Hey, associates and fellow dwelling cooks!
That is my weekly e-newsletter, which incorporates 7 weeknight meals + 3 wholesome salads (for the week of September 16-22, 2024) + 3 new recipes printed within the final 7 days!
Additionally, on the backside of this article, I’m sharing gorgeous images from our hike to The Blue Lakes close to Ridgeway, Colorado. These high-altitude turquoise alpine lakes are positioned in a surprising glacial basin, surrounded by jagged ridges and peaks.
7 weeknight meals + 3 wholesome salads
DAY 1: Autumn Rooster Dinner with Tortellini, Roasted Greens, and Garlic Butter Sauce. I used Brussels Sprouts and Butternut Squash. You may as well use candy potatoes, yams, or carrots.
DAY 2: Creamy Sausage Tortellini Soup with Spinach and Candy Potatoes (or carrots or common potatoes)
DAY 3: Creamy Shrimp & Mushroom Pasta in a home made alfredo sauce. The creamy pasta sauce is made with Parmesan and Mozzarella cheese, garlic, basil, crushed purple pepper flakes, and paprika.
DAY 4: Tomato Basil Artichoke Baked Rooster
DAY 5: Sheet Pan Salmon and Broccoli with Garlic and Parmesan is a wholesome dinner full of protein, fiber, and Omega-3’s! Made in simply half-hour, this low-carb, keto, and gluten-free recipe.
DAY 6: Smoked Sausage Orzo with Spinach, Black Beans, and Roasted Butternut Squash (or Candy Potatoes, Yams, or Carrots).
DAY 7: Cilantro-Lime Rooster Bowls with Peach Salsa (you too can use mango or nectarines)
SALAD 1: Fall Harvest Salad with Maple-Lime Cooked Apples and Pecans
SALAD 3: Late Summer season Plum Spinach Salad with Feta Cheese, Pecans, and Honey-Lemon Dressing
New recipes printed within the final 7 days!
NEW: Steak with Inexperienced Sauce and Candy Potatoes
NEW: Corn, Tomato, and Spinach Salad with Creamy Pesto Dressing
NEW: Steak Tacos with Mango Salsa and Spicy Cilantro-Lime Crema
Mountain climbing to the Decrease Blue Lake in Mt. Sneffels Wilderness of the Uncompahgre Nationwide Forest
The Blue Lakes hike close to Ridgeway, Colorado, is hands-down some of the breathtaking hikes my husband and I’ve ever executed (and belief me, we’ve executed it many occasions!). It adjustments with the seasons, so every time appears like a brand-new journey, and it by no means will get previous. It’s simply one among my all-time favorites as a result of you can also make it as difficult or enjoyable as you need.
The Blue Lakes themselves are tucked away in a surprising glacial basin, surrounded by jagged ridges and peaks within the Mt. Sneffels Wilderness of the Uncompahgre Nationwide Forest. These alpine lakes sit excessive up within the mountains, above the tree line, and keep icy for a lot of the yr. They’re fashioned by glaciers (those listed here are), and generally by volcanic exercise or landslides. What makes them so hanging is their vibrant turquoise shade, which comes from glacial meltwater carrying tiny minerals from the rocks—like nature’s personal paintbrush!
To get to the trailhead, it’s a must to drive an extended filth and gravel street that’s solely accessible by a 4WD automobile. However even the drive is attractive, particularly when the leaves flip in October.
The hike itself begins (the trailhead) at 9,400 toes in elevation, and it’s about 3.2 miles uphill to succeed in the Decrease Blue Lake, which sits at 10,940 toes. You’ll achieve about 1,540 toes in elevation alongside the way in which, and the decrease lake is the biggest of the three Blue Lakes on the path. Some folks cease right here to make it a shorter hike, and actually, I don’t blame them—the primary lake is gorgeous! However in case you’re up for extra, you’ll be able to maintain mountain climbing to the 2 increased lakes. This time, we determined to cease on the first lake and skip the hike to the higher lakes for the reason that climate was taking a flip for the more serious. It was apparent that it was about to start out raining with thunderstorms, and rain and thunderstorms at excessive altitudes aren’t any joke!
Right here we’re on the decrease Blue Lake, the place you’re handled to jaw-dropping views of Mt. Sneffels towering above the lake to the east. At 14,158 toes (about 4300 meters), it is one among Colorado’s well-known fourteeners. To the west of the lake, you’ll see Dallas Peak standing tall at 13,800 toes.
The explanation these lakes have that magical turquoise hue is due to one thing referred to as glacial flour, which is mainly finely floor rock created as glaciers scrape and grind down towards the bedrock beneath them. When the glaciers soften within the hotter months, the soften water brings the glacial flour with it into the lake. The glacial flour (finely floor sediment and minerals) is so mild, it stays suspended within the melted lake water, giving the lakes their signature shade. Nature’s magic at its best!
For the reason that hike begins at such a excessive altitude, we at all times pack heat layers and rain jackets. The climate can change shortly, and this season’s been particularly wet—this is Kevin rushing up and working for canopy because the rain intensified:
Typically you see horses on this hike.
Typically, you see a bear.
It was raining a lot on our approach again, that we needed to transfer quick simply to remain heat (our rainjackets weren’t sufficient). Lastly, we received in a automotive and had an extended drive dwelling. It was good to lastly be again dwelling, develop into dry garments, and eat the recent dinner I ready the day earlier than.
