Sweet Lavender Bake Shoppe

continuing to get better...

2012-02-10T11:30:00.000-08:00

It's funny..when you take a break from the usual routine of life, time sort of becomes a blur. I only knew it was Friday today because I saw a couple of posts online this morning. Otherwise to me...it feels like Wednesday and Saturday...at the same time. It's weird.

These last few days have been so much better than the days before. My husband is recovering faster and faster which makes for a happy Christina. He has even felt strong and good enough to go for morning walks around our block! This, my friends, is a big step! We were cooped in the house for days because just standing would bring him to a sweat! So this "new" thing we're doing is such a joyous welcomed time. Today will be 3 days in a row we were able to walk around the block..each day going a little faster and a little further before needing to head back home to rest.

It also just so happened to be some of the more beautiful and warmer mornings we've had in a while. This also made for an awesome time. The sunshine is so gorgeous early in the day. The streets were quiet except for sounds of birds, bees, and slight breezes.

I hope this warm weather continues for days to come!

Today marks one week since his nasal and septum surgery. Which I cannot believe. I almost feel like it's been months! But...it's only been 7 days. We were supposed to go back to the Dr. today to get his nose cast and stitches removed, but had to reschedule for tomorrow morning because the Dr. is ill. Bummer. We were really looking forward to having his "normal" new nose. Oh well.

Yesterday was a kind of a big day- my husband felt good enough to paint! He hasn't been able to hold his head (especially in a downward position!!) since the surgery, but yesterday he said he felt "ok" :) So while I continued crocheting my leg warmers, he broke out his watercolor sketchbook and got in some good painting time.

He had this idea of what he wanted to paint, so he had me pose earlier in the day. It's me...hiding behind our front door...like a crazy woman, with little Mustachio by my side. It actually turned out pretty neat.

I feel like I've been working on this one leg warmer forever (continuing with the "when you don't work time becomes a blur" thing)!! I realized once I got this far, that it's taken me only two days to get to this point. So, in reality...it's not so bad. I need about 4 or 5 times what I've done to have one completed leg warmer! Then....it's on to the second one...my gosh. And...just in time for summer! -_- I love it though.

I also got to work a little yesterday. Like actual work. Since putting my Etsy shop back up (off vacation mode) a few days ago, I've received a lot of custom order inquiries. So each day I'm sort of organizing and getting those in order. These little "folk art" stars are some of my favorites. And that blue! I love that blue! I was so happy the woman who ordered them loved it too.

So that's what's been going on here! I just feel so incredibly thankful to all of you who have been praying for us and checking up on us. Thank you, thank you!! I plan on getting some "actual" blog(s) up next week, including a recipe! Hoping to get more than one up! Haha. I hope your Friday is a good one, filled with yummy treats and fun times!

Oh! Valentine's day is coming up!! Do you guys have any big plans??? I'd love to hear! I'd be happy to have a "normal" day with no pain or sickness in our house ;) Maybe we can sneak away to a little movie or something too *Fingers crossed*!

this past week...

2012-02-08T11:41:00.000-08:00

Hey guys!

It feels so weird blogging...I know it's only been a week off. But when it's something you eat, breathe, and sleep every single day- taking even a week's break feels strange.

As you know, this break came from having to tend to my recuperating husband. He's still recuperating, but he's now able to be left alone for a little bit at a time.

I'll be honest. This last week was brutal. For both of us. I could only imagine what it must have been like for him. I don't think we prepared for his recovery being this tough. But alas, we made it through the hardest parts, and here we are...just kind of enjoying the time we have left together before he has to be back to work. By "enjoying" I mean trying to watch movies (and finish Felicity! GASP!!!) in between him having spurts of feeling terrible.

I don't really have concentrated and awesome info for this first blog, but I wanted to sort of touch base with you all and let you know how we are...and that I'm still around. The next few weeks might not be consistent in the blogging department, but I'll try my best to have something up every now and then until he's completely healed.

The surgery was a success! Was supposed to be 4 hours but only lasted 3 1/2! We arrived at the hospital around 5:20 in the morning last Friday and he was rolled into the OR around 7:45am. That was the hardest part. THE HARDEST PART. I was able to sit with him in the pre-op room and hang out for a little bit which calmed my nerves. We shared some nervous laughs (more on my part) and took some funny pictures while waiting for the surgeon to arrive.

Everything was sort of fine until they came to hook him up and roll him away. Saying goodbye made me want to vomit. I won't even lie. Gosh I hope I never have to do that again.

After waiting a little bit with his mom (who by the way was SUCH a blessing being there) I felt good enough to eat. From then on, things were relatively fun. As much fun as one can have siting around a hospital. My husband is such a thoughtful guy- he knew I had started having this strong desire to learn how to either knit or crochet. So a couple days before the surgery while talking to his mom about the day's itinerary, he asked if she (a great crocheter) wouldn't mind taking the "waiting room time" to teach me! That's just what we did!!

So while sitting around we talked, laughed, and I was taught how to single crochet! Isn't this yarn sweet looking? It reminded me of a sort of Neapolitan ice cream ;) Light and subtle shades of ivory, peachie pink, and soft milk chocolate brown.

I kid not, by the end of our waiting session I was hooked (no pun intended)!! I couldn't stop. I even thought about it while doing mundane things that night (showering, dishes, straightening up, etc). So needless to say, 24 hours later I had completed my first ever crocheted thing- a pot holder. Sort of feeling like a 5 year old with this project under my belt, but whatever. It's at least something I can definitely use. Planning on making another soon.

Soon to be leg warmers.

A few days after the surgery, his mom came over again to help care for my husband (help me out and keep me company!) and while sitting around chatting that day she taught me how to double crochet. So fun. She brought me a few easy to learn books, and right away I spotted something I've been searching Etsy for, for weeks- leg warmers that would go higher than my boots on my leg! Zing! Making those. I'm about a quarter of the way done with my first- which is proving to take longer than expected. I'm thinking I might be done with both in a couple of weeks. I'm SO used to making things that are relatively instantly finished- cakes, desserts, edible decorations, that it's taking some patience on my part to be ok with working on something for a week or two (or more). No instant gratification here. At least not in a "completed project" sense.

There's something so soothing about letting your brain mellow out and start to clear while working on a crocheted piece. This is definitely a good thing.

Tuesday we went back to the Dr for his first post-op happening. While there his nose splints (or were they called stints?) were removed. That was pretty terrible...he didn't do so well during that appointment. But again, once we got home and he was able to lay down and rest, he was fine. He's such a strong guy. Even when he's feeling pretty lame, he still tries to make me laugh and be silly. It's only when things get too hard or painful that he has to be still and left alone. Friday we go to have the remaining stitches removed...y..a...y..

My healing husband and his Gryffindor socks.

Of course, someone has decided she loves when I crochet too. She loves to lay next to me (or on me if I'll let her) and pretend to be resting while waiting for the perfect time to snake a piece of yarn. She's decided to be a very cliché cat. So far I've caught her batting a few strands, gnawing on a ball of yarn, and once (and only once) bite through a strand I was about to weave in. Ugh. That was lame.

Who can stay mad at this face though?

So that's what's been going on here. Everyday he's feeling a little bit better. Some days are harder than others...but he's consistently recovering. YAY!! Thanks to all of you who have kept him (and me) in your prayers- we truly appreciate it!

Until next time...

chickpea dip + taking a little break...

2012-02-02T09:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Thursday friends! I hope it is indeed a happy day for you all.

Tomorrow is sort of a big deal for my husband and I. We'll be in the hospital all day for an open nasal and septum repair surgery my husband has to have :( Poor guy. He had a ~~not so~~ silly accident back in '07 that since has left him unable to breathe out of one nostril. The other nostril only works at a certain percentage- not ever reaching 100%. He thought it would get better..or that he'd get used to it. Instead it's become a tad worse.

Extreme headaches, neck aches, snoring, and the inability to sleep without a nasal strip are just some of the repercussions he's had to deal with since. They didn't seem to be getting any better so we met with a few different doctors to discuss options...they all led back to surgery. So...here we are.

I'll be honest, I'm nervous. Not nervous that something terrible is going to happen to him during surgery. We have been praying continuously for God's hand in the operating room, alone, together, and with fellow friends. I'm more nervous for my husband- that he even has to go through this. I guess like an overprotective wife, I just want him to be better- NOW. I'm scared for how he'll feel once he comes out of the OR...I'm scared of how he'll look. I'm scared about how I'll handle seeing him jacked up (both on medication and messed up in the face). I expect swelling and bruising...but I guess I don't know what else to expect. I'm a sort of "over expector"- I like to know what I'm getting into.

I'm also extremely nervous about his pain level. Having an open-nasal surgery is sort of a big deal which I'm sure is going to involve A LOT of post surgery pain. And I'm scared for him with all of that.

He's a strong guy so I know, in reality, he'll be fine. Maybe I'm more nervous for myself... I'm not a strong girl. When he's sick or hurting, I don't know what to do. I want him better right away which leads me to not know what to do. A few family members have offered to come keep us company and help out, WHICH makes my heart sing!

Anyway...so that's what we're going to be going though tomorrow. We were told to expect a "needs your help" recovery of up to a week because of the type of surgery he is going to have. I have devoted myself to caring for him during this time. Which means there will be a length of time that I am absent from blogging and Etsy. It just has to be. I don't know how long my actual absence will be- I'm thinking no longer than a week.... Maybe two at the most. I have just officially turned my Etsy shop to "vacation mode" but will tend to any and all emails as soon as I "come back". Again, I'm thinking no longer than a week. If you want to order something from our shop, or have any questions, just go ahead and send me a message and I'll get back to you kind of shortly, haha. I know Bill loves when I blog- so as soon as he can care for himself (and probably sit around playing video games) I'll be back at it!

Prayers are VERY much appreciated! Please please pray for us both. For his surgery, for his recovery, and for some super-woman strength for me! Thanks friends.

Before I sign off, I wanted to share one more easy, yummy, and very healthy recipe for you all! I made this super quick one afternoon- I needed a healthy but hearty lunch to pick me up after a long morning of working. It totally hit the spot. And yes...it involves canned beans...which I am learning is a no no because of recently found BPA in canned things. But we still have a few cans left and they need to be used up!

Chickpea Dip
Makes about 1 1/2 cups

1 15oz can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
4 ounces olive oil
2 tablespoons greek yogurt
2 teaspoons rough chopped fresh chives
1 tablespoon rough chopped fresh basil
1 teaspoon fresh lemon thyme (or substitute regular thyme)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 fresh jalapeno- chopped
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1. In a blender or food processor add all ingredients EXCEPT oil.

2. With blender or processor on, mix together while slowly drizzling oil in.

3. You know you're there when you have a nice smooth-ish consistency!

4. Serve in a bowl with fresh organic veggies or pita chips!

*Will last in an air tight container, in fridge for up to one week.

So until next time, I'll miss you all (keep us in your prayers) and talk to you soon!
xoxo

edible button "how to" + my first guest tutorial...

2012-02-01T09:19:00.000-08:00

Hello my lovelies! Happy Hump Day....whatever that means...

Two weeks ago I was a guest blogger on the super neat Cakeb0t. Did you see it?? The lovely Binky, of Cakeb0t, had asked me months ago if I was interested in doing a tutorial on her cake decorating blog. Being my first guest post ever, I ~~jumped raced~~ humbly accepted the invitation.

Cakeb0t is one awesome site. If you've never been, I strongly suggest checking it out. Filled with "how-to's", cake decorating tips, and techniques...this is a must bookmark site for any baker. PLUS you can sign up to receive a FREE Buttercream eBooklet! Come on now!

Having never done such a thing I sort of looked through some previous tutorials until I thought I had "the feel" for it. I guess the teacher in me came out full swing in this post- Binky not only loved my tutorial but was shocked at the thoroughness and extreme specifications I went to. Oh me. Always over doing it.

My husband and I talked about the ways we wanted to go- not only in WHAT to actually teach on, but also on how the best way to show everything would be. I wanted to make sure one could see my fingers and the detailed things they were doing...and wanted the picture to be completely self explanatory...or as much as possible.

We decided to go with one of our popular Etsy items- our edible buttons because we figured that's what people would want to see. Plus, we figured it's always a good idea to multi-task tools in the kitchen...and home. We assumed anyone willing to make these would for sure have piping tips on hand (in some sizes), so this would keep people from going out and buying something special for this specific decoration. Any tool that can multi-task is a good one to me! So madeleine pan...you suck...seriously what else is there to do with you?!...Other than to make scrumptious madeleines?? On second thought, maybe we can still be friends. FRIENDSIES!

ANYWAY, without further adieu, here is my tutorial for my Edible Button Decorations featured on Cakeb0t!
PS- Check out my hubbie's awesome photography skills! Eh..eh?

Supplies Needed:
1. Cookie sheet lined with tinfoil (or parchment)
2. Self healing cutting mat (or plastic smooth surfaced cutting board)
3. 2 oz of gum paste per desired color (I chose purple, green, and orange)
4. Toothpicks
5. Mini offset spatula
6. Mini roller- something like this would also suffice
7. Flat edged gum paste tool- you can get a kit like this which has everything you’ll need!
8. Assorted piping tips- I specifically used a Magic Tip 9pt, Ateco #806, and an Ateco #804
9. Plastic wrap (not shown)

Get out your nifty cutting mat and roll out your gum paste until you’ve reached a thickness of 1/8-1/4″. I like my buttons closer to 1/8″ thick, but for new beginners, thicker would be easier :) Any extra gum paste you have needs to be kept rolled up in plastic wrap, or else it will dry out FASTER than you can say, “Dang that dried up fast!”

Cut out assorted sized circles with the tops AND bottoms of your piping tips. Can you say, “Multi-tasking tools rock?!” For larger buttons, use bottom of the Magic Tip 9pt, medium sizes use top of Magic Tip 9pt, and for the smallest sized buttons use the tops of an Ateco tip #806 and #804. Of course, you can be creative and use whatever, but these are the sizes that work for me! Roll scraps back into a ball and wrap tightly in plastic wrap…you know…because of the drying and stuff.

For the largest buttons:

After you've cut your large buttons out (bottom of Magic Tip 9pt), use your flat edged gum paste tool and smooth the edges so that you have a smooth circle. If any of the medium or smaller sized buttons have ragged edges, do this to them as well.

You can go many ways when creating the larger buttons, and I highly encourage creativity- but what I’ve found works really well and produces buttons I just adore and think are pretty snazzy- I take the bottom of my Ateco tip #806 and GENTLY and EVENLY press down until I’ve created a sort of border. Careful not to go through the gum paste all the way…or else…well, you’ll have a little smaller of a button! No big.

Next, using your mini offset spatula, carefully pick up your large button and with a toothpick punch through 4 holes in the center.

Large Button done!

Another way to go with the larger buttons: You can skip creating the border and go straight to punching holes in the center with your toothpick. 2 to 4 holes of course! Variety is key!

For the middle sized buttons:

For medium sized buttons, I cut out my buttons using the top of my Magic Tip 9pt piping tip. To create a button with a border, I use the top of my Ateco #806 to gently press onto my button cut out with the top of my Magic Tip 9pt piping tip.

Like with the larger buttons, using your mini offset spatula, carefully pick up buttons and punch through the center with either 2 or 4 holes.

I've found that with the medium and smaller buttons, you might have to flatten out the surface again once border has been made and holes have been punched. Sometimes these little guys like to try and roll up.

Finished medium sized button with border!

For the smallest buttons:

After cutting out button with the top of my Ateco #806 piping tip, I use the top of my Ateco #804 to gently and evenly press down- this again, creates the button with a border. Remember kids, don’t go through all the way!

Using mini offset spatula, carefully pick up small button and punch through 2 (or 4 if you’re a daredevil) small holes in center with toothpick.

If the button is too small for you to pick up, just leave on cutting mat and carefully pierce through the center with your toothpick. Go ahead, no one is looking…we won’t judge.

Finally, lay each button flat on your cookie sheet lined with tinfoil (or parchment) and let air dry for 24 hours. If you live somewhere with crazy amounts of humidity (let’s say Hawaii…love you Hawaii…but let’s be honest, you’re one humid state!), this drying step might take a little longer. Just test them out everyday- they’re done with they’re completely firm!

Viola!

Once dried and completely firm, gently lift off of tinfoil and decorate your favorite cupcake!!!

Or, if you're so inclined, click the button below and it'll take you straight to the tutorial on Cakeb0t's site:

currently...

2012-01-31T10:59:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd do something kind of fun. Share some things currently on my heart right now ;)

Obsessing over…

My husband is going to kill me. Literally. This might be the last blog post you ever read because once he catches wind of what I am about to say- that might be the end of my life as I know it. We are.. errr I am totally obsessing over Felicity. What began as "eh this is kind of cool" back when I was 13 or so turned into a total love fest for me as a 27 year old. I won't even try to hide it. We have Netflix. We love it. I started watching old episodes of Felicity about 3 months ago as a late night thing..and now, here we are with a full blown obsession. Not only me, but my husband too. We both love it (in his defense it took A LOT more convincing on my part that he should watch and will love it). Last night we watched a few episodes (we're in season 4! Gah!!) and I, sigh, bawled like a little baby. It's such a good show.

Working on…

Right now, NOTHING! It's a first!!! I'm usually so swamped with blog duties and Etsy orders...but am happy to say I have literally nothing I need to catch up/work on! I might have just jinxed it though...I can feel my Etsy senses tingling.

Thinking about…

Everything I need to finish and do before my husband's big surgery on Friday :( By "finish" I mean with things at home. My list currently includes but is not limited to:

Go grocery shopping (specifically for post-surgery friendly foods and drinks
Do laundry (I swear...we don't even have kids! But our laundry pile is always out of this world)
Clean the house, change sheets, organize things so that everything we might possibly need after said surgery is easily found.
Organize blog and Etsy so that I can put everything on "vacation mode" while I tend to my healing husband.

Anticipating…

This is so silly...but I am actually anticipating our bittersweet conversion from Blackberry to iPhone on (what we're hoping) is Wednesday. I have had a Blackberry phone for at least the last 4 years. Our current contract supposedly expires which means NEW PHONES!!! We have been "shopping around" and saving up for a few months now (knowing this time was coming) and I think we both are going to make the big change and go over to iPhone. It seems like the perfect phone for me right now (having many apps I have been using on my husband's iPod already). Plus THAT CAMERA! Jeez! Can't wait to try out my new phone's lovely camera.

Listening to…

The always grazing Mombi, as she ~~not so~~ quietly chomps on some left over crunchies from breakfast. Oh and Florence + The Machine is on my Pandora station- "Strangeness and Charm" specifically. Gosh I love her. I heard she's playing here soon....hmmm....

Eating…

Nothing! Wow, that's a first. It seems I'm always eating something. I AM drinking some Irish Tea though...does that count? And I did have some Mom's Best Naturals Honey Nut Toasty O's with almond milk for breakfast. After typing that out I giggled, what a silly cereal name.

Wishing…

Honestly, wishing this weekend would have gone a bit better. I'm sad to say it was a hard one, for many reasons. For one, there was a dentist appointment included...which if you know me is NOT A GOOD THING. I HATE dentists. Doesn't matter if you're the nicest person in real life...if you happen to have chosen dentistry as your profession- chances are I will not like you. Don't take it personally. It's nothing against you as a person. It's all and only about the profession you chose. You hurt. You poke and prod. You make horrible things happen. Like have a wisdom tooth (that's not even hurting or able to be seen with the naked eye!!!) pulled....in March. Ugh.

Linking up with The Paper Mama for her Self Photo Challenge!

harriet rachel + jm wedding 1.1.12...

2012-01-30T12:03:00.000-08:00

I recently had the extreme honor and pleasure of helping out a friend during her New Year's wedding :) Having a small and very intimate gathering to celebrate their special day, our friends Harriet Rachel and Jean Marc asked me to be the one to capture photographs of the day.

I'll be honest- I was so nervous! I take pictures as a hobby on most days and necessity some days in order to capture yummy treats to show you all on here. Sure more and more friends are asking me to capture special events they have going in their lives, but I've never ever photographed a wedding! I know a few friends who do it for a living and I have so much respect for that profession. It looks exhausting and stressful (and yet a tad exhilarating too). But they assured me that I had nothing to stress about: they wanted an easy shoot- just a few pictures of them together before the ceremony...a few during the big event...and then to just relax as a guest for the reception. Score!

This wedding was just plain beautiful. It had such an easy, carefree and comforting family-like feel to it- everything from the Bride's Free People dress to their backyard reception filled with flowers and twinkle lights was just wonderful.

Once I got started on the actual picture taking I found myself "warmed up" pretty quick; things went more smoothly than I had imagined! Maybe it was the couple I was shooting...maybe it was the fact that I've known the family FOR YEARS ;)..whatever the case, I think it's safe to say we all had a blast. Thank you so much to this wonderfully sweet family for this amazing opportunity.

Ring Shots!!

I just love the button detail on that dress!

glass jar obsession + a recipe for quinoa, lentil + sweet potato cakes...

2012-01-27T11:09:00.000-08:00

I've recently become ~~even more~~ obsessed with glass containers and jars. I can't help it. They're all just so nice...and glass like...and chic...and...just awesome to have around the house. I have some I use as vases, some I stuff twinkle lights in, to add nice soft lighting to our living room...Some larger ones I use as drink containers for homemade iced tea or lemonade...there's a million things to do with glass jars.

More recently, I've really taken to buying dry goods in bulk at our local health food store and using said glass jars as storage containers. It makes my cabinet look neat and tidy-which in turn makes for a very happy Christina. I like things that are "neat" and especially "tidy".

Right now, on hand we have:

Organic Quinoa
Whole Wheat Couscous
Chia Seeds
Flax Seeds
Green Lentils
Red Lentils
Black Beans
Barley
and Winter Berries

I couldn't be happier. I plan on getting a lot more dry goods as the weeks go on- and sort of have a can-free cupboard soon. Oh by the way, have you read this? Scary stuff.

Anyway, it's grey this morning.

We have the most fickle weather here. Yesterday...well and the day before that, it was 80...today, cold and grey. Oh and it was freezing this past weekend with off and on rain. Definitely fickle. Definitely hard for those who get sick easily. Thank goodness my husband and I are not part of that club.

Yesterday I had some Etsy orders I had to finish up- and I was sweating my face off while doing so- at 4pm! Our house somehow had turned into a little fiery furnace of sunshine, heat, sweaty people (and cats). Poor cats. I couldn't imagine walking around with a fur coat (although beautiful) stuck to me...And Mombi- she's so...chubby! All that extra cat weight...plus hair...on a hot day...Ugh.

Needless to say the last two night's dinners were hardly anything to brag about. Wednesday night I came home from a day out and couldn't get my pants and shirt off fast enough, it was so hot. I quickly changed into some "house only" appropriate clothes before I even had a chance to say "hey" to my hubbie. That night we had ceviche. There was NO way a hot oven or flame was entering our living spaces.

Last night wasn't as hot, so I did engage in flame cooking. But it had to be a quick one because I could only stand the kitchen heat for so long. So we had fried eggs on toasted homemade bread, with sauteed beet greens (with garlic) and Parmesan. Simple, nourishing, and totally a "hot night" kind of quick meal.

But the night before that...that's the meal I want to share with you all.

Wanting to really utilize my new dry goods, I remembered I had pinned a recipe a long time ago for a recipe Whole Foods had. In it, they included things I had just bought and was antsy to use as soon as possible. Not only that, but I had also been trying to find/create a new veggie-burger type thing because the store bought one we've been munching on lately was no longer liked by my sweet husband. It was also store-bought...'nuff said.

I tweaked a few things here and there- making it more Main Approved...and gotta say- we both just loved every morsel. My husband, a big meat eater, said it was the best one yet. That's saying something! Here's my version...

Quinoa, Lentil + Sweet Potato Cakes
Serves 4
Adapted from this recipe.

1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
1/2 cup uncooked green lentils
1 small red pepper, finely diced (I mean FINELY diced)
1/2 small onion, grated on the large side of a box grater (juices discarded)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (or regular paprika if that's all you have)
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoons chia seeds
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 cup cooked, drained, and pureed sweet potato

1. Cook lentils and quinoa according to your package instructions. If any cooking liquid remains after cooking, drain. If using bulk dried goods like me cook lentils and quinoa like this:

Lentils- In a small saucepot add your half cup of rinsed lentils and 1 cup of cold water (make sure to pick through lentils and discard any bad ones or stones). Cover and bring to a boil. Turn down heat till you have a simmer and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until lentils are cooked through but not mushy. Drain any remaining liquid.

Quinoa- In a small saucepan add 1 cup water (or stock)- bring to a boil. Add your quinoa and stir. Cover and simmer for 15 minutes or until quinoa is cooked all the way. If there is any liquid remaining, drain it off for this recipe.

2. Boil cubed sweet potatoes until fork tender. Drain well and puree using either a blender, food processor or your potato masher! Set aside.

3. Grate your onion into a large bowl, drain any liquid that accumulates. Finely chop your red bell pepper and add to your onion.

4. Add your cooked lentils and quinoa to the red pepper/onion and mix well.

5. Add the paprika, oregano, cumin, chia seeds, salt, and pepper. Mix well.

6. Next add your sweet potato puree and mix gently to combine. Combine thoroughly.

This is what your mix should look like after everything is incorporated.

7. Spray a sheet pan lightly with oil and make 4 generous portioned patties (or 5 smaller ones). Place on top of the sheet pan (or place on a plate and wrap with foil if wanting to cook later on).

8. Bake at 375*F for 15-20 minutes. Flip very carefully and bake 10 minutes more.

**Alternatively, you can very lightly and gently saute these in a pan...or if you're SUPER careful grill them.

Although these would make excellent veggie burgers (which we will be doing) we decided to lighten up our dinner even more and just serve over a bed of organic baby spinach.

As Rachel Ray would say, "Yum-O."

recipe: spicy + sour coconut curry soup...

2012-01-25T09:31:00.000-08:00

This is one of those feel good dishes my husband and I love. Not only feel good, but comforting as well. We've taken a huge love to all things Thai and especially love anything with the word "curry" in it. I, more specifically, have grown increasingly fond of coconut curries and hot and sour things.

Seriously. If it's got the words "spicy", "hot", "sour", "coconut", "curry", or a combination of any of those- I'm all in. I don't care what it is. My husband is always happy to climb on board with me. You'll most likely find us at our local Thai restaurant eating a huge plate of coconut curry chicken over brown rice, with a huge bowl of Tom Kha Gai on the side!

It's exactly those loves that inspired a remake of a soup I spotted in my November issue of Food Network Magazine. Featured on their site as well, their Thai Dumpling Soup had a lot of the flavors I was looking for. It was a great place to start off from!

Having a huge craving for something "spicy" and "sour" as well as for something "coconut-curry" based, I decided to try this soup, but add my own special touches to it....actually almost completely redo it altogether! I'm going to admit- although this soup is completely easy to make, one might not have all the ingredients used on hand. I get that, I totally do. We happen to LOVE Asian cuisine, so we've literally STOCKED up our fridge and pantry with many yummy and exciting Asian condiments and ingredients.

Some things can be omitted if you'd like- for example the fish sauce. Although it'll give the soup a very distinct (AND NON FISHY I swear) flavor, you can of course leave it out. Sambal is another one- we love this stuff, but it is indeed SPICY so be careful. I mean, if you have a stuffy nose and you eat this stuff, your nose will begin clearing up type of spicy. If you're not a fan of spice go ahead and leave it out. Or if you love spice, but don't have (or want to buy) Sambal, go ahead and use Sriracha instead....I'm assuming everyone has this amazingly delicious condiment right? ..RIGHT?!!? It's amazingly-tastebudily-explosive. No joke, if you like spice- your taste buds will find a way to find me and personally thank me for introducing you to this stuff.

This soup is a great one-pot dish as well as an easy way to include a variety of veggies and good for ya stuff in one meal. Make it on a Sunday afternoon and enjoy that night. It's so easy to make, that you can of course, make during any weeknight. Oh and by the way- this tastes SO good the next day...so make extras.

Spicy + Sour Coconut Curry Soup
Serves 4

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 carrot, washed and thinly sliced on the bias
4 ounces crimini mushrooms, wiped clean and sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon yellow curry powder
4 cups chicken stock (or to make vegetarian- vegetable or mushroom stock)
1 14ounce can coconut milk
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sambal sauce
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon fresh black pepper
1/3 package whole wheat spaghetti pasta, broken into 1"pieces (as best you can)
half a bunch of fresh asparagus, washed and cut into 1" pieces
8 ounces frozen peas
1 14ounce package extra firm tofu, drained and cut into 1" cubes
1 cup fresh spinach
1 cup beet greens, rinsed, dried, and cut into bite sized pieces

1. Heat the olive oil in a large sauce pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Add the carrot and mushrooms and cook stirring occasionally 2-3 minutes.

2. Turn your heat down to medium-low. Next add the garlic, ginger, and curry powder and cook, stirring frequently until your curry powder has toasted a bit- 1-2 minutes.

3. Add your chicken (or vegetarian) stock, coconut milk and one cup water. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat.

4. While simmering, add your fish sauce, soy sauce, sambal, rice wine vinegar, lemon juice, honey, salt, and pepper. Mix thoroughly.

5. Next add your broken whole wheat spaghetti pieces, asparagus, peas, tofu, spinach, and beet greens and simmer uncovered 10-15 minutes, or until pasta is cooked through. Taste- may need to add more salt, if desired.

6. Serve, piping hot with lemon wedges on the side.

good friends + care packages...

2012-01-23T09:49:00.000-08:00

Now would you take a look at that! Isn't this just the prettiest collaboration of things for your hungry eyes?

My husband and I were thrilled to pieces when we found out our dear dear friends, Lynn and Chris, over at Sunshowers and Rainshine were sending us a care package! Thrilled might be a tiny understatement- I was ECSTATIC when my good friend, Lynn, told me the news.

Lynn and I go waaaaaaay back. By way back I mean to the days we were silly girls doing silly things. It seems every time we get together we end up reminiscing about some seriously kooky times!...and boys! We can't help ourselves, but I will say this- we always end up in tears because of laughing so hard! She and I have gone through many ups and some pretty lame downs and through those experiences has become a friend I carry extremely close to my heart.

It's one of the hardest things- having these two wonderful people live clear across the country...but we all try and keep in touch as much as humanly possible! We've even had the extreme privilege of visiting each other on random vacation trips! Now that's super fun!
So back to the care package! When Lynn told me they were "putting together some things to send to us" I never in one trillion years expected:

1. Such a huge box to be delivered!

2. A box filled with what would become some of my new cherished possessions.

As the hubbie and I opened up our box, we were as giddy as little kids on Christmas. We laughed, "OoooOo'd" and "Awwwwww'd" with everything we saw. Here's what was included:

A little background story. We visited our sweet friends for our first year anniversary. It was, by far, the best anniversary we have had, yet. While staying at their wonderful Virginian home in a room Lynn dec'd out to look completely hotel suite like, we all spent a good afternoon gorging ourselves on these chips. Now I've had BBQ flavored chips before...and I'm kind of a fan...but these chips...oh my gosh! They're like nothing I've ever tasted. So ridiculously good!!! I was SO DANG HAPPY to see a bag in our box! ...They were gone in two days. "Family Size" my butt!

Lynn has her own Etsy shop that sells some of the most precious handmade little girl's hair bands and pieces. I always joke with my husband that IF/WHEN we have a little girl, I'll be raiding Lynn's store buying one of everything. She has such an eye for some of the coolest fabrics when making all her things! So, needless to say, when there were two "not so little girl" hair pieces in our care package I was overjoyed! I cannot wait to wear them!

Now this thing...this is the pièce de résistance. This thing I am utterly in love with. Lynn handmade and hand sewed our very own bird mobile. It's maybe the sweetest thing anyone has ever made and given us. If you're a regular follower, you know...we have a thing for birds. Not to be confused with Porlandia's thing for birds...but a much more tangible and reasonable sweet thing for birds. We even had two on our wedding invitation over 3 years ago.

So to have something so very us and just so incredibly sweet, makes my bird-loving-heart flutter! Right now it's hanging in our dining room, but we plan on moving it to a future nursery, whenever that time comes :)

Isn't the cloud just too adorable?!!?

So, thank you so so so much guys. From the very bottom of our hearts we both thank you. Every time we see this lovely thing, or wear a hair piece, or play a video game (not shown) we think of you guys and how amazingly awesome you two are.

And jeez, now we miss you even more!

I have a feeling care packages to our friends might become a more regular thing. I forgot how fun it was to actually receive and open something from a loved one living far away. Big plans guys...big plans in 2012 to bring back the handwritten letter and care package! Are you with me?

recipe: kale salad with citrus vinaigrette...

2012-01-20T09:23:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday my sweet friends! Are you ready for the weekend? I'm kind of excited right now- we might get some rain today...mmMMmm rain. Although I love a sun-shiny day as much as the next person, I also love those stormy cold, grey rain days. Which is what I think we might have today. *fingers crossed*

That being said, let's give it up for kale!!! ....What? No? You don't like kale?

Hmm...let's see if I can change that.

When I first was introduced to kale...I was a wee Christina, going out to dinner with my family. I remember my first encounter clearly- there it was...sitting under a little white cup of ketchup on my plate of chicken strips. When I asked what on earth it was, I was told it was "a garnish". Ahh kale....you super-duper-high-on-the-powerfood-spectrum...are used and mostly familiarized as a garnish.

Fast forward to about a year ago. I was hanging out at a potluck lunch (or was it dinner?...who cares...a potluck something) when one friend brought a big bowl of "garnish" salad. I couldn't believe my eyes. Sure, I've read all about how good for you kale is...and I'm trying to get myself to eat more and more of these "good for you" things...Sure I've bought it a few times from my local health food store (organically grown of course). I've used it in soups and stir-frys. I've even tossed it in olive oil and baked it into chips in my attempt to get myself to eat more of the healthy green non-garnish veggie (oh if you haven't done that, PLEASE DO- it's amazing).

But when I saw it...being served once more in it's raw, very garnish-like state...I was so obsessively intrigued that I ran over to the bowl and scooped a serving for myself to try.

...You know what? It was DELICIOUS. Absolutely amazingly yummy. And so my new love for kale began.

So it only makes sense that I offer a salad recipe for you all to try at home. I was so inspired by this friend's salad that I couldn't wait to get home and make my own version for the hubbie and I to eat regularly. It's funny, this once scary and totally unappealing looking vegetable is now, believe it or not, one of my favorites. To be even more honest- all the cooking I was doing to it all this time- doesn't compare to how yummy it is in it's raw form, in this salad.

Kale is high in vitamins K, A, and C and also packs a bit of fiber in it's leaves as well. So essentially, what's not to like?

Oh, you don't think you like the way it tastes? You don't think you'll like the texture? Challenge accepted.

Now go to your market and pick up a bunch of organic kale...there's a few different types out there. Let's give this a try.

Kale Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette
Serves 2 as a dinner course, or 4 as a lunch or salad course

For the citrus vinaigrette:

2 tablespoons fresh organic orange juice
2 tablespoons fresh organic lemon juice
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
2 teaspoons agave syrup or honey
2 ounces good extra virgin olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1. Combine the juices, mustard, and agave (or honey) in a bowl.

2. Whisking continuously, slowly add the olive oil until amount has been incorporated and you've reached an emulsion (everything is 100% combined).

3. Add salt and pepper to taste, and set aside.

For the salad:

1 bunch organic kale, washed well, dried and removed from stems
2 organic oranges, supremed (shown in picture below)
1/4 cup freshly toasted sliced organic almonds

1. After your kale has been washed vigorously, dried, and de-stemmed, tear into a bowl (or place on a cutting board and chop) into bite sized pieces.

2. Next, supreme your oranges:

-Take one orange at a time.

-Cut the bottom and top off of orange, exposing the flesh.

-Next following the shape of the orange, cut from top-down, removing all peel and white pith.

-Holding the naked orange in your hand, carefully cut each segment out, by inserting knife into orange between the membrane (white line) on each side of segment.

-Squeeze remaining orange after all segments have been discarded so you can use that juice!

-Carefully add segments into kale salad.

3. Now, add your freshly toasted (and cooled) sliced organic almonds.

4. Lastly, drizzle some of the vinaigrette over your salad. You will not use all of the dressing. Go ahead and add remaining dressing to an air-tight container and save in fridge for your next salad! Will keep in fridge for up to one week! Shake before using again :)

5. Toss gently, plate, and enjoy!

I kid not, I made this for my hubbie one night for dinner...and only this salad. We were both full! So, needless to say- it'll leave you happily (and healthily) full! Of course, with a non-salad-plate-sized portion!

recipe: sugar-free lemon cheesecake...

2012-01-18T10:08:00.000-08:00

Man what a morning so far. Unless you live in a cave I'm sure you've heard about the new bill Congress is trying to pass- well two new bills, SOPA and PIPA. Basically (and very very simply speaking) what could very well happen if these bills were to indeed pass is this: sites all over the internet could be banned or blocked, without a trial/court hearing if they (with knowledge or not) had anything on their site that was copyrighted. Now I know what you might be thinking, "Cool! Yeah! Stop Piracy!" and believe me, I'm all for that as well...but what's not cool is the "with knowledge or not" part.

Meaning if a little blog posted let's say...something they loved off of Pinterest...and didn't know the absolute first source this particular thing came from...and wrote a little blurb about it stating how cool or beautiful it was with only a link back to Pinterest...and then creator of that particular thing saw their site and didn't like not being credited- that blog could be banned...blocked.

Not only little ol blogs...but all those wedding blogs we frequent daily and drool over every morning over tea. Yeah those could be blocked too...without notice...for things like showcasing a photographer's latest wedding that had a picture of an invite so neat- people all over starting pinning and talking about it over the internet. Now this wedding blog doesn't know that the artist who did the invite actually STOLE someone else's idea, so they credited the amazing piece to that first copyrighting artist. Fast forward to the actual artist who originally DID do the piece...she/he sees this...sees it's credited to someone else...gets upset (rightfully so) and complains...BAM every single site that showcased this "amazing" invite crediting the "not so legit copyrighting artist" as the original artist will be banned. Every single site.

I'm really bad at explaining things like this...but this wonderful blog is not...check this out and read what I mean...It's sort of ridiculous. So ridiculous that many sites, over 7,000, have gone on strike. Have you seen Google...or Wordpress...or Wikipedia lately?

If you feel as strongly opposed to these bills as I do, you can send a letter to congress easily and totally stress free (YAY!) through sites like this one and this one telling them to stop the bills. I took a stand...have you?

Phew....alright...let's get up and shake the serious stuff off us for a little bit...
Let's get to talking about sweet things...lemony...delicious...cheesecakey sweet things to be exact.

It was my dad's birthday on the 10th. Since he is diabetic, every year I try to bake him something sugar-free or no-sugar-added, so he can enjoy a dessert. It's gotten to be quite the challenge these last few times-mostly because 1. I don't want to repeat a dessert I've made in the past and 2. I want a healthy sugar substitute to use, in place of sugar (ahem NO SPLENDA PLEASE!!). Usually I'll bake something that needs no sugar at all (i.e: apple pies)...but when it comes to his favorite (cheesecake and anything lemon), you kind of have to have that sugary yumminess involved.

Now the rest of us in the family are not diabetic, but that doesn't mean we won't partake in these non-sugar delights. So they have to be so good, we "sugar-eaters" won't miss the real thing. Actually if we're going to talk on real terms for a second- my husband and I are always trying to cut out the white stuff from our diets anyway (me more than him). So I'm happy to say these types of desserts are a good option for diabetics and those wanting to eliminate sugar from the diets- AND still have the opportunity to eat scrumptious desserts!

I've done this recipe before using stevia, and it came out...okay. I've been wanting to try out this new bag of xylitol my mother in law gave me a while ago- so I figured this was the perfect time! The great thing about this xylitol- it's basically measured cup for cup in place of sugar! Rock on xylitol!

BY THE WAY (I'm about to nerd out for a second):
In case you have no idea what xylitol is...let me clue you in! It is a natural sweetener that comes from the North American hardwood. It is a low-glycemic sugar and is also metabolized in a way that is safe for diabetics and anyone else wanting to cut that sugar out.

Oh oh! I also wanted to say- I chose to use a disposable pie tin for this particular cheesecake both because I love cheesecakes in pie dishes AND because the remaining cheesecake (after we all gorged on it) would be taken home by my dad to snack on. I know it doesn't look the prettiest...but I didn't want to part with any of my ceramic pie dishes, so a disposable tin it would be!

So let's get to the cheesecake shall we!? Here is a combo of two of my dad's favorite things: Cheesecake and Lemons...

Sugar-Free Lemon Cheesecake
Makes one 9" Cheesecake

For the crust:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons melted butter

1. Preheat oven to 325*F.

2. Mix all ingredients together, then firmly press along sides and bottom of a 9" pie dish.

3. Bake 10 minutes. Remove and set aside.

**Now I will mention that graham crackers do indeed have sugar in them, so if you're particularly sensitive to sugar- please seek a different crust. For my dad, this wasn't enough sugar to worry about...and for us "healthy eaters" we didn't care about the graham cracker sugar content :)

For the custard:

1 pound (16oz) room temperature cream cheese
3/4 c 100% xylitol (I used this kind)
1/2 cup (4oz) plain room temperature yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 teaspoon lemon zest
2 oz fresh lemon juice (about one lemon)

1. Keep oven at 325*F.

2. In a food processor (or mixer), cream cheese and xylitol together.

3. Mix in yogurt and vanilla. Scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.

4. Add lemon zest and juice- beat until combined. Scrape down sides again.

5. Add eggs, one at a time- scraping down sides after each addition.

6. Pour into crust.

7. Bake in a water bath, at 325*F, for 45-50 minutes. Then check every 10 minutes. It is done when the cheesecake is firm, with a slight jiggle in the very center.

8. Remove carefully and cool completely on counter. Transfer to fridge and cool until chilled.

feast your eyes on this!...

2012-01-16T10:03:00.000-08:00

Like this? Get it HERE

Hey now! Do your eyes just immediately fall in love with this picture as soon as they take a gander, like mine do!?

Ahhh the power of good lighting and a great picture.

I'm sitting here on a Monday morning having a cup of coffee with the hubbie. We were given some of Starbuck's new blonde roast to try...so we are...I must say- it's pretty darn yummy! We don't drink coffee very often, so either my tolerance for caffeine went WAY down, or there is some exorbitant amount in this type of roast. Either way, as I'm typing- my brain is going about 49370529865 miles an hour while my hands are going..maybe 1. This creates a LOT of typing mistakes and stuttered thoughts!!!

It's grey outside, but warm and inviting in. It actually rained last night which was kind of nice and welcoming after the heat wave we just recently had. We love it when it rains...especially at night time when all the day's activities were coming to an end anyway. It makes us become very snuggly- not only physically (hehe) but mentally too (does that make sense?) Candles were lit, lights were soft, soup was simmering on the stove...and moods were calm and relaxed. It was a good night last night. Quite the opposite from what's going on inside me this morning BECAUSE OF ALL THIS CAFFEINEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!
What does any of that have to do with what this blog is supposed to be about?

Nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

I'm going to go ahead and blame it on the blonde roasters and their magical roasting ways of doing things.

Want your own cute as a button cupcake? Get these decorations HERE.

I was browsing through my Etsy a little while ago when I noticed I didn't have too many nice cupcake pictures showcasing my edible decs. What a tragedy! That lobotomy I had years ago must have really effected the ways I do things- why else would I have all these cupcake decorations up for you all to buy...without being on CUPCAKES?!? How would one know how the decs would look sitting atop?! How would one know the true size in comparison to a regular or mini sized treat?? Ugh...Sometimes I can be SO...scatterbrained.

Anyone doing a Snow White party? This would look perfect!

Needless to say, once my brain started functioning again I realized I was in desperate need to start taking pictures!!

WHERE'S MY CAMERA?!?

She's waiting very patiently HERE for you to find her!

I hope you'll forgive me for not having done this..oh you know....EONS ago. But alas, here they are...a process that is proving to take longer than I thought it would. Slowly but surely (by golly) I will complete each and every listing- having both decorations by themselves and showcased on top of delicious frosting topped cupcakes! So..you know....you can have the full effect!

Isn't he so handsome?? You can purchase him HERE

AND NOW FOR MY NEXT TRICK! INTRODUCING...

Our zebra print cupcake topper!!!! (And the audience goes wild!!)

Rawr! Get this little cutie HERE

I'm sure you probably guessed it- I am, in fact, in love with this topper. I didn't think I'd ever like zebra print- actually ANY animal print thing to be honest. But I just cannot help but love this little cutie. It's sort of the bad girl of all our decorations, haha.

If you haven't noticed, we've kind of got a theme going- SWEET Lavender Bake Shoppe. We feature...SWEET things. Not only in taste but in look as well. We chose not to go down certain roads with how our edible decs could look, and we're happy we've stuck to our guns and continued on that way. Not saying animal print is a risque road- but it's definitely not a sweet little cutie. I wouldn't have even done something like this if it wasn't for one amazing repeat customer. This woman is just plain awesome. Every time she orders I get excited- both because she's so creative (we've done some of our most challenging things for her) but also because she's just plain fun to talk to.

She asked if we would consider doing zebra print for a friend's daughter's sweet 16...and we happily obliged. :) I'm happy we did!

Zebra Print Cupcake Topper

So introducing the naughtier and more wild side of Sweet Lavender- our little animal of a decoration :) When I think of this little cutie I imagine she's the one behind the school in the alley, stealing a cigarette while all the other cuties are diligently learning in all their classrooms. She's the one wearing fishnets and leather skirts while all my others are dressed in bows and lace bringing their teachers shiny red delicious apples, as a "Thank You" treat. She doesn't care about what's cool- stands out from the rest..and to be honest- I'm kind of proud of her.

You can now purchase this for your next shindig on our Etsy. Colors and numbers (or letters) are of course customizable. With this particular decoration, we chose to hand paint the zebra stripes to give them a more artistic feel as well as give each one it's own uniqueness.

Oh! And duh- they're ALL made with tons of love.

recipe: herb + citrus grill seasoning...

2012-01-13T09:10:00.000-08:00

My husband and I love to grill. I'll admit, we don't have a bbq (we live in an apartment on the third floor) BUT we do have some pretty fancy smancy grill pans ;) And boy do we put those to good use!

This means I'm constantly trying to think of new and exciting ways to spice up our grilling life. Pun intended!

I'm a huge fan of the salty-sweet-spicy combo. I'll be the one sprinkling salt and cayenne all over my fruit because...well....it's pretty fantastic. I love desserts or candies with a salty aspect and especially love when some sort of heat is involved. Yum guys, seriously.
That's kind of what inspired this seasoning. I've done this a million different ways, but am finding this particular route to be my new favorite. It kind of has everything you'd want in a meat/poultry/veggie seasoning: you got your salt (and lots of it!), your sweetness, a hint of garlic and earthy herbs...and them at the very end is a little kick of heat.

For Christmas I made a big batch of this and gifted it in a glass jar for my dad (who is a BIG griller) with of course, some left over for us to use at home.

I suggest sprinkling this lovely seasoning over some steaks, pork chops, chicken, or sliced veggies after you've given them a nice rub with good olive oil. Remember, this is a salt base- so use smartly! Don't let me stop you though, go ahead and add to ground beef or poultry before forming into patties for burgers, add a dash to a stew or maybe even on top of a ready to braise pot roast. Let your imagination run wild.

Oh! And of course, if there's something you don't fancy (say you're not a fan of spice) feel free to omit- or the reverse, something you just adore..add as much as you'd like..you'll still be fine ;)

Herb + Citrus Grill Seasoning
Makes about 16 ounces (with a tad left over)
**Perfect to gift into two 8 ounce jars with ribbon and a gift tag ;)

3/4 cup sea salt
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
4 teaspoons dried rosemary
4 teaspoons dried oregano
4 teaspoons dried parsley
3 teaspoons dried thyme
2 teaspoons granulated garlic
5 ounces packed brown sugar
1.5 teaspoons smoked paprika
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Place everything in a food processor and pulse until combined- about 1 minute.

This mixture will be the texture of brown sugar (moist and crumbly) from both the brown sugar and the lemon zest. Make sure you store in an air tight container and use as needed!

As you can see the finished product has a sort of brown sugar consistency.

Or, you can package this up as a gift! This recipe will make enough for two 8 ounce jars' worth (with some left over for you to use as well). I simply added to some leftover jam jars I had unused, tied with ribbon, and added a simple Christmas inspired label. Maybe add to a gift basket with a good bottle of olive oil and a grill brush?

And now for KITTY TIME!!!!!

Mombi girl was SO happy to be laying in the sun next to me while I was spending a day blogging. She's such good company...and very picturesque!

things I love right now: valentine's day edible decorations...

2012-01-11T10:34:00.000-08:00

Tiny Hearts are available as well as our large hearts. Photo courtesy Jodi Miller Photography.

There's a part of me that's kind of in complete shock that I'm already talking about Valentine's Day. Shock is an understatement....I'm utterly in absolute disbelief and confusion that we're here already. Wasn't it Christmas yesterday? I'm pretty sure I'm right about that. ....Right?

As much as I don't want to acknowledge...as much as I want to sit and snuggle in my living room with twinkle lights, Christmas tree, and stockings hanging up- I just can't any longer. Time is certainly moving on, I guess I need to as well. All the blogs I follow, Etsy, Pinterest and what have you is also on the Valentine's Day bandwagon...which means...I need to too.

So here I go!

These would be perfect on your sweetie's Valentine's Day cupcake!

We are almost exactly one month away from the big love day...I actually really enjoy Valentine's Day...I always have. I know there's people out there that don't- I actually have friends who "refuse" to celebrate...which is just silly to me. I'm not just saying that because I have a special Valentine either. Even if there's no love in sight- why not go out and have a girl's dinner (or guy's dinner too I guess...although...that might be weird). That's what I would do. Or better yet why not have a potluck fondue party at home and invite all your single friends and see if any sparks fly??

Dang....I want fondue. Like really bad. Actually I want to either throw or be thrown a fondue party. In my honor. No...not in my honor...but I want to be the attendee at one pretty awesome and snazzy fondue party. With lots of cheese and chocolate.

Anyway, I wanted to list a bunch of Valentine's Day inspirations I have up on my shop! I hope it isn't bad taste to post about your own stuff. Is it? If so, shoot. I apologize for being lame. If it isn't, then YAY! If you ARE having a party of some sort I am SURE there will be desserts involved. MmMMmMM dessssssssssert (said in Homer Simpson voice)...Why not get some cute things to help your Valentine decor??

We, in my humble opinion, make some pretty neat Valentine's and love inspired things! I think it might be where we really shine. So let's take a gander!

Pink butterflies...swoon..

I originally did these butterflies in white...but after a recent order wanted them to be pink, I fell in love!

Although shown on a tini cupcake, these would be great on regular cupcakes or a cake!

These bows are very special to me. They were one of the first things to go up on my Etsy way back when. They have since proved to be one of our biggest sellers...making their way into almost every color scheme.

Wanting to throw a Hello Kitty inspired Valentine's party? This would be great on a cake!

I had originally offered Miss Kitty as a wedding cake topper, but a creative mama wanted one for her little girl's birthday. So we exchanged her veil and red bow for a bright pink one and viola!

Retro Valentine more your thing? This is for you! Colors are changeable!

Little pink flowers would be sweet on top a cupcake or tini and given to a loved one.

Puzzle hearts are another great cupcake topper!

Available here!

Hello Kitty strikes again!! She's kind of a big deal, if you didn't know. I loved the way this version of her came out. She's sitting oh so pretty on top a soft pink flower with a light shimmer.

Our large hearts are a great addition to any Valentine's party! Bold colors your thing? AWESOME! Photo courtesy Jodi Miller Photography.

Edible X's and O's are a cute way to tell your honey you wanna hug and kiss him!! Photo courtesy Jodi Miller Photography.

Oh! Did I mention these cute X's and O's also made it to the front page of Etsy?? :D

I love the bight colors of these!

Our medium sized edible hearts within hearts are another great decoration for those of you who like bold colors and are going for the more retro feel!

Medium hearts can be colored however you like!! Perfect for cupcakes, cakes, tinis...or milkshakes! Photo courtesy Jodi Miller Photography.

Pink mustaches? You don't say??

We gave our mustaches a little Valentine's Day make-over. What do you think??

Tiny hearts can be customized to any color you prefer!

Fat Birds are available here! Top photo courtesy Jodi Miller Photography.

Awwww Fat Birds! Who can forget them!? We originally did these in a Robbin's Egg Blue (get it!?) and ended up re-doing them in a soft pink as well. Colors can be changed to whatever suits you.

What will you guys being doing for Valentine's Day??

ladybugs...

2012-01-09T09:47:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited about this post. I'm just utterly in love with how these little ladies came out!

A few weeks ago we received an inquiry on our Etsy that I just loved :) A mom had found our store, browsed through...loved what she saw and decided to trust us to make something brand new. That's so dang exciting!! She had this vision, sent us some pictures and away we went!
Her daughter was turning one and she wanted to have a ladybug theme for the party being thrown. She sent me some pictures of the decorations that would be used around her home and we tried to match those specific decorations as exact as we possibly could.

For these specific little cuties we decided that since we wanted to include her antennae we would need a background for her to sit atop. Not doing so and we would most definitely have breakage during transit to our trusting customer's home. In the pictures the mama provided, there were some ladies with white backgrounds anyway, so it was an easy choice.

While I began cutting 2" circles out of gum paste, my husband started working on creating yet another awesome hand made stencil- which would then become ladybugs. I'm thinking we need to start pondering and researching new storage containers for all our stencils!!! They're getting out of hand.

We actually needed to create two separate stencils for the ladybugs- the body and wings to be exact.

Available here!

We tried a few different techniques- trying to find the best way to make our ladybug ideas come to life. Finally, when we found our favorite way, we began coloring, cutting, assembling and hand piping- a process that took about 3 days.

I have to say- my favorite part of making new decorations is when I'm putting the final detail touches on. It's then, that I can really see these little "once an idea and thought" as real life things. So, as I was carefully piping her (or is it his???) antennae and little black dots along the wings, I became so giddy! "BILL! COME LOOK! NOW PLEASE!!!!!!" <-- My English dissipates the more excited I get...

I love her!! Seriously. LOVE LOVE LOVE. Oh! The mom loved them too. She sent the nicest thank you email after receiving them. I'm hoping she sends birthday pictures so I can see them up on some delicious cupcakes!

Now for...KITTY TIME!!!

"Mom, I'm really loving the time we can spend together while you wrap gifts. I'm loving the paper you use and think it feels really good on my underside. ...Just don't try and take this away from me...I WILL bite and scratch you. I am NOT done enjoying this time."
--Mustachio

recipe: ham + spinach quiche with whole wheat crust...

2012-01-06T09:00:00.000-08:00

Today's post is going to be a sort of lighter..shall I say, healthier, recipe.

I happen to love quiches. So does my husband. The saying is true, "Real men eat quiche." They're relatively easy to make and are so incredibly versatile- I usually make a quiche whenever we have an array of weird leftovers in our fridge. Let's see...one leftover chicken breast...about 5 stalks of cooked asparagus from last night's dinner...hmm...a container of feta cheese with maybe a handful left...LET'S MAKE A QUICHE!!! I kid not, it always happens that way. The other night we had some leftover cooked ham, a small onion, and a half eaten bag of fresh spinach sitting in an almost bare fridge. (I guess it's grocery time) Oh! And some eggs...we always have eggs...so I figured- it's quiche time.

We're always trying to be on the "lighter" and "healthier" side of things...Although I just can't seem to kick this sugar addiction!!! I'll go a good 2 or 3 days without any added sugars (just sugars occurring naturally in fruits and what have you) and then WHAM! almost without notice I find myself popping in some Junior Mints or taking a bite of this chocolate-bordeaux egg thing my mom got me for Christmas. Maybe I'll never cut sugar out completely....and maybe I'm ok with that.

So since trying to eat better wherever I can, I tend to make a lot of whole wheat crusts. I also add flax seeds to as many things as I can, including this crust (you can omit). When we're supposed to have anywhere from 25-35g of fiber per day, I can't help but add things like flax (or chia seeds) to almost everything. But then again, having this crust super spiked with butter...I don't know how good for you it really is.

I'll assure you one thing though- this quiche is GOOD for your taste buds!...If you know what I mean ;)

Ham + Spinach Quiche with Whole Wheat Crust
Makes one 10" pie tin

For the crust:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground flax seed (optional)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted cold butter, cubed
1/4 cup ice water (may need more, may need less)

1. To a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, or to a food processor, add your flours, flax and salt. Mix until combined. Next add cubed cold butter and mix (or pulse) until sand like texture with pea sized balls of butter.

2.With mixer on slow (or if using a food processor- pulsing) slowly add ice water and mix until JUST combined and starting to form a ball. Do NOT overmix.

3. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a disk. Wrap with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for about 15 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 375*F. Roll out disk until you've made a circle of dough about 1/4" thick. Place gently into your pie dish and pierce holes throughout bottom and sides of dough with a fork, or knife.

5. Bake 10 minutes in 375*F oven. Remove and set aside.

For the quiche filling:

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion (or half a medium onion)
1/2 teaspoon herbs de provence (or substitute with dried thyme)
5 whole eggs
1 cup whole milk
1 cup cooked diced ham
1 cup raw organic spinach
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan
1 tablespoon grated pecorino

1. Keep oven at 375*F. Add oil to a small saute pan and heat up over medium heat. Add your small diced onion and saute for about 3-4 minutes. Next add your herbs de provence (or thyme) and continue cooking until onions are translucent- about 2-3 minutes more. Turn off heat and set aside to cool.

2. In a medium sized bowl, add your eggs.

3. Next add your milk, salt, and pepper to your eggs and whisk until thoroughly combined.

4. To your cooled par-baked crust, add your cup of cubed ham.

6. Next layer your fresh organic spinach.

7. Top spinach with your cooled cooked onion. Finally, carefully pour your custard mix over your veggies in your crust. Top with your grated Parmesan and pecorino cheeses.

8. Bake quiche at 375*F for about 35-40 minutes, turning half way through, until crust is browned and custard jiggles very slightly in center. If crust is browning too fast for your quiche, remove from oven, put tinfoil around edges (on crust) and place back into oven to continue cooking.

Let sit 5 minutes to cool, then slice and enjoy!!

I suggest serving this quiche for breakfast, brunch, lunch, or dinner! It's totally hearty enough for dinner. I also suggest serving it cooled down a bit. Remove from oven and let it 10 minutes or so- I don't know about you...but I'm not a big fan of piping hot quiches. :)

cutie makeovers...

2012-01-05T17:40:00.000-08:00

I just wanted to share with you all very very quickly (I swear it'll be quick) about a few little cuties that have been made and are new to our Etsy shop!

First up are some PINK (YAAAAAAAAAY!!!) edible butterflies :) I do love pink. You might remember that we have them up in white (which would look super classy on a wedding cake...or some wedding/bridal shower/baby shower cupcakes...*hint*hint*), but we recently gave them a little make-over in a light pink hue. You can view these pink cuties here!

Secondly, we did another little make-over to our edible rockets. We received an order for a mini version- which we thought was super fun! The mama wanted them for her child's 4th birthday, but instead of serving regular sized cupcakes, she was going to serve a bunch of minis ;) So, we miniaturized them for her and loved them! You can view our mini rockets here!

Lastly, you know those cute little bows everyone loves? Well, a super fun mom ordered a few dozen of them in the colors "hot pink and kiwi green". I wasn't too familiar with the term "kiwi green" but certainly knew what a kiwi looked like...so we made the bows somewhat resemble that color! Also in that order was our large Hello Kitty face with a nice huge and lovely hot pink bow ;)

Ok! That's it! I promise.

Christina, out!

recipe: ham, sweet potato + black bean casserole...

2012-01-04T09:27:00.000-08:00

It's still winter right?? It's hard to tell over here in sunny Southern California...where over Christmas and New Year's it was like 70..or was it 80?? Something crazy. I even wore a tank top the other day! But yeah, I'm thinking it's still winter..somewhere.

At night it gets a tad colder...we actually had some crazy marine layer/fog going on for about a week..I mean it was CRAZY! Came out of nowhere and fast! I joked that it might be the fog that turns people inside-out. Wasn't that on a Simpson's episode once? Good thing I was wrong.

So it was during one of those warmer-days-turned-colder-nights that I decided to make a dinner dish my husband and I just adore. We're pretty big fans of the "one pot" wonders (although we also love the "use every pan in our kitchen" meals too) and I'm always trying to find new ways to create simple, yummy, and relatively "good for you" meals that we can share together.

A few months back my dear friend was extremely pregnant. I mean, about to pop any day pregnant. One of the gifts I gave her for her baby shower was a week's worth of dinners that they could easily freeze and just re-heat as needed after baby was born.

I found this recipe on my beloved Martha's site and could NOT resist. It sounded so hearty and just plain ol' good. I made sure to make A LOT so that my husband and I could have some dinners as well as my friends. We ALL loved it so much! Thing was...it wasn't the best-for-you that it could have been. Sure it was absolutely delicious and filling..sure it "hit the spot"...But when your everyday meal at home needs to be as good for you as you possibly can make, this wasn't making the cut. White bread? Eeeeep. Sausage? Yikes. And NO veggies! Ahhhhhh!

So I decided to re-do it a bit :) Enjoy my version of this absolutely delicious, EASY, and still "hits the spot" one pot wonder.

Ham, Sweet Potato + Black Bean Casserole
Serves 4

1 cup + 2 tablespoons almond meal
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 cups medium diced ham
3 cups medium diced organic sweet potato
1 large medium diced organic onion
4 cloves minced garlic
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 1/2 cups good chicken stock (or veggie stock, or water)..I recommend making your own
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1 (15oz) can drained organic black beans
salt and freshly cracked black pepper as needed
2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350*F. In a large heavy bottom dutch oven, saute garlic and onions in 1 tablespoon of your olive oil. Cook over medium-low to medium heat until onions are translucent.
Add diced ham and cook until ham has golden brown edges- about 5-10 minutes.
Next add your tomato paste and cook 1-2 minutes stirring constantly. You're looking to cook out some of the "raw" flavor, but not burn the paste.
Add your stock, thyme, and oregano. Stir gently and bring to light simmer. Next add your sweet potato and black beans. Stir until combined.
Taste. Check for salt- you might have to add a little, but remember- the ham is salty as well. Adjust seasoning as needed. Add freshly cracked black pepper as well.
Bring back to a gently simmer and cook uncovered on low for about 10 minutes. It will thicken slightly during this time.
Turn off heat, stir in 1 cup of your almond meal, and flatten top surface of your casserole.
In a little bowl, mix together remaining 2 tablespoons almond meal with 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over top of casserole. Drizzle last tablespoon of olive oil over top.
Bake uncovered until golden brown- 25-30 minutes. Will be thick and lovely!

recipe: semi-homemade easy peppermint brownies...

2012-01-02T09:10:00.000-08:00

HI FRIENDS!!! Welcome back!!! How was your Christmas??? And your New Year?? Did you get lots of fun (and hopefully yummy) things and spend loads of sweet times with friends and family? Here are just a few of the wonderful items I was given over Christmas...

I got thisssssssssssssssssssssssss from a friend of my husband's. The cutest little succulent in a distressed wooden box.

And THIS!!! A new KitchenAid food processor!! I have been wanting one of these FOR YEARS...probably close to 10. This thing was SO heavy! I never knew how heavy this could be. It found its new home right along side my best friend in the kitchen, my KitchenAid mixer.

It's been so long since I've blogged I feel like I sort of need to get into the swing of things again...AHHHHH!

BUT I MUST! SO I WILL!

I want to show you guys one last Christmas-ie inspired recipe to make because once you stop there's no going back. Not going back makes me sad. I miss Christmas already :( But jeez, here we are...in 2012. CRAZY! I canNOT believe it!

After doing the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, I made some new food bloggy friends! Actually a lot. Which makes me smile. There's some GREAT food bloggers out there! Anywho, I was browsing through one in particular when I saw something that sounded so delicious- Peppermint Brownies. Now she made her's from scratch- WHICH IS AWESOME...but on Christmas Eve when I made these, I HAD NO TIME to spare what-so-ever. I really didn't. I hate admitting that.

You know what else I semi-hate admitting...in the recipe I adapted from her awesome version... I bought some boxed brownie mix and sort of Sandra Lee'd it up a bit by making it "Semi-Homemade". Now hear me out...I am NOT saying what so ever that buying box cake/brownie mixes are wrong in any way. What I am saying is I, personally, try to stay away from them for various reasons. One being- since I do have this here thing called- Sweet Lavender Bake Shoppe, I try to offer you guys some yummy and easy(ish) recipes you all could make at home...and I sort of feel if I started doing more mix-based recipes...I might lose some credibility. Two- my family would shun me (having gone to culinary school and being a pastry chef, blah blah) if I showed up with my Betty Crocker Brownies. So, I guess now the cat's out of the bag...which is fine. Let the shunning begin!!! ;)

No they really wouldn't actually. My mom's probably reading this and huffing that I even dare think or say that for you all to read. But it did make for a funny part of the blog, and that's awesome. But Mom...I'm sorry.

Now in all seriousness, I actually do like box cake/brownie mix. I also think for those...uh...baking challenged...it allows a sort of baking creativity to happen for everyone. Which is awesome. I know a few people who can not bake for the life of them, so being able to doll up a mix and add their own special touches and still call it their brownie/cake/pie/whatever, is a really good thing. Not to mention, when I was a wee-baker I too dabbled in the mix versions adding whatever I could find to the mix so I could call it my own. MOVING ON.

Getting that center piece was amazingly ~~hard~~ fun.

So anyway, I saw this delicious looking peppermint brownie recipe on my new bloggy friend's site and couldn't help but make it for my family Christmas gathering. Thing was, like I said earlier- I had zero, zip, nada time to make one from scratch. So I ran to le Target (said in a French accent) grabbed the first box of brownie mix I could find, some York peppermint patties, and headed home to "bake" away!

I hope you guys will try it!! Love it!! And forgive me for this one mix-based post ;)

Easy Peppermint Brownies
Adapted from Completely Delicious
Makes one dozen 2"x2" brownies

1 box chocolate fudge brownie mix
1/4 cup brewed and chilled coffee
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 York peppermint patties, slightly squished with fingers to flatten out

Preheat oven to 350*F.
Grease a 7x11" pan (but feel free to use the standard 9x13- 7x11 is what I had on hand :) Set aside.
Mix all your wet ingredients together. Set aside.
In a large bowl sift the brownie mix. This takes a little bit of time, but makes, I think, a better textured brownie.
Add the wet mix to your dry mix and whisk together until combined.
Pour 1/3 of the batter into bottom of greased pan.
Add flattened out York peppermint patties to batter in pan. DO NOT press down.
Pour remaining 2/3 of batter into pan making sure to cover all York pieces.
Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until slightly puffed in middle.
Remove and let sit room temperature until you can't take it anymore and frantically eat.

**Adding coffee in place of the water creates a richer tasting brownie.

**I chose to flatten out York patties because I didn't want the thick white part of the patty to show. I wanted, a more homogenized looking brownie with a subtle hint of peppermint ;)

first christmas: cash everett...

2011-12-23T09:09:00.000-08:00

Who likes babies!?!?!?!? Who likes babies holding onto Christmas lights or snuggled in a basket with ornaments all around?!?! We do, we do!!!

I wanted to share with you guys a fun little "Baby's First Christmas" shoot I just did for a friend. If you remember, I helped photograph her baby shower, maternity shoot, and now I have the honor of capturing her sweet little guy's first Christmas.

I hope you all will enjoy these super duper cute pictures of one of the cutest little boy's I know...Mr. Cash Everett...

This one makes me laugh. He's like, "Hmmm yea I think this is good..."

I personally love this one.

And this one.

My husband loves this one.

I see toes.

Look at those baby blues...

My FAVORITE one!

This one makes my husband and I giggle.

"Santa!! YEAH!!! Rock on!"

Cute right!??!!? He was SUCH a good baby to photograph for my first time. Happy and giggly and just all around sweet as can be.

So now I'm thinking it's a good time to sign off for a nice winter's break ;) I have plans to sit around and catch up on magazines that have been sitting on my coffee table for EVER...drink lots of peppermint tea (my new favorite), and snuggle my husband and kitties through the New Year! <-- OH speaking of which, a friend asked me a while back to take pictures of her wedding which is on New Year's Day! EEEEEEEEP! Of course I said YES...but now the nerves are getting the best of me! Wish me luck!! I'll for sure share them as soon as all is done ;) So Merry Christmas to you all, and see you next year!

recipe: vanilla bean shortbread cookies...

2011-12-21T08:34:00.000-08:00

Remember this post? Although I am still terribly embarrassed at the quality of pictures on that dang blog, I will once more bring it up!

Anyway, the jist of the blog is that over the summer I submitted a recipe for a contest one of my favorite bakeries was doing- Susie Cake's 5 Ingredient Recipe Challenge. And I won. HAHA. I was seriously shocked. I almost didn't even enter, but last minute went "Eh, what the heck.."

I realized I never got the recipe up here for you guys to see! I apologize for that. I guess too many things got in the way. But now as I think of it, this might be perfect timing...the pictures I took are very Christmas-ie...so bake some tonight!

So here's the recipe that Susie Cakes loved ;)

Vanilla Bean Short Bread Cookie

Makes a dozen large cookies.

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (you can also scrape out a vanilla bean and add to dough mix as well!

In one bowl, sift together the flour and salt.
In a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add your butter and sugar and beat until light in color and fluffy (this is called "creaming").
Scrape down sides of bowl and add in vanilla extract. Mix again until combined.
Next add your flour mix and carefully mix until just combined. You don't want to overmix in this step. Dough should stick together when clumped with fingers.
Turn dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap, separate into workable sized mounds and wrap tightly- pressing into disks about 1-2" thick. Refrigerate disks until they have firmed up, about an hour.
Line your baking sheets with parchment, wax paper or silpats.
Preheat oven to 325*F.
Roll out your disks, one at a time, on a lightly floured surface, until you've reached about 1/4" thick.
Cut out however you desire- cookie cutters, free hand. I cut mine precisely into 1"x2" rectangles.
Place onto sheet pan spaced out about an inch. If you want to add decorations like shown, now is the time to press gently into surface. Place back into the refrigerator to firm up once more, another 25 minutes. You can re-roll scraps and cut out more cookies with those scraps.
Bake until firm, about 15 minutes checking after 12 to make sure they don't get too brown around edges. You want a very blonde-gold color around edges.
Let cool completely on a wire rack and enjoy!

I went to a little Christmas party last night :) Sad to say, our first and only :( I love Christmas parties! I would love to go to one multiple times during the season if I had my way. Any who, wanting to be REALLY festive I decided to paint my nails white and ~~beg plea~~ ask my darling husband if he would do little peppermint swirls on top. HE SAID YES!!!! :)

Cute huh??? Took a little longer than we would have liked...had to "ruin" one of his paintbrushes :( But all in all we both really liked the outcome! He's such a swell guy...he had so much fun doing it that he offered to do little details anytime ;)

merry christmas! love, the mains...

2011-12-19T10:45:00.000-08:00

Now that all of our friends and family should have received their card in the mail, I think it's safe to share! I didn't want to ruin the surprise for those getting their card from us this year.

Every year since we've been married, my fabulous husband and I conjure up a fun and unique Christmas card for him to illustrate. This is our 3rd card we've done and we both think it's the best one yet! Let me be honest, I actually don't have very much to do with the card making process other than a teensie suggestion or two at the beginning. He then takes that thought and runs wild with it. For example, with this year's card I said "Maybe you and I could be pulled through snow by sled cats...?" And viola! Here we are.

Not just any sled cat team, our sled cat team! Our crazy fluffy "baby kitty", Lady Mustachio of Denison (aka Mustachio) is accompanied by her older (and much more laid back) sister, Princess Mombi (aka Mombi). Decked out in loads of jingle bells, pink collars, and harnessed up, they are pulling us through the snow! I imagine we're going somewhere super fun, filled with family and fire places and hot cocoa.

Personally, we both felt after all was done and printed, that Mombi girl should have been a bit plumper in size...but what can you do? As my mom said, "Her harness is holding her in"...Yeah we'll go with that.

This now tradition of ours came from a tradition my grandmother used to do. Every single year beginning when my mom and her family were young, my grandmother would illustrate their family's Christmas greeting card. It was actually kind of nice to see when I was old enough to understand- first it was the 5 of them, (maybe one year on a plane because they had gone somewhere fun that year), maybe one of the kids as a baby...Then as the years went on you saw my dad enter into the cards, then baby me...then my sister, etc. Very very fun. The one I remember the most is all of my family as Native Americans, sitting around a fire with feathers in their hair (I think it's a fire) with my mom and dad included. On my mom's back is one of those wrap things with a little baby me inside all snuggled up. I'm trying to find a picture on Google right now of what I'm talking about...something like this! Use your imagination!

Anyway, it was such a great idea that when I began to have a little family of my own (you know...me, hubbie, our dog who has since passed, and our two kitties) I knew it was one tradition I wanted to keep going. And so we did. Every year my husband creates these fun and very "us" cards to send out to family and friends all around. This year we even sent some to Norway and Trinidad! Phew!

By the way...when did postage get SO expensive?!?!!? :)

So from my family to yours: Merry Christmas!! Love, the Mains!

recipe: cinnamon tea...

2011-12-16T08:06:00.000-08:00

I had some down time the other day, so like usual I browsed le Twitter for a tiny bit. Half paying attention, I stumbled on some key words that sucked up any and all of my attention, "Cinnamon water"...

"Huh? What's that??"

Upon reading the article from one of my favorite sites, The Kitchn (yes there's no "e" on purpose), I was immediately in love...well at least definitely intrigued.

In their article was one of the simplest recipes ever for Cinnamon Water. I had never heard of such a thing! It sounded so refreshing and neat and weird and interesting and "good for you" that I couldn't resist! As you know, cinnamon is an excellent spice for those needing to regulate their blood sugar (ahem diabetics??). I don't know what it is about cinnamon that helps that regulation, but it's absolutely true and always recommended to those with blood sugar problems.

In their recipe, they made a cinnamon water- something they infused, let sit for a couple hours, and served over ice. Now that sounds delicious, but it's cold outside! I'm a big fan of teas actually...so I thought I'd make mine into a Cinnamon Tea! Just as good for you too ;)

Cinnamon Tea
Makes 4 servings
Inspired from this recipe.

5 cups filtered water
2 cinnamon sticks
4 ounces almond milk
organic raw honey (to taste)

In a 2-quart sauce pot add your filtered water and cinnamon sticks. Bring to a boil.
Turn down heat to medium (or until you have a steady simmer) and simmer for 10 minutes.
Remove cinnamon sticks but don't discard! Save them for one more use. I was able to make this recipe twice (so 8 servings total) with my two sticks :) The second time, I simmered for 15 minutes to extract the last bit of cinnamon flavor out.
Pour hot cinnamon water carefully into 4 mugs. Mix in 1 ounce of almond milk and honey to taste. I added 2 teaspoons of honey to our mugs for a subtly sweet flavor. You are welcome to add more, less, or none at all if you're so inclined!
Enjoy!

**Making this tea will infuse your whole house with the most wonderful scent!

**You want your water to turn an amber color- almost like a dark beer.

**You can make this recipe, use what you want and store the rest in an air-tight container (with cinnamon sticks included) in your refrigerator. When you want more tea, simply add whole thing to pot, dilute with maybe a 1/2 cup more water and heat up!

Perfect for a cold winter's night!

the great food blogger cookie swap continued...

2011-12-14T08:34:00.000-08:00

I'm going to continue talking to you guys about The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2011 that I was a part of, for one more blog :) I hope you don't mind. If you are following along, I recently posted a recipe featuring the cookies I sent to my recipients. This next blog is going to be about how I packaged everything up, and what delicious cookies I was shipped from other food bloggers!

Maybe it's just me, but I felt A LOT of pressure being a part of this. Not only did I feel like I needed to make some pretty delicious cookies, but I also wanted to make sure they were packaged up like awesome little presents. Is it just me? Or did any of you other food bloggers feel the same way? On top of things looking and tasting wonderful, I also needed to take into account that they'd be shipped all over the country! My three recipients were scattered throughout, so my packaging (and cookies) needed to hold up to being tossed around.

Here's what I used to package my cookies up!

6- 4"x4"x4" Brown Boxes from Bake it Pretty
Butcher's Twine
Cardstock in various Christmas-ie designs
Double Stick Tape
6- 2.75" x 1.5" Tiny Shipping Tags from Bake it Pretty
Ribbon
6- 5.75"x7.75" Cellophane Bags
3 Homemade Cardstock "Tags" made for me by my awesome husband
Tissue Paper
"Merry Christmas" Stickers (from Target)

I'll be honest, the boxes were an accident. I wanted to ship in brown boxes, that I knew- but I ordered the wrong sized boxes :( It wasn't until they arrived that I realized that. So, instead of one nice large box of cookies, each of my recipients got two. No big.

I placed 6 Brown Butter Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies in a cellophane bag, and wrapped AIR TIGHT with butcher's twine adorned with one red gift tag. I chose to hand write on the tags, "Enjoy!", to give them a more intimate personal feeling.

Included in each shipping box was a custom made larger tag adorned with ribbon, made by...you know ;) He's so good to me.

I saw cookie boxes like the ones I made, on Pinterest a while back. I just loved them so much- so I knew that's how I wanted my boxes to look. Good thing too- I just so happened to have some pretty perfect cardstock laying around.

I measured the tops of the boxes and then subtracted 1/4" from each side. I wanted the brown color to still show around the sides. I then adhered the cardstock squares to the tops of the boxes with double stick tape. Getting super creative (and not wanting any cardstock scraps to waste) I then cut 1/2" strips and adhered with double stick tape to one side of the top of the box. I chose to use different printed strips to top the boxes.

The boxes were closed and sealed with a "Merry Christmas" sticker, which I really loved!

I then padded each shipping box REALLY WELL with tons and tons of decorative tissue paper. 2 cookie boxes went into each shipping box surrounded by more tissue. Finally, each box was finished off with a business card and little (err BIG) greeting tag letting them know what they were going to enjoy!

I did hear back from all 3 recipients, they LOVED them! Here's who I was asked to ship my cookies out to- make sure to check them out if you love food blogs. Lot's of yummy recipes coming from here:

Kate Snapp from Ideas I Can't Keep to Myself
Mackenzie Foster from Susie Freaking Homemaker
Eleana Chou from Chou Down

Ok now for the cookies I received in return!!!

The first cookies I received were these Vienna Cookies or Citrus Butter Cookies from Annalise of Completely Delicious. She didn't lie in her blog name...these were absolutely delicious! Not too sweet, lightly citrus-ie, and so darn good. I had them for "breakfast" a couple of times and they were great with tea!

Next were Peanut Butter Pumpkin Cookies from Jewel over at Eat.Drink.Shop.Love. Her packaging was too cute for words! I actually giggled when I opened her package! Not only were there little individual cookies all with the cutest "homemade" stickers on them, but also included was a cute sparkly red spatula!

And lastly, but certainly not least, were these super yummy Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Chip Cookies from Tanvi of The Hathi Cooks. Whenever peanut butter and chocolate are together, you can not go wrong (in my humble opinion). These were just really really really darn good chocolate chip cookies! Crunchy on the outside, chewy in the middle...and so dang great!

My husband and I could not be more happy with the cookies we received! Each was so unique and so good!

Make sure you check out the blogs of each of the cookies I received (and those whom I gave cookies too) for their recipes of the cookies they sent out! So fun!!! Can't wait for next year's Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap!

recipe: brown butter salted chocolate chip cookies + the great food blogger cookie swap...

2011-12-12T10:08:00.000-08:00

It's here, it's here!!

I'm so happy to be able to share this blog with you guys finally! We were asked to wait until today to share, so of course that's what I did :)

A few months ago I signed up for the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2011 and immediately freaked out. Haha. While signing up I was thinking, "Oh! How fun! Make some cookies for fellow food bloggers?? Sure!" But then as soon as I was signed up I thought, "CRAP! BUT WHAT COOKIE WILL I MAKE!? There's so much pressure! These aren't just people, they're FOOD PEOPLE! An ordinary cookie just will not do! I'm so going to be judged....."

And so my quest began to 1. first think of a cookie to make and 2. decide how the heck to jazz it up A LOT!

Here's how I came up with my Brown Butter Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies...

Last month my husband and I went on a trip for our 3rd year anniversary. We stayed at the nicest little B&B. While relaxing in front of their giant fireplace and drinking some hot apple cider we were brought some warm, gooey, freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and milk by Nina, one of the owners. Both my husband and I immediately felt all warm and fuzzy inside while we dunked our cookies in our milk and chowed down. That's when I thought, "Nothing beats a good chocolate chip cookie. Nothing."

That cookie was just what we needed, it instantly brought a smile to our faces. Here we are, miles away from home, snow on the ground outside, sitting beside a warm fireplace...and out comes a plate of chocolate chip cookies. *Swoon*

So I thought, this is the cookie.

Next though, was how to make it more than just your "run of the mill" chocolate chip. I know if I were the recipient, I'd be a little bummed having signed up for this GREAT Food Blogger Cookie Swap to only receive plain 'ol chocolate chip. I think we probably all had this sort of raised bar of expectation...so I wanted to make sure I met that expectation.

Enter Brown Butter and Grey Salt. <---ohmygoshareyouserious? YES.

I knew that these two ingredients wouldn't take away or compete with what we love in a good chocolate chip...all they would do is enhance the cookie. Exactly what I wanted.

A while ago I had pinned a recipe for Jacques Torres' Chocolate Chip Cookies... I haven't had the time to make that recipe, although I've seen it ALL OVER le Pinterest. I feel like it might be the only chocolate chip cookie ever pinned..."Jacques Torres' secret recipe", etc. Seriously, go look...it's everywhere. If you don't know who Jacques Torres is, click here or here. He's kind of a big deal.

Call me a "fad follower"...but I had to make his darn recipe and see what all the fuss was about. I just...haven't had..that time. ENTER- PERFECT TIMING!!!

So here is my version of the (I'm assuming) much loved Jacques Torres Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe...
**Original recipe here

Brown Butter Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies
**My recipe makes about 60 cookies

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons cake flour
1 2/3 cups minus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons vanilla sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons homemade vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds Ghirardelli Semi-Sweet Premium Baking Chocolate Chips
Grey salt

1. Brown butter: Place 2 1/2 sticks in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Melt completely. Continue to cook gently over medium-low heat until it froths up. Once froth dies down, you should begin to smell a nutty scent- this means your butter had browned. Remove from heat and chill in fridge until a solid. Before using, you'll want butter to be soft, if hardened too much in fridge, leave room temp on counter to soften.

2. Sift both of your flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

3. Using a mixer with paddle attachment, mix together both of your sugars and softened solid browned butter. Beat until creamed and fluffy.

4. Next add your eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each. Scrape down bowl after each egg addition.

5. Stir in the vanilla. With mixer on low, add all the dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds.

6. Add chocolate chips in and mix them in very quickly. The key is to not overmix. (Use dough in one day...I wouldn't recommend putting in the fridge to store- it will harden up almost rock solid.)

7. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.

8. Using a #50 ice cream scoop (or a tablespoon) scoop out dough and place on baking sheet. Gently press down to create a flattened top surface. Sprinkle lightly with grey salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, about 15 minutes.

9. Carefully remove from oven and cool JUST enough to touch. Devour with whole milk. :)

**Note, make sure you remove that little bit of cake flour in the first flour addition :) Also I would NOT suggest storing unused dough in refrigerator. It does something to the brown butter and becomes quite dry. So, either half the recipe and bake it all into cookies or make the full recipe and bake all into cookies :) You won't be sad you did- they're too good to not eat up!

I am SO freaking happy with how these cookies turned out. Warm and gooey and ooooooooh so chocolatey. The brown butter mixed with dark brown sugar gave the cookie an almost toffee/caramel flavor and then that salt on top!? JEEZ LOUISE! So good. My husband loved them, his co-workers loved them, and all three of my food bloggie recipients loved them! Success!

Stay tuned for what my cookie packages looked like and what cookies I received in return!

OH OH OH!! Before I forget! If you are interested in participating in NEXT year's cookie swap, click here!