Foodie pen pals - July

When I was twelve years old, I had a binder full of letters from penpals across the world, from New Zealand, to New Mexico, to Lithuania. So when I heard about Foodie Penpals, I thought 'That sounds like my kind of thing!'. It's open to blog readers and bloggers, and since it started last year in September, has grown to include over 1000 participants! This was my first month participating, and I had so much fun compiling a box of foodie treats for my pen pal Alana, I couldn't wait to receive my box from Kat. Lucky for me, we're both California girls, so my package arrived on the 17th (they have to be mailed by the 15th)! It was a heavy little box, which made me curious about what was inside. Here's what I found:

 

On the top of the package, there was a note card, where Kat explained that the box was compiled with a 'summer picnic' theme in mind - which couldn't be more perfect! I love summer picnics, had planned on taking one to Shakespeare by the Sea (a favorite LA summertime event) the weekend before I received this very box, but had my plans derailed by my scary tire skid on a slick road - that's where the stale baguette came from! But I digress... Anyway, I love, love, LOVE summer picnics, and my box was the perfect thing for me! It included homemade dill pickles, pickled carrots and green beans, and figs in orange syrup, salami, a package of dried mango (which I've been eyeing at Trader Joe's for a while now, and hadn't gotten around to trying yet!), a bag of tea (to go with Kat's very own sweet tea recipe - she's from the South, y'all!), and two cloth napkins... It is PERFECT for me! All I need is a baguette, and I'm all set for a summer picnic with the treats that Kat sent me. Can't wait to see what next month's foodie penpals box will bring. It's like Secret Santa in July!! :)

Lovely lavender

You might remember when I went a little nuts and bought four bunches of dried lavender at Trader Joe's... I can't help it, I LOVE lavender, and it's gotten to that point in the summer where all my plants are requiring more frequent watering, and cut flowers hardly last more than a few days before wilting because it is TOO DARN HOT! So buying a bunch of dried lavender seemed the perfect solution for my little table centerpiece container that's been holding a languishing little lavender for a few months now. I kind of squished it into the little container, and that may or may not have caused the languishing... But dried lavender is already dead - so PERFECT solution! :) Well, the lavender didn't quite stand up the way I wanted them to, probably coz the vase has a wide opening, so I needed to get some floral foam to stabilize them a bit. I finally got around to it this weekend, and it took all of 15 minutes (aside from the lovely aisle browsing at Michael's!), so here's how I did it:

You will need:

Dried flowers (or silk if that's what you like)

Floral foam

A knife

To start, use a knife to cut the floral foam to size - you want it to fit snugly into the vase or container you will be using.

Next, lay out the dried flowers on your counter/table/workspace. Begin to add the flowers, a few stems at a time, cutting them to the height you'd like the arrangement to be, as you go. If some stems break, put them aside and save them in case you can use them at the end.

As you begin to fill the container, turn it every now and then, to make sure that the arrangement is full and balanced from all sides (especially important for me as I planned to use this as a table centerpiece. When you are almost done, shake the container a little, and fix any stems that fall or lean over. I was very happy with how my new table centerpiece turned out - it is fragrant, simple and doesn't wilt in the heat! And I ended up with an extra bunch of lavender left over, to give to a friend :)  

National Hot Dog Day ~ Sonoran style

Well, I'm not the biggest fan of hot dogs, but while living in Tucson, I had the opportunity to try a local delicacy - Sonoran Hot Dogs (or as some people call them in LA, Danger Dogs). I am sure they're bad for you in every single way possible, but they are delicious, and in honor of National Hot Dog Day (apparently - according to a google search fueled by a facebook post), we had a bunch of friends over yesterday and celebrated with Sonoran Hot Dogs. If you've never tried them, you should! Just not too often :P 

You will need:

Bacon

Hot Dogs

Buns

Tomatoes (diced - I used 3)

Onions (diced - I used 2 smaller ones)

Mayo, mustard, ketchup, relish, chipotle mayo etc. (whatever else you want!)

Heat oven to 325 degrees. Wrap half a piece of bacon around each hot dog (don't overlap it too much as you want it to crisp and cook evenly) and set aside. In a little olive oil, saute the onions until the are softened, then add tomatoes and stir. Cook on medium high heat for about 10 minutes, adding a little garlic salt for extra flavor, if you'd like. While the tomatoes and onions are cooking, cook bacon wrapped hot dogs over medium high heat, turning as the bacon cooks. Place buns on a tray and heat in the oven for about 5 minutes. When the bacon is done on all sides, remove the hot dogs. To eat, pile hot dog buns high with condiments, sauteed onion and tomatoes and enjoy! If you're lucky, your homemade Sonoran hot dogs will come out looking something like the real deal! Yum!!

Beachy waves!

Well, I have tried to take pics to prove it, but am unable to successfully capture just how pretty the beachy waves are that I created by using this recipe I found on Pinterest - how do people take such great pics of themselves?! Well, for now, you'll just have to take my word for it! When I first read this recipe, I was a bit skeptical, having tried many 'surf spray' or texturizer products. And I know depending on your hair's natural texture/body/wave, thickness etc. it may not work for you. But boy am I happy with the little spray I whipped up this morning! Try it - you might love it!

1 cup warm water

1 tbsp coconut oil (I bought it at Trader Joe's - recommend it for use as a body lotion too for dry summer skin!)

2 tbsp sea salt

a squirt of gel (I skipped this coz I hate crunchy hair, but it was in the original recipe as it helps hold the style/waves all day)

Combine all ingredients in a spray bottle and shake well to combine. Spray on damp, detangled hair, and scrunch if you'd like to. Air dry.

That's it. Five minutes of effort, and I can honestly say I am more impressed with this than any other product I've used! I haven't tried it yet on dry hair (to spruce up waves on the next day), but I will, and I am hopeful it will work just as well. My hair is pretty wavy naturally and prone to frizz, but I am LOVING these zero effort beach waves created by this spray. So try it :) Makes me feel like I'm spending the day with these ladies, on the beach... And heaven knows it's hot enough in LA today to make me wish I was there!

Summer nights!

Starry sky, country music and a chiminea fire! Last night was one of those perfect summer nights that make you feel like a little kid again. And laying down on the little outdoor rug with a pillow, next to the fire, all I could see was the stars... and I could have been anywhere else in the world.

Or just ten years old, laying on the trampoline in my backyard. :D

Rooftop garden ~ Panzanella!

My rooftop garden is yet to produce a zucchini, but the tomatoes are doing very well! I've already had several, and I found three more juicy ones ready to eat when I watered on Monday morning. And there was a sad, neglected, stale baguette that didn't get eaten this weekend. So I made this yummy salad for dinner last night, and it was delicious!

Bread, cut into 1 inch cubes (stale or fresh, I used about half a baguette)
3 tomatoes, cut into large dice
Roasted red peppers (to taste)
Kalamata olives (to taste)
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/4 cup olive oil
one clove of garlic, minced
Sea salt and pepper to taste
Optional: fresh basil, chopped, and/or sliced cucumber

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brush the bread cubes with olive oil, then toast in the oven for 5-10 minutes, until golden. Combine olive oil, vinegar and garlic in a bowl, and whisk (or put it all in a container with a lid and shake :P). Allow bread cubes to cool a little, then put them into a bowl and pour the dressing over them. Add diced tomatoes, roasted red pepper slices, olives, and other optional ingredients if using, and toss. Let the salad sit and marinate in the dressing for 30 minutes, tossing several times to distribute the dressing evenly. Add sea salt and black pepper to taste. Yum!

We had this for dinner with an assortment of tapas and it was the perfect recipe to use my homegrown tomatoes in - tastes like summer!

Weekend whirlwind

Well, it was another one of those weekends where you wake up on Monday morning and wonder where on earth those days went :) But it was well spent, I think!!! Here's some of what we got up to:

- new tires (skidding on slick roads has a way of making you PRIORITIZE things you have been procrastinating over!) - free oil change with two new tires at Pep Boys at the moment :) 
- super late nights
- finished the four canvas painting I've been working on (I think...)
- concert in the park
- babysitting the most well-behaved kids I know - playing in tents at REI
- laughing a lot because those kids are HILARIOUS!
- hanging out with friends
- finally hung up some art around our house!
- impromptu birthday gathering
- first attempt at chiminea fire!
- S'mores!!!

So it was fun. And I went to bed super late on Sunday night, but happy. And grateful. For friends and family, and for a house big enough to comfortably fit everyone after many, many years in our tiny apartment.