Picnic anyone?

I have got spring time picnics on the brain. Here is a little picnic inspiration and a fabulous recipe from my favorite food blog smitten kitchen

Label your picnic treats with these fabulous tags

At 45.00$ you cant go wrong with this versatile little dress

The Couture Collection picnic basket

Butterfly Mini Tags - Royal Buffet

Vintage May Day Basket - Trampoline

Modcloth Summer dress

 JCrew Gladiator sandal

Strawberry-Ricotta Graham Tartlets

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/4 cup whole wheat flour, or graham flour if you can get it
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground cloves
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
3 tablespoons plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 teaspoons molasses (you can swap this with additional honey, if desired)
3/4 pound strawberries, thinly sliced
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 1/4 cups ricotta (10 ounces), fresh if you can find it, a full-fat store bought if you cannot
2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Make grahams: In a bowl, whisk both flours with the cinnamon, salt and cloves. Beat the butter, light brown sugar and 2 tablespoons of the granulated sugar at medium speed on an electric mixer until fluffy, about 1 minute. Beat in the honey and molasses, about 30 seconds. Scrape down the side of the bowl and beat in the flour mixture at low speed, just until incorporated. Pat the dough into a disk, cover with plastic and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough 1/8 inch thick. Using a 3 1/2-inch oval cookie cutter. Stamp out your bases. (About 16 with a 3 1/2-inch oval, 10 with a 3 1/2-inch round or more with a smaller cutter.) Reroll the dough scraps if necessary. Transfer the grahams to the baking sheets and bake for about 12 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, until lightly golden around the edges. Let cool on the pans for 5 minutes, then transfer the grahams to racks to cool completely.

Make toppings: In a bowl, toss the strawberries with the remaining 3 tablespoons of sugar and the lemon juice. Let stand until syrupy, 20 minutes. In a medium bowl, mix the ricotta, confectioners’ sugar and lemon zest.

Assemble tartlets: Spread about 1 tablespoon of the ricotta mixture on each graham. Arrange the strawberries over the ricotta, drizzle with the syrup and serve.

Do ahead: Grahams will keep in an airtight container for up to two weeks. They will keep longer, unbaked, in the freezer. Ricotta mixture, if your ricotta is fresh, will keep for a day or two and up to a week if from packaged ricotta. Strawberry mixture should, in theory, keep for a few days

Happy picnicking

Xoxo CC!

(Thanks smitten kitchen)

Meg Ryan's beach home in Martha's Vineyard

I love this article in the new Elle Decor mag. Meg Ryan's home is fresh open and and full of light. Oh, and the view, amazing!

I love the feel of the kitchen, its rustic and charming yet still clean and bright

The fabulous blog Plush Palate also posted on this lovely home. I love her take on the article as well.

(Images via Elle Decor)

Enjoy the pics!

Xoxo CC

J Crew bridal boutique

Honey, let's renew our vows! I absolutely love the new J Crew bridal boutique. Not only do the clothes look amazing, I want to move in. I love the decor, it just looks absolutely dreamy. The space is based on a French salon layout with the store's exclusive offerings, like sumptuous hand-beaded evening gowns, flirty cocktail dresses made from the finest duchesse satin, and lingerie. Below are some pic's from the new store and some of my favorite ensembles

               

 The nice part is, you don't have to hear wedding bells to get your shopping kicks at the Bridal Boutique. "We want everyone to feel welcome and comfortable," says head of Wedding Design, Tom Mora. "It doesn't matter if it's a wedding, a party, or a special event."

In addition to the complete range of J Crew bridal gowns, the new shop carries dozens of lingerie styles by Cosabella (including a sequined set in a creamsicle orange), perfume by Histoires and L'Artisan, insane veils and headpieces by Leah C. Couture and Albertus Swanepoel, Spanx, and Wolford hosiery (by the way the best ever!). By far the most decadent is the jewelry counter, glittering with baubles by Lulu Frost, Fenton-Fallon, Miriam Haskell, and exclusive pieces from the J Crew collection.

 
 

J Crew bridal boutique

769 Madison Avenue

(Images via Lucky Mag and Martha Stewart weddings)

Xoxo CC

Popsicles for Summer

 Check out this fantastic little shop in NYC called Popbar? You can pick from a gorgeous array of wonderful sorbet and gelato pops on a stick. And they have a build your own Popbar to boot! Create your own personal popbar work of art. While they have hundreds of possible combinations, creating your own Pop is easy!

 So if you cant make it to NYC, you have to get one of these and have your own pop party!

Remember when you were a kid and your mom made popsicles. I just remember hearing sorry sweetie you can have one tomorrow. UHG!

Now you can create your own customized frozen pops, including cream-filled varieties, in as little as seven minutes. Simple and easy to use, this little freezer ensures flavorful fun for the whole family.

This wonderful creation makes up to nine 2 1/4" x 3 1/2" pops (three 2-oz. pops at a time) before refreezing is required. Nonstick cast-aluminum molds have a proprietary solution sealed inside their bases to enable rapid, uniform freezing. This specially designed tool helps to quickly release the frozen treats from their molds and special drip guards promote tidy eating. It Includes base, remover tool, six reusable pop sticks and six reusable drip guards. The possibilities with this gadget are endless!!

Here are some fun custom Popsicle Ideas
Make your own popbar, melt some chocolate and set out some toppings and have at it.
For a healthy approach, try blending your protein smoothie and freezing them into pops
What about some herbal tea and fresh fruit.

Here is a great healthy recipe I found on Martha Stewart

Puree 1 1/2 cups low-fat buttermilk or kefir, 1 banana, 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen berries, and 1/4 cup raw honey in a blender until smooth. Pour mixture into Popsicle molds and freeze. Makes 10 pops (75 calories each).

I also love Shauna Younge's take the new summer trend! Check out her post on designer Popsicles

Popbar

Zoku Popsicle maker at William Sonoma

Enjoy!!

Xoxo CC

Whats for Dinner ?

Spring brown rice risotto with asparagus and crimini mushrooms

and

 Roasted turkey tenderloin with herbs

Not only is this recipe super healthy its also very quick and easy!

This is a perfect week night meal and so tasty. So here is my healthy secret that makes my weeknight cooking a breeze

Yes, I always have at least 2-3 boxes of this on hand

I love this brown rice and I love that it's sprouted as well.

Brown rice spring risotto with asparagus and crimini mushrooms

Ingredients

2 boxes of Annie Chun's sprouted brown rice's

1tablespoon of olive oil

1 cup chopped asparagus (tough ends removed)

1 1/2 cups sliced crimini mushrooms ( or any other mushrooms you like)

2 cloves of garlic (crushed)

11/2 cups chicken stock

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese (more or less to taste)

Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste

In a pan Saute asparagus and mushrooms in the olive oil for about 5 min on med high. Do not over cook the veggies. Add in garlic and saute for about 2 more minutes. Add in the brown rice and break it up and cook about 1 minute, then add in chicken stock. You may need more or less stock depending on consistency. Cook and stir for another 5 Minutes until liquid is absorbed. Stir in the Parmesan at the end. Add salt and pepper to taste and shave fresh Parmesan on top. You can also sub the veggies for fresh peas as well.

 Roasted Turkey tenderloin with herbs

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 (1 1/2 pound) turkey tenderloins
Salt and ground black pepper
Rosemary preferably fresh (dry is fine)
thyme
Herbamare seasoning  

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place oil in a large baking dish. Season turkey tenderloins all over with salt and black pepper and herbs and seasoning and place in baking dish. Roast turkey about 35 minutes, until an instant-read thermometer registers at least 160 degrees F. Let turkey rest 10 minutes before slicing crosswise into 1/2-inch thick slices.

serve along side with the risotto and your set

Did you know
Sprouting brown rice takes 24 hours and is definitely worth the wait. It is softer in texture and easier to digest than regular brown rice. Sprouting brown rice also maximizes its nutritional value. It's high in fiber, GAB (a stress-reducing amino acid), lysine, Vitamin E, niacin and many other minerals.



(Annie chun's sprouted brown rice and herbamare can be found at whole foods)

Enjoy!
Xoxo CC

EmersonMade

You must check out this fabulous line EmersonMade! I love absolutely love everything she makes, I want it all! EmersonMade hand stitches, builds and blooms each flower so each is varied and has its own uniqueness. She specializes in hand dyed and hand stitched blooms and accessories with an apparel line coming out in 2010. She does all the styling and design, all photographs, collages and artwork associated with EmersonMade along with her husband.

I absolutely adore the packaging!

Below is a showcase of the fabulous blooms she makes, and how to wear them.

Oh, and I will take all her ensemble's please.

Blooms for the shoes

EmersonMade

Xoxo CC

The most beautiful cupcakes

I hope everyone had a fabulous Memorial Day weekend! I thought this would go along great with Friday's post, I had to show you these beautiful cupcakes wraps I saw on escapade. These are exquisite laser cut decorations for your baked goods and can be used for any occasion. They come in a wide verity of patterns and colors, below are just a few of my favorites

They also make beautiful cake wraps as well.

I just love this one with the white picket fence!

You can find these fabulous items at

Paper Orchid

(Thanks Escapade!)

Did you know?

You can use these gorgeous little treats to make fabulous party favors?

Just wrap your cupcake with these pretty little wraps and place it in a clear acetate cupcake box.

Tie the box with some fabulous ribbon, add a Calligraphy Tag (these are my favorite), and your set. Hand these fun little favors out to your guests at your next function or place one at each table setting.

Xoxo CC