Valentines Day Menu

Valentines Day has never been something we celebrate. Matt likes to say everyday is valentines day :) Sweet huh? Well this year I found some amazing new recipes and wanted to make them for my sweetheart.  

We went out to a great local Carribean restaurant in Auburn Joe Caribe on a date a couple days before February 14th. If your in the area I would go for sure. I had the yellow curry chicken and Matt had the Jambilaya.

For our romantic Valentines Dinner we stayed in and here's what I made. My mouth is watering just looking at the pictures!! 

First Course: Salad 

I kept it simple spinach, carrots, feta and this dressing I have been loving lately. 

• 1/4 cup vinegar (red wine or apple cider) whatever you like
• 1 tbsp mustard 
• Garlic and onion powder 
• 3/4 cup avocado oil (costco sells it now...yay) 

Main Course:  

• Filet Mignon with Red Wine Sauce (courtesy of Martha) 
• Garlic Mashed Red Potatoes
• Roasted Balsamic Vegetables 

Dessert

Molten Lava Cakes  

Aren't these adorable. They were so easy and AMAZING!! 

The espresso powder in them adds such an awesome dimension. I will now add it to everything chocolate. I did over cook them a bit but it wasn't bad. 

I hope you had a super sweet Valentines Day with your sweetheart! 

xo Ash 

I made a huge mistake...

This huge mistake began when I wanted to make a special dessert for a friend's birthday celebration. She loves lemon desserts and is a healthy eater. I was also thinking of another friend who is gluten free and thought for sure I could find a recipe for something with lemon, was gluten free and semi healthy. 

I found this recipe on pinterest and thought how cute it would be if everyone got their own little cake. 

My first mistake was thinking I could substitute gluten free flours and use my own custom mixture. I tried to save $6 by not using exactly what the recipe called for.

When I mixed everything together it smelled and looked great. However, when I poured it into the pan the batter seemed a little lumpy.

They came out of the oven a little cracked and looked dry, but I thought they couldn't be that bad. I put the sugary glaze on and couldn't wait to share my dessert. 

My second terrible mistake was bringing them and serving them (ha).

Here's a close up of the culinary delight.

I wish I could forget the looks of horror and disgust on everyone's face. Some said it tastes like beef and oregano.

The best part of the horrible mistake was that we laughed til we cried and it was probably the most memorable dessert I had ever made. 

I thought this would be a great nailed it picture. Have you seen the nailed it pics, they are hilarious. 

Hopefully my next recipe will be a success! 

Merry Christmas 

Ashley 

While the hubby was away...

Recently my husband was out of town on a business trip and lets say I had more time on my hands than usual. I went on a crafting marathon. Although I missed him it was super fun spreading all of my burlap, paper, glitter and fabric all over the house.

Here are the Smashing projects I worked on. 

I have been loving Jones Design Blog . Two of my projects were from her tutorials page. 

A Ruffle Pillow  

Ruffle Wreath : Sis in Laws birthday gift

Sparkle/Lace Pumpkins
Here they are all together. I love how the lace and ombre one turned out!!!!

Bunting Banner:

I have been seeing variations of these on pinterest but I wasn't crazy about them. There was chalkboard paint involved and it seemed time consuming and messy so instead I used chalkboard contact paper and sewed squares onto burlap.

I didn't sew the pieces on to any ribbon. I pained some small clothespins brown and they work perfect for attaching. 
I made 12 total so I can use them all year long for different holidays/special occasions. 

Our basil plant was huge this year so I made a batch of Pesto and froze it in ice cube trays. 

Pesto Recipe
4 Cups fresh basil
1 Cup grated parmesan
1/2 Cup of toasted walnuts
5 cloves of garlic
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/2-3/4 Cup of olive oil (I ended up using less)
salt and pepper

Toast walnuts at 350 for 8 minutes. In a blender or food processor combine all ingredients and add oil in gradually.
Pour in ice cube trays and freeze for a few hours. 
Pop them out and put in freezer bags.

Until next time 
xo Ashley