This has been one of the best weekends of my life. I feel like all my favorite things in life were smooshed into the last four days, making it a very memorable Memorial Day weekend. My husband has got to be the funnest person in the world to hang out with and it’s been a blast having an extended weekend to spend with him. We’ve gotten a lot of fun house projects done (pics to come!), I’ve cooked a TON, we had a pancake feed with some good friends, hit up a few thrift stores, watched a couple films and have done a lot of laughing. I have a lot to write about, but in this post I want to share a few recipes I’ve had many people asking for. I (and Scott) can vouch for the deliciousness of each of the following recipes; they’re sure to please any crowd you may be entertaining this summer!
Asian Peanut Slaw with Pork
I made this a few weeks ago as a main dinner dish for Scott and I. He loved it so much I decided to make it for a recent going-away party. The dish was a HUGE hit, so I’m posting it here for everyone who requested the recipe. This recipe is adapted from Sunset magazine.
Serves 4
1/4 cup each canola oil and fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons each soy sauce and sugar
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
4 boneless pork chops (about 6oz each)
2 cups each thin shreds savoy cabbage and red cabbage
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/2 cup thinly sliced red pepper
1/4 cup sliced green onions
1/2 cup roasted unsalted peanuts
About 1/4 each salt and ground black pepper
1. Preheat broiler. In a small bowl, mix oil, lime juice, soy sauce, sugar and chile flakes. Put pork in a medium bowl and coat with 3 tablespoons dressing (If I have the time, I like to marinated the pork in the fridge overnight).
2. Broil pork chops, turning once, until done the way you like, 7 minutes for medium. Let rest 10 minutes before slicing 1/4 inch thick.
3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine savoy and red cabbages, cilantro, bell pepper, and green onions. Add remaining soy-lime dressing and peanuts to slaw mixture and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Divide slaw among 4 plates and top each with the slices pork.
Buttermilk Pancakes
These pancakes have been a Friday morning tradition since Scott and I got married. I made them for our pancake feed yesterday and decided to post the recipe after a few requests for it. Hope you enjoy!
1 cup all-purpose flour (I use Pamela’s gluten free pancake flour-so yummy!)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk OR 4 tablespoons buttermilk blend added to dry ingredients first + 1 cup water added when liquids are added
1 egg
2 tablespoon vegetable oil
Stir dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Add beaten egg, water (or liquid buttermilk) and oil. Beat just until batter is smooth, being careful not to overbeat! Use a ladel to drop mixture onto hot, greased griddle and cook until top is full of tiny little bubble and underside is brown. Turn and brown on other side. Makes 10 4-inch pancakes. Serve with butter and syrup! Yum!
Post-pancake feed smiles 
Baked Blueberry Oatmeal
Adapted from Sprouted Kitchen by Sara Forte - You can see the original recipe at Lottie +Doof.
Scott got me hooked on a cooking blog called Sprouted Kitchen. So far I’ve tried my hand at the Salted Caramel Ice Cream (so amazing) and the Baked Blueberry Oatmeal. The blueberry oatmeal was so incredible and the presentation so fun, I knew I had to share it.
2 cups Blueberries, plus extra for garnish
2 cups Old Fashioned Oats
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon Sea Salt
2 cups Whole Milk
1 1/2 tablespoons Melted Butter
1/3 – 1/2 cup Maple Syrup
2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract
1 cup Toasted Chopped Almonds
1/4 cup Turbinado Sugar
1. Preheat oven to 375. Divide the berries between six small mason jars.
2. Mix the oats, cinnamon, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Divide the dry mix between the jars, just layering on top of the blueberries, about 1/3 cup.
3. Mix the milk, butter, maple and vanilla together. Pour a 1/2 cup on top of the oats, letting it seep through to the bottom. Place all the jars in a baking dish, sprinkle a few fresh berries on top, and bake on the middle rack for about 30 minutes until the liquid is absorbed, tops are just browned but the oats are still moist.
Your house will smell so delicious you’ll hardly be able to stand waiting to eat your oatmeal! Sprinkle the tops with the toasted almonds and a pinch of turbinado sugar and serve warm. VERY delicious!
, thankfulness to God for making this union happen, wonder at what God is going to do with this marriage, a bit of grief about leaving behind childhood, a bit of homesickness (this emotion really caught me off guard since I’ve lived on my own for 5 years now!), uncertainty about the unknown and honestly, joy that wedding planning is over! As we walk more and more into the thick of marriage each passing day, it gets both sweeter as intimacy growns and we learn about each other and more challenging as more sin and selfishness is uncovered in each of our lives. I really am not sure why, but the Holy Spirits voice has seemed unusually loud the last few weeks with the same two messages multiple times a day- run to the cross and be completely relient on Jesus, not myself, in every moment, word, thought, action. This message has been such a sweet sound in my ears, knowing that Jesus is right here in the thick of this new marriage with us, but I’m still disgusted by my tendency to just not listen and fall into the same trap despite that loud voice directing me. Thankfully, Jesus’ and my husbands grace and forgiveness runs deep- I need it! 
