blasted this as I was driving in to work today. it put me in the best mood ever!

happy friday er’body

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched- they must be felt with the heart.” 

~Helen Keller

happy valentine’s day everybody

I love Valentine’s Day. I always have.

For me, it has never really been about having a valentine per se (yeah! who needs a prix fixe menu anyway!) , it is more about the making of the tiny cards and notes, glitter, hearts, and cookies that radiate around the day itself. I know tons of people despise Valentine’s Day as some pre-fab holiday created to sell us all crap, but I love it for its silliness.

This year, I am righteously celebrating Galentine’s Day. Cookie baking and card making started it off and tomorrow a girlfriend and I are hitting up Bodgea Wine Bar and The Arclight for some wine and classic cinema-The Philadelphia Story- the ultimate rom com, on the big screen.

After a day of making my apartment smell delicious, I brought these little morsels of joy to work, hoping to spread some love (giving) and cement my status as a nice person (teensy bit selfish).

I think it worked.

Valentine’s Day cookies

~inspired by Cupcakes and Cashmere~

4 rolls sugar cookie dough (for the semi-lazy like moi)

2 boxes (4 cups) powdered sugar

3 tablespoons meringue powder

10 tablespoons warm water

Roll out your dough (I suggest cutting each roll into half then rolling) and cut into your favorite shapes with cookie cutters. Place on ungreased baking sheet and bake for about 8 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool and make icing by combining powdered sugar, meringue powder and water in large bowl. Beat for about 10 minutes or until firm but still liquidy enough to pipe. In separate bowls, add a small drop of food coloring to get pastel colors. Scoop the frosting into separate baggies and clip a small corner off. Pipe a heart outline around the cookie and the “flood” by filling in and spreading around with more icing. Repeat, and continue to decorate until adorable.

Pair with some champagne and EAT with wild abandon!

oo oo ooo i love this and i love you

Yikes.

Recently, I have been working to improve my carbo-loaded lifestyle and cut back on the no carb left behind mantra I normally sing. I reached out to a friend who practices a mostly raw diet for help and she opened me up to the world of veggie spiralizers and zucchini pasta.

Rushing over to her mountain-top pad, we spiralized and chopped to our little hearts desire producing a delicious and ridiculously nutritious meal that FAR exceeded my expectations. Tasting a bit like bruchetta, this room-temp “pasta” was to die for.

In the mix (adapted from Whole Living)

8 ounces cherry tomatoes sliced

1 clove garlic, thinly sliced

1/4 cup chopped raw walnuts

2 tablespoons torn fresh basil, plus leaves for garnish

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

Sea salt

1-2 zucchini, spiralized

In a bowl, combine tomatoes, garlic, walnuts, basil, and oil. Season with salt. Let stand 20 minutes. Toss with zucchini and garnish with basil.

So easy, fresh and delicious, I whip this up in minutes when I’m hungry for a quick dinner or snack.

“Between the ages of twenty and forty we are engaged in the process of discovering who we are, which involves learning the difference between accidental limitations which it is our duty to outgrow and the necessary limitations of our nature beyond which we cannot trespass without impunity.”

~Auden

have a great weekend .

Bill Gaytten for Christian Dior went back to the basics of what fashion is to me. Lovely, ladylike, wearable yet fabulous pieces that delight. The entire Spring 2012 collection did that.

The material! The Hair! The cinched waists!

Everything seemed perfectly fitted for a 1960′s Barbie doll or a jaunt around the streets of Paris.

Now all I need is bike basket and a baguette. Oh and a million dollars.

A girl can dream….

Sheesh is this true or what?? Sometimes I think we just forget how simple a bit of exercise is and how far it can take us.

As I dragged my sore and tired booty out of bed at 5:30am this morning, I had to focus on that fact that the next hour of hot yoga was just ONE of the 24 hours that I am given each day.

I try to remind myself that each hour is precious, why would I not take just one for myself…

YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD UPDATE:

I just came across this awesome video on my favorite site The Hairpin.

Watch, learn and enjoy!

However, despite one random run to Trader Joe’s this past weekend, I haven’t done much grocery shopping. I strive to be a person who, like the Europeans, goes to the market for fresh fruits and veg a few times a week, but often my grocery story visits turn into a bi-monthly occasion. This, as you can imagine, leaves me with little to work with on ‘Downton Abbey Night’….

Enter the what’s in the fridge “pizza”

yes, that is the glow of Downton in the back...

1 Ezekiel 4:9 sprouted grain tortilla

1 handful soy shredded blend cheese

2 smallish fresh tomatoes

some marinara sauce

4 slices of Columbus salami (and a few eaten but not on the pizza…)

micro greens to garnish

Preheat the oven to 350. Place the tortilla on a baking sheet and spread on a semi-generous amount of marinara sauce. Top with “cheese”, sliced tomatoes and salami. Bake in the oven for about 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melty. Garnish with the micro-greens (they add a nice, peppery flavor) and slice into quarters.

Voila! So delish, easy and totally last minute!