wonder foodie: chocolate wonder

Mmm ... we went to a friend's house for dinner today and we made this chocolate cake in little ramekins. It's very much like lava cake or flourless chocolate cake since it only has a 1/2 cup of flour in it. It was rich and delicious, and the perfect end to a simple meal. And in place of raspberry puree, I just used reduced sugar raspberry preserves. Yum. Chocolate is just the thing sometimes.

image via 100% chocolate cafe

spuds not duds

Lately I've been into brainstorming food-themed parties -- cake decorating parties, dumpling parties, noodle parties and etc. So since it had been so cold, I wanted to have a baked potato party. Nothing's better than tons of warm and delicious carbs to keep you toasty on a chilly night, right? So what did I do? I kid you not, I googled "perfect baked potato" and came up with this recipe.

A few nights later, we had a lovely Christmas with our families, and I made homemade corn nuts with my sister. I took some home, and began to plan for an upcoming Spuds night. I set out to have lots of toppings - cheddar and pepperjack cheeses, green onions, olives, homemade chili, sour cream, and butter. No time to make the broccoli, but I will save it for next time. The potatoes were delicious, with crispy perfect skins and silky and snowy on the inside - not dry and chalky like some potatoes can be. And the prep was so easy! Serve it with a salad, and you're set. Here are a few photos, courtesy of my lovely guests. Next party? How about a won ton party? Can't wait.

holiday card drafting

Due to a love of paper and letterpress, the Egg Press sale in December prompted me to purchase lots of cards for holiday giving. But since I'd like to see more than 10 designs, my best buddy and I have devised a lovely way to choose from the Egg Press collection. We order 20 cards (two sets of 10) and sit down to a meal (lunch, dinner, something scrumptious) and set out all the cards - then we take turns choosing our favorites! The meal for this card draft consisted of rich and creamy scalloped potatoes, roasted pork tenderloin, and salad with homemade croutons. This was followed by freshly baked cookies, brownies, and hot chocolate. Don't mind our cheesiness - I could not stop laughing during the "twisty arms toast."

Note the sweet "Joy to All" card -- it was by far my favorite. Each of the 20 cards we received from the sample sale was different.

Here's to the the now hopefully ANNUAL card draft! Happy Holidays!

my day of birth

I had a simple and lovely birthday, I can't believe that another year has passed. This year consisted of many little moments, with lots of sweets in between.

It started off with dinner the night before with the hubba at a Japanese tapas place - we had an assortment of dishes, including a delicious ochazuke finished off with green tea creme brulee for dessert. On my actual birthday, my co-workers took me to my favorite local creperie and I had a strawberry and nutella crepe with fresh whipped cream. Then my dear mom and sister surprised me and came to work with chocolate filled cupcakes and a singular balloon. And after youth group, we celebrated with two of our good buddies over homemade strawberry shortcake. And to finish off the weekend, one of my youth kids surprised me with some freshly baked white chocolate macadamia cookies while others made handmade cards. Not to mention several amazing friends who left messages and calls for me. How sweet it is to be loved! Twenty-eight, you're off to a great start.

birthday card by simplesong

good good friends

Me and two of my favorite traveling buddies are taking a trip very very soon ... and I can't wait! Fun adventures await us - sure to be full of food, laughter, and sweet sights.

wonder foodie: a delicious summer

So far it has been a summer of delicious food and lovely company - I love that we get to grill, and I think it is by far my favorite season for this reason. Followed closely by the holidays, of course. We had a little picnic in the park with grilled ahi tuna sandwiches (marinated simply in lemon juice, salt and pepper) and orzo with asparagus, sweet corn, and tomatoes. Then a meal of dry-rubbed pork, grilled corn, a mozzarella basil and tomato with orzo salad, broccoli slaw, and carmelized pineapple (not pictured).

And then I had a simple (free) lunch, that I jazzed up with spring greens, dijon mustard and a side of edamame! Mmm yum. And since the hubba loves having cheese and crackers as an appetizer to our meals, I found this wonderful sharp cheddar from New Zealand at Trader Joe's. Cut that up with some crackers and you've got yourself a scrumptious starter. Awwww yes.

And I can't forget my favorite summer food - strawberries! I had some leftover from a farmer's market trip and they were getting a bit overripe. So I added some sugar, let them sit in the fridge overnight, and pureed them. Then I mixed the puree with some freshly whipped cream and topped some almond & vanilla cupcakes a la this recipe. Very light and so easy to make. I think I ate two in one sitting. Hope you're having a tasty summer!

a happy one

Our 4th of July was pretty eventful, I'm exhausted just thinking about it! Duff went on his first boat ride and I got a bit burned/tanned on my neck from being out in the sun. The hubba had his 10 year high school reunion picnic at the lake, and we had great food and welcome company.
More posts to come - my wooden toy post and the design for an invitation that I've been working on!

shower + travel + love

As the weather is getting warmer, it's definitely time for a party. I'm not always in a partying mood, but when I'm down it's good to have a get together with friends to remind you of the good things, the blessings. I am reminded of the wonderful time we had last September when we threw a bridal shower for one of my very best friends. She loves to travel so everything was travel themed - we set up vintage suitcases all over the house, we prepared food from different locations she'd been to, and even put up a big map for people to pin travel advice on. We collected toiletries from the guests to donate to a local homeless shelter, which is something she did when she was in high school, and we thought we'd bring it full circle.

And then we played the most hilarious game where she had to pick out photos of her fiance's body parts from a selection of pictures of random guys. That was topped off by a crepe bar. Seeing the smile on her face as she walked around that day was the best part of the whole thing though. Parties are such fun.

photos courtesy of jasmin canlas