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Mixed Greens Salad with Steam Fried Veggies and Lemon Basil Vinaigrette {Paleo, Keto, AIP, Vegan, Whole30}
This fresh, colorful, veggie-loaded Mixed Greens Salad with Steam Fried Veggies and Lemon Basil Vinaigrette is simple-to-make, loaded with flavor and perfect for holiday entertaining!
Disclosure: This post and recipe were created in collaboration with Dole Fresh Fruit and Fresh Vegetables. As always, all opinions, ideas and text are my own. Thanks for supporting the sponsors that allow me to create new and special content like this for Tasty Yummies.
This recipe is not be far off from the usual fare you will find around here, but the inspiration that got me here might be.
Let’s take a big big step back, come along with me. We are going all the way back to 1928. Disney’s Mickey Mouse made first on-screen debut in Steamboat Willie, a seven-and-a-half-minute animated short film that would become a classic, as it introduced to the world, one of the most iconic characters of our time!
Another American classic, we all know and love, Dole, is collaborating once again with Disney to celebrate Mickey’s 90th Anniversary, highlighting fresh takes on iconic recipes and bringing brand new inspired dishes honoring a True Original and the two brand’s long-time friendship.
To know me and my husband is to know that Disneyland and Mickey Mouse have become a part of our own story. When we moved to Southern California nearly years ago, before the moving truck ever hit the road, before we even had the keys to our new home, we had our Disneyland annual passes in our hands. On our trip out to California to find our house, we committed that once we found where we would be living, assuming we had a few days left in the trip, we would be “Going to Disneyland”.
Over the years since we have lived here, we have celebrated birthdays and anniversaries at Disneyland, we have taken nieces, nephews, parents and friends. We even created original artwork for Disneyland in collaboration with their WonderGround Gallery in Downtown Disney, where we silkscreen printed the posters live, in front of the gallery.
Disneyland and Mickey Mouse are synonymous with our Southern California life, so of course I was excited to be a part of DOLE’s celebration of Mickey Mouse. Dole and Disney have a rich history of working together toward happier, healthier families, and encouraging kids of all ages to eat better and be more active, so this celebration of Mickey’s 90th has come together in a big and tasty way and I am honored to be a part of it.
For me, I wanted to stay true to the food I always create and share with all of you, so no Mickey Mouse cupcakes or decadent Disneyland treats, I wanted to find a subtle a way to pay homage to ‘ol Steamboat Willie and his humble beginnings and really highlighting Dole’s beautiful fresh produce. In fact right know you can actually find DOLE® fresh fruits and vegetables featuring Mickey Mouse throughout the decades. How fun is that? Around here I have been referring to this as the Steamboat Willie Salad and it features one of my favorite ways to prepare fresh vegetables – Steam Frying. Rather than the simple steamed veggies prevalent in the 1920 and 30’s – we are taking steam cooking up a notch.
You all know that I am not anti-fat by any means, I think healthful fats play a very important role in a healthy, well balanced diet, so this isn’t about reducing fats and oils at all, steam frying is merely a simple, easy and flavorful way to prepare fresh vegetables. It takes the classic steamed vegetables up a notch in a fun and flavorful way. What I especially love is you can prepare the veggies ahead of time and serve them on the finished salad cold or room temperature, if you’d like, which makes this salad perfect for your holiday entertaining. No taking up space in the oven for roasting, no messy oil-splattering as you pan fry and no mushy, boring steamed veggies. Ready in no time, a beautiful, center-piece salad, loaded with nutrient-dense, colorful veggies – truly the best of all worlds.
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Photo Fun Day Friday
Well, it’s been WAY too long since I have put together a Photo Fun Day Friday post. It’s been a busy couple of months. I went right from the holidays into my yoga teacher training program, into a month of catching up on work. February has been busy, hectic, overwhelming but as always – fun and filled with happiness.
Here’s some of my favorite moments for the last month and a half or so:
I found this ticket in an old jacket recently, when I was cleaning out some boxes. My husband Mark and I hadn’t yet met. I was at this show with a friend, and he was, as well. The story goes that he picked me out from the crowd, from across the room and pointed me out to his friend as the prettiest girl there. Flash forward a month later after meeting online, through some mutual friends. We are on our first (blind) date, we get to talking and he realizes he had actually seen me once before at a show, he thought. I didn’t believe him and he tells me exactly what I was wearing, right down to the jacket. 11 years later, I found that jacket in a box, the ticket from that show still in the pocket. We’ve since framed it, of course 🙂
Seri and Jpeg spooning.
My handsome hubby.
I checked in on my garden after a month away and it was going nuts!
I finally got to take one of Kathryn Budig’s classes at YogaGlo. She is so sweet and I found out she actually has a print of ours on her alter at home.
On the Matterhorn at Disney. Took a day off to spend it with m
Cuddling with my sweetie. Read the rest of this entry » -
Photo Fun Day Friday
It’s been a busy few weeks, so I have neglected my Photo Fun Day Friday posts. This is a full one, but it’s been a fun few weeks, so I had to share. I cannot believe we are into November already. The holidays are nipping at our heels, somehow. It’s crazy.
Jazz hands on the Tower of Terror. Such a fun trip to Disney with my cousin Andrea and her boyfriend Mike who were visiting from NY.
Of course we had to make time for a beach day
It’s nice to have friends that are always happy to see you.
Beautiful Tibetan singing bowl for meditation that my sister Vicky send to me for my birthday.
A care package sent from Buffalo for my hubby. I have never seen him more happy. He has been desperate for good pizza and wings since we moved out here.
My amazing family sent me some colorful wax paper pressed leaves. Missing the autumn colors.
Best handmade birthday card, ever. From our friends Dan and Debbie.
Hanging with the lovely April of Gluten is my Bitch at the Gluten Free Oktoberfest in San Diego.
Hosted a little lunch with some of my favorite blogger friends. From L to R: Gina of So Let’s Hangout, Meg of Beard and Bonnet, Me in the middle, Cara of Fork and Beans and Meg’s friend Amber visiting from Georgia.
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Photo Fun Day Friday
Hey Friends!! Happy Friday! Happy Fall! My favorite time of year. I was worried I wouldn’t be able to get into the fall mood here in Southern California without the major drop in temperature and the beautiful fall foliage and leaves everywhere. Though I will certainly miss the falling leaves, the color and the beautiful crisp fall aroma in the air, I definitely won’t miss the slowly declining weather. The looming snow. So far, I am really feeling in the fall mood out here. There are pumpkins everywhere, the nights have been a bit more crisp and with a trip to Disneyland to take in all of their fall goodness, that really helped!
How do you get into the fall mood?
Pumpkins and pumpkin hard cider. It was a great trip to the grocery store!
We celebrated the start of fall last week with a trip to Disneyland! Just the two of us!
Day of the dead!
So many great decorations at Disney.
Green goodness. Smoothie for breakfast and a green juice for lunch! Guess I was craving some greens!
Me in Warrior II! Read the rest of this entry »
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Photo Fun Day Friday
How is it this time again already? Another week that flew by! I need to slow down time. We have had a super fun and busy week. We had friendsm Sean and Ruth, visiting and staying with us, from the UK. It was their first trip to Southern California so we made sure to give them the best time possible. They are both theme park/Disney junkies, so we of course spent an entire day at Disneyland with them, which you never have to twist our arms to do. We had a BBQ and invited some friends over, grilled out and just relaxed. Since they left on Tuesday we’ve been busy getting caught up on work and getting ready for upcoming events and travel. Mark has a trip next week, I have one the week after, then he goes away again just about a week later. Phew. August is going to fly right by. I am hoping to have time to share a decent amount of recipes, but it could be just a bit quieter around here for that reason.
It isn’t a glamorous photo, but I finally ran out of my store-bought toothpaste and got to make a batch of this homemade toothpaste. I didn’t have aloe so I swapped it out for coconut oil. I am loving it so far, my teeth feel so clean and have gotten noticeably whiter, already.
Our brand new California Dreamin’ oversized silkscreen poster is now available from our esty store. Seri approved!
The Brits arrived at our house on Friday afternoon, since they have been traveling and eating at restaurants like crazy, I made them a delicious veggie-filled frittata for breakfast. Loaded with zucchini, spinach, tomatoes, fresh herbs and onions and I topped it with with a light sprinkle of raw milk parmesan cheese. Check out my similar summer harvest frittata recipe here. -
Photo Fun Day Friday – A Few Days Late
I realize this should be titled “Photo Fun Day Sunday Afternoon”. My parents’ trip ended Friday afternoon and with that came some sad goodbyes and an afternoon of loafing around for Mark and I after we drove them to the airport. We had a busy week with them, we crammed a lot in and it was really wonderful! So nice to spend an entire week with my parents. Uninterrupted by work, obligations, business meetings, events, other people, etc. I don’t know if I have ever had that much time with just me (and Mark) my parents, ever! It was nice, to say the least.
We made lots of meals at home, we went to a few of our favorite restaurants and even tried a few new places that Mark and I haven’t been to yet. We took a lot of walks, checked out the Long Beach Flea on Father’s Day, hosted a big dinner with friends, we of course, took them for their first trip to Disneyland and lastly, the beach on the last day, to end their trip right.
Here’s a few pics from the past week, most from the time we spent with my parents!
My dad and Seri. Not sure who is enjoying the sun more. They are both sun-a-holics.
Crab Pot for dinner. Seafood overload. So good.
Lotsa crab.
Me and Mark -
Photo Fun Day Friday (on a Monday)
I realize it is Monday and I am a few days late on my Photo Fun Day Friday, but with my sister visiting, I wanted to keep all the photos for one big post and I also didn’t want to be a slave to my computer while she was here. We had an amazing time together and we got to show her all around! It was soo much fun, I just wish it didn’t go so fast and I wish I knew when I would be seeing her again! That’s the worst part of moving away from your family 🙁 My parents will be here in just over 3 weeks though, so we get another amazing week of family time coming very soon!
Our favorite house guest, Lucy! How cute is she?
Our newest art print – Goin’ to the Beach – can you tell we have already been inspired by our surroundings?
Our Mad Men inspired print, You’re a Marilyn or a Jackie, recently reprinted and rereleased.
Our booth at Unique LA last weekend. Brand new design, constructed completely out of recycled wood pallets.
Seri and her favorite Auntie, my sister, Vicky! So so happy she came to see us for almost an entire week! Just wish she didn’t have to go 🙁 Her trip went way too fast.
Cocktail on a rooftop in Venice Beach.
Look at that view.
The skate park in Venice Beach.
Sunset over Santa Monica.
Vicky on the Santa Monica pier.
The old crew back together again!
Beach day in Laguna Beach. So beautiful there.
Our matching “Seester” tattoos!
Hosting a little giveaway over on the Tasty Yummies Facebook page to celebrate 4,000 likes!! Go enter now, I am selecting the winner, at random, tonight.
Vicky’s first trip to Disneyland!
Space Mountain. Love Summer in the back, ha!
An update on our little hummingbird nest that is cozied up in our grape vines. Look at that tiny little beak.
Mark looking all dapper over a virgin tiki drink at Don the Beachcomber.
Sharing a Scorpion Bowl at Don the Beachcomber on Vicky’s last night!
Long Beach Pride Parade yesterday. What an incredible event. So amazing! -
Photo Fun Day Friday
Happy Friday Guys! I hope you had a fantastic week. It’s been a fun and busy one over here. We are gearing up for a big show this weekend, Unique LA, which is a huge amazing show featuring all things handmade. If you are in the LA area you have to check it out, it’s an amazing show. We are booth # 258 – Hero Design Studio. We designed a whole new booth for this show, constructed completely out of recycled wood pallets. I cannot wait to see it all constructed and completed.
On top of getting ready for the show, we are also counting down the days until my sister Vicky arrives here in California for a visit. She gets here Monday and I couldn’t be any more excited!! She is here 6 days and I cannot wait to show her around, take her to Disney and just hang out!
What do you have planned for your weekend?
Had to get a bottle of this for our Kentucky Derby party last Saturday.
Jalapeño cornbread mini muffins. I kinda made the recipe up on the fly but here are two other cornbread muffin recipes here on the blog. Cheddar and green onion cornbread and vegan cornbread muffins.
It is rare that you will spot bacon in my kitchen. It’s almost like spotting a unicorn. I bought some yummy organic applewood smoked bacon that I baked until crispy for the hot browns and it made the kitchen smell amazing.
A black-eyed pea salad inspired by this recipe, an effort to bring something healthy to the Derby menu.
Grain-free apple cobbler. I used my berry cobbler recipe and subbed out the berries for some yummy granny smith apples.
The assembly line for the Hot Brown Sandwiches. I made the sauce gluten-free, just so I could taste it to make sure it was OK, but otherwise I made these ALL for Mark.
Look at this beauty! She was sitting there when I was photographing food, posing like this.
I rolled over the other morning and woke up to this little face staring back at me from the other side of my pillow.
Playing some arm balances in my home yoga practice the other day. This is Eka Pada Koundinyasana I. It isn’t perfect, but I am working on it.
Toast with avocado, tomato slices and sprouts. The perfect breakfast.
My cucumbers are growing like crazy. I have a huge row of them. I planted these from seeds just a week and a half before I took this photo. It’s incredible.
Since we didn’t have a CSA this week, I took the bike for it’s first trip to the farmers market. Likely the first of many.
Yesterday’s post-run smoothie. Recipe can be found on my instagram.
Hubby surprised me last night with reservations to Carthay Circle Restaurant at Disneyland. Sunday marks 10 years since our first (blind) day and 6 years since we got married.
Disney is just so darn magical. Gets me every time. -
Photo Fun Day Friday
It’s been a while since I’ve posted a Photo Fun Day Friday. It’s not that there was a lack of photos to share, I actually have taken so many photos since moving here to California. I just keep forgetting to put some together to share. Life has been pretty great here so far, I still kinda cannot believe this is where I live. It feels like perpetual vacation. I love it. I still hope to get some photos of the house posted to share with you guys, just have to wrap up some of the details leftover from moving in. It’s really feeling like home though.
So hopefully I am back at the Friday posts happening regularly and hopefully you guys enjoy!
Our fig tree is starting to do it’s thing and the tiniest little baby figs are starting to sprout and form. I cannot wait.
Looks like living in California only one month has already started to affect my work. This is a quick sketch for a project we are working on.
Almond flour waffle for one. Pretty excited with this recipe. Look for it on the blog this week!
Not the best photo, but the Vegi Bowl from Hole Mole might be my new obsession. I am not one for most fast food/take out places but this place has tons of gluten-free/vegan options. This bowl is loaded with fajita-stlye veggies, rice (I go super light with rice), beans and then I skip on cheese and add guacamole. Only $3.99! What?
Prepping and packaging some greeting cards last week for an event we did in Ventura.
Look at these two. Jpeg and Seri.
Gotten quite into running since moving here. Treated myself to a new pair of running shoes and it has made a huge difference already.
Working on taking my handstand away from the wall. I can hold it without the support of the wall, but I am still too fearful to pike or kick up without knowing the wall is behind me. Someday.
A recipe I have been playing with for gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free coconut macaroons. Don’t worry I will be sharing the recipe soon!
Made a big pot of classic Greek avgolemono soup on Easter Sunday to remind me of my family. First holiday away.
A snail friend I came across on my run the other day.
My little baby, Seri, cuddling in the morning.
Zucchini pasta. My favorite lunch lately.
Every morning and every evening at Sunset there is a donation-based yoga class on the bluffs here in Long Beach. Amazing views and so serene.
Us at Disneyland.
Small World at Disneyland. My favorite.
Disneyland.
Simmered fresh pink grapefruit and rosemary for an all-natural room freshener. Smelled amazing.
If you eat peanut butter (or any nut or seed butter for that matter) in this house, this face will ALWAYS be in yours.
Yesterday’s delicious post run juice. Orange, ginger, apple, celery, green bell pepper and strawberries. So good.
New Ganeshsa shirt. Love it.
The first fruit from our trees here at the new house. Loquats. First time trying them, they are amazing. -
Photo Fun Day Friday
We are back in Buffalo temporarily, we got back from California late Wednesday night. We are now wrapping up all the loose ends before we blast off a week from tomorrow, next Saturday February 23rd! I kinda cannot believe we are leaving in 8 days already. Gosh, even though we have been planning this move for over a year and a half, it still seems like it snuck up on me. All of these photos are from our time in California! We have a fun weekend planned with a final poster sale here in Buffalo at the Town Ballroom tomorrow 11am-5pm (if you are in Buffalo and around tomorrow, feel free to come out – the sale is free to attend and open to the public). Then we have going away party in the evening and a fun family dinner Sunday night! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!
Me and my buddy Winslow.
Vegan Gelato from Paradis in Long Beach.
We went to the Stanley Kubrick show at LACMA. This cutlery is an original prop from 2001: A Space Odyssey.
The Grady Sisters outfits from The Shining.
We went to the Rose Bowl Flea on Sunday. That thing is HUGE!
A cool vintage French cooking print. Wish I had the room for this.
Our good friend Patrick and my hubby, Mark.
We are officially Californians. We got our Disneyland Annual Passports.
The magical princess castle at Disneyland.
The new Radiator Springs ride in Carsland inside of California Adventure.
My boozy shrunken zombie head drink at Trader Sam’s Enchanted Tiki Bar. You KNOW I bought that mug.
Mark, Me, Summer and Patrick.
Our new west coast abode! Cannot wait to get out there and start making it home!
