st germain margarita

it's friday!
and normally on friday i need a cocktail :)

my new fave is a st. germain margarita.

there's something about the bite of the tequila and the lime juice 

blended with the sweetness of the germain. really really delightful.

for my other favorite st. germain cocktail click here.

ingredients
1 1/2oz silver tequila
1 1/2oz st germain (elderflower liqueur)
1/2_ oz fresh squeezed lime juice to taste
coarse sea salt

directions
1. rub a slice of lime around the rim of your glass and dip into salt
2. fill your glass with ice cubes and set aside
3. add tequila, st. germain and lime juice
4. stir until cold

enjoy your weekend!

recipe via fruetcake

tzatziki dressing

this was pretty good...

it was GREAT on my mediterranean lamb tostadas,

and i feel like it'd be a great dressing on a classic greek salad.

as a reminder, this recipe is really for a dressing,

not a classic thick tzatiki, mmmkay?!

recipe via date night in

makes 1.5 cups

ingredients

1 cup plain whole milk greek yogurt

(i used non-fat)

1 cup finely diced cucumber

1/2 tablespopon champagne vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 garlic glove, minced

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

1/4 teaspoon honey

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

pinch of black pepper

directions

1. whisk together the yogurt, cucumber, vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, garlic, 

dill, mint, honey, salt, and pepper. taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

(can be made 2 days in advance!)

mediterranean lamb tostadas

confession: i love cookbooks.

i love flipping through them looking
for a common theme among the dishes, 

appreciating how they're organized,

admiring the photography, 

looking for ingredients i've never heard of, 

and learning about new techniques i haven't tried.

date night in is my current fave cookbook,

and this is one of my favorite recipes i've tried so far.
amazing flavors, super easy. spot on!

enjoy :)

the below recipe serves two. i doubled it.

seasoned lamb ingredients

1/2 teaspoon lemon zest

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

1 garlic clove, minced

pinch of red pepper flakes

8oz ground lamb

2 tablespoons olive oil

tostada ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

2 pitas (preferably with no pockets)

2 cups shredded romaine

1 small tomato, diced

1/4 cucumber, diced

1/2 cup crumbled feta

1/4 chopped pitted kalamata olives

1/4 chopped fresh mint

1/4 chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

tzatziki dressing

seasoned lamb directions

1. mix together lemon zest, cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, oregano, 

cinnamon, mint, garlic, and red pepper flakes in medium bowl. 

add lamb and gently combine with clean hands. 

store, covered in the refrigerator until ready to cook 

(the longer the better - will keep up to two days).

2. coat the bottom of a medium skillet with the olive oil and place over medium/high heat. 

add the lamb, breaking it up as it cooks. saute until cooked through, about 8 minutes.

tostada directions

1. in a large skillet on medium/high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil. 

add 1 pita and fry on both sides until crisp, about 1-2 minutes per side. 

repeat with the remaining pita.

2. place each crisp pita on a plate and top with half of each of the lamb, 

romaine, tomato, cucumber, feta olives, mint, and parsley. 

serve with a generous topping of tzatziki dressing.

salted caramel chocolate chip cookies (for two!)

what is it about the chocolate chip cookie that seems like the most versatile dessert ever?
i love trying new ingredients, comparing techniques,
and seeing if i can one up the last version.

not gonna lie. these are pretty high up on the list.
i'm a sucker for salted caramel, and that's exactly the twist
i needed to get out of my chocolate chip cookie rut.
try these. they're pretty stinkin' good.

note: this recipe makes SIX cookies :)

ingredients

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp

3 tablespoons light brown sugar

2 tablespoons sugar

1 large egg yolk

3/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder (optional)

1/4 teaspoon baking power

1/3 cup chocolate chunks or chips

6 caramel candies, cut into pieces

large flake salt for sprinkling

directions

1. preheat oven to 375 degrees, 

line baking sheet with parchment paper

2. in medium bowl, beat together butter and sugar
with an electric mixer on medium speed.
once creamy, add egg yolk and vanilla and beat to combine

3. in small bowl whisk together flour, espresso powder (if using), and baking powder

4. add dry ingredients to butter mixture and beat until just combined

5. chop the chocolate chunk into smaller pieces,
saving all the little bits. add to dough and stir to evenly distribute.

6. divide the dough into six equal pieces and make large balls
rolling it between your hands. space evenly on the baking sheet.

7. press three pieces of caramel candy close to the center of each dough ball.
be careful not to press the balls flat.
it's best to keep the caramel pieces very close together!

8. bake for 10 minutes, or until edges of cookies start to brown.
remove from oven, sprinkle generously with salt.
let cool on baking sheet for 2 minutes before moving to a wire rack to cool.

recipe from the genius little blog called dessert for two 

(so that you don't end up eating 3 dozen cookies or a whole plate of brownies)

monday morning mashup

pic via

1. fun facts you never knew about disneyland.

2. in case you're looking for the best selfie stick on the market.

3. looking forward to checking out lululemon's swim wear line.

4. body language blunders to avoid in the workplace.

5. why i've been downing lemon water.

6. coveting one of these iphone cases.

7. tips and tricks for filling our your march madness bracket.

8. obsessed with this tutti fruitti birthday party idea.

9. wanna try these DIY tape frames above my desk.

10. how to cook a perfect egg breakfast.

honeymoon, part 2 (kauai)

pretty much sums up the week! 

and if you're not using sunbum sunscreen... well, let's just say it's time to switch!

the first part of our week was spent in poipu

adventuring nearby...

boat trip up the napoli coast

hiking in waimea canyon

dinner and sunset on the beach

anini beach on our way to princeville

arriving at the st. regis princeville

where we ate breakfast each morning

heli ride :)

the most amazing liliko'i margarita

hiking to queen's bath

dinner in princeville

watch for the full list of hawaii faves next week!

including the best shaved ice on each island :)

honeymoon, part 1 (oahu)

hi friends – the blog is starting up again – hallelujah!

it’s been a two year hiatus, but the best two years of my life! 

while i continued to cook and travel and try new restaurants and collect cookbooks, 

i also met the love of my life and got married in February (holla!)

now that life has settled down a bit, i’m excited to be back
online sharing all the usual stuff with you guys –
recipes, adventures, top ten lists and various inspiration.

i’ll start with a little catch-up…. recapping our HONEYMOON!

our basic honeymoon philosophy was as follows:

*go as long as possible (we chose 2 weeks)

*go somewhere you can do as much as you want or as little as you want (hawaii)

*make zero plans prior to arriving (which was surprisingly easy for us!)

we spent week one on Oahu and week two in Kauai. here is the week one in recap:

waikiki beach

moana surfrider, one of my favorite hotels on the strip

date night. (is that every night on your honeymoon?)

shopping (at kate spade, of course!)

hiking diamond head

beach day at my fave beach, lanikai beach

the aftermath of lunch at giovanni's shrimp truck

waimea valley and falls

what most days looked like :)

valentine's dinner at house without a key