Moshi Moshi

Earlier this week, Maddie and I went to Moshi Moshi, one of my favorite sushi restaurants.  They have delicious rolls and amazing cocktails - not to mention a gigantic lit up cherry blossom tree in the middle of the restaurant.  The food was delicious, the drinks tasty, and the company wonderful as always :)   With a stop off at Bastille for a drink before heading home, it was the perfect way to spend a weekday evening with a great friend.

 beef tataki

 geisha roll

 negihama roll

xoxo,
stephanie marie

pics via instagram

Sacrificing

For Lent, I gave up buying coffee.  Not necessarily drinking coffee (although this has led to an insane amount of tea drinking on my part) but going to Starbucks and actually purchasing coffee.  I left in the caveat that if someone wanted to buy me a coffee, I would gladly accept, but so far, that's been once, and it was on the first day, and I wasn't feeling nearly as deprived as I am right now.  Did I mention that about a month ago they built a Starbucks in my building?  It's like they did it just to mock me.  Talk about bad timing.  I like to think that I'm being healthier and saving a lot of money by just drinking tea every morning, but the reality is that I see Starbucks every where, and I am rapidly becoming the most envious girl in all of Seattle of everyone with their white and green cups.  Only 24 days left until I'm going to enjoy the most delicous Vanilla Soy Latte everyone has ever tasted.  Let's just be thankful that Lent doesn't fall during Pumpkin Spice Latte season :)

xoxo,
stephanie marie

pic via pinterest

Sweet & Spicy

What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon than infusing tequila with habanero peppers, right?  Well, that's what Erika and I thought this past weekend.  Ever since the waitress at Bathtub & Gin Co introduced me to spicy drinks several months ago, I've been hooked, and after we spotted this Do-It-Yourself version, I knew we had to try it.  We loosely followed this recipe and used 3 cut up habanero peppers with 1 bottle of tequila and let it infuse for about 3 hours.  We tested it every hour (this was not pretty - you can see the pictures here) and even though it probably could've used a little more time, we were way too anxious to wait any longer.  Paired with some yummy Light Chicken Enchiladas (so delicious, and great leftovers) it was a lovely way to spend a Sunday evening doing something new.  Now, we're kind of obsessed and can't wait to infuse something else.  Mixed Berry Vodka?  Lime Tequila?  Cucumber Vodka?  The possibilities are endless :)

 simple ingredients

 infusing tequila

 delicious and cheesy enchiladas

the final result - spicy grapefruit margaritas

xoxo,

stephanie marie

JCrew Lovin'

Lately, I've had an unreasonable obsession with everything JCrew.  From their cozy tees, colorful scarves, bright capri pants, and sparkly necklaces, I can't get enough of everything in the collection.  Every month when the JCrew catalog arrives, I dog-ear pages that have items I love, and it ends up being half the catalog (the other half is men's clothes). Here are a few items I've been drooling over and would love to make my own.

fun wedges to stroll around in during warmer weather

love the stripes on this one piece

 

 

 such a fun print for work

 I know it's almost spring, but I'm obsessed with this bright yellow pea coat

 these pink jeans would go perfectly in my closet next to my green ones

perfect dress for a dinner on the beach in Belize.... :)

xoxo,

stephanie marie

Baked Egg Boats

Saturday morning I invited Maddie over to plan our next vacation (more on that later) over brunch and mimosas.  While looking at one of my new favorite food blogs, spoon fork bacon, I stumbled upon Baked Egg Boats, something I had been dying to try since I first discovered this blog several months ago.  I made a few adjustments, but the end result was just as divine as the pictures look.  The boats were perfectly paired with a simple arugula salad topped with parmesan and a lemon vinaigrette and no brunch is complete without a mimosa (or three).  It was a great way to start a sunny Saturday in Seattle, where it's beginning to feel an awful lot like spring is just around the corner :)

Baked Egg Boats (stephanie marie version)

Ingredients

2 demi french baguettes

3 eggs

1/4 cup heavy cream

2 strips bacon, cooked and chopped into little pieces

1/3 cup white cheddar, shredded

1 green onion, thinly sliced

salt and pepper

Instructions

1.  Preheat oven to 350F.

2.  Cut a deep "V" through the tops of each baguette, leaving about a half inch on the bottom.  Partially unstuff the baguettes.

3.  Lightly beat together eggs and cream in mixing bowl.  Whisk in the remaining ingredients.  

4.  Divide and pour the mixture into each baguette, top with salt and pepper, and place on a baking sheet.

5.  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown, puffed, and set in the center.

6.  Allow to cool for 5 minutes.  Serve with a knife, as the bread will get very crunchy.  Serves 2.

slicing the bread

 white cheddar, bacon, and green onion

before...

...and after

xoxo,

stephanie marie

Instagram

Last week, after months of debating, I finally broke down and bought an iPhone.  So far, no regrets, but the way people praise this phone, I keep expecting it to shoot out $100 bills at me, clean my apartment, and pour me a glass of wine when I get home from work.  It has done none of these things - yet.  However, the coolest app I've found so far is Instagram.  You can share photos with other iPhone users and there are so many different filters to change the look of your pic, making the photos (and me) seem a lot more artsy than we really are.  

Enjoy, and Happy Friday :)

xoxo,

stephanie marie

Instagram photos clockwise from top left: Pike Place Market with mom; Saturday morning breakfast sandwich and Vogue; blueberry muffins; mac & cheese

Beecher's {World's Best} Mac & Cheese

Several years ago my mom sent me a recipe she ripped out of a magazine for Beecher's "World's Best" Mac & Cheese.  We share a love of this delicious comfort food, and no one does cheese better than this iconic Seattle cheese shop.  Since my mom was coming to visit this past weekend, I decided it was time to make this for her.  Though we got a late start after a long day of shopping, it was well worth the wait to have this gooey, cheesy dish for dinner.  Though you can buy it pre-made and frozen at the shop, it's so quick and easy to put together yourself - and nothing ever tastes as good as homemade.  It made the dinner even more special when we stopped by the shop the next day on our way to see Oklahoma at the 5th Avenue (so good!) and after sampling some more yummy cheeses, my mom walked away with some curds and crackers to take home.  Another wonderful mother/daughter weekend :)

Ingredients
Sauce
2 tblsp unsalted butter
3  ½ tblsp flour
1  ½ cups whole milk
7 oz Beecher's Flagship cheese, grated (about 1 ¾ cups)
1 oz Beecher's Just Jack cheese, grated (about ¼ cup)
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
1/8 tsp garlic powder

Pasta
6 oz penne pasta
1 oz Beecher's Flagship cheese, grated
1 oz Beecher's Just Jack cheese, grated
1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder 


Instructions
1. To prepare sauce, melt butter in a heavy saucepan over medium heat.  Add flour.  Cook, whisking constantly 2 minutes.
2.  Slowly add milk, whisking constantly.  Cook until sauce thickens, about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.  Remove from heat.
3.  Add cheese,salt, chili powder, and garlic powder.  Stir until cheese melts, about 3 minutes.
4.  Preheat oven to 350F.
5.  To prepare pasta, cook pasta 2 minutes less than package directions (it will finish cooking in the oven).  Rinse pasta in cold water and drain well.
6.  Combine pasta and sauce in a medium bowl; mix thoroughly.  (The mixture will seem soupy, but some of the liquid will be absorbed during baking).  Transfer to an 8-inch square baking dish.  Sprinkle top with cheese and chili powder.
7.  Bake, uncovered, for 20 minutes.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.  Serves 4.


Adapted from Pure Flavors: 125 Fresh All-American Recipes from the Pacific Northwest

 cheese sauce

 combining pasta and sauce

 topped with cheese and chili powder

 perfection

xoxo,
stephanie marie