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A Comprehensive Guide to our Truck Camper Renovation

I live in a self-renovated 2005 Pastime Truck Camper with my girlfriend, Meg, and our 5-year-old boxer mix,…

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How to Make a Hand-Knitted Chunky Chenille Blanket

Making a chunky chenille hand-knitted blanket is easy, quick, and SO much fun! This post and the corresponding…

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Our boy absolutely loving his new life 🥹

#truckcamperlife #dogsofinstagram #nomads #travel

I made a couch for our truck camper!

Our old couch was quite ugly - dark, dull, dusty, and dated 1990s fabric wrapped around some very old inner cushions and built upon a metal frame. I discarded everything except for the frame and started from scratch.

I bought the fabric from @sunbrella (found a seller on @etsy who sold it for $20/yard!) and ordered some custom sized cushions (that I ended up trimming down a tiny bit more using an electric knife which was so fun lol). The cushions are even comfier than the old ones.

I found a box cushion tutorial from @sailrite’s YouTube page which gave me the confidence to tackle this whole project. I used their tutorial to build the two side cushions and the small cushion for the L-shape part of our couch bend (not pictured) and then kind of “winged it” when sewing the big cushions for the seat and back - which were a bit more complicated because I needed to incorporate the metal frame - with welded-in 3.5 inch screws permanently attached.

I had to wrestle these cushion covers onto the couch base, I ripped a corner (which is luckily not visible at all), I spent way too much time installing zipper pulls, and I accidentally sewed some zippers to the wrong side of some cushions, but despite these obstacles, I’m so proud of the couch I made! Not bad for my first rodeo.

#sewing #diy #camper #truckcamper #renovation

Went on a lil sightseeing cruise out of @zephyrcove on Lake Tahoe and spent a solid 20 minutes debating what plates we would share from the cafe.

Are you team grilled chicken sandwich or chicken fingers?!

I ultimately went with the chicken Caesar salad bc I was desperate for a fresh crunch.

#laketahoe #travel #tourism #zephyrcove #nevada

One pot chicken parm with roasted red pepper vodka sauce pasta! A mouthful to say, a delicious mouthful to eat.

Chicken parm is my favorite meal, but while living in a camper, I don’t want to use soo many dishes to bread chicken, make sauce, boil pasta, and bake chicken, so I figured out an easy way to do it all in one pot. It comes together quickly and is much less of a headache when it comes to cleanup.

PLUS this dish is higher in protein than a traditional pasta dish because I used @eatbanza’s new Wheat Protein Pasta. It’s their highest protein version of pasta, so if you want to add a boost of protein to your pasta dishes, this is it. (and I swear you can’t even tell it’s high protein since it tastes JUST like traditional pasta).

Now the question is, where do you fall on the pasta shape debate? Team PENNE or Team ROTINI?!

RECIPE
1lb chicken breast, butterflied, pounded thin
3/4 cup panko bread crumbs
3/4 cup freshly grated parmesan, divided
Salt & pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp butter
1 small shallot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup vodka
1 16 oz jar roasted red peppers, drained and pureed
1 box Banza Wheat Protein Rotini Pasta
2 cups chicken broth
1/4-1/2 cup heavy cream
3-5 slices mozzarella

Combine bread crumbs, 1/4 cup parmesan, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a shallow dish. Dip the chicken into the breadcrumb mix & press firmly so breadcrumbs stick to chicken. In a deep skillet, heat 1-2 tbsp olive oil over medium-high. Cook chicken 5-6 minutes on both sides until internal temp reaches 165ºF. Remove and set aside.

Wipe skillet, add butter and reduce heat to medium. Cook shallot 2-3 minutes, then add garlic & cook another minute. Pour in vodka & let it simmer for 2-3 minutes until cooked off. Add pureed red peppers, stir, and cook for 7-10 minutes. Add chicken broth, bring to a simmer. Add pasta, cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook for 10-12 minutes until pasta is al dente, stirring occasionally.

Stir in heavy cream & the rest of the parmesan. Place chicken back in the pan and add mozzarella on top. Cover & cook until the cheese is melted, 2-3 min. Enjoy!

#banzapartner #onepotrecipe #onepot #easydinne

Dinner on an ostrich farm!

We made one of our favorite simple meals - Sausage and Burrata Sheet Pan Gnocchi - in our camper oven! (Full recipe is on my blog).

We stayed at @donkeyhillranch for a night - we booked this spot on @harvesthosts (it was our very first Harvest Hosts stay! We’ll share a review of the service soon once we’ve had a bit more experience).

For the knives, write “KNIFE SET” below and you’ll get a link in your messages. Or I tried IG’s new product linking feature so you might be able to click the link in the video??? Idk if/how it works lol

Anyway, we’re having so much fun on the road. Is it stressful and exhausting? Yes. Is it worth it? Double yes. I’ve never been to this part of California and we have been blown away by the gorgeous rolling hills and all of the farms and vineyards. It’s so stunning here and I’m so grateful to be doing this.

#onepotrecipe #recipe #cooking #vanlife #truckcamper

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