State pride

Show your state pride while drying your hands with these silk screened state dish towels. I love my Louisiana and Virginia ones; all I need is Washington, D.C., to make the union complete.

photo courtesy of Catstudio

A glass of Cupcake

photo courtesy of detnews.com

I admit it, I first bought a bottle of Cupcake Chardonnay because the label was perfect for a friend's birthday. Good thing I did the old "one for you, one for me" and came home with a bottle of my very own. It's a delicious as it looks (and surprisingly, not too sweet). If you can get over the fact that it's not the ritzy Cakebread label, then pick up a bottle and try it for yourself. 88 points by Wine Spectator for a $10 bottle ain't so shabby.

And while you're at it,enter to win a trip for two to Monterey, CA, compliments of Cupcake Vineyards.

Easy as brownie pie

My entire family was in town this past rainy weekend (parents, siblings, siblings-in-law, nephews). It was a zoo. And I loved every second of it.

On Saturday night we had dinner out, but all packed into our apartment for dessert. I served a family favorite: brownie pie. The best part about this recipe is that you probably already have all the ingredients in your kitchen:

Mother's Brownie Pie
1 stick butter
2 squares of baker's chocolate
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup flour
dash of salt
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 cups chopped pecans or almonds optional

In a sauce pan, melt butter and chocolate squares. Take off heat, stir in sugar. Beat eggs in a separate bowl and add to saucepan (careful not to cook the eggs). Stir in flower and salt. Pour into a greased 8 inch pie pan* and cook for 25-30 minutes at 325 degrees

Serve with vanilla ice cream, raspberries and homemade whipped cream. Voila!**

*Just like my mother, I only have a 9 inch pie pan, so we add half more of everything for a total of 1 and 1/2 sticks of butter, 3 squares of baker's chocolate, etc...

** Perfect for breakfast the next day as well, in my opinion.

Vintage ironstone

My mother gave me my first piece of vintage ironstone this year - a large white oval platter aged to perfection. I like to think those nicks, brown spots and lines show the years of hearty meals shared around a family farmhouse table (rather than from life in a confined city apartment like it is living now). The sturdy, yet refined platter is one of my favorite pieces.






photos courtesy of Etsy

Treasure hunt

Enjoying the warm afternoon sun and cloudless sky, I went on a treasure hunt yesterday through my neighborhood... Saw all sorts of wonderful things at my local second hand/junk-tique shops like a giant tin globe, folk art wooden horse, industrial floor lamp and mid-century bar cart. Came home with white flour sack cloth napkins (an easy way to be green) and two small footed silver-plated serving pieces (a steal, all they needed were a shine). I love mixing typically formal pieces into everyday life.

Starting the week off right

After years of saying "We should really get together" every single time we ran into former coworkers (who we really do consider friends) at happy hours or events, we are finally having a few of them over for dinner tonight. On the menu: slow cooked pork shoulder Cubano (think lots of citrus and garlic) with cabbage salad and cilantro rice.

Mondays are brutal enough on their own, so we lightened the load by cooking the pork and prepping the salad yesterday. While the pork certainly gets us ready for cool weather "hibernation mode", the crunchy, veggie filled salad and fresh cilantro in the rice will keep it on the lighter side.

Oriental Cabbage Salad Recipe (toss with chicken to make it meal of its own):

One package coleslaw mix (or the equivalent of shredded purple and white cabbage and carrots)
Half a head of Savoy (the crinkled leaf cabbage)
Extra shredded carrots
4 green onions, chopped
(note: I am going to add a couple cups of shredded broccoli mix to amp up the veggies; you could also add tomatoes, red or green peppers, etc.)
Half a cup of toasted silvered almonds
Half a cup of toasted sun flower seeds
Package of Oriental Ramen Noodles (reserve the seasoning for the dressing) - crushed and sauteed in butter (note: I am just going to toast them without the butter)

For dressing: heat 1/2 cup white vinegar, 1/2 cup vegetable/canola oil, 1/4 cup sugar and the seasoning packet. Remove from heat once the sugar has dissolved.

Toss everything together 30 minutes before you serve. Bon appetit!

Tea in DC

Up to two million demonstrators were in my back yard this weekend for a 'tea party' protesting government spending.

Exercising my own inalienable rights, I had a little tea party of my own:

Tazo's Earl Gray (black tea scented with bergamot) and Refresh (mint with a touch of tarragon) have gotten me through the darkest days of my out-patient Coca-Cola rehab program. New faves: Le Pain Quotidien peppermint and the Republic of Tea white tea.

And if you are ever in the District, be sure to stop by Teaism for an enjoyable assortment of teas, which can all be perfectly paired with the best oatmeal raisin and sea salt cookies you'll ever taste.

Another one bites the dust

photo courtesy of Garden&Gun

Magazine lovers across America are shedding a collective tear with the closure of yet another design publication. Southern Accents, a magazine that defined style in the South for over thirty years, closes its doors with the September/October issue.

In a move that makes me miss Domino more than ever, the Southern Accents website will remain alive. So you can still get your southern fix (and check out Garden&Gun while you're at it.)

Sunday Supper on Tuesday

Book and Bottle(s) is tonight and I've borrowed two of my favorite recipes from Sunday Suppers : flank steak au poivre with parsnip puree (the girls will bring apps, salad, dessert and of course, a few bottles of wine). I'll also mix up my new favorite summer drink, the St. Germain. With all the prep done (a few shots of the place below), I'll be able to enjoy a cocktail before the guests arrive.

Loving Frank

The girls are coming over for Book and Bottle(s) next week and we'll be discussing Loving Frank by Nancy Horan. Frank Lloyd Wright's personal life, both fact and fiction, almost rivals the masterpieces he left behind.

Falling Water
Laurel Highlands, PA

A tourist trap perhaps, but breathtaking nonetheless.

The St. Germain

While we can't always walk down St-Germain-des-Prés, we can always toast to Paris with St. Germain.

St. Germain is a liqueur made with fresh wild elderflowers, encased in a perfectly Parisian vessel reminiscent of a perfume bottle. My favorite paring (and only, thus far) is the signature cocktail cleverly named the "St. Germain."

Recipe:
2 Shots Champagne
1 ½ Shots St-Germain
2 Shots Sparkling Water or Club Soda
Stir ingredients in a tall ice-filled Collins glass, mixing completely. Think of Paris circa 1947. Garnish with a lemon twist. Drink and repeat.

Here's the lovely bottle waiting for me at home (a special thank you to the handsome man who surprised me with this. Happy wife = happy home, especially when that wife has a champagne glass in hand.)