tonight i made this

and it was glorious.

recipe here

nothing better

than brie, jam, a baguette and a tea on a cold, shitty rainy afternoon.

carry moonbeams home in a jar

i wish i was a witch so i could concoct a spell that would give me either:

1) this bathtub
2) $3,850 in cash so i could go to restoration hardware and buy it my damn self.

restoration hardware

let them eat cupcake

i love to bake.
i try to restrain my urge to reach for the sugar and flour for fear of blowing up into a giant sized version of myself, however, whenever my self awareness light goes off, I head to the oven.
just to be clear- i head to the oven to bake, NOT to kill myself.

i am also a big believer in presentation. In my edible opinion, things taste twice as good if they look twice as good (with the exception of most wedding cakes...)

aren't these just to die for?

visit cupcakesocial for more

the most gorgeous

how delish does this look!

and...

...wait for it...

it's vegan!

Pan-Fried Three Mushroom Dumplings

thanks designsponge for making all my dreams come true.

while i'm paralyzed.

i did some browsing.

i am a big fan of accessories. big huge giant fan. i used to be an associate accessories editor and every day was like a great act of imagination - what you choose as your accessory literally changes your entire look (life).

i tend to be lazy with my fashion (see black clothing post). i wear lots of black, lots of men's clothes, not so much makeup. it is pure laziness and a firm belief that trying too hard is a surefire way to look like a complete poser (i.e. - harem pants, while comfortable, are utterly idiotic and really unflattering - not in a body conscious way... in a "oh man i just shat my pants" way. i do not care what anyone says. they will go the way of the mini-backback, you watch! Either way- even if harem pants stay around forever- they will still look like a diaper with legs).

so...while i'm trying hard to look like i'm not trying that hard (insert self-depracating "lol" here) the only thing that makes me feel cute is when i throw on my vint faux leopard coat (reason number 43059843 i'm s00 suuuper excited for fall/winter) and a good old fashion headband.
bonjour, blaire. you got me.
............

i exhale a big breath when we are done with the short shorts and tank tops. i like sweaters and scarves and uggs (whatever, they are comfortable, shut it) and mittens and yummy yummazoids.

although i am married, wouldn't this be perfect for a Sunday supper dinner date
with big giant oversized chunky knit off the shoulder sweater, rolled up men's
trousers and my Chloé cripple shoes (shh), hair days unwashed, my whole foods
bag which has quickly become my "purse"? yums.

$14, bebecha

the. perfect. meal.

ok so it's to the point where i feel incredibly stupid for saying i cooked another martha stewart recipe. but seriously, it is virtually impossible to go wrong.

Last Night's Menu:
Grilled Striped Bass with
Lemon and Caper Mashed Potatoes and
Cucumber Salad with Sour Cream and Dill Dressing

with

Strawberry Tart for dessert.




It really really like rules my life, this meal.

breakfast of champignons

ugh sometimes a cappucino and a palmier
really make the best breakfast anyone could ever have.

cherry, cherry

yay! i'm makin this baby today.





thanks, martha.

UPDATE:
srsly the best thing i've ever eaten.
plus, so easy it hurts.

rainyday templates

what a perfect day for this post.

it's just kinda crappy enough.

anyway i don't remember where i was browsing but i saw a post for this amazing company, called RainyDayTemplates. They have (actually) cute templates for blogger and stuff. They are totally affordable and if you want to spruce up your blizog, this is a really great way to do it ! For extra cost you can customize it to your exact specifications, so it's really up to you how much you want to spend, which i really like.


i am definitely going to purchase one, but here are a few of my faves.

white night

yay! we're on our way to having a completely white bedroom. the color we used was benjamin moore's chantilly lace, which is the ultimate ultimate super pretty white. yay!

when life gives you lemonz

make lemon bars!

I am a huge fan of Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook by Kathleen King (hey, any King is a friend of mine). I have made nearly everything in this book but one of my abso faves is the Dot's Lemon Bars. They are the perfect mix of tart and sweet, and i'm feeling tarty and sweet-ish, so bring on the baking.

In case you wanna get baked, here is the recipe for you.

Dot's Lemon Bars
Yield: 16 squares

Ingredients:
(this is the best part - you most likely have all these things in your kitchen already)

BASE:
1 cup salted butter, softened to room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

LEMON TOPPING
4 large eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar
Grated zest of 1 lemon
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

TO MAKE THE BASE:
In a medium bowl, miz the butter, flour, and sugar with your hands till the mixture is well blended. Place the mixture in a 9x13 inch pan. Pat the mixture evenly on the bottom of pan. Bake for 30 minutes.

TO MAKE THE TOPPING:
While the base is baking, beat the eggs. Add the sugar and lemon zest. Mix thtoroughly. Add the flour and mix it till it is incorporated.
When the base is baked, remove the pan from the oven (duh). Add the lemon juice to the sugar mixture and mix. Pour it over the warm base and bake it for 20 minutes.
When it is cool, cut it into squares. Dust it with more confectioners' sugar, if desired. (the recipe says they look prettier sugared, but taste better plain - i personally prefer the confectioners sugar dusting, but it's your call)

Eat.

cake town!

my lovely friends are having a potluck backyard
bbq tonight and i made dessert, natch.


have a look here at my grand ol' flag cake!

club med

i made this delicious pasta for din din tonight. it was really easy and i suggest you make it! the only weird thing about the recipe is that it says the wine evaporates in 2 minutes and it took at least 6 for me.... but it was still med-licious!


recipe for mediterranean pasta w artichokes (yum!), olives (yum!), and tomatoes (double yum!)

soba schmoba

i made this yummy dish on monday it boy was she a delish dish!


recipe for
soba noodles with tofu, avocado and snow peas.

thanks martha.

it is raining.

and i like it.

print by blancucha, $30

co.

we ate a marvelous lunch today at a restaurant called Company near our house. It has amazing pizza and a great environment. We were told most people wait for like an hour to get a table (they don't take reservations, natch), but i guess we got there at a good time, cause we sat right down. everything was amazing. it was opened by sullivan street bakery's jim lahey, so i'm not at all surprised.
it was razz-a-mattaz-ical!


it's at 230 Ninth Avenue @ 24th Street. go forth and gorge!

hello, old friend

maybe i'm alone here. but in being a grownup i COMPLETELY forgot about cereal.

like, i just didn't consider it as a food. we HAVE cereal in our house. but i dont remember the last time i ate it.

i was so hungry just now that i was forced to consider it.

and oh my god, i forgot how great it is.

cereal, welcome home.

!!!!!