almond biscotti

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I made these biscottis as a party favor for our Italian-themed wine club night.  I was a little nervous to make biscottis (again, it looks fancy), but with a little research, it didn’t seem that challenging.

I used the recipe taken from Smitten Kitchen.

Recipe

3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/3 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon orange liqueur
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 cup whole almonds, toasted, coarsely chopped or sliced almonds

1 large egg white

First, position rack in the center of oven and preheat to 350°F.

Start by sifting flour, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl.

Mix sugar, melted butter, 3 eggs, vanilla extract, orange liqueur, and zest in large bowl.
Add flour mixture to egg mixture and stir with wooden spoon until well blended.
Mix in almonds. I used Honey Toasted Glazed Almonds from Central Market which I chopped in my Cuisinart mini food processor; this machine has been such a versatile tool in my kitchen.
Divide dough in half. Using floured hands, shape each dough half into 13 1/2-inch-long, 2 1/2-inch-wide logs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Whisk egg white in a small bowl until foamy; brush over top and sides of each dough log.
Bake logs until golden brown (logs will spread), about 30 minutes. Cool logs completely on sheet on rack, about 25 minutes. Maintain oven temperature.
Transfer logs to work surface; discard parchment paper. Using serrated knife, cut logs on diagonal into 1/2-inch-wide slices.
Arrange slices, cut side down, on same baking sheet.
Bake 12 minutes. Turn biscotti over; bake until just beginning to color, about 8 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool. Yum!!
This recipe said you can bake them up to one week ahead of time and they have kept even longer. Store in airtight container at room temperature.  This recipe yields about 40 biscottis!

Considering these were a party favor for our wine night, I bought clear bags and more twine to put them in, Italian colored twine, of course. I added a note to each; “enjoy these homemade biscottis with coffee or wine” and attached them to the bag.

I added the twine and note to each bag of four biscottis to present to our guests.

Yum, right?!  These were surprisingly easy and so yummy.  They have a little hint of orange with the almond, which was also a surprising mix of goodness.  I have ideas of making them again and adding a chocolate drizzle to them!  Either way, they were delicious!

evoo

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Last night, we served thirteen people an Italian-inspired menu for a fabulous wine club pairing. We started with extra virgin olive oil, baguettes, cheese and prosciutto. Paul made his seasoned spaghetti, which we served with an Italian salad and garlic bread. For dessert, we enjoyed tiramisu and cannoli…. and lots of bottles of wine.

The one downfall of the fabulous evening was that I didn’t take pictures. I recharged my battery and everything!! Ah. But once guests started to arrive, bread had to be cut, and all the prep work had to be finished in our little galley kitchen… so the camera unfortunately didn’t move from it’s lone place on the counter.

I did, however, take pictures of the party gifts we gave. Little bottles of extra virgin olive oil…

I started by heading over to Hobby Lobby and picking up fun bottles.  At first, I was going to pick different types, but I fell in love with these little gems.
Simply add your favorite extra virgin oil olive.
I then purchased colored twine and alphabet buttons.
I placed a button, which corresponded to each person’s or couple’s last name and added about four loops of string around the rim of the jar.
Repeat this technique for how many ever you are making.
These were a hit… not only for picture taking, but for the party.  Everyone really liked them.  I’m sure they will be used for more of a display piece, but there is some great evoo in each of them, too!
If you wanted to add more to this gift, you could send guests away with a baguette and seasoning! The possibilities are endless.
Posted in DIY

labor & delivery

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(picture courtesy of Addison & her mother)

Have you ever heard new moms talk about their delivery process? Well, I have. I recently had three very close friends have babies. Two of these being their first and the other her third. They all tell this remarkably calm story about their child’s birth. The spouse did this, and I was feeling that, so we decided to go to the hospital. Admitted. The nurse said I was dilated, epidurals, etc. All three added in one minor anecdote, “not going to lie, it was a little painful.” One friend even claimed to her husband that she was done having babies when that pain hit, but then they all magically go on to the details of their first meeting; Addison, Miles, or Lucas. Now, I always thought this was my mom’s extremely positive spin on life, when she talked about my delivery story, which she would recite to me every August 7 @ 3:19 pm. But there must be baby-steia or baby-abnesia that helps you get thru the pain.  I’m convinced.

This womanly characteristic is probably the reason I wanted to paint the master bathroom with stripes. I have no recollection of the pain and misery and anger those strips in the 1/2 bath caused me; no, all I have left is the internal bliss of those stripes every time I walk past. Sometimes, I walk down that hall just to get a view of those stripes and smile at them.

Motherhood is amazing. Ha.

Here is a picture of the master bath:

Before (before we moved in)

Benjamin Moore boothbay gray HC-165
The tutorial is the same as the 1/2 bath post, the only difference being, I decided to do three colored stripes instead of two. The colors were Benjamin Moore Early Morning Mist 1528 (medium color) and Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee OC-45 (lightest color) & Benjamin Moore Stone Harbor 2011-50 (darkest color).
This bathroom was definitely the second child, the wild child. Like any typical second child, it was ready to test my limits, and when I took off the tape this is what I discovered… Why did I decide to do this?! Ahhh.

I waited until the next day and touched up all the lines with a small brush and a surgical steady hand.  Luckily I had both.

This is probably why the average American household has only two children. I think I’m done myself… at least with painting stripes.

 Oh, and all three ladies would have another in a heartbeat.

lemon poppyseed scones

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Since buying my French press, I haven’t thought much about eating breakfast. I would whip together whatever would satisfy my empty stomach in the morning but mainly enjoy my coffee. It’s like having to eat the happy meal before getting the toy. I just wanted the toy, or my coffee!!

This was until our brother-in-law come to visit. He loves sweets, and we didn’t have enough in our house to facilitate his weekend visit.  He came home from the grocery store with lemon poppyseed sconces, cookies and cinnamon rolls, classic Scott!! Unfortunately, it was in the afternoon when he came home with the scones, and I didn’t want to make a scene by getting out my French press right then and there.

Scones! Why didn’t I think of that!?!

The next day, I was like a kid on Christmas morning so excited to get my kettle going and warm up those scones. Turns out, they were delicious and my brother-in-law took back a couple containers to Missouri.

Now, my new mission was to try to make my own! And that I did! I recommend a pastry cutter for this recipe; I didn’t have one and used a fork and my fingers, which worked fine but is a little more labor intensive.

Oh, and do not overwork the dough! This was emphasized in the recipe I used from Southern Living. You want that crumbly goodness only scones possess, so minimize mixing and handling the ingredients.

Recipe

Scones

  •  2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 3 tablespoons poppyseeds
  • 2 large lemons, zested
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 tablespoon salt
  • 1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

Glaze

  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl, combine flour, granulated sugar, poppyseeds, lemon zest, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Mix. Then add in cubed butter.
Using a pastry cutter (I used a fork and my fingers), cut in butter until mixture resembles a very coarse meal. Pour in heavy cream, then add 1/4 cup lemon juice, stirring just until dough forms.
Using your hands, gather dough together and gently press into a ball. Transfer dough to a parchment-lined baking sheet and shape into an 8-inch disk.  Yes, I measured it. I think it’s funny it’s a tape measure too.
Next, cut into 8 wedges.  That’s how they get the triangles! Separate so scones are about 1 inch apart.  I would cut them into 16 next time.  I like my scones a little smaller but really, it helps me justify eating more than one. Ha.
Bake until scones are golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 12 – 14 minutes.  Transfer scones to a wire rack and let cool for about 20 minutes.  These guys were monster size scones.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix 1/2 cup confectioners sugar with 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice and stir until smooth.

Using a spoon, drizzle glaze over cooled scones. They look so pretty!
Get your French press brewing and enjoy!  It’s the perfect marriage!
I said earlier the grocery store version was delicious, well these blow-them-out-of-the-water!! They are amazing… and the size that I was claiming were gi-normous… the hubs had two. Ha!

Etsy

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Today, one of my patients and I were discussing procrastination tools such as Pinterest and Facebook. We usually ask questions to our patients, distracting their attention on what we are doing.  Even though we know the difference between Facebook and Pinterest, we ask. We ask hoping the patient doesn’t know that we actually took a biopsy or excised a mole… it works most of the time, to the delight of both the patient and the provider. Except when your provider (me) gets REAL excited about the subject and talks for them. This was me today. Considering I had to stop talking about MY love for Pinterest and Etsy with them, I figured I would share the site with you.

Etsy is a fun site where real people (like you and me) share and sell their goods! At decent prices, too! Here are just a few things I’ve gotten for the house and myself on Etsy!

Custom Sewn Window Seat Cushion with Cording – I chose the coffee bean bags as my seat “fabric”.

Elephant Bums and Babies Original Drawing

Budweiser Raised Dog Feeder Pet Bowl Holder

The Chunky Cowl Scarf Shawl Hood

Wall Hooks

And here are some things I’ve been loving on the site… click on the photo and it will bring you to Etsy. 

Archive Bag in Chestnut Brown

Birds of a Feather 5×7 Photography

Expresso Bar

Bird Plates

Happy status updating, pinning, and shopping!

well, hello.

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We recently added a couple new elements to our entryway.  We longed for an inviting space for guests to put their shoes and coats, but considering we had more of a hallway than an entry nook, we had to improvise.

I’ve been drooling over this Pottery Barn piece for months and have seen many variations other bloggers have come up with to make it their own. I had it on my brain that I would do the same. Maybe commission something similar? Or make it myself? Because I could never stomach the high sticker price of the real thing. Don’t get me wrong, there are items I want for my house that I would totally save my money for, but a bench and hook set wasn’t one of them. I think it totaled around $920.00 with shipping! Ekk.

One night recently, I was browsing Craigslist at items we still need, a dining table, etc.  As luck would have it, there was the exact entryway hook and bench I’ve been drooling over on Craigslist, though I wasn’t sure about the mahogany stain (I wanted black) and the red cushion (would have to be replaced). But I was all about it!  I offered him a couple hundred less then he was asking, and he was firm on his price. I said okay but if he changes his mind, he can contact me and could pick it up that weekend. I thought I had lost this little gem but he contacted me a week later seeing if I was still interested and accepted my original offer!

It came with 6 seagrass baskets and a red cushion, which now resides in Boston’s crate.  It’s the Samantha Collection from Pottery Barn, and I got the whole thing for less than half the original. An interior designer used it for about 8 months and put it on Craigslist! Score of the year? I think so!

I dressed it up with some found items around the house. I think this will be a fun place to rearrange throughout the year! I now store our dog toys in the middle bench, hats and mittens in another, and spare keys in the wooden bowl. I’m sure we’ll find ways to use all the baskets. Now, I just need a great runner (rug) and a new front door (fun paint color?) and this space will be complete. Here’s some progress pictures of our entryway!

Before

After

Before

After

I’m trying to make our entryway as inviting as possible, in hopes to see many great people (and animals) walk through that door.

becoming a minimalist

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This past weekend was one of those great weekends with a minimal MUST-DO list and ample time to just enjoy the weather and a good book. I’ve been reading The Happiness Project, which has motivated my desire to de-clutter. De-clutter my closets, rooms and thoughts. Friday, I finished up painting the fireplace (blog post in 3 weeks! I have to wait for the paint to dry!), then I spent the rest of the afternoon reading about de-cluttering and the satisfaction it can bring. I was motivated and wanted that high!

Since getting the carpets cleaned a few weeks ago, we had two areas in our home with some major clutter. A blanket laid out in our living room filled with junk; seriously, a blanket with all the random things on the floor from the guest room.  This blanket was also hindering us from moving forward with any decorative plans but mostly was a huge eye-sore and gave me anxiety every time I walked through the front door.

See. Scary!

The other major clutter zone was the 4th bedroom/office/catch-all. We’ll do that next.

We decided to take on the living room! We went through the boxes and bins that have made at least two moves with us. We placed the items into three piles; keep, throw, or garage sale.  To my surprise Paul was really on board, and the two of us hammered through all the bins. We finished the project with one bin of “keep” and items that we had spaces already dedicated for!

Wow, it feels so wonderful to have that space clean! Now, we can save up for our furniture selections for this space. Watch out 4th bedroom! You’re next.

P.S. No, the dog crates will not be part of the living room decor.

first visit & color balance

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This past weekend, we had the pleasure of hosting the Daugherty clan in our Dallas home.  The first to venture down and see what Texas was all about.  We had a wonderful time, once Paul and I got over the initial shock of being “on” all the time. Paul even said, “kids are a WHOLE different level, I was tired after Adventure Landing!” But, we had an absolute blast and the things that come out of their mouths are so funny, such as Drake stating the sheets on his blow up bed were Fancy, wondering if the crabs would eat them at the aquarium, and the realization half way through a meal, “I have NO drink!”  They were great, and I wanted to adopt them all. What a great weekend. These kids are a ball full of energy and we didn’t want to disappoint.  So we hit up a couple local attraction: the park, which is right down our street, a couple times, Adventure Landing, Fort Worth Rodeo, and The Dallas Aquarium.

It was a great weekend and honestly, if I could guarantee a baby like Anna, I would have four.

Plus, it was nice to have a general contractor in our presence to nonchalantly ask questions… can we actually do that?  and how much would that cost? and what would you do? and can you just come down and do it?!?  Okay, I was thinking that last question.  I’m so happy they came down and here are the highlights of the weekend.

*Weekend Photos by Lisa Daugherty – because who forgets her camera? This girl. :( 

Otis also won a souvenir prize thanks to Anna.  Otis got many face licks in to Anna’s surprise this weekend; she was watching him all weekend but never got mad, just gave a look of what was that?!

He’s been playing/sleeping with it ever since. Sorry Anna.

Prior to the Daughtery’s making their presence in the Big D, I knew I had to clean up the main bath for their arrival!  I fell in love with the gray-with-green-undertones BM Stingray 1529 in our kitchen and decided to use what was left in the main bathroom.  It works perfectly with yellow tile and bronze/gold accessories. I also demoed the gold shower door! That was such an eye sore, so I replaced it with a simple curtain from West Elm.  I still need to add framed items in here but it’s such an improvement, I wanted to share.

Before

After (Progress Pic) – Sorry for the dark mirror photo…

When first purchasing a home, I got all excited about paint color, the kitchen could be this and the bathroom that, but then I realized the zen quality of cohesiveness… and stopped wanting to paint our house like a preschool classroom, so I started picking colors that complement each other.  Though I know people that have the same color throughout their house, and it works for them, I couldn’t do the same. I couldn’t think of that one color to blanket the whole house; I couldn’t handle just one color.  Instead, I found a happy-medium.  Here’s my color palette thus far;

  • Guest Rooms #1 and #2 – BM pashmina AF-100
  • Kitchen and Main Bath – BM stringray 1529
  • Hallways and Strip in 1/2 bath – BM swiss coffee OC-45
  • 1/2 bath other strip – BM halo OC-46 (though I could of used Early Morning Mist or Stringray)
  • Entryway – BM stone harbor 2111-50
  • Living and Dining Room – BM bennington gray HC-182
  • Master Bedroom – BM palladian blue HC- 144
  • Master Bath – BM boothbay gray HC – 165
  • Family Room – BM early morning mist 1528
  • Laundry & Guest Room #4/Office Bookshelves –BM dragonfly AF-510 or rockport gray HC-105 (TBA)

I tried my best to use the same colors throughout the house.  I think it’s working really well! I only have the laundry room, 4th bedroom and some bookshelves left!

cup o’ joe

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For a couple of months now, I’ve been jonesin’ for this amazing little appliance.  I experienced this old friend of mine in a cute restaurant called Rise! Instead of saving my Christmas gift certificate for something more substantial, I went down to Crate&Barrel and got the original French press; it was beautiful, and I was SO excited to use it for our lazy Saturday morning ritual! (It’s usually sitting around watching American Pickers and drinking coffee. Seriously my favorite part of the weekend.) 

First, start by scooping coffee grinds into the French press! This is based on coffee preference. Strong is another man’s weak. I prefer 3 scoops.

Heat water to almost boiling. Yep, tea pot AND French press is out. And now we’re fancy!

Look at him waiting patiently!

Pour in water and watch the frothy goodness appear.

Stir with a wooden spoon.

Let sit for 4 minutes.

Replace lid and press down very very slowly. This will push all the coffee grinds to the bottom of the press.

Serve.

And Enjoy! It’s really fun! You should all try!

spring wreath

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Since moving into a home, I’ve found a new love for decorating my entryway with a seasonal wreath… my red wreath was used from Christmas through Valentine’s Day. But now I was on the hunt for a fun spring wreath.  I did my usual looking though Target’s great selection but couldn’t see spending $30.00 – $50.00 dollars on a new wreath.  Luckily my boss has been out for spring break making it easy to browse the internet for ideas.  I found this on a crafting website via Restore Style and thought it was such a fun cheap idea!

Supplies:

– Spanish Moss – I bought 2 bags from the Dollar Tree

– Glue gun & glue sticks (Dollar Tree also has 20 sticks/$1.00, score!)

– Alphabet letter of your choice – I got mine at Hobby Lobby, but saw them in a “paper box-y look” at JoAnn’s too, but the “S” wasn’t that cute; that’s why I go the wood one.

– Adhesive Spray

– Ribbon (I had this at my house)

– Disposable rubber gloves

– Stapler

All-in-all I spent around $10.00 for all my supplies!

Start by applying the moss onto the letter. Lots and lots of glue was scarified for this project.  I put moss on top and then moved to the outer edges.

Continue all around the whole top side of the letter… until it’s lush and full.

Take your creation outside and spray it with adhesive spray.  After spraying the wreath, with gloved hands, mold your moss.  I just said “mold your moss”; why is that so funny to me? Ha. Anyway, this will help any wispy fly-a-ways stay where you want.  It’s like hairspray for your project.

Then, cut your ribbon and apply to the back to the desired height.  I glued mine to the back, waited for it to dry, then stapled it for extra support.

Step back and enjoy your creation!  I think this would be such a fun housewarming, wedding, bridal shower gift, or party decoration!! The possibilities are endless!