Tis the season for stretchy pants!

What? It's time to eat again??

The season of joy, family and togetherness is officially upon us. Our schedules get busier with parties, holiday lunches and happy hours, shopping and traveling. With the temptation of holiday cookies and cocktails that are around every corner, it's easy to pack on a few pounds. It's hard to find time to cook a proper and healthy meal. We here are Cocktails and Glitter are determined to not let the holidays give us the figure of jolly ole St. Nick! Here are some of our favorite healthy recipes to help you avoid that belly that shakes like a bowl full of jelly!

Zucchini Lasagna

Zucchini Lasagna
We both love this recipe so much! We've included it on our Struggle With Fried tab in the past, but here it us again! It's a little time consuming, so may be a better weekend option. One of our favorite recipes from Skinny Taste. This one is also great to feed a crowd or to have ample leftovers!

Enchilada Casserole

Enchilada Casserole
This Cooking Light recipe is in heavy rotation in both our homes. Since it's a casserole, it's easy to adjust some ingredients. Add some beans, use chicken instead of beef, add peppers or extra cheese... It's quick to assemble and bake, about 30 minutes total, perfect for a work night or after a busy day of shopping.

Autumn Harvest Soup

Autumn Harvest Soup
The cold weather begs for soup. Using seasonal ingredients is also smart- the quality of butternut squash and kale is much better this time of year! This soup is hardy enough for a meal! Kayln's Kitchen has some great healthy recipes for eating right!

Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup

Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Soup
Crock pot recipes are a HUGE help during this season. This one from Skinny Taste is easy to prep in the morning, and requires little effort when you get home for the day. We like to sprinkle a few crushed tortilla chips on top! I would recommend cooking the onions and garlic before your shower or the night before to avoid smelling like enchiladas all day!

Grilled Cheeseburger Wraps

Grilled Cheeseburger Wraps
Let's be real, some nights you crave fast food. Here's a great recipe to take care of that craving without the guilt (or pink slime!) that goes along with it. Skinny Mom's Kitchen hits a home run with kids and adults with this one!




These recipes can also be found through our Pinterest Board "Struggle With Fried, Healthy Recipes That Taste Unhealthy". We'll keep adding to the board as the season continues! In the meantime, share with us your favorite healthy go-to meals!

Cheers,

K&H

Shop RVA

Shop LOCAL and keep it close to home this holiday season!

Every year we (Kate & Heather) have a holiday shopping day. Kate takes the day off of work so we can avoid the weekend craziness. We start early and keep going until our lists are complete and/or it is time for Happy Hour!  These are marathon shopping events, they are a blast and have been hugely successful in the past. Most years we have hit the big chains and have gone from the city to the suburbs and back again. However, this year we are keeping it LOCAL. It is a fun challenge that we are ready and willing to embrace. 75% of the shopping we do daily is already on a LOCAL level but this holiday season the goal is 100% LOCAL. With the number of incredibly clever, innovative, practical, artistic and just down right fun shops in RVA we have this challenge in the bag...the locally purchased reuseable holiday shopping bag that is...BOOM!

This year the calendar is marked for us to shop on Friday, December 13, 2013!  We will also be shopping on Small Business Saturday, November 30, 2013 and Saturday, December 14, 2013 in support of Think. Shop. Buy. Local. 

Below is a sampling of some of the awesome LOCAL shops we will be visiting on our shopping days:

Carytown Bikes 

For the Love of Chocolate

Franklin Goose 

La Difference 

Lex's of Carytown 

Modern Artifacts 

Mongrel

Bygones!

Murphries

O Virginia

Orange

Original Gravity

Plan 9

Richmond Camera  

Ruth and Ollie 

RVA news

Schwarzchild

World of Mirth 

Many of these are in Carytown or nearby but we won't forget all the great small LOCAL businesses and shops all over the city. On the Northside-anything along Hermitage and of course those shops on MacArthur Avenue-the Bellevue Shopping District.  Southside and the Near West End we'll visit such as the shops at Libbie and Grove and The Shops at 5807. We know there are a couple of gems in the Short Pump area like Tweed but we will be staying away from that area this year avoiding the chains, traffic and malls. 

Other wonderful shops to explore this holiday season are those located in all the amazing museums in town. Can't find a gift in the museum shop? Give a membership to any of these cultural and very cool museums. 

Whether you favor the idea of a downtown baseball stadium or not (not) we are all in favor or supporting our local team so get some Squirrels gear this holiday season from the Squirrels Nest.  Heck it could be your last trip to the Diamond...pause for a tear.

The gift of an experience and an adventure is always a route worth exploring.  One of the best ways to do this is in the form of a gift card, it really does take time to shop for gift cards and any gift is something thoughtful and to be appreciated.  An evening at the theater is always lovely be it the Byrd, The Carpenter Center or The Landmark.  Give the gift of a meal by giving a gift card to any of the culinary hot spots in RVA or let someone get their own culinary genius on with a gift card to these local food shops Bombolini Pasta, Ellwood Thompsons, Little House Green Grocery. Cocktails and Glitter is always fond of the gift of a liquid beverage of local beers, ciders and wines!  Check out these links to find the perfect beverage for your friends and family.  Better yet give the gift of taking someone on a tour of breweries and wineries. A subscription to Richmond Magazine is always a winner and of course supports local publications and all things local for that matter...if you actually know someone that doesn't have a subscription to Richmond Mag!

Can you keep it LOCAL this holiday season? Join us in this challenge and see how well you do. We will post our progress on Facebook and Pinterest!

Happy Shopping!

Cheers!
K&H

P.S. Last week we had Happy Hour at Mellow Mushroom in Carytown. We had time to kill before going to a holiday shopping event at Orange.  If you are not familiar with Orange, you need to be- it is awesome!  Mellow Mushroom rated 4 out of 5 martinis. We know it is a chain but it is in Carytown. They took the former Plan 9 location and turned it into a hip fun joint paying homage to Plan 9 and RVA in the fantastic artwork murals. The staff was wonderful, the snack of house made beer cheese and soft pretzels hit the spot and the bathrooms are some of the nicest in Richmond! Plenty of room at the bar for large groups. Minor drawbacks are the early Happy Hour of 3-6pm and though they have drink discounts there are not any food deals. We say go for the bathrooms but stay for some beer cheese, a slice and a local brew.