rosemary sea salt pretzels

May 13, 2013

I grew up living in a home whose basement freezer was constantly stocked with Costco-sized boxes of soft pretzels. I have no idea why my mom felt compelled to add soft pretzels of all things to our food regimen, but there I was — obsessed with eating the nubby ends first before demolishing the rest of the twisted bread. Then there was swim team, where I ended every practice with one of those gross, kind of soggy soft pretzels they sold at the front desk. They weren’t particularly good, but you just don’t say no to bread after you‘ve swam butterfly enough to easily peel your arms off the rest of your body. And then of course, there are baseball games. Ah, the sport that so few watch but so many tolerate for the food’s sake. My jam is Wrigley Field with a soft pretzel followed by a cup of Dippin’ Dots. That’s summertime right there.

All these fond memories came flooding back when I saw this recipe for rosemary sea salt pretzels on Pinterest. Even though active dry yeast scares me — it seems so intimidating to get the right rise environment and knead the dough just enough — it was much easier than I expected.

Here are some notes:

Creative Profiles

our rituals: the amigobooth crew

May 10, 2013

If you read this blog, follow me on Instagram or read my Tweets — I make myself very available, clearly — then you’ve probably seen a few snaps of me in AmigoBooth photos. This rad company based in San Diego takes photo-booths to the next level with compact set-ups (stylish, simple backgrounds + computer that snaps photos + iPad that displays said snaps) and instant sharing capabilities on your computer or phone (here’s their app!). Might I add that these photos also come with the most flattering light. AmigoBooth is a big part of San Diego’s creative scene, so of course I had to ask them to be a part of my series.

It consists of husband-and-wife photography team Rico and Rachel Castillero (left) and fellow married couple Allison and James Miller (right). Good looking group, huh? Let’s see what’s behind those pretty faces:

around san diego - Style + Beauty

madewell comes to san diego + my california wardrobe dreams get bigger

May 8, 2013

I’d love to say I have a particular style, but it tends to change with every new city I live in — and in a big way. I loved dressing up in New York, where it’s perfectly normal to head out to work at 9 a.m. in a ruffle skirt, chartreuse silk button-down and ankle booties. My tops went from dressy to dressier. My jewelry ranged from big to bigger. The only t-shirts I owned were the ones I wore to bed. I once went to work in neon pink tights.

Food

lighter baked macaroni and cheese

May 6, 2013

I go through Pinterest phases where one day all I’ll pin is fashion. The next day I’ll ogle at only interior design. Recently, I got into a tizzy over food inspiration. Consistently, I found myself re-pinning recipes from the same place: Gina’s Skinny Recipes. The NY-based author, photographer and recipe developer shares healthier versions of all our favorite foods. She’s not one of those foodies who swears off sugar, dairy and carbs; she just makes small changes and believes in portion control. (Her recipes also come with Weight Watchers points.)

But I wanted to see if she could talk the talk and walk the walk, if you know what I mean. So I picked a typically indulgent meal — macaroni and cheese — and tried her lighter version. It was a hit — and a lot less heavy than the jalapeno macaroni I usually make. Eaman and I devoured all but a small scoop of it by dinner and lunch the next day. (OK, maybe that’s not a great lesson in portion control.)

Here are a few personal notes:
– A face-down wooden spoon really does keep a pot from boiling over, a trick I learned from Paper/Plates.
– I had only regular butter and used 2 tbsp of that instead of 1 regular, 1 light.
– I added cayenne pepper.
– I also added 4 cloves of minced garlic and sauteed them along with the diced onion.
– I didn’t have fresh baby spinach and instead threw in 16 ounces of frozen spinach, but make sure to drain the latter version like crazy. I heated it up in the microwave and squeezed it out portion by portion. (By the way, I think 16 ounces was the perfect proportion of greens compared to the pasta and cheese.)
– The recipe doesn’t come with exact salt measurements, so be sure to frequently taste the sauce to make sure you’re not over- or under-salting.
– I refrigerated my mac and cheese in the baking dish until dinnertime. But I waited until just before putting it in the oven to sprinkle the bread crumbs — I used Panko — and grated Parmesan.

Check out the process:

Creative Profiles

my rituals: kristin miller of dressed and fed

May 3, 2013

If Pinterest has taught us anything, it’s that beautiful images of food and fashion never grow old. And that’s exactly also how I feel when I read Kristin Miller’s blog, Dressed and Fed. The San Diego blogger chronicles all that’s sweet, classic and pretty with gorgeous photos — her lighting is always the best! — sale alerts and restaurant recs. Today, she tells us about playing with Playdough and clocking time with Gillian Flynn.

Life

video recap: april 2013

May 1, 2013

April is always my favorite month of the year. It’s about spring flowers, my birthday (yes, I do happen to like my birthday), our dating anniversary and now the anniversary of Teddy’s arrival. Though I must admit: Raising a new puppy has been hard. Really hard. I had considered myself the most prepared person in the category of people who’ve never had a dog, but it’s even harder than I could’ve imagined. There have been a few downs — feeling anxious, sleep-deprived and overwhelmed by this new being in our lives — and I plan to share with you what’s that’s been like, but I will say it’s mostly been amazing. Watching him grow, play and get acclimated each day is such a treat and a beautiful reminder to love the little things. There are few things as incredible as having him ~~run~~ sprint to me in excitement after I’ve been in the shower or bedroom. He’s. so. happy. every. time.

You can’t really go out much when you have a puppy — though it’s getting better and we’re able to go out for 3.5-hour stretches now — so yes, this video is mostly of Teddy, but I promise that it’s very, very, very, very adorable. There are also peeks at my birthday cookie cake, our friends’ visit and a trip to Adams Avenue Unplugged.

And by the way, the part where Teddy’s looking out onto the dog park (also in the freeze frame)? Yep, those are two scratches on Eaman’s neck c/o Teddy. See? It ain’t always snuggles and licks.

Music: “Brand New Key” by Melanie

Monthly Archives: May 2013