Birthday Girl

Today is my 29th birthday!  I can't wait to celebrate with lunch from one of my favorite food trucks, a yummy picnic dinner, and spending the day with the best friends a girl could ask for:)  Here's to making the last year of the 20's the best one yet!

xoxo,
stephanie marie

Early Access

cynthia steffe cap sleeve faux leather trim sheath dress

Who wants to wait until an actual sale starts when you can shop the sale early?  Not this girl.  I once again took advantage of the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale Early Access {and this year you could use your triple point day during the sale!} and I'm pretty sure everything I came home with had at least a hint of leather on it.  Apparently I'm right on trend.  This year I skipped the shoes and accessories and headed straight to the dress department.  I guess it's gonna be a fancy year!

 cynthia steffe faux leather trim fit and flare dress

 two by vince camuto metallic stripe tee

 nordstrom 'double trouble' knit and faux leather leggings

vince camuto asymmetrical tiered stripe tee

vince camuto sleeveless peplum dress

Don't forget - the sale goes through Sunday!

xoxo,

stephanie marie

Weekend {in pictures}

birthday cake

 shaun and mom

 flank steak birthday dinner

 27 scratch tickets for your 27th birthday on the 27th

 birthday kids {with my new jersey}

 shaun & sara at the campfire

cousins {with cece}

xoxo,
stephanie marie

Happy Birthday Brother!

Happy Birthday to the best little brother in the whole world!  It's a special one this year - 27 on the 27th - so we'll be celebrating big {which if Shaun has his way means barbecue, wine, cake, and in bed before 10}.  So proud to call this guy my brother and my friend, and I can't wait to spend Saturday celebrating him.  Love ya, Shaun!

Happy Birthday, little bro!  {oh, and nice hat}

xoxo,
stephanie marie

Hot Pockets {Jim Gaffigan}

Last weekend I had tickets to see Jim Gaffigan, one of my most favorite comedians ever, but no one to go with me {apparently people are quite busy in the summer}.  Minutes before putting the tickets up for sale on Craigslist, I decided to ask my college roommate Emily, who happens to live in Seattle now, if she wanted to go to the show with me, and to my surprise she said yes!  It's been years since I've hung out with Emily, who coincidentally now lives only about 3 blocks away from me.  I forget how much I love spending time with this girl, and her infectious laugh is even more awesome at a comedy show :)  So, in honor of getting to watch Jim {from the 5th row!} and getting to spend time with Em, I give you his most famous bit - Hot Pockets :)

xoxo,
stephanie marie

Peach Salad with Citrus Vinaigrette

Last weekend at the grocery store, I stumbled upon a beautiful display of peaches.  Knowing the weather was getting hot again and I would be craving some fresh and light salads, I stocked up on peaches and other fruits and veggies to make some flavorful salads for the week.  Oh man - this could be a new favorite.  The sweetness of the peaches mixed with the red onion and soft goat cheese was a perfect mix, and topped with a homemade citrus vinaigrette I whipped up in no time, this has been my new staple all week long.  You can substitute pretty much whatever you can pick up at the Farmer's Market, but I'd highly recommend making the vinaigrette to top your salads all summer long.  It just screams 'summer' :)

Salad Fixin's
Peaches
Arugula
Red onion
Goat Cheese
Avocado
Sliced Almonds

Citrus Vinaigrette
Juice of 1 orange
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tblsp olive oil
1 tblsp honey
2 tsp Dijon mustard
Salt and Pepper

Whisk until combined and top salad with several spoonfuls

 xoxo,
stephanie marie

Tropical Pineapple Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Frosting

For Erika's shower I was in charge of dessert, which I naturally decided would be cupcakes :)  I spent days scouring my cookbooks and favorite food blogs trying to find the perfect dessert that would go with our Hawaiian theme, but nothing seemed good enough until Mom sent me a text of a picture she took from one of her cupcake cookbooks of Tropical Pineapple Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Frosting.  Combining citrus and pineapple was perfect, and topping it off with a little sprinkle of coconut made it extra special.  What these cupcakes lacked in appearance {mine never really fluffed up}, they made up for in taste.  They were super refreshing and light, and the citrus frosting was one of the yummiest frostings I've ever tasted.  I would highly recommend making these for your next summer party - but be prepared for lots of people asking for the recipe :)

Tropical Pineapple Cupcakes with Citrus Cream Frosting

Ingredients
6 slices canned pineapple in natural juice
2 sticks plus 2 tblsp butter, softened
1 1/4 cup superfine sugar
3 large eggs
2 cups flour
3 tblsp juice from canned pineapple

Frosting
4 tblsp butter, softened
3/4 cup soft cream cheese
grated rind of 2 lemons
2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
shredded coconut {optional}

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350.  Line muffin pan with paper liners.
2. Finely chop pineapple.  Put butter and sugar in bowl and beat together until light and fluffy.  Gradually beat in egg.  Add flour and, using large spoon, fold into mixture.  Fold in chopped pineapple and pineapple juice.  Spoon batter into paper liners.
3. Bake cupcakes about 20 minutes until golden brown.  Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
4. For frosting - put butter and cream cheese in large bowl and using electric mixer, beat together until smooth.  Add rind of lemon.  Sift confectioners sugar into mixture, then blend until well mixed.  Gradually beat in juice from lemon, using enough to form spreading consistency.
5. When cupcakes are cold, spread on frosting.  Sprinkle with shredded coconut, if desired.  Keep in refrigerator until ready to serve. 

Makes about 24 cupcakes

xoxo,
stephanie marie

A Shower for Erika

I can't believe I haven't shared Erika's shower with you yet!  Us bridesmaids hosted the Hawaiian/Honeymoon themed party at Erika's house on a gorgeous day in June.  Everyone had a great time drinking, eating Hawaiian themed food, and celebrating Erika's upcoming wedding to her love.  The day was filled with laughs, a whole lot of love, and a smiling bride, and we couldn't have been happier with how everything turned out :)

 my contribution to the food table {recipe to come soon}

 yummy coconut shrimp

 awesome {and so easy} pork sliders

the spread

 the mimosa bar

 taking pics with the bride

instapics for erika

 everyone made a scrapbook page for erika & joe to read on their honeymoon

 countdown!

 opening gifts

 high school friends

 outtakes

erika and her hostesses

love ya!

xoxo,
stephanie marie

Cherry Coconut Scones

When I was home for the 4th, my brother had given me an insane amount of cherries to take back to Seattle with me.  While I tried to snack on them as much as possible and even brought a huge bag to work to share, I couldn't seem to make a dent in the stash.  One day last week while perusing some favorite cooking blogs, I came across Authentic Suburban Gourmet's Cherry & Coconut Scones.  When I realized I already had everything I needed to make these scones, I took it as a sign that I had to make them.  Even though it was my first attempt at making scones, I have to say they were much easier to put together than I had anticipated {the hardest part was pitting and chopping the cherries}.  A few tips: since I didn't have buttermilk, I made my own using Deb's recommendation, and be careful when toasting that coconut {I burnt my first batch and luckily had a bit leftover to try again}.  If you find yourself with some extra cherries this weekend {or any other favorite fruit}, I'd highly recommend whipping up a batch of these to enjoy in the mornings with a cup of coffee and a good book.  Perfection :)

Cherry Coconut Scones

Ingredients
3 cups flour
2 tblsp sugar
1 tblsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 stick butter, chilled and cut into cubes
1 large egg
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup shredded coconut, toasted
1 cup cherries, pitted and diced

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. In large bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt with a spoon.  Add chilled butter, and using your hands work the butter into the mixture, breaking it up as you go to the size of small peas.
3. Add egg to buttermilk and whisk until combined.  Add to dry mixture and stir with a spoon.  Add cherries and coconut and finish mixing with your hands {do not over mix} until no flour remains.
4.  Cover wooden cutting board with flour and place dough on surface.  Pat down dough until 1 inch thick.  Using a 2 inch round cookie cutter {or top of a drinking glass}, cut out scones, reworking dough to use all of it.
5.  Cover cookie sheet with parchment paper and add scones about 1 inch apart.  Brush top of each scone with leftover buttermilk and lightly dust with sugar.  
6.  Bake 16 to 18 minutes, until golden brown.  

Makes about 20

adapted from Authentic Suburban Gourmet

xoxo,
stephanie marie

Happy Birthday Maddie!

Happy big Three-Oh, Mads!!  Thanks for always being a fabulous travel companion, a great advice-giver, and my constant brunch buddy :)  You're friendship means the world to me.  Can't wait to celebrate you this weekend!

xoxo,
stephanie marie

The Old Edison Inn

While we were home for the 4th, my parents decided to introduce my brother, Sara, and me to Steak Night at The Old Edison Inn.  I haven't been to this place in years, but apparently it's become quite the hang out for my parents and their friends :)  We played a rousing game of shuffleboard while waiting for our food, and when the plates finally came out, I'm pretty sure my Asian Steak Salad was the best thing on the table {the others would probably disagree - everything was delish}.  After dinner, we played a little 2-on-2 pool game, and while my brother and I easily won {ok, so he plays in a pool league}, Sara and my dad put up a good fight.  Rematch, anyone?

xoxo,
stephanie marie

The Whale Wins

A few weeks ago, Stefanie and I had a date night {our favorite thing to do when her hubby goes out of town}. In typical date night fashion, we decided to try a brand new {to us} restaurant that we'd both been dying to try - The Whale Wins.  We'd heard rave reviews, so with the sun shining we took a seat on the patio and started drooling over everything on the menu.  We shared a yummy bottle of rosé, then proceeded to order one dish out of each category to share.  It's hard to pick a fave - everything was so amazing!  Each dish they brought out was better than the last and I kept wishing that it wouldn't end.  Unfortunately it did, but instead of heading home we decided to take advantage of the amazing weather and walk off our dinner on a stroll from Fremont to Ballard - with a few stops along the way :) {if the weather is nice, I'd highly recommend this - just bring comfy shoes!}.  I can't wait to go back to The Whale Wins again to try even more of their yummy food, but in the meantime I'll just keep drooling over the memories :)

the gorgeous white kitchen

 fresh bread and butter

 asparagus and smashed avocado with pickled mustard seeds on crackers

 roasted clams and roasted pork shoulder

 the awesome "hello" signs hanging from the ceiling

xoxo,
stephanie marie