Blog | With Two Spoons

Loves Food, Will Travel: Four Days in Ojai

March 8, 2019 By Holly Leave a Comment

Food and travel – and especially in combination – have always been a huge part of my life. From the time I was pretty young, I have had a serious travel bug. I’m thankful that my parents were game for exploring with young kids and were also supportive of my wanderlust when I got a little older and headed off for exotic new places. Over time, my travel has slowed a little as life has been filled with young kids and busy jobs, but I still love to get away and experience new places and cultures as often as I can. Recently, Lane and I had the great opportunity to head to Ojai, California for a work conference and man, did we love it. We were able to spend four days in Ojai where we experienced tons of great food and explored a new to us region that I will definitely be heading back to soon.

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Eat The Rainbow: Easy Vegetarian Chili

March 5, 2019 By Holly 3 Comments

My husband often makes fun of me for my love of vegetables. It’s probably a fair bit of lighthearted ribbing, because I am a little crazy when it comes to getting those veggies in every day! When I’m eating well – and for me, that typically means eating mostly plant based – I feel so much better. This Easy Vegetarian Chili is an absolute staple in my winter diet because it is so simple to throw together, freezes well, and it chock full of colorful veggies!

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Friday Five: Tips and Tricks for Feeding Kids

March 1, 2019 By Lane 2 Comments

Feeding kids and getting them to eat healthy foods can be difficult. With a 16 year old and an 8 year old, I’ve had a lot of time to try and sort this out. I’ve even (by accident) performed the sociological experiment by the different ways I raised my own two kids in regards to food. Both turned out to be quite good eaters, however one was much easier than the other to get there. Read on while I share my Tips and Tricks for Feeding Kids.

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Double Chocolate Olive Oil Brownies

February 26, 2019 By Lane 2 Comments

The Whole30 is over for me, and although I am eating a much more healthy diet (give me all of the fruits and vegetables!) I am finding that a little indulgence goes a long way, and is SO needed from time to time. Take these Double Chocolate Olive Oil Brownies for example. Each brownie has a crackly top, a fudgy, chewy interior, and chocolate for days. And they’re made with my secret weapon from Queen Creek Olive Mill! Bet you can’t eat just one! (head directly to the bottom of the post for your new favorite recipe).

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Books, Books, Books: How I Organize My Reading Life

February 22, 2019 By Holly 2 Comments

If there’s one thing here at With Two Spoons that we love more than food, it’s books.

Fiction, non-fiction, cookbooks. Hardcover, paperback, e-reader.

We love them all. If you follow along with us on social media, you know that we are posting what we’re reading this year using the hashtag #withtwospoonsreads. It’s been a really fun way for us to share what we’re reading and loving and to connect with other book loving folks out there (and get some great book recommendations, too!). With how much we’ve been enjoying that little side project, I thought it might be fun to delve a little deeper into what our reading lives look like here on the blog. So, if books are your thing and you want to learn more about what’s on our TBR (that’s To Be Read list!), how we track our reading, different reading challenge options we’ve found, and the fun that is #bookstagram, keep reading!

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Cheesy Turkey Apple Meatballs with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce

February 19, 2019 By Holly 5 Comments

If you’ve been reading the blog for a while, you might remember me mentioning that I have a very picky eater. My youngest child is now two and has basically four approved foods. If it isn’t a bread, cheese, fruit, or yogurt, she won’t touch it. In my quest to not live my life as a short order cook and still get dinner on the table that most of us will eat, I’ve started working hard on developing recipes that are totally kid friendly and adult approved. These Cheesy Turkey Apple Meatballs with Honey Mustard Dipping Sauce are perfect for picky kids and adults alike.

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Friday Five: Healthy Kitchens, Healthy Lives

February 15, 2019 By Lane 3 Comments

Welcome back to With Two Spoons! I’m going to do something slightly different for the Friday Five today and tell you about a conference I recently went to called Healthy Kitchens, Healthy Lives. It was all about teaching people to cook in a more healthy fashion and to support healthy food choices for everyone. Did I mention it was held in Napa, California? Read on for more on what I loved and get ready for a lot of fun photos (keeping in mind, I only had my iphone with me)!

The view of the river while walking to the Culinary Institute of America for Healthy Kitchens

Walking along the river on the way to the Healthy Kitchens conference at the Culinary Institute at Copia, Napa, California.

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Waldorf Chicken Salad (Whole30)

February 12, 2019 By Lane Leave a Comment

Although my Whole30 is done (how can you stick to Whole30 in Napa? I mean WINE…!), I am still trying to stick to clean eating while at home. I’m also trying to keep planning foods to bring to work. This Waldorf Chicken Salad ticks all of the boxes. Fresh, crunchy, creamy, Whole30 approved. Perfection!

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Friday Five: My Current Favorites for Surviving Winter

February 8, 2019 By Holly 1 Comment

It’s another wild weather day here in Minneapolis. After surviving the historic Polar Vortex of 2019 last week, it rained on Super Bowl Sunday, and we’ve since had two significant snow events. In other words, I’m a little over this winter business right now. Typically we try and escape the balmy midwest this time of year for a tropical destination. We are not traveling until later this winter so I’ve had to lean on a few little creature comforts and favorite things to get me through the dreary days! This week’s Friday Five is all about My Current Favorites for Surviving Winter.

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Apple Cinnamon Crescent Rolls with Dulce de Leche

February 5, 2019 By Holly 1 Comment

Well, now that Lane is officially done with her Whole30, I can post this recipe without too much co-blogger guilt, right? While I didn’t do the Whole30 with her, I did actually enjoy keeping the blog focus a little on the healthier side. I’m definitely someone who tries to keep my diet 80/20 – meaning that eighty percent of the time, I try to make good choices. The other twenty percent? I eat what I want. It’s been a good balance for me and helps me to enjoy treats while overall maintaining a healthy life. Now, when it comes to these new Apple Cinnamon Crescent Rolls with Dulce de Leche, well, these fall clearly into the twenty percent! These are simple, sweet treats that are neither healthy nor Whole30 compliant but they are 100 percent delicious and worth every calorie. Read on the for the recipe.…