Five Things
I spend so much time in the kitchen, so it only feels right to talk about the highs and lows of what goes on behind the scenes. For the most part, it’s all a lot of fun, but there are days when I make huge messes, completely screw up a recipe, or am quick to snap at my boyfriend for not reading my mind. Yes, I realize how ridiculous that last one is, haha.
Five things that happened in my kitchen this week:
1. Risotto. It’s delicious, it’s fairly simple, and if you don’t like it we can’t be friends. Kidding. It’s so versatile and can be eaten alone or paired with something else. I made chicken breasts tossed in Italian bread crumbs and freshly grated parmesan cheese, and the combination of flavors between the risotto and the chicken were super tasty. I had asked my boyfriend if he could take some photos of me that night in the kitchen, and also of the dish I made. I was a little grouchy and tired from not sleeping well recently and I totally snapped at him when he couldn’t read my mind about the ideas I had. He still got some great shots though, but I’m not surprised, he’s great at what he does.
2. Taco pie! Mmm mmm mmm. I made two different pies, both equally delicious with some slightly differences. Both had tortillas as a base, ground turkey with my homemade seasoning, and lots of cheese! In one of them I used refried beans, an extra layer of chunky salsa and just topped it with cilantro, avocado, and sour cream. The other one had black beans, only one thin layer of chunky salsa at the bottom to coat the tortillas, but topped this one with black olives as well as the cilantro, avocado, and sour cream. The black beans and black olives gave it such a different flavor and I think it was my favorite. It makes for a great weeknight meal that tastes good to keep eating as leftovers.
3. Lemon shortbread. So, on Wednesday, I came home from work and sat in my backyard to enjoy the awesome evening we were having. Orange County had some beautiful weather last week and I’ll take any chance I get to feel the ocean breeze and our awesome ocean view. My boyfriend was out surfing; the waves were also great last week and I encourage him to take advantage of it any time he can. I wanted to make him a little treat for when he got home and having a rough idea on when he’d be home, I decided on shortbread. I was inspired by the lemon tree in our backyard to add a little refreshing zing to the shortbread.
4. The idea to do a “dude food” weekend. My boyfriend also loves to cook and he’s pretty darn good at it, too. I wanted to include him in the planning and making of a few meals because he’s the master griller and smoker. Last year he bought a Traeger to smoke meat and since then he’s made my taste buds all kind of happy. My “dude food” weekend revolves around anything he wants to eat or anything dudes will like. Meals such as pork tostadas, steak salad, and roasted chicken are on the menu as well as a bacon, egg, and cheese frittata, and key lime pie. That last one was a request from him and honestly I can’t wait to eat it also.
5. Anthropologie: take all of my money! I’ve been building up my food styling props and Anthropologie is just simply the best place to find the most beautiful and great quality items. The hardest part is not needing a set of items and only needing to buy one plate or bowl. Don’t be surprised if you come to dinner and everyone has a different place setting! To be completely honest though, I like it that way. Eclectic should be my middle name! As long as it’s still aesthetically pleasing, I’m all about it.
I hope everyone had a great week and weekend!
