Tropical Travels

Officially in vacation mode, and life is pretty grand.

To be technical, in honeymoon mode. Although we got hitched last year, we waited a bit for our honeymoon and it was totally worth it.

When you’re traveling, there are so many new sensations to take in (especially if you’ve been hibernating all winter and all of a sudden there is an ocean and sunlight and you discover you have a neck because your shoulders aren’t stuck up by your ears from tension derived from driving on sheer ice for 4 months).

It’s good to get out of your comfort zone every once in a while, food choices included. I was a little nervous about transitioning to a tropical flavor profile, and how my tastebuds would adjust in a new climate. I started training for this experience over the last few months, and am happy to report that so far I have adjusted seamlessly to island fare.

The decadent, exotic flavors of a Chocolate Dipped Coconut LUNA bar really allowed me to prepare fully for this trip, and I wanted to share this lush recipe with you if you find yourself needing to prep for future island travels.

CHOCOLATE DIPPED COCONUT LUNA BAR

Ingredients:

• 1 Chocolate Dipped Coconut LUNA bar
• Parsley for garnish (optional, but classy)

Directions:

1) Look at the bar and decide if you want to eat it

2) If the answer is “yes,” use your fingers to open the wrapper

3) Take the bar out of the wrapper (if you are somewhere warm, be sure to check for chocolate that may have melted inside the wrapper – THIS IS YOURS FOR THE TAKING)

4) Eat the bar

Home, Sweet Home(cooked Meal)

I was lucky enough to spend this past weekend in New York City celebrating people that I love. Including this adorable one-year-old.

What? The cutest.

Bonus – I got to eat some delicious, calorie-free cuisine while there (remember the golden rule: if you are on vacation, it’s calorie-free).

It was tough heading back home to full calendars and stacked to-do lists but I knew the right home-cooked meal would soften the blow.

Here’s a delightful and fairly simple recipe I made to remind myself that every day can feel like a vacation with the right ingredients. I call it Frozen Pizza.

FROZEN PIZZA

Ingredients:

• 1 frozen pizza
• Parsley for garnish (optional, but classy)

Directions:

1) Dig around in your freezer and pray there is something edible in there

2) Find pizza box and open it

3) Preheat your oven to whatever the box tells you to

4) Once oven is ready & rarin’ to go, stick the pizza in there (again, follow instructions on the box, going rogue here can have consequences)

5) Remove pizza and slice it up in whatever way floats your boat

6) Enjoy!