10 Day Challenge - 2!

I had a lot of fun doing my first 10 day challenge and keeping myself in check that I thought I'd go for another 10! There is still a lot of food I want to try, exercises I need to push myself to do and just activities that I'm lazy and don't do haha this makes it written in stone and more of necessity to complete. 

Check out my new 10 day challenge, I hope some of you are trying this!



Challenge #10 - Make a healthy dinner for D and I

Earlier this week my great friend Jessie made me dinner as we hung out and relaxed together.  It was FABULOUS! I loved the food and I knew that it was one to save because David would like it as well.

She made Trader Joes Orange Chicken, broccoli and brown rice.

[OK, David would not have liked the brown rice]

So, I decided that for this challenge I would bring Jessie's dinner into my own home and try it out!

I didn't have time to get to a Trader Joe's so I tried Sprouts instead and sure enough they had their own brand of Orange Chicken for $7.49!  It was really easy to make too!

Bring oven to 400 degrees, place chicken on a cooking sheet so that the chicken is spread out, put in oven for 20 minutes and top with the flavored sauce and TIME! You're done!

I steamed a bit of broccoli and made rice in a bag to complete our meal.  I'd say it was a success and David really liked it too!

We decided that we'd save this one as a favorite!



Challenge #9 - Try Body Pump at 24

Trying Body Pump has been a goal of mine for some time and I finally put my mind to trying it and then..... class was cancelled :(

Boooo!!

I was really bummed and relieved at the same time.

Finally I thought I'd get my ass into this class and was pumped to actually do it so I was upset that I couldn't try it, but at the same time that class scares the crap out of me and I would be lying to say I didn't feel a fresh of breath air learning that I didn't have to do the class.

I'm lame, I know.

I WILL be putting this on my next 10 day challenge that I will be starting tomorrow.  I will post my new calendar!

Even though this challenge wasn't met, I did have a surprise challenge that day that I was actually very excited about.  I've always wanted to try Quinoa and I finally did!! I had an impromptu visit to my BFF's house and she is a HEALHTY eater!! I wish I could be as strong of an eater as she is.  She was making asparagus, zucchini and quinoa for dinner.  I supplied the wine and we had a feast!!

I wish I took a picture of it, but here is what it looks like in seed form and cooked:

It's a little seed and is made the same as rice.  It is cooked in a pot, two cups of water for every one cup of quinoa.  It looks pretty interesting - some pictures I've researched makes it look very thick, almost like oatmeal, but when we had it it wasn't thick at all.  It had the same texture as rice and wasn't too watery or dry at all.  You just have to watch it while it cooks.  Once it comes to a boil, turn the heat to medium/low for about 15 minutes until there is no water left.

Challenge #4 - Try a new tea

Goal #4 - replace soda with a new tea

This may be hard to believe, but I have never tried Green Tea before Friday.  And Friday may have been the worst day for this challenge.  I fell asleep at 8pm the night before, but still woke up with a SLAMMING headache.  I'm not sure why but it cursed me and took me through the entire day.  On top of being insanely busy at work and not being able to eat a full meal until dinner time.  By the time David and I sat down at Thai Cuisine for dinner, all I wanted was a soda because I've always known a tall class of Coke-a-Cola to take away my head pounding.  But I really wanted to complete my challenge and go the healthy route.. and then David orders himself a gorgeous looking class of soda! Needless to say, I almost gave up, but stuck it out and had my green tea.

IT WAS DELICIOUS! It tasted like flowers and smelled amazing!!!

Here is a picture of my adorable little setting of green tea and my teapot!  Next, I want to try the green tea from Starbucks that has been raved about! Courtney has told me that they have a green tea-lemonade that is just like an Arnold Palmer, but green tea instead!  Pumped to continue this challenge!

26. Try 10 new wines

This goal is not complete yet, but it is definitely underway!

Out of the 10 wines I set out for myself to try, I am pleased to say that I have currently tasted 7 new wines (plus "Bitch" from my last post)!!!!

Shannon and I set this goal together and meant to just hit up Total Wine, buy 5 bottles of wine neither of us have tatsed and have ourselves a little wine night.  With busy schedules and such we have yet to have this night.  But in the mean time I have been trying new wines quite often and figured I shoudl add them to my list :)

(Shan, we should still have our wine night!)

Here we go...
[In no particular order]

1. Flip Flop - Merlot

Actually tried this one last night at Shannon and Alex's house with spaghetti dinner.  It was YUMMY!!! Shannon literally poured us only as much wine as shown in the picture and after I was finished I was feeling it!! We checked the acohol % and it was 13%!  The boys beer was less than 1/3 of that! Strong, but very tasty!

2. Frontera, Chile - Cab/Merlot

 David and I received this at our engagement party from Milo and Kyle.  It has a very strong taste and was a little much for Lauren and I to take in Vegas.  We each probably had one glass and called it quits.  It just wasn't a good taste for our palate.

3. 1 <3 CA- Pinot

This one was very interesting.  Another one that Lauren and I tried in Vegas.  I think it would have been better with a sweet food, maybe some strawberries or other fruit.  We drank it plain with nothing and the taste was a little harsh at the moment.  I did like it, could have drank the whole bottle if that was the only one, but I'd rather pair it with some light, sweet food.

4. Turning Leaf - Riesling

My baby sister, Danielle, and her boyfriend Tom introduced Erin, David and I to this one.  We really enjoyed it!! We drank it alone and with dinner and thought it was very tasty!  It has a light, sweet taste that makes it easy to down! I would definitely recommend this!

5. Goats Trail - Zinfandel

Apparently I'm the only crazy one.  This is another that was brought along to us from Danielle & Tom.  I'm not sure if they had tried it before or if it was a random purchase, but no one seemed to have a taste for it.  Therefore, when I ended up with the last glass of Turning Leaf and David didn't want Goats Trail I had to switch him! Which was fine since I enjoyed both.  This one has a heavier, stronger taste and goes great with meat!

6. Cupcake

Just as it sounds! A very dessert flavored wine, almost a little tart!! Marisol, David's sister, had this at our engagement party and some liked it and some thought it was too much.  I enjoyed it for the party.  I probably wouldn't pour this at home with dinner or while I was snacking away but it was a fun wine to have at the party where we weren't there to get sloshed.

7. Sweet - Moscato

Our dear friend Rosie gave this to David and I at our engagement party.  No one had popped it open, as we had many, many bottles of many, many different alcohols, but eventually we got to it in Vegas and this one was by far Lauren and my favorite! David really liked it too.  Again, it's just as the name states.  It was very sweet, light and really easy to drink!!

Tonight, I will be trying another one I'll be able to add to the list.  It is a Barefoot - Sweet Red (I think).  I cannot remember what the actual name of the wine is but it's for David and my anniversary and he really likes sweet and fruity, so I can imagine that's the name.

I'll keep you posted!

26. Try 10 New Wines

One wine down, nine to go!!!

1.  Bitch - I bought this wine for my sister some time ago thinking that it would be a fun bottle to share on a girls night that we could laugh about!! It definitely was all I hoped, but the taste was not one that I would recommend.  The bottle was so fun to keep around and is totally adorable.  But we probably won't be buying this for ourselves in the future.



97. Try making a new recipe every month

This is an ongoing goal throughout the 1001 days for Day Zero Project.

At the beginning I was posting each month of the new foods, recpies and goodies I was making.  More recently, I haven't posted any of my delicious findings and new creations!! I thought I would give an update of all the recipes that I have been making :)

Lets see...

- Pesto, Avocado Pasta

I made this with my friend Mackenzie.. it was definitely different and was an awkwardly cool dish as oppose to a hot dish you would expect with spaghetti noodles.  It was a good expereince :)

- 5 Minute Chili (Trader Joes Recipe) 

This was my first recipe out of my NEW Trader Joes cookbook from Mackenzie.  It was pretty easy! Not 5 minutes easy, but didn't require much and was very tasty!

-Stuffed Peppers (Trader Joes Recipe)

I made this one with my BFF Lauren.  We were starving and a little impatient as we did not cook the rice fully, not knowing how long it took to make rice, and so it was a bit harder than it should've been.  But the peppers were fabulous!

- Mini Strawberry Pies, Davids FAVORITE!

I recently made these for David and my engagement party as a request from my fiance.  SUPER easy!! But still a new recipe :))

- Chicken breasts in bulk

To be honest, I have never actually cooked chicken.  David usually does it for us if we have chicken with dinner.  My mama taught me how to cook chicken in general, but I also learned how to cook it in bulk and perserve it to eat throughout the week.

-Homemade Apple Sauce

This was not as bad as it looks.  When all said and done it was warm, which was a bit weird, and it didn't have much taste.  You boil apples and then peel the skin off, mush it together and top it with a little cinnamon. Not difficult at all!

- Salsa

I have learned how to make salsa in a variety of ways in the past but my sister makes a fabulously amazing salsa by boiling the ingredients and then dropping them in the blender.  It is so easy and even I can do it!!!! I LOVE her salsa that I had to learn how to make it! And it was well worth it :)

- Baked Breaded Avocado Slices (I'm sure there's a better name for these)

This was interesting!! You basically take slices of avocado, dip them in eggs and bread crumbles and bake them.  Sounds fabulous!! But were lacking in taste.  We doused them in hot sauce and ate a few of them, but over all we need to figure out how to add a little more flavor next time.

- Panini Sandwiches

I really enjoy a good panini sandwich, but I have always thought they took a ton of effort and we're more than I would bargain for.  But, yet again, Erin whiped out the ingredients for an array of different paninis and away we went.  We made them on the George Foreman grill and put everything from ham/turkey in them to avocados and grilled veggies.  SOOO easy and a lot of fun to make!

-Homemade Ice Cream!

This was a MESS!! hahaha Erin had a goal to make homemade ice cream.  While at Target I saw a mini ice cream machine on sale and bought it.  This thing was so small and the directions were so vauge that although we made ice cream it was super watery! It never fully thickened like ice cream should, but still tasted really good!

- Icing a cupcake!

A little random, but I learned how to make the concoction and beautifully ice some fabulous cupcakes for my godsons first birthday.  OK Shannon did most of the work, but I still learned how to do it!!!  It's super easy! You just need a plastic funnel, a tip to go in the funnel that the icing will come out of, food coloring and vanilla icing and WA-LA! Goregous cupcakes with very little effort!

- Hard Boiled Eggs :))

Haha this one is kind of pathetic, but I never knew how and as Shannon, Erin and I were making Easter eggs we all learned how to boil an egg! Which will come in handy with deviled eggs, salads, or for a good snack!

- Alcoholic Infused Gummi Bears

Shannon taught me this one! They were strong!!! It was pretty basic, but needed time to sit and soak.  The result was quite a show...

- Chocolate Dipped Cookies

These were WAYYY easier than expected!! I thought I was going to have to dye the chocolate and make a major mess and none of the happened.  I bought the colored chocolate from Michaels, melted them down and dipped sugar cookies into them half way.  Stick these puppies in the fridge so the chocolate will harden and DONE!

- Deviled Eggs

This one is a little premature as I will not be learning to make these until this weekend, but I am very excited as my mom as an AMAZING recipe that my sister will be using to make goodies for my bridesmaid get together on Sunday... Check back for the results of these littl babies!

TIME!

15 recipes and still counting!!!!



4. Go on a double date with David, Erin & Smelly

Although we hang out on a pretty regular basis, Erin and I rarely get a double date with our boys.  One night we were sitting around and mentioned wanting to go see a movie and I screamed out "DZP Double Date!!!" and Erin was SOLD! We convinced the boys and off we went!

We ate at Alcapulo Restaurant, where they didn't have rice for some insane reason! This was a major topic of conversation during dinner...

And then saw The Hunger Games at Century Theater.

We had a blast and the movie was fabulous! (It was my second time seeing it :))

Here are some pictures..

I went all out and bought a ton of munchies for us to enjoy during the movie (after dinner, contradictory - I know:))

Erin and I, SUPER excited that we're actually completing a goal, unexpectedly!

The four of us.. as you can tell the boys cannot take a real picture.  I think this was our third try at a group shot and.. well.. yaaaaaaa

14. Dye Easter eggs

The conversation between Shannon and I literally went like this:

Shannon: What do you want to do tonight?

Me: I kind of wanted to dye Easter eggs.  It has been so long since I've done that.

Shannon: Ok, we can do that tonight.

Me: REALLY!? WE CAN?!

Shannon: Yeahhh, we can go buy the stuff and make them tonight.

Me: OK! LET'S GO!

Then, I called Erin and had almost the exact same conversation full of excitement.  And that is how we came to the great idea last Saturday evening to dye Easter eggs and knock something off of all our lists :)

Shannon and I went to the grocery store and bought all the goods.  We purchased the traditional dye kit and an extra little goodie box that gave us little bowls, shaped like eggs, to dissolve the dye in.

When we got back to the house we started unpacking everything and Shannon :) had the brilliant idea to punch out the holes on the back of the packaging to set our eggs in to dry after we had designed and dipped them.. little did she, or Erin and I know, that we hadn't read the instructions first and no one knew how exactly to dye Easter eggs.. HAHAHAHAHA

It was so funny!

Therefore, here is another funny conversation of the evening:

Erin: I think it says to put blah blah blah of vinegar in the bowl and then blah blah blah dissolve one tablet of dye and blah blah blah...

and it carried on like this because the "blah blah blah" was where the information was missing due to the missing holes on the back of the box :)

See the hole punched tray sitting there..BAHAHAHAA

Never a dry moment with us!

And the dyeing begins..

Erin getting her dyeing on..

Hahahaha so many funny stories this evening!

I, being a helpful baby sister, decided to check on one of Erin's eggs in the dye.  Well since I haven't done this in YEARS and haven't handled the egg dyeing tools, probably ever, I accidentally dropped her egg and squished the bottom :(

It was still beautiful, but lets just say I wasn't allowed to touch anyone else's eggs than my own after that.

Shannon! Rocking her totally gorgeous new hair cut! Proud to say I was the first to see it after she left the salon :)) (I didn't ruin any of her eggs :))

And this would be me and a concoction I made.  I put a pink dye tablet with a blue one to try and make purple.  Instead I got a very interesting mix of both colors which was a favorite amongst the group! They yelled at me when I did it, but then couldn't help but put one of their eggs in this crazy color mix!

I love these girls :)



85. Eat a meal at a restaurant solo

Generally, on the weekends Lauren and I try to get lunch together - as often as possible.  This weekend she was whisked away; which left me fending for myself.  Therefore, I thought, why not take up this opportunity to cross something off my DZP list. 

I had a craving for Fitness Grill and decided to take it upon myself to a tasty treat.

Unfortunately you can't see much of what I ate, but I had an amazing egg white omelet with asparagus and zucchini with a side salad and fruit.  It was fantastic! Although I missed my bestie sitting across from me, it was nice to enjoy a small portion of the day for myself.

21. Finally go to OC Mining Co for brunch with David :)

My love for the Orange County Mining Company remains with their brunch.  I've been there for dinner and such, but nothing compares to the brunch that they serve.  It is DELICIOUS!  I have been meaning, for some time, to reserve a Sunday afternoon for David and I to go, for probably about 6 months, and we FINALLY made it!



We both enjoyed an array of fruit, sweets, eggs, bacon, and of course, mimosas :)) (Champagne is complementary at Sunday Brunch, in case you didn't know -- add a splash of OJ and you're set!)

It was a beautiful day and I am so glad that I was able to share it with David, finally!

25. Buy Sprinkles Cupcakes for MYSELF!

Okay, so kind of selfish... BUT it was well worth it!

If you haven't tried these cupcakes, try them and you'll know what I mean

David and I took a day to ourselves to just be adventerous! Our day started out a little rough, I'm not going to lie.  David was sick and I spilt my hot tea on myself in the car.. but we weren't going to let that get us down!! We drove to Irvine to take a ride on the FREE hot air balloon and the Great Park ... and the park was closed :(

STILL! We were determined to have a great day.  We drove down to Corona Del Mar and had a great time sitting by the beach and walking around a little bit.  On our way to lunch in Balboa, we stopped at SPRINKLES CUPCAKES

in Newport Beach, just a mile or so from where we already were (it was meant to be).

I was so excited to get in on these very popular desserts!  I ordered a vanilla cupcake with sprinkles, a vanilla cake and chocolate frosting cupcake, and a gluten free red velvet cupcake.. :))

I got into the parking lot, and couldn't resist but to try one! 

It would have been a long drive before getting home to properly eat one

So I stopped outside in the parking lot, handed David my phone and told him to capture what was about to happen....

They're just the most adorable looking cupcakes ever!

 First bite...

DELICIOUS!!!! I would have put two thumbs up if I could!

And then.. I couldn't resist but go in for another..

Lets just say, I was one very HAPPY girl!

Goal Completed!!!

97. Try making a new recipe each month - December AND 53. Bake a dessert from scratch!

Who doesn't love a 2-in-1 special??

Erin threw a holiday "Cookie Swap" party this past Christmas and after searching around for a recipe, I looked to a new cookie cookbook I bought at Target (for $5!) and decided to bake

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies!

I wasn't sure how this would turn out because I have never used real fruit in a dessert recipe before, it's usually chocolate related or artificial, but these were legit!

I made these cookies from scratch, VERY easy, and it was also a new recipe for me for December!

Ingredients:

12 ounces of fresh strawberries, diced
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 cups of all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
2 teaspoon of baking powder
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup heavy cream
Sanding sugar, for sprinking (optional)

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper
2.  Combind strawberries, lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of sugar.
3.  Whisk flour, salt, baking powder, and ramining 7 tablespoons of sugar in large bowl.
4.  Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter, or rub in using your fingers, until mixgture resembles coarse crumbs.

5.  Stir in cream until dough starts to come together, add strawberry mixture and stir gently.

6.  Using a 1 1/2 inch ice cream scoop or a tablespoon, drop dough onto lined baking sheets, leaving appropriate spacing.
*7.  Sprinkle sanding sugar if using.

8.  Bake 23-35 minutes or until golden brown and then transfer to a wire rack to cool

**Cookies are best served on the day they're baked! This is very true!! If you're going to eat them another day, warm them up!

P.S. This was a bit of a messy recipe, so I couldn't take a lot of pictures :(

22. Learn how to make Guacamole

I was never really into guac until I tried it just a few years ago and now I'm hooked! AND Erin makes the best guac ever, so I figured I had to.. no NEEDED to learn how to make it myself!  One night while Shans was over at Erin's apartment, I had the bright idea of completing this goal, with an audience watching!

It was rough, to say the least, but now I'm a pro!

First! Get enough avocados to fulfill the tummys of your guests.  There was only 3 of us, so we used 4.  Cut the avocados in half and take out the seed.  Then spoon out the inside of the avocado into a bowl

Cut up about a half an onion, if you aren't fond of onions I'd say a quarter of an onion would probably be fine also.

Put the onions into the bowl with the avocados and then cut up and crush a piece of garlic and add in as well.

Take a 'bunch' of cilantro, about the size shown, and chop that to small pieces.  Erin taught me an easy way to do this! Roll the cilantro into a little taquito looking thing and then start chopping.

Use about a lime and a half, depending on your preference, and squeeze the juice into the bowl.  If you cut the lime in half and then take a fork and squeeze the half around the fork you'll get the most of your lime! Erin also taught me that!

Mix it alllll together!  Taste and see if you need anything else! Add serranos, cayenne powder, and salsa if you wish to make it spicy! Which we totally did!

*Also, somewhere in the mix you can add tomatoes too!  I didn't because I don't like tomatoes, but its a regular ingredient in most guacamole dishes.

ENJOY!