Paper love.

I always have a hard time finding pretty cocktail napkins but on a recent trip to Ketchum, Idaho, I visited the sweetest store, The Picket Fence, and they had an amazing selection. I quickly realized that all of the napkins were from Caspari. I bought a few that day but I also looked up Caspari on Amazon.com after I got home. I was happy to discover they sell a ton of their napkin sets! Here is just a sample of what you can find online.... I think I have a new obsession. 

Ice ice baby.

So I bought the giant ice cube tray I mentioned in this post. It totally changes your drinking experience. You can purchase your own tray here. Highly recommend it and it makes a great man gift.

Do you know the trick to making clear ice cubes? You boil distilled water, then let it cool completely before freezing.

Signs of spring.

Today marks the first day of spring. My top three favorite spring activities include a visit to the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, March Madness and Spring Break! I've got Kansas winning my bracket and am off to Sun Valley with 13 girlfriends this weekend. Fun times ahead.

Winner, winner, pasta dinner.

Brent and I were in disagreement the other night over what we should have for dinner. I wanted clams. He wanted sausage. Then I remembered this delicious pasta my mom had recently made that had both. I love it when everyone wins.

• Ingredients

• 
  

• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter

• 1 cup chopped onion

• 2 cups chopped fennel

• 1 teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed

• 1/2 pound spicy Italian sausages, casings removed

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano

• 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes in juice

• 1/2 cup dry white wine

• 2 pounds Manila clams or littleneck clams, scrubbed

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• Pasta noodles of your choosing

Preparation

Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, chopped fennel, and fennel seeds; sauté until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add sausage and cook until browned, breaking up lumps with back of spoon and stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Stir in oregano, tomatoes with juice, and wine; increase heat and bring to boil. Add clams, cover skillet, and cook until clams open (discard any clams that do not open), about 5 minutes. At the same time, cook pasta. Divide among bowls; sprinkle parsley over and serve over cooked pasta.

Friday fantasy.

It has been a big week. I started a new job and am in the process of ramping up, learning a new industry and all the names and acronyms that come with it. Let's just say there are a lot of acronyms.

I know this is a long way off, but someday, I'd like to retire and have a little house on our lake like this one from The Bunkie Co.  Doesn't that look amazing? Can you even believe it is real?

Dress for success.

We recently attended a black tie event. I didn't feel like purchasing a new dress so instead I rented one from Rent the Runway. Have you ever done that? It is a pretty amazing concept. For $150 I rented both of the above dresses and each dress came in two sizes. They also include prepaid UPS envelopes for easy returns and you get to rent your dress for four or eight days. 

Next time you need a dress for a special event, give it a try. If you use the promo code 50FIRSTRTR6592 you'll get $50 off your first order. Dress rentals start at $50 so you basically get to try the site for free!

P.S. I wore the black one. 

Let's talk turkey.

My brother and his fiancé came over for dinner last weekend. We a had a fun evening filled with turkey meatloaf, too much good wine, a not-so-friendly game of pitch and delicious desserts from La Provence Bakery.

Turkey Meatloaf with Mushrooms and Herbs

The original version of this dish calls for day-old crustless bread. I always forget to buy this item ahead of time so instead I use a fresh baguette, with the crusts on (and lots of them). That way it holds up a little better in the oven.

 

I like to cook meatloaf in a large baking dish, instead of a loaf pan. I find it is much easier to serve this way.

The measurements in this dish are pretty loose. Feel free to add more or less of any of the herbs, based on what you have on hand. You can also make this and freeze half of the uncooked meat for another meal down the road.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus additional for brushing
• 2 cups 1/3-inch cubes rustic baguette
• 1 cup low-salt chicken broth
• 8 ounces sliced button mushrooms
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 2 teaspoons coarse kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1.25 pounds ground turkey (7% fat)
• 1.25 pounds ground turkey breast

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush a large baking dish with olive oil.

Toss bread with broth in large bowl. Let stand until bread absorbs broth and softens, about 10 minutes. Mix in mushrooms, eggs, shallots, parsley, thyme, coarse salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons oil.

Add turkey; mix just until blended. Transfer to baking dish, mounding in center. Bake until thermometer inserted into center registers 170°F, about 1 hour 25 minutes. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

Dig in.

Last weekend for dinner group I made this amazing fudge pie. It was like a giant brownie where you didn't feel terrible about yourself after eating an entire slice of because it is a pie, and that is how it is served (at least this is what I told myself).

Here is the recipe from Southern Living.

Ingredients 

• 3/4 cup butter or margarine
• 3 (1-ounce) unsweetened chocolate squares
• 3 large eggs 
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted and divided

Preparation

1. Cook butter and chocolate in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring often until melted.
2. Beat eggs at medium speed with an electric mixer 5 minutes. Gradually add sugar, beating until blended. Gradually add chocolate mixture, flour, and vanilla, beating until blended. Stir in 1/2 cup pecans.
3. Pour mixture into a lightly greased 9-inch pieplate.
4. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes or until center is firm. Cool. Top each serving with vanilla ice cream and chocolate syrup; sprinkle with remaining chopped pecans.

Paint it black.

I loved my wedding shoes. They were perfect for my big day... and that was about it. How often can you really wear white satin shoes? So, I dyed them black. If you have white wedding shoes and are interested in getting some use of them, I highly suggest you do too!

In Portland, you can take them to Derek's Shoe Repair, located inside historic Morgan's Alley, on the first floor of the Morgan Building. You can also do this yourself, but it sounded to messy for me.

Rad chairs.

Brent made a serious Craigslist score this week. FIVE of these awesome chairs for only $50. Great bones and the upholstery is in pretty good shape. The color is growing on me although I'd love to recover them someday.

Currently they are living in Brent's "man shed" (on the right in the photo below) but a couple might find a permanent home in the main house.