House Beautiful

Tag Archive for 'zoodles'

2014, in all its glory.

Big Sur

2014 was a PRETTY big year.  So before we cheers to 2015 tonight (clink!), we wanted to take a look back at some of the best posts of 2014, and all things bitter and sweet that shaped us…  for the betta.

1. ON LOVE:  Karrie’s really real talk on marriage and everything learned – so far – on the subject.  We will ALWAYS try and be truthful, honest, and sometimes – to the chagrin of those closest to us (schorray, Teem!) – pretty darn candid.  Which brings us to…

Karrie & Tim | Covet Living

2. ON LOSS:  Steph’s raw and heartbreaking post – penned in the throes of a painful split – left our readers in a puddle.  The love that had joyfully radiated through the internet and the subsequent loss of it were equally palpable.  But how ‘bout that silver lining?!!  …the shift to a more fulfilling career in a warmer place, the goodness of so many loved ones and strangers, and the profound lessons learned… and learned a-gain at the end of 2014, just for good measure.  Many of which can be summed up by Mark Manson’s Love is not enough.  No regrets though – not a one.

I Loved, I Lost | Covet Living

3.  CALIFORNIA DREAMIN:  Once bi-coastal bloggers & besties, Steph’s cross-country move put us just down the street from each other (Santa Monica à San Diego)…  which means regular trips to the Rose Bowl Flea Market (stay tuned for the before & after of Karrie’s breakfast nook we’re currently revamping!), a lot of hilarity, and a lot of trips to Casa Machado.

Karrie and Steph, Encinitas | Covet Living

Southern Cali | Covet Living

It also means Tim wants to punch himself in the face on a regular basis.

Teem | Covet Living

4. ALL IN THE FAMILY:  Our hearts literally broke this Spring when we said goodbye to Steph’s beloved Grandpa, Bud…  a man who once said: “I never understood the point of fake boobs.  Anything you can’t fit in your mouth is a waste of time.”  What a stud.

BUD collage

Then they burst at the seams later in 2014 with the addition of one of the cutest, most angelic things to grace us with her presence – Karrie’s niece, Willow – a cooing little nugget we wanna eat up!  (Look at that FACE!)

Willow | Covet Living

Rounding out the fam-jam:  Steph moved into a bachelor pad with Karrie’s he-cousin + another young lad.  She affectionately refers to it as “El Frat House” and some days, wakes up to the sounds of thighs slapping and the sights of a sea of empty beer cans.  LAWD.  But to their credit, those 2 hooligans make for protective pseudo brothers, and the whole shenanigan makes for some amazing stories.

5. FASHION ROUND-UPS:  Look no further than our fashion round-ups {2014 Oscars | 2014 SAG Awards} to get a sense of the evil texts we volley to each other during awards shows (in sweatpants).  Who do we think we are – Anna Wintour + OP?  Nah…  just two hens cluckin’ about all things fashion related.  And when we’re not weighing in on stars’ fashion triumphs & mishaps, posts like this inspire us to keep our wardrobes effortlessly cool.  And fearless.

Camilla and Matthew | Covet Living

Jason Bateman | Covet Living

6. BACHELOR(ETTE) ROUND-UPS:  Speaking of being perched up in the judge’s chair…  Most Tuesday mornings, Steph shares her candid, kooky and controversial belly-laughing commentary from Monday night’s Bachelor episodes.

Cody and Mad Libs | Covet Living Bachelorette Commentary

Opera Singer on Bachelorette | Covet Living

Operation Doctor candidate | Covet Living And we can’t WAIT for Farmer Ted’s season – otherwise known here on Covet Living as the “Panty Dropper” – to start on January 5th!

Chris Soules Farmer Ted | Covet Living 7. ON TV:  Someday, we’ll tell you about the time Steph was in a close overtime thriller to be one of gals vying for Farmer Ted’s heart.  As for Karrie (a reality TV producer by day), this year we toasted not one but two of her MAJOR hit shows!  The pint-sized drama on Little Women: LA left our jaws on the floor, and the modern-day arranged marriage / social experiment that is Married at First Sight  had everyone from the ladies on The View to the check-out ladies at your local grocery store talking about it.  Look for even crazier TV shows to come from Karrie in 2015.

MAFS | Covet Living

8. GLOBETROTTING:  With girls’ trips to Palm Springs and Malibu, weddings in Big Sur, wine country getaways and jaunts across the pond to the South of France, we took in some of the most gorgeous places in the world.

Travel | Covet Living

9. HEALTHY BODY:  We both embraced dropping gluten and picking up yoga in a major way, and we feel a MILLION times better for it. And big props to Amy P at Corepower Yoga in San Diego for kicking our ever-loving butts in the happiest and most Namaste of ways.

Post-Corepower Yoga | Covet Living

Check out über healthy & delicious recipes for zoodles + meatballs, autumn ingredient salads, and lazy weekend brunches if you missed ‘em… and this post for our workout playlist.

Autumn Ingredient Salad | Covet Living

10. HEALTHY MIND: Though most of us love to read, we’re often so busy that we (whoops) forget.  And then when we remember, we don’t know what’s out there worth reading.  Well.  Leave it to Karrie to dole out good suggestions, always.

Books to Read, Covet Living

11. HEALTHY SPIRIT:  Many-a-Mondays, we shared words of wisdom like this & that… and maybe the most notable of all this year, THIS’UN.  Because if there is ONE thing we do our best to practice, it’s finding the joy (and hilarity) in everything, every. *single*. day… and being kind to people… and taking the leaps that scare you to death (“…because one day, there won’t be any more time to do the things you want to do.  Do them now.”)  Finding the good in all things – even the things that absolutely suck.  The entire reason we started this blog almost 5 years ago was to share with you guys that spirit for life and for all the things we love.  We love you to the moon and back for staying with us all this time.  And if you’re new – wassup!  Sit down.  Have a cocktail.  Stick arrooouuund.

Take-The-Leap-Covet-Living

Happy 2015 to you all!!!  And yo…don’t forget to take an Uber.

xoxo,

Steph & Karrie

 

Recipe of the Week: Zoodles & Turkey Meatballs

Zoodles (zucchini noodles) and Meatballs (turkey meatballs) = my favorite go-to when I need an easy peasy, amazing dinner that I won’t feel in my 2th a$$ the next day.  This recipe is not only totally satiating and totally good for you, but it’s also a breeze to modify, so you can tweak it however you wanna.  Here’s what you need:

PADERNO SPIRALIZER

First and foremost, if you don’t already own this bad boy, go scoop one up for yo-self at Williams-Sonoma.  It’s about $40 bucks and turns veggies like zucchini and squash into long thin noodles in about 20 seconds.  You just twist the crank – like a Jack in the Box.  Super easy to clean too.

ZOODLES

6 zucchini

2 Tbs. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

SAUCE

This is the best marinara sauce on the planet.  It tastes like Aunt Mary Lucianna made it in her kitchen in Italy – it’s all homemade and chunky and amazing.

Spinelli's Marinara | Best Marinara Sauce Ever

If you can’t find that, you can also use Trader Joe’s Tomato Basil – it’s about $1.99, all natural-ish and is pretty good.

TURKEY MEATBALLS

NOTE: I’ve been using and tweaking this recipe for years.  Updated on 9/13/16 as I have now tweaked it to perfection.  Using the best ingredients makes all the difference:

INGREDIENTS

1 pound ground turkey (I used 93% lean)

1/2 tsp. coarse sea salt

1/2 of a small onion, diced (throw that sucker in the food processor…  also, sometimes when I’m lazy, I just leave this out. #whoops)

1 1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning

1 tsp. dried oregano

10 fresh basil leaves, chiffonaded (if you don’t have fresh, you can use 1 tsp. dried basil)

1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

3 dashes Sriracha (you can sub Frank’s if you don’t have Sriracha)

1 1/2 Tbs. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup half & half

1 clove garlic, sautéed in EVOO

1 egg

1/4 cup fresh grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (it’s most $$ but makes all the difference)

3/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs

DIRECTIONS:

1.  Whip together beaten egg, all liquids and spices, chopped onion and sautéed garlic in large mixing bowl.  Then fold in turkey, part & breadcrumbs.  Mix with your hands or with a fork.  Meanwhile, heat olive oil in skillet on medium to medium high heat.  Roll ping pong-sized meatballs balls from mixture and set aside.  Then, pour half a jar of this most amazing marinara in bottom of a 13×9 inch (or slightly smaller) glass baking dish.

2. Heat 2-3 Tbs. EVOO in a pan on medium to medium high.  Lightly brown meatballs on a few sides in sauté pan, being careful not to cook them too much.  I turn them with my hands after a little less than a minute on each side.  Once they have a nice golden-brown color on the outside, transfer meatballs to marinara pan and smother with remainder of marinara.  Bake on 375 for 13 minutes.

3.  While meatballs are baking, run 6 zucchini through the spiralizer, then pat dry with a paper towel.  The hill of zucchini this yields will look like you’re feeding an army, but it will cook down a bit so don’t worry.  And you can also save some for later this week if you don’t wanna use it all.

4.  Once meatballs are cooked, fold zoodles in little by little with meatballs/sauce mixture to coat them.  They will cook down and cook (enough) while you do this…  I have blanched them before and you can do it that way, but they’re easy to overcook, and then your hill of zucchini is all soggy and fits in a thimble.  So the folding route is how I like to do it.

5.  Top with basil leaves, extra parm shavings or whatever tickles your pickle.

If you LOVE Meatballs, you may also wanna think about making:  PAPPARDELLE WITH KALE PESTO + TURKEY MEATBALLS | BBQ CHICKEN MEATBALLS OVER CHEDDAR CORN QUINOA

Happy Cooking, Campers!  This should serve 3-4 peeps.