quinn's place

i am lucky to have grandparents who live in a beautiful, relaxing and warm climate that's just a quick plane ride away.

i am also lucky to have my grandparents.

they are truly THE cutest. they are 91 and still so in love with each other. they start to miss one another when they are in separate rooms. they are so good to one another and can also be sassy with a sense of humor. i love watching them together. this june is their 70th wedding anniversary. omgomgomg. i love them so much.

pete and i just went down there for 5 days to visit my g-parents, spend some quality time in the sunshine, and also see our friendzies for the weekend.

^ mt. rainier always so majestic from the plane.

the grapefruit trees at my grandparents' place were brimming with these monster grapefruits! we plucked em off each afternoon for the next morning's breakfast. they smell incredible right off the tree. and they're HUGE and so juicy.

my granny used to have grapefruit halves set out in the morning when my family would be down there visiting - and she'd always pre-cut around the little wedges so it was easy to eat. what a sweet dear. it's the most pleasant time there in the morning. sitting out on the front patio with fresh grapefruit & coffee, the view of the desert mountains, palm trees, birds chirping, and the smell of all the warm flowers. all the feels.

it was super hot. about 105 degrees each afternoon. none of the elders even wanna go outside in these temps, so we had the pools all to ourselves the entire time.

desert beauties.

^ early birds at arrive. avo toast and mimosas by the pool, don't mind if i do!

pool boyz & margaritas. so fun to lounge around with marisa & foster on a saturday morn.

we had a fun & funny cinco de mayo!!!! so happy to have this arrangement with our pals who live in LA now and they've been driving over to the desert the last couple times we've been in palm springs. love ya maris & fos!

^ grapefruit pluckin' time.

^ this one goes out to my girl A.Jo.

^ night moves.

we did an early morning hike at tahquitz canyon that was pretty quick and fun. there was a pretty little waterfall oasis at the end.

always a glorious chill time spent in the desert. when you're laying poolside staring up at palm trees with a HOT breeze over your bod, its quiet, the birds are chirping and you can smell the desert flowers, you've hit peak relaxation.

be back, p.s.!

holaaaaa mis amigos!

its cinco de mayo. i just love this day mucho.

i know its become a crazy americanized holiday these days, but i just like to think of it as a celebration of how wonderful mexican food is. haha. gooooooo mehicoooo.

i felt the need to do something else fun for my cinco de mayo spread again since i went a bit kooky for it last year, too.

i made homemade tortillas, chimichurri (not very mexican, but oh so good on tacos), mango grapefruit salsa, various taco combinations, black bean & white cheddar taquitos, guacamole, and grilled corn with white cheez, cilantro, lime & cayenne. OLÉ!!

the black bean and sharp white chedda taquitos are just simple little things that i don't feel require their own blog post... here's how i made them:

first ya take the homemade tortilla. ya stick the smashed black beans on the tort. THEN, ya sprinkle the cheese.

pro tip: use some smashed beans on the very edge as a sort of glue to hold the tortilla in rolled up position. slowly place each taquito in 1/2 inch of medium-high heated vegetable oil in a skillet. let brown, and flip once to fry and brown the other side. remove and let drain on paper towel covered cooling rack.

THEN you scarf. aah the sandlot. how i love thee and all your nostalgia. and s'mores. summer is coming!!!!!!!!

ps. i had my first s'more of the year this week. thats how you really know summer is nigh. also have you ever made a s'more with the chocolate graham crackers?? scrumptious!

i filled the inside with just beans and cheese because i prefer toppings (like salsa, greek yogurt or sour cream, guac, etc.) to be cold on top. btw, we exclusively use plain greek yogurt as our sour cream agent anymore. i like the thick texture and tart creamyness. and plain greek yog is much more versatile to have around anyway.

i brought my mango grapefruit salsa to our cinco de mayo potluck at work today. here's some feedback that i got:

"this would be good on a pork chop!"

"your salsa is amazing!"

"this salsa is just the perfect refreshing summer salsa. and not too spicy!"

why thanks, people! i would agree with pete on the bitterness of the grapefruit now that i've eaten it on two separate occasions. be sure to get a nice ripe SWEET pink grapefruit for it.

grilled corn is a great thing to have around for tacos, in salads, with everyyyyythinggg during the summer :) we grill up a bunch of ears, cut it off the cob and store in the fridge to have on hand for all the eats.

normally i shy far far from taking any food photos in bright uneven sunlight like so ^^^ but for cinco i make exception! the sun is shining and the guac is flowing!

lalalala la bambaaa. livin la vida locaaaaaa. adios!