A Feature Story

A few months ago I decided to start a second blog, The Turquoise Nest, to feature all of my furniture projects and house updates. I am excited to share that one of my furniture projects has become a feature story! Kathleen over at Between Blue and Yellow has a series which she calls Before and After Fridays, so today she featured my updated dresser! Click this link to see the story on her blog, or click here to see the full before and after story at The Turquoise Nest!

A Surprise Weekend

This past weekend I surprised Johnathan with an early birthday present by taking him to Athens! I had told him not to make any plans for the weekend but to be sure to pack a bag because we were going out of town. When we got in the car Friday afternoon, I couldn't keep the surprise any longer and ended up telling him where we were going because I was so excited! 

Friday night we went to the Georgia Theater to hear the band Yacht Rock,  a 70s and 80s cover band. We had heard them another time in Atlanta, so I knew it was going to be a blast!

 On Saturday morning, we went to Last Resort, one of the best restaurants in Athens! They have such a good menu, and our meals were amazing! After lunch we walked around downtown, headed to the Arch, and walked around North Campus. It was such a pretty day, and so nice to be back in our college town!

 Saturday afternoon we headed to Atlanta to surprise one of our dear friends, Ryals, for his 30th birthday! He knew we were coming to go to dinner with him, but little did he know that all of his other friends and family would be waiting on him at the restaurant! Lauren did such a good job surprising him. I think my favorite part of the evening was his DQ ice cream cake, which spelled his name "Ryalas" - hmm, oh well - it tasted good regardless!

We had such a good weekend getting away together and spending time with friends. Check back in a few weeks for more 30th birthday celebrations to come! 

Lauren and Ryals Engagement Party

This past weekend we traveled to Rome, Georgia to celebrate Lauren and Ryals with an Engagement Party! It was so great to see all of our friends, and it is hard to believe their big day is less than 4 months away! 

Let me apologize in advance for the poor quality of pictures - I took all of the pictures with my iPhone so I didn't have to carry my bulky camera around with me all night! 

This picture below cracks me up - not only because if you look in the background you'll see a slideshow of pictures, which just happens to be on a picture of all of us basically doing the same pose! (Sorority squat!) 

Ryals, Johnathan, Kevin and Tanner - all looking very handsome!

Old roommate shot!

After the party we all headed downtown to Mellow Mushroom to get a bite to eat. Well, they weren't serving pizza that late, so we ordered Papa John's instead! It did not take long for these pizzas to be devoured ... 

Such a fun weekend! We can't wait for the next party!

{Recipes} - Linguine and Meatballs

Hello friends! I wanted to share with you a fun, healthy recipe I tried the other night! I was watching the Food network (shocker!) and saw this recipe on Cooking for Real. Typically when cooking pasta dishes you use a tomato based sauce and add some form of red meat, but when I saw the recipe called for whole wheat pasta, ground chicken, and collard greens turned into pesto, I thought to myself "I have to try this!" I thought it turned out very well, and I know it must have been a success since my husband went back for seconds, and thoroughly enjoyed leftovers the next night!

Collard Green Pesto Linguine

1 pound bunch collards, ribs discarded, leaves roughly chopped
1 (13-ounce) box whole-wheat linguine
1/4 cup pecans
1 1/4 cups grated Parmesan, plus extra for garnish
1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
2 cloves garlic
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Blanch collards until bright green, about 1 minute. Transfer immediately to an ice bath to shock, saving the boiling water for cooking the pasta. Remove the collards from the ice water and pat dry with paper towels before transferring them to a food processor.

Add the linguine to the pot of salted boiling water and cook according to package instructions.

Meanwhile, in a dry skillet, over low heat, toast the pecans until fragrant. Transfer to the food processor with Parmesan, olives and garlic. With food processor running, slowly drizzle in olive oil until pesto comes together. Taste for seasoning, and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

To serve, put enough pesto to coat the pasta into a large serving bowl. Drain the pasta and quickly add it to the bowl. The water still clinging to the pasta will loosen up the pesto. Toss to coat. Add more pesto, if needed. Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl and garnish with Parmesan sprinkled over the top.

Zesty Chicken Meatballs

1 pound ground chicken

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 egg, whisked

3 tablespoons unseasoned whole-wheat bread crumbs

2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 teaspoon Hungarian or hot paprika

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano leaves, about 1 small sprig

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme leaves, about 5 sprigs

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1 lemon, zested

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

In a large bowl, gently mix the chicken, garlic, egg, bread crumbs, Worcestershire, paprika, onion powder, oregano, thyme, brown sugar, lemon zest, 2 healthy pinches of salt and a few grinds of pepper in a bowl. Form into mini meatballs, slightly smaller than a golf ball; it should make 28 to 30 meatballs. Warm the butter and oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Transfer the meatballs to the pan and do not disturb for 3 minutes to brown well. Turn, cooking another 3 minutes without disturbing. Keep cooking until browned and cooked on all sides, but still juicy and plump with a spring to the touch. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Serve atop Collard Green Pesto Linguine, if desired.

Enjoy!