Jessica Merchant's Blog, page 414

March Favorites: Beauty.

Happy best day of the month!

This month has been rather mundane on the beauty front – I’ve been using a bunch of the same old things! Favorites are favorites and I can’t lie about it. I’m hooked on the same stuff.

Daily routine right now is Charlotte Tilbury Magic Cream, Bare Minerals Complexion Rescue, Urban Decay Naked concealer, Benefit Gimme Brow and mascara of choice. Sometimes I will use a bit of Urban Decay Sin shadow and sometimes not. I usually throw on a little blush or bronzer if I have a second and I’m good to go! On the weekends I take a little more time but not a ton. I don’t even know me. Wahhhhh. This month, I’ve used a ton of dry shampoo (it’s been a rough month, ha) and am trying the brown shade again because it was all that was available at Target. I didn’t like it before, but so far, so good.

Onto this month!

Sunday Riley Good Genes. My obsession with all things SR continues, and as you can see I actually shattered this jar two weeks ago – but it’s okay! I can still get the product out so all is good. My face has been so weirdly textured lately and this is definitely helping. Sometimes I combine it with the Luna Oil but sometimes I’m also lazy and/or forget one or the other. This has been my go-to in morning and night. Next, I want to try the Flora oil!

Essie Go Ginza. Favoritest spring shade in all the land. Enough said.

Josie Maran Argan Body Scrub. I’m a scrub-a-holic and since I had Max, love having a “fancier” scrub in the shower for pampering. I finished up the Fresh cocoa scrub and while I loved it, it also looked like coffee grounds covered my shower for days. I didn’t have time after every shower to hose the entire thing down. So this was my next purchase and it’s the softest, smoothest scrub ever. I might even like it better than my real favorite, the tree hut sugar scrubs. And the scent is so nice!

Stila Huge Lash Mascara. For an entire year now I’ve been losing it over the Benefit Rollerlash and while that definitely hasn’t changed, this has become a surprising favorite over the month. It was an impulse purchase after my friend Kristen told me how much she loved it and me, the product junkie, had to get it. It’s one of those mascaras that I didn’t like immedaitely but once it dried out a bit, I started LOVING IT. I love it so much right now! I’m not sure if it will replace the Rollerlash for me because I like the Rollerlash from start to finish (no drying out) – but I might have one of these on hand occasionally. It makes my lashes look so long!

Jo Malone Mimosa and Cardamom. I LOVE THIS SO MUCH. It is possibly the most “springy” smelling scent I have – even with the cardamom – and I’ve been using it nonstop since I’m in such a warm weather mood. I want the hand soap too, because why not flush $45 down the drain? WAH.

Kate Somerville Exfolikate. I rarely use products this like since my skin is so dry, but since my skin has been so lack luster this month, I’ve added it in once a week. Super LOVE this. It’s gentle and I leave it on for 30 seconds or so like recommended. Combined with the Good Genes above, my skin is feeling so much better. I might splurge and get the larger size too – this smaller one was in the Sephora aisle of doom.

Formula X Cuticle Erase. I know I talk about this ALLTHETIME but I figured it was worth another mention because at the beginning of the month, I shared this with my cousin when we were away for a weekend wedding. And she was crazy over it. She agreed that truly, with one use, it transforms your nails and cuticles. It’s a savior.

Clinique Wow Pop. These lipsticks are always stashed in my diaper bag so a lot of times I don’t have them right on me. But man, I used this one all month and I forgot how comfortable and moisturizing this formula is on the lips. And I sometimes need a little break from all the matte lips. And! I almost feel like this is foolproof and I barely need a mirror?

Dior Lip Glow in Lilac. I’ve been a Dior Lip Glow fan for years but they just released a lilac shade (!!!!) and my cool toned, purple-loving freak flipped out. This shade is a lot more flattering on me and right now, I’m all about things that I can stash away and throw on in a hot second. Plus, it’s moisturizing too. And it has SPF!

That’s a wrap! This month was super boring to me so I’m looking forward to April, woohoo. I really want to try a Sunday Riley daily SPF, but it vanished from the internet before I could get it. I also want a ton of Bite Beauty amuse bouche lipsticks (I bought pickled ginger and am really liking it so far) and the Urban Decay Complexion Perfecter. What are you loving at the moment? Tell me tell me, I need some retail therapy!

{as usual, none of this is sponsored and all of these products were purchased by me. i am not affiliated with any of the companies above, nor do i accept free products. just love to talk about what i like, makeup junkie to makeup junkie. there are a few amazon affiliate links above. thank you for being here!}

Springtime Cobb Salad.

I’d love to chat over a big plate of pretty with you.

What’s new? Are all of your Cadbury eggs gone? Do Cadbury eggs make you cringe? Do you at least like the bunny in the commercial that’s from the 90s?

Just how over avocado toast pictures are you exactly? On a scale from one to I’m-never-turning-on-notifications?

Also about things like how can I make the classic white button down shirt work? I can’t figure it out. About how my fridge has been broken now for almost three weeks and it’s cramping my meal planning style.

These are my cobb salad thoughts.

I obviously love bacon. And eggs! And avocado. The cobb salad should be my dream?

And sometimes it is. But other times, it kinda makes me feel like I’m going to have a heart attack.

SO much bacon. So much egg yolk. You know? Not very much green.

Speaking of bacon and heart attacks, only once in my life have I really felt absolutely horrible after bacon consumption and that was about three weeks ago. On Saint Patrick’s Day (weekend), I accidentally ordered a BLT that had a pound of bacon on it.

A pound.

I want to pass out just thinking of it.

Probably also just going to blame my mombrain because I clearly ordered the sandwich off the menu, but the whole “pound” thing just didn’t register. I mean… a POUND. !!!!!

I didn’t even know what to do with myself.

Other than pull some bacon off of the BLT. And whine and cry and complain and worry to Eddie the entire time home that I could feel my arteries clogging and that I was probably going to keel over in the front seat.

It was a really fun date. I bet you wish you were there.

So, I fixed my whole cobb salad issue. By adding lots of green veggies! Springtime is good for me and veggies. We get on well. We can be friends, make things happen. Asparagus finds a home roasting away in my kitchen and artichokes are lovely even if all I can think about is dipping them in hollandaise. I love thinly sliced radish on tacos too. Most of these things involve cheese but who cares.

Am I a walking vegetable right now?! For me, maybe.

My main concern now is… can I still call this a cobb salad since the ingredients aren’t in a row?

My mom would say no.

But it’s 2016! I think that I can. I think that I’m going to.

I already did.

Maybe we kept the bacon in the salad, along with the egg and the avocado. But with butter lettuce, asparagus, grilled artichoke hearts, crispy chickpeas and lemon vinaigrette, we meet in the middle. I’m just going to keep one thing on the DL: I might have thrown the asparagus in the bacon fat.

Oops.

Springtime Cobb Salad

Yield: serves 4

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

4 to 6 slices bacon
12 asparagus spears, woody stems removed
1 head butter lettuce, leaves removed
1/2 cup marinated artichoke hearts (I used these grilled ones!)
4 radishes, thinly sliced
2 large eggs, hard boiled and sliced
1 avocado, sliced
4 ounces gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

crispy garlic chickpeas

1 (14-ounce) can chickpeas, drained, rinsed and patted dry
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

honey lemon vinaigrette 

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey
2 garlic cloves, finely minced or pressed
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil



Directions:

Note: I start by roasting the chickpeas and make the salad while they are roasting!

Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat and add the bacon. Cook until crispy and until the fat is rendered, then place the bacon on a paper towel to drain any excess grease. Remove all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat from the skillet.

Add the asparagus to the skillet and toss to coat. Season it with a bit of pepper (I don't use salt since the bacon fat is salty, but add some if needed!) and cook until slightly tender but a crispy remains, about 3 to 4 minutes.

Build your salad! You can chop your lettuce if desired, but I love the pieces of butter lettuce and how soft they are. Season your lettuce with some salt and pepper, this is key. Add your bacon (crumbled or strips, whatever you prefer), asparagus, artichokes, radish, eggs, avocado and chickpeas. Drizzle on your dressing and finish with crumbles of gorgonzola. Eat up.

crispy garlic chickpeas

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Place the chickpeas on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Season with garlic, paprika, salt and pepper, tossing to coat well. Roast for 15 minutes then toss and roast for 15 to 20 minutes more, until crispy!

honey lemon vinaigrette 

In a bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, honey, garlic, basil, salt and pepper. Continue to whisk while streaming in the olive oil. This dressing stays great in the fridge in a sealed container for a week or so, so feel free to make a double batch if desired!

p.s. if you have leftover hard boiled eggs this means game on.

Tuesday Things.

1. I can’t STOP with the tulips. I’m seriously covering my entire house with them. I’m putting them in food photos! They are just making my days feel so much more… bright? And please tell me, in this PA climate, when can I plant my herbs?!

2. While I’m at it, might as well making this edible flower rainbow cocktail. Eeeep.

3. Fact: sandwiches always taste better when somebody else makes them for you. (obvious pro tip: chips go ON it.)

4. Do you live in an area that sells Polar unicorn tears seltzer? TELL ME ABOUT IT. Puhlease.

5. I made a new-to-me potato dish (not my own, from a magazine) for Easter dinner Saturday night and it was almost a complete fail. Like, I made everybody go “play with Max” while I stood at our sink pouring copious amounts of liquid out of a baking dish of scalloped potatoes. Real life.

6. A big fat NO to the Walking Dead. I have a theory about next week and it’s not good. Still absolutely loving the twists and turns on Billions and have such a love/hate for Bobby Axe. His convo with Dollar Bill was some of the best TV I’ve seen. And how crazy was GIRLS?! I actually loved the episode. Not shocked by the ending either. Also, can someone please tell me why I care at all about Grey’s and am watching? Is it because I have no life? Oh oh and I DVRed The Catch! And kind of loved it.

7. I’m *this close* to having a kentucky derby party even though it would last all of seven seconds.

8. We had such a busy last few days that it seriously looks like a tornado ripped through our home. There are clothes, shoes, cups, toys, gifts, clothes, books, cheddar bunnies and clothes EVERYWHERE. I don’t think I’ve seen it this bad since I was in college. Don’t even know where to begin. Halp.

9. More on becoming a morning person. I love these kind of posts because I’m naturally a morning person, but having a kid has really thrown me for a loop.

Meatloaf Sliders with Bacon, Pepper Jack and Frizzled Onions.

Two of my favorite things today!

Burgers and friends.

It’s Monday, I’m in a chocolate-peanut butter egg coma, I’ve got a full day of work, bruises on my knees from falling on my face in the Target parking lot (it would happen there) and half of a coconut cake left in my fridge. And I’m about to tell you why I am oh-so in love with Andie Mitchell’s cookbook, which is going to make you want to eat all the things.

Oh but wait. The MAIN reason I need to share the burgers from Andie’s book with you today is because…

Max had his very first burger last Fall with Andie at Shake Shack. And no, she didn’t offer it up to him, at least she hadn’t yet – he literally grabbed it out of her hand and started attacking it with his mouth. I’m pretty sure he ate at least a quarter of it and covered another third in baby drool, rendering it impossible to eat unless you were his mother.

And now? Cheeseburgers are one of this favorite foods. Not blaming him at all.

SO. The good stuff.

This recipe comes from Eating in the Middle, Andie’s cookbook which comes out… TOMORROW!! You must must go order it now, as it’s absolutely fabulous. For years I’ve told you how Andie is my Oprah, and then she went and wrote a fantastic memoir that I managed to read in one day and mostly bawled my eyes out while doing so.

If you’re familiar with Andie, then you probably know that she is genuine and possesses an authenticity that is hard to find these days. She’s relatable and hilarious and still seems to struggle between the Noel or Ben love triangle on Felicity, which I can obviously understand. One of the things I love most about Andie though? Is that she eats real food! All food. She loves real food, shares her favorites in the book and talks about how to eat what you love for a happy and healthy LIFESTYLE.

When she first told me about her cookbook last year, it struck a chord with me. You guys know I am SUCH an all-or-nothing person, it’s by far my biggest flaw. Andie’s concept for this cookbook is that so often, when we’re struggling with eating or with weight or habits, we’re on one side or the other – restricting or overindulging. And she likes to show that we CAN eat in the middle and maintain a healthy life with delicious food. I LOVE IT.

It’s actually the mindset that I grew up with, where eating in the middle was just “normal.” My mom has the best mindset about food and I hope that I can pass it on to my kids.

These burgers are an absolute dream and just what we needed to break us out of our burger rut. Yes, we get in burger ruts. Which is probably terrible. But it’s real life.

Luckily, we’ve both always loved meatloaf and even though my mom made the most delicious meatloaf when I was a kid, I have completely failed at this dish more than once. Also, I just realized my mom probably hasn’t made meatloaf in like fifteen years so I’m going to nag her until she does so! Yes yes.

The burgers are PACKED with flavor. Packed, I tell you. I decided to make mine into sliders instead of burgers since mini things are adorable and you can eat two burgers. The outside has this fabulous crunchy crust and the inside is moist (YES I’M SORRY it is, unless you’d rather me say it’s soggy or damp) and juicy. I threw on some extra BBQ sauce, the cheese is melty and a big spicy and the onions are so lightly fried and crispy. Perfection?!

This is exactly how I want to start every week.

Meatloaf Sliders with Frizzled Onions

Yield: makes 8 to 10 sliders

Total Time: 1.5 hours

Ingredients:

4 slices bacon
1 pound ground sirloin (I used 93% lean)
2/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon djion mustard
1/2 cup smoky BBQ sauce, plus extra for serving
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 ounces pepper-jack cheese, sliced
8 to 10 slider buns (I used multigrain dinner rolls from a local bakery)

frizzled onions

1 large egg
1 cup buttermilk
1 large sweet onion, sliced into super thin rings
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
peanut oil for frying
1 teaspoon sea salt



Directions:

 

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crispy and the fat is rendered. Once crispy, remove the bacon and place it on a paper towel to drain. Once cool, break it into thirds or fourths so it fits on the burgers. Pour most of the bacon fat out of the skillet, leaving just a little to cook the sliders in.

In a large bowl, combined the beef, breadcrumbs, worcertershire, mustard, bbq sauce, honey, salt and pepper. Mix with your hands until the ingredients are dispersed and distributed. Form the mixture into 8 or 10 (depending on the bun size) equal patties.

Heat the same skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sliders and cook until browned and crisp on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Reduce the heat to low, cover the sliders with the cheese slices and cover the skillet until it melts.

To serve, add a bit of bbq sauce on each bun. Cover with the meatloaf patty, a few pieces of bacon and the other bun top.

frizzled onions

In a bowl, whisk together the egg and buttermilk. Add the sliced onion rings and cover them completely in the milk. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

In a baking dish, whisk together the flour, garlic powder, smoked paprika  and pepper. Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat and fit it with a candy thermometer. Add enough peanut oil so you have a few inches to fry in. You want the temp of the oil to reach 375 degrees F.

Take the onion rings out of the fridge. Remove each ring and shake off the excess milk, then dredge it through the seasoned flour mixture. Add it to the oil and fry until it's golden and crispy, about 2 to 3 minutes, flipping once or twice. Remove the onions with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to drain the excess oil. Cover with salt while still hot!

As a note, I like to start the burgers and heat the oil while the onion rings are in the fridge! This way, it makes for a fairly "quick" meal, given the components.

[recipe from eating in the middle]

Bring.it.on.spring.

Easter Week.

my brother and sister-in-law just got a puppy, so we headed there for easter brunch and had the most delicious meal! last weekend we colored eggs (neon, of course) to prepare, max had his first egg hunt yesterday and i filled his basket with bubbles, books, stickers galore and cups. are these stickers going to end up on our furniture? probably. it’s okay, max most likely has a better decor eye than i do. see also: copious amounts of coconut cake, carrot cake, and chocolate peanut butter eggs. YEP. and a puppy plus a baby minus one shoe. oops.

hope you had a great weekend! xoxoxo

Currently Crushing On.

{via}

Cheers to the weekend! What’s up? This photo above is making me crave summer days like WHOA. I’m currently trying to get Eddie to book a beachy trip in the next month because I have a case of the post-winter doldrums.

This week was awesome and fast but it feels like I wrote last week’s crushing on three months ago! Funny how that works. Thanks so much for your wonderful response to the brunchshop workshop – it sold out in 12 hours and I will be sharing lots more soon. I heart you bigtime.

Are you celebrating Easter this weekend? Spring? Some sunny days? We are going full speed ahead with an egg hunt, dinner, brunch and everything in between. Woohoo!

P.S. I made a 3 (three!) ingredient asparagus tart over on the pioneer woman this week – and it’s so super easy. Run out and get your ingredients right this sec so you can make it tomorrow!

Internet loves of the week:

how adorable AND delicious does this malted chocolate cake look? would be perfect for tomorrow!

roasted broccoli and bacon quiche? now broccoli like this, i can do.

love getting a peek into tracy’s capsule wardrobe.

for tonight. and tomorrow. coconut milk white russians!

desperately need right now: the guide to undereye circles. halp me.

going on the list this week – no knead bread.

can you even with this s’mores tart?

this lemon chamomile cocktail is absolutely stunning.

chocolate hot cross buns if you dare.

craving a big bowl of this soba noodle soup.

this nutty cacoa smoothie? there are pecans in it. yessss.

turn your easter eggs into burgers! whoa.

enough said: homemade peeps.

grilled garlic beer flatbread is the only bread i want from now on.

easy sour cream cake with chocolate frosting. sounds so good.

how freaking cute! a carrot coconut bunny loaf.

Greek Yogurt Doughnuts with Stovetop Strawberry Granola.

Let’s put breakfast back in the do(ugh)nut.

We’ve crossed this threshold where donuts are no longer considered breakfast – they are almost always considered dessert. Right? It’s crazy. Donuts are insanely trashed up today with crunchy bacon bits and glazes galore and cereal on top and half of the donut dunked in two different kinds of ganache. And then there’s even cronuts. It’s 100% ridiculous and obnoxious and I 100% love it. Shocker.

It’s 2016 where donuts are no longer breakfast yet leggings are considered pants. Where nachos are considered dinner and backpacks as purses are back in style. Where I’ve actually considered purchasing a BODYSUIT to wear as a top before hopping in a time machine back to my tween years.

It was my intent to put the morning back in the donut here. With yogurt! And granola. And maybe a leeeeeeettle bit of sweetness.

Even if these are still a bit sugary, I love the tang from the yogurt and the crunchy clusters on top. Plus, hello, STOVETOP granola?! This has changed the granola game for me. Bigtime.

Okay, so maybe the weekend morning? We can make this happen, I swear.

I’ve discovered the secret to crunchy granola clusters and I believe that it can be found by doing two important things: adding enough “sticky” sweetener and allow the granola to cool completely in one big clump before breaking it apart. I slide it out of the skillet and onto some parchment paper where it stays until it cools.

It’s one big hunk o’ love. Then break it up! Simple as that.

ALSO. Oh man, there are going to be so many also’s here. The granola is stuck on by greek yogurt glaze. Greek yogurt glaze! LOOK AT THE GLAZE. It’s worth shouting for.

So maybe I’m running in the whole “glazes galore” camp but as a yogurt lover, this it too cool. And tastes fab too.

Aren’t they so super cute?

Don’t you just want to a wear a yogurt donut inner tube for a swim this weekend?

One more also, in fact it’s an also that you probably already figured out: the texture! Soft and pillowy cake donuts. Sweet glaze and crunchy granola. For someone (me) who was so anti-baked donut for such a long time, I may as well drown in the glaze. Completely fanatical over these.

Thanks for hanging with while I gave you an overload of breakfast this past week. I wish I could say that breakfast is my favorite meal (because it is?!) but the truth is that every meal is my favorite meal. Don’t make me choose! I choose them all.

At once.

Greek Yogurt Doughnuts with Stovetop Strawberry Granola

Yield: makes 12 doughnuts

Total Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup cake flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup plain greek yogurt
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste (or 2 teaspoons extract)
1/4 cup buttermilk

greek yogurt glaze

2/3 cup plain greek yogurt
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk

strawberry stovetop granola

1 1/2 tablespoons coconut oil
3/4 cups old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup sliced almonds
3 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon brown sugar
pinch of salt
pinch of cinnamon
1/4 cup freeze-dried strawberries



Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray your donut pan with nonstick spray.

In a bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder and salt.

In a large bowl, whisk together the butter and sugar until combined. Stir in the yogurt. Add in the dry ingredients and the eggs, mixing until the batter is just combined. Whisk in the vanilla paste, then stir in the buttermilk until the batter is smooth. Use a spoon and add the batter to the donut pan until each mold is about 3/4 of the way full. Bake the donuts for 13 to 15 minutes, until they are set and slightly golden. Remove and let cool. Once they are cool, dip each donut in the glaze and cover in granola. Serve immediately.

greek yogurt glaze

In a large bowl, whisk the yogurt and sugar until combined. Stir in the vanilla extract and milk, whisking until the glaze is smooth. If it's too thin, add more sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. If it's too thick, add more milk 1 teaspoon at time. Whisk until smooth!

strawberry stovetop granola

Melt the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Stir in the oats and almonds. Cook, stirring often, until the oats are toasty and slightly golden, about 5 minutes. Stir in the honey, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon until combined. Cook, stirring constantly, as the mixture toasts and comes together. Stir in the strawberries. Spread the granola out on a sheet of parchment and let it cool completely before breaking it clumps.

[adapted from strawberry sprinkle donuts]

This is the same as eating a yogurt parfait… right?

Grapefruit Daiquiris.

The grapefruit daiquiri is now my love language.

Oh boy. Is this delicious. !!!!

I’m at this very weird in between stage where certain friends have kids that are older than Max and other friends don’t have kids at all, and in fact no one around me (like, an old time heart-to-heart friend) has a baby right about Max’s age.

This is very (not-so) important because if you’re attempting to lunch or coffee talk or happy hour with baby in tow, it’s barely a conversation since you’re chasing a little love nugget all over the place. And I’m not about to go to one of those cesspool indoor playgrounds at the mall. I mean, this is my first kid and all. He’s practically wrapped in bubble tape 24/7. Now if baby number two or three or four comes along, it might be an option.

Rather, it might be the only option.

So quite frankly, if we’re being honest in our circle of trust here, I‘m trying to figure out the perfect warm weather cocktail that I can pour in a pitcher and walk around my neighborhood with in order to gain friends. Yes, I’m begging for friends in my exact same life stage that live right near me so when I need to have a mom meltdown, I can simply walk down the street with a pitcher of rum instead of get in my car and drive to Target. (obviously NOT with rum.)

Target is robbing me of house and home, for pete’s sake. It’s doing wonders for my nail polish collection though.

I mean, I would TOTALLY want to be friends with someone who walked onto my driveway with a pitcher of alcohol. In a non-creepy way of course. It’s 2016 and we need to clarify those things.

Okay, so maybe I’m not exactly BEGGING for friends in my same life stage, but that’s sort of what it feels like some days, especially on the days where I send video snapchats to my invisible internet friends and try to cheers a daiquiri on the screen.

True life: back in the day, my cousin and I used to try to pass food and drink through the phone. Please tell me you did this. Lacy and I would spend HOURS on the phone (even though we, um, lived ten minutes from each other AND went to school together up through high school…) and in the early years, tried to shove cereal and candy through the phone to each other. I swear to god that to this day, one of phones in my parents’ house has Special K vanilla clusters crusted into the speaker.

And I know what you’re thinking: why is that phone even still in existence? I don’t know. One will never know.

It should also be noted that I call those “real” phones. Real phones, because apparently my iPhone is a fake phone. Riddle me that.

It’s no secret that I’m a huge (huge!) fan of grapefruit everything. Give me allll the grapefruit things and no one will get hurt. I’ve never been the person who covers their grapefruit in sugar or salt – I love it straight with a (grapefruit) spoon. BUT, I do super love sugary grapefruit treats. Like, DeLallo has these dried candied grapefruit slices? OMG. I die.

Perhaps I should just walk around with a bowl of those to gain friends. It might work better.

I wanted to share a perfect spring cocktail today – something that would work for this Easter weekend if you’re celebrating or something that would just work because, hello – it’s spring! The daiquiri has rum, grapefruit, a splash of lime, some cherry juice (I use these legit maraschino cherries!) and simple syrup – it’s my sweet grapefruit shock.

And we can totally be friends if you make one, sooooooo. There’s that.

Grapefruit Daiquiris

Yield: makes 1 drink, is so easily multiplied

Total Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients:

2 ounces white rum
2 ounces freshly squeezed grapefruit juice
1 1/2 ounces simple syrup
1 ounce maraschino cherry juice
splash of coconut milk (if desired!)
splash of lime juice
splash of selzter
cherries for garnish
grapefruit wedges for garnish



Directions:

Add the rum, grapefruit juice, syrup, cherry juice, coconut milk and lime juice to a shaker filled with ice. Shake for 30 seconds then pour into a frosty glass. If you'd like some bubbles, splash some seltzer on top! Garnish with a wedge of grapefruit and a few cherries.

hippity hop hop!

Burrata Breakfast Pizza.

Say hello to all of your breakfast dreams.

I should probably just title this post “a million photos of the same cheesy, melty burrata pizza slices.”

Because that’s what it is! I can’t help it.

Just check out all of the layered goodness below. Not to mention the fluffy dough. I rhyme?

We have:

sauce

burrata

bacon!

sausage and you know that I don’t even LIKE sausage but it’s legit on this

sprinkles of herbs, green scallions and chives

and my favorite of all the ingredients ever, eggs!

The amount of eggs in my life is borderline ridiculous. My top three consumed foods at the moment would probably be eggs, avocado and cheese. Not often together but delicious together.

I’ve had breakfast pizza before but it’s usually missing one big ingredient: the sauce. Which should come as no surprise since sauce isn’t really my thing, HOWEVER… I’m changing. I’m starting to want more sauce on my pizza, want sauce with the cheese, with the eggs on top and the scallions and the crunchy bacon. It just sounded life changing. No way was this happening without some tomato goodness.

P.S. I think it was these saucy baked eggs that changed everything.

My skepticism was also high on the burrata + pizza combo. I adora burrata (is there anyone who doesn’t?!), but how would the cream-stuffed mozzarella work on pizza? Would the cheese end up being too wet and not cheesy enough? Would it be runny? Would I regret not using provolone or my go-to, fontina?

It turns out that it’s option D: none of the above. As you can see, the cheese is incredibly melty and wonderful and stringy in a good way and, for lack of a better work, cheesy. Plus, is mixes in with the sauce and almost acts like a bit of a cream sauce on certain bites which made my brain practically explode. My tastebuds were already freaking out so the brain was next. Clearly.

The eggs are your timer here. How do you like your eggs? I like my eggs every which way (EXCEPT! runny scrambled eggs, aka, barely cooked eggs, and I just cannot deal with runny whites either) and don’t mind if there are runny, soft or film yolks on the pizza. I’ll switch it up depending on what I feel like that day orrrr if I set the timer too long on the oven. Whoops.

What I’m super excited for is warm weather so this can be made on the grill and served outside on a Saturday morning. It would be lovely at your Easter brunch, you can make the dough the night before or heck, even use some store bought dough. Measure out your toppings the night before and prep some things if possible (cook your bacon, your sausage) and it will barely take any time to make come eight AM.

It is 100% calling your name right now.

Burrata Breakfast Pizza

Yield: serves 3 to 4

Total Time: 2 hours (for dough rising!)

Ingredients:

dough

1 1/8 cups warm water
3 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

toppings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup marinara/pizza sauce
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 balls of burrata cheese
1/2 pound sweet italian sausage, browned
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 scallions, thinly sliced
3 or 4 large eggs (or however many you'd like!)
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsely
1 tablespoon snipped fresh chives



Directions:

In a large bowl, combine water, yeast, honey and olive oil. Mix with a spoon, then let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add in 2 1/2 cups flour and salt, stirring with a spoon until the dough comes together but is still sticky. Using your hands, form the dough into a ball and work in the additional 1/2 cup flour, kneading it on a floured surface for a few minutes. Rub the same bowl with olive oil then place the dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with a towel and place in a warm place to rise for about 1-1 1/2 hours.

After the dough has risen, punch it down and place it back on the floured surface. Using a rolling pin or your hands, form it into your desired shape (sometimes I use baking sheets and do rectangles or free form pizzas - this specific dough will yield one pizza large enough to feed about 3-4 people) and place on a baking sheet or pizza peel. Place the towel back over the dough and let sit in the warm place for 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. (If I use my pizza stone, I heat my oven to 475 degrees and bake for 15 minutes. If you're just using a baking sheet, follow the directions below for baking and set to 425 degrees.)

Brush the pizza dough with the olive oil. Cover it with the marinara sauce and sprinkle with the garlic cloves and red pepper. Pull apart the balls of burrata and evenly disperse it over the dough. Top with the sausage, bacon and scallions. Evenly crack the eggs over top. I like to find "pockets" where the eggs can sit nicely between the toppings so they don't run off while cooking!

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes (or around 15 to 20 minutes if using the pizza stone) - until the eggs are set to your liking. Remove the pizza and cover with the herbs and chives. Slice and serve immedaitely!

Grapefruit mimosas on the side please.

Tuesday Things.

1. Neon eggs, courtesy of leaving each egg in it’s (terrible horrible no good very bad for you, I know!) dye for at least 30 minutes each. Yes, it’s just one big party.

2. While I adore snapchat, it’s to a point where I’m following way too many people. I think on Sunday I spent 36 (THIRTY SIX!) minutes look at the recent updates. Whyyyyy.

3. How freaking cute is this edible paper mache easter egg piñata? I just want it for… every day life? Of course.

4. Please tell me that you saw the news that Josh Malina is going to do a West Wing podcast?! My life is made. My only fear is that it will take waaaay too long to get through the series.

5. TV! Billions, yes. The writing on this show is ridic and wonderful. Highly considering just finding all the spoilers for the Walking Dead over the next two weeks so I don’t have to feel all the feels. GIRLS? I am loving the newest couple even though it’s so “forbidden.” I hope it lasts. I can’t even TAKE Hannah. I am over her. In the first season she was somewhat relatable and occasionally funny, now it’s like she is regressing. I completely forgot to talk about House of Cards last week! I ended up bingeing on it (well, as much as you can binge when you have a kid) and ugh… I’m torn. I still love it. But I just felt so sick to my stomach after the last episode. Bah.

6. Even though Max has tons of toys, his absolute favorites are the TV remotes. Over the weekend he apparently DVRed Ben Hur AND Fiddler on the Roof (how?!) so umm… classic taste?

7. This plan to free your mind from worries? I’m starting it ASAP.

8. It has been so gloomy out that I found myself actually wishing that I could see through an instagram filter lens. Like have clarendon be my eye filter. This is why I hate to love you, 2016.