This past week we've been in Nebraska with my family and eating mostly fried Midwestern goodness and heart stopping desserts. Aside from my older sister and myself, my family are all meat eaters. Wait, that's putting it lightly. They've been known to eat meals that only consist of steaks the size of their heads. I'm just as guilty as the rest, but it's been several years. So when I'm home, we have to think of vegetarian meals that also suit the cow fanatics. Enter Eggplant Parmesan! We used this incredibly easy recipe and had so much fun cooking together. My Dad is one of the funniest people I know but not the greatest cook. That combination makes for cheap entertainment.
Yesterday the sky opened up and dumped buckets of rain on Chapel Hill. As I pulled out my boring rain boots and a jacket that doesn't resemble a rain coat let alone function as one, it made me want to hunt for some awesome rain gear.
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Isle Jacobsen Rain Boots 25TOGO Design Goggles Umbrella
Hawke Trench Coat Loeffler Randall Rain Boots
Yesterday Anthropologie launched a bridal line, BHLDN. After a week of questioning the name, I discovered you say it "Beholden" -- still don't love it.
However, they have some amazing bridal necessities. It's a great site if you're looking for something less traditional or just a fabulous party dress. Here are some of my personal favorites from their gown and dress collections, but they also have some amazing shoes and accessories.
For some reason, I'm going through a steel cut oats phase even though I've only had them once in my life. They have more texture than oatmeal which is a nice change. Yesterday I made this baked steel cut oats recipe. It was delicious, but todays breakfast stole the spotlight. I drizzled melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon over an apple I split into halves and baked them at 300 degrees for 15 minutes. I didn't want them mushy, so this allowed them to warm up and the brown sugar to begin caramelizing and still maintain their crunch and tartness. (The picture was taken before I popped them in the oven.)
While these baked, I made the steel cut oats on the stove top with water. To serve, I chopped up one half of the apple (saving the other half for tomorrow morning) and then dumped the steel cut oats on top. I'm not going to lie, I sprinkled a tad more brown sugar and cinnamon on top.
The stray cats must have caught word that we spoil our pets. This kitty tried to follow me inside.
It's no secret I'm obsessed with Warby Parker and everything they do. It hasn't been a full year since I purchased my first Warby Parker frames, and I'm already anxious for my next pair. I came across this interview with two of the founders and the girls over at Girls With Glasses (beware clicking this link, their intro video will begin immediately). The girls are a bit over the top, but you get a sense of the brains behind the business. I've read many articles about their company, but this was the first interview I've seen. I really want to their friend...or their employee.
As you can see, I've done some major changes to my website. It's nowhere near complete, but I wanted to brighten it up. I tend to like dreary, rain cloud colors, so Joel and I worked on some design changes over the weekend. My mom and sister, ever so lovingly, gave me some tough feedback on the new look. I'm taking their feedback and adding it into the changes we'll be making over the next couple weeks. I hope you like the direction I'm going, and I'll keep you updated on the next design hurdle we take soon. You can expect a change in the background, logo, and maybe a few more tweaks here and there.
Another thing I've been working on is utilizing a great feature Hifi offers. I can really quickly categorize my blog posts so they are easier to group and search. The problem I discovered? I post too many different types of things that my categories are on the weak side right now. Just another thing to add to my "To Do" list this week!
One long month later, I finally finished the original Dracula by Bram Stoker! My sister and I started a book club (if the two of us count as a book club) and are working our way through the classics. My mom quickly joined but decided to skip our first pick.
If you were around me at all over the holidays, I told you with great excitement that I was reading this book. That's because the first half was thrilling and addictive. Then it slowed down...a lot. The last chapters had painfully slow moments, and I was slightly disappointed with the ending. However, even with saying that, I'm glad I read it. I'm not a Twilight fan and I never hopped on the vampire trend that spread like wildfire. Dracula is not clouded with love scenes and teenage sex symbols, but it has character development that captures you quickly. I also learned where Van Helsing originated and now have a strong desire to watch the movie. Hopefully Hugh Jackman will get me through the inevitable gory scenes.
One of my favorite wedding gifts we received was my Grandma Riibe's fine china. She passed away a few years ago (at a whopping 95 years old!) so opening up the gift was really special. The set had been cooped up in the closet since June because I'd be waiting to find somewhere safer to keep it. Well recently we got a cabinet from Crate and Barrel for our living room and finally the china came out of the box! It has two glass doors which are perfect if you have a curious puppy. I'm so pleased to have the china out where I can appreciate it every day.
Now I need to work on the lower two shelves and the top. It looks a bit bleak at the moment.
My lunch today is so delicious I had to share. Since tracking down the camera would have required me to pause and not immediately devour lunch, I used my iPhone instead. The quality definitely shows, so you'll have to use your imagination with the image and trust me!
I tend to go heavy on the toppings and light on the dressing. This is so easy I feel wrong calling it a recipe.
Ingredients:
Arugula
Crumbled goat cheese
Thingly sliced Honeycrisp apple
Toasted pecans
Light champagne salad dressing (I always use Girard's)
