Gourmet pizza

So this gourmet pizza recipe is from over Spring Break and I forgot to post it, but it's absolutely delicious and definitely worth sharing!

My Mama and I sauteed zucchini, cherry tomatoes, bell peppers, olives, and asparagus with red wine.

We had found some purple asparagus that neither of us was familiar with so we decided to give it a try. As you can see in the photo above, it eventually just turned the color of regular green asparagus (though the flavor was slightly sweeter and lighter).

We used a pre-made pizza dough (we cheated!) but it was really good and we were too hungry to wait.

We rolled it out and added our sauteed toppings.

Close-up of all of the yummy toppings!

The best part of the flavor came from the cheese we put on top, fontina and fresh parmesan!

Then we cooked it at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for about 10 minutes.

Ohmygosh so yummy! Ah can't wait to make it again!

Spring break vacation: Glenwood Springs

Back from Glenwood Springs! It was the most relaxing, therapeutic vacation! The weather was perfect in the 70's, the mountain air was fresh, and the drive was only three hours each way (with no traffic whatsoever!).

We swam in the hot springs in the afternoons and the evening and we hiked a steep yet beautiful hike that was incredibly rewarding at the top, where we reached Hanging Lake.

The canyon we hiked up into.

The lake at the top.

My roomie and I standing on the log in the center.

Standing on Spouting Rock, where the waterfall into the lake originates.

Although I am now suffering from a painful sunburn, I managed to sleep for 11 hours the night we were there so all in all I would call it a great (albeit short) vacation, and I am about as prepared as I could be for the end of the semester.

Beading

Spring Break is almost over, nooooo! I was a home for the first part of the week and enjoyed plenty of girl time with my Mama. We shopped, cooked, did face masks, went beading, and did other girlie things like that. Beading was our one last hurrah, since we squeezed it in right before I left, and I'm glad we did. Going beading and making jewelry will be one of those great things I remember for the rest of my life as mother-daughter time.  

Here's what I made today, my attempt at a slightly more wearable version of this fantastic piece from J. Crew.

My Mama made a few great basic pieces. 

Also: leaving for Glenwood Springs tomorrow, so I'll be MIA for a couple days!

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Lemon butter shrimp

Made a simple, delicious dinner tonight with my Mama. We were searching Pinterest for an easy, summery recipe for dinner, and stumbled across one for lemon butter shrimp. I found the pin here, but it doesn't lead to any source when clicked on so I don't know who to give credit to. Anyway, we changed the recipe a tiny bit to make it our own.

We melted a stick of butter on a baking sheet (the recipe said to use a sheet lined with foil but we didn't and it turned out fine), added slices from one and a half lemons, and added de-veined and shelled shrimp. We seasoned this with salt, black pepper, and a bit cayenne pepper.

It baked at 350 degrees for 12 minutes, and then we ate! It was that simple!

Very pleased with the results, I was able to fool myself into thinking I was eating crab (for way cheaper) and  the flavor was light and fresh. Great summer recipe.

Nails nails nails

Love having the time to shop without the guilt of not studying! Spent my Monday shopping with my Mama, using up old giftcards to places like Sephora, where I got this cute set of nail polish minis :)

The resulting manicures:

Spring toesies!

Spring has sprung

It's here! Although I ushered in the season by watching The Hunger Games premiere at midnight, it has been much lighter and fresher since then. Today I enjoyed my favorite spring sandwich: avocado, monterey-jack cheese and sprouts!

Also, I'm on Spring Break! Finally! Although my week of three tests in 24 hours nearly killed me, I have survived and am finally catching up on sleep and cleaning! I feel revitalized and fresh for spring!