It's official, I love the Smitten Kitchen cookbook.  

I knew that I would since it is one of my favorite blogs.  I don't know why I gravitated towards this cookie recipe, but they looked so simple and perfect.  I made them partly because I had all the ingredients in my house and I was having friends over.  Who doesn't like brownie-ish cookies? 

 I was sad that I didn't have an adorable flower cookie cutter like this when I made them.

   

But I did have a great cookie stamp from Spoon Sisters that my Mom gave me for Christmas.

 No matter what shape, they will be delicious.  Here is the Smitten Kitchen recipe for Brownie Roll Out Cookies. Trust me that you won't be disappointed.  They are simple perfection. 

I can't wait to try many more recipes from this great cookbook.  

Way to go Smitten Kitchen!

I have been on a jar salad kick for a long time now.  I just think they are brilliant.  Of course these are all over Pinterest and blogs (including what seems to be the original, saladinajar.com - Very worth checking out.) Though they are all over the web, I will bring them up again because if you have ever eaten or ever wanted to eat salad for lunch, you need to jump on this bandwagon stat.  I have always had a thing for mason jars.  I have a million of them left over from our wedding.  Not only are they cute salad containers, they really serve a purpose.  I make a salad line up every Sunday and these puppies stay fresh and crisp for 4 days. I have tried pretty much every vegetarian salad topping I can think of and have yet to find something that doesn't work in this perfectly contained lunch.  As long as the salad dressing is on the bottom and the spinach/lettuce is on top, you are set.  

I can't find the original source of this brilliant little diagram, but this is such a handy resource to get you started.  Layer away this weekend and eat salad all week!  

A Classy cardigan for a classy baby

I finished this darling little shawl collared baby cardigan for our friends new baby Isaiah, and then put off weaving in loose ends and sewing on buttons since the final finishing stages are always my least favorite part of knitting.  Because of this poor planning, I made myself a bit carsick sewing these buttons on in the car on our way to visit him for the first time.

This pattern was simple and knit up really quickly.  I am going to start another for my dear friends who are having a little boy in March.  I am thinking I might try a hunter green or navy. Look how adorable this version from Never Not Knitting is in navy!

 I love something this adult and sophisticated for a baby.  Babies dressed like old men = super cute in my book. I think a little girl could really rock this look too.  Check out the Baby Sophisticate pattern  by Linden Down on Stockinette here!

  

Sweaters: a la boyfriends and Bill Cosby

I've got sweaters on my mind.  My dream is to wear slouchy cashmere sweaters all the time.  The sad thing is, I live in Austin, TX where there is a very, very tiny window of opportunity for wearing said sweaters.  Maybe this is why I don't own a slouchy sweater. Don't think I haven't tried.  Any time I have tried on a slouchy warm sweater, I have felt like I was being strangled by a wet blanket.  It is just too hot here to fall in love with them in person the way I do when I see them from afar.  My dream is to own a slouchy, casual cashmere sweater. The combination of laid back boyfriend sweater and the luxury of cashmere?!  Sweater perfection.    Until I live somewhere cold enough to justify a the purchase of this expensive dream sweater, I can look at these...

 J. Crew Cashmere boyfriend sweater $248

J. Crew Green Collection Cashmere boyfriend sweater $248

I work with Middle School students, and I have seen an alarming yet also awesome when done well trend this fall- Cosby sweaters.  True they have no idea that their giant pattern sweater is an homage to the one and only Bill Cosby since they were just babies when he was talking about pudding cups.  But I appreciate this flash back when done well.  

                                      

 Green Batwing Sweater  $45.76  

 Apricot Pullover Sweater $45.76  

 Blue Striped Loose Pullover  $33.44

Show em' how it's done B.C.

New craft=needle felting

Happy New Year!  I now realize that my holiday break from blogging became rather expansive. The holidays were all about family, friends, lots of cooking, baking, DIY projects, and a bit of travel.  Now that I am finally back, I see that sadly, what I wanted to share today could verge on being a bit "Christmas-y", but I am going to say that it is instead "Winter-y" which is totally appropriate for late January! 

                                   

 I have a new craft that I am loving - needle felting!  A big thanks to my amazing friend Chelle who started felting and brought all her supplies to the cabin we rent with our friends for New Year.  It was cold and rainy the whole time, so I spent some time playing with all her felting supplies by the fire.  (I definitely owe her some supplies in return for what I used!)  I just finished felting this deer and since my Christmas decorations were packed long ago, I am going to keep it out as a winter decoration for the time being.  I have so far been stuck on only making felted Christmas ornaments.  My Christmas tree is "Woodland" themed.  So they are right up my ally.    

I am now in the process of brainstorming some new projects that are not Christmas ornaments.  I love these felted hearts from lil fish studios.  They would make a great Valentines garland!

               Here is a great beginner's tutorial to make these cute little felted owls from     

              Instructables if you want to give it a try! 

                               

     Happy winter crafting!  

An ode to Pumpkin

It has been way too long since I last updated, time has just seemed to fly by lately and now it is November!  I am getting very excited about all things fall. But of course living in Austin, fall is not really here yet even though it is November.  There was an amazing cold front the weekend we went camping and it was perfect camping weather.  But alas, it is in the very high 80's again now. All I want is to be able to wear a sweater on Thanksgiving, is that really too much to ask?  But cold or not, I march on doing fall-like things.  So maybe I did sweat a bit while carving pumpkins at out pumpkin carving party on Tuesday.  And maybe I do have to turn the AC down just a bit at work after I get a pumpkin spice latte.  At least I can rock a light cardigan at night.  

So, I know that pumpkin is being WAY over-marketed right now.  But even though it annoys some that everything is pumpkin flavored/themed right now, I must admit that I am totally the person that they are marketing to.  I love all things pumpkin.  Here are a few that I am jumping on the bandwagon about as I wait for cooler weather that will signal I can move on to even more fall-ish things like bonfires and cider.

Here is my super easy pumpkin soup.  I know there are lots of recipes like this out there, but this is the one my friend made in college and it was so easy that I have remembered it.  Other recipes call for roasted pumpkin, but this is the quick/easy/lazy way using canned pumpkin instead.  

Curried Pumpkin Soup with Coconut milk

1 Can pumpkin
3/4 cup coconut milk
5 cups vegetable broth
2 teaspoons cumin
a pinch of ceyenne pepper to taste
salt to taste
chopped green onion to garnish
toasted pumpkin seeds to garnish

Heat pumpkin, broth, and spices to a simmer.  Add coconut milk and use an immersion blender to get a smooth texture.  Garnish with green onion and seeds and enjoy!

Pumpkin Carving Party

 We were all more excited about eating, drinking, and hanging out together than carving pumpkins.  Our designs may not be elaborate, but considering the fact that our cheap carving tools were breaking left and right, the finished products were pretty impressive. 

                            

Pumpkin Roll Cake

My Nana makes this recipe and I adore it.  My favorite kind of dessert is one that is acceptable to eat any time of day, and this cake fits the bill since it is great will coffee in the morning as well as on a dessert plate.  I wanted her recipe, and found out that my amazing cook Nana uses this tried and true recipe found at food.com

Enjoy Pumpkin Season!

Backyard wedding weather

The weather is finally getting a bit cooler in the evenings here in Austin, and it has made me think back to this time last year- our amazing backyard wedding in October.  Since our anniversary approaches, and I love this time of year, I thought I would share some photos from our big day.  Planning our wedding was so much fun, as was the big day.  It took place in my parents back yard in South Austin.  My grandmother made our wedding cake, our dear friends played music and performed the ceremony.  My cousin's amazing wife did all the flowers and table decorations.  The day of, both of our families came together to set up, decorate, eat Taco Deli tacos,dance, and celebrate.  

Photos by the amazing Christina of Love Exponentially Photography.