Mean Green Broccoli Cheddar Soup

I am beyond done with this weather. I think you all know that. But, until then, I'll continue making soup.

A couple weeks ago, we made Broccoli Cheddar Soup, a recipe I received from a co-worker. Last week it was crock pot potato soup from Callie's blog. This Friday, it'll be Butternut Squash soup. See a pattern? Soups tend to be good Friday night meals during lent.

The broccoli cheddar soup was pretty tasty. I liked it more than Brian did, but I like vegetables way more than he does. This recipe happened to include a vegetable I had never cooked with before: leeks. I couldn't even tell you what they taste like, but I liked knowing I was getting two hearty vegetables in this soup.

You puree this soup in a blender, which I thought would be a major chore. It actually wasn't too bad at all and according to the recipe, adding the cheese in the blender ensures that it will melt evenly and won't clump. 

Oh, and don't let the green color of this soup scare you. It did me at first, but I got over that quickly.

Broccoli Cheddar Soup
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 lb. leeks, white and light green parts only, halved lengthwise, sliced thin, and washed thoroughly
1 bunch broccoli, florets cut into 1-inch pieces, stems trimmed and sliced thin
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup water
3/4 cup fat-free evaporated milk
1 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
Salt and Pepper

1. Melt the butter in a large pot, over medium heat. Add the leeks and broccoli stems and cook until softened, about 8 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

2. Stir in the broth and water and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the broccoli stems are soft, about 8 minutes. Stir in the broccoli florets and continue to simmer, covered, until tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Puree the soup with the milk, cheddar and mustard in a blender, in batches, until the cheese is melted and the soup is very smooth. Return the soup to a clean pot and cook gently over medium-low hear until the soup is hot. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Broccoli & Leeks

Happy soup:) Luv me some pepper.

Season Change Antsy

This weather is quite depressing. As soon as I thought the sunshine was here to stay, the weatherman reports snow is a comin'. Yep, more snow. It's not uncommon for it to snow in March in Kansas, but people were seeding and fertilizing their yards just last weekend!

Man is it frigid. I had to dig deep inside my closet to pull out my already put away heavy winter coat.

Will spring and sunshine please come back?

I'm much prettier in the Spring/Summer season. Let's face it, that's what a sun kissed tan and cute dresses do for you:).

I'm ready for the season to change. And I mean full-circle. Not just a few warm days here and there, I want the real thing, baby.

I've been ready for a few weeks. And so have my new dresses and open-toed heels that are anxiously awaiting to leave their hangers and storage boxes.

 

Love this little number. I have tried to wear it out a couple times already until Brian reminded me how ridiculous I would look wearing a dress this early. C'mon 80 degrees, I need you!

Don't the colors just scream summer? Found at one of my fave stores.

This one is from Express. I'm typically not into floral prints or ruffles, but I really love this one. The floral is quite subtle and abstract. My kinda print.

I plan to pair it with this nude belt and nude heels.

In other new finds, a pair of knock-off aviators and some new products I'm obsessed with.

I've been telling myself to drop the cash on a nice pair of Ray Bans or sunglasses, but I just can't do it. With as much as I break them, my cheap-o's will do. I picked these up last weekend for $10 at a little knock-off shop at Crown Center. I'm pleased with my purchase:)

Introducing my new friend, Lola. I'm in love.

I took a chance on Lola, opting for her over my other go-to scent, Armani Diamonds. She was a good choice. Thanks to the recommendation from my brother's super stylish gf.

Another new find: Kenra blow dry spray. My hair stylist turned me on to this protectant spray. I'm hooked.

Once you smell this stuff, you'll be hooked too.

My BF told me about this line of nail polish, Essie, now sold at Target. This color is Mink Muffs, a smoky plush taupe.

LOVE the color, but didn't find it to go on as smooth as usual. Maybe it was user error:), I wasn't feeling too well yesterday. I think I'm still partial to OPI, but I'll definitely be trying other Essie colors.

Have you found any new Spring attire you're dying to wear? Or any new products worth sharing? Tell us about it.

Technical Difficulties with the Blog

Alright blog friends, anybody else experiencing issues with uploading photos?

I just tried to upload a post that appears fine on the back end, but the photos are missing when posted. This is so frustrating!!

My posts would suck without photos.

I found a link that appears I'm not the only one struggling with this issue.

Stay tuned...hopefully Blogger will work it out.

Until then, I will be wishing I was here...(Obviously you can't see the picture because of the issue, but I was forced to upload a photo, and send the link to Blogger so they can continue working to resolve the issue.)

Update: According to Blogger, it's an Internet Explorer issue only. So, if you are experiencing the same issues, visit the link above and send your info to blogger. Otherwise, use a different browser in the mean time.

Hawt Dog

Happy Tuesday friends!

I tried a new lunch spot today and thought I would tell y'all about it. I didn't even know it existed until the gal I was meeting for lunch suggested it.

Dog Nuvo - A Gourmet Hot Dog Establishment

"Bringing America's Classic to a new level," Dog Nuvo offers gourmet dogs (natural casing and 100% All Beef) topped with hand crafted ingredients such as mustards, krauts and pickles. They also offer encased meats such as Heritage Chicken, Venison and Duck seasonally.

I had the Chi Town dog (pictured in the middle up top). Here's the description from the website:

Dragged through the garden! Our dog with that Crazy Neon Green Relish - a la Nuvo, Hot Peppers, Sweet Onions, Grape Tomatoes, Pickle Ribbons, Stone Ground Mustard and, of course, Celery Salt. Served on a Poppy Seed Challah.

It was quite delicious, for a hot dog. Somewhat hard to eat, but nothing a fork and knife couldn't handle. I thought the actual dog was a little measly, but I enjoyed the flavor of all the toppings with the dog. The gal I was with had the Mac N Cheese dog (not listed on the site for some reason), but she had rave reviews. We shared the Truffle & Asiago potato chips, which I would recommend.

My overall review would be to give it a try! It's not a place I would go for a date or anything, but something a little different and perfect for a casual work lunch. I'm looking forward to trying The Thai Dog, Le Poodle and The KC (smothered with Burnt Ends). Oh, and did I mention it's super affordable? Only $4-$6 depending on what dog you desire.

Located at 18th and Main downtown, in the TWA building (where Souperman once resided). You can get your dog to go or sit down and enjoy the wait staff.

Winning Gets You This

We had a great date night, thanks to winning at last year's KSU Wabash Cannonball. Although it seemed a little strange staying in a hotel just 20 min. from our house and finding a babysitter for our fur baby (Thanks Matt & Heather!), it's an ideal way to get away from the daily grind.

Away from laundry, dishes, miscellaneous house projects and our ADD dog, it was just the two of us. And it was nice.

Our plan was to enjoy the Crown Center area before dinner and walk around amidst the sun shining. Welp, the lovely rain ruined it for us, so we made do with what Mother Nature provided.

First on the list was checking in, cashing in our complimentary night's stay at the Westin. Well, the hubs just so happened to forget his wedding ring (went golfing on Friday and left it in his golf bag), so he didn't have it on. We joked for the rest of the night how the front desk staff probably thought we were on a secretive affair getaway. But then again, there are tons of guys who don't wear their wedding rings (my dad is one). I don't think I would be ok with Brian not wearing his. :)

Our room was great. I know it's just a typical hotel room, but it was nice. The bed was comfortable (I'm pretty picky when it comes to this) and we had a spectacular view of Liberty Memorial.

From our balcony

I couldn't believe people were swimming. Heated pool of course, but still, it was quite nippy outside!

For the first hour, we walked around Crown Center, browsing the shops. I have actually never spent much time in Crown Center in the almost 4 years I have lived here.

Holy cow, it's a kid factory!

I can definitely see why parents bring their children here...I was drooling over every sweet smell that came out out of Chip's Chocolate Factory, Topsy's, Sheridan's, and the Crayola Cafe. It's a for sure way to keep a kid occupied...or a 27-year old sweets addict. I was craving a piece of fudge, a strawberry concrete, chocolate covered popcorn and a root beer float all at the same time. All things I can't have until Lent is over, boo.

Next, we jumped in the car to head to Liberty Memorial. We would have loved to walk, but I didn't have an umbrella, and it was pouring. Which is why we didn't even step foot out of the car. Oh well, another day.

Next stop, Jack Stack for dinner. We planned to go to Skies and utilize the amazing deal offered on Restaurant.com, but the earliest reservation available was 9:30 pm! So, we opted for Jack Stack and used a $50 gift card I recently received for being Volunteer of the Year for a marketing organization I am involved in.

I'm not as big of fan as BBQ as the hubs is, but Jack Stack is one of my favorite BBQ places when I'm in the mood for it. I love the cheesy corn. And we had the jumbo shrimp as an appetizer, which was quite delicious.

Next stop, The Cashew to watch the game. I don't know how we managed to be the only KSU fans in the entire bar, but we did. I know The Cashew is a KU bar, but seriously, I didn't think we would be surrounded by Wisconsin fans. C'mon people, you live in Kansas! Support a local team!

The game didn't end in our favor, but I'm forever proud to be a Wildcat. Pullen and Kelly deserve a lot of credit for our success this year.

Night shot from our room

Sunday, we woke up in utter darkness (gotta love thick hotel curtains) and dodged our normal 5:30 wake up call from Jake. Yes, our dog wakes up at 5:30 every single day. Even on weekends.

We finished off our stay at the Westin with a complimentary breakfast at their restaurant, The Brasserie. We had $50 to spend and we didn't even come close. Brian had the buffet while I opted for blueberry buttermilk pancakes and a strawberry fruit smoothie. Yummy! What a great way to start the day.

Lastly, we headed to the gold dome for church downtown, AKA, the Cathedral of Immaculate Conception. I love this church, I always have. The only dislike we had was that the sound wasn't great resulting in a hard to understand priest. In fact, he was screaming into his mic during the homily at some points, which didn't make it any easier.

That concludes our almost entirely free date night. Score!

Gotta love winning.

What did you do this weekend?   

EVERY Day is a New Day

It's been a crazy week, and I'm drained. I apologize for slacking on blogging, but stress has been consuming my life this week.

Ah yes, that word that everyone uses when they are feeling overwhelmed, anxious, worried, exhausted, fearful or just plain lost.

Thank goodness Brian and I are having a date night tonight. Me + him + dinner...and a hotel room. Romantic, eh? Why yes, but it's only because we won a free night's stay at the Westin at last year's K-State Wabash event.

It expires at the end of this month, so as typical procrastinators, we decided to cash in the free night at the last minute rather than letting it go to waste.

Speaking of K-State, we won't be missing the game due to our date night. We are headed to dinner early so we can catch the game somewhere afterwards. Hoping the Cats pull off another W.

Five random "Every" thoughts for you today:

Every time we get done giving Jake a bath, he runs straight to the end of the kitchen counter (where his treat jar is), sits down, and waits. Jake got a bath today. Makes me smile. Every. Single. Time.

Every year, I fill out brackets at work hoping, somehow some way, I can win some moolah. Brian normally helps me...not gonna lie. This year, he filled out 2 of my 3 brackets, with me totally guessing for my one. Well, the bracket I filled out is currently in first place. Not sure how that happened, but it's fun rubbing it in B's face:).

Everything Bethenny Frankel says makes me laugh. I seriously love her. I know there are tons of people out there who can't stand her, but I thinks she's hilarious. Her new show, Bethenny Ever After, constantly reminds me of the relationship me and Brian have. Both stubborn and argumentative, but madly in love with each other. A normal conversation might seem like an argument, but they always seem to compromise somehow.

Here's a funny quote from one of the recent episodes I finally had the chance to catch up on:

Jason: "Why when you ask me to do something, I just go. When I ask you to do something, it's a conversation. It's an argument. Why?"
Bethenny: "Because I'm a difficult human being."

Everyone has iPhones. I swear, I feel like the only person in this world with a blackberry. My BFF just texted me this AM to notify me she got an iPhone, so we could no longer BBM. Blackberry Messenger that is. I love me some BBM because it doesn't restrict you to a certain amount of characters. Waiting for my work to make the switch...

Everything in life is a blessing. We must not take anything for granted. Bad things happen making us question our existence. But, good things happen when we least expect them, guided by faith.

A prayer goes out to my dear friend's mom who is in the hospital and suffered a stroke, and his family, who need much support during this hard time.

I didn't mean to end on Debbie-downer item, but I definitely need to be reminded to count my blessings. Every day is a new day.

Here's to a wonderful, rainy day in KC! Enjoy your weekend everyone!

Bombs over Bradley

I can't believe I haven't seen any posts today about last night's The Bachelor finale. You know, the most dramatic season in Bachelor history? Pff...whatever ABC.

Not gonna lie, I'm a Bachelor fan. I always have been. My bachelor days go back to the sorority house when we would cram 30 girls into the Rec Room and all crowd around one TV to watch the drama.

I specifically remember watching Gwen get rejected by Aaron on Season 2. And they called her old on the Bachelor Pad! She may have a few years on her, but c'mon people, she is HOT!

Ok, back to last night's drama with Brad. I wasn't planning to give my opinion, really, but I changed my mind considering how things ended...err started, on After the Final Rose last night.

First things first, I have never been a huge fan of Brad. He's the guy that walked away in a previous season. Yep, this d-bag decided to go on the show twice. He's not that bad, better than Jake of course, but whatevs.

His top two picks on the other hand...great choices. I equally liked both of them, rather than my usual...loving one and not really liking the other. Emily and Chantal are very different people, but both suitable choices for Brad. It really was a win-win situation.

Source

So, I'm chilling on my couch as he picks sweet Southern Emily and proposes (Em is the blond). They laugh, they cry, and all seems like a wonderful fairy tale. I was really happy with the result.

Until the After the Final Rose show starts and Emily starts dropping bombs!

{Insert Bombs over Baghdad song here}

They're together, but broke up once between the finale and now, they still love each other. Man-o-man is she the jealous-type. She's not ready to get married, refuses to move to Austin, admits to giving Brad major hell on Monday nights (and Tuesday mornings) after the show airs and feels he gave out too much "material".

Um, earth to Emily? Where did you go? Where's the strong but sweet, innocent, not a mean bone in her body Emily we all fell in love with on the show?

Don't get me wrong, she's still sweet and only human, but she knew exactly what she was getting into when she went on the show. The Bachelor dating multiple girls and giving out the material is the entire concept of the show.

It just seemed a little strange to me. He is most definitely into her, which was nice to see, but I didn't like how she kept saying "I love you" over and over and over. Especially after each bomb she dropped. Seemed a little forced from her side, as if she couldn't think of anything better to say to him, so she just kept saying those three little words.

I hope they work out, but don't get your hopes up. There's only three couples who have made it...in 15 seasons of The Bachelor and 6 seasons of the Bachelorette.

Clearly, this process doesn't work well. Maybe they should venture to a bar in hopes of finding the one?

There's nothing better than meeting your significant other over Old Style Pineapple and Sweet Caroline at the So Long Saloon. That's my story folks. And let me assure you, there are no bombs in our household.

Well at least not on Tuesday mornings. We stay up and fight it out on Monday nights.

Good Eats & a {Free} Bottle of Wine

We had a fabulous weekend, but dang, they never seem long enough. Can someone please add a day to our weekends, similar to how George decided to add daylight to the afternoons back in 1895? I'm pretty sure most people would not criticize this action.

If you had any doubt in your mind whether or not I knew who coined Daylight Savings, I'll put your minds to rest. I definitely didn't. Hello Google.

So, back to our weekend. We spent all day Saturday Spring cleaning and finishing up some much needed things around the house. One of which included taking down the last strand of our Christmas lights. Yes, I realize it's March 14 and I know what you're thinking. Don't judge. I'm sure our neighbors have already done plenty of that.

To explain, we have a very high peak on our house which requires the hubs to step onto an extremely tall ladder and get on the roof to access the electrical units. Well, with the lovely weather we have had this winter, the Mr. simply didn't want to risk his life with the strong winds and snow/ice on the roof. And any weekend the sunshine graced us with its presence, we were either busy or out of town. It is what it is. So sue us.

On to the worthy part of this post! Saturday night we hit up not one, not two, but three new hot spots at Town Center. I'm lovin' that I can mark off places on my restaurant list!

We started at RA Sushi for a quick drink and appetizer with the Lines. Brian had some sort of sushi roll and I had the RA'ckin shrimp. It was delish. What a fun and trendy place. LOVED the decor. It was smaller inside, but the quaintness provided a perfect setting for good conversation. I.E. I am really loud, but nobody even noticed.

Next stop, Trezo Vino to meet the group. What a fun dinner! Not sure why it always goes this way, but we sat girls on one side of table, boys on the other. I swear, we are like the two opposing forces of magnets when a group this size gets together.

The girls are pulled toward conversations of gossip, reality tv, blogs, babies and shopping, while the boys gravitate to sports, sports, sports and probably comparing the nagging styles of us wifeys. I'm not certain of my assumption, but I have a feeling I hit the nail right on the head.

A few items at our table that received rave reviews included: Ahi Tuna tacos (I even liked these!), Thai Chicken Flatbread, Crab cakes, Lobster Mac N Cheese, Fennel Sausage Flatbread and Rabbit Pappardelle Pasta.

Oh and Matt's Trezo Tower dessert that I literally had a moment over. All I could do was stare and drool. Sigh.

One story for you all. Sorry, this post is already pretty lengthy, but just bear with me. My meal was the last dish to hit the table. In fact, I'm pretty sure everyone else was practically finished eating by the time it was placed in front of me. Not a big deal, I had friends and vino to keep me occupied.

Well, after about 5 minutes of sitting empty handed, our waiter comes out with a free bottle of wine "compliments of Trezo Vino." Score! We were all pretty stoked. As the waiter corked the bottle and poured our glasses, he said something like, "Thanks for writing the article."

I was definitely confused, but didn't think much of it. As we were leaving, the manager stopped me and Cal and asked who made the reservation. He then goes into a spiel and gives his gratitude for the article, as it suddenly comes to me. Light bulb!

When I tried to make the reservation online, it said they were booked solid. So, I picked up the phone hoping we could somehow get in. I was ecstatic when they said they could squeeze us in at 8:00. I made a mention to the Business Journal article that had just dropped earlier in the week and how it must be helping business, and hung up the phone.

Well, somewhere along the lines, the manager confused me with the reporter. He mentioned that he googled her and thought we looked alike. Ha! I gave him the truth, but how funny is that! There is a development reporter named Krista Klaus for the KCBJ, so maybe he thought I was her? 

I only have one question, would I still have been offered the complimentary bottle of wine if they knew I wasn't a Business Journal reporter? Hmmmmm...either way, it was a good laugh!

We ended the night at Aloft's hotel bar W XYZ Bar. We heard they had a must-see patio, so we headed over to see what the buzz was about. Definitely a smaller hang out, but swanky and $3 beers. And the patio was really cool. It just needed to be a bit warmer to really enjoy.

We were excited about cheap beer:)

And the last picture I have to share with you all...

Gotta love that the hubs works in construction and provides us fun props for our ride home. Big shout out and thank you to Mr. Bowen for driving. He gave up alcohol for lent, major kudos to this guy!

Hope you all had a great weekend! 

Get Your Fix

I'm sulking. Pissed. Disappointed. Drowning my sorrows over the K-State loss today. Three times, seriously Cats? I'm not going to say much else about it, other than I hope the tourney has a better turnout.

Instead, I'll sit here with my glass-o-wine and reminisce the crazy Saturday night I had last weekend.

Since I was out of town on my b-day, some of my friends insisted we go out to celebrate my 27th b-day. Friends and cocktails? Ok, no need to twist my arm.

We wanted to do something a little different than the usual so we decided to go to P&L, a place we don't frequent. For all you out of towners, I'm referring to the Power & Light District, a development created to revitalize downtown KC.

While it may be a sought-after area during the day with an overabundance of great dining choices and hang out spots, by night it transforms into an interesting, trashy, Vegas wannabe (but not even close), classy establishment. Now, this is just my opinion, you don't have to agree.

Do we have fun when we go? Of course we do. We create a party. But what's even more fun? The people watching. I'm talking about pimps, hoochie-mamas, cougars and cowboys people. All in the same place. It's awesome.

We only went to two bars, but that's because our first stop, Howl at the Moon, is like an addiction you don't want to come out of. I mean, who doesn't love singing screaming the lyrics to Midnight Train and watching someone get on stage and make a fool out of themselves?

While we were there, we witnessed some old women make out (I'm talkin' upper 50s), a thug (with a cookie monster hat on) act like a pole while his wife danced on him on stage, some teeny-tiny wardrobe selections, and an old guy in cowboy boots shake his booty on stage (but it was cute:).

We had a blast. I can't get enough of the band (is that what you call them?) and all their hilarious improvisation. And the mirrored wall where you pay to have a message posted. Funny stuff.

Our second stop was PBR. Not the country music bar you would expect. The beer trough girl was dressed like Lady Gaga and had two feet of feathers coming off her head. And you wouldn't believe what some girls hoochie-mamas were doing on that bull. Utter dirtiness I say.

Alright, here's some pics from my 21st b-day. I mean, 27th. Although I did sort of act like it was my 21st.

My dear hubby, who was our DD. Bless his heart.

 There was major war going on between KU and Texas. A guy paid $300 (not kidding) to have the band end with the Texas fight song.

 

Smack shacked at our house. We stayed up until 4:00 am talking and tried to cure our hangovers with coffee and taquitos.

Bethany was excited there was someone shorter than her in the bar. Ha.

I love these joksters.

Shots for my 21st birthday:). Lemon drop, me and beth's fav.

Ha ha. Cole made me sign for my "24th" shot.

At PBR. Taking a pic when all of a sudden...

Beth's beer goes crashing to the ground. She got beer dropped by Mark.

Our friends Scott and Katie were in town from the Ta.

I don't know the random girl who decided to jump in our pic.

And that concludes my montage from our P&L night. Go get your fix. It's necessary every once in awhile. You'll laugh your ass off, that's for sure.