New beginnings

One of the beautiful things about Easter is it is all about a fresh start, whether you look at it spiritually or religiously. The snow has melted, the trees and flowers are budding, and it's ready for the earth to being anew. If you celebrate protestant Easter, you have renewed faith that your maker sent someone to let you know that shit happens, and you can learn and grow from life's mishaps. I also learned recently that the first day of Spring (March 20) is also the Iranian/Persian new year. I LOVE this concept of tradition and welcoming earth's coming beauty and bounty instead of Ryan Seacrest and the next Bieber. The moment  the sun crosses the celestial equinox, rituals dating back to at least the third century begin and do not end for 13 days.

For the sake of new beginnings, on Good Friday, after a lifetime of long blonde hair, I got myself a pixie cut. I couldn't be happier.

The before picture is top right of course. I went in pretty fearless because my hair grows quickly, but this haircut was symbolic for me. It means overcoming my own insecurities and stripping away the conventional ideas of what beauty is. 

I am also extremely pleased to mention that this haircut was brought to you by Heather at The Studio in Harrisonburg. I have a lot of friends and coworkers who ask me where I get my hair done, and I ALWAYS tell people that The Studio is the only place to go. Khanda and B have also done wonderful work for me, but Heather is the bomb dot com. She is a great listener and always gives me what I want (even if I don't know exactly what I want).

In other news, today was a big culinary day for me. Mister does not like desserts, especially cake. This is a problem, because I love the challenge and the beauty of baking. He does, however, like carrot cake. A couple months back I made a carrot cake that included coconut flakes and he hated it, but I would not be deterred. Today I made my first 3-layer cake, and the best damn carrot cake in the world.

This, my lovelies, is Pecan Bourbon Carrot Cake; the recipe is too divine not to share.

Ingredients:

4 C grated carrots

3/4 C golden raisins

1/3 C bourbon, rum or orange juice

2 C coarsely chopped pecans or almonds

2 1/2 C all-purpose flour

1 T baking powder

1 t baking soda

1 t salt

1 1/2 t cinnamon

1 t nutmeg

1/2 t allspice

1 C vegetable oil

1 1/2 C brown sugar

4 eggs

2 t vanilla

Cream Cheese Icing:

2 packages cream cheese at room temp

3/4 C butter at room temp

2 T bourbon, rum, or orange juice

1 t vanilla

2 1/2 C powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350. Spray 3 cake pans

2. Grate carrots by hand or food processor. Soak raisins in bourbon and stir occasionally. Chop nuts and toast in the oven or over medium-low heat on the stove with no oil for 5 minutes. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice into a large mixing bowl. Stir to blend and make a well in the center.

3. Combine oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Scrape into dry ingredients and stir with a spatula until just combined. Fold in carrots, raisins and remaining bourbon, and nuts. The batter will be very thick.

4. Divide batter into pans evenly; there should just enough for 2 cups per pan. Spread evenly in pans and bake for 30 minutes. 

5. Beat the butter until very creamy. Add the bourbon, vanilla. Over low speed, add the cream cheese in chunks, one at a time, but avoid over-beating the mixture. Add the powdered sugar in three portions. The icing can be refrigerated for up to one day.

6. Before icing cakes, brush cakes with bourbon. Garnish with pecan halves

Tips from Lauren!

- A cup at a time, wring out grated carrots to avoid batter being too wet. 

- T= tbsp, t=tsp

- No matter what the baked good, it is always important that your eggs are at room temp. When I forget, I run them under warm (not hot!) water for a couple minutes.

Happy Spring, and don't forget that every day brings another opportunity to renew ourselves.

Mwah!

Hoop Art

Living in the country, I have a soft spot in my heart lately for hoop art and needlepoint wall hangings. My grandmother, all her sisters, and my mother (Mister's mother too) all quilt and I have a real appreciation for folk art of all kinds.

These little suckers are perfect for a lonely corner on a bookshelf, in an entryway as a cozy "welcome!" or if you are looking for a little nugget to complete a gallery wall or hallway.

I found both artsy and kitschy in my survey of Etsy's hoop art, and these are the highlights!

one. two. three. four. five. six. seven. eight. nine. ten. eleven. twelve.

one. two. three. four. five. six. seven. eight. nine.

I'd encourage you to visit the rest of these shops as well. Many are filled with other adorable fiber art or stitched goodies. And congratulations for defeating another Monday!

This just got real

I feel like we don't quite know each other that well yet.

So I'll start. 

My name is Lauren, and I live in rural Appalachia. Mister and I are tenants in the house my 3-legged cat allows us to stay in. She's a real killer, so we do what we're told.

I've let you know that I have a strong affinity for neutral home decor as well as cooking. I love trying new things, and I believe I was put on this earth to help people (mister) be more adventurous with food (vegetables). Some of my greatest achievements in this area are discovering these beautiful recipes.

Kale and White Bean Soup

Honey Balsamic Radicchio

Arugula and Ricotta Pizza. This comes straight from the super secret recipe book. A girl has to have some secrets.

I am still beginning to style my habitat but there are a few pieces I'm very proud of. There is a beautiful antique store down the street called The Cottage. Their store is inside of an old bank and there is a gorgeous 8 foot safe in the back of the store. I nabbed a few great gold frames there that hold a Picasso (one of my very favorites) and sketches done by a local folk artist, Fred Cooper. He has done dozens of sketches of historical sites around the Shenandoah Valley, and my desire to learn local history comes from my dad.

The color behind the sketch is Benjamin Moore's Newburg Green. My house is only 495 square feet, but the deep teal color obscures where the walls end, making the room appear slightly larger than when it was painted a lighter color. Such dark walls also give me license to buy lots of white and ivory. I love white.

Speaking of gin. 

I feel the need to stick up for Citadelle. Hendricks is not all that. Citadelle has the same full flavor but with a tenderness that feels like the good friend you would want to join at Happy Hour. Gin and Tonics are my favorite libation, but lately I've been mixing miss Citadelle with POM and it's delicious!

As mentioned earlier in the life of this little bloggy, I've been trying to work out more regularly. I truly believe that good food and physical activity are the fountain of youth and best prevention of nearly all chronic illness. It doesn't have to be in a gym or P90X. You just have to stay moving. 

One last thing. 

I'm not sure I want kids of my own. I know I'm not the only woman out there that thinks this with a little bit of guilt, but the more I say it, the more I realize I'm not a monster.

But I can't wait to be an aunt. 

I. can't. wait. 

Happy Thursday blogees, you're almost to the weekend!

On the streets of Philadelphia I walked the avenue until my legs felt like stone

Pardon my brief hiatus, I was in Philadelphia for a conference. I had never been, and even though I had just a few days, I wanted to make sure I made the rounds.

Last fall when I was in San Francisco, I made a point to walk a lot with only a vague destination. My hotel was in the financial district, and I wanted to get to Haight-Ashbury. This really helped me to get my own impression of the city (and a ton of exercise, I had 3 blisters after 5 hours of walking!). I wanted to do the same for my first day in Philly. I was just a couple blocks from the very historic part of town with the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall.

It was a lovely town! They may sound angry, but the people of this fine town are as friendly as they come, and I was also pleasantly surprised at how much art and stunning architecture there was everywhere!

Philadelphia City Hall

 By the way, these photos were taken with KitCam, an iPhone app that has a lot of editing features, lenses, and options that Instagram left out. I'm a big fan.


There is a "Mural mile" downtown that I snapped a few pictures of.

This little oasis and the rain made me feel soaked in spring.

I have a general rule, even at home, that I avoid chain restaurants at all costs. There is too much amazing food in the world to waste even a cent on predictable bland food with too much salt and no love at all. Forgive the iPhone photos please.

Lets get this out of the way: Sorry everyone, I didn't go to Pats or Geno's. Phew.

I did go to a fantastic mediterranean tapas-style place named Barbuzzo. I had two very nice chaps sit next to me and we had a fine time talking medical devices and grilled octopus.

We had awesome seats at the chef's table. These guys were cooking for their lives and the food was more like art.

Burrata with Grilled Radicchio. Burrata is a soft stringy cheese like mozzarella. This salad was dressed with balsamic, hazelnuts and slivers of citrus.

Grilled Mediterranean Octopus Salad. This plate deserves the "extra-large" picture status size because it was extra-large yummy status. This was my first time having grilled octopus and I found it very similar texture to lobster, and with no briny flavor. I could eat this salad every day.

My last evening in Philly was a time out for me. I love how conferences can reenergize a person in their work, but they can also be very taxing. I felt very mentally saturated and found RAW, a great hole in the wall sushi place that was the perfect place to unwind.

Dragon roll and Spider roll. Beautiful!

I hope I get to go back soon to explore south street and a fantastic gay bar called "Woody's."

Handbag Heaven

I'm a big believer in taking the time to make oneself a priority. Eating right, getting a massage or a pedi, taking a mental health day, and indulging once in a while is healthy!

I buy myself birthday and Christmas presents and I think everyone else should too.

This year, that birthday present will likely be a handbag. These are my best of Nordstrom for spring 2013. What's your indulgence?

music to jump start spring

...and get you through that spring cleaning.

I heart Spotify and the new releases I've been hearing lately are really pleasing me. These are long time favorites in the making, and I hope you great lovers of small things start to really love these small wonders.

I am already a big fan of Kate Nash. We Get On, Nicest Things, and Merry Happy are great tunes, and this tune is peppy but not empty like some catchy tunes out on the airwaves. I know you'll love this one through Summer.

I Love It is an all around fun tune. Perfect for getting in the mood to go out, kick ass at work, or do the dishes. You can expect this to be on the radio and on the lips of biddies in a couple weeks, but you have the satisfaction of knowing you rocked it first.

Macklemore isn't exactly best-kept secret status anymore, but this song is wonderful regardless. So easy to love, and he's a fantastic writer. Same Love is a beautiful song out-shined by its message.

I can't get this song out of my head. I first heard it on the movie "Drive" with Ryan Gosling. It's an awesome flick (not for those expecting Noah Calhoun) with some thoughtfully artistic cinematography and screenwriting. This song is the haunting and hypnotizing theme for the movie, and I've been in love for months.

I had a tough time picking just one song from this album to recommend. Right this second,  Running For Cover is on repeat, but please take the time to check out this whole album. Feel good song with a nice new voice to turn the page on winter. This album is for fans of Mumford and the Decemberists. 

Lastly, I found "Long Time Gone" by the Civil Wars just this week (because I'm constantly listening to them)! It is from the soundtrack for "A Place at the Table," a documentary about the hunger epidemic in America. This film has the  Huffington Post talking among others, so it should be worth checking out. This song is the kind of country song EVERYONE loves. Really, if nothing else tickles your fancy, I know this will.

Bon Appetit!