I've Fallen In Love With Farro

My exciting Friday night 

This is by no means a food blog, I didn't set out to write anything even close.

I don't consider myself all that great at creating culinary masterpieces. 

I can make a solid pasta dish and bake a great cake, but I'm no Julia Childs 

nor am I trying to be the next best food blogger. 

I just really love food, and I really love eating it. 

I love reading about food and looking at fabulous foodie pictures. 

And so I have a roll of food blogs that I've fallen in love with, 

where I can get lost for hours, 

getting ideas and inspiring me to cook an endless amount of deliciousness. 

But unfortunately, due to time and energy, 

I have only made a handful of these salivating recipes.

But when I do, I get really excited. 

And I want to eat a lot of said dish and tell everyone. 

And so this brings me back 

to what started this whole foodie rambling in the first place: 

I made a damn good farro salad Friday night 

and the leftovers I had for lunch were absolutely awesome, 

maybe even better than the original serving.

I've come to realize that I adore pretty much every grain out there, 

and when some veggies are tossed into the mix, 

it's not only incredibly satisfying 

but makes me feel pretty healthy too. 

Inspired by this farro salad of red peppers, red onions, carrots, celery and feta, 

I've been brainstorming other grain salad concoctions...

Quinoa with avocado, corn and tomatoes?

Brown rice with edamame, carrots and shredded chicken with a dash of soy sauce?

Cous cous with walnuts, cucumbers, tomatoes and feta? 

Toss in some olive oil dressing variation, salt, pepper 

and I have several days worth of meals. 

But back to the recipe that got this all going: 

Farro Salad courtesy of Shutterbean 

View the full, super easy to follow recipe here 

recipe photo courtesy of Shutterbean 

top photo via my Instagram 

Craving Beignets

With the boyfriend returning from a weekend in New Orleans 

and a dear friend of mine Instagramming photos 

from her past several days spent in Charleston, 

you could easily say that I'm feeling quite a strong sense of 

Southern jealousy these days.

Something about the South enchants me, 

it always has.

I adore Charleston and Savannah, 

having visited each city a few years ago, 

but it's been awhile since I've had some shrimp and grits, 

sat under some Spanish moss

and soaked up the Southern charm that is so unique and special to the region.

I'm hungry for the colors, the architecture, the cuisine; 

I'm eager to give in to my growing wanderlust

and take a little holiday. 

I'm thinking it might be time to turn this little dream trip 

into a little reality in the coming months...

photo courtesy Pinterest 

"As I ate the oysters with their strong taste of the sea 

and their faint metallic taste that the cold white wine washed away, leaving only the sea taste and the succulent texture, 

and as I drank their cold liquid from each shell 

and washed it down with the crisp taste of the wine, 

I lost the empty feeling 

and began to be happy 

and to make plans."

- Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast

photo taken in Rockport, MA, Summer 2011

Pinterest Delivers Once Again

Last Friday arrived, with my alarm all set and ready to log on and purchase a ticket to Alt Summit NYC. I learned of Alt Summit awhile back, and eagerly follow their newsletters and site, full of blogging and design advice, class offerings and recaps from past Summits that they’ve hosted. With this upcoming event in NYC, at the Martha Stewart headquarters no less, I was excited to have the opportunity to actually attend myself, network, learn and get inspired. 

And then, due to the lovely nature that is technology, servers failed and tickets sold out, and I was left disappointed and frustrated.

Then...due to fantastic customer service and an email that absolutely made my day, I registered last night and will now be attending the Summit in NYC this June. 

But before I received this fabulous news, I spent a large part of Sunday evening hungry for design and style inspiration, feeling as dreary as this grey March weather. I scrolled through Pinterest, clicking one photo then another and anther, and started to reignite my creativity a little.

And so, in honor of Alt Summit NYC, here are some of the images that captured my attention this past weekend. I plan on doing this more often, spending more time exposing myself to everything that is available, pushing myself to push my own creativity on a daily basis. Whether it be food or fashion, home decor or stationery, flowers or art, there is so much around us waiting to be looked at, beautifully/oddly/in a new way.

A special shout out to the following stylish sources 

that I love exploring

 and can always rely on 

to give me a dose of design inspiration: 

Glitter Guide, Dallas Shaw, 

Joy the Baker, Camille Styles

all photos via Pinterest

I Love Love

While it’s no secret that I love Valentine’s Day, I don’t however demand huge, dramatic gestures on the 14th of February every year. I much more prefer taking the opportunity to simply enjoy the special people in your life on this special day, making sure they know how much they are loved and cared for. Whether that mean a card, a call or a little box of chocolates, communicating your love is what I adore on February 14th, the one day a year who’s purpose to purely to spread and share love.

And this year, didn’t disappoint. 

I had heard people mention “love languages” and liked the theory that we each show our love for others in our own ways, via our own languages. Tom and I have routinely joked about how much I love cards and how he couldn’t care less for them. But I crave the written word, the descriptions of feelings. He however, when asked how he loves, believes in actions, in providing, especially in the act of preparing meals, when I’m usually too lazy and could easily just rely on scrambled eggs. 

And so this Valentine’s Day was especially fitting for us. Without consciously realizing it, we gave each other what the other appreciates most, we spoke the right language to one another, showing our love in the best way for each individual.

I prepared and cooked a full dinner that evening, roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and rounded out the meal with a classic cheesecake, one of the few desserts he actually loves.

And he gave me a beautiful card that captured his thoughts and feelings perfectly. I have recently been admiring succulents and other terrarian plants and my guy gave me a trio to start a little collection.

And as we sat and enjoyed our leisurely dinner, I soaked up the calm, the peace that evening, before we flashed back to reality and work and demands and cleaning up.

It wasn’t until I heard a comment a day later about love languages and I thought back to our dinner, that I realized how strongly we represent that theory. And how well we are learning each other’s language over time. 

Happy Belated Valentine’s Day xoxo


photo via my Instagram

My New Drink of Choice

I jumped on the green juice wagon over a month ago, 

and yes, 

I’m hooked. 

I’d heard about the glories of juicing for quite some time

and have even tried one of the  3-day cleanses 

with shipped-to-my-door juices.

But it was a recipe I found on Sous Style

featuring the absolutely radiant Kimberly Snyder

and her signature Glowing Green Smoothie,

that got me to try making one myself.

I loved that you could make enough for 3-4 days, 

and it consisted of common ingredients, 

no odd oils, supplements or other items 

I wouldn’t be able to obtain at my local grocery.

Kimberly swore by her smoothie 

and proclaimed lots of fabulous benefits 

that I yearned for.

So I gave it a go.

And it really is fabulous.

But what I love

is every time I make a batch, 

almost every Sunday evening, 

I edit the recipe, 
making it my own. 

You can personalize the juice so it works in your favor.

After the first try, I added an extra apple 

so I could get used to the green flavor a bit more.

I love lemon, so instead of half a lemon, 

I always use a full one.
I’ve continued to experiment, 
tweaking ingredients and amounts, 
creating my own version.

This past week I mixed kale in with the spinach, 

and while thicker and “greener,”

I like it and love knowing I’m getting so many nutrients right away in the morning. 

I feel healthier, 

and even if it’s more mind over matter, 

I can’t deny that I feel better.

It may be trendy and cliche, 

but I’m on the green juice band wagon, 

and I ain’t getting off anytime soon.

I see a potential future career here....
Liz Greene Juice??

all photos from my iPhone/Instagram