Recent Guilty Pleasures

I have discovered a couple of guilty little pleasures over the last several weeks that have brought a smile to my face.


(1)  This impulse 'toss in the cart' amazing dark chocolate and almond snacking chocolate is divine.  It tempts me to take a little piece every time that I open the fridge...

(2)  American Greetings' Instant Laughs birthday cards.  I stocked up on cards for all the approaching Fall birthdays and discovered this card company also has a blog.  Awesome.  Stationary is my biggest weakness - fancy, fun, inventive, traditional - I love it all.  I also save every wedding invitation, moving announcement, new baby card that I have received.  Sometimes I have a hard time sending a card if I have grown too attached to it (lame, but the truth).  I have even had some of my favorite hand-drawn cards framed.

Photo from cwtv.com

(3) Hart of Dixie.  I love this show.  I started watching it on Netflix after I exhausted all the seasons of Scandal and wanted something a bit more lighthearted to unwind with after a busy day.  It is perfect for this purpose!  I get sucked in to an episode and then have to watch another and another.  In honesty, the supporting casts' acting skills have impressed me a bit more than the central actor's.  Jamie King (Lemon Breeland) is especially fabulous and I love her wardrobe.  Every outfit is a return to the fifties.

Architecture Don't

Every month I look forward to receiving a slew of new magazines, including Architectural Digest.  I sat down this morning with a cup of coffee and the July issue anticipating a pleasant hour of looking at photos of gorgeous homes.  For the most part I was not disappointed.  Until I turned to an article on page 86 titled 'Full Spectrum.'  Ouch! My eyes hurt.  My soul hurt for the poor house.  Is this what happens when people have more money than sense or taste?

The focus of the story is a French-style mini-chateau located in River Oaks, Houston, an upscale enclave of massive homes.  The exterior and grounds look lovely.  The interior however has been transformed into a loud explosion of color, clashing styles and over-lapping eye-straining patterns.  The interior designer (Miles Redd) has taken a mansion with strong, classic bones and turned it into a carnival fun-house.

There are elements of his choices that are nice.  The wallpaper in the master bedroom (by Iksel Decorative Arts) is beautiful, but is eclipsed by bright red curtains and an 80's style shiny plastic four-poster bed.

 Architectural Digest, July 2014

The touches of class are unfortunately, overwhelmed by the tacky and tasteless.  The dining room mixes gentle silk wall coverings with a garish multicolor rug and electric blue curtains.  The elegant front entrance with its sweeping staircase is a taxi-cab yellow, which the designer proudly states inspired his being chosen for the job.

I know that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, however this beholders eyes are smarting from the clash of colors and styles in this home.

Spring?

I am dreaming of warm, sunny days and barbeques.  The calendar (and google) tell me that today is the first day of spring.  Unfortunately, with weather reports predicting snow sometime next week, I am having a hard time believing that this winter will ever end.

Another snow day...

I cannot complain that we are enjoying another snow day, although it feels as though we have had one every week since January.  It is so wonderful to relax at home guilt-free.  I generally set one goal for the day and try one new recipe, along with making celebratory chocolate chip cookies. 

Today, I completed my Canadian taxes (last snow day, I did my U.S. ones) and made Moroccan couscous with chickpeas, along with the perfect chocolate chip cookies from Cook's Illustrated.  (These are amazing!  The secret seems to lie in browning the butter.)  The sweet, familiar smell of vanilla is so comforting.  It reminded me of reading that it is used as a key ingredient for some perfumes, although this article about it's usage just made me laugh.

Here are a couple of other things that made me laugh today:

- Rick Mercer making fun of Canadian excitement over warm(er) weather;

- President Obama on "Between Two Ferns" with Zach Galifianakis;

- and this Automobile Association ad from the U.K.

Weekend Wear

 

Banana Republic - Parkside Wallet / Madewell - Skinny Skinny Zip Jeans in Sky Wash / J.Crew - Everly suede metal metallic-trim pumps & Collection cashmere V-neck sweater

Monkey Bread in 10 Easy Steps

Monkey Bread 
Recipe originally from The Pioneer Woman 

2 cans of Pillsbury Grands
3/4 cup Sugar
2 tbs Cinnamon (appox.)
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1 Orange (zest only)
2 sticks Butter

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a bundt pan. 

2.  Open the Grands cans and cut the biscuits into little pieces.

3.  Zest the orange.

4.  In a large ziploc bag combine the sugar, cinnamon and orange zest.  Shake to combine.

5.  Add the biscuit bits to the ziploc bag and shake well, fully coating all the biscuits with the cinnamon/sugar/zest mix.

6.  Place the coated biscuits in the bundt pan, spreading evenly.

7.  Brown the butter on the stove top.  Add the brown sugar until combined.

8.  Pour the butter over the biscuits in the bundt pan.

9.  Bake for 30-40 minutes.

 10.  Let sit for 15 minutes, before turning over onto a plate.

Cold Friday

Recent Reads

I love my public library!  A couple of years ago, I discovered that they lend downloadable books via Kindle and other systems.  This revolutionized by membership, which had previously been limited to a visit once every five years or so, and now I am a regular customer.  Yes, I often have to wait weeks to borrow a new or popular book, but it is well worth it.  Here are a couple of my recent reads:

Beautiful Ruins

 
NY Times Review

The Rosie Project: A Novel

NPR Review

 

Recipe Porn

I can while away (or should it be 'wile away'?), an evening reading recipes online.  Time passes as I study ingredients and decide whether something is too complicated to try or not.  Here are a couple of the delicious looking recipes that caught my eye today:

Barbecue, delicious slow cooker balsamic honey pulled pork.

 Just a taste...

 Heavenly mashed potatoes.

The Pioneer Woman

    

Lavender Cupcakes

Cooking Classy

  

To balance all the butter, and because I love my slow cooker, a healthy quinoa, kale and chicken soup.

 Cooking Classy