Bye 2014, Hello 2015

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Happy 2015!

I have a really good feeling about 2015. I usually don't like odd numbers much, but I feel this is going to be a good year. As my mom would say, "I can feel it in my bones." Josh and I have big plans for the year - moving apartments, getting a dog, hopefully a big trip, and so much more. I wouldn't call them resolutions, but hopes and goals for the year.

As for resolutions, well, I really don't like them. I do like to have hopes and goals, though. Some hopes include...

  • Yoga - I started this fall, and I'm really enjoying it. I have a hard time stopping - like stop moving around the house and making my brain just STOP. When I do yoga, my brain just concentrates on the poses & movements which I imagine is good for me. So I'll try to do this more.
  • Cooking/Baking Technique - 2014 was the year of the macaron. And I am happy to report my last batch didn't crack. Of course, I'll continue to make these precious cookies, but I want to take on another technique. I was thinking cinnamon rolls, or something with yeast. Yeast scares me - so scientific. But I think it's good to keep trying new things. 
  • Photography - I want to continue to learn more and take some awesome photos. A co-worker recently complemented my photos, and suggested I enter in an amateur contest. This year I think I might try it out this year.
  • Blogging - Just to keep doing it. It's hard to find the time, especially if I include pictures since they need to be edited first. Finding time can be challenging, but I'm hoping to keep doing at least one post a week. 

Top Posts of 2014

Speaking of blogging, let's take a moment to see what you liked best this year on my blog. 

  1. Christmas Letter - It's no wonder that this is the top post since I basically forced it on you with a blog cover page and having it on my Christmas card. If you haven't read it yet, you should. It fills you in on our whole year.
  2. Baker's Corner: Christmas Cookies - Did someone say cookies? Who doesn't like a good Christmas cookie. These were some good ones this year. I might make that gingerbread biscotti again soon. 
  3. Christmas Flashback - I just wrote this yesterday - dang. It was a good Christmas - filled with the three F's: family, friends, and food.
  4. Merry Christmas 2014 - I am seeing a trend, you guys like Christmas. And food. Christmas and food. Got it, so my 2015 posts should cover these topics. Sadly, Christmas in June doesn't really work. Bummer.
  5. Cooking is so Hip - More food! This was a fun night with co-workers. We took a cooking class together and learned how to make some Spanish tapas. Maybe I'll host a party this year!

2014 you treated me good. 2015, I expected even better.

Happy New Years All!!

Christmas 2014 Flashback

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Dude, Christmas was sooo totally six day ago (in my best beach dude voice). It's like New Years now, dude. Ok, I'll stop the "dudes" but I do want to do a quick flashback to my Christmas. Dude.

Josh and spent Christmas down in California with family. The first half (the days up until Christmas) was with my parents and sister. It was nice to see the fam and just chill out (not to mention, nice sunny weather!). We did lots of fun things like mani-pedis with my mom, walked along the Batiquitos Lagoon, ate some great food (In-N-Out, Q'ero, El Nopalito tamales, Honey's muffins, Lofty Bean lattes!!), played with the pooch, shopped, baked Christmas cookies - never a dull moment with the O'Neill family. It was a blast.

Then Christmas rolled around, and we got to opening gifts. I got some great things this year including a snug, puff jacket, earrings, booties - apparently, I was a good girl. Josh got some gift cards to go shopping (that's like two gifts in one - getting the card, and then using it!), t-shirts, and some other awesome gifts.

My parents and sister enjoyed the gift opening as well. My dad really likes the Geico Hump Day commercial (especially, the "Mike Mike Mike" part), so he got a t-shirt. My mom liked the fox wrapping paper I used (I'm a sucker for cute wrapping paper, darn you Paper Source!). Lindsay also liked the wrapping paper. Yay, foxes!!!!!

Sadly, Josh and I didn't get a Christmas tree for our apartment this year. Luckily, my parent's Christmas filled the hole in my heart and was really quite stunning.

And we can't forget the stockings. They are BIG for my family - both literally and figuratively. We have to go around a circle and open one-by-one. It really is a lot of fun. My stocking was made by my grandma, and I've had it since I was a little girl. 

Around 2pm, we transitioned families. Christmas Day evening was with the extended Brown family in Temecula. It was great to see Josh's aunts, uncles, and cousins. 

All in all, it was a darn good Christmas. Next, I'll tell you about my time with the in-laws in Death Valley. I just had to share Christmas before it turned to 2015! 


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Merry Christmas 2014

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Oh boy, oh boy, it's Christmas! The most wonderful time of year. Time with family and friends, cookies and hot cocoa, giving and receiving. I love, love, LOVE it. And on this magical day, I wanted to wish you and your family a very, merry Christmas. 

As for Josh and me, like last year we posted our Christmas letter on my blog. Read it here - it has a slideshow and it's not long, I promise. 2014 was a great year, and I hope you had a joyful year as well.

Merry Christmas!

xoxo, Heather

Baker's Corner: Christmas Cookies 2014

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It's Christmas Eve and my cookies are ready just in time to set out for Santa tonight. And I tell you, he's got a lot of cookies to eat! Funny since at the beginning of December I was extremely worried I wouldn't have time to make barely any cookies. But somehow I managed to squeeze in several. Yay for cookies!

Gingerbread Macarons

Of course, I wanted to make macarons, my current favorite. Making macarons takes a quite a bit of time, but I divided it out between days. I made the shells on a Sunday (letting them dry before baking while grocery shopping), and then the filling later. The shells freeze nicely, in fact, the cookies freeze well which makes advanced baking a breeze.

Although I made gingerbread macarons last year, I tried a different recipe out this year. I think I liked these even better. I was more than ecstatic to see I had zero cracks in the shells. No joke, this fact made my day. Better yet, these were absolutely delicious. Huzzah!

Get the Recipe from It's Just Chicken

Peppermint Crinkles

I coordinated a cookie exchange at work this year, which I still hope to write about. I called it the Great Oracle Christmas Cookie Swap. For the swap, I made these peppermint crinkles. I hadn't made them before, but they turned out great (whew!). The batter seems super runny, but after refrigerating them, it works. Trust me. Another interesting thing with these cookies is that they only have 1/3 cup flour and include nutella. Beware, these are crazy chocolately.

Get the Recipe from Baker's Royale

Gingerbread Biscotti

This was the year of gingerbread I guess since I made the gingerbread macarons, pepparkakor which are gingerbread-like, and then these gingerbread biscottis. What's great about biscotti, is it's pretty easy. You make a log with the dough, bake it, slice it, and bake it again. Yes, biscotti is a twice baked cookie which makes them great for dipping in coffee or tea. I dipped mine in Trader Joe's Peppermint tea. Yum!

Get the Recipe from Smitten Kitchen

Pepparkakor

No Christmas passes without making Pepparkakor. I have to carry on the tradition from my Grandma Norma who always made these. They are a Swedish cookie, and have lots of delicious spices like cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. This time I added a tad of cardamon and allspice. These are similar to gingerbread cookies, but thinner and crispier.

Recipe is a secret! (If you're nice, maybe I'll share someday!)

Krum Kager

This is another Grandma Norma cookie. For the longest time my family said these were Swedish cookies only to learn that they are actually Norwegian. Still they are Scandinavian, so we're covered. These are like a wafer-thin butter cookie that is made with a cookie iron and then rolled - sort of like a waffle cookie! They are pesky cookies since they are delicate and break easily, but they are so pretty. I didn't make the dough, my mom did that, but I did the cookie creation - pressing, rolling, and sugar sprinkles.

Another Handed down recipe, but this one is pretty similar from Recipes from Grandma.

Spritz

This is a John O'Neill favorite. He literally took the tin after dinner and started eating them. I'm not going to lie, but it was quite the battle with the cookie press. My mom had two cookie presses, and I killed the first part. Then the other one was battery operated and just worked poorly. But I conquered and managed to make these gems. Normally, I like to use green sprinkles, but we only had the colorful ones so just imagine they are ornaments on the trees.

Get the recipe below! You're welcome.

Spritz Recipe

From the Kitchen of Grandma Norma, Jan O'Neill, and now Heather Brown.

  • 1 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Colored Sprinkles - Red & Green for Christmas

Preheat oven to 350 degrees/

Cream butter, add sugar and cream thoroughly. Add extract, egg, and then flour. We recommend refrigerating this for 2-3 hours.

Push dough into cookie press, and then press onto a greased baking sheet. Shake on sprinkles before baking. Bake 7-10 minutes in 350 degree oven (Note: watch the temperate, the original recipe called for 400 but we found that too hot and burning the edges).

Let cool 1-2 minutes, and then remove from pan. Let cool and enjoy!

Cooking Classes are so Hip

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If you know me, you know I love being in the kitchen. I especially like baking, but I also enjoy cooking as well. So when the opportunity to get my team at work to a cooking class came up, I didn't pass it up.

As a team, we're always talking about doing some sort of outing. There is talk of indoor sky diving, trapezing (is that a word? trapeze, anyway...), or some other crazy adventurous activity. Let's be real people; we're all uber busy and finding time to plan and go on an outing is tough let along doing something crazy. I figured we were more likely to actually make it happen, if we did something reasonable - like a cooking class! (eh hem, I should also tell you that I really wanted to do a cooking class). It didn't take too much to convince the team, but as the instigator I got stuck with the planning. Oh well, I guess my job is project management.

With 18 people on the team, the planning wasn't the easiest, but somehow I managed to get everyone in line and find a day that worked. We landed at Hipcooks (uh cuz, that's where I wanted to go, and as the planner, I get to make the ultimate decision - score!). The class we ended up taking was Una Noche en España. At first, we were all poo-poo'ing doing tapas, but afterwards we were all singing it's praises. We made all sorts of tasty tapas like...

  • Spicy candied nuts
  • Pure de garbanzo w/ pita toasts
  • Manchego con Membrillo (Spanish cheese with quince paste)
  • Tortilla Española & spicy salad
  • Camarones Bravas - garlicky saffron shrimp
  • Empanadillas Argentinas
  • Flan with caramel designs

My favorite...hmmm, that's tough, but I think maybe the hummus. No, wait, the flan. Ahh! It all turned out great. And we didn't use any recipes - just what our instructor, Jenna, told us, and by tasting as we went.

I was usually the volunteer when nobody wanted to do something - like use your hands to mix the raw eggs with the potatoes for the tortilla ("gross"), or pour the flan mixture into the ramekins ("scary"). And why? Because I have a cooker/baker reputation to uphold at the office. But we all had a hand it the cooking.

After we cooked everything up, we got to sit down and enjoy the fruits of our labor. It was glorious.

It was a blast cooking and getting to know my co-workers. Now, I want to host a Spanish Tapas (not topless) party.

Check out all the photos on Flickr.

Deck the Hall Ball Experience

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I must be getting old. I can't remember the last concert I went to. Could it have been Vertical Horizon? No way. Ah, maybe it was Franz Ferdinand? That might actually be right. Oh goodness me. It's not like I'm a major concert-goer, but come on. Good thing I remedied that dry spell with Deck the Hall Ball last Tuesday. We went with a few of Josh's co-workers, and got some great seats. The experience was freakin' awesome. Now, I want to go to more concerts - yay!

Don't let the concert name confuse you, it wasn't really a Christmas concert. Just a good time of year to have an awesome concert with a good line-up. It started at like 3pm, and considering it was a work day, I only saw the last four bands. However, the last four were probably the best. There was:

  • Young the Giant - I actually have what I believe is their first album, Young the Giant. I decided to buy it since I really liked the song, My Body. Then I learned I liked others like Cough Syrup and I Got. It's pretty easy-on-the-ears music and one can sway to well.
  • Cage the Elephant - To me, this is pretty hard rock. But I enjoy Ain't No Rest for the Wicked, Shake Me Down, and Come a Little Closer. Oh, and I just learned I like other songs like Cigarette Daydreams and Take It or Leave It.
  • Weezer - I loved it; their act was so hipster and geeky. It was exactly what I thought. Fun fact: My phone ring is to Island in the Sun. I usually answer at the "hip hip" part. Gosh, so many fun songs. Favorites include Island in the Sun, Undone, Buddy Holly, Troublemaker, and Beverly Hills.
  • Imagine Dragons - They were the final act and the band I looked forward to the most. They did not disappoint. I sang along, bobbed my head, and maybe even raise my arms and yelled out at some part. Dudes, they rocked it. I think they played every song on their Night Visions album, which I own. The last song played was Radioactive and it blew me away. They put on a great show! 

Radioactive, Imagine Dragons

I'm sure by now you're feeling a bit left out. Well, here's a quick glimpse into some of the concert:

Wasn't that fun? Sing with me now....

Random Acts of the Month: November

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Goodbye November. You leave us with just one month left of 2014. How is this possible? It's cazy talk, bit it's real. Times flies.

So, November. The main event for me every of November is Thanksgivng.. You know what drives me nuts? That Thanksgiving gets shoved aside for Christmas. Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas. In fact, I'm Mrs. Christmas. But I let's show some appreciation for Thanksgiving. Okay, enough rants and back to November and photos. Here we go!

Joy the Baker his a real human being and I met her // I made pumpkin macarons - two of my favorite things // Our Thanksgiving Pumpkin Praline Pie. Bam. 

Kids with crunchy fall leaves // Fall sunshine // Josh on our Thanksgiving Dat walk at Discovery Park

Warming up with tea at B. Fuller Mortar & Pestle // Thanksgiving Dinner Cheers! // Drinking our "apple a Day" at Schilling Cider

Plaid Friday with co-workers - oh, true Seattlites // Guess who got promoted? This girl. And they gave me a trophy

Stuffing myself at lunch with a Workgiving // Our Thanksgiving Feast at Golden Beettle

Snow day in Seattle (and some freezing temps - yikes!) // Post-Thanksgiving cranberry turkey sandwiches from Homegrown (it's what ya gotta do if you don't have leftovers)

Okay, now bring on December and Christmas!!

Baker's Corner: Joy's Book Signing & Pumpkin Pie

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I mentioned yesterday that I was going make a pie for Thanksgiving. And I did! It was glorious! The inspiration came from a recent book signing I went to for Joy the Baker. Time out...yes, OMG, I met Joy the Baker! She's real. And she baked! Ahhh! Okay, calm again. 

At the book signing Joy, demoed the making of pumpkin praline pies using a recipe from her new cookbook, Homemade Decadence. And you know what's even better? Joy, and the folks that hosted the signing at Book Larder, made everyone mini pumpkin praline pies. Deliciousness. I new at the moment I devoured my mini pie* that I decided I would make this pie.  (*I also plotted a way to sneak a second mini pie. Sadly, it was a no go).

I'm sure you're like, "ya ya ya"...you met Joy the Baker...big deal. But, I counter that with this question: Do you like what I bake up? Well, many of these goodies are Joy's recipes. Appreciation! Also, we are both Joys. Her first name is Joy, my middle name is Joy. It's meant to be...we should totally be besties. With her in New Orleans, I don't think it'll happen. 

But Let's get to my pie now. Here's me Heather Joy the Baker and the new cookbook...

I've had a sugar pumpkin on our table as decoration for a few weeks. I knew it was going to die soon, so I decided to make pumpkin puree. I don't always use real pumpkin because honestly the canned stuff works totally fine and is still delicious. But i didn't want to pumpkin to rot and then not have a chance to fulfill it's destiny. Doesn't every pumpkin dream of becoming a pie?

{Pumpkin Puree} It's actually easy...I swear. Cut the pumpkin in half and place face down on a foiled pan (with cooking spray). Bake in a preheated 350 oven for ~1 hour. Let it cool and then scope out the seeds (the "yucky" stuff as my younger self would have said). Then scope out the flesh. I used my hand mixer to smooth it out, but I'm sure a fork or something would work as well. (Psst! I do this with butternut squash, too!)

{Pie Crust} Seriously, though, the canned stuff is just fine. So, now onto the pie crust. Joy's buttermilk pie crust is wonderful and pretty forgiving. Josh specifically complimented the crust, so that's a win as well. I made the crust the night before and just popped it in the fridge overnight. Tips...

  • Cold Butter - The one of the keys to success with pie crust is to make sure the butter is super cold.
  • Butter or Shortening - There is the age old question: butter or shortening. Joy says butter. Think about it...butter tastes better, so wouldn't you naturally want to put what tastes better in the crust. Uhh, makes sense to me. 

{Pie Curst Rolling} A few tips Joy shared about pie crusts. 

  • Don't overwork the dough. Try to keep the rolling to a minimum. If you roll it out and then the dough springs back, then you're close to the end. BTW, I hate when recipes say don't overwork or overmix. Well, gosh, what does that mean exactly. I especially liked this tip.
  • Rotate it. When rolling, rotate the crust as you go. Do a roll or two, and then turn it. 
  • Lift it. When you near the edge of the dough, don't continue to push down so the roller hits the table. Roll and lift. This will keep it from thinning too much at the edges. 
  • The Transfer. This tip is from a friend: To transfer the crust to the dish, roll it around on the rolling pin, and then un-roll it over the dish.
  • The Pan. Oh, and Joy recommends a thinner, tin pie pan. This heats up the crust better. Don't use glass...apparently glass takes a long time to heat up. 
  • Pre-Bake? Not really necessary, unless you're doing a cream pie. 
  • The Edges. Use your thumb and forefinger of one hand, and the forefinger knuckle of the other. I need to practice this one myself!

{The Filling} This is probably the easiest part, if you ask me. This recipe had you heat up the pumpkin, sugars, and spices. This melts the sugars and make it smooth. I opted to use some milk instead of all heavy cream. I don't think you could really tell. I think you can use heavy cream, half and half, or evaporated milk as the dairy component. I hear that this is what gives the pie the velvety texture. You chose you're own adventure. 

{Baking} This seems easy, but I've had troubles in my past pie making with this part. How jiggly is it supposed to be? I think a bit of jiggle is good, but no goopey. Are you with me? So give the pan a shimmy. Does it look more fluidly or more like jello? Jello is good. This is just my advice. I have much to learn, but it worked on this pie, so...yea. It baked for 15 minutes at 400, then reduced to 350 for the remaining 45 minutes. Bam! 

Wait that's not it! There is more! 

{Topping} This pie had a pecan praline topping. I mean, more sugar? Yes, please. I did only half the recipes for topping, and I'm glad I did. It really didn't need more than that. Next time I'll toast the pecans first, too. 

Okay, now time to devour!!! 

Pumpkin Pie with Pecan Praline Topping

{From Joy the Baker's Homemade Decadence}

Filling:

  • 2 c pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 packed light brown sugar
  • 1/4 c white sugar
  • 2 t cinnamon
  • 1 t ground ginger
  • 1/2 t freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1/2 t allspice
  • 1/4 t cloves
  • 1/4 t cardamom
  • 1/4 t salt
  • 1 1/2 c heavy cream
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 t vanilla

Topping:

  • 1/2 c packed light brown sugar
  • 6 T unsalted butter
  • 3 T heavy cream
  • 1/4 t salt
  • 1 t vanilla
  • 3/4 c coarsely chopped pecans

Put a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 400.

Roll out pie crust and put it in a 9″ pie dish. Try the buttermilk crust recipe I suggested above. 

For the filling, combine pumpkin, sugars, spices, and salt in medium saucepan over a medium heat. Cook until the mixture bubbles and becomes fragrant, 5-7 minutes. Turn off the heat, stir in heavy cream then whisk in eggs and vanilla.

Transfer filling to the prepared crust and bake for 15 min, turn the oven down to 350 and cook for 40-50 min, until the center no longer jiggles (think jello).

This needs to cool for 30 minutes, make the topping while you wait by combining everything except the vanilla and pecans in a medium sauce pan and bring to a simmer. Cook for 3-5 min until thick and bubbly. Turn off the heat and add the vanilla and pecans. Once the pie’s cooled for the 30 min, pour topping over it, let it cool about another 30 min on the counter, then transfer to the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

Thanksgiving is Here!

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Thanksgiving is here! Somehow 2014 is just flying by and it's already the holiday season. Josh and I are keeping it pretty low key this year for Thanksgiving. Later this evening we are heading over to the Golden Beetle where they will have a Thanksgiving feast waiting for us. Yes, it'll be there all cooked and ready for us to devour. No kitchen required. Although, I have to say, I do enjoy being in the kitchen - seriously, I do - but it doesn't make a whole lot of sense to cook a turkey, all the sides, and dessert for two people. Instead, we're going to have a professional chef cook it for us. And to fulfill my kitchen needs, I am making a pumpkin pie from scratch. Bam! That's how you do Thanksgiving for two. 

I'll share food and pie photos once it's all done and the dinner is eaten. In the meantime, let me tell you about our Worksgiving. Last Friday we had a Thanksgiving potluck at work. People, it was big. There was a ton of food. We really out did ourselves. 

I made the Rustic Herb Stuffing - same as I made last year. I had to transfer it to a crockpot to keep it warm at the office. I think it may have dried it out a bit, but it still had good flavor. Here's the recipe. 

So that's really all I got for now. I'll leave you with some fun Thanksgiving links to check out....

  • The Thanksgiving Recipes Googled in Every State - Check out what foods folks are eating today across the country. Not sure what frog eyed salad is, or why someone would make funeral potatoes? It's a thing, though, apparently. But I do have to say I'm intrigued by the idea of a cookie salad or pumpkin crunch. 
  • The Oatmeal's Thanksgiving as a Kid vs. Adult - Although some of it is a bit crass, it has some truth and is pretty comical. 
  • 'All About That Baste' Parody Video - More butter! 
  • 23 Thanksgiving Facts - Okay, so thousands of turkeys die each year of heart attacks. And did you know Romans ate stuffing? Or you can tell if a cranberry is sweet if it bounces (bounberries!). Fun facts!

Happy Thanksgiving Friends! 

The Hunt for Fall Leaves (and Pumpkins)

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I constantly feel like the White Rabbit with my blog. I look at time/date and say to myself, "I'm late, I'm late for a very important post. Not time to say hello good-bye, I'm late, I'm late, I'm late." There are at least five things on my list to write about here. Some of them can wait (like all the wonderful books I've read recently), but others might seem odd to post later on (like pumpkins in December). Fall leaves and pumpkins is pretty borderline as it is. Soon we're moving on to Christmas with trees and candy canes, but in my book pumpkins and leaves are totally game up until Thanksgiving. Cool? You're okay with that? Good. 

I had a slight obsession this year about going out to see fall leaves. I absolutely love the fall and the want to see all the fall colors overwhelmed me (and probably Josh). The first weekend we went out to find fall leaves, I thought we'd find them at Bellevue Botanical Gardens. I found out about it in this article about fall leaves in Seattle. Makes sense, right? Wrong! We saw some but not much. Severely disappointing. I think I complained so much that Josh promised to try again the following weekend.

So the next weekend we ended up going outside of Seattle to Snohomish's Lord Hill Park. We had a heck of a time finding it, and when we did find it finally, it started to rain. You'd think I was kidding, but I'm not. But we did get a few minutes on walking in, though. And there were some fall leaves. Unfortunately, I think what I had in my mind was like this (click to see), and what I got was what you see in my photos below. Someone probably should remind me that we don't live on the East coast...

As you can see, there were some leaves & some colors, so we found some fall. But you know what was annoying? Well, when we'd drive around, I'd see all sorts of fall leaves on trees along the road. Gah! I really wanted them all clumped together in a park where I would frolic around in glee and take awesome photos. No fall frolicking really happened, but my must-see-fall-leaves obsession was slightly abated by the end.

With my fall leaves fixation (somewhat) taken care of, we turned next to our hunger needs. We ended up at a place, or should I say bus, called Old School BBQ in Monroe. Yes folks, this was a bus turned into a restaurant. One bus was for the ordering and the kitchen, and then there was another bus for dining. How sweet is that? And the BBQ was delicious to boot.

Talking about things I get fixated on...pumpkins. And not my pumpkin eating obsession, but the pumpkins themselves. When I was little my parents would take my sister and me to Bates Nut Farms. I just loved it. Even thought I'm not a kid, and we don't have kids, I still wanted to find a pumpkin patch. I'm weird & I'm aware of it. 

After lunch it was raining, and I decided we should squeeze in a pumpkin patch to our day (Craven Farms to be exact). But it was raining pretty hard. I told Josh we'd just drive there and if it was still raining, we'd skip it. I tell you, it was destiny. The rain stopped and the sun came out right as we pulled up. 

But it was MUDDY. Like, totally muddy. And wet. But look at the pumpkins....PUMPKINS! 

Remember how I just said it was wet, well when I tried to lift the pumpkin the stem was soggy, slimy, and wet. Please note that no pumpkins were harmed in my attempts to pick them up (I know you're not supposed to pick up from the stem). The photos were only for show. But they were indeed quite heavy. 

Yay! Pumpkins. Hay rides and corn mazes. 

In one day we managed to find fall leaves and pumpkins. Not bad in a days work. 

Maybe in December we'll go snow and Christmas tree farm hunting....(don't tell Josh)

Baker's Corner: Pumpkin Obsession

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I think you know by now that I have a bit of a problem...it's an addiction, really. It consumes me (well, maybe I should say I consume it) starting September and lasts well into the winter. Guys, it's pretty bad. I think I need an intervention. It's...it's...PUMPKIN!

I'm in a bit of a panic. Fall is slowly fading away into winter, and I have a whole list of pumpkin things to make. I mean, look at this Pinterest board. I think there are 86 pins and counting. This pumpkin stress causes me to hoard canned pumpkin and my apartment just isn't big enough. 

The good news is that I have made some progress on the pumpkin baking front. I must go into detail here since it's my favorite ingredient...EVER. 

Yay! I found a recipe for pumpkin bread that I absolutely love. It's not too sweet, but not too savory either. I took Simply Recipes pumpkin bread and added some Trader Joes candied pepitas on the top. I also left out the orange zest and walnuts - I'll make it again with that included because it sounds delicious; I just wanted it to be more traditional tasting. The end results: Magic. 

This is a secret recipe from my friend Sarah. But if I were to steer you in a direction for a pumpkin bar recipe, you might try this one. These are just delectable little bars. You take one slice and then you just have to take another. It's an addiction. 

Pumpkin can be for every meal! This time I made it for breakfast. I took this recipe and made just a few adjustments based on what I had in the kitchen. I used only cranberries and left out the flaxseed, but then I added a few pistachios because why not. Then of course I paired it with Chobani pumpkin yogurt because again...why not. 

Oh man, I've been wanting to make these forever. And I was pretty proud of myself. About half the shells cracked, but I figured it out and the rest were perfect. I took just a base macaron shell recipe and added 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin spice. Then I took this filling recipe but used regular milk instead of coconut milk. And I exchanged two of the tablespoons of sugar with brown sugar because that's what Annie did and I trust Annie. However, all the spices and sugar made it a brown color, so next time I'd probably keep with the regular sugar. They were delicious, but Josh thought they looked like mini sausage sandwiches. 

I love Jamba Juice's pumpkin smash smoothie, so I created one for home since there isn't a Jamba Juice that close to us. It was dang similar I tell you. Give it a whirl with this recipe. 

Two of the four years (appox) we've lived in Seattle, there have been the most delicious pumpkin pancakes at 5 Spot. Not sure why (dear god why!?) they didn't do it this year, but they almost make me cry they are so good. My quest ever since has been to find a recipe that gets me close to these heavenly pancakes. I got pretty close with these (pictured) and these. Gah, so good. 

Cookies! Oh pumpkin in cookies is a favorite. These pumpkin cinnamon cookies were a hit at my office (see the tin, my co-workers love it when they see this tin). I couldn't find cinnamon chips anywhere, so I did some with white chocolate and some just plain. Either way, they were da'bomb. 

SoI understand sometimes you don't feel like baking something, but you have a pumpkin craving. I know how that feels...it's no good and needs to be remedied immediately. IMMEDIATELY I say! And I'm not beneath just going to pick up something at the store to fill the pumpkin void. My main go to is: Dreyer's Slow Churned Pumpkin Patch Ice Cream. Or, the Trader Joe's Pumpkin Macarons. But really you can just pick up something at TJs since pumpkin seems to have taken over the shelves there (this is a great TJ review site to tell you if it's good, too).

P.S. Check out last year's pumpkin obsession (or here, too).

Random Acts of the Month: October

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Another month bites the dust. Time to share way too many photos. Are you ready? Okay...GO!

First up, Josh's birthday celebration dinner. 

My pumpkin cravings are out of control.

Sprinkle's Pumpkin cupcake // Jamba's Pumpkin Smash // Homemade Pumpkin Cookies

Work visit to Irvine and got to squeeze in family time

Dave Ramsey in Seattle // Rainbows from the Office // More Dave

More Pumpkins! (A post to come)

Fall is here! Beautiful Skies while waiting at the bus stop // Fall leaves // Fall walks

The rain has come...Get out the hoodies.

October 31st

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Happy Halloween Friends! 

Did you pick a movie to watch tonight? 

My office had a little Halloween party today. It was a fun party, which included some pumpkin bars made by yours truly. Not to mention, the costume turnout was fantastic. Wanna see?

I was a fox. This might lead you to ask...What does a fox say? Hence my pose in every picture - ha! Please tell me you've watched this video. 

The Cool Cats - Shane's team

Viking Pimp, Urkel, Foxy, Beeyonce, Snoopy

Team Safeway (minus a few - who knows where they were)

"photo booth"

What does the fox say?

More costumes!

Did you guess them all correctly? We had Robin, Havana 1960s guy, Urkel, Beeyonce, Viking Pimp, Katniss, Fiona, Mario, a Pancake Baker, Banana man, Khaleesi (Game of Thrones), Snoopy, Rocky Raccoon, Batman...oh so many. The Where the Wild Things are costumes were fantastic.

Happy Hallows! Boo! 

Get Your Spook On

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Someone at my office said, "I'm going to spook on you." So, of course, in total office professionalism, we decided to go around and say this to one another. This was the inspiration behind, "Get your spook on."

To be totally honest, I don't love with scary movies. Surprised? I know, I know, I seem the type. But let me tell you, when my friend asked me to watch The Ring with her in college, I thought it would be a romantic comedy about marriage. WRONG. Or the other time when my co-workers / neighbors invited me over to watch Silent Hill. I thought it was after a video game (which it is), but what horrible video games are they playing? Gah! Where's Mario?

Needless to say, I prefer comedic scary movies or ones that are more psychological thriller than horror. So in honor of Halloween I thought I'd share some of my choice "scary" movies. 

The Sixth Sense: I will always remember my reaction at the end of the movie - shock. I can't say more since maybe you haven't seen it. Wait...did you just say you didn't see it? Heavens! Please watch this now. So anyway, this one runs more on the psychological thriller side of the spectrum. For me, some parts were scary, but it wasn't like blood and gore scary. I think you can handle it.

Ghostbusters: Okay, circle of trust, when I was little this scared the gaw-jee-bees outta me (time out: Josh says gaw-jee-bees is not a word... uhh, whatever). Then we saw this last weekend at Central Cinema and I realized it's actually a comedy. Bill Murray and marshmallows...well, you can't go wrong. 

Interview with the Vampire: I had a nightmare after watching this - so vivid, so real. In the dream, I said I didn't believe in vampires, but then one came floating outside my bedroom window to prove me wrong. Yikes! But this is one of my favorite scary movies. The history and characters really intrigue me. A good vampire flick and one without teenage angst. 

Shutter Island: Here is another one that's a thriller, but more of an atmospheric thriller. It takes place on an island and there are insane people...I'm not going to say more. Believe me, you'll enjoy it and it's higher on the scary meter for me.

Practical Magic: This has Halloween movie written all over it. It's a good mix of fun and scary with witches, curses, and true love. Not to mention Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman. I honestly haven't seen it in a long time, but I'm tempted to rent it. 

The Others: I think this is one that Josh and I will watch this year. In fact, Josh owns it, and I swear I haven't seen it yet. I'll report back, but I'm pretty sure it'll be great to cozy up on the couch with candles (and most probably rain outside).

What Lies Beneath: This is a great thriller. It's not necessarily scary, but it'll certainly startle or surprise you. Isn't always the more realistic movies that are scarier? Oh, the suspense! And look at the movie cover, the hand...oh my! And who doesn't like Harrison Ford movies? 

Lady in White: This used to be THE scary movie the O'Neill family watched. It would freak me out as a kid. I went a number of years without watching it, and then one Halloween Josh and I watched it together. Well, sadly it's seeing it's age in some of the scenes (can we say greenscreen). In result, it's a bit cheesy, but I still like it. 

Hocus Pocus: Moral of this story: don't steal witches brooms. This is definitely more slap sticky and more child friendly. It's goofy and funny and all that warm fuzzy stuff. Silly witches. 

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Bahahaha! This is a movie Lindsay and I used to watch together. It cracks me up. And I love her name is Buffy. This is not the same of the tv series - so much "better." All the classic vampire stuff with wood stakes and whole shabang. This is just ridiculously hilarious. 

So I ask you this.....Do you like scary movies?

Have a Spook-takulor Halloween! 

Weekend Visitors

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Back in September, my in-laws visited for the weekend. It was an awesome weekend and ended with a beautiful sunset. We had a great time sharing Seattle and the surrounding areas with them. 

For starters, we took them over to West Seattle's Alki Beach. There was a blustery wind, but the sun was shining. We enjoyed a walk on the beach, breathing in the salty air. Nada, my mother in-law, loved Alki - it reminded her of Surfside where she grew up. 

Then we enjoyed lunch at Luna Park. We all split an Oreo shake (yes that was one shake split between the four of us). It was quite delicious. Fun fact: Cookies 'n Cream is my favorite ice cream. 

We also got to celebrate Nada's birthday with family friends Vince and Jonita. I picked out the restaurant, Tanglewood Supreme, which was a big hit. It's a hidden, little bistro in Magnolia. Oh yea, and then we enjoyed decant molten chocolate cakes at Hot Cakes later in the evening. BAM, that's how you celebrate.

Sunday we went northward and hit up Edmonds and then over to Snohomish. We ended the day with dinner on the patio of Little Water Cantina watching planes land on South Lake Union. BAM, that's how you have an awesome weekend with your in-laws. 

Josh's Birthday Treats

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Josh turned another year older last Sunday. The years just keep rolling by...it's scary...can we make it slow down? Just a bit? Oh the bright side, I love that birthday mean celebrations, and in our case, the chance to try another Seattle restaurant on our "to try" list. There are so many we want to go to, but they tend to be out of the everyday dinner price range. 

For this particular celebration we headed over to Stika and Spruce. Oh man, good idea. Even with a week in a half early on calling for reservations, I was only able to snag a 5pm reservation for the two of us. Come on, Josh isn't turning that old. But it worked since we needed to meet up at 7:45pm for dessert to celebrate another friend's birthday. So 5pm it is! 

But first, before dinner we sat down for a cocktail at Bar Ferdinand. Okay, yes, we were early. But it turned out to be quite enjoyable. I order a martinez, which was quite delightful. But then dinner called...

Our Order: Sourdough bread // Delicata Squash, pumpkin seeds, haloumi, whey, argan // roasted beets & apples, sunflower seeds tartar & flora's curd // half chicken, baked ham, peregion beans, einkorn & asian pear // buckwheat crunch ice cream.

Our Favorite was the delicata squash, but it was all delicious. (I forgot to take some of the photos before we started to dig in). 

We enjoyed ourselves very much, and left with full bellies. Josh also liked opening his gifts. I bought him some over-the-ear headphones so he can rock around the house. That made him pretty happy, too.

After dinner, we headed over to our friends house for a surprise dessert party for Torrey's 40th birthday. I had made some pumpkin bars (sorry, highly secret recipe). 

And our birthday food adventures didn't stop there. Oh no sir ye, we continued with breakfast the next morning (before I had to fly to Irvine for work). One of Josh's favorites is Hudson - it's where a bar meets comfort food. 

The birthday weekend with fully bellies and smiling faces.

Happy Birthday Josh!

Random Acts of the Month: September

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Oh me, oh my, I almost forgot to do my Random Acts of September. I remembered last night in the shower. Does that happen to you? Remembering things at the worst times like in the shower or right before you fall asleep. I usually end up repeating the thing I want to remember in my head over and over in hopes the next day it will re-surface from the depths of my mind. 

Anyhhooo, back to September. I can't believe how fast it went. I love the fall and I hate when my favorite months go by so fast. Fall is just too great - the best flavors (uh, hello pumpkin), awesome smells (fireplaces, cool air, pumpkin), and beautiful colors (leaves). Love it. 

At the beginning of the month, Josh and I visited my parents. {post}

While visiting my parents, we made a stop in La Jolla. It was just a beautiful day.

And I enjoyed the sunshine, which according to a stranger in Seattle stopped to tell me I needed to get more of (oh yes, that happened). 

My mom, sister, and I discovered a dog park near my parents new home.

Of course we stopped in downtown Encinitas (to get some breakfast at Honeys). FYI -This was a photo I took and then used the Waterlouge app to make it a water color.

Oh darn, another beautiful Seattle sunset. It was fun watching the sea planes take off into the sunset. 

My in-laws came to visit - yay! We ate lunch at Luna Park in West Seattle and enjoyed some delicious shakes.

My coworker got married and Josh and I got to join in on the special day. It was very pretty along a lake and in a barn (well, sorta a barn...very hard to describe actually. Trust me, it was nice).

My friend Sweta and I took a Macaron Macaroon class together. Yup, I've taken a class before but that was like 2 years ago. And this was with a new gal. I learned some new skillz. 

Hard to believe, but Josh and I have been married now for 3 years. Josh sent me these very beautiful flowers for our anniversary. Awww. {post}

We exchanged love notes for our anniversary, too. 

And little did the barista know it was our anniversary weekend, but he gave us his and her coffee (clever guy since he didn't know our names). 

And September welcomes the beginning of PUMPKIN season. We all rejoice! 

And there you have it. That was September. The end.

Some Cali Time & Parental Digs

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In September, Josh and I headed to SoCal to visit my parents. The visit was to see my parents and sister, but also to check our their new home in San Marcos. Last year my parents rented as they transitioned from my childhood home to a smaller, no-kids-at-home home. It was nice to finally see their new home. Silly me forgot to take photos, but I can try to paint a quick picture: it's a great one story home with a pleasant atrium and a nice location near a golf course. Most importantly, they seem happy. 

Funny, most of the interior was familiar. The furniture, decorations, and photos were all the same - just in different arrangements. It was that aspect that made me feel at home. Not to mention, home is where my family is (bleh, corny...but true). Like these photos on the wall, they used to be on the stairs at my childhood home.

We had a pretty chill time, which was great. Saturday we found a great dog park called Buena Visita Park, for my mom to take Keely, their golden retriever. Here's a selfie from our walk:

We had a lovely family dinner at Bleu Boheme in an area called Kensington. This is my parent's current favorite restaurant. It was really quite good. I still remember my flakey and delicious fish. We enjoyed our time together on the patio the most...

We also convinced the waitress to take our family picture. What a beautiful family! Striking I must say.

Sunday we venture out to La Jolla and enjoyed a beautiful day with the sunshine and ocean. Of course, we ate breakfast at The Cottage. 

La Jolla is such a beautiful place. It's not wonder the rich and famous chose to live there. We soaked in the sun while meandering along the water. We even spied some seals hanging out on the rocks. 

See what I mean? Beautiful. 

And then we had to fly home and back to reality. But I'm glad I got to see my parent's new digs and enjoy some Cali time with the fam. 

3 Blissful Years

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Monday marked our three year anniversary.* Boy, does time fly! To think three years ago I was on my honeymoon (oh man, what I wouldn't give to be there right now!). Our three years has been great and we're still as much in love as we were on our wedding day (and I would venture to say even more). 

*We have been together since 2003. So actually...it's been more like 11 years.

Here's a few shots of our past three years together since everyone loves a picture.

2 years. {post}

1 year. {post}

The Beginning. {post}

And for our anniversary, Josh had some beautiful flowers delivered to me at work. We also celebrated with a delicious dinner at Stoneburner. Three cheers for three years!

Summer's End Sunset

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They are saying that this weekend was the last hurrah of summer (boo). But if there was a way to end it, it would be with tonight's fabulous sunset sitting next to ones you love.

To set the scene: My in-laws were in town this weekend and we had a great time wandering Seattle & the surrounding areas (more on that later). Sunday night, to wrap up an already great weekend, we had dinner at Little Water Cantina. This is one of my favorite summer restaurants because it has a great patio on Lake Union....and it didn't disappoint today. We watched a fabulous sunset as we enjoyed each other's company, a cocktail, and delicious tacos. Can't beat that. 

And here's another. I couldn't stop taking photos!

We also saw the sea planes taking off and landing. Too cool for school.

Oh and here's us. I tried with two waiters to get us with the sunset...no luck. I desperately wanted to be a control freak and tell them exactly where to stand, how to angle the camera, etc. I thought they might spit in my food, so I ended up letting it go (queue the song).

Great end to the weekend. Thanks sunset. And goodbye summer.