I’ve come to the conclusion that eating is so much better when done outside. We moved into our house almost a year ago (july 4th will be our move-in anniversary). For the first three months, we did not eat a single meal inside. Casey says the food I make for us is always better during the summer. I think it’s just cuz we get to eat it outside! Now that the weather is warmer, breakfast/lunch/dinner will be eaten on the patio. Food just tastes better that way!

Fathers Day Dinner included:

-cheese plate (with marcona almonds)
-tomato/mozzarella/crusty bread with olive oil topped with homemade pesto
-middle eastern inspired ground lamb kebabs
-salad with tomatoes, red onion, italian parsley, feta & cucumber with a lemon oregano dressing
-crispy lavash bread
-vanilla roasted apricots mixed with strawberries, mangoes and cherries on top of a dollop of honey lemon ricotta & marscapone cheese mixture
-4 bottles of red wine!
-vegan food for my brother (indian rice with vegan burger & vegan chocolate pudding)
-laughter, sillyness, and fun moments. Happy Father’s Day Dad!

The Weekend:

-shopping for gifts at Bath and Body Works (i love these!)
-drinks with neighbors/made a potato salad with cilantro & grilled chicken (vinegar based)/drinks with other neighbors
-speaker installed in ceiling of kitchen
-wallmounted touch panel installed in wall of kitchen (means I can listen to music while cooking & cleaning up what a cook! yay!)
-dinner to celebrate a friends birthday at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse (bloody $50 bill fight in the front-don’t ask)
-ice cream at Mitchells (chocolate caramel crackle with another scoop of strawberry) Husband god Toasted Almond & Mexican chocolate.
-grocery shopping at Whole Paycheck…err… I mean Whole Foods
-house cleaning & gardening for parents arrival
-father’s day dinner
-hanging out with neighbors- another neighbor brought over yummy bread pudding with a lemon rum glaze.

i have to stop eating. time to catch up on Big Love & Entourage.

these beets were part of my first delivery from Farm Fresh to You- Capay Organic Farms. Included in the shipment were: red onions, green beans, apricots, peaches, beets, red chard, cherries, red potatoes and zucchini. So far I’m happy with the service!

to make the beets:

-wash beets & sprinkle with generous amount salt & pepper
-wrap beets up in parchment paper
-wrap parchment covered beets with foil
-put on baking sheet
-roast 425 degree oven for 45 minutes
-peel off skin & enjoy!

over the weekend:

-went to Randy’s going away party @ Poleng in SF
-went to coffee late in the afternoon on Saturday
-bought some fun things at Paper Source (dangerous place to go if you are me)
-went to dinner @ Amber-Indian Restaurant on Santana Row in SJ (yummy Mango Mint cocktail/butter chicken/kebab platter)
-saw Knocked Up (still finding myself laughing when i think of parts)
-made lemon cookies & stuffed them with cream cheese frosting (brought some to neighbors so i wouldnt eat them all!)
-made this lovely little open faced sandwich above for sunday lunch
-pulled out bush in the backyard and welcomed our new Meyer Lemon tree in it’s place
-went to Target (fun!) & the Library (where I picked up Magnolia’s Cupcake Cookbook & the book on cd: Heat)
-added mulch to the backyards plants
-ate grilled cheese sandwiches in between recapping last week’s sopranos…and watching the LAST episode
-watched the first episode of John from Cincinnati (not sure if i like it yet)
-read some more of Possible Side Effects, by Augusten Burroughs

confession- I’m not really a baker, but i’ve been attempting to bake recently. So far…the results have been mixed. Note to self: DO NOT TRY A NEW RECIPE WHEN YOU WANT TO SURPRISE SOMEONE WITH CUPCAKES FOR THEIR BIRTHDAY (btw i already know this note, i just need to remember to follow it-the picture looked sooo good!)

Martha Stewart’s Coconut cupcakes (JUNE 2007 issue)…… I knew I was in trouble when the cupcakes had to cook 10 minutes more than the recipe called them to. I took them out of the oven and notice that not only were they heavy for their size, but the bottom part of the wrapper was completely seperated from the cupcake. What is that?? It was like those little vanilla cupcakes were wearing extra large, sagging granny pants. The only good part-was the cream cheese frosting. Needless to say, it was a dissappointment. Not only had I recently bought a carrying case for them (thanks melissa!)-but I spent over 2 hours making them. There are 8 out of 20 left in the fridge. Despite their resemblence to pound cake, Casey has been making a dent in “ridding” me of them. Thank god his sweet tooth is large enough NOT to discriminate.

-So why couldnt there have been a DO NOT OVER-BEAT warning on the recipe? How could they not have included how far up I should fill the cupcakes? Isn’t that just rudimentary? Perhaps my baking powder wasn’t fresh?

so many factors… perfect vanilla coconut cupcake recipe…you are out there. I must find you!

anyway- happy bday v-dog. hope it was good!