baby french sandwiches (part 2)

I did it!  I was extremely determined to make the macarons, and also a little lot obsessed, so there was no time to waste!  With help from my sorority sister Rachel, who coached me through it, they were a great success!  Actually they were not too difficult, just very labor and time intensive.  But so worth it!  However, I can feel my teeth decaying as I type this.  Those delectable little sammies are 80% sugar, 10% almond flour, and 10% egg.  No wonder I like them so much - I have a mouth full of sweet teeth.  I've tried to eat really healthy for the last year or so with just meats, fruits, and veggies as much as possible (trying to keep the processed food to a minimum) but sometimes its no fun - I just need macarons galore!  I also have been sick since Saturday and fell off Leo on Sunday when he spooked at a dog (I'm okay) so I think I deserve some beautiful treats.  I feel like the evil doctor - now that I have the power and knowledge to make the macarons, I will conquer the world (aka make them every weekend)!!!!

Vanilla macaron/chocolate ganache

Vanilla macaron/vanilla buttercream

Chocolate macaron/vanilla buttercream

As an added bonus, I put the leftover ganache in the refrigerator and it turned into a mousse!  Hot damn!

The main things I need to work on next time is getting the beautiful, ruffly "feet" on the cookie part of the macaron, and also making more perfect circles.  The vanilla cookies got little feet, which you can see in the first and fifth photos, but the chocolate ones did not, for some reason, even though we made them the exact same way.

Finally, if you'd like to check out macarons I want to attempt in the weekends to come, check out my Macarons to Try board on Pinterest!

**Its hard talking in active voice all the time - as a side note.  I know things aren't perfect in here, but they sort of sound awkward not in the passive voice?  Grammar nazi is a lil stumped....**

baby french sandwiches (part 1)

I decided my {amateur} cooking career has reached a point where I am ready to try to make macarons (again, not to be confused with macaroons - see image below).  Macarons can be somewhat temperamental to make because of the meringue, folding in the almond flour just so, and getting the perfect little feet on the cookie part of the sandwich.  However, I am planning a great dinner for my and Kyle's anniversary (never mind that its in June...) and I need ample time to practice and find the most awesome recipes.  Plus these delectable little French sandwiches are two dollars each and I can't afford to go eat ten at a time.   So now I have to learn to make them.  Stay tuned for results...

thanks Google!

As a side note for personal development as your resident grammar nazi, I am trying to learn to type and speak in the active voice.  People at work officially pushed me over the edge saying "I saw you had signed up for ___________," instead of, "I saw you signed up for ____________."  It doesn't seem that hard to eliminate unnecessary words to make more powerful sentences, but as any habit, it is going to require some effort to break.  Feel free to call me out if I lapse, forget, and fall into the passive voice.

Because I am incapable of posting a blog post without a picture (or twelve) of the black and tan child, here she is with her new rope toy.

I'm sorry the pictures are not entirely in focus.  It is hard to focus on a mostly black dog (who never stops moving) in a poorly lit old house at night.

PS goooo me! I posted two times this week!

i hate snow

I really hated this week.  Why?  Because it snowed again.  Snow in North Carolina is the most annoying phenomena because everything shuts down, everyone freaks out, and it is just ridiculous.  I suspected Wednesday would be bad because we had a forecast for an ice storm, but it was not the ice that made this week miserable - it was the traffic.  It started to snow Wednesday around noon and ALL of Research Triangle Park decided it was time to go home before the roads got bad.  Enter flashbacks of 2005 or 2006 when the entire city was gridlocked for hours and hours.  Traffic was horrible.  It took me an hour and a half to go two miles.  The terrible road conditions and stop-and-go traffic caused me to cross three lanes of traffic at one point in my little Taco, that already slides in just rain.  I have never been so afraid in my whole life!  Obviously when I almost wrecked I thought I was going to wreck and maybe be hurt, but extremely luckily, the people on the other side of the road were able to get out of my way.  But other than that I was afraid of wrecking again, afraid I'd run out of gas before getting home, afraid my car would get stuck, afraid it would take me hours to get home.... enter panic attack.  I really tried being calm, but it is hard when you are boxed in on all sides with traffic that is not moving.  I also freaked out because on Google Maps it shows what traffic conditions are like, and I remember from the day it took me an hour and a half to get to work (that day was also fun - gotta love RTP traffic) that when it is blood-red it basically means traffic is not moving at all.  All of Raleigh was blood-red, and I had another 9 miles or so to go when my mom and I decided it would be best for me to stay in a hotel for the night.  I was such a ball of nerves, and it was questionable as to whether or not I would get home in even 5 more hours (it took STG 2.5 hours to go from the vet school to Cameron Village!), that it was the best option at the time.  I was so anxious, that it took me hours to calm down after being in the car with all the traffic and snow.  Kyle got home in about 2 hours, which was one source of anxiety, so once he got home I relaxed a little more, but worrying about getting my car out and getting home the next day continued to worry me for a while longer.  Anyway, the moral of the story is that now that I don't get snow days for school, I'd be perfectly happy if I never saw snow again.  It just messes up everything!!  

Here are some pictures from the only one in the family who does love snow, no matter what (she's chasing snowballs in all the pictures except the first).

this one cracks me up every time ^

NYC Feed Me!!

Hey y'allllllll!  Mother and I jetsetted up to NYC over the weekend and basically all we did was eat.  AKA we did my favorite activity all weekend!

Friday afternoon we wandered around the Upper East side - the big news of the day is I tried on my dream wedding band at Van Cleef & Arpels and it was absolutely perfect and stunning and I love it!  This was basically our only non-eating activity of the whole weekend....

The Estelle wedding band, named for Estelle Arpels.

After finding the perfect wedding band, we worked up quite an appetite, so we made a very necessary (and also French!) stop at LaDuree!

French Macarons (NOT macaroons) how I've missed you so!!

For dinner Friday, we had reservations at the beautiful Daniel, but beforehand, we met my sister, Allie, from DDD for drinks in their bar.  I had the BEST cocktail of my life.  Unfortunately I did not get a picture, but here is the description from their website:  "FROM THE FIELD - Lavender and Honeycomb Infused Plymouth Gin, Lemon Juice."  It was absolutely to die for! 

Hello!!

DUCK TERRINE WITH MARCONA ALMONDS
Sauternes Gelée, Vanilla Poached Mango, Peppercress Salad

Amuse-bouche: I can't remember exactly what they are, but all had chickpeas in them

Carrot amuse-bouche

TASTING OF MILK FED VEAL
Roasted Tenderloin with Sunchoke and Parsnip
Braised Cheeks with Creamy Polenta, Caramelized Onion
Crispy Sweetbreads, Green Peppercorn Sauce

MOLASSES POACHED PEAR
Lime-Pain de Gênes, Cranberry Confit
Pear-Gewurztraminer Sorbet

Miniature Madelines! 

Truffles!  Can't remember the flavors of all, but one is Earl Grey, and it was the best

Thanks Allie for taking our picture!!

I missed these two cuties this weekend, but Kyle was nice enough to send me this selfie!

On Saturday we spent the morning at the NY Now show, but saw everything that was open by noon.  We decided to go buy lil Kylie a birthday present at a favorite brand/store of his.  After we bought his present, we needed a little snack, and we fell into this cute little bar/restaurant called Back Forty West in Soho.  The sign below is what won me over on this particular restaurant.  Pork belly, Brussels, and dranks? YES PLEASE.  I don't know if I mentioned this, but Brussels sprouts are my new favorite vegetable.  So versatile, so delicious.

Pork Belly sandwich and crispy Brussels sprouts with cherry butter (swooooon)

For dinner on Saturday, we went to an Italian restaurant in TriBeCa, Scalini Fideli, which was just perfect.  The ambiance was amazing, with very attentive staff, roses on the tables, and giant candelabras in the massive windows.  Plus, they had a great bathroom (bonus points I know).

Ravioli with a killer black truffle foam

Butternut agnolotti with sage brown butter sauce topped with amaretti and buffalo mozzarella

Pineapple and coconut milk sorbet & palate cleanser

Flourless chocolate soufflé with cappuccino gelato and caramelized orange peel 

Sunday was baby Kerg's 25th birthday, and since I was unable to see him, I made sure to FaceTime so he could open his birthday present.  He really wanted DJ headphones, this edition in yellow in particular, so I got those for him, and naturally had to take a picture of him trying on the headphones!

After a long day at NY NOW, and watching all the Super Bowl traffic roll by (SO many cops!) we needed a good, hearty meal.  Keen's Steakhouse was just what we needed after a long day of walking around!

Raw oysters with mignonette sauce.  Be still my heart. 

Basically Wilma Flintstone right there 

Lobsta and steak NOM

ONLY THE BEST NY CHEESECAKE OF MY LIFE (and delicious mulled wine)

Now I'm starving again.... off to eat some more.....

Water

Sienna HATES water. She hates the rain.  She once went over 12 hours without going to the bathroom because she was too much of a diva to get her feet wet.  She also hates baths, which she has to get once every week or two, and throughout the process gives me a look of utter betrayal, no matter how many times she gets bathed. She even hates the lake!! She just recently started wading in the lake, but will still scream at Birdie that the water is not safe when Bird goes 20 feet out to fetch a stick.  Despite all these instances of contempt for water, Sienna absolutely LOVES frozen water, aka snow.  She had so much fun romping around in the snow these past few days, it's been just hilarious to watch.  I've got a little black and tan snow bunny on my hands. 

In keeping with my resolution to express my thoughts more, I will tell y'all about my current professional goal.  So you know how I told y'all I got a new position on me team at work? It is outbound calling to existing customers to try to get them to upgrade to our higher dollar accounts.  I thought it was just a matter of calling up customers and sort of doing our regular pitch. I've had some success with it, but I set my bar very high and want to just murder my goal.  I realized this week that I need to work on my sales skills. Everything I did until this point didn't really require me to ask lots of questions, gauge customer's goals, or spin things so we are trying to help their business instead of just trying to upsell.  Everyone who thinks of a salesperson thinks of the slimy car salesman who is just out to rob you of every extra penny you have, but there is so much more to sales than I, or probably most of you, realized.  It is interesting because sales is so similar to horseback riding.  When done well, the executor doesn't look like they or doing anything, or working that hard, when in reality it took hours of practice and hard work to achieve such an illusion of effortlessness.  I realized this week I have a long way to go, and a lot of work to get to that point, but I find sales fun and challenging, so I'm not intimidated.  

That's all for now.. Mother and I are currently en route to NYC for the NYNOW gift show for the potential business, but probs by the time I post this, it will be late tonight.  I'm so excited to visit the Big Apple for the first time in six years... Stay tuned for LaDureé pictures!!  

goals

I think I am stuck in a blog rut.  I just tell y'all what's going on in my life, which is fun because then those of you who I don't speak with a lot can see what I'm up to, and then I can preserve my memories somewhat.  BUT, there are so many other good blogs out there which I read and the writers talk about their thoughts more than their actions, and I really kind of like that.  My New Years resolution, (which I haven't kept thus far) is to blog at least 2x a week.  I think because I usually blog about things I do...and if I don't really do anything of interest, I feel like I have nothing to talk about.  I'm going to *try* to talk more about my feelings, emotions, musings, etc more, in addition to fun activities in my life.  Personal goal, lets see how this goes.

I have a new position on my team at work, which started yesterday!! Before, I was calling people who sent in questions on the website and just answering them.  Now they have me calling to existing customers, trying to get them to upgrade to the more high dollar accounts.  So far, I really like it!  It is something different, which is always great, but it also gives me an opportunity to work on sales skills and show what I am capable of.  Challenge accepted!

I'm currently on a renovation kick (also a "trying to be an adult").  DIY EVERYTHING! Except I don't really know how to start.  I want to redo the whole house....but don't know how to get going.   I need to start watching HGTV and DIY Network more.  Another goal - magically learn construction, painting, interior design, and gardening.  I just want to be one of those people that is picks up decrepit furniture at a yucky garage sale or the flea market and can somehow turn it into the key element in the house.

That's all for now.... sleepy at the end of the day, and the ol' brain is already starting to power off.  Y'all try to hold me to my resolution to blog more and delve into my thoughts.  xx M.

Good Eats

I have a lot of recipes for y'all today!  My weekend was filled with chores galore, so to prevent the weekend from being a total bust, I just ate a lot.

Firstly, I had a wine and cheese night, alllll to myself.  I was feeling really lazy and didn't feel like cooking so I stopped by Whole Foods, picked up some cheese and smoked Nova, then went home and popped open a bottle!  With the cheese and salmon, I had some fig jam Mother gave me for Christmas, as well as some delicious spiced pecans Jane gave me for Christmas!!

I had two horses to ride on Saturday, so I needed to eat a good breakfast before I went out to the barn.  I didn't want to get cranky, so I made one of my favorite breakfast meals (lets be real though... I love all breakfasts)!  I poached 2 eggs, made some hollandaise, and then used up the rest of my smoked Nova in a makeshift eggs Benedict!

Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict

For lunch, I made a hearty chicken salad!  Kyle doesn't like traditional chicken salad, but I've been craving it, so I trolled around Pinterest until I found a substitution that might work.  Chicken, sausage, green beans sweet potatoes, dill, mayo & more - SO GOOD!  It wasn't pretty so I didn't take a picture, but the link is below.

Hearty Chicken Salad

I also made us a delicious dessert that was a faux creme brulee, lemon vanilla custard thing.  It was awesome, so easy, and pretty healthy!!

Lemon Vanilla Custard

Finally, we made one of my favorite recipes that is a little labor/time intensive, but so savory/fatty/sweet - sweet potato gnocchi, with a sage brown butter sauce!

Sweet Potato Gnocchi