greenhouse light

Does anyone have $1900 I can borrow? 


How awesome is this? it kind of takes terrariums to the next level. Greenhouse is by Czech designer Kristýna Pojerová. I want. 

sunday sweets {apple cider cream pie}

I haven't done a pie in a couple of weeks, so I was feeling a bit of withdrawal. Coincidentally, Food & Wine had come in the mail Saturday, and I spent a good portion of my Sunday morning pouring over the new issue, only to find an entire section devoted to fall pies. Perfect. I needed to practice my dough making skills anyway {they still need work}. 


This particular recipe is from Allison Kave and Jay Horton out of Brooklyn, and helped them win New York's Pie Bake-off in 2009. If that doesn't convince you to make it, hear this, it's freaking delicious. The crust gave me a bit of a hard time {as most do}, but it ended up being quite good despite my having made it. The custard is amazing, you can totally taste the bite of the apple cider, and then the whipped topping is ridiculous, probably my favorite. I'm a huge fan of cinnamon so anything with even a hint of it, and I'm sold. 


Seriously, try this, it's so good, and it's something different for fall. 


Ingredients:
Crust:
1 cup all- purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" dice and chilled
3 tablespoons cold milk
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar


Filling and Topping: 
2 cups apple cider
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup sour cream 
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs 
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon


Directions:

1. MAKE THE CRUST In a food processor, combine the flour, cornstarch, sugar and salt. Add the butter and pulse in 1-second bursts until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Combine the milk and vinegar and drizzle it on top. Pulse in 1-second bursts until the dough just comes together. Turn the dough out onto a work surface, gather up any crumbs and pat into a disk. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.
2. On a floured work surface, roll out the dough to an 11-inch round, a scant 1/4 inch thick; ease it into a 9-inch glass or ceramic pie plate. Trim the overhanging dough to 1 inch and fold it under itself. Crimp decoratively and chill the crust until firm, about 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 425°. Line the crust with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake in the lower third of the oven for about 15 minutes, until the crust is barely set. Remove the parchment and pie weights. Cover the edge of the crust with strips of foil and bake for about 15 minutes longer, until the crust is just set but not browned. Press the bottom of the crust lightly to deflate it as it puffs; let cool. Lower the oven temperature to 350°.
4. MEANWHILE, MAKE THE FILLING AND TOPPING In a medium saucepan, boil the cider until it's reduced to 1/2 cup, about 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and let cool. Whisk in 3/4 cup of the sugar, the sour cream and salt, then whisk in the eggs.
5. Pour the custard into the pie shell without removing the foil strips. Bake the pie in the lower third of the oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until the custard is set around the edge but the center is slightly jiggly. Let the pie cool completely.
6. In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the heavy cream with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar and the cinnamon until firmly whipped. Mound the cream on the pie, cut into wedges and serve.

Enjoy!

have a wonderful weekend!

This week has left me exhausted, but really excited to get some things done. I will be productive. I will be productive. Fingers crossed!


Around the web:
1. One of my favorite blogs, For Me, For You {Kate Miss} is in the midst of my personal nightmare. Serious health problems, without insurance. Kate and her boyfriend Will are both extremely talented artists and are selling some goods via etsy to help fund medical bills. Visit the shop, and help out by purchasing some awesome {and totally affordable} art. 
2. I wish with all my heart that this were real. 
3. Freaking amazing back tattoo. 
4. Movies and food. 
5. FACT: Sweaters seem more cozy with elbow patches.
6. <3 Amy Poehler. 

farm anatomy

Julia Rothman is one of my favorite illustrators. I have a couple prints in the house, and I love her repeat patterns. She just released this book Farm Anatomy: The Curious Parts and Pieces of Country Life, full of her whimsical illustrations and information about living on a farm. I can't wait to pick it up! 

happy place.

Feist's album "Metals" came out today {dropped?} and I couldn't be happier. Listening to this put an immediate smile on my face. 

The other thing to make me smile this afternoon was this clip from the Being Elmo documentary. I love Sesame Street, I love Elmo... and I don't care who knows it. This just looks so sweet. 

sunday sweets {special buddies' addition}

In addition to the pumpkin spice latte, I wanted to make something for my special canine buddies. I still had some grains left over from Jacob's brew a couple of weeks ago, I had frozen them to make more cookies, but I thought treats for the dogs might be more generous. These are super easy, and I think they're pretty delicious, Bruce and Franklin seemed to really enjoy them.


Ingredients:

Original recipe: 4 cups spent grain {you can use oats if you don't have grains} 2 cups flour 1 cup peanut butter {all natural} 2 eggs Directions: 1. Mix all ingredients thoroughly.  2. Press down into a dense layer on a large cookie sheet. Score almost all the way through into the shapes you want.  3. Bake for about half an hour at 350 F to solidify them.  4. Loosen them from the sheet, break the biscuits apart and return them, loosely spread out on the cookie sheet, to the oven at 225 F for 3 to 4 hours {or until they are really dry} to prevent mold growth. Store in an airtight container to keep them dry and mold-free.

sunday sweets {pumpkin spice latte}

This weekend actually felt like fall. The nights dropped to a brisk 55 and the days stayed in the low 70's, high 60's. For Savannah that is fall, so it felt amazing. My favorite thing to do when the weather is like this, is to get up early and have coffee outside. 


On Sunday I got up and had my coffee, but when I was finished I was craving something else, something fall-ish. So, instead of driving to Starbucks for one of their pumpkin spice lattes, I decided to make them come to me. This recipe allows you to recreate the favorite drink at home. It's a little less sweet, which I like, but you can add sugar. 

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon canned pumpkin

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup milk
1/2 cup of coffee {i used Green Mountain's pumpkin spice, to add even more pumpkin flavoring, but you can use regular}
cinnamon, nutmeg, or pumpkin pie spice for sprinkling over the top

1. In a saucepan, heat milk and pumpkin until steaming, or mix the milk and pumpkin in a 2 cup measuring cup and microwave for 2 1/2 minutes.2. Stir in vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Pour the milk mixture in a blender, and blend 20 seconds until it's frothy and foamy.
4. Pour into a mug, then add coffee.
5. Add sugar to taste, if you like.
A sprinkle of nutmeg, cinnamon, or pumpkin pie spice over the top.

Enjoy!