a martha-stewart kind of weekend...

last weekend i caught the crafty-1950's-housewife bug, and all of a sudden i was pinning and stitching, chopping and grilling, wearing an apron and whipping up dishes like the atomic bomb was on it's way. i even hosted my sister and sears for 4th of July fun in the evening.

here are some pictures of selected weekend projects...

mushroom-swiss buffalo burgers


strawberry shortcake
(i only made the compote. angels food mini bundt cakes are a little out of my league...)


i have officially dubbed my sangria *best on the west coast* (humble, i know.)
and YES, that is fresh grown basil from my patio garden as garnish. thank you for noticing.



two-hour tote bag
(my name for it. the book suggested *one-hour*, but obviously that's just crazy talk. i had to make handles, for fuck's sake!)
the bag is a birthday gift. here's to hoping the recipient isn't one of my 4 readers.


pS - i've been totally useless since then. house-wifing is exhausting!

holiday salad...

cmas day Salat Olivier turned out quite delish! thanks to yulinka for the recipe.
(my only addition? rosemary. yum!)


hope everyone had a gorgeous holiday <3

ms. hotpants' chocolate and beer chili...

the russian thinks he doesn't like chili. i'm determined to change his mind - with this recipe...

brown 1 lb. ground turkey in a skillet, adding cloves of garlic, chopped onion, hot sauce, and spices (garlic powder, dill, cumin)

add browned turkey to pot with these ingredients:
1 can black beans
1 can garbanzo beans
1 can white beans
1 can corn
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1 chopped tomato
chopped onion
chopped garlic
1 hersey's chocolate bar
1 newcastle (or any other dark beer)
spices - garlic powder, cumin, basil, dill, oregano, cayenne pepper, black pepper

cook until done. (so specific, i know...)

serve topped with sour cream and a side of cornbread.

YUM!