hard maple lemonade

This is da bomb.
Especially when you:
have a teething baby
have your husband gone for what seems like forever in the field
have nowhere to go on a perfectly fine Saturday night
have all of the above going on.

And, yes, there are two there.
Don't judge me :)

ps-this is super good without the bourbon too!

Hard Maple Lemonade
Taken from the Smitten!
Makes 4 cups....so __ many drinks? ;)
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 2 pounds of 8 lemons)
2 - 2 1/2 cups ice cold water (depending on how tart you like it)
1/4 - 1/2 cup real maple syrup
Bourbon
Ice

Mix first three ingredients.
Then, experiment with your lemonade to bourbon to ice ratio!
Enjoy!

easy apple tarte

Easy peasy.
And, oh so Autumnal.

Try this for your next dinner party.
Instant hit.
And no one will know it was so easy.

Easy Apple Tarte
Makes 2 tartes.
Adapted loosely from PW.
4 golden delicious apples
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 sheet puff pastry, thawed

Halve the apples.
Take out the cores.
(Or core with a corer, that I don't own, and then halve.)
Slice thinly.
Toss with the brown sugar and salt and let sit for a few minutes.
Cut the pastry in half.
Arrange apple slices on top, overlapping as you go.
(You'll have extra....enjoy them as you go!)
Turn up edges of pastry, if you are feeling fancy.
Bake for 18 minutes on 415* until brown and bubbly.
Serve with tiny scoops of ice cream and cover with powdered sugar.
Enjoy!

gd likes

cute coaster set

this duvet....but maybe for a little girl's room?

but these pillows....for us :)

and this, for my kitchen

wow....shout out to urban outfitters today, eh??
i heart them.

soooo...what do you like?

grapefruit honey yogurt scones

I've been on a super scone kick lately.
I used to think scones were really difficult and they were very intimidating to me.
I was wrong.
Thank goodness.
Wasn't the first time.
Won't be the last.
Sorry.
Is that the point of this post?
No.
These are.
The lightest, crumbly scones that just melt in your mouth.
The grapefruit is to die for and the honey adds just a touch of sweetness.
Serve with that honey brown butter spread.
I know, I keep promoting that in hopes that you will listen and go make it.
Your life will be forever changed.
But, that's not the point of this post either.
Man.
Sorry.
These are great scones.
Maybe the greatest I've had to date.
The end.

Grapefruit Honey Yogurt Scones
From Joy the Baker.
Makes 6 big-ish ones.

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 ripe grapefruit, zested and segmented

1/4 cup sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold

2 tablespoons honey

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

Milk or buttermilk

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 425*.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

Combine the grapefruit zest and sugar on a clean surface.  Rub the sugar and the zest together or "chop" it with a knife.  The sugar will be tinted a pale orange color and smell of grapefruit.  

Measure 2 tablespoons of the grapefruit sugar and whisk into the dry ingredients.  Save the remaining grapefruit sugar for topping the scones just before baking.

Dice cold butter into small chunks and add to the dry ingredients.  Using your fingers, and working quickly, break the butter down into the flour mixture until butter chunks are the size of peas.  

Add the honey, plain yogurt and grapefruit segments.  Toss together with a fork until all of the dry ingredients are moistened by the yogurt and honey.

Turn the scone dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Form into an 8 inch circle, about 1 inch thick.  Cut the dough into six scone triangles.  

Place on the prepared baking sheet.  Lightly brush the tops of the scones with milk or buttermilk, and sprinkle generously with grapefruit sugar.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes, until golden brown on top and firm but soft in the center.  Allow to cool on the pan for 10 minutes before serving.  Serve warm with that butter or jam.  Eat them all that day (like a dinner party with your girlfriends with cheese souffle?  That's what I did!) because they aren't too great warmed up the next day...

bacon onion cream pizza

This is a hearty, soul-warming pizza.
Did you know that pizza could be soul-warming?
Well, it can.

And it's October so we need something warming anyway, yes?
And this pizza hits. the. spot.
Super rich so do not make if you are counting your calories.
But, if you aren't counting, and want to indulge in something rich but perfectly edible, this is it!

Enjoy!

Bacon Onion Cream Pizza
Serves 4 or would be great for appetizer portions!!
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen.
1/2 pound pizza dough, homemade, store-bought, or from your favorite pizza place
2 onions
1/4-1/2 pound good quality smoky bacon, cut into thin lardons
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup cream cheese, at room temp
1 tablespoon flour
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil

Recipe?  Meh.
Slice your onions really thin and saute in a bit of olive oil until super caramelized.  Remove from pan and set aside.

Saute the lardons in the same pan until nice and crispy.  Set aside.

Combine the sour cream, cream cheese, and flour in a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer to combine.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Roll out the pizza dough and put on a well oiled, rimmed baking pan.
Spread cream mixture to cover.
Add onions and bacon all over the top.

Bake at 400* on the bottom shelf of your oven for about 12 minutes and enjoy!

brown sugar bacon waffles

I was so smitten with the idea of this that I literally tried to force my husband into letting me make waffles for dinner that night.

He's so not a sweets-for-dinner sort of guy.

He said yes, politely, but he said it with such a grimace on his face that I gave in and made him something else and made this while he was in the field a week later.

If you aren't a sweet and salty kind of person, leave out the bacon and add in some cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.

But, if you are.

Watch out.

Brown Sugar Bacon Waffles

Serves 4-6.

Adapted from Joy the Baker :)
3 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
2/3 cups canola oil
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups buttermilk

Brown sugar glazed bacon, chopped into bite-sized pieces

Preheat your waffle iron.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and brown sugar.  Whisk to blend.  In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, buttermilk and vanilla.  Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and just fold.  Once almost fully incorporated, fold in the bacon bits.  Don't over-mix and it's ok if a few lumps remain in the batter.
Cook according to your waffle machine instructions.
Serve with maple syrup and enjoy!

gd likes

an ERGO

a cool wall hanging

a french press

this ice chest cover

soooo...what do you like?

chocolate chip ginger chewies

I'm a biiiiig gingersnap fan.

Problem is, I don't like crunchy cookies.

There are exceptions.

But, I want a chewy gingersnap.

Which would be an oxymoron.

These are chewy ginger cookies.

And, hey, why not, let's throw in some chocolate chips.

Because Joy said so :)
 

Chocolate Chip Ginger Chewies

Makes about 2 dozen cookies.

Adapted from Joy the Baker.

2 1/4 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 1/2 sticks butter, at room temperature

1 cup brown sugar

1 large egg

1/4 cup molasses

1/2 cup chocolate chip

1/4 cup sugar, for rolling dough balls

Preheat the oven to 350*.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift the flour, baking soda, spices and salt into a medium bowl and set aside.  

In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and brown sugar until smooth, about 2 minutes.  

Add the egg and molasses and mix until blended and an even light color, about a minute.  

On low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing only until combined.  Fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour the sugar into a small bowl.  Roll a heaping tablespoon of dough between the palms of your hands into a ball, toss the ball in sugar to coat and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Continue making cookies, spacing them about 2 inches apart.

Bake the cookies until the tops feel firm but they are still soft in the center and there are several large cracks on top, about 12-14 minutes.  Cool the cookies on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then remove to cool completely. Enjoy!