The best kind of conversation heart

So these adorable pink salted brown butter rice krispy treats may not have actual words on them, but they will definitely start conversations. They are absolutely delicious and personally I prefer home made things to the store bought candy. You can make them as regular

What you need:
1 stick of unsalted butter
1 bag of marshmallows
Heaping 1/4 tsp salt
Red food coloring
6 cups rice krispies
Red sprinkles

What you do:
1) Melt stick of unsalted butter in a medium sized pot over medium low heat.
2) As it melts, it will get foamy, then clear/yellowy, then it will turn brown (be VERY careful not to let it burn).
3) As soon as it turns brown and smells a little nutty remove it from the heat and stir in the marshmallows.
4) As they are melting add red food coloring and keep stirring until marshmallows are completely melted.  You can return to low heat until they are melted.
5) When they are completely melted, add salt and stir.
6) Add 6 cups of rice krispies and stir in completely.
7) Spread wax paper over a table and pour rice krispy treats onto wax paper.
8) Let cool slightly and spread out evenly across the wax paper so that the rice krispies are about 1/2 inch -1 inch thick.
9) Sprinkle red sprinkles all over the rice krispy treats.
10) Let cool completely.
11) Use knife or heart cookie cutter to cut hearts out. Wrap them in parchment paper or wax paper. Store in an air tight container until you are ready to serve!

Decking the halls...red and pink!

I wrote a post yesterday about prepping and celebrating Valentines day.  In an effort to make this week special I began doing a little decorating/crafting and baking. I use the term baking loosely because I used the oven for 1 minute exactly. Anyway, so far I have done a Valentines day garland, fruit roll up fortune cookies, and peanut butter chocolate pretzels.

Valentines day garland:
What you need:
Construction paper and/or scrapbook paper
Scissors
Tape

What you do:
1) Fold paper in half and cut out a large heart.
2) Cut out a smaller heart inside the bigger one so that each paper is an outline of a heart.
3) Arrange an order.
4) Cut the bottom of every other heart.
5) Link them to the hearts on each side of them, and tape the bottom of the heart on the back and the front using clear tape.
6) Hang in a window, on a door, on a porch, etc.

Fruit roll up fortune cookies:
What you need:
Fruit roll ups (1 per fortune cookie you want to make)
Round cookie cutter or clean kitchen scissors
Parchment paper
Sharpie pen

What you do:
1) Cut a thin strip of parchment paper, and write your message.
2) Unwrap the fruit roll up and stretch it (GENTLY) slightly, but make sure that it doesn't break.
3) Fold fruit roll up in half and stretch gently again.
4) Cut a circle out of the fruit roll up.
5) Put the message in the center and fold the circle in half pressing the top together.
6) Press into the center of the half circle and pull the sides down so that it makes a fortune cookie shape.
7) Wrap in parchment paper and pass out at work or send in your significant others lunch.

Unwrap fruit roll up

Stretch fruit roll up

Fold in half, stretch, cut into circle

Place message in the middle and fold.

Press in the center of the circle and pinch in the sides.

Enjoy!

Peanut butter chocolate pretzel bites:
What you need:
Heart shaped peanut butter chocolates (you can also use the dark or milk chocolate hearts)
Mini pretzels
Valentines m&ms

What you do:
1) Preheat oven to 350.
2) Lay out pretzels onto cookie sheet.
3) Unwrap peanut butter chocolates and place on top of pretzels.
4) Put in oven for 1 minute. For real people.  1 minute.  No more. Mine were in for less than 5 seconds more and they were slightly melty.
5) Take them out and put a pink, red, white, or dark pink m&m on them.
6) Put them in the fridge to harden them a little bit.
7) Use a spatula to put them into a Tupperware. Store them in the fridge or serve them.

5 days of Valentines

Many people complain about Valentines day for several reasons. I agree with many of those reasons, but I think of it in a different way. Valentines day is a reminder to appreciate the people that you love in your life. I don't think about Valentines day as just for couples, I think about it as a day for love whether it be romantic, platonic, roommate or familial. This post is to give you some inspiration to spread the love this week and make the people in your life feel appreciated and special, and while some of you may think that you do that all year 'round, it can be nice to express it in some more creative ways.

I'm gonna cover treats, crafts, cards, and inexpensive (or free) gifts that would make anyone feel great!

Treats:
Having something homemade and absolutely delicious would brighten anyone's day. I'm ranking these in order of difficulty starting with the easiest and moving to the hardest.

Chocolate pretzel hearts (optional: peanut butter chocolate): These are incredibly easy and seem as if they take about 5-10 total minutes with a big turn out. They would be perfect to bring into the office as a little surprise. Since there are so many different heart shaped candies out there, you aren't limited to just the plain chocolate hearts, you could go crazy and use the peanut butter chocolate hearts (although make sure you tell everyone you are giving them to that it contains peanuts). The butterfinger hearts would work well also. You can find the instructions here.

Fruit roll up fortune cookies: This recipe does call for parchment paper, so make sure you have access to it before you commit to this one.  These are great for passing out to a few special people around the office that have helped you, a small group of friends, or each day leading up to Valentines day in your significant others lunch. The messages are all up to you so they can be as friendly or as sexy as you want. You can get the instructions here although you don't necessarily need a round cookie cutter you can just use a cup (with a round top) and a knife.

Pink heart rice krispy treats: These are adorable and perfect to bring into the office or to a friends house. There are instructions here. If you want a little bit of a different flavor you could make brown butter rice krispy treats. Despite what the instructions say, you do not need a heart shaped cookie cutter.  You can spread the finished rice krispy treats out across a baking sheet and use a sharp buttered knife to cut hearts.

Heart shaped chocolate covered strawberries: The fun thing about these is that they can be as easy or as complicated as you want. The recipe I found is a little on the excessive side. It calls for filling the strawberries with marshmallow cream before dipping them in chocolate as well as decorating with eatable glitter which can be really hard to find. I think I will be doing them with just chocolate. These are great to bring to a small Valentines party or for a romantic surprise after dinner.

Heart shaped jelly cookies: These are time consuming, but they have a great pay off. I believe they are called linzer cookies, and for some reason I always have really fond memories of these cookies from my childhood. Here, here, and here are a few different recipes.  You can also improvise and use your own favorite roll out cookie dough or sugar cookie dough just keep in mind that they make half as many as you cut out because you use two cookies to make the sandwich. I also prefer to use strawberry jam instead of raspberry.

Crafts:
You always know you are cared about when someone actually spends time making something for you.

Valentines day garland: With only a few supplies (construction paper, scissors, stapler/glue) you can make a countdown to valentines day or just something to brighten an apartment or an office/cubicle/desk. If you wanted to make it a little more personal, you could write special love (home) or inspirational (work) messages on each one. You can find instructions for the different garlands here, here, and here.

Valentines themed sun catchers: When I say Valentines themed, they don't have to be, any of these would bring warmth to any place (with sun). There are a few different ways to do this project depending on what supplies you have access to.  The first method requires crayons and parchment paper which you may not have access to while the second method needs contact paper (which you can buy at Target and most dollar stores, but may not be easily accessible).

Valentines candle holder: Candles don't have to be romantic, although they certainly can be. You can make cute candle holders out of any old jar you have lying around (make sure it is GLASS not plastic). If you are surprising your sweetheart with a romantic night, candles in homemade candle holders would be an especially nice touch. If you are just showing someone how much you care you can give it to them with the intention of them having a relaxing evening maybe with a calming spa night. They can also double as pencil holders for your desk! There are a bunch of different techniques for doing these with any different variation of supplies. Here are a few ideas: glitter, mod podge/tissue paper, sheet music, mod podge and acrylic paint, and regular old string.

Craft stick notes/photos: This is a cute way of presenting a photo or message. All you need is craft sticks (big or small). There are two ways of doing this. Personally, I like the photo puzzle better because it is a bit more elaborate, but the messages one (I apologize, the craft is actually a few posts down on this page, but there is no way to make it just that post) is very nice as well.

Cards:
Perhaps the easiest way to make someone feel special. I made this post last year with 6 homemade card ideas.  Here are a few more:

Heart shaped envelope: Perfect for writing a quick note inside so they have to unfold it completely to see it. Use heart stickers to seal it!

Heart handprint card: Great for if you are in a rush on/the night before Valentines day.  You could even fill up the different fingers with reasons why you like/love that person.

Paint and pencil heart: I realize that the instructions are for a heart tote-bag, however, you could apply the same strategy to cardstock or really any thicker kind of paper to make a beautiful card. You could even buy a small canvas and make a card they will keep forever!

Brown paper bag valentines: You wouldn't have to use the phrase "I love you with all of my heart" either, but it is definitely adorable that way. 

Gifts:
Just because you don't have the money to buy something or time to make something, doesn't mean you can't still show a person that you love them while spending little to no money.

Love is the best medicine: Go to your local dollar store and grab a daily medicine container, grab some of their favorite candy (make sure it fits). Write different sayings or different things that you will do for them (for a roommate: will do the dishes that night or for significant other: 30 minute back rub) so that they have something to look forward to each day.

Sharpie mugs: Head back to that dollar store and grab a ceramic mug. Write on the mug with sharpie pen and bake at 425 for 35 minutes and you have a handmade mug! Perfect for any coffee/tea lover.

Scavenger hunt: This could be a fun group outing idea, but it would be especially nice for a date night or to make someones day special throughout. If you know that your significant other has a favorite restaurant around their work maybe get them a gift card that they can use there and put it in the envelope.

Printable love coupons: You can also totally make your own really easily, and I would suggest doing that if you are giving them to friends because most of them seem to be centered around romantic love. In any case, it is a great gift to your significant other because you can not only do the usual thing, but you can add things you know that a break from it would feel good (i.e. taking out the trash, or doing the dishes). You can also give this to friends (day of fun activities-make sure you include a list), family (next time you are home you will make dinner one night or that you will plan a family fun night), roommates (that you will do the dishes or they have a free pass when it's their turn to clean the bathroom).

Surprise notes: I'm not including a link because this is just something that my mom used to do when I would go to sleep away camp or spend time away from home.  She would write little cute notes and hide them in all of my stuff so that as I was unpacking and going through my stuff I would find little notes saying that they loved me and that they missed me. I adopted this when I moved in with Chris.  He would be going to L.A. for work and I would write out little notes telling him to have a great time or that me and Wedge missed him. I would stick them in his pockets or inside his kindle cover. It can really brighten someones day to know that you are thinking about them.  Even if it is just sticking a note on a co workers computer thanking them for helping you with a project or slipping a note into your roommates lunch box saying that you think they are awesome or telling your significant other that you love them it can really make someone feel good!

A bouquet of paper flowers: This also belongs in crafts, but I like it here too. Flowers are always nice, and these are simple and elegant. 

Anyway, I hope this post inspires you to do something nice for the people you love!

The Daily Wedge

As many of you know, Chris and I have an adorable, loving and asthmatic savannah cat named Wedge.  He has been featured in many of the pictures that I have posted as he "helps" me with many of my projects.

We adopted the little man from a shelter in Chinatown called Animal Haven. We knew he was our kitty when he came out of his cage, came right over to us and started licking us. We didn't know he was asthmatic until after we adopted him, but of course we love him just as much as we did before we knew (and he is definitely worth the extra expenses in inhalers). He's a savannah, so that is an African wild cat mixed with a domestic cat, then that cat is bred with another domestic cat and so on.*  It makes for a very beautiful and interesting looking kitty (long legs, long body, and an interesting combo of spots and stripes). They also have fantastic personalities.  They are very loving (they follow you everywhere and lick everything and want lots of cuddles and attention and are very playful) and very dog like (they will even play fetch with you).

Anyway, The Wedge (as we have taken to calling him) deserves some social media love Lil Bub/Grumpy cat style, so we created a tumblr for him.  TheWedgeIs is the Tumblr name. We post a picture a day, so keep checking back, and if you have a Tumblr make sure to follow us.  Also keep an eye out for Wedge's instagram. 

Play with his felt bone.

All of the smiles.

Discovering the T-rex.

Joining the T-rex.

Bath time!

Handsome little guy.

Blinky.

Yogi cat.

It's a butt in the face kind of morning.

Cluddles!

Easter finest.

The tongue.

Lettin' it all hang out.

Covered in his inhalers.

Playing with finger puppets.

Handsome boy with his blanket.

And again.

*I will say that I am not personally a fan of breeders, I know that it can create health problems and is not the most natural thing in the world.  We did not support a breeder in getting Wedge, we actually had no idea what we were getting when we got him.

It's in the bag

I love giving away the treats that I make. I usually just put them in Tupperware and send them off with Chris, but this time I wanted to do something a little different. These bags are great for cookies, brownies, little handfuls of candy, etc. I have seen them a few different ways, but this was my own version. You can find another one here (the link was broken, so I just sent you to the pin). Another cute option for packing baked goods are these painted tins which I have not tried, but will let you know when I do.  And if you are looking for an even simpler idea, this baked goods tray is a great way to transport them short term.

What you will need:
Brown paper bags
Bakers twine (or other string/ribbon)
Glue
Heavy book or books
Hole puncher
Scissors
Wax paper/parchment paper/cling wrap

What you do:
1) You'll notice that the bottom of the bag makes an extra flap when it is still folded that is designed to make the bottom bigger for lunches. For the bags that I did, I glued this part to the rest of the bag so that the bottom of the bag would not open out. Put under books to help the drying process.
2) Cut several (3-4) inches off of the top of the bag.
3) Stuff bag with cookie (or whatever you are stuffing it with). Make sure you wrap the cookie in parchment paper, wax paper or cling wrap so that the grease doesn't make marks on the bag.
4) Fold the top of the bag over 3/4 of an inch at a time about 3 times.
5) Hole punch 4 holes equidistant in the folded over portion.
6) Cut about 15 inches of bakers twine (or other string/ribbon).
7) Hold the bag facing you (glued flap in back). Thread the twine through the first hole on the left from back to front. Pull most of the way through.
8) Thread from left to right across the front. You will end up with both ends of the string in back.
9) Turn it around so that the glued flap is facing you, take each end of thread and put them through the holes closest to the center on each side respectively. Flip it back over so the front is facing you.
10) Tie a bow!
11) I used stamps to write Enjoy on each bag.

Glue the flap to the bag

Fold over and hole punch.

Thread the twine from the back to the front.

Thread from left to right.

Flip over, and it should look like this.

Thread string through the holes closest to the center from each side respectively so that the back looks like this.

Flip back over to the front and tie a bow!

Pop like nobody is watching!

Popcorn is a fantastic treat, and there are so many different ways to make it.  Personally I am not a fan of the microwave popcorn.  If I'm gonna have it it's gonna be "real" popcorn. Because I live in an apartment there isn't much space to have a popcorn maker, so I have to improvise. Let's start with the basics.

Basic popcorn without a popcorn maker:
What you will need:
Popcorn kernels
Olive oil
Butter (optional)
Salt (optional)
Medium/large pot

What you do:
1) Coat the bottom of the pot with olive oil and pour kernels over it until they coat the bottom (only 1 layer, you don't want the bottom kernels to burn once they pop of the pot is over crowded).
2) Cover the pot with the lid and heat on medium high heat until the kernels start to pop.
3) Shake the pot occasionally so that the popcorn doesn't burn and the kernels get evenly coated with the olive oil.
4) When pot fills with popped popcorn (or there are several seconds between pops), pour into bowl, top with butter and salt (optional) and serve hot!

Variations:
Oil (just replace olive oil with either of these):
Coconut (tastes sweet)
Bacon fat (recycle bacon fat by using about 1/5-2 tbsp)

Toppings:
Sugar (if you add 2 tbsp of sugar right when the first kernel pops you will have kettle corn...it is absolutely delicious)
Cheese (grate VERY finely if you sprinkle it over the hot popcorn and mix in completely)
Garlic salt (especially the one from trader joes)
Herbs (rosemary and salt make a good combo)
A little melted chocolate (messy, but delicious)

Here are a few more complex recipes:
Maple bacon popcorn:

What you need:
1/2 lb bacon
2 tbsp bacon fat
1/2 cup unpopped popcorn kernels
3 tbsp brown sugar
2/3 cup maple syrup (good syrup)
3 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda

What you do:
1) Cook bacon crispy, set aside and save 2 tbsp bacon grease.
2) Put the 2 tbsp bacon grease into a pot with 1/2 cup unpopped kernels and heat on medium high heat until they are fully popped. 
3) When popcorn is fully popped, put into bowl and set aside.
4) Crumble bacon and set aside.
5) Pre-heat oven to 250 degrees.
6) In a separate pot, combine 3 tbsp brown sugar, 2/3 cup maple syrup, and 3 tbsp butter and cook over medium heat stirring infrequently until it comes to a boil.
7) Let boil undisturbed for about 7 minutes or until mixture has thickened.
8) Once thickened, remove from heat and add 1/2 tsp vanilla extract and 1/2 tsp baking soda and stir completely.
9) Add bacon bits to the maple sugar mixture, stir and immediately pour over popcorn.
10) Use spatula to mix the popcorn.
11) Pour popcorn onto baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and put in pre-heated oven. 
12) Bake for 30 minutes stirring every 10 minutes.
13) Let cool and break into smaller pieces.
14) Store in airtight containers.

Caramel popcorn:
There is always the recipe that we used for the Christmas jars. There is also this one that I tried last night:

What you need:
1 1/2 tbsp bacon grease (or olive oil or coconut oil)
1/2 cup unpopped popcorn kernels
1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup corn syrup (light)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla extract

What you do:
1) Melt 1 1/2 tbsp bacon grease or oil in a pot over medium high heat
2) Add popcorn kernels and pop shaking pot occasionally until all kernels are popped (there should be a few seconds between pops when it is done).
3) Pour into a bowl and set aside.
4) Pre-heat oven to 250.
5) In a separate pot melt 1 cup butter.
6) When butter is melted, add 2 cups brown sugar, 1/2 cup light corn syrup, and 1 tsp salt. Mix completely.
7) Let boil, and boil untouched for 4-5 minutes or until mixture has thickened (use a spoon to see how thick the mixture is).
8) When it has thickened remove from heat and stir in 1/2 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp vanilla. Stir completely (mixture will change color).
9) Pour over popcorn, mix completely and pour onto baking sheet covered with aluminum foil.
10) Bake in oven for 30 minutes stirring every 10.
11) Let cool and break into smaller pieces,
12) Store in airtight container (if there is any leftover!)

Butta la pasta!

Oh man, I hope that means what I think it means (I think it means "throw in the pasta!"). I cheated a little and googled Italian sayings about pasta.

I've been focusing a lot on dinner dishes lately (which, while some of you may enjoy that, others want more variety), but I will definitely be switching it up in the next few weeks.  Expect some music posts, some DIY posts, some serious crafting posts, some Valentines related posts, and last but not least, some baking posts.

Anyway, to get back to my first point, I picked an Italian pasta phrase because this post includes two, yup, you heard me, TWO AMAZING pasta dishes that I HIGHLY recommend.  Pasta dishes are great for a number of reasons: 1) they are cheap, but delicious, 2) they can me made in large or small quantities very easily, 3) they can be made healthier (note I did not say completely healthy) with a few substitutions (olive oil instead of butter, whole wheat pasta instead of regular, lots of veggies, etc.), 4) they are fantastic for left overs because they keep for longer periods of time if stored properly, and 5) they are QUICK (most of the time).

I found both of these recipes on Pinterest while trying to get us some variety in our menu. The first of which is a spaghetti in garlic gravy with fresh herbs and the second is called an Italian wonderpot (sounds exotic, right?!). Both are highly recommended, make great leftovers or group meals. I changed both recipes the first one more than the second.

Spaghetti with garlic gravy and fresh herbs:
What you will need:
About 1/2 box of spaghetti
1/2 stick unsalted butter
2 tbsp olive oil (plus 1 more tbsp to
4 cloves garlic (minced)
2 tbsp flour
2 1/2 cup chicken stock
1 tbsp fresh basil (chopped)
About 1 tsp salt
About 1/2 tsp pepper
2 cups cherry tomatoes (or more...the more the merrier!)

What you do:
1) Boil water in large pot with oil and salt.
2) When water boils, break spaghetti in half and add to the pot cook per the instructions on the box (usually about 12 mins) stirring occasionally. 
3) While the pasta is boiling/cooking, combine 1/2 stick unsalted butter and 2 tbsp in a medium/large saucepan on medium heat.
4) Add 4 cloves minced garlic until it is soft (and smells REALLY good).
5) Add 2 tbsp flour and stir.  Let cook for about 1 minute.
6) Add 2 1/2 cups chicken stock and stir.  Cook until gravy has thickened stirring occasionally.
7) Add 1 tbsp fresh chopped basil.
8) Remove from heat and mix into finished spaghetti.
9) Add cherry tomatoes and serve!

The second recipe for the Italian Wonderpot is also delicious and probably a little healthier for you. than the garlic gravy.

What you will need:
4 cups vegetable broth
2 tbsp olive oil
12 oz. (1 box) fettuccine
1 box halved cherry tomatoes (the recipe calls for 1 can diced tomatoes, but I like fresh cherry tomatoes better)
1 onion
4 cloves garlic (thinly sliced not diced)
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

What you do (and this is the best part because there is only 1 prep dish to wash!):
1) In a large pot add all ingredients including spices.
2) Make sure all ingredients are covered by broth.
3) Cover pot with lid and turn on high heat.
4) Let the broth boil, when it does, remove the lid, turn heat down to medium, and let boil on medium heat uncovered for 10-15 mins. Stir occasionally.
5) When the pasta is cooked remove from heat and serve!