Flowering Cherries at the National Arboretum

Last Saturday was a picture perfect spring day! Michael and I headed over to one of our MOST favorite DC destinations: the National Arboretum. It was sunny and beautiful outside and the cherry blossoms were in bloom and it was a delight to see... but I say "picture perfect" because it was chilly! Brrr...

Fortunately, we'll be checking out the cherry blossoms at the tidal basin with Michael's parents this weekend and it's supposed to be in the 80's. Can't wait!

Trout with Lemon and Dill

Michael has cooked some great new recipes lately, but the last couple weeks have been crazy for me so I'm a little behind on posting our new favorite dishes.

I found this recipe on one of my new favorite blogs Sweet Paul. Michael has been talking about trying to cook a whole fish for a while, so this quick and easy recipe was perfect (and DELICIOUS!)

INGREDIENTS
4 small wild trouts, gutted and cleaned (we bought our de-boned too)
salt
pepper
olive oil
2 lemons, sliced
1 small bunch of fresh dill, chopped
(you can always save some dill sprigs for serving too - it's pretty!)

DIRECTIONS:
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Wipe off the fish with paper towels and run both the inside and outside with salt and pepper.
Drizzle a little olive oil in the cavity of the trout.
Add 4-5 lemon slices and dill and place in a large baking dish thats been drizzled with oil.
Drizzle the top with oil.
Bake for about 18-22 minutes, all depends how big your fish is.
Use a sharp knife to see if the meat falls off the bone, then its ready.

We served it with garlic mashed potatoes and sweet & sour green beans (green bean recipe to come - it tasted A LOT better than it sounds).

Simple Fish Tacos Made Simpler

Arthur was in town for a conference in Baltimore so we were lucky to have him stay at our place last night. For this special occasion, we made quick and easy fish tacos and they were delicious! If you have time to make your own guacamole and all that jazz, feel free to use the Food & Wine recipe from which this simplified mid-week dish was inspired.

INGREDIENTS
1 small head of napa cabbage, shredded (4 cups)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more for brushing
2 tablespoons lime juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 pounds firm fish (like Mahi Mahi - we get the fish in the frozen section at Trader Joe's and let it defrost in the fridge overnight)
1 pkg. 7-inch flour tortillas, warmed
2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 pkg guacamole (we like the fresh guacamole from Whole Foods)
1 pkg or jar of salsa
Hot sauce (optional)
Lime wedges (optional)

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, toss the shredded cabbage with the 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil and the 2 tablespoons of lime juice. Season with salt and pepper.

Brush the fish with oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill over moderately high heat until lightly charred and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Transfer the fish to a platter and slice longways.

To assemble each taco, spread a dollop of guacamole on a warm tortilla.* Top with a piece of fish, a few tomato slices, the salsa, and a large spoonful of the cabbage slaw. Serve with the hot sauce and lime wedges.

Perfect for quick and easy spring and summer dinners and pretty healthy too!

*NOTE: It's easy to heat the tortilla. Just put a wet paper towel on the bottom of a plate, put one or two tortillas on top of the wet paper towel, and then put another wet paper towel on top. Then microwave for 30 seconds or until warm.

Awesome Spiral Grass Plant

With all the snow this winter and daylight savings around the corner, I have caught an early case of spring fever. But with all the wind and rain outside, I am forced to do my indoor spring repotting and pruning... which requires going to the garden center... and I am worthless when it comes to impulse buys when I spot neat looking plants!

Juncus Spiralis (aka corkscrew rush) was the lucky impulse buy today! He's wacky, huh? Michael picked out the pot and I stuffed some reindeer moss on top and it looks fabulous on our new dining table!

I hope it lives a while...

We Just Discovered Fresh Squeezed Peanut Butter

We came across these "nut butter" machines at Whole Foods in Glover Park. Just as a novelty, we bought a little containter of plain old roasted peanut butter... and it was DELICIOUS! Sorry Skippy, we're hooked on fresh squeezed nut butters!

You can also get honey roasted peanut butter and cashew butter (or almond butter, I forgot exactly). Can't wait to try them all.

New Dining Room Table Seats 10!

We LOVE our new table and chairs! They aren't anything special, but it's a BIG step up from the big ol' desk Caroline and I bought at UNC surplus for $20 after we graduated that I used for 8 YEARS as my dining room table! Talk about getting your money's worth.

Anyway, super excited and dreaming of fabulous dinner parties soon!

First Annual Spring Garden Party

Let us know if you're in Asheville and can stop by!

Adventureland

Even though I haven't seen most of the movies nominated for Oscars, I just read this article on SFGate.com on the most under-rated movies from 2009 and Adventureland caught my eye.

Thanks to Michael's Netflix queue, it forces me to watch many movies that I would never consider going to see. Adventureland was one of them. It was actually really cute and #1 on this guys under-rated movies list. This is what he says:

1. Adventureland: Nobody saw this poorly marketed coming-of-age tale, which was a funny and romantic throwback to the best John Cusack films of the 1980s. The writing from "Superbad" director Greg Mottola is sharp and the actors are winning. This generation gets it's "The Sure Thing" and "Say Anything."

So if you're looking for a sweet, funny movie this weekend, I would totally recommend Adventureland.

Aina's Vegetable Casserole with Herb Duplings

This recipe reminds me of my trip last year to visit Aina in Oslo, so it always puts a smile on my face when I make it. The ingredient list looks a little long, but you probably have most of the stuff in your kitchen already so all you need are a few veggies.

When Aina and I made this casserole, we used her grandma's hand-me-down covered clay baking dish and I fell in love with it. Thanks to Arthur and Carrie, we now have our own covered clay baking dish! But if you don't have a covered baking dish, don't worry. It still turns out fine with a regular casserole dish... just make sure it's deep enough to hold all the veggies.

Prep time: 30 min
Total cooking time: 50 min
Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed (optional)
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1 large potato, chopped
1 large carrot, sliced
14 oz can chopped tomatoes
1 1/2 cups (374ml) vegetable stock
1 large sweet potato, cut into half inch cubes
1 medium head of broccoli, cut into florets
2 zucchinis, thickly sliced
2 cups (250g) self raising flour (or 2 cups regular flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp baking powder)
4 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small cubes
2 teaspoons chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
2 teaspoons fresh rosemary
2/3 cup (160ml) milk
2 tablespoons sour cream

Note: You can substitute dried herbs, but remember to use less because they have a stronger flavor

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 400F.

Heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onion. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, for five minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and paprika and cook, stirring for one minute.

Add the potato, carrot, tomato and stock to the pan. Bring to the boil, then reduce and heat and simmer, covered, for ten minutes, or until tender. Add the zucchini and broccoli after about five minutes.

To make the dumplings, sift the flour and a pinch of salt into a bowl and add the butter. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until it resembles fine breadcrumbs (and if it's not getting to breadcrumb consistency, add a tad more butter). Stir in the herbs and make a well in the center. Add the milk, and mix with a rounded butter knife by lightly applying a cutting motions to the mix. Take care not to over do it as the dumpling will become rubbery in texture if over mixed. Gather up the dough and lift onto a lightly floured surface, then divide into 16 portions. Shape each portion into a ball.

Add the sour cream to the casserole. Transfer to a 2 liter oven-proof dish and top with the dumplings. Bake for 20 minutes (without cover) or until the dumplings are golden and a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the center. Yum!

Trick: Reheat with cover on so the dumplings don't dry out.

MISS YOU, AINA!

Easy Stir Fry (feat. Napa Cabbage)

We have recently been on a napa cabbage kick. It all started when we bought a big napa cabbage head to make fish tacos (I need to post that recipe too - yum!). We had so much left, I just thought I'd throw it into a simple stir fry to use it up. Michael LOVED it and we've been making variations of the stir fry ever since.

First, check what you have in the fridge. Do you have a couple carrots hanging around? Great... shred them up! Do you have half a carton of mushrooms that you need to use? Great... slice them up! Do you have some garlic cloves and some onions that you need to use before they sprout? Fabulous! You have a stir fry!

INGREDIENTS
1 head napa cabbage (chopped)
1 sliced onion
3 or more cloves of garlic
sliced ginger (optional - I don't like ginger so I leave it out)
sliced chicken breast or pork (optional)
any other veggies you want to add (sliced mushrooms, sliced zucchini, shredded carrots, green beans, and whatever else you think would taste yummy)

Sauce
1/2 cup chicken stock or water
3 tablespoons soy sauce (low-sodium if you've got it)
1 tablespoon Mirin (Japanese cooking wine)
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper or a spoonful of Chinese red pepper sauce
And these are not exact measurements - if you like it saltier, put more soy sauce in, and if you like it spicier, put more hot sauce in. Have fun with it!

DIRECTIONS
First, put all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix them up. Set aside.

If you're not making this vegetarian, splash some vegetable oil in a hot wok or skillet and cook up the sliced meat. Also, feel free to sprinkle some pepper on it if you like black pepper. Once cooked, scoop into bowl and set aside.

Make sure there's still some oil in the bottom - if not, splash some more in. Now put in the "thicker" veggies that take longer to cook (onions, carrots, green beans, etc) Stir that around until they are cooked and a little limp (about two or three minutes) then scoop into a bowl and set aside.

Now for the rest of the veggies - cabbage, mushrooms, zucchini, garlic - if they don't all fit in the wok or skillet, just do half at a time. Trust me, the cabbage will cook down a lot.

After you've cooked everything, put it all back in the wok or skillet and spoon in the sauce to taste. Then serve over steamed rice!

Hooray Duvet!

Since the West Elm downtown is going out of business, we decided to take advantage of the sale! And since we had been eyeing the Organic Matelassé Duvet Cover since seeing it in New York, this was the perfect opportunity to get a deal.

The only unfortunate consequence of shopping a clearance is that sometimes other people have the same idea. We originally wanted the dark grey/brown color but they didn't have our size so we settled on "moonshine" (aka light blue). I know Michael was secretly hoping for bright Tennessee orange but that wasn't an option. Oh darn.

Anyway, it's a shame to see it go - West Elm did a great job refurbishing the historic Woodward & Lothrop building. In the current economy, The Washington Business Journal reports that this West Elm location just couldn't generate the volume to stay open.

New Dining Room Chairs!

We finally got our new dining room chairs and tossed out our plastic IKEA chairs. We feel all grown up now!

Next... the grown-up dining room table...

Taking baby steps to get "real" furniture in our apartment. Yay!

The Millennials

If you were born after 1980, you're a Millennial (so I guess I'm barely a non-Millennial).

In short, in addition to being more "expressive" (um, like keeping a blog or facebook page), Millennials “are more ethnically and racially diverse than older adults. They’re less religious, less likely to have served in the military, and are on track to become the most educated generation in American history. Their entry into careers and first jobs has been badly set back by the Great Recession, but they are more upbeat than their elders about their own economic futures as well as about the overall state of the nation.”

One of the favorite programs PBS News Hour did a segment last night on this up-and-coming generation and it was super interesting how they differed from the Gen-Xers and Baby Boomers.

Take the quiz to see how Millennial you are here. I scored a 61... which I guess is ok... Millennials typically score a 73.

The Help

This is also a book we read in my book club and I would give it an 8 out of 10. Loved it and couldn't put it down!

Perhaps I liked it so much because I lived in the south for several years or because I was a journalism major like the protagonist. In any case, I liked the way it made you think "what would I do in this situation" and I liked how the chapters frequently ended in mini cliffhangers that forced you to read just one more chapter before you went to bed.

I just recommended it to one of my best friends that has never lived outside California and not interested in journalism, so it will be interesting what her reaction to the book will be.

The Art of Racing in the Rain

I just finished reading this in my book club. I would give it a 4 out of 10. Yes, and I'm being generous. It was literally a chore to finish (and I wouldn't have finished it had I not had to read it for book club).

It was cute... maybe too cute.
It was emotional... but it tried too hard.
It was an easy read... but only because the storyline was spoon-fed and predictable.

I know, I know... I don't have a dog, I don't like NASCAR, and I don't really relate to the testosterone-laced movie references he makes throughout the book. Still, I know when a book is talking down to me... perhaps the way that I talk down to dogs... and I didn't like it.

Leaving Her Mark

And you thought your family tree had a lot of branches...

According to the NY Times article: when Yitta Schwartz died last month at 93, she left behind 15 children, more than 200 grandchildren and so many great- and great-great-grandchildren that, by her family’s count, she could claim perhaps 2,000 living descendants.

Read more...

Wow - what a woman. Don't make many like this anymore.

Georgetown Cupcake

My cousin, his girlfriend, me and Michael went to brunch in Georgetown on Monday to celebrate President's Day... and the brunch place was good and super cute... but the stop at Georgetown Cupcake post-brunch took the (cup)cake!

Cupcake stores are super trendy nowadays (read NYTimes article before your start your own business) so we've been to a few little shops, but Georgetown Cupcake is the real deal. Every flavor we've ever tried has been delish!
Red velvet (personal fav)
Honey Banana
Chocolate Strawberry
Peanut Butter Fudge

Whenever you want to get a little sweetness in G-town, give us a call. This post is already making me hungry!

Mountain Xpress, February 17 2010

Look who's on the cover?

I think this says a lot for our awesome photographer Meg Reilley. She's wonderful!

And they also mention The Hawk & Ivy B&B in their Where We Stayed article.

Our wedding was truly country chic!

Ever Spill Something at the Dinner Table?

Just saw this on apartment therapy... So cool!

Underfull - the tablecloth that turns spilling into poetry from Kristine Bjaadal on Vimeo.

Still trying to figure out where I can purchase this...

EASY Last-Minute Chocolate Cake

You only need a bowl and a fork to mix this batter and it's to DIE for! So easy and so quick - you have run out of excuses and must make this chocolate cake for your favorite chocoholic!

I was supposed to do dessert for Valentine's Day, but I didn't want to make an old recipe and didn't want to try something new that would take a lot of time. Fortunately around 5 pm, I remembered a simple "go-to" chocolate cake recipe that I read on the Sweet Paul blog a few weeks ago. I had all the ingredients in our kitchen so I thought Hey! Let's give it a try!

This was Sweet Paul's go-to cake recipe and it's now mine too. And once you try it, it will be yours too.

INGREDIENTS
1 stick melted butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons baking cocoa
3/4 cup plain flour

DIRECTIONS
Pre-heat your oven to 320F, 160C.
Stir butter and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.
Add the eggs and mix well.
Stir in vanilla, cocoa and flour.
Pour the batter in a buttered cake tin and bake for about 30 minutes.
The cake is best if its a little underbaked in the middle, like a soft brownie.
Take out and let cool a little.
Serve while still a little hot a la mode or with some whipped cream.