Floral inspiration
The weather is gorgeous this weekend and it’s inspiring me to want to do some outdoors-related crafts. In particular, I’m admiring these floral beauties.
Vintage button flower earrings from Life Through the Lens:
Silk flower belt/headband from Shrimp Salad Circus:
Felted flowers from The Pickled Herring:
Aren’t they all lovely? And each project seems fairly simple and inexpensive to do – my kind of crafts!
What’s inspiring you lately?
I need to bleach my mouth now
See what Costello’s been doing.
Click on the link above if you want to see why I need to scrub my mouth out now (you’ll have to click on it again on the next page). This is what I get for leaving my water glass sitting out, I guess. Blech!
Cat sitting
I’ve been cat-sitting for some friends lately, taking care of this pudgy little fuzz ball:
He’s the most talkative cat I’ve ever met, the kitty version of a Chatty Cathy… a Chatty Catty??
His owners have a nice blender (woohoo!) so I’ve been making banana nutella smoothies while I’m here:
They’re delicious. Just blend together 2 frozen bananas (let thaw briefly to make peeling easier), a couple of tablespoons of Nutella, and about 1/3 cup of nonfat milk. Perfect for breakfast or dessert!
My cat-sitting has coincided with having a cold and viral conjunctivitis, so the cat and I have both been curled up on the couch lately, quarantined. I was finally feeling a little better yesterday, so a friend baked beer cupcakes (!) and came over for bacon pizza from our favorite local pizza joint. She made the cupcakes in these adorable silicon teacup molds, using Blue Moon‘s Honey Moon Summer Ale and plenty of real honey. Sticky sweet and good!
Recipe envy
I’ve been doing a lot of drooling lately over some of my fellow food bloggers’ handiwork. I have to say, since I started reading blogs way back in 2003 or so, the quality of writing and images has gone up dramatically. So many people present professional level stuff that it’s inspiring to look at – and to whip up. Here’s a few of the things that have me drooling this week:
The Hungry Mouse’s Drunken Coffee Jello – This grown-up version of Knox Blocks looks divine. I think I might try to make either Earl Grey tea or chai latte versions with plenty of dollops of fresh whipped cream.
Smitten Kitchen’s Everyday Chocolate Cake - I must have a sweet tooth this week, because looking at this rich, moist chocolate cake makes me want to crawl through my computer screen. Can’t wait to make this and serve it up with an ice cold glass of milk. On a side note, I just love Smitten Kitchen‘s food photography. She has wonderful natural light for her shots and great counter tops to give nice contrast to her photos.
Chocolate Nutella Cookies from Garrett McCord‘s guest post on Simply Recipes – Yes, okay fine, I definitely have a sweet tooth. I’ve been on a Nutella kick lately after having a banana-Nutella smoothie recently, and these cookies look amazing way to scratch that Nutella itch!
Do you have a favorite food blog or post to share?
Poetry in the stars
If you’ve ever taken even a passing interest in your horoscope, I have to recommend Rob Brezsny’s Free Will Astrology. His lyric analogies and florid language are poetic little reminders to live life they way you should – honestly and freely. I’m a Cap and here is mine for this week. Take a peek here for yours.
The poet Jean Perrin dreamed “of marrying the dawn with the light of the moon,” and I invite you to do the same. The darkness you’ve been immersed in will leave you soon. As it does, please don’t forsake the pale, moon-like radiance that has provided you with a bit of guidance and consolation. Rather, bring along what it has taught you as you head into the far brighter phase you’re entering. In other words, retain some of the wisdom the dim light has compelled you to learn.
Indonesian Rice Salad
I’m cat-sitting for a friend for a couple of weeks and, in addition to having all the kitty affection I could ask for, I was happy to see that they have a copy of the Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. Ever since my friend Molly made chef Mollie’s Indonesian Rice Salad for me a few months ago, I’ve been obsessed. (And, I’m putting the cookbook on my wish list for Christmas, if everything tastes as good as this salad.) I’ve doctored the recipe up a bit to accomodate my tastes and what I have on hand, but I think it still captures the originally intended flavors. Here’s my version:
“Sri Wasano’s Infamous Indonesian Rice Salad” – edited by the HungryCook
~ 2 cups cooked brown rice (despite my normal cooking prowess I’m somehow terrible at making rice, so I usually cheat and just buy the prepared packaged brown rice at Trader Joe’s, it’s actually about 1.5 cups)
1/2 cucumber, diced
1/2 green bell pepper, diced
2 scallions, chopped
1/2 cup dry roasted peanuts (unsalted)
1/3 cup raisins
Dressing:
1/4 cup canola or peanut oil
1.5 tablespoons sesame oil
juice of one orange
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon honey (this is approximate, depending on the sweetness of the orange)
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
Mix dry ingredients together. In a separate dish, mix together the dressing (this is to make sure it has the right balance of saltiness/sweetness/tang/etc. before you mix it all together). Stir dressing into rice mixture and let marinate for at least a half hour before eating, so that the rice has time to absorb the flavors of the dressing. Yields 4-6 servings.
To me, this salad is the perfect blend of flavors and textures – a great warm weather side dish. Enjoy!
Falafel frenzy
Do you know what the best thing about a good dinner is? Lunchtime leftovers the next day! Last night I made falafel sandwiches using Telma falafel mix, flax and whole grain pitas, hummus, and a quick corn salad I tossed together. It was the perfect summertime dinner – and, after reheating the falafel balls in the oven, still great for lunch today.
My corn salad is a go-to summertime treat, particularly since I love the flavor of raw corn. In fact, everything in it is raw, which I think is what keeps it from being a succotash. Here’s my recipe:
Corn Salad
2 ears of corn, kernels cut off of the cob
1/2 of a red or green bell pepper, diced
1/3 of a red onion, very finely diced
1-2 cups of cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
1 cup cucumber, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
dash of salt & a hearty grind of fresh pepper
Optional additions: 1/4 cup chopped basil, or some diced avocado.
Mix everything together and enjoy. If I’m making it as an accompaniment to Italian food, I make sure to add basil, but you could add cilantro instead if you want to serve the salad with Mexican food or another cuisine. I love the fresh flavors and taking advantage of all those great seasonal vegetables!
The falafel sandwiches were easy to make because of shortcuts like using a mix and store-bought hummus. I love the ease, but crave fresh hummus and falafel (even pita!). Do you have a good recipe for homemade falafel or hummus? If so, please share!
Empire State of Mind
I busted out the camera this past weekend and caught some great shots around the City.
The fountain at Lincoln Center:
© 2010 Ana Cruz
© 2010 Ana Cruz
Strolling in the Financial District:
© 2010 Ana Cruz
The Brooklyn Bridge:
© 2010 Ana Cruz
© 2010 Ana Cruz
What a gorgeous, photogenic weekend!
For the person who has everything…except diabetes
Just when I thought the cupcake craze was coming to an end, the Neiman Marcus Christmas Book has reaffirmed our national fascination with these sweet treats. Behold, my friends:
Don’t know what to get your favorite cupcake lover for their birthday? Need a tasty way to (slowly) zip about town? For a mere $25,000 (and you thought real cupcakes were pricey!), you can be the proud owner of your own customized cupcake car. Amazing. I’ll take one with sprinkles, please.
