Our Hill Country Get Away & Creamy Spinach Tomato Sausage Tortellini Recipe

And just like that it’s the last day of June. Where is this summer going?

Well let me catch y’all up to speed on life over here!

 

Nathan and I spent our 2 year anniversary at a beautiful ranch up in the heart of Texas hill country. It was an incredible little get away and we plan to return some day!

Pictured above is the inside of the cabin we rented out for our stay. It was furnished so well and extremely comfortable. My husband the hunter was in love with this place.

One of the main highlights of this trip was our hike up Enchanted Rock! If you’re ever in the Fredricksburg, TX area I highly recommend this hike, just bring plenty of water!

And no vacation post would be complete without a plethora of food pictures 😉 . Yumm!

Upon returning home and realizing our home hadn’t been lived in for almost 3 weeks, I immediately made a shopping list and was off to the grocery store within minutes! (I basically just needed to purchase some coffee, let’s be honest) 😉

I found a delicious recipe  for Creamy Spinach Tomato Tortellini on Pinterest and once Nathan saw it and requested it for dinner I decided to add it to the grocery list and whip it up. It had been a while since my man had eaten a nice home cooked meal. You may have seen this recipe floating around Pinterest as well! I made a few simple swaps for the meat lover in the family and it was a hit!

Ingredients: 1 cup chopped spinach*1 bag Buitoni three cheese tortellini*1 tsp. dried basil*2 tsp. garlic*1 tsp. onion flakes*1 can petite diced tomatoes*2 tbs. All Purpose flour*1 1/2 cups half-n-half*1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese*(optional) browned sweet Italian sausage* salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook the tortellini according to directions on the bag.

2. Add canned tomatoes, browned sausage, spinach, and spices to a large skillet to cook on low for 5 minutes.

3. In a separate mixing bowl combine the flour and half-n-half until smooth and then stir in into the skillet.

4. Once the pasta is fully cooked combine it with all ingredients in the skillet and add the grated cheese to the top. Stir and serve!

Bon Appetit!

Well, today is Nathan’s day off and we have plans to go out for dinner and a movie tonight and a possible hike is in the forecast for this afternoon which means it’ll be a HOT one!

Today is a running rest day for me which actually worked out well because I woke up with a killer headache this morning, boo! However, I have been on a running streak and have logged miles every day since last Monday!

I am also getting really excited for all that will be happening in the month of July! We have a fun July 4th party on Friday involving dancing, fireworks, and delicious food. Texans really go all out when celebrating our Nation’s independence! We will also be having house guests from July 15th-July 28th when we leave for a week of summer camp! 

What are some summer plans you are looking forward to?

I need ideas for cute red white and blue themed desserts! 

Have a great day!

Lauren ❤

 

 

This Week’s Food and Fitness Plan

Well, it feels great to be sitting down after a long but productive Sunday.

 

*That quote really hit home for me this week.

 

Nathan and I went to our Saturday night service and this morning I was able to get errands run and my to do list tackled around here. We had a church picnic today after church and I planned to run, workout, get groceries for the next two weeks, and clean the kitchen before hand. 

We’ve decided to start hitting the budget hard again after a few months of putting on the back burner. We have been dining out more than cooking in and making tons of purchases on car, house, and miscellaneous items lately. 

However, all of our eats have led me to discover my new favorite restaurant….Fish City Grill, a seafood lover paradise.

 

All of their seafood is super fresh and they are famous for their oyster nachos which were out of this world! 

And then there was Saltgrass Steakhouse which is where we ended up for our date night Monday evening. I want to try to recreate their wedge salad!

 

I got these groceries to last us for the next two weeks.

 

I like to plan and buy for two weeks rather than one and I’ve gotten pretty good at knowing how much to buy so we don’t have to make multiple trips to the store in between those two weeks.

 

Here is our tentative meal plan for this upcoming week:

M: Date night- out

T: Lemon garlic shrimp with roasted zucchini squash

W: Omelettes with spinach and feta

Th: Baked talipia with garlic and dijon

F: Sticky chili wings in the crock pot

S: Out

S: leftovers

As I talked about last week the hubs and I have been tracking our calories on the myfitnesspal app. I am not one to restrict myself and obsess over calories, I do not agree with that nor is it healthy. The app. is merely a tool we are using to keep track of how many hidden calories really are in the foods we consume. It has been very eye opening to both of us as to just how many more calories we were consuming than needed. So far Nathan has lost 7 lbs. and I have lost .8.  We have not felt deprived once and are continuing to eat our favorite foods just in moderation and with a better awareness as to what an accurate serving size is. 😉

with that said, here is my workout schedule for this week.

M: Early morning run before work/ strength train

T: off

W: pilates

Th:Run after work/ strength train

F:  Early morning run before work/ strength train

S: Run/hike with Nathan

S: Run/hike with Nathan

Hope everyone has a great week!

-Lauren ❤