What was one of your favorite birthday celebrations to date?
Birthdays are THE BEST holiday. It is the day you came into this world to make your mark. That day started a lifetime of endless possibilities, learning experiences, challenges, hopes, dreams and developing meaningful relationships. It is your day. It deserves to be celebrated. You deserve to be celebrated, every year of your life.
I love to celebrate my family and friends birthdays, more than any other holiday on the calendar. I always had lovely birthdays. My Mom would make the most beautifully decorated cakes by hand. One that sticks in my memory is a big pink heart with her famous chocolate cake in the inside. I can still remember blowing out the candles on that special cake and having my parents, sister and grandparents sweetly singing Happy Birthday to me.
I hope you have memories like this of your birthday and I also hope you are able to create more of them in the future. The day you were born is an important part of history. No matter what your age, you are never too young or too old for others to sing to you while you blow out your candles.
Nosh Two. Weekly Conversation.
Today’s conversation is with Jen Plaggemars, a registered dietitian who fulfilled a dream to go back to culinary school and become a chef.
Do you ever scroll through social media to find a recipe for something but you’re not quite sure what that something is? Then you come across photos that start to make you hungry and you must know what the recipe is? Insert Chef Jen. Jen and I worked for the same company for few years, but we really didn’t know each other until I saw a photo of these gorgeous fried plantain chips with a chipotle pineapple guacamole dip and I wanted, no...needed, to be her friend. She is a dietitian and is now following a dream of being a personal chef and has created a pretty delicious life that I am excited to share with you.
Nosh Three. Weekly Inspiration.
Being able to celebrate the birthdays of people we love and care about always inspire me. It reminds me another year has passed and each birthday I celebrates reminds me to reflect on what I have accomplished over that past year. I review all my goals: personal and professional. It is a quarterly check in to see where I am at or what I have forgotten about. I am also inspired greatly by the humans who I celebrate these birthdays with. I am a big card person, so I spend time picking out the perfect card for each of them. In the card, I tell them how they inspire and influence my life in a positive way. I also make sure to remind them of why they mean so much to me. Who know other people's birthdays could be a source of personal and professional inspiration? I was fortunate to have another year to celebrate 2 fabulous ladies, my Mom and my frista (friend from another mista) Carlena.
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| Nothing says pure joy like a birthday donut with sprinkles and coffee of course! |
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| It is always fun to celebrate my Mom on her birthday. |
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| The sweet little cake the ladies at the Hy-Vee on Fleur made for her. We really have the best bakery in Des Moines. |
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| Happy Happy Birthday to Carlena. We spent the night under the red lights of Parliament Pub West |
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| Had to take a break from cutting a rug and soak it all in. |
Nosh Four. Weekly Music Inspiration.
When I went home to spend the day with my Mom for her birthday, I had to have a playlist to start the day with donuts and coffee on "The Patio." Hope you enjoy my birthday beats on Apple Music and Spotify.
A few years ago, I went on this fantastically amazing trip to St. Helena and Napa Valley California. At almost all the restaurants we dined at, there were roasted shishito peppers on the menu as an appetizer. I loved them. As I was perusing my favorite Hy-Vee on Fleur Drive, I found a bag courtesy of Melissa's Produce and I immediately grabbed some. I am so glad I did. I roasted the whole bag and munched on them for lunch. According to the Melissa's website "shishitos are traditionally served in Japanese cuisine roasted and tossed with sesame oil and a dash of soy sauce." They are mild but lively, sweet and have a hint of smoke to them especially when roasted. Until you get a orange mature one, then the lively factor skyrockets. You might choke a little and your eyes might water, I cannot confirm or deny this happened :).
Roasted Shishitos: Preheat oven to 375 degrees, clean peppers, pat dry and lay in a single layer on a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and generously sprinkle freshly cracked pepper and course salt. Bake until peppers skin start to brown slightly, 3-5 minutes, turning once.
Next time, I am trying it with sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and light soy sauce for dipping.
Nosh Five. What I Love Right Now.
A few years ago, I went on this fantastically amazing trip to St. Helena and Napa Valley California. At almost all the restaurants we dined at, there were roasted shishito peppers on the menu as an appetizer. I loved them. As I was perusing my favorite Hy-Vee on Fleur Drive, I found a bag courtesy of Melissa's Produce and I immediately grabbed some. I am so glad I did. I roasted the whole bag and munched on them for lunch. According to the Melissa's website "shishitos are traditionally served in Japanese cuisine roasted and tossed with sesame oil and a dash of soy sauce." They are mild but lively, sweet and have a hint of smoke to them especially when roasted. Until you get a orange mature one, then the lively factor skyrockets. You might choke a little and your eyes might water, I cannot confirm or deny this happened :).
Roasted Shishitos: Preheat oven to 375 degrees, clean peppers, pat dry and lay in a single layer on a sheet pan. Drizzle with olive oil and generously sprinkle freshly cracked pepper and course salt. Bake until peppers skin start to brown slightly, 3-5 minutes, turning once.
Next time, I am trying it with sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and light soy sauce for dipping.
~AE
*All views and opinions on products, food and businesses in this blog post are my own and are not sponsored in any way. I just love to share great things!
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