We’re here! We arrived in Baltimore today, a few days ahead of Fitbloggin — sort of a combo birthday/anniversary trip (his birthday was February 22nd, mine March 17th and our wedding anniversary is April 8).

The weather is go-hor-hor-hor-hor-geous! It’s actually warmer here than in Orlando! We love to travel, so the first thing we did after checking in at the hotel (great place, by the way, with an amazing view of the Inner Harbor) was head out on foot. We traveled to Lexington Market…not as cool as I’d hoped. And Little Italy — ten times cooler than I imagined! We tried to go to Blue Moon Cafe, which we saw on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on Food Network, but alas…it was closed.

So we went to another DDD recommendation — Brick Oven Pizza! I ordered a face-sized slice of Four Cheese White Pizza, topped with tons of veggies.

And when we told one of the owners we’d come all the way to his place because of the show, he brought us a summer special that’s not even officially on the menu yet! This was artichoke pesto, capers, cheese, garlic and more. It was AWESOME, especially if you like salty, briny foods.

We also saw the Holocaust Memorial, which was naturally very moving:

More walking, more sightseeing:

And then we found what may be the freaking coolest bar in America — Max’s Taproom. Bob the Bartender is the guy to ask for if you stop by and sample one of the many, many, many bars on tap. Luckily, Lucas helped me pick some samples!

While you're here...

Conference Countdown: Get Your Blog Ready

Lucas just got back from a week-long trip to Seattle. I was so jealous — we went to Portland and Seattle a year or so ago and very seriously talked about packing up and moving!

He asked me what I wanted as a souvenir, and I requested local coffee and a Starbucks Seattle mug to match the Orlando one I already own.

He delivered!

I love the description of that coffee.

That’s the caffeine part of this post — here’s the cookie:

I have Coconut-Almond and Cocoa Macaroons (un)cooking away in the dehydrator. I’ll be packing them up in what I’m calling “grown-up goodie bags” for my birthday party tomorrow!

As I’ve mentioned…I’m turning 30 tomorrow. St. Patrick’s Day. So, rather than stress over having to eat birthday cake that I don’t want, or trudge through the work day, I’ve decided to throw myself an oatmeal party!

I’m making steel cut oats and bringing a toppings bar, including coconut, chocolate chips, dried fruit and nuts, banana, brown sugar, peanut butter, blueberries and more! I’m pretty excited…and it will be fun for me to show my colleagues what my oatmeal craze is all about!

What do you like on your birthday — cake? Cookies? Something else?

While you're here...

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…You take an iPhone photo of your egg white puff at work because it came out so fluffy and delicious:

…You hang out with fellow food bloggers at an organic, fresh pizza place and talk about (what else?) food, running and photos:

…You don’t even think about ordering anything new because the last time you were at the restaurant, your pizza was so good you licked your plate clean:

And two of the sweetest bloggers in the group bring goody bags of vegan yummies to share!

…You schedule into your day at stop at the mecca — Whole Foods — and fill your cart with things most people can’t pronounce:

and actually squeal out loud at Crate & Barrel when you find spoons you KNOW will look adorable when taking pictures of your oatmeal because you’ve seen it before:

…When your husband loves his non-vegan, non-healthy, covered-in-bacon birthday cake so much he makes it himself to share with his buddies:

…When you find the treats you’ve been searching for for months and buy out the supply, then call your friends to ask them to track down some more:

…When you actually hesitate before making a cup of tea because these winter blends are like GOLD and you can’t get more until next fall:

…When you are secretly thrilled when your husband is away for dinner so you can make yourself something exotic from the stash you picked up at Whole Foods!

How do you know YOU are a food blogger?

P.S. Good luck to all the runners at tomorrow’s Walt Disney Princess half marathon!

While you're here...

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I may not be the best cook in the world — but I know how to read a recipe.

So when I tell you to make this now…make.this.now.

As Kel said better than me, POM + Fish (I used tilapia) = Happy! The reduced pomegranate-mint sauce was delicious, but I have to say, I think it would be even better over ice cream. It got sweet and sticky and ohhhhh so good.

Also so good? My recipe for Chocolate Popcorn Brittle, kicked up with the addition of some Naturally Nutty Vanilla Cinnamon Sunflower butter. I’d show you a picture, but I didn’t wait to dig in!

It’s been a very busy, very stressful week…nothing too bad, just lots of busy work! So you KNOW this made my day:

My sweet husband texted me, saying my boys missed their mama!

This also cracked me up — this morning, I tweeted:

And got this video in return, from @NoMoreBacon:

I cracked up — one of those gut-busting, feel sick afterwards laughs. How funny is that?

And a less funny, but still important video…I implore you to follow this link for a clip from Jessica Simpson’s new show. Now, yes, I am a Jessica fan girl (confession: I even bought her clip-in hair extensions) BUT, I think her message is one that’s so important when it comes to media, women and body image. Men too!

OK, gotta end it on a positive note.

How’s about this — my other favorite video?

What do you do when you need a laugh?

While you're here...

Five for...Errr...ThursdayGot My Herrrr Did and I Flew (Detox Update, Too!

Whole lotta bacon cake fans in the house, huh? I can’t wait to hear how all of your versions turn out. The cake, btw, has left my building. 2 days and Lucas polished it off.

Speaking of Lucas, if you want to hang out with both of us AND drink free beer — check out this Beer Tweetup tonight (Thursday) at the Celebration Town Tavern in Celebration, Florida. I’m @kwidrick and he’s @nighthops.

Also speaking of Lucas — for his birthday, I bought him a new pocket video camera and I came home from work to find this video playing on the TV…so cute to see what they do all day!

The bacon cake was a big hit, but I prefer a more subtle, refined OH WHO AM I KIDDING I love chocolate!

So for a sweet treat this week, I made what I can only call Popped Heaven:

That’s chocolate popcorn brittle with a side of riesling. Want some of your own?

Chocolate Popcorn Brittle (adapted from Mark Bittman’s “How To Cook Everything Vegetarian”)

• 2T neutral oil
• 1/2C popcorn kernels
• 1/4C sugar (I used organic cane sugar)
• 1/8C cocoa powder (I used raw with maca)
• 1/3C water

1. Heat the oil in a deep, wide pot. I use a pasta pat or a big stockpot for this.
2. Place three popcorn kernels in the pot and cover.
3. Once the three kernels pop (should take about 4-5 minutes) put the rest of the kernels in, shake to coat in oil, and return the cover.
4. While you’re waiting for the kernels to pop, mix the sugar and the cocoa powder.
   1. I prefer to run this mix through a food processor so it’s super-fine, but this is optional.
5. Place the sugar and cocoa mix in a small pot and add 1/3C water. Stir to combine then put on low heat.
6. Let sugar and cocoa combine — don’t stir! — until it caramelizes and turns a nice dark, silky color.
7. When the kernels finish popping, place into a heatproof bowl. Pour the caramelized sugar-cocoa mix over the popcorn and toss gently to cover.
8. Pour the popcorn into a greased baking or cake pan and gently press down with your fingers, packing the popcorn together.
9. Let cool for at least 5 minutes then EAT!

A 1/2 C of popcorn makes a TON of finished popped product, so if you want to cut the recipe in half you may.

Random photo on my camera that I had to share — I found these on clearance and almost bought them! I am a Syracuse grad, you know. Go Orange!

And finally, I wanted to pass on a video to Jamie Oliver’s TED talk on childhood obesity. It really struck a chord with me, and it’s a really well presented argument. Check it out here and sign his petition here!

A while back, I found a big ugly green…thing.

If it didn’t have a sign telling me that this ugly thing was a “water coconut,” I never would have believed it. This is, after all, the same store that would post something like this:

Grammar. You failz it.

Anyway, the Internet confirmed that this was, in fact, a coconut. Now — how to open it? YouTube was a big help, but my honey of a house husband had his own ideas:

Like anything in life, we (he) had to work hard; cracking the hard outer shelf and gently pulling aside some unattractive but supportive layers:

And when we did, we gloried in the goodness:

We poured the lovely coconut water into a bowl and then scraped the white yumminess out with a spoon:

Victorious.

I’m still plotting what to do with the fresh coconut, but I had a taste for it and after a run to Whole Foods, I gave into the craving. Meet Coconut-Almond Macaroons a la Joggers Life.

I did make a few changes, substituting oat flour for the almond meal and halving the recipe. That was a mistake, since I’ve already eaten quite a few. I also made a second type of macaroon, from Everyday Raw.

They’re both amazing (and raw, since I stuck ‘em in the dehydrator — what do you think, Patti?) Ahhhhhh macaroon.

So y’all know I love my job, right? This week, I got to meet a man who blows me away with his bravery, his kindness and his SLAMMIN’ body! Would you believe this guy is about to turn 70?

Sandy Scott broke his neck during a horrific cycling time trial — he might have died, and probably should have stopped competing. But he didn’t, and he’s looking to set MORE records for his age group at several national events! I had an amazing day, field producing a video with him, and that will be posted on our site soon.

I’ll leave you with a picture of Travers — aka “Best Cat.” He loves wearing my medal from the OUC Half Marathon and Lucas gave him the nickname.

Who inspires you? Leave me a comment!

I definitely want kids someday but moments like this:

make it easy to wait…because I have friends with babies who need spoiling! That’s miss Elizabeth Ava, less than a day old. Fast forward two years and she’s an amazing little PERSON — who walks, talks and visits us at work!

What a great Valentine:

And a perfect gift during a week that looked like this:

Luckily, it ended with some less weighty reading material — which I found in the car with my sexy chauffeur!

For those who don’t know my story, I am married to Lucas. Lucas is a registered, LEED-certified architect who decided he didn’t like where his career was headed. So, he took a HUGE leap of faith and quit his job to focus more time on his true love — brewing, drinking and writing about beer.

As part of a project with Celebration Town Tavern — a very cool Boston-themed seafood restaurant and bar — Lucas is helping review the beers that are included in the Tavern’s 99 Bottles of Beer on the Wall Club.

Since he’ll have to review them all eventually, I got to help pick his beers last night — the random number selection ended in Mickey’s, a malt liquor that came with a puzzle in the cap!

I still don’t know what the answer is. (Sorry for the photos — I took many of these with my iPhone for easier tweeting!) And, since I was driving, I decided to pound a few hot drinks of my own:

Woke up this morning to do another P90X workout, although someone wanted us to quit early:

We pushed through, then decided to follow the animals’ leads:

And snuggle up with blankets, quinoa and oatmeal and frothy lattes:

Now we’re on the couch, watching the Olympics and reading. Love lazy weekends!

Do you have kids? When do you plan on having them? How many? Have you picked out names?

P-p-p-p-perfect!

Let’s back up, so I can catch you up on the last few days. On Friday night, Lucas and I hit up a local bar known for its craft beers. A beer blogger’s gotta see what people are drinking, right?

It was a special release party for Brooklyn Brewery, which I normally love. But after a few sips of Luke’s beer:

I decided I was more interested in playing a few games:

And talking to a bunch of friends that showed up. It was a blast! We even managed to record a quick video, using my iPhone:

On Saturday, I worked up an appetite cleaning the inside of my stove. We had an, ahem, incident with some overflowing custard, and no amount of elbow grease was getting it clean. Then we found a natural cleaner recipe online — just a mix of baking soda, vinegar and dish soap and VOILA:

Just like the day we bought the stove! Ahh, happiness…

I celebrated with a POM martini, made with pomegranate-mango juice, Absolut Boston and triple sec, in a martini glass that I rimmed with organic cane sugar and lime juice. More happiness…

Gotta support Pom, since it’s a sponsor of Fitbloggin‘, and I’m going in March! Will you be there?

I’ve also had a weekend of awesome food. Saturday night, I made curried tilapia, broiled until crispy and served over the most amazing spinach and tomato paella:

And tonight, for the superbowl, I made (unpictured) chipotle beef and carmelized onion tacos, from Rick Bayless’ Everyday Mexican. Awesome!

It’s very possible that I’m the last to know this, but did you know that you can pop popcorn right on your stovetop, using kernels and a little bit of butter or oil?

It’s so much cheaper and easier (duh) than buying the microwave popcorn, and better for you. I’ve been topping mine with coconut-lime salt:

And eating by the faceful:

Off to watch the rest of the Superbowl. The commercials have been very disappointing — hello, sexist much? — but the Puppy Bowl made my night.

LOOK WHAT ONE OF THE DOGS WAS NAMED! Tater Tot!

Tater Tot the Puppy Bowl star

OK, off to get in PJs. I am going to a big social media conference in the morning, and I will be tweeting while I’m there. So be sure to follow me!

P.S. I updated my Google Reader with all the Fitbloggin’ bloggers — if you want to add it to your own reader, click here!

While you're here...

Seek and Ye Shall Find (Me)

Life works in funny ways, huh? I’ve been slowly climbing the mountain upon which a social media crown sits — and, since we all know I’m a bit of a princess, I have been climbing that bad boy as quickly as I can!

I love social media. I’m on Twitter and Facebook all day long, but not always for personal updates — I run three business pages on Facebook, and two business Twitter accounts. I also moderate a weekly Twitter chat for work, and am trying to learn all the latest tricks and tools to use the Internet to get my job done.

So, today, I have a guest post up on Eating Bender, detailing the best ways to use social media.

Also today, I got burned in a big way.

I use a service called Posterous, which lets you post images, links, videos, etc., then “pings” then to your other social networks, including Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. I shared a headline that read:

Yay, I Just Got Fired! True Passions, Here I Come! http://post.ly/KUiy

If you go to that link, you’ll see that it’s a post by someone else, sharing the news of a job loss but welcoming it as a chance to pursue her true passions. I related to the post, because Lucas recently quit his job for the same reason AND I have the job of my dreams!

So, the headline gets posted and I QUICKLY realize that there will be some confusion. I knew that taking it down would make it worse, because some people would have already seen it. So, I added a comment to it on Facebook, saying I had learned the power of editing a headline, and did the same on Twitter.

I forgot LinkedIn.

Big mistake. Apparently, other people in my network saw the headline and contacted my BOSS who had to deal with the rumors — and assure people that I was not going anywhere!

Sure, it sounds funny, and in this case, it’s not that big a deal. But it’s a good lesson for us all when it comes to sharing content. Who clicks through every headline that’s posted on social networks? Who takes the time to read every work of a post? I’m certainly going to do a better job of proofreading my posts, to make sure I don’t get caught in confusion again.

Now give my that CROWN!

OK, since this is a healthy living and food blog, I’ll leave you with some pictures taken at a fabulous dinner at Luma on Park in Winter Park, FL, surrounded by strong drinks, good friends and nice staff. Enjoy!

Celery Root and Rutabaga Soup

Sweetbreads and Gnocchi

Truffled Popcorn

Salmon Carpaccio

Short Rib Ravioli W/Pomegranate Seeds

What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to YOU with social media?

While you're here...

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A while back, I declared a trip to M&M world, Pizza Fusion, Whole Foods, Fresh Market and Total Wine  to be “His ‘n’ Hers Dream Day.”

Well, folks — we took a very different, very successful crack at the title today. Of course, it didn’t hurt that my mood was brightened on Friday. Lucas had some buddies over for brews, so I decided to take an evening to myself, surrounded by what I love so much.

Makeup at Ulta:

I lurrrrrve playing with makeup. In the picture above, I had two different looks — one for each eye. I walked around like that all night! I ran around looking for a vegetable spiralizer (unsuccessfully, harumph) then headed home where I indulged in another favorite: a mudslide.

If such a thing could be called healthy, this was it — it was Kahlua and Absolut Boston mixed with crushed ice, unsweetened almond milk and raw cocoa. Yummm…

Don’t worry — Lucas and his friends had fun, too.

We had an early wakeup call, to get to Tampa in time for a very special event. In between multiple pit stops (WHAT?!?! I needed two cups of coffee!!), we dodged some potential road hazards:

And made it to our cousin Adam’s powerlifting competition.

Adam is a national superstar in powerlifting — today’s event was “raw” which means the athletes can’t wear special shirts or suits to help them lift. Adam weighed in at 130 pounds and set TWO records — the second time, he broke the one he’d set in a previous lift! — when he benched 363 pounds.

Un.freaking.believable. I was so proud!

He was so excited to get his medal, and the $300 prize. Congrats, Adam!

I made a new friend at the meet — this is Big Al.

He could have bench pressed me with one arm. Crazy.

After bidding Adam and his lovely fiancee goodbye, we headed to Cigar City Brewing, just down the road.

Lucas, of course, was thrilled.

We decided to do a sampler of all the beers on tap, and I really liked them — especially the Winter Warmer (at 9% alcohol, this was more like hard liquor than beer) and the Oatmeal Raisin Cookie.

Lucas liked chatting with the guy pouring the beer. After 90 minutes, I was not only getting antsy — I was getting hungry.

So I used the Yelp! iPhone app to find a restaurant that would please me as much as the brewery pleased my man.

It was great! Lucas and I sipped on a raw Bachelor smoothie while we waited:

Bachelor          Raw
Nut milk, raw hemp protein with E3Live and Maca root, banana, flax seed,
plantago fiber, agave nectar and a sprinkle of bee pollen

And I borrowed a book from the shelf:

Then our food arrived.

Sunshine Burger Vegan
A blend of sunflower seeds, brown rice, and vegetables baked and served with lettuce,
tomato, finely diced onion, ketchup and vegan mayo on a sprouted toasted  bun

Raw Burrito Raw & Living
Our delicious “Rawfried Beans” made with sprouted sunflower seeds and the finest mexican
seasonings.  We top it with fresh avocado, diced tomatoes and Zesty Raw Parmesan Sheeze,
served on a crisp romaine lettuce leaf.    Roll it and enjoy!

We both really enjoyed our meals — and I appreciated Luke being such a good sport.

Finally, we pointed the car home. We made two stops — both fruitful. Ha!

We stopped to get a flat of strawberries in Plant City, which is known for the amazing berries. I’ll get more in a month or so when they’re really ripe, but the flat let me freeze several bags for smoothies, and throw them in this bad johnnie.

At the same farm, I found 3-pound bags of organic bananas for $1 a bag, so I stocked up and put some in the dehydrator for banana chips, and the others are awaiting their banana soft serve and smoothie future in the freezer!

Not a bad day, huh? What does your perfect day involved? Weightlifting championships and raw food, or something else?