can watch the final season in real time with everyone else.

But yes...to stay on topic. Huge thumbs up for this recipe. Make sure to go and check out all the details on Pinch of Yum!

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter! Happy Spring! 

xo Jenny & Aaron 

Friday Favorites

It looks like it's going to be the wonderful Spring weekend we've all been waiting for here in Jersey. Spring has been taking forever to show up, but gradually it's getting warmer out there. A couple days ago me and Aaron took our first beach walk of the season. It was still chilly and windy up by the water, but it was pleasant enough for us. I'm really looking forward to doing some of our work out on the deck. We've got lots of base coating to do, on plaques and die cuts, and doing it out in the sunshine will feel great. And oh jeez...don't even get me started on the idea of grilling up our veggies every evening out there in the open air. I've been dying to get the grill fired up.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. I better keep my mouth shut about the pleasant weather or I just might jinx it. I'm psyched for Easter. The entire Jersey Shore pretty much opens for the season on Easter weekend. So it feels very fitting to open up this Friday Favorites with these super sweet Easter tags. 

I've shared lovely tags from Lia before, and these latest Easter tags only improve upon my already high opinion of her work. And guess what?...these are free printables! 

And not only are the tags printable...the sweet gift wrap is as well! You can find them all right here.

I love this table! The color is so bright and I love the contrast with the wood. It's half industrial, half super fun. Rustic yet modern. And the best part...it is a folding table! It's from World Market, who always has my number when it comes to furniture. They call it a Beer Garden table. I can think of a million uses for it. When I was putting this table in the post, right below those tags by Lia, I instantly imagined owning this and it being our designated giftwrapping table. That would be awesome.

Oh jeez, there's a word that I simply cannot stand: procrastination. Yep, procrastination drives me crazy. I love days when everything that pops into my head gets done right then and there. To me, that is the definition of a good day. 

That's why I love this sign. This simple statement says it all. 

One of my all time favorite collectibles are vintage photos. Vintage holiday photos and birthday photos are the best. Over the years I've come across some really fantastic vintage Christmas tree photos, with kids posed in front holding their prized toys. And I love vintage photos of kids with their birthday cakes. I'm always searching for the classic "kids on Santa's lap" pics. But the much rarer cousin to Santa's lap pics are Easter bunny lap pics. They're not too easy to find, and they go for a pretty penny on ebay. I'm partial to shots from the 1940s - 50s. For my collections I generally like Easter bunny photos that are actually sweet. But it is also very entertaining when you come across the crazy ones. And for some reason, there are lots of very weird looking Easter bunny costumes out there. So, hats off to the girls over at Prudent Baby for putting together this round-up of 25 Absolutely Terrifying Easter Bunnies. You have to click over to see them all....there are some gems in there.

Aaron and myself are makers of signage, and therefore, we treasure any vintage reference that we come across. We are suckers for vintage neon from boardwalks and ice cream shops. And this Giant Ice Cream Cone is like a total dream! It would be amazing in our livingroom! The rust stains are perfect. And I love the sun faded tones of the pink and blue, and that cherry too! Wow! 

Right now I could totally go for these Honey, Peanut butter & Coconut cookies. The recipe is simple, and I swoon for an ingredients list that is as short as this one. 

The other day my friend Carolyn shared a link to this home, which was listed for sale in Toronto. The owner is a 96 year old gal, and it's pretty much a 1950s time capsule. Carolyn suspected that I'd die over these pics...and she was right! This entryway is my favorite. That wallpaper is so incredibly beautiful. I'd move in just based on the entryway!

And this living room! Everything is so pristine! It all reminds me so so much of The Madonna Inn! I've never been to the Madonna Inn, but it is on the top of my list of places that I must stay in one day! You truly should take a few minutes to browse some of the rooms! 

It is all so much fun! Especially when you consider that it's pretty much a secret. All of these magical pastel interiors are hidden away behind an exterior...that looks...

like this! 

I love it! It would be amazing if the next owner just kept it exactly as-is.

Ok, thanks again for reading my Friday Faves. I hope you found some fun and inspired things. Have a fabulous weekend!

xo, Jenny...and Aaron says hi!