Let Them Eat Cake!

Believe it or not, it has officially been a year since I began blogging. Honestly, I can't believe that this blog has remained active after all this time. A full year of cooking, eating, and writing has brought me so much joy and relaxation during some big transitions and great dinner parties.

Incidentally, my blogiversary (see definition here if confused) is also around the time of my birthday! This year, The Husband and I are channeling our love for food by celebrating with friends over a birthday Bizarre Food Challenge.

The Challenge: Bring what you believe to be a bizarre or unique food (no brains or raw insects please -- we don't want no prion disease).

Can't wait to share the pictures and reactions to this event! Looking forward to what exciting foods our foodie friends will share with us this Friday.

Confession: I've never made a real cake. Ever. So to celebrate the momentous occasion, I bought a pretty cake stand, which also doubles as a trifle or punch bowl (genius). Cake and bizarre treats to come soon!

Have a great Monday!

Grocery Bag Dispenser

One of my biggest pet peeves is having a cabinet stuffed with assorted grocery bags. Every time I open that specific cabinet all of the bags come tumbling out on to the kitchen floor and I have to spend time stuffing them back in. So for weeks I've been thinking about how I can create a grocery bag dispenser with the leftover green fabric from my other DIY project. 

I've been wanting to try some stenciling, as inspired by many of the DesignSponge DIY projects. So here was my first attempt. 

Sewing the dispenser was actually quite easy. It was the stenciling that was more difficult given the ridges on this canvas fabric. I used the tip of my scissors to smooth out the edges of the stencil. I think it worked out just fine. 

No more messy cabinets for me! 

Weekend in Asheville

Some of my favorite things from our trip to Asheville this weekend. You'll notice there are no pictures about food since that deserves its own post! 

Hope you find some beautiful things to look at this Tuesday.

It's a Monster Mash!

Some post-Halloween pictures! This year, our little KK, suited up as a crosswalk guard for ghoulish minions.

One of my favorite little dessert dishes for this Halloween party. It really looks like a graveyard in there! 

My contribution to the party was making a brain. It was so incredibly easy, I will definitely be doing it again for next year!  

Ingredients:

1 small sized melon (honeydrew/watermelon)

Directions:

1. With a vegetable peeler, shave off the top layer of the melon to expose the membranes under neath.

2. Use a skewer or a toothpick to draw the various gyri of the brain. Make sure you create a middle crevice to divide the 2 hemispheres. If you'd like to be super nerdy, you can try to replicate the various regions of the brain (i.e., temporal, parietal lobes, cerebellum). 

3. Use a small, sharp paring knife to cut out the various lines that you've just drawn with the toothpick. Make sure you cut deep enough to create dimensionality to the melon. 

Happy belated Halloween!