For the 80′s party on Saturday, for which I will be dressing up as Punky Brewster, I will be attempting to make a large Pac-Man cake and dot cupcakes. Nothing too fancy but a lot for someone who RARELY bakes. Yellow cake, three layers, covered with yellow icing and the famous wedge cut out for his mouth. Should be as cute as it is delicious!

Read more about Pac-Man here.

One of the most exciting parts of Christmas is the Jewish tradition of Chinese food and movies. I’ve heard there are even Chinese food restaurants in Chinatown that take reservations for Jewish-Christmas dinner and have been totally booked for weeks. My plan is to order early, on seamless web of course, and just veg out at home. If I’m feeling really daring I’ll even go see a movie at the theater!….I’M A REBEL!!

Here’s some more information on the Jewish/Asian connection.

Could this look any more delicious? I’m not usually a waffle, french toast or pancake kind of girl but these look like the perfect snow day treat. Looks like I may be asking for a waffle iron for Hanukkah!!

(thanks for the new website Joanna!)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
3 eggs, beaten
4 tablespoons butter, melted
2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

Preheat waffle iron according to manufacturer’s directions.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, sugars and spices. In another bowl beat together the eggs and melted butter, then add the buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until combined. Allow to rest for 5 minutes.

Ladle the recommended amount of waffle batter onto the iron according to the manufacturer’s recommendations. Close iron top and cook until the waffle is golden on both sides and is easily removed from iron.

Clearly I spoke too soon when I said that fall was officially here because now we’ve had nearly a week of temperatures ranging from the high 60′s to low 80′s! So in an attempt to coax fall into returning, I’m looking for warm and cozy treats so at least it smells like fall in my apartment. The salty, sweet, and spicy kick of these chewy ginger cookies will hopefully do the trick.

Saturday I headed to the Hudson valley to Bear Mt. for some hiking and Storm King Arts Center for some amazing sculpture sightings. But the best part of the day was eating at Baba Louie’s woodfired pizza in Hudson, NY. There’s a Baba Louie’s near my family’s house in the Berkshires and my craving was so strong I decided to make the trip to the other location and it was a totally worth the hour and a half drive north! If you’re ever in Hudson NY, Gt. Barrington or Pittsfield MA I highly recommend trying out the amazing varieties of sourdough crust artisinal pizzas.

via mrs. lillien

If Mrs. Lillien wasn’t cool enough already, now she’s adding facial scrub and pasta recipes to her repertoire. I love this blog for the incredible design elements and how they are perfectly matched with such an amazing sense of style. And throw in tips on travel destinations, cocktails and summer activities it’s basically a one stop shop for all things fabulous!

PS: This simple pasta recipe looks easy enough for me to make, and definitely delicious enough for me to eat:

2 boxes quinoa pasta cooked til al dente, then drained

the juice and zest of 2 fresh lemons

1/3 cup good olive oil

1/2 cup fresh basil chopped

1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley chopped

6 oz fresh mozzarella pieces

coarse salt and pepper to taste

add all ingredients to a large pasta bowl, toss + enjoy!

Most people have this secret compartment in their stomachs where they can always find the room to scarf down a little dessert — I seem to have that same compartment but mine is specifically for guacamole! (But I probably have the dessert one as well). And because I have finally figured out that I can make my own guac when the hankering strikes me (using a take on this recipe), I’m dying to buy this molcajete that all my favorite restaurants serve their’s in.

via style swoon

In case drinking lots of beers to cool off on hot summer days and eating burgers and hotdogs off the grill wasn’t enough to pop a button on your jorts, this cookie will surely push you over the edge. While I’m not a huge fan of oreos, they tend to be dry and I definitely don’t dunk them in milk, I think I could manage to put a few of these down. Yum!

via because im addicted

I made guacamole for 4th of July and the batch got nothing but rave reviews. While there are a million and one different recipes online, I doctored up the recipe below to made it my own. The secret? Jarred jalapenos, between the chunks and the juice it adds the perfect kick.

3 ripe avocados, diced (I prefer Haas avocados)

1/3 cup white onion, chopped

1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

1 jalapeno, seeded and minced (if you prefer it spicier add 1.5-2 jalapenos)

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice (or more if you like it limey which I do)

Salt to taste (be generous as salt really brings out the flavor of the avocados)

1. Halve and pit the avocados. Scoop out the flesh with a tablespoon into a mixing bowl. Dice and mash the avocados with a fork.

2. Add the remaining ingredients, fold everything together and mix gently.

3. Lay a piece of plastic wrap right on the surface of the guacamole so it doesn’t brown and refrigerate for about an hour before serving.

I think these Mason jar meals are such a good, adorable and delicious looking idea. The creator, from the decorated cookie, sought to create a meal that could travel and stay fresh after sitting for a long period of time. I can totally see making some of these for a trip to the beach this Memorial Day weekend or a picnic in the park this summer!

Here’s are some pointers for how you can to make your own:

Put dressings and heavy items on the bottom, foods to stay crisp and fresh at the top. For the salad, I mixed the dressing with the chick peas at the bottom to keep them away from the lettuce. Barriers help, like my layer of cucumber slices. For the pasta, I figured the tomatoes would add moisture (for mixing) and acidity (to prevent browning) to the pesto, so I put them together. And I left space at the top of each for shaking and mixing.