Lily's 1st Birthday

We

celebrated

my nieces...

1st Birthday

 ...while we

were in

Oregon

this past 

week.

(Jericho, Ryan, Tiffany, & Lily)

(Uncle Micah and Lily)



Posted 1 Year Ago: "Apricots"

Affogato

Want

to know

what

I had

for

dinner

last night...

So

amazingly

delicious!

Affogato

(image via: Martha Stewart)

2 cups ice cream (any flavor...I used Chocolate Peanut Butter Swirl)

1/2 cup Moka brewed espresso

1. Brew the espresso in a Moka brewer according to traditional Moka directions.

2. Pour the espresso over 1 cup of ice cream.

3. And then swoon from the deliciousness! 

Ice Cream Truck

Stopped
by the

cutest

little

Ice Cream

truck

while we

were in

Oregon.

Here's
the
weekly
wrap-up
of lovely
things
I found...


I want to make this Sailor Knot Paper Weight.

Le Petit Ecolier for S'mores = Geniuses.

Love Love Love this outfit.

Where are these? I must find them now!

Yummy Black Cherry Mojitos.

Oregon Coast

I am

back

from my

vacation

on the

Oregon

Coast.

One

of my

all-time

favorite

 things

about the

coast

is...

Salt-Water Taffy!

Whenever

I go

to the

coast

I always

buy one

of each

flavor.

Posted 1 Year Ago: "LuLus"

Picnic Basket

I love

picnics.

And I

really do

need to

invest

in a

good

sturdy

picnic

basket.

Like

this one...

Created by:

John Lewis


Updated 1 Year Ago: "Little Photographer"

Lasagna Rolls

Here

is a

fun

twist

on an

familiar

recipe!

Lasagna Rolls

4 tbsp butter

1/4 cup flour

2 cups whole milk

1/2 tsp salt

pinch of white pepper

pinch of nutmeg

15 oz Ricotta cheese

2 1/2 cups marinara sauce

4 oz frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed all the water from

1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, grated

1 egg

salt

freshly ground pepper

1 tbsp parsley

Lasagna noodles

1 cup Mozzarella, shredded

1. Start by making a Bechamel sauce. Melt butter in a sauce pan and mix the four in until it forms a paste. Then whisk in the milk and season with salt, white pepper and nutmeg. Continue to stir until the sauce thickens. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl mix the ricotta, 1/4 cup of marinara sauce, spinach, egg, 1 cup of Parmesan cheese, and season with salt, freshly ground pepper and parsley.

3. Cook the Lasagna noodles until done but still a bit firm.

4. Lay Lasagna noodles flat and spoon 2 tbsp of the ricotta filling on top. Then roll up.

5. To assemble, pour the Bechamel sauce on the bottom of a glass baking dish. Lay the lasagna rolls seam side down on top of the Bechamel sauce. 

6. Spoon the rest of the marinara sauce over the top, top with the Mozzarella and the rest of the Parmesan cheese. 

7. Cover with foil and bake at 425 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove foil and then return to bake another 10 minutes.

8. Enjoy!

Posted 1 Year Ago: : "Dutch Baby with Orange Sugar" 

Ghost Furniture

I am

always

so excited

when

I find

new

designers

and

sellers!

And

I love

 that I

found...

Ghost Furniture


Posted 1 Year Ago: "Banana Split Cupcakes"

Living in Marie Antoinette

Again,

I cannot

take

credit

for this

collage.

But

it was

too

beautiful

not to

feature.

Beautiful post

by the

beautiful blog:

Dress Design Decor

Fighting...

... or

maybe

they

are just

playing.

You

be the

judge.

Silas

just looks

down right

scary

in this

last

picture.


 P.S.
I am in
Oregon
right now
so I am
missing
my
puppy.


Posted 1 Year Ago: "Time" 

Have a cup

Have

yourself

a good

cup of

coffee

today.

I am
heading
off
to the
Oregon
Coast
today
for a
little
family
vacation.

It's
going
to be
so fun!


Once again,
I will
continue
to post
daily
pending
Internet
availability.

But
like I
said...


Today,
have
yourself
a good
cup of
coffee.

Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

These

cupcakes

were

devoured

in less than

24 hours!

The whole

batch...

gone

in one

day.

They

were that

good!

 

Dark Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Adapted from Love & Olive Oil

1 cup coconut milk
1/3 cup canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tsp espresso powder
Raspberry jam

Whipped Ganache Frosting:
8 ounces good dark chocolate
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

 
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Whisk together the coconut milk, sugar, oil, and vanilla extract and beat till foamy. 

3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, espresso powder and salt. Add to wet ingredients and beat until no lumps remain.

4. Pour into liners, filling each with 1/4 cup of batter. Bake 18-20 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool completely.

5. For whipped ganache, place chocolate in a heat proof bowl.

6. Bring heavy cream to a simmer. Slowly pour hot cream over chopped chocolate, and allow to sit for 1 minute. Stir until chocolate is smooth and creamy. Add vanilla, and allow ganache to cool to room temperature. 

7. With handheld electric mixer, whisk on high for 2 to 3 minutes until lighter brown. It should be the consistency of buttercream.

8. To assemble, spread a thin layer of raspberry preserves on the cupcakes, and spread on ganache.

 

Emersonmade

Oh

I just

love

all of

this!

Created by:

Emersonmade


Posted 1 Year Ago:  "Laundry"

Paper Lanterns

On my

last trip

to Nepal...

I debated

and debated

over

purchasing

beautiful

paper lanters

that they

were selling

in a

local

market.

In the end

I decided

to not

purchase

them....

And then

I see

these.

Now

I wish

that I

would

have

bought

those

lanterns

in Nepal.

Image via: L.Grainne


Posted 1 Year Ago: "Paris je t'amie" 

Coffee Cake

Remember

this recipe?

Or maybe

this one?...

Where I

was sure

that it

was the

best

coffee cake

recipe

ever...

well,

I was

wrong.

This

is the

best

recipe

ever!

Cinnamon Swirl Coffee Cake

via: pioneer woman

FOR THE CAKE:
1-½ stick Butter, Softened
2 cups Scant Sugar
3 cups Flour, Sifted
4 teaspoons Baking Powder
1 teaspoon Salt
1-¼ cup Whole Milk
3 whole Egg Whites, Beaten Until Stiff

FOR THE TOPPING:
1-½ stick Butter, Softened
¾ cups Flour
1-½ cup Brown Sugar
2 Tablespoons Cinnamon
1-½ cup Pecans, Chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. 

3. Beat egg whites and set aside.

4. Cream butter and sugar. Add flour mixture and milk alternately until combined. Don’t overbeat. 

5. Fold in beaten egg whites with a rubber spatula. 

6. Spread in a well-greased 9 x 13 baking pan.

7. In a separate bowl, combine topping ingredients with a pastry cutter until crumbly. Sprinkle all over the top.

8. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Serve warm.

Thank you Thank you Thank you Pioneer Woman!

Posted 1 Year Ago: "Regina"

Rainbow

The

downpour

of rain
two days
ago...

lead

to a

beautiful

double

rainbow!

Here
is a
little
weekly
wrap-up
of lovely
things
that I
found!

Beautiful climbing Wisteria.

I love these shoes.

I want to live here.

Reasons why I want to be an Archaeologist in Egypt ... tent living.

Are these edible crayons??

Nesting Doll party.

The caption says it all.

Lavender Monin.

Oh, the little blue box.

Sunbathing

Oh how I

would like

to be

sunbathing

on a

sailboat

right now

wearing

this...

via: Anthropologie



Posted 1 Year Ago: "Antique Treasure"

Conroy & Wilcox

I found

more

beautiful

jewelry!

Created by:

Conroy & Wilcox


Posted 1 Year Ago: "Grace Kelly"

Chicken with Tomato Corn Salsa

After a

week of

In-N-Out

and 

Chick-Fil-A...

Micah

and I

are having

chicken

and

salad

every night

for dinner.

Last nights

Dinner...

Chicken with Tomato Corn Salsa
Adapted from Rachael Ray

1 cup breadcrumbs
2 tbsp dried basil
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup flour
4 chicken breast cutlets (about 1 1/4 pounds total)
Salt and pepper
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cups corn kernels 
1 tomato, cored and chopped
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced 
1/2 red bell pepper, diced



1. In a shallow dish, stir together the breadcrumbs and 2 tablespoons basil. In a separate shallow dish, add the buttermilk; in a third dish, add the flour. 

2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. Working with 1 piece at a time, dip the chicken in the buttermilk, then coat the chicken in the flour,  dip into the buttermilk again and coat with the breadcrumbs.

3. In a large skillet, heat 1/4 cup olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until golden-brown, about 10 minutes; drain on paper towels.

4. In a large bowl, stir together the corn, tomatoes, onion, red bell pepper, the remaining 2 tablespoons basil and 1 tablespoon olive oil; season with salt and pepper. Serve over the chicken.

Posted 1 Year Ago: "Brown Sugar Bacon Waffles"