May 1, 2011

Strawberry Lemon Basil Soda

Strawberries! I have an overwhelming amount of strawberries in my kitchen right now. There’s definitely a reason for that, but I’ll get to that later. Right now I’m thirsty and I want to do something with my loot. The current issue of Bon Appetit suggests I make a soda with them. Yes. Good call, Bon Appetit. I like you even more now.

So here I am drinking this soda. It’s like grownup sparkling strawberry lemonade and it’s super refreshing! I can definitely see a lot of these in my future….with a lot of gin. CHEERS!
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Photography, Uncategorized

May 1, 2011

365- Week 16

A food related photo everyday until 2012. Here’s week 16:

118/365 Snacking on a cutie with a new cookbook I’m excited to dig into!

recipes, Uncategorized

April 29, 2011

Chocolate Dutch Baby

Don’t give me that look. It’s perfectly acceptable to have chocolate for breakfast! Especially when you realize that the slice of powdered sugar dusted cake on my plate is actually a PANCAKE. It’s a chocolate pancake, PEOPLE! And it takes absolutely no time to make! I was able to execute this recipe whilst getting ready for work, feeding Cooper, quieting an incessantly mewing cat, wrangling a diaper bag, taking pictures, sneaking in a few morning kisses with my husband, and cleaning up my kitchen on a weekday. Let me say that again- A WEEKDAY!! If that doesn’t give you a hint of how easy it was, then I don’t know what will!

All you need is a small group of ingredients, a blender, a medium sized cast iron skillet & a hot oven and you’re just 20 minutes away from digging into a chocolate pancake for breakfast. Do you need syrup for this pancake? Heck NO! It’s perfectly sweet with the combo of the powdered sugar & the strawberries. Isn’t that fantastic? No syrup means you have one less thing to deal with in the morning! And yes…it does taste like a piece of really thin chocolate cake!

recipes

April 28, 2011

Flat Roasted Chicken

Here’s a lesson in food blogging for you: If you want to share a scrumptious recipe with people, make sure to protect your photos from being deleted. You could potentially write your way out of this difficulty. You could describe how epic the buttery lemon sauce was that accompanied the chicken. You could tell your readers how easy it was to flatten a chicken and how much faster it cooks when it’s prepared that way. You might even want to tell them how you used the leftover chicken in quesadillas one day, threw it in a burrito bowl for lunch another day, and finally topped the last bit on a Greek pizza for dinner. But really, who cares about all of that when there isn’t a picture like the one you see above?

I made this chicken TWICE in one week. The first time was intended for you…the second time was to make up for the accidental photo deletion. That’s right. I lost over 40 photos. With a flat roasted chicken recipe this amazing, making it twice in one week was no big deal. In fact, I didn’t mind at all.
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recipes, Uncategorized

April 26, 2011

Apricot Pistachio Granola

Hi, my name is Tracy and I’m a granola addict. It’s been 3 minutes since I ate my last handful of granola. I gave away as much as I could, but somehow a jar made its way onto my desk and I CANNOT close the lid. You too would have a hard time staying away if you had a chance to taste toasted coconut, roasted pistachios, walnuts, and oats covered in a spicy/sugary glaze mixed with a hint of salt. Did I mention there’s olive oil in this granola?? I simply cannot be trusted with what’s left of this jar. Someone please call for an intervention. I NEED IT. CONTINUE READING

around the home, favorites, Uncategorized

April 25, 2011

My Current Fave Things GIVEAWAY!!!

I had fun putting together my first giveaway a few months ago and since then I’ve collected a few fun/ useful things for another round! ARE YOU READY?!

1. Kikkerland Gray Paper Straws. Aren’t they pretty?? They help fancy up your beverages! I’ve been using these a lot lately. They are really nice if you want your swanky cocktail to stand out! Bonus-they’re made out of paper so throw them in your recycle bin when you’re done. I should note that they’re sturdiest paper straws I’ve had. No soggy paper straws for you!

2. Breakfast- To- Go container from Martha Stewart for Macy’s. In this little container, you can put granola, yogurt & berries and take it on the go with you! Your granola will stay nice and crunchy because it won’t touch the yogurt until you’re ready to eat it! The best part is that there’s a little spoon included in the container! My only complaint is that it’s not bigger! But I guess it’s all about portion control. Whatever that means….

3. Ceramic Berry Container from Anthropologie! Do I need to say more?? See it in action here! When I’m out of berries, I keep my garlic in it. Nothing makes 4 heads of garlic look pretty like this little ceramic container!

4. The Perfect Grocery Shopping List by Knock Knock Pads. This is a LIFE SAVER! This notepad has many good categories for shopping including: Fruits, Vegetables, Canned Goods, Deli, Breads, Frozen Foods, Condiments, Snacks Meat & Fish, Dairy, Pasta, Baking, Pet Items, Household, Paper & Wrap….There’s also room to write extra items that I might need….like parchment paper, paperclips & a nail file for when I’m trying to be Macgyver! I always carry a few sheets in my purse so I can come up with a list on the go! It also has a magnetic backing so it hangs nicely in my kitchen.

Casey has altered my notepad to say I’m ALL OUT OF love, I’m so lost without you…. (he’s funny)

So there you have 4 of my favorite things right now. Want a chance to win them all?

What your favorite snack is!

A winner will be picked at random next Monday! Good Luck!

around the home, Uncategorized

April 24, 2011

Easter Weekend 2011

Our Easter was a bit different this year. My family was out of town, so we had a very low key Easter at home, just the three of us. On Saturday we took Cooper to the Hiller Aviation Museum to see the Easter Bunny arrive by helicopter!
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