Ocean View, Backyard Bowls, and Plates of Green

Posted byLori Posted onMay 10, 2010 Comments5

I hope everyone had a fantastic, sun-filled weekend! I spent the weekend in Santa Barbara (4.5 hrs away from my house), visiting my sister and celebrating hers and a friend’s birthday. I mentioned a few posts ago that we were doing a biking scavenger hunt for the birthday celebration and what a hunt it was. There must have been about 30 people participating. Everyone broke into teams and were handed a LONG list of clues that lead us to a certain place. Once at that place we had a task, and had to take a picture to prove that we completed the task. Example, once we figured out a history fact about a certain building we had to go there, find a tourist to pose with, and take the picture. Or, find a particular bar and drink from “Das Boot.”

Me, Boyfriend, Sister: Is it weird that we look like triplets? Kinda gross.

My sister and I

It was fun. Everyone had a great time riding up and down the streets of Santa Barbara, next to the Ocean. Two hours later, we all met at a fancy Mexican restaurant and dined. No pictures of my food there, or much of my food this weekend, but I do have pictures of my breakfast Sunday morning…

Best. Breakfast. Ever.

And pretty awesome little cafe too! Backyard Bowls in Santa Barbara is my kind of place! They’re all about real food here and they make it just as I eat it. Everything is locally and sustainably produced with emphasis on healthy, clean, superfoods.

I got the GREEN BOWL:

Blended: AcaÍalways organic or locally and susteinably produced, Banana, Broccoli, Spinach, Ginger, Lime Juice & Apple Juice
Toppings: Strawberries, Blueberries, Granolaalways organic or locally and susteinably produced & Honeyalways organic or locally and susteinably produced

It was JUST as good as it sounds. Maybe better… well, probably better because broccoli and spinach probably sound a little weird. It’s even a best seller at this place. I encourage you to check out their menu… everything looks so good! It was hard to decide on what to get!
And since I’m an early bird, waking up at at least 6 a.m. every morning, I took the opportunity (while EVERYONE was sleeping) to take a two hour walk along the beach.
Beautiful.

Ok, so I didn’t post yesterday and this post is pretty late (sorry! Life is busy!) so today you get not only a salad recipe, but a Salad Plate recipe! Ok, so it’s not really a salad, per se, but it was last night’s dinner and it was amazing. There’s salad there too, but the whole thing was veggies. Pretty damn tasty veggies too.
Green salad: lettuce, tomato, avocado, white onion
Dressing: fresh lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper, and (Mama Samaan’s secret ingredient is Sugar, so I subbed) a drizzle of agave.
Roasted Asparagus: covered with salt, pepper, garlic powder, cayenne, and olive oil. Baked at 425 degrees for 15 minutes, turn and bake for another 10 minutes or until soft and crispy. (These are freakin’ amazing. Seriously.)
Steamed Artichoke: Mini artichokes (or regular sized), washed, halved, and placed into a large pot to steam with 1 clove of garlic and sliced lemon. Approximately 30-40 minutes.
Dip: Vegan Mayo, oven roasted green onions and jalapeno, cumin, salt, pepper, garlic, all combined in a food processor. (I’ll try to get the recipe posted another day… boyfriend came up with it!)
Check back tomorrow for a special salad guest post from one of my favorite blog people… who could it be?!
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5 People reacted on this

  1. Love all the pics, so beautiful! And you and your sister looks so much alike and gorgeous!!! Love artichokes. YUM
    .-= Pure2raw twins´s last blog ..Guest Post: Workout advice from our favorite personal trainer =-.

  2. What a beautiful family you have..wow! Sounds like you had a blast with the scavenger hunt! Love how you all had T’s too!
    That beach is stunning..wow! Thanks for sharing your picts!
    Love your salad plate..yum! I’ve never cooked artichoke before but I would love to try it with that dip! mmm!
    .-= Melissa´s last blog ..HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY! =-.

  3. wow that is just a beautiful place!
    .-= Simply Life´s last blog ..Perfect 1 Hour Herb Dinner Rolls! =-.

  4. What a fun birthday! I love Santa Barabara – such a fun town. That bowl looks fantastic!

    I’ve never made my own artichokes. How lame is that? I guess I didn’t realize how easy they are to cook.
    .-= Katie´s last blog ..Sunflowers =-.

  5. those beach pics are postcard-like…wow!!!!!!! 🙂
    .-= Averie (LoveVeggiesAndYoga)´s last blog ..Vegan Pineapple Cream Cheeze, Party Pictures, Product Reviews, Evil Looks =-.

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