Kitchen Updates!

Well, this might be my favorite post ever!  I have finally finished our kitchen and can honestly say that I now have the chef's kitchen of my dreams.  Although, it took over two years to put it all together, it was so worth the wait and I could not be more happy with the end result.  

It is amazing what a difference painting the cabinets, changing the appliances and adding crown moulding has made to this space.  I spend most of my time in this room of our home, which is why it was a priority to us and I can now say that I truly love being in that kitchen even more than ever.

Original Kitchen

Updated Kitchen

Before Painted Cabinets and Crown Moulding

After Painted Cabinets and Crown Moulding

Kitchen Island

Fresh Flowers

Our little Winston enjoying the new kitchen :)

Basil Peach Infused Sweet Tea

Y'all, this is the best sweet tea I think I might have ever tasted and I have had a lot of sweet tea in my day!  I started with my usual base sweet tea recipe which is: 

2 quarts of purified water brought to a boil, 1/2 cup pure cane sugar and 1/4 cup honey or agave stirred in until dissolved and then 5 decaf iced tea bags and 3 decaf green tea bags steeped in it for 5-8 minutes.

Once it cooled I added a bunch of frozen peaches and fresh basil leaves and let them infuse for a few minutes. When it was ready I poured it into a glass of ice and garnished with a basil leaf and lemon slice... YUM.

If you like infused water and/or iced tea, you must try this!

Happy Easter!!!

We had quite a lovely Easter this year minus the clouds and rain (which never happens in California, but never the less had to happen on the one day that is "supposed" to be bright and sunny).  Anyway, besides the weather, we had a beautiful Easter day full of the best F words there are - friends, family, food, flowers and fellowship.   

We started the morning off at church and then the rest of the day revolved mainly around eating!  We had deviled eggs, of course, for apps and grapefruit margatinis made by Amber that were absolutely to die for, followed by a huge meal to feed all 14 of our guests.   

Easter dinner consisted of honey orange glazed ham, truffle mac 'n cheese, scalloped potatoes made by my husband and roasted spring vegetables (including brussel sprouts, carrots, yellow squash, butternut squash, zucchini, red onion and dates, all diced on the diagonal into bite size pieces, tossed in olive oil, balsamic, honey, sea salt and cracked pepper, roasted at 400 until crispy and then topped with freshly crumbled goat cheese) it was amazing.  

Lastly, we finished our meal off with Easter themed cupcakes and lemon curd french macaroons from Half Baked Co. accompanied by homemade strawberry shortcake and banana pudding in mini trifle dishes.  I would say they all went over very well with our crowd :)

Hope all y'all had a Happy Easter!

Living Room/Dining Room Updates

And without further ado, the living room and dining room updates :)  We painted the walls Benjamin Moore Manchester Tan and I absolutely LOVE it!  It is a very light beige with a hint of grey and it contrasts just enough with our new moulding, which I had no idea what a huge affect crown moulding made until we had it done.  It is like putting a photo in a frame.

I love how much lighter and brighter everything feels now, but yetit still feels warm with all of the different textures used throughout the space.  I think my top 3 favorite finds for the living room are the chevron rug from Pottery Barn, the light wooden standing lamp from Target and the ikat chair pillow also from Pottery Barn.  Overall, I think all the patterns and colors came together nicely and I plan to leave it alone for another two years!

Greek Yogurt Alfredo Sauce!

This was so tasty!!!  I found the recipe off Pinterest and decided to try it and am so glad I did because Prescott and I both loved it.  It is light, creamy, lemony and fresh.  Great new alfredo sauce to add to the recipe book ;)

Light fettucini alfredo Ingredients: 1 pound angel hair pasta, 1 cup low-fat plain Greek yogurt, 1 cup low-fat ricotta cheese, 

1/2 cup parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest, Kosher salt, freshly ground black pepper

Boil angel hair pasta according to directions and blend the rest of the ingredients in a blender.  

Season with salt and pepper to taste, if it tastes bland to you, its because you didn't add enough salt and pepper, so add more salt until you get more flavor.  

Once pasta is done cooking lightly drain.  Then pour sauce and pasta back into pot and continue to cook, adding reserved pasta water or I used skim milk to continue to make it creamy as the pasta quickly absorbs the sauce.  Once you get the proper consistency and desired temperature, plate and garnish with fresh cracked pepper and parsley or basil.

Bathroom Reno

After realizing that we had been living in our home for over two years now, we figured it was time to freshen things up a bit, so Prescott and I have slowly but surely been updating each room. So far this is the only one that I feel is 100% done, everything else is close but I don't want to share until they are totally finished!  

So without further ado here is our updated downstairs half bath complete with Benjamin Moore Spanish Olive paint, Swiss Coffee white crown molding and framing of the mirror, updated light fixture, neutral Pottery Barn towels and framed prints we bought on our honeymoon in Paris.  I have really grown to love this little bathroom :)

Delicious Secret Ingredient Cookies!

I guess I am starting a trend here with my secret ingredient recipes, so what is the secret ingredient this time you ask?  

Well, you aren't going to believe it, it's black beans!  I know what you are thinking (exactly what I was thinking when I read the recipe) that sounds horrible and I bet they taste disgusting.  Well, my friends I have proved us both wrong again.  

Not only is spinach tasty in smoothies, apparently black beans are delicious in cookies... Who knew?!?!  Seriously, these are a must try.

Inspired by Eliza's Edibles Recipe:

Ingredients

• 1 can black beans, rinsed well
• 2 T. milk
• 1.5 T. peanut butter/nut butter of choice
• 2 T. olive oil
• 3 T. whole wheat flour
• ¼ c. unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ c. + 1 T. sugar 
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• pinch of cinnamon
• pinch of salt
• ⅓ c. dark chocolate chips, plus more for sprinkling on top

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Combine black beans, milk, peanut butter, and olive oil in a food processor and process until smooth.
3. Add in whole wheat flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon, and continue processing until combined and mousse-like.
4. Stir in ⅓ c. dark chocolate chips.
5. Spoon 16 dollops evenly spaced dollops of the batter onto the baking sheet and sprinkle with the extra chocolate chips.
6. Bake for 10 minutes.
7. Let cool slightly, then put on a baking rack until they are cooled completely.
8. ENJOY!!

Notes

Store in the refrigerator due to the black beans!