Sponsor Feature: Acute Designs

     Today we have another Large Ad feature post! Interested in having one? Send me an email! Gina from Acute Designs is going to share a few of her favorite summer salsas and how to make them. Seems like the perfect time to whip up a batch and take it to a BBQ, right? I love Roasted Red Pepper salsas with sweet chips like Sweet Potato... delish!

     Hi everyone! This is Gina from Acute Designs...the newest sponsor of The Weekend File.  I own a small handmade accessories business {also called Acute Designs} where I make and sell hair, bridal, and jewelry products. In addition to the Acute Designs blog and shop, I have a food blog called Taste, where I share my love of food and healthy{ish} recipes.

Today I am going to share with all of you lovely people one of my favorite summer foods - salsa. Salsa is a healthy snack that is super easy to make.  Don't worry too much about the measurements below, just add what you like.  If you like things spicy, add more jalapeno and if you hate cilantro - leave it out.

Salsa #1: Fresh Tomato and Pineapple Salsa
-3 cups tomato, chopped into large pieces
-1/4 cup of a red onion, roughly chopped
-1 handful of cilantro - roughly chopped
-1 tablespoon of finely chopped jalapeno {I am not a fan of spice, so I go easy on this ingredient}
-1 cup diced pineapple
-the juice from two limes
-sea salt and black pepper
1. Put the tomatoes into a food processor {if you don't have a food processor - just chop everything really well - the result will be the same, it will just take a little longer!} and pulse a few times until just chopped.  You don't want to pulse too much or the tomatoes will turn to mush.

2. Add the jalapeno, red onion, cilantro, and lime juice to the tomatoes and pulse a few more times.
3. Dump the salsa into a serving bowl and mix in the pineapple and a little salt and pepper.  Refrigerate a few hours before serving.

Salsa #2 Corn and Bean Salsa
-2 cups corn kernels {either fresh or frozen....if you use frozen, make sure they are thawed first}
-1 cup of beans {use whatever you have...I had white kidney beans, so that is what I used}
-A handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
-1 tablespoon of jalapeno, finely diced
-the juice from two limes
-1 teaspoon cumin
-sea salt and black pepper
1. Mix everything together in a large bowl, cover, and refrigerate for a few hours before serving.  This recipe is also fantastic when used as a filling for tacos or a burrito.

Salsa #3 Roasted Red Pepper and Onion Salsa
-4 red bell peppers, cut into large pieces
-1 red onion, cut into large pieces
-2 tablespoons olive oil
-a handful of flat leaf parsley
-2 tomatoes, diced
-2 cloves of garlic, minced
-sea salt and black pepper
1. Spread the bell pepper and onion pieces out on a large baking sheet and cover with the olive oil and a little salt and pepper.  Toss all to combine. 

2. Roast the peppers and onions at 325 degrees for about an hour.  Remove them from the oven and allow them to cool for about 30 minutes.
3. Cut the peppers and onions into smaller pieces and place in the bowl of the food processor with the tomatoes, parsley, and garlic.  Pulse a few times until a nice texture is achieved.
4. Serve this salsa at room temperature or cold.

Easy and Affordable Italian

     By now you should all know that my favorite place to buy groceries is at Fresh & Easy. I almost always have a $10 off of $50 coupon, the store is small and quaint, and they really make it easy to eat healthy and on a budget. Cheese Tortellini with Chicken Apple Sausage is one of our favorite meals to make and I wanted to share it with you how easy and affordable it is.

     I like to use the Tomato & Roasted Red Pepper Pasta Sauce ($1.99) it is organic, has an extra kick and one jar lasts us about 2.5 uses. I also like to add a little bit more flavor to our sauce so sometimes I might mix it with an Alfredo to make a pink sauce or this time, I added a tablespoon of Sun Dried Tomato Pesto ($2.99) to the sauce, but this is also good put on bread to make a super easy Bruschetta. 

     I don't like sausage or many pork products (except bacon!) so I buy the Aidells Chicken Apple Sausage ($4.99). For two people I dice 2 of the sausage links and heat them in a skillet over medium heat until the start to have a nice golden color. I like adding this unexpectedly to Italian food because the apple adds a nice sweetness.

     Now during this time I boil and cook the Cheese Tortellini that you buy in packages in the fresh food department. I forgot to photograph it. It is $2.99 (or 2 for $5) and I usually also pick up the Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli for another dinner made almost exactly the same way. 

     I got a small French Roll in the 'Reduced to Clear' section that cost me a whopping $.71. I sliced it in small rounds, added butter and a bit of Gilroy Farms Garlic Spread (around $2, I have had it forever forgot how much it cost!) and baked that in the oven for about 5 minutes.

     After you drain the pasta, I return it all back to the pot on low heat and add in all of my ingredients with a nice dose of Mozzarella on the top and just wait until the sauce is mixed in and heated up. I was going to add a small side salad of greens with Italian dressing but my lettuce was pinkish, so we just had a carb-filled dinner. Imagine a nice green next to that pasta!

     And Viola! You have a delicious and easy Italian dinner for 2. All in all this dinner cost me $9.88 excluding the butter, garlic spread and mozzarella I already had. The packages of Salad are around $1.99 so honestly, this dinner is affordable and healthy!! I would just double the whole recipe for 4-6 people. Hope this gives you guys some ideas for dinner tonight!

Scenes from the Weekend

Friday I had a great lunch with my friend, Tiffany, at this great little sandwich shop called Jammin Bread. They make everything fresh that morning and have the most delicious sandwiches, quiches and soups and while it is a little on the pricey side... it is worth every penny. After lunch, Lewis and I laid down for a little nap and look at that little bed hog! Smack dab in the middle of my pillow under my covers! 

Saturday morning I went to the salon and got my hair done. Since my friend does my hair at her house mostly, it feels so relaxing to sit back and get my hair done with a Vanilla Soy Latte in one hand and a stack full of reading material in the other. I also found a new addiction... Dwell Magazine. I think I flipped through 6 or 7 magazines and it was glorious! 

Sunday was our Valentines Day. We walked around my favorite mall, South Coast Plaza, which is full of my favorite stores in the world and I got a brand new pair of Ted Baker boots. Leather, black, soft, long, slouchy... I love them so much, I pretty much might never take them off. Then we headed over to my favorite Italian restaurant, Maggiano's and filled up on delicious wine, caesar salad and pasta. Afterwards we even headed down to a little get together at a friends house and it was nice to get out and see friends we hadn't seen in awhile!

All in all I had a fabulous weekend and Monday was just the cherry on top when I came home on my lunch break (from a good day at work, too!) to take out the puppy and low and behold I had some lovely flowers waiting for me on my countertop. I feel really happy and blessed lately and I am so thankful for my little tiny family we have here. 

Old Towne Stripes

     Last saturday we took a day trip down to Temecula to shop around and have lunch. We stopped at Rosa's Cafe. If you live nearby, and have never eaten here... you are missing out! The make handmade tortillas in front of you all day long, and they are so floury and warm when they serve them to you! I usually just get the burritos and Geoff gets a plate of chicken tacos. But, the best part is dessert! They fry the tortillas and put cinnamon and sugar on them and they give you a little honey bear and you can go to town. They are called Sopapillas and they are deeeeelicious! I dream of them!

     The town is kind of made to look like an old vintage type town in the downtown area only. There are plenty of restaurants and a really cool bar called The Bank, in what else but the old bank building, that looks like it is pretty hoppin. There are tons and tons of antique stores and little family and locally owned shops that sell everything from candy to dried fruit to clothes and even a root beer shop! We loved walking through the garden stores with really beautiful flowers and plants and interesting sculptures and fountains. People come down and park their fancy cars or motorcycles along the sidewalks and you get the men sitting on the stoops just watching everyone go by. It is really charming and a nice escape from the typical city life and traffic for a few hours to get away and feel like you are totally transported back in time!

And here is my entry for the Everybody, Everywhere  challenge. Today was Breton stripes, and since I committed a fashion flub and wore the same outfit today (GASP!), I am at least submitting the much more lovely photos from our trip out! 

What's for Dinner?

So Friday I promised the boy we would have a good dinner at home. We had some ground beef, but I wanted to do something a little bit more interesting then the standard burger so I decided to make Patty Melts. And let me tell you, they were deeeelicious! Full of flavor, hearty in size and made without a lot of butter or oil. I am not the best cook, but I know the basics and I really like to see what I can do with ingredients we already have in our pantry.

You will need:

Hamburger Meat (we used Fresh & Easy BBQ Bacon Patties)

Rye Bread (in our case we used Honey Wheat since it was all we had)

Provolone Cheese

1 Large Onion

Butter

Brown Sugar

Olive Oil

And, if you want to make your own 1000 Island dressing like I did you will need:

Ketchup

Mayonnaise

Chili Pepper

Garlic Salt

Sweet Pickles (we didn't have these but I wish we did)

Start by slicing your onion into fine pieces and grilling in a small pan with a sprinkle of brown sugar and a little drizzle of olive oil. Remember to return and mix occasionally or your onion will start to burn.

Move on to your bread. Butter the bread like you would butter it for a grilled cheese. Liberally on one side, and just a hint on the other. The darker, crunchier side will be your outer piece. Get another flat skillet ready to grill the bread but don't do it yet.

At this point, I would start your meat so you can get your desired result around the same time the onions will be done so they don't get cold and soggy. Since Geoff was home, he was actually grilling the meat outside in the dark so he took care of that, and I missed that kodak moment (whoops!)

Now I have never made 1000 Island before but I went ahead and just tried my best and it turned out to be really, really good! Start with mayo as your base and add ketchup until you get the desired color. Then sprinkle and stir in the chili pepper and garlic salt to taste. If you want, I would also dice a sweet pickle and add the little slices in. Easy!

Once the burgers are a minute or two from being done, begin to grill your bread on either side.

Take your toasted bread, place the meat on top, melt your cheese over that and add your onions.

Now, add that delicious sauce on the other slice and you are nearly done...

Fold, press, cut, and enjoy! Incase you are wondering how I made those fries well... it was easy. Open bag, pour on baking sheet and cook! WOO! 

Healthy, Quick and Delicious Breakfast

What you need:

-Fresh and Easy Go Figure Crunch (or Kashi Go Lean Crunch)

- Milk of Choice (I use Organic Silk Soy)

-Trader Joe's Maple Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal

-Honey, Cinnamon, or any other topping of your choice

     Some mornings I would really like to be eating a big donut or maybe even some frozen yogurt but that little voice inside my head knows that would be a delicious, but awful way to start my day. I usually want my breakfast to be ready in as little time as possible so this is really simple to make. Assuming you can boil water, this is a no brainer! Add instant oatmeal into the bowl, pour in the water and stir. Then take a few handfuls of cereal and add to the top. I am a texture person and even though oatmeal is good for me, I really need some crunchy element added to make it more to my liking. Mix that, and if you want a more milky consistency I would then also stir in milk to your liking. Top with a drizzle of honey a powdering of cinnamon and you have a sweet and filing simple breakfast under 300 calories!

Zooey, your onto something...

     Hello, my name is Hayley and I am a Frozen Yogurt addict! 

     All day I have been scrubbing the oven, cleaning the kitchen, folding laundry, cleaning our new sheets, and paying my bills... I could really go for some Golden Spoony goodness! Hands down, Fro Yo is my favorite treat to get. This is my true hump day, I am trying to get all of our ducks in a row for Geoff's trip tomorrow and before I head out to work. So if anyone wants to drop off some half chocolate half peanut butter with brownie topping at my door, ill gladly accept!