Summer Grilling: Fruit

With summer officially coming to an end in a few weeks, grilling season in the Northeast is starting to wind down. Readers of the blog know that I try to provide healthier takes on every day meals and recipes.  I (aka, master griller Ken) did a previous post on Grilled Artichokes, and now… Grilled Fruit!

Fruit

Fruit basket

Ken is in charge of (and loves) grilling.  But if it were up to him, our grilled meals would include a lot more cheeseburgers, flank steak, and ribs than I am comfortable with.  So, we try to compromise by always grilling some fish and meat, and by including vegetables, and now, fruit.  Grilling fruit is a great way to encourage fruit consumption, and the heat brings out more of the natural sugars.  Delicious and healthy!

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Thanksgiving Traditions

As I mentioned before, I am a granola, hippy dippy, nature obsessed, fashion loving girl. I am a princess who actually likes to camp and not shower (I actually hate showering). So, it should come as no surprise that my family’s tradition for Thanksgiving has been to retreat to a holistic, vegan spa in the middle of the Oregon wilderness. My parents have gone to Breitenbush (yes, that’s it’s real name) for the past 15 years.

 

Starting 8 years ago when we started dating at graduate school, Ken and I began spending Thanksgiving with his family in New York. While it has been a treat, I of course always missed my family.

 

Last year, we decided to brave the travel nightmare (two flights, a three hour drive, snow, chains and chaos) to be with my family to celebrate Thanksgiving.

 

Ken loves traditional Thanksgiving more than anything. He loves watching football, gorging himself with food, and living the all-American Thanksgiving. So to say that Breitenbush was a new experience would be the understatement of the year. Vegan. No television (i.e., no football). Vegan. No computers. Vegan.  No cell phone service. Vegan. No lying on the couch. Vegan. Completely off the grid (for four days, mind you). And did I mention naked hot springs?

Cabin

One of the cabins for the guests. It is literally a room with two twin beds, a desk, and another room connected to a toilet. It is like camping out, except with a toilet.

 

Despite the no-turkey-and-no-football, everyone had a great experience and loved being together. It reemphasized the fact that no matter where we are, the important thing is that you are with friends and family, people you love and cherish. Home is not where the house is, but where your family is. It was a fun four day trip of hiking in the snow, playing in the main lodge near a fire, eating delicious and healthy vegan food, practicing yoga and meditation every morning, and laughing together in our individual little rustic huts. Breitenbush is beyond rustic — it is basic and simple. But when you are with the people you love the most, you really don’t need much else.

 

bridge

It is a hike from the cabin to the main shelter where meals are served and activities take place.

Family photo

The three of us on one of our daily hikes last Thanksgiving. The nature is out of this world — rolling river, green trees, wildlife. A very different world from Manhattan.

Tata and Cruzzie

My father with his beloved grandson (I can’t believe how much he has changed over the last year!)

This year, we will be on our own. Both sets of parents will be away: Ken’s parents will be in the Philippines, and my parents will be in Brietenbush with my brother and his family. We would love to be with either set of parents, but we decided to avoid extensive travel, so we will be getting some sun instead.  I am sure that there will be no naked hot springs and no vegan meals, but as much fun as I know we will have this year, I am sure we will miss it.

 

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Favorite Websites

I love lists.  Some people hate them, but I love them! I love writing all kinds of lists and find ways to include them in every part of my life. For example, whenever I have to give toasts (at my brother’s wedding, at my rehearsal dinner, etc.), I give my toast as a list. “Top ten reasons why I love my husband” “Top ten reasons why Katie (sister-in-law) will be a good wife for Giora (brother).” I also find to-do lists incredibly gratifying and satisfying. I have to-do lists in a special planner and journal (moleskine) for various things. “To do Monday” “Want list for Fall” “Things to do in NYC in the winter,” etc….They remind me of what I need to accomplish, and I also love the feeling of crossing something off of a list – sometimes, I write a basic thing like “shower” on a to-do-list because it helps me manage my time. HA! No joke!

Even months (and years) later, I like to look back at my lists.  They serve as a reminder of times past –  what restaurants I wanted to go to that year, what I wanted to name our son, etc…to me, lists serve as a low-effort diary. They tell a story of what I liked THEN, what I did, and who I was.

So here is my first set of lists for the Josie Girl Blog: my favorite websites. The below is a set of sites I look at throughout the week, some for important information, others as a mindless escape.  Take what you want from them, and please share your random favorite websites with me. I would love to know where you shop, surf, and spend time perusing.

Enjoy!

Design:
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/
http://www.ohdeedoh.com/
http://www.lonnymag.com/
http://www.designsponge.com/

Celebrity gossip:
http://www.people.com/
http://www.wwtdd.com/
http://www.tmz.com/

Shopping for clothes/shoes/accessories:
http://www.castorandpolluxstore.com/
http://www.openingceremony.us/
http://www.net-a-porter.com/
http://totokaelo.com/store/
http://www.jcrew.com/
http://www.lagarconne.com/
http://www.shopbop.com/
http://gimmeshoes.com/

News:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/
http://www.nytimes.com
http://www.cnn.com/

Gift ideas:
http://www.goop.com/
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/
http://www.levainbakery.com/
http://mxyplyzyk.com/

Recipe ideas:
http://www.epicurious.com/
http://www.marthastewart.com/everyday-food
http://www.notakeout.com/
http://www.food52.com/
http://www.amateurgourmet.com/

Restaurants:
http://newyork.seriouseats.com/
http://nymag.com/restaurants/
http://www.menupages.com/
http://newyork.grubstreet.com/
http://eater.com/

Shopping for baby clothes/items/accessories
http://www.nonchalantmom.com/things_to_wear/baby.html
http://www.polarnopyretusa.com/
http://en.smallable.com/
http://www.kitlili.com/
http://www.artebebe.com/
http://www.sweetwilliamltd.com/
http://www.babygeared.com/

Until, Wednesday! Happy surfing!

— AYN, aka Josie Girl