It's 72 degrees, the sun is shining and I was craving a bomb salad. My favorite type of salad is one with 1000 veggies, a great dressing and some spicy chicken. This recipe is SO easy... so easy in fact that Adam and I have made it three times in the past week. Don't judge.

I hope you are all enjoying the spring weather, or I at least hope you're not still getting inches and inches of snow. Come on Mother Nature! It's time for summer salads, summer drinks and sunshine!

Ingredients:
Salad

• Lettuce
• Red onion
• Tomatos
• Green Bell Peppers
• Avocado
• Cucumber 
• Chicken, cut into pieces
• And literally any other veggie you can find

Dressing:

• 1/2 cup plain almond milk
• 4 teaspoons ground flaxseed
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• dab of honey
• 1 small garlic clove
• pinch of salt
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

How to make: 

1. For the salad, clean and cut up all veggies. I love a chopped salad, so I chop everything including my lettuce. 
2. For the chicken, thaw, cut into chunks, sprinkle with salt, pepper and chili powder. Salute in a large pan for about 10-12 minutes, flipping occasionally. 
3. For the dressing, throw everything in a blender and blend until desired thickness. I added a titch more milk to thin it out. I let the dressing sit for about an hour in the fridge to let it all blend together. 

Here is the crowdfunding link: http://www.greenourplanet.org/crestwoodgarden/ and the great thing about this crowdfunding is that we get to keep 100% of donations (we aren't charged for transactions or a % for not meeting our goal.)

Happy Sunday everyone! Sundays are the perfect day for inspiration. This might be a little more cynical than your usual Sunday inspiration, but it's good nonetheless.

Here's to starting the week stronger, happier and less cynical. It's the week before Easter! Try not to eat every Reeses' bunny you can find, it will be a challenge for all of us, I promise!

The worst thing about not being a student anymore is the lack of Spring Break. Now you have to take TIME off in order to have vacation, such a bummer. But in college, they voluntarily gave you multiple weeks off to enjoy yourself. And, in college I took full advantage of my week of freedom. Every year my friends and I would jet to somewhere fabulous, Cabo, Huntington Beach, Lake Havasu, Vegas, Scottsdale! My favorite spring break by far was Cabo. The sun was shining, the water was warm and the tequila was cold! Happy #throwback Thursday everyone!

Every Tuesday in college my roommates and I would venture to Dukes in Malibu for Taco Tuesday. This amazing restaurant settled right on the side of the ocean. The beer was cheap and the tacos were incredible! I thought in honor of it being Tuesday, I'd share with you one of my favorite taco recipes! (Oh, and it's paleo, unlike those days in Malibu!) Enjoy everyone and Happy Tuesday! Ps. It's the secret that all tacos taste better with a cold beer, so mix your paleo tacos with some non-paleo beer!

I don't know about you but I cannot wait for summer. Hot summer days, cold brews and delicious salads. Even though its currently 55 degrees and raining outside, I attempted to recreate summer inside with this cold broccoli salad. I've never really cooked with curry powder and now I can't stop. I paired this salad with my favorite Baked Mustard-Glazed Chicken. Let's just say it was a huge hit in our household! I found this recipe via My Sweet Savannah. Go check her out!


Ingredients:
Dressing: 

• 3/4 cup roasted, salted cashews
• 5 1/2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• 4 teaspoons yellow curry powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey (she used light agave)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pinch of pepper

Salad: 

• 4 cups broccoli, cut into pieces
• 1/2 cup red onion, diced
• 1/2 cup cilantro, chopped
• 2 pieces cooked bacon, chopped
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries, chopped
• 2 tablespoons sunflower seeds
• 2 tablespoons roasted cashews, chopped

How to Make: 

1. Place the cashews in a  medium bowl and cover with water. Refridgerate for 8 hours. (I just left them on my counter). 
2. Drain the cashews and place in a food processor
3. Add in the remaining dressing ingredients and blend until creamy. About 3 minutes. 
4. In a large bowl, combine the broccoli, red onion, cilantro, bacon and cranberries. Add in the dressing and combine. Refrigerate for an hour. 
5. Just before serving, mix in the sunflower seeds and cashews. 
6. Enjoy!

I know, I know, I've gone missing again. New job, new schedule, lots of changes over here. But, I promise I'll be back soon (tomorrow!) with lots of new recipes, quotes, stories and much more! Thanks for sticking with me! I hope you drink lots of green beer tonight, eat some corned beef and cabbage and enjoy your holiday!

Here's what I am loving this Friday. What do you love?

1. I got cleared to go back to Pure Barre! Hallelujah. Knee can't stop me now. 
2. House of Cards on Netflix. 
3. These succulents from How Sweet It Is. 
   
4. Podcasts. Yes, I get it, I'm new to this game. 
5. This Huevos Rancheros Breakfast Sandwich.  
6. These Ten Tips every woman in her 30's should know. I'm not 30 yet, but it's on the horizon. 
7. This video of a man proposing to his (future) wife 365 days before he actually asked her. It's a must watch. 
8. The fact that there are 57 days until I'm a Mrs. 
9. This Chick-Fil-A nuggets recipe. Chick-Fil-A at home? Yes. These will be on the blog soon! 
10. Jaime King favoriting my tweet on twitter. You can bet I was fan-girling about that. Shameless plug, follow me on twitter! 
11. This romper that would be perfect for my honeymoon. 
12. This marriage devotional. 
13. Inspiration a la Sea Salt Secrets. 
14. This article that solidifies my life choice to always drink too much coffee. 
15. This version of I'm in love the with Coco, dedicated to my best. 

This whole post is full of SPOILER ALERTS - beware. 

Final night of The Bachelor! Here we go ladies and gents (I'm pretty sure the gents aren't reading these posts)! I'm throwing it back to the original Bachelor post idea. Here are my 20 Thoughts I had while watching the (season finale) of The Bachelor and After the Final Rose. Yes. Ps. I wrote this as I was watching, so the first thought might be outdated by the last, bear with me. Lets do this.

1. Chris, why are you stumbling when talking about why you like Becca? Oh, cuz you don't know why you like her either. Neither do I. 
2. Whitney, your dress is super short but I like it. 
3. Dear Becca, you are a bore. Why is your forehead so tight? Ps. Your blue eyes are gorg. Love you, mean it. 
4. Ps. I was expecting more flannel. 
5. Gary is the man. (Ps. thats Chris' dad). Gary calling Becca, risky man. 
6. Chris, how many times does Becca have to tell you that she is not ready to move to Arlington? Or that she's not in love? Or that she's not ready? COME ON. <cue the slug of wine> 
7. I'm team Whitney. Especially after her day in Arlington. 
8. Chris, I see your smirk. I'm not sure if you're authentic. 
9. I'm pretty sure I registered for those lanterns at Pottery Barn. 
10. Did ABC or Bachelor not have enough money to heat the barn? Seeing Chris' breath at a rose ceremony is so not romantic. 
11. Becca goes home and we still have 15 minutes left, I feel like something is going to happen. 
12. Becca, where are your emotions? Girls went home day 2 and cried harder. I'm confused. 
13. Thank god he proposed. Chris Harrison was making me think it might not happen. 
14. That damn dolphin giggle. 
15. Becca, you looked great on After the Final Rose. 
16. Whitney taking the higher road in not watching the show and then Chris Harrison bringing up everything she missed
17. Oh man, Chris' parents, they are adorable. 
18. I don't understand the fascination with Jimmy Kimmel. What am I missing? 
19. Britt & Kaitlyn?! The men decide who's wife material?? This is crazy.
20. Team Kaitlyn. 

First off, I have to apologize for my lack of posts the past couple days. In all honesty, I had nothing to say. Sure I could have written something lazy/dull/just for the heck of it, but I'm a firm believer in writing things that matter, or at least matter to me. Sure, do the Bachelor posts really matter? Probably not. But I refuse to write a post just to have a post a day. I want to write because I desire too. I want to write things that matter. I want to write things people want to read. So, I apologize for my lack of posts and I say thank you for sticking with Everyday Grace and checking back in to read it.

To kick of a new week, I'm doing a giveaway! Lately I've read some great books. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng and The Husbands Secret by Liane Moriarty. Just a heads up, I love novels. I love books that allow you to get lost in them. These are those kind of books. They're not historical or biographies, but they're great. I hope you enjoy getting to know these characters the same way I did. Don't miss out on your chance to win these two books!! Make sure to come back every day for your chance to win!

When Adam and I first moved in together, one of the first pieces of furniture we bought was a bar cart. Adam has an affinity for a good cocktail and I love a good glass of wine. Plus entertaining when you can make drinks from a bar cart always seems cooler. When we moved to Denver our house was downsized a bit, so our bar cart has been repurposed for both storage and entertainment purposes. We got our bar cart from West Elm and most of the stuff on it from our wedding registries! I'd love to see how you decorate your bar carts, please share your pictures!

• Wait, Jillian and Britt were best friends in the house? 
• Britt thanked the audience when she was crying. She thanked them. Oh, and did she make it clear enough that she does in fact like kids and wants kids eventually. 
• Britt shouldn't move to Iowa, she needs to stay an actress, her crying is on point. 
• If anyone missed last night, Kelsey is still nuts. And I'm pretty sure she was reading a script. But hey, the gold accessories and the green wrap dress was pretty on point. 
• Did any of the girls actually like Kelsey? Usually there is one girl who always stands up for the underdog, but nope, not this time. 
• Carly filled in her eyebrows. 
• Ashley has to be screwing with us, but her Louboutins are incredible. Oh, and when does Bachelor in Paradise start? 
• Jade is sweet and vulnerable and stuff but did anyone actually pick her as the winner? We all knew Chris wasn't comfortable with nudes in Iowa. 
• Kaitlyn's white crop top outfit is the best. Reason #1 she should be the next Bachelorette. 
• Watching Katilyn watch herself go home was heartbreaking. But hey, Kaitlyn, keep rocking that side bun that you had in Bali. Reason #2 for Bachelorette
• Did everyone see Britt cry when Chris walked out? DID YOU SEE IT?! Actress in training. 
• Britt goes up to sit with Chris, Katilyn does not... Reason #3. 
• Chris Harrison's shameless book plug. I have no words. Too much. Reason #4 (?). 

Hooray! Another month, another start over! Only 69 more days until I'm a Mrs! Only 99 more days until I'm 28. So many great things to look forward too. I'm making a resolution to have only good days, no more broken body parts and to enjoy these last few months being engaged! Plus, March is basically spring, so here's hoping all this snow melts, goes away and only sunshine and warmth remains!