For you…Mr. Cox
Friday’s Pinterest Favorites
This weekend is my cousin Megan’s Bat Mitzvah. I am so excited to catch up with family, brush up on my dance moves, and dress fancy. We will be packing up the car in a couple of hours to head up to Northern Virginia. Hopefully the little man will not whine too much, he absolutely hates car rides. While we are getting ready for the road trip here are my interest favorites of the week to entrain you.
I agreed to do my cousin’s hair for her Bat Mitzvah and we fell in love with the waterfall braid, it is perfect for the occasion. While looking for hair ideas I was catching up on Mad Men and stumbled upon this photo of little Sally all grown up {I am completely jealous of her dress!}. Hopefully I will get a chance to stop by the small cupcake shop in my home town to indulge in my cupcake addiction. Unfortunately we won’t have time to go into D.C. but I truly love riding the metro when I am home. Even though you are packed into a tiny car with hundreds of other people, I can’t get enough of putting in my headphones and reading my well read copy of nine stories. Since I am temporarily living in a Fraternity house, I try my best to brighten up the place with fresh plants and flowers. Only if there was a flower market so I could have some of these gorgeous darlings in the kitchen.
Baby It’s Warm Outside
Normally when I think of pie I picture myself around my grandmother’s dining room table with the chaos of family whirling around me and a christmas tree lit up downstairs. Although, that is not the only time I crave pie. To make pie a little more summer friendly I decided to roll up my sleeves, break out the rolling pin, and dig out the cookie cutter to make Pie Pops!
Here is what you will need for these lovely little suckers.
Ingredients:
2 roll of pre made pie crust
5 red apples
3/4 cup of sugar
2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
cinnamon to taste {I do between 1-2 teaspoons}
2 eggs
baking popsicle sticks
baking plastic bags
So here we go!
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut and peel the apples then add the sugar, flour, and cinnamon to the bowl and mix the contents together. Now that you have your filling ready, set it aside and take the pre made pie crust {I use the pre made pie crust because it cuts the prep time in half and I don’t get flour all over my small kitchen} and roll it out. Use a cookie cutter and cut desired amount of circles {remember, you need to have two circles per pie pop}. Whisk the eggs and brush both sides of each pie circle. Put a dab of filling on half of the pie crust circles and place a baking popsicle stick so that it extends halfway into the circle. brush the edge of each pie circle that has filling on it and cover each with a pie crust circle without filling pushing down the outer edges. I suggest you use a fork to further seal the pie pops together. brush the tops of each pie pop with more egg and throw them into the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown.
Let the pops completely cool, if you do not do this the pie pops will fall apart and leave you in a very defeated mood. Once the pie have cooled {i suggest you leave them for 2 hours to make sure the inside is cool as well} pick them up by the pie, not stick just incase they are still cooling a bit, wrap them in a baking plastic bag, and tie with a twist tie. Save the pops for later or display them in a short mason jar and let people take them as they pass through the kitchen.
The pie pops were a great hit! They are the perfect snack to satisfy your pie craving. Hope you enjoy!
Tips
- I got my sticks and bag from Michael’s, they have a HUGE selection for baking. It is hard to resist not buying more.
- I cut apples fairly small because large chunks don’t fit as well in the pie pop.
Champagne Tuesdays
I have decided I am starting champagne Tuesdays. Two questions have probably popped into your head “why champagne and why Tuesday?” To answer your first question, I picked Tuesday because I feel it is the loneliest day of the week. Monday is the start of the work week, Wednesday is hump day, Thursday is the first light at the end of the work week tunnel, Friday…well Friday is just magnificent, as is Saturday and Sunday. So what about Tuesday? I decided to give Tuesday its own special event for the week so it would not feel left out.
To follow up on your second question, whenever I hold a glass of champagne I image sipping something that embodies all the fantastic, heart warming, and giddy emotions one feels when the occasion calls for champagne. To this day I have yet to find champagne that can carry out my fantasy. Every Tuesday I will have a glass of champagne to find the one that makes my taste buds anxiously await another toast to satisfy their champagne cravings.
If you have any suggestions on champagne I would love to hear them!
Todays Champagne, Bitch Bubbly $10
{Photo Source}
Chalkboard Planters…Keeping Your Plants Straight
Hope everyone had a great weekend! We had a date night Friday and went out for Mexican {$6 pitcher of Blue Moon and enchiladas, yum!} then finished the night with a movie {I really liked it, you should go if you have some extra time this week}. Saturday the boys and I went for a hike up at Reddish Knob something that I have wanted to do for a long time but the weather has not cooperated. Thankfully it was a gorgeous day and the little man loved all of the open land he could run in and things to munch on. Sunday was very relaxing. There was a lot of tiding up the place, doing laundry, and getting back into running. The weekend was perfect and I can not wait until next weekend!
But enough about me lets get down to plants!
Since summer is approaching I have had cravings for mojitos but never have mint in the fridge to make myself an afternoon drink. I thought about planting some in the yard but my uncle and aunt warned me that mint has a very annoying habit of taking over the yard and you must be very careful when planting. To prevent a forrest of mint occupying the front, back, and side yards I decided to keep a little in the kitchen for when I need it. I went down to the hardware store and found chalkboard spray paint, two terra-cotta pots, painters tape, and chalk.
I wrapped the painters tape around the base of the pot leaving the upper band exposed. I wrapped the pot again to make sure no paint would leak. I then sprayed the upper bands of each pot with the chalkboard spray paint outside. I held the can about 7 inches away form the pot and used short sprays to cover the whole band. This decreased the chance that the paint would run leaving streaks. I let both pots dry outside for about 30 minutes. I am not sure if it actually took that long {I forgot they were out there to be honest. I always get sucked into Heal Housewives of New Jersey} for the pots to dry completely, you will have to read the bottle that you choose.
I am very happy with how to pots turned out. I now have fresh plants in my kitchen that are handsome to look at as well.
Tips :
I was intending on using chalkboard paint but the hardware store was out of the paint at the time and suggested the spray as a good alternative because it was not going on an actual wall or large surface. I must say I really like the spray. I especially like the finish. The spray does not leave a matted surface, but rather a glossy surface. It gives the pots a very put together look {which is nice for when you give as gifts, can anyone say teachers gift?} and does not remind me of nails on a blackboard.
Since I was using spray I suggest using long cleaning gloves so that your forearm and hands don’t get stained. I chose to hold the pots so I would get an even spray over the whole pot. If you choose to put it in newspaper, just remember it will still spray a bit making this an outdoor project.
Pinterest Favorites
Pinterest Favorites
On most blogs that I read they do a wrap up before the weekend. Some list the things they did not have enough time to talk about others a couple of favorite items they have at the moment. I like the idea of bundling up the weeks work with a staple Friday post but wanted to have something different. I scrolled through pinterest in hopes that I would find a neat idea. Then I had an ahha moment! I spend most of my free time on pinterest and I always talk about my favorites days after I pin them, so why not feature on Friday some of my favorite pins that have gotten me talking them up!
This week, I fell in love with eyelet shorts {which made me step up the treadmill incline at the gym}. Got lost for hours in pictures of Kate, and wondering what it would be like to go skiing in the Alps with the princess. I then found myself dreaming of packing up the car and driving to have a quiet picnic with my boys {ok, maybe not quiet, little man does cause a lot of excitement wherever we go}. I hope to end the weekend with a delicious chicken pasta and grapefruit margarita.
Ace High Poker Hand
I will admit, I have a slight {ok massive} obsession with Kate Spade. My mother when I was younger would bribe me with handbags if I got good grades. I could have had any Kate Spade bag I wanted if I got straight A’s. Sadly, this did not happen because I got a B in gym {I now run 3 miles 4-5 times a week, so take that gym teachers!}. To reward me for my extremely close efforts my mother took me to the Kate Spade store in Georgetown and I picked out my first Kate Spade item, sunglasses. I wish I knew what style the sunglasses were but I was too wrapped up in the dream of being in a real Kate Spade store. Today those sunglasses sit in a drawer in my parents house. I will have to remember to pick them up, the are still a handsome pair of sunglasses.
Now pretty much all my bracelets come from Kate Spade. My truly terrific boyfriend even bought me 4 for my graduation present {the bottom two were part of the gift}. Above are four fun pairs to wear together, that is one of the best things about Kate Spade bangles you can mix and match. The first pair makes me want to go to a pool party and drink sangria. The second pair reminds of sitting in the backyard watching the heat lightening streak across the sky. Wherever you wear these lovely things you are sure to hold a very good poker hand.
{Kate Spade swimming jewelry, $58, Kate Spade hardware jewelry, $40, Kate Spade ivory jewelry, $32, Kate Spade hardware jewelry, $32}
All Wrapped Up and Pretty
I can’t buy a gift more than a week before I must give the present to someone because I can hardly contain the surprise of what the gift actually is. Even though I may be a bad present secret keeper, The only thing that I love more than giving the present is wrapping it. I spend more time than I should perfecting the presentation of a present, but I would not have it any other way.
My current go to wrapping paper is butcher paper with a colored ribbon or tag. The light brown wrapping does not take away from the present but still is a showstopper. I pick my paper up at a local butcher and seafood shop but you can also find the paper at target {you can also try the flower department in the grocery store}. For the ribbon, I like to experiment with different DIY options. I scroll through this blog before settling on my final choice of decoration. Another favorite of mine us using floss string and tissue paper, as pictured above. Creating your own wrapping paper will make even the smallest gift seem amazing.
Yummy Gnocchi
After spending spring break in Italy last year I feel in love with gnocchi. Although my aunt suggested Trader Joe’s frozen gnocchi to satisfy my craving, I just love the feeling of eating something you made from scratch. Since my mother is amazing, she asked her friend who had learned how to make gnocchi at a local cooking school in town to teach us!
Ingredients:
3 pounds of russet potatoes
2 cups of all purpose flour
1 tsp of salt
Tools:
gnocchi board (you can use a fork as well)
*makes 12 servings
First start by rinsing off the potatoes and poke holes in each to allow the potatoes to cook evenly. Bake the potatoes at 400 degrees for about an hour, or until a fork slides in them without much resistance. Once the potatoes are done let them sit until completely cooled {This is very important, when you make the gnocchi dough you can not have it much more than room temperature or it will become a goopy mess. I suggest you bake the potatoes a day early and let them cool over night in the fridge}.
After the potatoes have completely cooled, peel the skin and cut out any bruises, and cut the potatoes into 1/2-1 inch cubes. Rice the potatoes in the potato ricer, add salt into mixture, then add flour in 1/2 cup quantities as you knead the riced potatoes into a dough like consistency. Once flour is gone keep kneading until your dough is only slightly moist, if you need to add more flour do so until dough is less moist. Roll dough into long ropes then cut ropes into 1/4 inch pieces.
Grab your gnocchi board or fork if you don’t have a gnocchi board and run each piece down the board with your thumb lightly pressing into dough as you pull the piece down in a sweeping motion away from your body. This creates a small crevice that your sauce can sit nicely in the gnocchi piece. If you are using a fork, flip the fork so that the back of the prongs are facing out and roll the piece of dough down the back of the fork using the same pressing method as mentioned previously.
Now that you have some cute little uncooked gnocchis laying on a floured pan boil up some water and drop about 15 pieces at a time into the boiling water. Each piece will sink to the bottom and after 20-30 seconds they will rise to the top of the water signally that they are done and ready to be scooped out. Do this until all your pieces have been cooked. Although it will be faster to cook more pieces at once you, will find that the pieces start to stick together when they don’t have enough personal space for themselves. Gauge how many pieces to cook depending on your pots diameter to ensure that each gnocchi piece has enough breathing room.
I normally do not fuss with a fancy sauce because the process is already impressing enough. I just use plain old tomato sauce and occasionally will throw in some spicy sausage. My mom likes to use a butter sauce and add some oysters and shrimp. It may be a long process and don’t be surprised if your hands are a little sore the next day, but it is absolutely worth the patience and soreness.
Tips:
I use a potato ricer from Crate and Barrel. Although the Crate and Barrel ricer is more expensive then this Bed Bath and Beyond ricer, I find that the Crate and Barrel is more sturdy and I don’t fear that the metal will lose its form when I am ricing the potatoes.
When ricing the potatoes I try to fill the ricer up with 1/4 cups of potatoes at a time. Again, this will take longer but be less resistance for your hand, keep your ricer in better condition, and you will need less elbow grease in the end.
The gnocchi board I use is from Sur La Table. I have made gnocchi with an actual board and fork and both methods yield almost the exact results. With that said I do recommend purchasing a gnocchi board if you plan on making this recipe often. It is more comfortable to hold the board rather than repositioning the fork every time.
To clean the gnocchi board, rub down with water. Like any other wood cooking tool you do not want to use soap because it will cause mold to start to grow inside of the utensil. I like to use a wash cloth to clean off my board.
If you want to save some for later you can always freeze the uncooked gnocchi pieces on the floured pan and transfer them into a container once they have become frozen. Like the boiling water, gnocchi’s personal space rules apply for freezing temperatures as well.
Where The Wind Blows
Even though I have only been a college graduate for a couple of days, I can not shake this feeling of unknowing. I have asked a couple of my friends and they say they have the same feeling. All the pieces in my life are coming together like a puzzle, I just hope I can eventually find the ones that have fallen on the floor and put them in their rightful place.
{Picture via mcc}
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