nutella froyo

I do it because I can...and because I love, love, love nutella. My next attempt at making frozen yogurt was supposed to be a healthier choice with blueberries, but it seems the Blueberry Monster hit up my fridge. Actually, my nephew stopped by yesterday, so there were two Blueberry Monsters.

My heart was set on making frozen yogurt, so I scanned the fridge and pantry for ideas and spotted my old friend, nutella. The first bite was a bit surprising 'cause I expected that familiar creamy, choco-hazelnut flavor, but got something less sweet and tangy instead. The second bite was much happier. It doesn't taste like nutella, but more like chocolate yogurt. I like it!

This almost turned into a rocky road, but the marshmallows in my pantry were past their prime. It's a rare thing for me to have marshmallows in stock. I bought them following a trip to NYC when I fell in love with the cornflake marshmallow chocolate chip cookies at momofuku milk bar. The intention was to try to recreate them at home, but I think planning another trip to NYC is a better choice.

Here's a simple recipe I threw together for my nutella froyo:
1 c. whole milk
2 c. nonfat vanilla yogurt
3/4 c. nutella

I mixed everything with a spatula in a bowl, then poured it into the ice cream maker. 25 minutes later, voila. The end product fit into the 32 oz. yogurt container and was placed in the freezer to "ripen".

magical circle

Our house hunting continues and we've broadened our search to Escondido in North County. Though it's been work to familiarize ourselves with the neighborhoods, it's been a good way to find hidden gems. (We found out that escondido means "hidden" in Spanish.)

While viewing a few houses last week during a lunch break, hunger pains hit me while we drove past Nayeli's Taco Shop. It was a hole in the wall and the carne asada was fantastic. B found out about Peterson's Donut Corner nearby which will come in handy since I've acquired a fondness for donuts these past three weeks. The reviews we've read sound promising. Too bad I haven't been in the mood for a donut whenever we've been in the neighborhood.

This morning, we decided to check out Queen Califia's Magical Circle in Kit Carson Park, another B find. There's a mosaic sculpture in Balboa Park which we think is by the same artist. These sculptures are in the back corner of the park down a dirt path. Once you see the circle of trees, you do enter a magical, whimsical place. There was so much to look at! Definitely worth another visit.

oh right, the beach

I'm sure my MN friends got sick of me saying how much I missed the ocean during the years I lived in the Midwest. Yet, I've been living just up the hill from the beach for a while now and I have yet to go diving or surfing and have only gone boogie boarding once. It's days like yesterday that are a good reminder that, "oh yeah, I'm so close to the ocean. I should go to the beach more often!"

My brother's family is in town and it was a perfect reason to bail on work and spend the day in Del Mar. He and Ashton (Del Mar code name "Jeremy") spent some time on a surfboard until I was able to meet up with them with our boogie boards. Me and my "plus one" waded in the waves while Jeremy caught the whitewash on the bb. It was nice to be buoyant, but I couldn't resist jumping up and over the waves and had to resort back to the blanket after jostling the little one in the mini ocean inside me.

We met Nic for lunch a few blocks in town and I got to have my fave fish tacos at Pacifica Breeze Cafe. Yummy, chipotle sauce! I always associate this place with fish tacos and a cold beer, but this Beer Friday, I opted for an Arnold Palmer. In a few months, my hoppy beverage and I will be reunited.

The chill out vibe continued through the night with pizza and video game night at our place. Jeremy painstakingly strained fresh pureed raspberries and blackberries of seeds while everyone else started off a game of Boom Blox so that we were able to enjoy fresh very berry frozen yogurt a mere 25 minutes later. mmm. A healthier alternative to rocky road ice cream.

Bonus: Nic and I got fancy haircuts by Auntie Jenet in the kitchen/frozen yogurt shop/salon!

rocky road

Though I haven't had my usual pre-pregnancy sweet tooth cravings, my vices of chocolate and ice cream have stayed with me. It's been warm and humid lately...perfect ice cream weather! Last week, I discovered Breyer's Rocky Road and it's D-licious! It's got a malted flavor and the almonds are covered in chocolate.

I don't usually eat ice cream everyday, but have been helping myself to it for the past two weeks. So, I made an effort to stay away. This lasted for two days. Last night, I couldn't resist and had some ice cream last night. This stirred up quite a lot of activity from the baby in my belly.

As he was stirring around, B felt lots of his kicks as he placed his hand on my belly. A little while into it, I started feeling a new sensation with the baby's kicks. Wouldn't say it was comfortable...

More kicking, but this time it was on the other side of my belly. Ah ha! What I was feeling earlier was him moving around! Cool.