This and That

Kate, After our walk on Saturday with the scooter brigade, wish we got a picture of that, we also stayed outside the rest of the day.  Amazing what nice weather does for the mood!  For dinner we went to Karen and Nick's where she made sangria, guacamole and awesome steak tacos.  I need to get the recipe (which I will post) but I can tell you that there were oranges, beer and red onions in the marinade, mmm mmm good!  On Sunday, I made this delish eggplant recipe and bought the apricot and leek sausages from Bruno's (have you had them?  They're great). Back to the eggplant - the mint mixed with the vinegar and the salty punch of the capers makes this a keeper.  It came courtesy of my Uncle (not sure where he got it) and I am still eating it cold today.

MARINATED EGGPLANT WITH CAPERS AND MINT

SERVES 4 (HORS D'OEUVRE) ACTIVE TIME: 15 MINSTART TO FINISH: 45 MIN

1 Ib thin Italian or Asian eggplants (2 to 3), cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

1/4 cup chopped mint

2 tablespoons small capers, rinsed

Arrange eggplant in 1 layer on a large baking sheet and brush both sides with 2 Tbsp oil (total). Broil about 4 inches from heat, turning once, until golden, 8 to 12 minutes total.

Stir together vinegar, mint, capers, 1/4 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, and remaining 3 Tbsp oil and toss with warm eggplant. Marinate at least 20 minutes.

COOKS' NOTE: Marinated eggplant can be made 1 day ahead and chilled. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Pissed me off though because Mike wouldn't eat it!  He said he doesn't like eggplant and yet he eats that eggplant dip I make all the time.  Oh well, more for me!

The nice weather also had me dreaming about new drapes in my bedroom.  Something softer, lighter and a little more flowing.  I came across these from Anthropologie.

Last but not least, I found these beautiful shoes while browsing online.  Drooling!  Can you say sexy! They are from Intermix.

I love the whole outfit as well and am on the lookout for a great sweater tank like the one above. The shoes on the other hand will remain in the store unless someone wants to gift them to me for being such an awesome friend, in which case I will graciously accept them...joking, joking.

I will say this though, the mint and cheetah heels from last week are still on my mind...

-Amanda

 

Daily Happenings

Kate, I finally went to a dance class last night. It was wonderful and painful!  Just like I remembered it to be.  Actually, truth be told, I kinda forgot the unforgiving ways of a ballet teacher and actually burst out in laughter because of the amount of pain I was in, which was met with a withering look. To say I am sore today is an understatement.  This left me with trying to come up with some calm activities to occupy the day.  So we painted!  Here are Peter's masterpieces.

I helped a bit and I did that black and white dotted piece.  Here's my mostly white piece.  I don't know why I do this so sparingly because it really was so much fun.  Especially for Peter.  His enthusiasm and pride made me so very happy.

I moved on to Ikea to get the floating shelves I need for my dining room and was tempted by this idea for my kitchen.

I finished off with dinner at my parents where my mom made this amazingly beautiful and delicious salad.  It's arugula, spinach, fennel, roasted golden beets, candied walnuts and feta with a balsamic vinaigrette.  It's key to have a high quality balsamic vinegar.

Overall it was a lovely day.  On to folding laundry this evening....waah waah.

-Amanda

Smock cafe and Wonder Workshop

Amanda, As you know, I love Smock and so do my kids. The delicious food (freshly baked muffins and sandwiches,) and the supreme Americano make it a tasty venue, but also the craft table and the marble run for my munchkins provide hours of entertainment literally.

So I would probably still go to Smock if it was a dive.... Well, maybe not. I think, actually, that its design is a big part the allure for me. It's such a pretty space and is full of eye catching elements, like the Lego wall. Or the painted sofa. If you look closely, the character Max, from Where The Wild Things Are is perched in some greenery.

Smock is simply whimsical... Kudos to whoever designed it. I love the dot backsplash in the sink area and the plant wall is stunning (not to mention remarkable that it's alive and flourishing.) The tile in the entrance is lovely and the book nook (a small cave full of books that only a child could access) is enchanting.

Pics courtesy of blogto

(Bottom picture is mine...with an iPhone.)

I am clearly not the only one who feels this way about Smock because it's gotten a lot busier since it first opened. The trick is to get there before 10 and secure a table.

-Kate