La Hacienda Real in Salem worth the drive....

I'm going to start off this blog post with an apology for the poor photo quality posted below.  This weekend, my son had a baseball tournament in Keizer.  After the game, I did a search using the "Urbanspoon" application on my iPhone and came up with La Hacienda Real.

You know it is going to be good when you enter the parking lot at 7pm on a Sunday night to find the parking lot full and several people coming in and out of the restaurant.

Above are photos and plaques on the wall of the foyer showing they are one of the top rated restaurants by Citysearch.

I started my meal off with a Strawberry daquiri and was not disappointed.

My son's chicken salad.....Huge portion, fresh, and filling!

My husband's burrito...once again, they did not disappoint

I asked the waitress for a recommendation and she suggested the fajitas....  Unfortunately my photo of the sizzling grilled, chicken, onions and peppers didn't turn out.  My side plate however is above.  Excellent refried beans, rice and huge side of guacamole, cheese, salsa and sour cream.

La Hacienda Real is definitely worth the drive south!!!

The restaurant location we visited was

5024 River Rd. N
Keizer, OR 97303
503 390-0923

Mixed Fruit and Almond Smoothie

Summer is just around the corner and so I thought I'd share one of our favorite Fruit Smoothie Recipes with you! It is a great way to start the morning!

Mixed Fruit Almond Smoothie

Ingredients

1 cup Vanilla Almondmilk
1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peaches
1/2 banana
1/2 cup ice

Combine all ingredients in a blender until thoroughly blended and smooth.

Enjoy!

Pudding River Chocolate and Wine Bar

Yesterday was a cold, rainy, dreary day, so I headed to Canby's Pudding River Chocolate and Wine Bar and as usual, they didn't disappoint!!!!

There is nothing better than a hot chocolate and a plate of chocolate confections to make a grey sky day better!!

They have their Easter chocolates available now!!

John's Incredible Pizza Co. -- Beaverton, OR

After seeing news footage of John's Incredible Pizza Co. in Beaverton, Oregon, I loaded up our car with my six kids and decided to see what it was all about!!!

Located just down the street from Washington Square Mall, we pulled into the quickly filling parking lot, where there was a line forming, waiting for the doors to be unlocked, so they could "Experience the Incredible"!

After entering the front doors, you walk through the maze to reach the front counter where you pay for your meal -- Buffet for adult (ages 13+) lunch was $6.99 , ages 7-12 $5.99 and ages 4-6 $4.49(which doesn't include your all you can drink beverage...that is an additional $1.79 per person). Next is a decision on Next, you decide on which fun pass you want to purchase -- you can buy a funpass for any price you want, but their package deals are your best bet. We went for the $24.99 pass per child -- which gave them 115 credits, and they were able to go on two rides.

A VIP pass is recommended to receive 5% back on your purchase, that can be used during a future visit. I bought 1 pass for $5. End result -- 7 buffet meals, 7 unlimited drinks, 6 fun pass cards, and 1 VIP club card -- $213.00. On the VIP card, $10 and change to use on our next visit.

Our first stop was the "Twister" ride. My 5 year old was not allowed to get on the ride without an adult, and when we asked if my 15 year old teen would qualify as the adult, we were told no, so those with young children should know in advance that you will have to pay to ride this attraction, along with your child. With that said, I used my daughter's second ride on her fun card to go with her and it was well worth the money spent. The ride went for a long time, the center wheel used to spin kept the ride going at a speed that worked for all participants. We would definitely recommend riding the "Twister" on your visit!!!



The "Twister" ride in action


Our next stop was the buffet!!! They have it divided into sections, Salad Bar, Pasta and Potatoes, Pizza and Desserts!

Their salad bar was filled with choices -- Definitely would recommend. Everything was fresh!

For beverage choices they have everything from sodas, icees, and cappuccinos!

Their bread sticks are by far the best we've ever eaten

The obvious kid favorite at the buffet --- that is right --- Macaroni and Cheese Pizza!!!

New Starbucks opening in the Pearl (NW Couch and 11th -- next to Powell's Books) will offer beer and wine.

Watch for their Grand Opening mid June 2011!!!!

Green Velvet Cupcakes and Mint Cream Cheese Frosting

This week I discovered a GREAT food blog called Love From the Oven while searching for some unique St. Patrick's Day desserts!!! I made the recipe for their Green Velvet Cupcakes and they are absolutely delicious!! Moist, GREEN and I topped ours with a mint cream cheese frosting!!!

You can get the recipe for the Green Velvet cake from the link above for Love from the Oven!!!

The mint cream cheese frosting recipe is as follows ---

2 1/2 teaspoons peppermint extract
12 ounces (2 1/2 packages) cream cheese softened at room temperature
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter softened at room temperature

3 TBSP milk

In mixer blend all ingredients together until smooth. This makes enough frosting for 48 cupcakes!!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!!!

Paying it forward to Japan

With the 8.9 earthquake and following tsunami that occurred in Japan today, my blog post is in effort to introduce you to our family's favorite disaster relief agencies. Please take the time to visit their websites, and if you are not in the position to donate, just keep them in mind for future reference.

Medical Teams International

MercyCorps

Sock Dreams and Grand Central Bakery and Cafe

This afternoon a friend and I went on a Portland adventure to find socks for our middle school daughters' air band that will be performing next week!!! After searching Google, we came across the site for Sock Dreams -- so we headed out in the POURING rain to SE 13th Avenue in Portland.

The store is located on a corner lot, 8005 SE 13th Avenue, Portland, OR 97202

A photo of their "St. Patrick's Day" selection!!!

Another display of their sock supply. We came with a list of 5 pairs our girls had chosen from their website and were able to find 3 of the items. The other two items, we were told could be ordered online and if time was an issue (which it was) we could then go to the warehouse in Downtown Portland to pick them up. We opted for alternate socks -- that would meet the requirements of the two girls!!

While checking out, we asked the woman helping us for a restaurant recommendation (you know socking works up an appetite) and we were told that the Grand Central Bakery and Cafe, across the street had great soups and sandwiches.

Bread and pastry selection near the counter!! They had everything from cookies, to chocolate croissants, to huge loaves of bread and baguettes.

My lunch choice --- Vegetarian sandwich with a side salad. The salad was fresh and the dressing was perfect!!! Croutons to die for!!! The sandwich -- well lets just say I plan to become a regular of the bakery/cafe any time I'm in the SE part of town!!!

My friend's quiche, fresh bread slice and side salad. Once again...EXCELLENT food and highly recommended!!!!