You say Aweo, I say Weo! [Basic quiche recipe]

A couple of days ago we joined a few friends for a relaxing brunch on the beach.  Aweoweo Beach Park is one of those places we love we just donʻt make it there very often.  The beach park has clean bathrooms, a dilapidated playground & of course a beautiful view!

 To say Iʻve been a bit scatterbrained lately is probably an understatement.  As I was planning this brunch with friends I had grand ideas of all the delicious things I would make. in the end I had an hour and luckily a refrigerated pie crust and some eggs.  Which means, ta da! Quiche!  Quiche is one of the first foods I learned to make without a recipe and rarely fails me.  You can add whatever you have in the fridge and get a full meal with little prep or actual cooking. 

 A beautiful view of Aweoweo Beach. this is the view from our picnic table so the beach is pretty close to where you can set -up.  My favorite thing since eating food with sand in it is just not fun for anybody, except for maybe my 20 month old that eats sand by the handful. 

 For some reasons there were tons of sea turtles out that day!  I even got to put on the snorkel mask and swim around with them and creepily watch them as they eat limu off the coral reef. 

 Overall another beautiful morning in Hawaii, all of which I am very thankful for!  

Zucchini Bacon Quiche with Goat Cheese and Fresh Basil

1/2 package bacon, any kind works

1 small-medium zucchini, diced

5 large eggs

1 pre-made pie crust, I like Immaculate Bakery

3/4 cup heavy cream, or Whole Milk

Salt & Pepper

6 leaves fresh basil 

Goat Cheese, to taste

• Cook bacon until crisp, crumble and set aside.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees 
• Lightly saute zucchini in a little olive oil, just a few minutes, it will continue cooking in oven.
• In a pie dish, unroll pie crust and press firmly into dish so there are no air bubbles.  Crimp edge fancy if you want. 
• Sprinkle cooled bacon and zucchini on top of pie crust.
• In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, cream and salt & pepper.  Pour mixture on top of bacon and zucchini. 
• Cut basil into thin ribbons and sprinkle over egg mixture. 
• Crumble goat cheese on top of edge mixture, use as much or as little as you would like.  
• Bake quiche at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until itʻs no longer jiggly.
• Serve warm or at room temp! 

My 10 Happy Things. [Zucchini & Quinoa Stuffed Portabellos]

My 10 Things.

I love......[in no particular order.]

1.  My new home, for how much of a pain in the ass this move has become, no matter how much I bitch and complain about the process, what we still have to do, etc. I am SO excited to be in a bigger house and looking forward to all the memories we will be making here.

2.  Babywearing.  Something about it just makes me feel like a skilled parent, even tho I'm not the best at it.  The wraps are so pretty, Tulip loves it and I can get shit done.  Enough said.

3.  My husband.  Obviously this guy has to make the list, he is such an amazing Father and loving husband.  God knew what he was doing when I met this crazy kid.

4.  Workaholics.  It's just a good show.  I mean come on, have you seen the Ninja Turtles episode?!

5.  Leggings.  They're so comfy.  I know you're not supposed to wear them like pants but sometimes I do.  I mean a longer t-shirt, but still.  I know. 

6.  My kids.  My sweet flower girls.  My crazy boys.  These four little people have helped me grow so much, I am forever grateful for their love and patience with me everyday. 

7.  My church.  Be it small but mighty.  It's easy to be discouraged about the things you're not doing, but I'm hoping to remember the things we are.  

8.  Tattoos.  They're just so pretty. 

9.  The beach.  I love the beach so much more now, the smell of the ocean, the color of the water, sand in my toes and usually happy kids all around.  A day at the beach is always a good day.  Unless you get rained out with a newborn and than a homeless guy starts a fire in the rocks and runs away and fire men come and think it was your husband that started the fire.  Than it's just an ok day. 

10.  My new blog designer, Miss Tobie!  Be on the look out!  This space will be looking rad someday soon-ish.  But for now I'll keep working on my writing and getting yummy recipes out!  

Zucchini & Quinoa Stuffed Portabellos

1 lb. grass-fed ground beef

2 tbs. olive oil

5 Portabello Mushrooms

1 medium zucchini, diced

1 cup cooked quinoa

4 slices good cheese, optional

Salt

Pepper

1.  In a large skillet brown the ground beef with the olive oil. Season to taste with salt & pepper.

2.  Once meat is browned add the diced zucchini.

3.  Cook for 5 minutes and than stir in the quinoa, season again with salt & pepper.

4.  Scrape out the gills, the brown inside, of the mushrooms with a spoon.  

5.  Arrange cleaned mushrooms on a baking sheet.  Drizzle olive oil inside each cap, season with salt & pepper.

6. Fill each cap with a scoop of the beef mixture, dividing it equally between the 5 caps.

7.  Bake at 400 degreed for 10 minutes, top with cheese or panko crumbs if desired and bake an additional 5 minutes.

To make vegetarian/vegan:  Replace the ground beed with tofu or more veggies.

I'm also trying to figure out how to work Blogger a little better, especially in the aspect of adding pictures and the stories they tell.  I LOVE taking pictures, all the time, anytime, of anything and I really want to be able to go back through my blog one day and see the pictures and remember this time in our lives just because I know it moves so fast.  I'm trying to figure out the easiest way to do it but for now, they're here.  Pictures top to bottom: 

1.  Lily reading her new Junie B. Jones book under a slide at the park the other day.  She got the book from the tooth fairy the other day and is starting to love reading.  That makes me incredibly happy!

2.  A typical day for me.  I was on my second Nutella iced coffee of the day, taking a break from baking a Chocolate Banana Bundt Cake with a little munchkin tugging on me.  I'm pretty happy. 

3.  Oliver the Grouch.  Just look at it, you know. 

Instagram Anonymous. [Frosted Zucchini Brownies]

Hi, my name is Nicole and I am an Instagram addict.

[Which by the way if you want to follow me I'm under: nicolehopefully]

Ok, yes, I said it.  I admit it.  I know, I know.  I really, really, really, like Instagram, even more than Facebook [is that possible?]  I always have this guilt inside of me that maybe I'm the Mom that takes too many pictures?  That I can't just go do something without taking 500 pictures as proof that I did it.

And I think I'm guilty as charged.  

I've always been a picture taker, I took photography in high school, back in the day when we developed our film in a dark room in the pitch black hoping we would load the film right and the whole roll wasn't ruined.  My photography teacher finally had to tell me that not every assignment could be pictures of my, "druggie boyfriend" aka Andy.  Although why he thought Andy was a druggie I'll never know, maybe it was the fact that he was in a band, wore a beanie 24/7 & had long hair?

[I've also decided I'm just going to start using my own pictures for my blog instead of random graphics I find.  My blog is mostly for myself and I think it will be cooler to remember what we we're doing at different times than random memes I think are funny that day.  So here's Andy teaching a science experiment for our homeschool co-op the other day.  

I guess I never did listen to my photography teacher, sorry Mr. Allen!]

Besides photography class I would constantly take pictures with my little point & shoot cameras or disposables if those we're on hand.  I would use my allowance to develop rolls of film every week and the ladies at Rite-Aid would ask if I was ok if I missed a Friday developing my pictures.  I don't know why but I have always just loved pictures.  I'm a big memory person I guess, I love looking through old pictures and remembering how horrible I looked, or what we did on vacations, the fun we had that night, old pets that have since passed. [We love you Caboose!]

My room in high school was plastered in photo strips from the old photo booths that had developer in them, if you put your ear up to it you could hear the tray tipping back and forth.  Another thing that's long gone and if I wasn't feeling older before I definitely am now.  Come to think of it, I can't even remember the last time I developed a roll of film myself.  I loved making collages with pictures for the front of my binders and even tonight I just got done re-doing our fridge with all the new Halloween pictures we just took.

I have carted literally thousands of pictures across the ocean and back.  Reminisced about my brother's rat tail, of beach bonfires on the Central Coast, birthday parties where everyone has a drunken grin, pictures of the kid's as they've grown.  Of Andy & I in high school, my favorite of him drinking tequila out of my hair, oh I pray my children are nothing like us at that age! 

So sometimes when I wonder if I'm just going with the fad, if I just like Instagram cause it's popular and I want to be like the cool kids I remember myself as a not so cool kid taking pictures at punk shows, at funerals, and of the things we ate on road trips.  I've never been big on souvenirs, or buying little things to remind me of the places we've gone or the things we've seen but I do love pictures.  Of visits with our friends in Washington, of my Nani's gravestone when I can't visit her there, of my Grandma on Christmas with her 50 year old fur coat in 70 degree weather.  When I miss them they're here with me.

I'll never be a photographer, I'm not good enough at staging pictures, [even tho my cousin and I would hang bed sheets in our room and play "photo studio"] I always miss that perfect shot and I can barely use the auto setting on our awesome Nikon.  

But I promise you, wherever we go & whatever we do.....I will always be there taking pictures. 

Like this picture!

Yummy zucchini brownies I made for Halloween.  I have tried other zucchini brownie recipes and not loved them, made these the other night & they we're a hit!  The frosting is delicious and you seriously can't tell it has zucchini at all.  I will never make another brownie again.

Frosted Zucchini Brownies

[adapted from mommyimhungry.blogspot.com]

1/2 cup Coconut Oil

1 1/2 cups Sugar

2 tsps. Vanilla

2 cups Flour

1/2 cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Soda

1 tsp. Salt

2 cups shredded Zucchini

1/2 cup chocolate chips 

Frosting:

2 cups Powdered Sugar

1/2 cup Whole Milk

1/4 cup butter

6 tbs. Unsweetened Cocoa Powder

1/2 tsp. Vanilla

[1] In a stand mixer beat together coconut oil & sugar.  When combined mix in vanilla.

[2] In a medium sized mixing bowl whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda & salt.

[3] Slowly add flour mixture to oil and sugar on low speed.  It will look crumbly and dry.

[4] With a spatula mix in zucchini and chocolate chips.  Stir well until there are no dry spots.

[5] Grease a 9x13 baking pan and set your oven for 350.

[6] Bake for 30-35 minutes until brownies spring back when touched. 

[7] Let brownies cool completely before frosting!

Frosting:

[1] In a medium sauce pan melt butter on medium low and whisk in cocoa powder. 

[2] Add powdered sugar, milk and vanilla and whisk until smooth.

[3] You can add more milk or powdered sugar depending on how thick you want your frosting. 

[4] Spread on brownies & enjoy! 

Three Tables Beach: North Shore [w/Grilled Zucchini Roll-Up && Roasted Pepper Hummus recipes.]

At first I thought, why do people care about what beaches I go to? 

But as a Mom I am always looking for things to do with my kids and it really helps if someone can give me the details beforehand, before we trek out there with 17 towels, 4 shovels, 2 coolers, etc. only to find out the waves are too rough, there's is absolutely NO parking,

 or hypodermic needles are hidden in the sand.

Besides that, this is also my personal blog, and I'll write about what I want to write about.  So, yeah.

Spent a great Memorial Day with our friends The Lipka's.  Both have lived in Oahu for almost their whole lives so they know the island a lot better than we do.  We had great plans to go camping above the cemetery in Mililani but after a few rainy days we decided wallowing in the mud didn't sound like much fun.  

We're always excited to try out a new beach,  everyone can be so different it's just amazing to see everything Hawaii has to offer.  The last time we lived here 2004-2008 we didn't really get out enough to just be thankful for what was all around us and it kind of made us go stir crazy, coming from California land of road trips & every kind of climate you could imagine was hard, this time around we decided to not be closed in and explore!

The Three Tables out in the ocean.  You can stand on top of them and the swim out isn't hard at all.

This beach is also located in a fish conservatory so the snorkeling was amazing!

Went for the first time in awhile and it was awesome to see all the Parrot fish, eels, sea cucumbers, coral & let the quickly growing belly float around in the ocean for a bit! 

[Awesome tide pools all around these rocks, Jonas had a blast just walking around this area.]

The Beach 411!

If you are coming from North Shore you will keep following the main road around past Waimea Bay.

Three Tables will be right past Waimea Bay on the left, if you hit the Pupukea Foodland you went too far.  Parking is actually more than some beaches but still not great, be prepared, you might have to haul your stuff quite a ways.  There are bathrooms but they are a little bit down along a paved path, so don't wait till they're screaming "I can't hold it anymore!"

Foodland [with a Starbucks!!!] is super close, less than a mile away, just in case your forgot any essentials.  There are some trees and shade but as always it's good to bring your own, especially with little kids.  The water is really nice, clear and warm.  Calm enough at the sand line and shallow but if you walk far enough out there is a drop off.  

Rock balancing near the bathrooms, crazy to see!

So as promised, here are my recipes for my contributions to the BBQ!

It was a great dish to try there because you can prep everything ahead of time, grill the zucchini and then just smear on the goat cheese & roll!  Just make sure to put leftovers in your cooler right after so they don't go bad.

Have a great day at the beach!

Zucchini Roll-Ups with Herbed Goat Cheese

2 large zucchini cut into wide strips

Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

Any combo of dried herbs you have on hand, I used thyme & rosemary

1/2 cup goat cheese

1/4 Kalamata olives, pitted & diced

[1] Slice your zucchini into strips and toss with oil, salt & pepper.

[2] In a separate container mix goat cheese with chopped Kalamata olives & herbs.

[3] Grill zucchini for 3-7 minutes each side, depending on thickness of strips and heat of grill.

Once they are tender and can be bent they are done!

[4] Smear goat cheese mixture on cooked zucchini & roll!  All done!  

Super easy, healthy & tasty side dish for any BBQ.

 I also brought some home made hummus, cause who doesn't love eating the day away at the beach?

Soaking up the sun, listening to some good tunes & swimming.snacking.swimming.repeat. 

I'm also always looking for ways to make things we like cheaper, healthier and fresher.

Hummus is one of those things!

Roasted Sweet Pepper Hummus

2 cans garbanzo beans, drained & rinsed

8 mini sweet bell peppers, assorted colors

1/4 cup tahini

1/4 cup olive oil

Juice of 2 large lemons

Sea Salt to taste

Cumin

Smoked Paprika

[1] Roast your sweet peppers, rub them with oil & season with salt.

Set one to the side & dice finely to garnish. 

Roast them in a 350 degree F oven for about 20 minutes or until soft and slightly charred looking.
Let cool.

[2] Drain & rinse your garbanzo beans and put them in a food processor.  

Put a small handful to the side for the top.

We have a Ninja, I use it for everything!  Love.

[3] Add olive oil, lemon juice, salt & seasonings.

[4] Once peppers are cool cut off stems and de-seed.

Throw those in the processor as well!

[5] Blend!  You might like your hummus thinner, chunkier, etc.  This is a recipe that is really easy to adapt to your tastes.  I personally love lemon so I think even 5 juiced lemons wouldn't be too much for me!

[5] Season to taste, blending a bit between each time so you can make sure it's not too salty, etc.

[6] Once your happy with the flavor transfer to a serving bowl, etc.

Top with more olive oil, smoked paprika, & reserved garbanzo beans and peppers!

This taste even better the next day too so it's a great make ahead food.