Rob, Ender, and I went to Lake Tahoe for a few days this weekend and had the best time. It was so nice to spend a few days together with no real plans other than skiing, eating, watching Harry Potter on TV, and relaxing by the fire or in the hot tub. We don't travel with Ender very often, but it's always so fun when we do--he got to go on lots of walks and especially loved jumping in the snow.

Here are a few details from our trip, in case you ever plan on visiting South Lake Tahoe:

• Where we stayed: A magical little cabin we found on Airbnb--use this link to get $40 off your first stay. The place was perfect--a little pet-friendly studio apartment with a fireplace and a hot tub in an adorable neighborhood just a few minute walk away from a couple of restaurants. The listing has old photos so I was expecting a dumpy little place, but they've done some decorating and updated the TV recently so we were pleasantly surprised at how charming the place was.
• Where we skied: Heavenly. It was, well, heavenly. I used to ski several times a year but haven't been in a long time. These slopes were amazing--the intermediate ones were perfectly long and wide and had gorgeous views. We went on a Friday and luckily the slopes weren't too crowded. Also, you can't beat the gondola ride up the mountain. 
• Where we ate: 
  • Bear Beach Cafe: We walked here from the house and it was great. The food was delicious and the portions were so large that we brought home half of our entrees for the next day. Everything comes with a warm, fresh muffin that was worth the gluten.
  • Blue Dog Gourmet Pizza: After a day of skiing, all we wanted to do was get dinner delivered and hang out in the hot tub, so that's exactly what we did. Rob got a pepperoni pizza and I had the gluten-free pesto chicken pizza. They were great. Somehow we wound up with free cinnamon sticks but they weren't great so we ignored them (ever since we adopted keto, we want our carbs to be super worth it).
  • Tamarack Lodge (at Heavenly): We had lunch on the mountain the day we skied. The food was really good but super expensive (two beers, a bowl of chili, a burger, and garlic fries were $63)--next time we'll probably bring some granola bars or something.
  • Free Bird Cafe: This place is the tiniest coffee shop I've ever been to. They make their own chai and the whole place smells amazing. There's nowhere to sit, so be ready to take your drink to go. I got a dirty chai and Rob got a regular latte. The cafe is next to a sweet looking diner that we're planning to hit up on our next visit.

We ended up having to leave a day early because there was a big winter storm coming and we didn't want to get stuck, but two nights was better than no nights! We're definitely going to be back next year (and maybe even this summer). 

Do you ever visit Tahoe? I'd love to hear your favorite spots so I can add them to my list for next time!

My brother's band She's A Legend released their first music video yesterday! It was so cool seeing Sean on video with his friends--he is way, way cooler than I am. Also he can play the guitar.

Anyway, I had such a big sister pride moment that I couldn't wait to share the video with you--watch it below and tell me what you think! If you dig their vibe you can check them out on Spotify (they're also on Instagram here). 

I made this dish for lunch yesterday and wasn't even planning to share it on the blog but it was so easy and delicious (and I had everything for it in my fridge or pantry already) that I had to take a few minutes to snap some photos and write it up for you. These are always my favorite kinds of meals--the ones that you don't plan or have to shop for but end up being exactly what you were in the mood for.

If you have other veggies in the fridge that need to go (onion or mushrooms would be good), feel free to throw 'em in the pan; and if you hate something I listed below (not everyone loves capers although I think I might like them enough for the rest of you), go ahead and skip it. But the combination of sweet sun-dried tomatoes and briny capers with juicy artichoke hearts in tomato sauce was absolutely perfect over zucchini noodles. I'm usually a salad lunch gal, but every now and again I really love to have a warm, home-cooked meal in the middle of the day. 

This recipe is both Paleo and vegetarian (though you could easily add some meat to it if you want), and it reheats well, so you can make it ahead of time and heat it up at work. I hope you love it as much as I did!

Ingredients:

• 2 medium zucchini, spiralized
• 1 tablespoon grass-fed butter or olive oil
• 1 clove of garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup tomato sauce (make sure it's free from or low in sugar)
• 1 tablespoon capers
• 2 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/2 cup canned artichoke hearts, quartered
• 1/4 tablespoon crushed red pepper (more or less to taste)
• Salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese, to taste

Instructions:

1. Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and sauté for 2-3 minutes, or until fragrant. Add the zucchini noodles and sauté for another 5-6 minutes.
2. Add tomato sauce (full disclosure: I used pizza sauce because it was all I had and it was delicious) and toss with tongs to combine. Turn the heat down to medium-low and add the capers, sun-dried tomatoes, and artichoke hearts. Season with salt and pepper and add the crushed red pepper and some Parmesan cheese. Serve hot with more cheese on top, if desired.