Spending nights outside with my neighbors triggers memories of my childhood. Those nights when it’s almost 9pm and the sky is still bright….playing around the front yard with frisbees (the one i played with got run over by a car!). And just when I thought it couldn’t get any better, the ice cream man drove by.

what: craft night.
where: my house
when: this evening
who: becky & melisser
why: cuz it’s FUN!

I’ve come to the conclusion that eating is so much better when done outside. We moved into our house almost a year ago (july 4th will be our move-in anniversary). For the first three months, we did not eat a single meal inside. Casey says the food I make for us is always better during the summer. I think it’s just cuz we get to eat it outside! Now that the weather is warmer, breakfast/lunch/dinner will be eaten on the patio. Food just tastes better that way!

Fathers Day Dinner included:

-cheese plate (with marcona almonds)
-tomato/mozzarella/crusty bread with olive oil topped with homemade pesto
-middle eastern inspired ground lamb kebabs
-salad with tomatoes, red onion, italian parsley, feta & cucumber with a lemon oregano dressing
-crispy lavash bread
-vanilla roasted apricots mixed with strawberries, mangoes and cherries on top of a dollop of honey lemon ricotta & marscapone cheese mixture
-4 bottles of red wine!
-vegan food for my brother (indian rice with vegan burger & vegan chocolate pudding)
-laughter, sillyness, and fun moments. Happy Father’s Day Dad!

The Weekend:

-shopping for gifts at Bath and Body Works (i love these!)
-drinks with neighbors/made a potato salad with cilantro & grilled chicken (vinegar based)/drinks with other neighbors
-speaker installed in ceiling of kitchen
-wallmounted touch panel installed in wall of kitchen (means I can listen to music while cooking & cleaning up what a cook! yay!)
-dinner to celebrate a friends birthday at Ruth’s Chris Steakhouse (bloody $50 bill fight in the front-don’t ask)
-ice cream at Mitchells (chocolate caramel crackle with another scoop of strawberry) Husband god Toasted Almond & Mexican chocolate.
-grocery shopping at Whole Paycheck…err… I mean Whole Foods
-house cleaning & gardening for parents arrival
-father’s day dinner
-hanging out with neighbors- another neighbor brought over yummy bread pudding with a lemon rum glaze.

i have to stop eating. time to catch up on Big Love & Entourage.

make your own vanilla roasted apricots:

-2 tablespoons butter
-12 apricots halfed & pitted
-2 vanilla bean pods
-1/4 cup of sugar plus 2 tablespoons
-half of 1 lemon (squeezed)
-dash of water

-preheat oven to 375 degrees
-butter apricot halves- add 2 tablespoons of sugar and thouroughly coat (i used a ziploc bag to mix it all up in)
-put apricots in a baking dish
-in a small pot, warm 1/4 cup of sugar with 1/4 cup of honey, dash of water, 2 scraped vanilla pods & lemon juice (heat til sugar dissolves)
-pour most of the liquid over the apricots- put in oven and bake 20-25 minutes (continue to baste with liquid during baking time)

these beets were part of my first delivery from Farm Fresh to You- Capay Organic Farms. Included in the shipment were: red onions, green beans, apricots, peaches, beets, red chard, cherries, red potatoes and zucchini. So far I’m happy with the service!

to make the beets:

-wash beets & sprinkle with generous amount salt & pepper
-wrap beets up in parchment paper
-wrap parchment covered beets with foil
-put on baking sheet
-roast 425 degree oven for 45 minutes
-peel off skin & enjoy!

i was not born into a family of sweet tooths. my family is big on bread. we will eat bagels, pasta, crackers….carbs galore. My grandma is the first to tell you she’d rather eat bread & butter for dessert instead of chocolates & sweets. It wasn’t til I met Casey that I realized that sooo many people out there are sweet toothers… And in the past year I’ve turned. I now appreciate the delight of a good dessert. I’ve even learned how to make room for it when we are out to dinner.

cupcake trip #2 is done! check out our thoughts on teacake bakeshop in emeryville at melissa’s site!