Date Night

I thought our schedule would lesson once we were past the holiday rush, but I have yet to see it slow down.  Dominic and I haven't had a date night with just the two of us since the first part of December, so when Paige asked if I could sign her and Bryce up for 'Parent's Night Out' at the gym, I took her up on it.

Once a month my gym hosts 'Parent's Night Out' from 6- 9:30 p.m.  It's a popular option that many parents take advantage of.  The kids love it, they get to play games, do craft projects, watch a movie and eat pizza for dinner, while the parents can enjoy date night.

Dominic and I headed to the Wild Fox Restaurant where I had mesquite salmon and Dominic ordered a rib eye steak that was just huge, juicy and delicious.  {my photos did not turn out, as I had the wrong lens for the lighting}

After the Wild Fox, we headed over to another long time local restaurant, the Hilltop, for dessert {for me}.

I had chocolate waffle with bourbon butter cream ice cream.  I must try and recreate this one at home, it was so good!

Date night was just long enough to enjoy a fabulous dinner, have uninterrupted conversation and enjoy a tasty dessert.

Home and in bed by 10:00 p.m.

What did you do on your Friday night?

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Birthdays

We happened to have a few birthdays to celebrate within the last month; mine, Debbie's and Jody's.  Of course this is a great excuse to go out for a girl's dinner.  We again chose Wild Fox because for one, it's centrally located to all of us, two, the food is good and three the atmosphere is great.  They have indoor seating and outdoor patio seating. It was too cold to eat outside last night so we stayed indoors.

Why not start by telling you about dessert.  This was just one of the desserts we shared.  A bundt, brown sugar mini cake.  It's my new favorite.  I took one bite and instantly fell in love with all it's gooey, buttery, brown sugary loveliness.  Everything in moderation, right?

It was also half price wine night!  We had no idea and definitely took advantage of this offer.  We ordered one bottle of  the Beringer cab to share, which was just perfect.

We decided not to order any appetizers and moved straight to the entrees.

I ordered the Thai Coconut Chicken Curry.  I think I had this last time, but wanted it again.

The curry sauce was quite spicy, just how I like it.  I ate most of the chicken and curry portion but only half of the rice.

Lately I've totally been into all these sweet tea flavored vodkas and noticed they had Peach Sweet Tea on their cocktail menu, so I had to try it out.  Really liked it.  Also love that it's served in a mason jar.

Deb and Kellie.

A couple of the girls had one of the specials for the night, the Petrale Sole served on a bed of wilted spinach and rice which was really tasty.

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Our other dessert was the apple crisp topped with huckleberry ice cream.

I liked it but much preferred the bundt cake, probably because the bundt cake was a lot more sweet and I DO have a sweet tooth.

Kellie and Devi.

Present from Jody.  I love the hammered look in jewelry that I've been seeing a lot of lately.

Silpada earrings from Kellie.

Jody showed us her diamond encrusted hoops she got from her hubby as a B-day gift.  Loved them!

Another fun night at Wild Fox.  I don't think we'll ever get tired of that place.

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I didn't drink very much last night but for some reason my stomach was turning a bit this morning and I felt like I needed to eat something right away.  Maybe it was all that sugar in the dessert.

A nice hot cup of coffee topped with milk and cinnamon sounded good to me.

And my favorite cereal.  Have you ever tried this?  It has no added sugar but it's sweet enough for me to like.  Plus it has a ton of fiber and protein and made with whole grains.

I usually eat it dry, accompanied with my coffee. 

It definitely hit the spot.

Happy Tuesday!

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Birthday Girl

I had the pleasure of celebrating my good friend's birthday the other night with a very fun group of girlfriends that have been in my life for the last 10-15 years.  We have been through so many things together over the past 10 years, from trips to Tahoe, Texas, Las Vegas, horse camping,  to weddings, divorces, new relationships, illness and so many other things it's difficult to recount them all. So, at every birthday or any occasion we can think of, we try to all meet up for dinner.

Devi was the Birthday Girl this time and she chose to eat at Piatti's in Mill Valley.  It was my first time at this restaurant and I loved it.  I loved the atmosphere, as it sits right on the water, has patio dining, a full bar and good food.

But, first things first.  We felt the need to start out the evening at Wildfox for cocktails.  WooWoos all around.

Thanks Debbie for driving from stop one to stop two and back!


On to Piatti.....

(left to right: Wendy, me, Devi, Cynthia, Jody, Kellie & Debbie)

I was having such a good time, I totally forgot to snap photos of our food!  Or maybe I was just really hungry.  Oh well, I had the roasted salmon served with asparagas and roasted yukon gold potatoes in case you're interested and LOVED it!  Here's their menu if you want to take a peek: Piatti

The birthday girl......Devi.

A friend is someone we turn to when our spirits need a lift.

A friend is someone we treasure for our friendship is a gift.

A friend is someone who fills our lives with beauty, joy and grace.

And makes the world we live in a better and happier place.
Unknown author
 
I'm so lucky to have such a great group of true friends :)
 
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A Wild Fox Girls Night Out~ and Tomato-Herb Flank Steak Recipe

I had the pleasure of celebrating my friend Kellie's birthday with her and three other really great girlfriends last night at Wild Fox Restaurant.
We started out with what I think is going to be my 'new favorite cocktail'....the 'Woo Hoo' I think it's actually called a Woo Woo but after a couple of these, it quickly became renamed to the Woo Hoo! The cocktail is a blend of vodka, grapefruit juice, peach schnapps and cranberry juice......absolutely delicious! Woo Hoo!! I have always had a great dining experience at Wild Fox and I just love the atmosphere. There's a nice long bar, an outdoor patio with fireplace, and it's all dark wood and cozy on the inside. There are a bunch of meat eaters in this group. Three of us had the Flat Iron Steak special, all with different sides. Kellie's with a side of mash potatoes and butternut squash.... Devi's with a side of swiss chard and asparagus..... And Jody's with a side of green beans and butternut squash....... Debbie ordered a Pesto Pizza with tomatoes and pine nuts.......Yum! I ordered Chicken and Vegetable Stir Fry which was so good. They served a huge portion so I was able to eat the remaining half for lunch today...... Dinner paired so wonderfully with this fabulous bottle of Ledson Zinfandel that Jody brought to share......thanks Jody! Kellie's gooey smore-like birthday dessert (yes, those are toasted marshmallows you see emerging from the glass)..... Apricot, chocolate chip bread pudding with a scoop of mocha ice cream on top we ordered to share..... We all had a fantastic time and an even better visit. Nothing like a Girls Night Out... Flat iron steak makes me think of this recipe..... Tomato-Herb Marinated Flank Steak In this recipe, a dual-purpose sauce is made from garden-fresh tomatoes, shallot, marjoram and rosemary. Using half the sauce to marinate the steak and the other half as a basting sauce. Pasture-raised, grass-fed beef is gentler on the environment, free from growth-promoting hormones and typically lower in fat and calories than grain-fed beef. Marinating grass-fed beef for a full day helps make it tender. Look for it at natural-foods markets or find it online - Grossi Natural Beef. 


Ingredients 1 medium tomato, 
chopped 1 shallot, 
peeled and quartered 
1/4 cup red-wine vinegar 
2 tablespoons chopped fresh marjoram 
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary 
1 teaspoon salt 
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper 
1 1/2 pounds flank steak, trimmed 


Preparation 
1.Puree tomato, shallot, vinegar, marjoram, rosemary, salt and pepper in a blender until smooth. Set aside 1/2 cup, covered, in the refrigerator. Scrape the remaining puree into a large, sealable plastic bag. Add steak and turn to coat. Refrigerate for 4 hours or up to 24hours. 


 2.Preheat grill to medium-high. Remove the steak from the marinade (discard the marinade). Oil the grill rack (see Tip). Grill the steak 4 to 5 minutes per side for medium-rare or 6 to 7 minutes per side for medium, turning once and brushing the cooked side with some of the reserved sauce. When the steak is cooked, turn it over again and brush with more sauce. Transfer to a clean cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Thinly slice the steak crosswise and serve with any remaining sauce spooned on top. 


Tips & 


Notes Make Ahead Tip: Marinate steak for up to 24 hours. 


Kitchen Tip: To oil a grill rack, oil a folded paper towel, hold it with tongs and rub it over the rack. (Do not use cooking spray on a hot grill.) Nutrition Per serving: 169 calories; 7 g fat (3 g sat, 3 g mono); 47 mg cholesterol; 1 g carbohydrates; 24 g protein; 0 g fiber; 275 mg sodium; 440 mg potassium. Nutrition Bonus: Zinc (29% daily value). Exchanges: 3 lean meat


Happy Friday! Cheers!

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