Three Monkeys!

Good morning!!

Ahhh Saturday mornings… you make life complete

Well before I head off to the farmer’s market with Mini-Fanatic, how about a recap of our night out last night?

On the agenda, Three Monkeys!

This is a restaurant this is a block over from my old row house in The Fan area of downtown Richmond and one that I used to go to way too much to admit

They have a wide selection of seriously delicious dishes (from gourmet pizzas to grilled eggplant sandwiches to falafel and spanakopita to the most delicious crab dip on earth) and not to mention a pretty sweet drink menu as well!

I think I’ve also told ya’ll as well why this place holds a special place in my heart —> guess who met here?!?!

So I was pretty excited because I finally got to wear my new dress that I picked up during our beach vacation in the OBX!

We went for a late dinner and had to wait a while to eat (pretty normal for Fan restaurants, but so totally worth it!) so of course a large glass of Chardonnay was necessary

Once we sat down I knew that an old favorite just had to be ordered… I present to you one of my favorite restaurant items ever:

Hummus Platter

Simple and delicious.  Pretty much heaven on a plate.

We have – hummus, feta, olives, tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, pepperoncini all topped with a delicious vinaigrette and served w/ unseen herbed bread which is some of the best bread ever!

Devoured.

The Man ordered the Shrimp & Scallops which was prepared w/ orecchiette and a 3-cheese sauce.

He loved it!

All in all it was a great night out.  And of course I always love seeing my best friend Tammy & her fiancé especially since her and I spent manyyyyy a night here w/ some Chardonnay, crab dip and hummus platters in our single-girl past

Blondies

Alright, time to go wake up Mini-Fanatic to go hit the farmer’s market… hopefully she’s ready to rise hahaha.

Happy Saturday everyone!

Scary Storms & Spicy Pasta Bakes

Wow friends, I sure am happy that it’s Friday!!

And also that this past Thursday is over…

Richmond got slammed with one of the worst storms I’ve seen in a long time yesterday.

Right before rush hour it rolled in and left very shortly after that, but not without some major damage to the entire metro area.

There were trees down everywhere, the roads, on houses you name it.  The power was out for 45,000 people, including the office building that I work in.

It took me over 30 minutes to get home, which is a drive of about 2 miles.

The roads were full of debris, traffic lights were out on major roads causing utter chaos…

And fires also broke out around town including one within walking distance of our house *scary*

Let’s just say that this “little storm” definitely left some tornado-like damage in it’s path, and was of the worst I’ve seen since living here in a long time.

Prayers go out to all the folks who had damage done to their cars, houses, etc. and I’m just thankful that everyone is okay!

Well after that stressful end to the day, it was time for an easy and comforting dinner.

Spicy Pepperoni Pasta Bake

• angel hair pasta
• Newman’s Own Sockarooni sauce (one of the best!)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• pepperoni, quartered
• Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
• Parm, shredded
• S&P
• EVOO
• fresh basil

I first cooked the onion in about 1 tsp EVOO until tender (season w/ S&P), adding the garlic towards the end.

While that was going I gave the noodles a quick boil & drained once done.

I also got the pepperoni & basil chopped and the cheeses grated.

Then all that was left to do was stir everything together (except cheeses), including the sauce.

Put into a baking dish.

Top with lotsa shredded cheese

And bake for 10 minutes at 375F until everything is melted!

His and hers side salad w/ romaine, tomato, cucumber, onion, oregano, S&P, balsamic, EVOO to round out the meal.

And voilà!  Dinner is served

Loved this simple, easy dinner and The Man was pretty happy about it too!  The spicy Monterey Jack cheese really added a nice “kick” to the dish and the pepperoni was a fun addition as well.

And with that, I’m off… fun plans for tonight and I’m ready to get outta this cubicle!

HAPPY FRIDAY EVERYONE!