Seriously cannot get enough of these noodles lately. ♡

My TikTok feed has been downright overflowing with Chinese-inspired chili oil noodles these past few years. And after trying out a handful of different recipes and chili oil techniques, I’ve landed on this recipe as my personal fave.

It’s fabulously quick and easy to make with whatever type of noodles you might prefer. And the chili oil sauce that brings it all together is pure sesame, garlicky, gingery, spicy deliciousness. (Like, I could seriously put this chili oil on just about everything, it’s just so good.) It’s the perfect dish to whip up for a quick dinner with whatever protein or veggies you happen to have on hand. And while these chili noodles are absolutely delicious served nice and hot, I honestly look forward just as much to enjoying any leftover noodles cold for lunch the next day.

If you love spicy noodles, you’ve definitely got to give this one a try!

Garlic Chili Oil Noodles with Shrimp | 1-Minute Video

Garlic Chili Oil Noodle Ingredients

Here are a few quick notes about the garlic chili oil noodle ingredients that you will need to make this recipe:

• Noodles: I love using these Chinese wide knife-cut wheat noodles (guanmiao), whose wavy texture is so much fun. But you’re welcome to use any other fresh or dried noodles (rice noodles, udon, ramen, etc) that you prefer.
• Garlic and ginger: We’ll use lots of fresh garlic and ginger in the hot chili oil, which I recommend either grating or finely-mincing.
• Scallions: We will sauté the white parts of the scallions with the garlic and ginger, then sprinkle the green parts on the noodles as garnish.
• Shrimp (or your choice of protein): Feel free to sauté shrimp or any other protein (meat, seafood or plant-based) that you prefer to go with your chili oil noodles. Or you can just skip the added protein altogether.
• Bok choy: I love serving these noodles with sautéed baby bok choy, but feel free to use whatever other veggie(s) you might prefer.
• Oil: It’s best to use a neutral-flavored oil when making chili oil so that it blends in and doesn’t compete with all of the other seasonings. I typically reach for avocado oil, but grapeseed, sunflower, vegetable, peanut or a mild-flavored olive oil would also work well.
• Soy sauce: I recommend using low-sodium soy sauce for this recipe, which adds a nice hint of umami flavor.
• Sesame seeds: Feel free to use either white or black untoasted sesame seeds.
• Gochugaru: Vibrant red Korean gochugaru chili flakes (or you can opt for gochugaru powder) lends the most delicious smoky heat to this dish. Gochugaru has a milder heat level than crushed red chili flakes. But as always, if you are sensitive to heat, I still recommend adding less than the recipe calls for and then you can always add more later if desired.
• Chinese black vinegar: Also known as Chinkiang vinegar, Chinese black vinegar has a deep fruity, umami flavor and rounds out the chili oil perfectly. I highly recommend picking up a bottle at your local southeast Asian grocery store or online if possible. But if you can’t track it down, rice vinegar can work as a substitute, although the flavor will be different.
• Sugar and salt: Finally, we will season the chili oil with a hint of sugar and salt to balance out all of these delicious flavors.

Chili Oil Noodle Tips

Full instructions for how to make chili oil noodles are included in the recipe below, but here are a few additional tips to keep in mind!

• Prep the chili oil mix first. This recipe cooks quite quickly once you begin sautéing the shrimp. So in order to ensure that all of your ingredients are nice and hot and ready to go at the same time, I recommend prepping most of the ingredients before you begin cooking.
• It’s really worth tracking down some gochugaru. If this ingredient isn’t already in your pantry, I really recommend tracking it down! It adds such a unique chili flavor to this recipe and can be used as a milder option for hot chili flakes in so many other recipes as well.
• Add heat to taste. I would consider this recipe as written to have a medium-high spice level. So if you prefer milder noodles, please start with less gochugaru than is called for.
• Be careful when adding the chili oil mix. Adding liquids to hot oil naturally causes oil to bubble up furiously, so please be careful when adding the chili oil mix in during Step 6.
• Enjoy those leftovers! In my opinion, these noodles are arguably just as delicious served hot and cold. So I highly recommend making a double batch while you’re at it so that you can enjoy some cold chili noodles for lunch the next day!

Recipe Variations

Here are a few variations on this chili noodles recipe that you’re welcome to try!

• Add extra fresh herbs: Toss in a generous sprinkling of chopped fresh cilantro or Thai basil.
• Add peanut butter: Whisk a scoop of peanut butter into the stir-fry sauce. Tahini or Chinese sesame paste would be delicious too.
• Make it gluten-free: Use gluten-free noodles (such as wide rice noodles) and gluten-free tamari in place of soy sauce.
• Make it vegetarian/vegan: Omit the shrimp and use tofu or your favorite plant-based protein.
• Make it milder/spicier: Feel free to use more or less of the gochugaru to adjust the heat level of this dish.

More Noodle Recipes

Looking for more yummy noodle recipe to try? Here are a few of our favorites:

• Rainbow Peanut Noodles
• Spicy Sesame Gochujang Noodles
• Thai Curried Peanut Noodles
• Lemongrass Coconut Noodles with Shrimp
• Thai Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)

Garlic Chili Oil Noodles with Shrimp

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.7 from 6 reviews

• Author: Ali
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 15 mins
• Total Time: 25 mins
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

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Description

These spicy garlic chili oil noodles are quick and easy to make and tossed with the yummiest garlic ginger chili oil. Feel free to toss with shrimp or your choice of protein.

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Ingredients

Shrimp Noodle Stir-Fry Ingredients:

• 1 pound jumbo raw shrimp, peeled and deveined
• fine sea salt and freshly-ground black pepper
• 1/3 cup avocado oil (or any neutral oil), divided
• 4 baby bok choy, halved vertically
• 8 ounces uncooked wide knife-cut noodles (or your choice of noodles)
• 6 large garlic cloves, minced
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced (white and green parts separated)
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

Chili Oil Mix Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
• 1 to 2 tablespoons gochugaru flakes (or powder)
• 1 tablespoon Chinese black vinegar
• 1 teaspoon granulated white sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

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Instructions

1. Prep the water. Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
2. Prep the chili oil mix. Meanwhile, in a small mixing bowl, whisk together all of the chili oil mix ingredients until combined.
3. Cook the shrimp. Season the shrimp generously with salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil to a large non-stick sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp in an even layer (you may need to do this in two batches, depending on the size of your pan) and sauté for 1-2 minutes per side until the shrimp are no longer pink and cooked through. Transfer the cooked shrimp to a clean plate and set aside.
4. Cook the bok choy. Add 1 more tablespoon oil to the pan. Place the bok choy halves cut-side-down in the pan. Cook for 1 minute or until lightly golden on the bottom, then flip and cook for 30 seconds on the other side. Transfer the cooked bok choy to a clean plate and set aside.
5. Cook the noodles. Add the noodles to the boiling water and cook according to package instructions until al dente.
6. Cook the garlic chili oil. While the noodles are cooking, add the remaining 1/4 cup oil to the pan. Add the garlic, ginger and the white parts of the scallions and sauté for 1-2 minutes, or until the garlic begins to turn lightly golden. Immediately pour the chili oil mix into the pan (be careful, as it will bubble up intensely) and stir to combine. Remove pan from heat until the noodles are ready.
7. Combine. Strain the noodles and add them immediately to the pan with the sauce. Add the cooked shrimp and green parts of the scallions and toss everything together until evenly combined.
8. Serve. Serve immediately with the cooked bok choy and enjoy!

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Equipment

Chinese Black Vinegar

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Gochugaru

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Wide Knife-Cut Noodles

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Notes

Source: Recipe slightly adapted from The Foodie Takes Flight and Cookerru. Both sites have so many other delicious noodle recipes that I highly recommend checking out. :)

Does it get any more fun than a good old-fashioned shrimp boil?!

I have to say that this American tradition has been one of my absolute favorites that we’ve brought with us across the ocean to Barcelona. (Made possible in part by the cartons of Old Bay that I religiously stuff in my luggage each time we’re back home in Kansas.) Growing up, I was always my grandma’s eager sous-chef when she cooked up her annual shrimp boil for the entire family, keeping close watch over the boiling pot beside her as the shrimp magically went from gray to pink to “just perfect.” Now, years later, it’s turned out to be incredibly fun to introduce new friends (and now, even our little toddler!) to the joy of this family tradition too.

To be sure, a shrimp boil is easy enough to make on a normal weeknight and serve up on basic dinner plates with silverware. But if you feel like making things a bit more festive, I’m one who can never resist the nostalgia of a shrimp boil served atop newspaper-covered tables (no plates or silverware needed!), with bibs all around (a family tradition), and plenty of hot sauce nearby for the topping (a must for me). It’s such a simple but fun way to eat and always makes things feel like a party. And hey, it makes cleanup a breeze too!

My grandma always served our family shrimp boils with classic cocktail sauce for dipping, which will always be a delicious option. But in recent years, I’ve become a fan of instead drizzling on a lemon garlic brown butter sauce over the boil just before serving, which is still so easy to make and tastes downright heavenly. So choose whichever option sounds best to you. (Or hey, go wild and serve both!) Feel free too to use Andouille or kielbasa or whatever variety of sausage you love best. Or if you prefer to go the pescatarian route, we’ve made ours before with some spicy plant-based sausage and can vouch that it worked great!

Bottom line, if you’ve never made a shrimp boil before, it’s one of those meals that scores super high on fun and flavor while being surprisingly low on fuss and prep time. So the next time your favorite people are together, bring home a big batch of shrimp and pull out your largest pot, and let’s boil some shrimp together! ♡

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Say hello to the lemongrass coconut noodle stir-fry that we have been loving here lately. ♡

It’s loosely inspired by Thai tom kha (coconut soup), which happens to be my husband’s all-time favorite soup and one that we’ve both been craving lately now that it’s finally cooling off and feeling like autumn here in Barcelona. Instead of simmering those classic creamy, citrusy, earthy, sweet and slightly-spicy flavors into a big pot of soup broth, though, they are condensed into a rich coconut stir-fry sauce and tossed with a simple stir-fry and rice noodles for this recipe. And the end result is bursting bright, fresh flavors and absolutely delicious.

Fresh lemongrass — with its uniquely citrusy, minty, earthy flavor — is the starring ingredient in this coconut sauce and one that you definitely won’t want to skip. So the next time you’re at the market, be sure to pick up a few stalks of fresh lemongrass or a tube of lemongrass paste to brighten up that creamy coconut milk sauce. Along with it, we will simmer a generous amount of fresh ginger, the juice of one fresh lime, your desired amount of brown sugar and a splash of fish sauce for extra umami flavor. To be sure, this list of ingredients is notably different than those used in the broth of authentic Thai tom kha gai (which traditionally uses galangal in place of ginger, kaffir limes in place of fresh lime juice, palm sugar in place of brown sugar, etc — any of which I would completely encourage you to sub into this lemongrass coconut sauce recipe if you’d like). I initially just improvised this recipe one evening with the ingredients that I already happened to have stocked in my kitchen, so the recipe is written accordingly below.

Since my husband is pescatarian, we’ve typically been turning to shrimp as the main protein for our stir-fry. But the lemongrass coconut sauce recipe included here is actually completely vegan (also gluten-free), so feel free to swap in crispy tofu to make this recipe completely plant-based, or you can of course substitute any other meat in place of the shrimp, such as chicken, steak or pork. Feel free to also toss in whatever veggies you love best that happen to be hanging out in your crisper drawer. And if you can, I highly recommend tracking some some fresh Thai basil to fold into the stir-fry too — it’s optional but so, so good.

Alright, grab that lemongrass and let’s get to stir-frying!

Lemongrass Coconut Noodles with Shrimp Recipe | 1-Minute Video

Lemongrass Noodles Ingredients:

Before we get to the full lemongrass coconut noodles recipe below, here are a few notes about the ingredients that you will need:

• Rice noodles: I used wide rice noodles in the version photographed here, but any width of rice noodles that you prefer will work. (Or alternately, you can also just serve this stir-fry over rice.)
• Shrimp: Whichever size of shrimp you prefer, peeled, deveined and seasoned with a few twists of salt and pepper.
• Veggies: I went with a simple mix of baby bella (or you could use shiitake) mushrooms, carrots and garlic. But feel free to use whatever stir-fry-friendly veggies that you have on hand.
• Thai basil leaves: I highly, highly recommend picking up some Thai basil, which adds the most delicious sweet, peppery, anise-y flavor to this stir-fry. But if you cannot find any, you are welcome to use sweet basil in its place, or just omit it completely and add in extra fresh cilantro instead.
• Lemongrass: I used a few stalks of fresh lemongrass in the sauce, whose ends need to be trimmed off and the outer layers peeled and discarded. (The inner white layers are where the most flavor resides!) Roughly chop the stalks into 1/2ish-inch chunks, simmer them in the sauce, and strain out before serving. Alternately, you can add in a few tablespoons of lemongrass paste instead, which will not need to be strained out before serving.
• Coconut milk: I really recommend using a can of good-quality, full-fat coconut milk for this sauce in order to make it extra creamy and thick. But if you would like to lighten things up, you’re welcome to use low-fat coconut milk instead.
• Fresh ginger: We will very thinly slice a few inches of fresh ginger into long strips to simmer in the coconut milk. You are welcome to peel the ginger before slicing it if you’d like, but I typically skip that step since we will be straining out the solids from the sauce in the end anyway.
• Brown sugar: I just used a tablespoon of basic light brown sugar to lightly sweeten the sauce, but feel free to use whatever sweetener you prefer. If you would like a sweeter sauce, you’re of course welcome to increase the amount of sweetener too.
• Lime juice: We will add the juice of one lime to the sauce, but I recommend also serving each bowl of noodles with an extra lime wedge or two for drizzling.
• Fish sauce: We will add a tablespoon (or you can add more, if you’d like) to the sauce for that extra tangy, salty, umami kick.
• Garnishes: Finally, I highly recommend adding a generous sprinkling of thinly-sliced green onions and fresh cilantro (and/or extra Thai basil) to each serving bowl. If you want to add some spice, you can also toss in a few thinly-sliced Thai bird chiles (or crushed red pepper flakes). And as mentioned above, I also recommend serving each bowl with an extra lime wedge or two for an extra-tangy finish.

Optional Variations:

Here are a few other ways that you could customize this lemongrass noodles recipe:

• Use different veggies/greens: Feel free to add in any other stir-fry-friendly veggies or greens that might sound good here in place of (or in addition to) the mushrooms or carrots. For example, asparagus, broccoli, bell peppers, snow peas and/or spinach would all be great here.
• Use a different protein: Chicken, steak, pork, sausage or tofu would all be delicious options in place of the shrimp.
• Use low-fat coconut milk: You’re welcome to swap low-fat coconut milk in place of full-fat coconut milk to lighten the sauce up a bit. Just note that it will not be nearly as thick and creamy.
• Use rice: Instead of tossing the stir-fry with rice noodles, you’re welcome to just serve the shrimp, veggies and lemongrass coconut sauce over your choice of rice.

More Favorite Noodle Recipes:

Here are a few more favorite noodle recipes to try too!

• Saucy Thai Curried Peanut Noodles
• Thai Drunken Noodles (Pad Kee Mao)
• Five Spice Tofu with Sesame Noodles
• Quick Peanut Soba Noodles

Lemongrass Coconut Noodles with Shrimp

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 4.8 from 8 reviews

• Author: Ali
• Prep Time: 15 mins
• Cook Time: 25 mins
• Total Time: 40 mins
• Yield: 3 to 4 servings 1x

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Description

This Thai-inspired noodle stir-fry is tossed with fresh veggies, tender shrimp, and a zesty gingery lemongrass coconut sauce. Easy to make and full the best bright and citrusy flavors!

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Ingredients

Noodle Stir-Fry Ingredients:

• 9 ounces rice noodles
• 1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• fine sea salt and freshly-cracked black pepper
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 8 ounces baby bella or shiitake mushrooms, sliced
• 1 large carrot, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup (lightly-packed) Thai basil leaves*
• garnishes: thinly-sliced green onions, lime wedges, thinly-sliced Thai bird chiles (or crushed red pepper flakes), fresh cilantro and/or extra Thai basil

Lemongrass Coconut Sauce Ingredients:

• 2 stalks fresh lemongrass,*
• 1 (15-ounce) can full-fat coconut milk
• 2 inches fresh ginger, thinly sliced into long strips
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 2 to 4 tablespoons fresh lime juice, to taste
• 1 tablespoon fish sauce

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Instructions

1. Prepare the lemongrass coconut sauce. Peel and discard the outer layer of the lemongrass stalks, slice off and discard the ends, then roughly chop the remaining stalks into 1/2-inch pieces. Combine the lemongrass, coconut milk, sliced ginger, lime juice and brown sugar in a medium saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the sauce almost reaches a simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover, and continue cooking the sauce (avoid letting it reach a full simmer) for at least 15 minutes, or until the noodle stir-fry is ready. Use a fine-mesh strainer to remove and discard the ginger and lemongrass solids from the sauce just before serving. Stir in the lime juice and fish sauce until combined, and season with salt and pepper as needed.
2. Cook the noodles. Meanwhile, as the sauce is cooking, cook the noodles just barely al dente according to package instructions. Drain the noodles in a strainer and rinse with cold water until the noodles are room temperature. Toss the noodles briefly with a drizzle of oil (I like to use toasted sesame oil, but olive oil will work) to keep them from sticking, and set aside until ready to use.
3. Season the shrimp. Season the shrimp on both sides with a generous sprinkle of salt and freshly-cracked black pepper, and set aside until ready to use.
4. Sauté the veggies. In a large non-stick sauté pan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms and sauté for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the carrots and sauté for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and sauté for 1 minute, stirring frequently.
5. Add the shrimp. Push the veggies to one side of the pan and add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil to the empty space. Add the shrimp to the oil and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, flipping occasionally, until cooked through (they should be pink and opaque).
6. Combine everything. Immediately pour the sauce into the sauté pan with the shrimp and veggies, add in the Thai basil leaves and cooked noodles, and toss everything together until evenly combined. Taste and season with salt and pepper, as needed.
7. Serve. Serve warm, garnished with lots of thinly-sliced green onions, lime wedges, chopped fresh cilantro, extra Thai basil, and/or sliced Thai bird chiles. Enjoy!

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Equipment

Thin Rice Noodles

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Fish Sauce

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Coconut Milk

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Notes

Thai basil substitute: If you cannot find Thai basil, you can substitute sweet basil in its place. Or just omit the basil entirely and add in some extra fresh cilantro.

Lemongrass paste substitution: Instead of using fresh lemongrass stalks, you are welcome to use fresh lemongrass paste, to taste. I would recommend 2 tablespoons or more/less to taste.

Meet the zesty shrimp tacos that we can’t stop making lately. ♡

Since other proteins haven’t been reliably in stock at our local grocery store these past few weeks, we’ve been cooking with frozen shrimp more than ever while we have been stuck at home. And one recipe we keep craving again and again are these ultra-flavorful shrimp tacos.

They are basically just a simple riff on my favorite crispy baked fish tacos, filled with a bright and creamy cilantro lime slaw, lots of fresh avocado, a quick chipotle crema, and sprinkled with any of your favorite toppings. But the shrimp here are what really set this recipe over the top. They are coated in an extra-generous sprinkling of taco seasoning and then briefly cooked over high heat so that the spices are lightly charred and pack the best bold and zesty flavors. And when loaded up together with all of the other fillings in soft tortillas — especially these amazing homemade flour tortillas that I’m currently obsessing over! — these shrimp tacos are a total, delicious win.

Here’s how to make them!

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Hey friends! ♡

With so many new faces here lately — and so many of us spending more time than usual in the kitchen right now — I thought it might be helpful to do a quick review today of my favorite methods for to cook proteins in the oven!

Below are tutorials filled with tons of tips, step-by-step videos, and foolproof recipes for how to make perfectly-baked:

• Chicken Breasts
• Steak
• Pork Chops
• Salmon
• Whole Fish
• Shrimp
• Tofu

Any of these proteins can be served on their own or incorporated to other recipes that you might have bookmarked. And each tutorial below also includes tips on how to store and freeze these proteins, if you would like, plus options for various ways to season and customize each recipe to your liking.

So bookmark this post, grab your favorite protein, and — hey — time to gimme some oven!
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¡Hola todos! I’m back today with another authentic Spanish tapas recipe that is one of our favorites to eat here in Spain — gambas al ajillo. Or in English — shrimp with garlic. ♡

These irresistible little gambas can be found on just about any tapas menu in Barcelona. And we especially love ordering them when friends come to visit because these garlicky shrimp are served with quite the dramatic flair, brought to your table in the same piping hot clay bowls in which they have been cooked, bubbling and sizzling all the way. And they taste like pure, garlicky heaven. Also delicious? The slices of toasted bread that usually accompany the shrimp that you absolutely must use to mop up every last drop of that garlicky, herby, rich sauce. Buenísimo.

That said, as fun as this dish is to order out, it’s also incredibly easy to whip up gambas al ajillo on your own at home. All you need are a few simple ingredients, including lots of good-quality olive oil (because — fun fact — Spain is the world’s #1 producer of olive oil). And in just 10 or so minutes, your own piping hot batch of garlicky shrimp can be ready to serve up and enjoy.

Let’s make some gambitas!
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Him: Vegetarian, yet occasionally eats seafood. Always (always) craving pasta. Enormous side salads are a non-negotiable (which he saves to eat last, because salads are his favorite). Medium-spicy heat tolerance. Especially partial to Italian food.

Me: 90% vegetarian nowadays, although I admittedly still really love meat. Always craving any kind of savory, zesty, (super) spicy food. The more veggies and color on my plate, the merrier. After ten years of food blogging, obsessed with using (and cleaning) as few dishes as possible.

Our happy compromise last weekend: This dreamy, creamy, ridiculously-delicious Cajun pasta.

We happened to be cooking dinner together on a day where I was really craving some protein. So we compromised and added in a bunch of shrimp. (<– Which I will note are a serious labor of seafood-love here in Spain, since we have to peel, devein, and pop the heads off of each one, ha.)  We then whipped up a big batch of my lightened-up alfredo sauce, and seasoned it with just-enough Cajun seasoning to give it a good kick (yet not bring tears to Barclay’s eyes). We tossed everything together with some colorful veggies and perfectly al dente pasta, sprinkled the top with extra cheese and green onions, served it up with a big side salad and a crisp sauvignon blanc, and agreed…

…it was a total win-win.

(Especially when Barclay graciously offered to do the dishes after dinner. Cue all the dancing, heart-eyed, confetti-popping GIFs.)

Seriously, this pasta totally ticked all of the boxes for both of us. And since it’s a super-flexible recipe, I feel confident that you can adapt it with your favorite ingredients to tick all of yours. Let’s make some creamy Cajun comfort food together!

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Alright, after talking last week about how to bake chicken, pork and steak in the oven, we’re moving on in our series this week to the world of baked seafood and tofu. Beginning today with what is quite possibly the easiest recipe in the world…

…baked shrimp. ♡

A few weeks ago on Instagram, I shared a quick tutorial in my stories about how to cook shrimp in the oven. And tons of you reported back that you gave it a try for yourselves and couldn’t believe how quick and easy it was. Which is precisely why I’m such a big fan of this method!

Baking (or technically, broiling) shrimp is by far the easiest and quickest and most reliable way I know to cook shrimp. An entire batch can be ready to go in less than 10 minutes from start to finish. The shrimp are always perfectly cooked, with a bit of crisp on the outside, yet still nice and tender inside. You can use this method to make a small or huge batch of shrimp. And — as has been the case with all of the proteins in this series — this method is totally versatile when it comes to flavor, so you can can add in whatever seasonings or marinades you prefer.

Trust me. If you love shrimp, you’ve gotta give this one a try.

HOW TO COOK SHRIMP IN THE OVEN | 1-MINUTE VIDEO

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Hola from Barcelona! ?

Today marks two weeks that we’ve been living in Spain, and — oh man, you guys — we are absolutely loving it. For a thousand reasons, this city just feels so magical…and exciting…and quirky, and delicious, and fun, and nuanced, and richly diverse, and alive, and literally full of surprises around every corner we turn. And we are soaking up every minute of it.

That said, at two weeks in, I feel like it’s a constant back-and-forthness each day between feeling like we’re just on vacation here…and feeling like we actually live here. ?

Probably about half of the time, it still just feels like we’re here on this extravagant trip — wandering down charming new streets for the first time, Yelp-ing new restaurants to try, taking long walks on the beach (omg, the beach!!), hearing different languages spoken around us all day long, freaking out over all of the adorable twinkly lights and banners strung everywhere you turn. But on the other hand, it’s kind of amazing how half of the time, this place is already totally starting to feel familiar. Like we really do live here! From waking up each morning in the same cute little apartment to the sound of our neighborhood pigeons, to knowing the twisty-turny routes to our favorite market and coffee shop and yoga studio and El Corte Inglés now by heart, to speaking Spanish all day long, to getting a wave from Alejandro at the wine shop next door each time we take our dogs out for a walk. In two short weeks, it’s kind of amazing how natural this place already feels.

Without a doubt, though, we’ve agreed that are two things that make this place feel like we actually live here more than anything — having our pups here, and cooking here.  I don’t know about you all, but there’s always been something so grounding for me about going to the market, bringing home groceries, and actually cooking a homemade meal that always makes a new place feel more like home. And while our tiny kitchen here still only boasts the single sauté pan and saucepan that it came with — plus an Instant Pot, which I’m thrilled to say just arrived from Spanish Amazon — Barclay and I have already had lots of fun cooking dates putting them to use.

One of our favorite recipes so far? This zesty and comforting Cajun Shrimp Alfredo Casserole.
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Heyyyyy, we’re finally home from our honeymoon! You know, married and all. ?

Oh man, I don’t even know where to begin catching up with you after my time away. This past month has all been such a happy, wild and wonderful whirlwind…filled with a record-breaking number of some of the best moments of my life. And ha, now that we’re finally back home, we’ve also realized that this past month has left us record-breakingly behind on email and laundry and work and texts and and All The Things. But man, what a freaking blast it has been.

I can’t wait to sorting through all of the photos from our wedding and honeymoon, and share with you all about our big day and our trip. Quick spoiler alert that will come as no surprise — Mexico was freaking awesome.  And the cute little boutique hotel in Oaxaca that we were able to (re-)book for our honeymoon? Downright dreamy.  Seriously, I don’t think I’ve ever stayed anywhere as relaxing, delicious, and thoughtfully-designed as our cute little casita on the beach. And while we admittedly chose Oaxaca because it is the Land Of Mezcal (our fave), the fresh Oaxacan food at our hotel by far and away stole the show. Literally every single thing we tried on the menu during our 7 days there was a winner. From the chilaquiles and sopas and epazote quesadillas and enfrijoladas (a new fave) for brunch, to the gourmet fresh seafood (or meat, if you prefer) 3-course dinners, to the creative fruit-and-herb-infused waters and unlimited chips and salsa available all day long (on da house), to the extensive mezcal bar staffed by a talented team (who taught us a lot about the region’s specialties) — our 7 days there were this Mexican food lover’s dream come true. Bastante delicioso. ???

Interestingly, though, some of the most simple dishes ended up being some of my favorites — especially their house shrimp ceviche and aguachiles, which Barclay and I alternated ordering each day as a little afternoon snack by the pool. Living in the Midwest, I don’t always think to order or make ceviche all that often. But wow, this trip reminded me how much I absolutely love it. I mean — let’s be real — it’s basically like seafood salsa! Win-win! And even better? It’s ridiculously easy to make at home. Win-win-win.

I came home with a notebook full of dozens of new ceviche combinations that I’d like to try. But for a little throwback to last week, I thought I’d kick off our marriage with a throwback recipe inspired by the hotel’s ceviche that we fell in love with last week. And then I thought I’d get back on the blogging train and take some photos so that I could share it with you. ?

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