Quinoa Chickpea Burgers

I recently came across a recipe that sounded so amazing that I had to try it. It was chickpea burgers with roasted red pepper. I didn't have roasted red pepper but I did have quinoa and regular peppers so I decided to go for it and boy, they did not disappoint!

I started with peeling and cubing a medium sized potato. I then cooked it by placing it in a frying pan with about 1 inch of water and cooking it with a lid on for about 10-15 mins. I wanted it soft enough to mash up but not completely without form.

Once that was cool, I put it in a mixing bowl along with 2 eggs, about a cup of cooked quinoa, dried parsley (fresh OR cilantro would have been better!) and a can of mashed chickpeas (drained but save some of the juice!).

I then took one, chopped red pepper and sautéed it til it was soft. I added in 3 gloves of fresh garlic right at the end as well as some chopped adobo pepper (for spice).

Once cooked, these were added to the bowl of chickpea mixture along with the above spices and 1-2 tablespoons of the chickpea juice and mixed in.

Next I formed the mixture into burgers and fried them in some coconut oil til crispy on each side and cooked through.

These were served on toasted whole wheat buns with all the fixings and wow they were tasty! These burgers stayed together surprisingly well and we all enjoyed them.  We will definitely be having these again.

Quinoa Chickpea Burgers:
1 medium size potato
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp chili powder
1 15 oz can chickpeas (drained but save some of the juice)
1/2 red bell pepper
3 cloves garlic
Adobo pepper or jalapeño for spice
2 eggs
1 cup cooked quinoa
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
1/4 teaspoon pepper

After cooking the potato, mix the above ingredients, form and fry up!

Enjoy!

XOXO

Joy

Today's Trend: Layered Eyeliner

Have you girls heard of this latest trend? Layered eyeliner is making waves and I've found one particular look that I am enjoying lately.

Using bright eyeliner as a pop of color became a trend a few years ago, like this:

Then it morphed into using a bright liner on top paired with either a muted liner on the lower lash line OR a lighter version of that same color on the lower lash line. (People also did this the opposite way - bright color on bottom and lighter on top.  The basic principle was only bright on top or bottom - not both.) Like this:

Currently, bright eyeshadow is trending as a double layered look meaning that it is layered on top of a darker liner (brown or black etc). Like this:

I am loving this trend because you still get the fun pop of color while having that dark definition around the eyes.  Sometimes colored liner can look to 80's style or too teen-age appropriate for grown women (if not done correctly) but having some layered over a darker line eliminates both of those problems.  

Tips for acheiving this look:

1.  Keep your eyeshadows neutral as the focus is on the liner and having bright eyeshadow with bright liner will not only compete with each other but will definitely make you look like an 80's hot mess.

2.  If you are going for a 2 line look (like above), only do your top line.  If you are going to layer directly over the line, then you can do both bottom and top if you choose.

XOXO

Joy

Tasty 10 Minute Waffles (gluten free)!

This is our new favorite waffle recipe because it's tasty, fast and healthy! I make these a couple times a week as Peter and Simon both love waffles. The best part about this recipe is that it's all made in my Vitamix so I literally just throw everything in there and blend.

 This recipe can be partially made the night before and then left on your counter overnight to soak the grains or you can make it all at once and skip this step.

  Combine the following ingredients in your blender:
  1 1/2 cup of buttermilk. If you don't have any, you can easily make some by mixing 1 1/2 tablespoons of Apple cider vinegar with 1 cup of milk and let it sit for 5 minutes.
   1 1/2 cups of gluten free oats (whole, rolled oats).
   1 teaspoon of vanilla
   2 tablespoons grape seed oil (or whatever oil you choose)

Blend thoroughly - 3-5 mins - always keeping a vortex in the batter. Once blended you can now let this sit on your counter overnight to soak the grains. Again, that is optional.

 Add in while blending (to avoid chunks) and maintaining a vortex in the batter:
  1 egg
  2 teaspoons baking powder
  1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  Pinch of salt

*If the batter is too thin, just allow it to sit in the blender on your counter for a few minutes and it should thicken.

Now just pour into your hot waffle maker and cook the usual amount of time. Enjoy!

XOXO

Joy

What is "Casual"?

Obviously people change over the years, but one change of mine began during the years I dated Peter. He is so good for me and brought out my feminine side a lot. To be honest, before I met him, I wore less pink and more jeans. :) He didn't not like how I dressed, he just really likes pink. ;)

I learned the hard way to be dressed up rather than down when hanging with him because I never knew what would happen and I ended up in some awkward situations.  Peter likes to dress nicely and there were a few times where he surprised me with a nice dinner (and he was dressed fine) but I was in casual attire. It horrified me when he surprised me with his official proposal (and ring!) at an amazing dinner and I was in a cotton shirt and jeans (of course Peter was in a suit). I realized then that it's better to be over-dressed than under-dressed in most situations.

Engagement - note the suit versus the jeans look 

So my rule of thumb now is that I'd rather be over dressed than under dressed. You never know what might come up and what you need to be prepared for. Obviously I don't mean this in an extreme way - I'm not walking around in cocktail dresses all day! ;) I still wear jeans and I definitely don't wear pink all the time but my version of casual has changed.  So, what's your version of casual?  Have you ended up in awkward situations because of being either under or over dressed?  I want to hear your horror stories!

XOXO

Joy

Playing in Jen's Closet

Hey girls,
 When I was in Colorado I got to spend an evening helping my sister in law pack for her anniversary trip. They were celebrating 20 years and going on an uber special trip so this required extra special attention. I love being her personal stylist and this night was so fun that I had to commemorate it. :)

 Jen is a beautiful mother of 7 wonderful kids and she looks amazing! She and Jim went to a very private island for their trip so we planned lots of fun dresses with special evening looks for their fancy dinners. Here are a few for you all to enjoy!

Laying out our options

Maxi dress:  Charming Charlie

Coral shorts with a striped kimono

This beauty doubles as a swim suit cover up and a 20's style sundress!

The happy couple on their trip!

I hope you guys enjoy peeking into this styling session!  It was a lot of fun and some beautiful looks.  Remember, you really can't go wrong with a dress in the summer time -  a sundress or maxi dress etc.  Find which style works for you and go for it!

XOXO

Joy

2 Minute Summer Makeup

Ok as promised, here is the 2 Minute Summer Makeup look tutorial! I am truly loving this look right now as I think it is perfect for summer and so fresh looking. I hope you all enjoy it too! I am going to put the link below just in case the video doesn't imbed from my Ipad. :)

Xoxo

Joy

http://youtu.be/IoW2-3b2_98

Summer Blog Update

Hi girls,
 I know my blogging has not been happening lately and I am so sorry about that! First we were traveling and now I don't have a computer which makes blogging really hard. I can do a lot from my Ipad but editing pictures is hard without a computer (if anyone knows of a solution I am all ears!).

 I usually use Peter's laptop to blog on but guess what? When I was in Colorado, someone broke into my car and stole his briefcase containing his laptop, Ipad, wireless hot spot and basically all his work stuff. It's crazy to go through something like that and it is extremely maddening to have all of that stolen from you. Needless to say, it was devastating for him and has made blogging hard!

 I have some posts I am working on and I can still do tutorials from my Ipad so I am going to get a 2 minute summer makeup one done soon!

For now, I am still working on things and we are really enjoying our summer. We have a couple camping trips coming up, my first Spartan race, plus a couple weddings in my family so it should be busy! Hope you all are enjoying your summers too!

XOXO

Joy