Love It List :: August

Thursday, August 29, 2013

August is almost over! Does that mean I need to be done with my summer to-do list? Hmmm... I vote no. The weather is still warm and sunny and beautiful and I'd be willing to guess that "summer" lasts til November out here in the East Bay. Part of me thinks that's wonderful, as I have some more camping and summer adventuring in store. But part of me already misses the crackly, orange, fresh, cool, snuggly New England autumn that I'll miss out on this year. New England friends - please think of me when you put that first steaming hot cider doughnut or pumpkin latte to your lips!!

But before I move on...a recap of the things I enjoyed most this August.


Trader Joe's Cold Brew Coffee. What a delicious and convenient time-saver! I've been craving coffee that's iced and strong, and this stuff does the trick for those days that I forget to brew and chill a pot (aka every day). At first I shook my head disapprovingly when I saw the bottle on the shelf, because foodie trends get on my nerves sometimes. But I figured I'd give it a shot (these trends are usually there for a reason...case in point: my beloved coconut oil). And of course, I'm glad I did.

Cold brew coffee is generally smoother, milder, and less acidic than hot brewed. It's also stronger by volume, which means the bottle lasts longer than you'd think, because it's supposed to be mixed with water or milk (or whatever you prefer) to lighten it up. The suggested preparation is 1 part coffee concentrate with 2 parts water or milk...but I go more for a 50-50 mix. It pumps me up. And instead of water, lately I've been going for chocolate almond milk...because it's yummy!



OPI's new San Francisco line. I'm not really a nail fanatic - I tend to go au naturel when it comes to my nails, or I keep it simple with some nail colors I've had on repeat for years. But when I found out about this OPI "San Francisco" line with adorable names like Muir Muir on the Wall, Dining al Frisco, First Date at the Golden Gate, and Embarca-Dare ya! -- I knew I needed at least one of the colors in my stash! (I went for Lost on Lombard).



MAC Paint Pot in Soft Ochre. Love this! My friend Rachel's lovely sister helped us do our makeup before our other friend's wedding a few weeks ago, and she introduced me to this gem. It's great to use as a base for eye shadow, or even as eye shadow itself for a casual day look. It goes on smooth and creamy and feels light, plus it lasts all day.



Talenti Caribbean Coconut Gelato. Oh my. Oh my. Have you tried this? It's one of the fancy (read: expensive) ice creams in the frozen aisle that I try to avoid for the sake of my health and wallet. But when your boyfriend runs out on the scooter for a midnight snack and comes back with coconut gelato...it's time to indulge. I love that it only has a handful of ingredients, and that there are little flakes of coconut sprinkled throughout. It's creamy, and decadent, and rich and smooth...the flavor melts on your tongue in the most perfect way and...............I'm drooling.

My new Sodastream! I never thought I'd get one of these. I like keeping it simple in the kitchen; the fewer appliances and doohickeys the better. This just seemed like one of those extra things people throw on their registries that ends up taking valuable space on the counter or storage. But suddenly one day, I realized Jim and I were fighting for the 78th time that month over who gets the last soda water in the fridge. We always want it! We buy a couple of bottles every time we go grocery shopping. And that's not very green. So we decided one of these would be worth the investment, and yes, it's been awesome. Take some cold filtered water, fizz it up, add some fruit or sprigs of mint and BOOM. Tasty treat.


Sound Opinions podcast. I love my podcasts lately! This one is awesome; a great way to learn about upcoming bands, and music in general actually. I've been loving Emilie Sande, and the other day she was on talking about how she got into the biz, and singing beautiful unplugged versions of her songs. I love her even more now! It was also cool to hear Lindsey Buckingham in one episode, chatting about the drama behind the Fleetwood Mac Rumours album, one of my favorite albums ever. Check it out!

Well those are my faves for now, what have you been loving lately??

Wish List :: Scootin' Attire

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Did you know that Jimmy and I bought a scooter this summer? Ever since our time in Italy we've been craving one as a way to get around, and the beautiful weather around here plus the annoying traffic cinched our decision.

It's a Genuine Buddy 150, Italia series. It's been a delightful ride to work! And these lovely items would make it even more beautiful.  Here's a collection of the items I've been coveting that would complete my scootin' attire.

Recipe :: Quinoa Stuffed Pattypan Squash

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Have you heard of a pattypan squash before?? I had NOT. I had to do a little research when a friend of ours kindly gave us a bunch of these funny characters from his garden:


Isn't she cute?? Google informed me that pattypans are a type of summer squash that can be used just like yellow squash or zucchini. You can dice them up and throw them in the same exact recipes that you might use one of those popular summer veggies. However, we've had wayyy too many zucchini on hand lately, so I've used up pretty much every one of my go-to zucchini/squash recipes.  

So in the interest of maintaining the adorable shape and style of my little pattypans, I decided that stuffing them would be the right way to go. Besides, what's better than being able to eat the container your food is served in? Sounds like Willy Wonka's chocolate factory come true.



Quinoa Stuffed Pattypan Squash:

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Yield: 4
Serving size: about 2 pattypan squash

ingredients

cooking spray
6-8 pattypan squash (6 if they're large, 8 if they're smaller)
cooking spray
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 small onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. dried oregano
2 small tomatoes, diced
1/2 c. vegetable broth
1 1/2 c. cooked quinoa
pinch of salt, pinch of pep
1 T. hot sauce 
3/4 c. grated mild cheese of your choosing (we had mozzarella on hand)
1/4 c. chopped parsley

instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 11 baking dish with cooking spray.

Time to hollow out your pattypan squash. Slice off the stem end, then scoop out most of the insides. It's kind of like carving a pumpkin - a firm spoon helps! You want about a half-inch shell (or less) remaining. Discard as many of the seeds as you can, but reserve 1/2 cup of chopped squash insides. Place the pattypan squash in the baking dish.

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in cumin and oregano and cook 1 minute more.  Add reserved squash insides, tomato, and parsley and saute for 3 minutes, then stir in the broth, quinoa, salt & pepper to taste, and a couple splashes of hot sauce if you'd like to spice it up a bit. Continue to cook until most of the liquid has evaporated. 


Divide filling into pattypan squash, and top with the grated mozzarella. Pour 1/4 cup of water into bottom of baking dish, then cover dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 20 minutes or until squash is tender. 

Notes:  
  • The smaller pattypans came out better than the one huge one we had, as they cooked through more thoroughly.
  • Jimbo put some parmesan on his as well, which he enjoyed (more cheese the better, duh).
  • I used what we had in the kitchen, but there are so many things you could throw in the stuffing...peppers, spinach, beans, panko crumbs, etc.
  • We had some leftover filling, which was an amazing lunch today!


Enjoy!

Getaway Weekend :: Boonville

Friday, August 16, 2013

 

 
Where we stayed: Our friends had rented an amazing house called The Other Place, rented from Sheep Dung Properties, and they were kind enough to invite us to join them for the weekend. I couldn't even stand the perfection. It's an adorable and simple cottage perched on a hillside offering 180 views of the Anderson Valley. The sunsets were incredible. There were hiking paths to explore, hammocks to lounge in, games to play and a pond to dunk in. And obviously, as you see in the photos, they are very dog friendly - if it's possible, I think the pups had even more fun than we did. 
Where we ate: Mostly at home, because how can you beat that view?? We also loved the quinoa salad and cupcake (and ambiance) we experienced at the Boonville General Store where we stopped for lunch one day. We also went to the Mosswood Cafe multiple times for lattes, and spying the delicious homemade empanadas in the case we couldn't help but grab a couple for breakfast on our way out of town. I had the basil, bacon and goat cheese variety. MmmmMMmmm.
What we drank: Oh wine country, how I love you. This was our second time up in the Anderson Valley wine region, and we immediately went back to one of my favorites from before: Breggo. I love every vino they offer, and they have lovely Adirondacks outside with gorgeous views. Right around the corner, we discovered the Lichen Estate - and it was one of the most charming tastings we've ever been to! It was located in a beautiful old home, surrounded by old gnarly oak trees covered in (you guessed it) lichens. The sommelier was extremely knowledgeable and we enjoyed some amazing pinot noir around the dining room table. I'd recommend!
What we did: Hmm, if you split up the amount of time spent on each activity ---- it was 20% eating, 30% wine drinking, 20% card playing, 20% exploring town, 10% hiking. 100% watching the dogs play and have the time of their lives. 100% relaxing :).

Enjoy your weekend everyone!

A Whirlwind Month :: According to iPhone Pictures

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Can I just photo-dump right now? Is that allowed? This collection of photos is as random as can be. Not to mention fuzzy and mediocre at best. This past month has been filled to the brim with amazing weekends and Cali adventures. Some Boston adventures snuck in there, too! I didn't blog a bit, and I took most photos on the good camera, so I can't wait to go into more detail on the various excursions. But for now my old trusty iPhone photos will have to do the trick.




1. stream hiking up in the Sierras
2. beautiful flight to Boston
3. relaxing at the pond in Boonville
4. enjoying our new backyard and a favorite red
5. hiking with friends at Lassen National park
6. celebrating the love of dear friends!
7. bridesmaid flowers
8. puppy napping after a day at the beach
9. enjoying a city garden
10. Lagunitas and bbq oysters at Hog Island Oysters
11. enjoying the dunes at Moss Beach
  
Ahh that feels better. Starting fresh now! On to new adventures.
Oh but before I sign off, here are some amazing links I've recently come across:
  • I freaking love this video of a talented impressionist singing "Total Eclipse of the Heart" in the voice of 19 other well known divas.
  • Chill inducing video of a  love poem written by a talented man with OCD.
  • This site Shopikon helps us all discover the best independent local stores and products in some of the major cities around the world. I'll be tackling every store on the SF list pronto.
  • Care to live on Mars? They are taking applications. Seriously. Jimbo thinks we should sign up, but I told him that I enjoy things like sushi, the ocean, and my family too much (so don't worry Patti!).
  • I love goals and lists. I should probably get going on this.
Thanks for checking in, all!! Happy hump day!