some of my favorite [ikea] things

One thing that pretty much everyone who knows me knows that I LOVE Ikea. Love, love, love it. If I could, I would fill and decorate my entire house with Ikea things. Of course, I don't have a house right now. Or even an apartment. But my imaginary house and apartment are completely decked out in all things Ikea. A girl can dream, right? Last weekend, I went to Ikea and seriously had to restrain myself from buying the entire store. A gray and white dish set was just calling my name -- and it was on, like, SUPER sale. However, I already have a lot of dishes. And they are all currently sitting in boxes in my parents' basement. So it wouldn't do much good to buy more dishes. It was a challenge, not placing those dishes in the cart and blissfully skipping off to the check out. Well, more like not placing the dishes in the cart and then not getting lost in the maze that is the Ikea marketplace and convincing myself that I need a silverware drawer organizer (which I also already have) or a new throw for the end of my bed. Oh, Ikea. Here are some Ikea things that I'm really digging:

1. I love these Blomster candle holders. Okay, so I don't have a dining room right now, but I think these would look really fantastic on a dining table. Or a mantle. They're so graceful and modern -- everything you could ever want in a candle holder. 

2. This pendant lamp is really pretty awesome. It's so futuristic and whimsical. If I had a living room, this would totally be in it. Or over a dining table. 

3. I am so into this gray Karlstad sofa. The lines of this sofa are so clean, simple and modern. And I've decided that when I have a living room, I want a gray couch and yellow accents. This couch as the perfect gray. Plus, it has a little bit of texture, which is perfect! Gray is such an awesome color -- I'm really into gray lately. The color pairing possibilities are endless! 

4. This pillow is so colorful and happy! The print has somewhat of a tropical feel to it, but not super tropical, like palm trees. A subtle tropical quality. And I just love that green. 

5. This little side table is so cute! I love the curved legs and the fact that there are two surfaces for things. This is an important quality in furniture.

6. I am so into rattan lately too. Hm, the tropical pillow, the rattan chairs -- is my subconscious trying to tell me something? Anyhow -- I love the natural color and quality of rattan and this chair is super comfy. It's big enough to curl up in -- also a highly important factor in furniture. 

7. These plates. Oh, how I love these plates! The pattern is so much fun and whimsical, and the light green color is just so pretty. These would look gorgeous on a dark, rustic wooden farm table or on a super sleek, modern white table. Versatile!

I'm planning on another Ikea trip tomorrow. We'll see if I can stop myself again from buying the whole store. I'm not making any promises!

best gingerbread ever [vegan, gluten free]

I was surprised at how shockingly well this gingerbread came out. It is the best gingerbread cake I have ever eaten. Seriously. I think I'm going to have to make this every year for Christmas. I was a bit skeptical about making a gluten-free-vegan cake. But I didn't want to leave out my vegan-dieted cousin (vegan-dieted? Is that even a term?) And I really wanted to be able to eat it too. Thus, a gluten-free-vegan gingerbread cake was born. And, omigosh. It. Was. Good. It came out nothing like I was expecting. I was fully prepared for this experiment to go awry and end up with a dry, dense, crumbly, tasteless gingerbread. But, no. Oh no. This was the exact opposite. Instead, I ended up with a gloriously moist cake with a perfect texture and consistency. Not too light, not too dense. Perfectly in the middle. It smelled absolutely delicious baking in the oven -- the house smelled exactly like Christmas should with warm cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. I think one of the key elements to this gingerbread cake is the lemon zest -- when you dig into the deliciousness, there's just this hint of lemon that goes so perfectly with the ginger. Oh so good. Just writing about it is making me crave a piece. I think that I'm not going to be able to wait until next Christmas to make some more; I might just have to make another cake like right now.

By the way, did you know that it is thought that gingerbread was invented by the Greeks in 2800 BC? Those Greeks. They were so inventive. However, the original meaning of the word gingerbread was quite different than what we think of today. Okay, etymology lesson of the day: gingerbread comes from the Latin word zingiber (meaning ginger) and the Old French word gingebras. Both of these simply referred to preserved ginger. But you can see how it evolved into gingerbread and the delicious cake we all know and love! All right, lesson over. Onto the recipe!

Best Gingerbread Ever
vegan, gluten free, soy free
recipe from Vegetarian Times, adapted to make gluten free

Ingredients:
2½ cups all purpose gluten free flour (I like to use Bob's Red Mill)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1½ teaspoon baking soda
1¼ teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground allspice
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
½ cup nonhydrogenized vegetable shortening (Spectrum's Organic All Vegetable Shortening is fantastic -- and soy free!)
½ cup light or dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
1 cup molasses
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 cup of boiling water

First, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper. Sift the gluten-free  flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and cloves in a large bowl. Then, beat the shortening with either a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer until it's all nice and smooth. Slowly add in the brown sugar and lemon zest to the shortening and beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Then, slowly add the mixture of dry ingredients and beat until smooth. In a glass bowl, mix the molasses and vinegar together. Then, stir in 1 cup of boiling water. Slowly add the molasses mixture into the batter. Once that's all set, pour the batter in the parchment-paper lined pan. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes, or until it passes the toothpick test (toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean). Let the cake cool a bit, then dig in! This cake is even more delicious with some whipped topping. If you're vegan and not concerned about soy, use some soy whip! Or you're vegan and you are concerned about soy/can't have dairy products or soy, then try some rice whip. Or, if you're not concerned at all with what type of topping you put on this delicious gingerbread cake, go for the Cool Whip. Or Reddi Whip. Whatever floats your boat. A lemon sauce would also be delicious! Dig in and enjoy!

Yummy!

a les mis wedding

So, last week, I saw Les Miserables with my best friend and one of her friends. Oh. My. Gosh. I loved it. I have been so excited for this movie, and it definitely lived up to expectations. I make it sound like I've been waiting for this movie for forever. I actually had no clue they were turning Les Mis into a movie until I saw a commercial for it on TV like a month ago. Maybe even more recent than that. That's what living in your own little grad school bubble will do. Well, I'm all done with grad school now, so I shouldn't have any excuses about not having a clue of what's going on in the outside world. Maybe there's a residual bubble post-graduation. ANYWAY. Loved the movie. I know that it hasn't received the greatest reviews, but shhh. Ignore the reviews. Hugh Jackman -- that man can do anything.

Afterwards, I was totally inspired to create a Les Mis-inspired wedding board. I know -- you're like what? How can such a bleak and serious story inspire a wedding? Well, it was really Cosette's dress from the wedding scene. I wanted to take that and bring it into the 21st century. Think really ethereal and romantic, traditional styles mixed with modern!

1. Start out with some gorgeous pink shades for your cheeks and lips. Dior's Rosy Glow, Healthy Glow Awakening Blush is perfect for creating that "blushing bride" look. Pair it with Tarte's LipSurgence Matte Lip Tint in Lucky for a totally soft and cherubic vibe.

2. Use gorgeous light pink and white roses paired with lily of the valley in your bouquets to up the romantic factor.

3. The super-puffy sleeves of Cosette's traditional 1800s-style wedding gown have been translated into the super-voluminous skirt of this gorgeous ball gown by Vera Wang.

4. Have your ceremony and reception by candlelight -- how romantic is that?

5. Serve petit fours on these charming plates with vintage-inspired patterns. Don't worry about being matchy-matchy -- the more mismatched, the better!

6. A top hat perfectly completes the groom's look!

7. These wedding invitations have a traditional lace overlay, but the pink ombre peeking out underneath brings a modern edge.

8. How stunning is this antique Victorian engagement ring?

And, finally -- it's not on the board, but a floral head wreath would be a fitting final touch. Either buy one or make one yourself!

flourless chocolate cake with raspberry sauce

First post of the year! Woo! 2013 -- here we are! Has anyone made any good new year's resolutions? I can't even remember the last time I did. I do remember back in elementary school, we had to write down a list of resolutions. I can't remember any of them. And I probably never actually did any of them either. I'm just so not good at making and keeping resolutions. Maybe one year I resolved to floss my teeth on a regular basis. I still don't floss my teeth on a regular basis. I'll floss my teeth for like a week, and then I'll decide to skip a day, and then it's all downhill from there. Maybe that should be my new year's resolution. I know a couple of years I've also resolved to exercise more. Pffftt. Exercise. And now here I am, posting a decadent dessert after all sorts of holiday feasting. Yup. Exercise? What. Naahhh. What you need is chocolate. You just can't go without chocolate. Plus, cocoa powder is good for you! Really. Promise. PLUS the raspberry also adds an extra boost of nutrition -- right? Raspberries are full of vitamin C and high in polyphenol antioxidants. See? Healthy. We'll just ignore all the sugar that goes into it.

Actually, I did make this flourless chocolate cake and raspberry sauce for our Christmas dinner dessert (along with a gluten-free vegan gingerbread cake -- you'll be seeing that soon!) And since my uncle is diabetic, this dessert is sugar free! (Well, sort of.) I used a mixture of stevia and agave nectar in the raspberry sauce, and stevia replaced the granulated sugar in the cake. This is just getting healthier by the second!

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce
gluten free, soy free, sugar free

Ingredients
Cake:
4 oz of Enjoy Life semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup of Earth Balance Soy Free spread
3/4 cup stevia (you might want to use less, perhaps 1/2 cup)
3 eggs
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Raspberry sauce:
16 oz raspberries, fresh or frozen
1/4 cup stevia
1/4 agave nectar (any kind)
1/4 cup water

For the cake: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8 inch cake pan (I used a spring form pan, which I think may have been a 9 inch. This resulted in a very thin, almost torte-like cake. You can certainly do this, just take the cake out of the oven sooner. You can also certainly use a regular cake pan as well. That is all. Now back to the recipe.) In a double boiler, or, like I did, a glass bowl set on a saucepan with simmering water, melt the chocolate and the Earth Spread, stirring together. Once it's all melted and and smooth, remove from the stovetop and whisk in the stevia. (You can definitely use regular sugar if you want. I would actually use less stevia next time. I simply subbed in the stevia for the sugar 1:1. However, I felt that the taste of the stevia was a little overpowering, and I think I would probably use 1/2 cup or even 1/3 cup next time. Okay, back to the recipe again!) Whisk in the eggs. Sift the cocoa powder over the mixture and whisk that in as well. Pour the batter into the pan and place it in the middle of the oven for about 25 minutes, or until there is a thin crust on top of the cake. (If you're using a 9 inch pan or spring form pan, you may want to check the cake around 15 - 20 minutes into baking.)

For the raspberry sauce: Combine the raspberries, stevia, agave nectar, and water in a saucepan. Mix it all around and bring the saucepan to a simmer, continuing to stir. Simmer for about 15 minutes, until the sauce has reduced down a bit. Let cool, and then drizzle over flourless chocolate cake and dig in! This sauce would also be awesome on ice cream or lemon cake. Or pancakes! Or waffles! Mmmm!

happy new year!

  

Well, almost. 

Happy New Year's Eve! See ya next year!

photo friday #2

My "assistant" while I was living in Savannah rearranging some things for me. How helpful!

chamomile apple tea

Can you believe Christmas is over? I can't. It's so bizarre -- for whatever reason, it really didn't feel like Christmas. I don't know if it was because the lack of snow (we got rain...fabulous), or the fact that I've been living at home for the past six months. Ever since going off to school, there was all this anticipation and build up towards going home for the holidays. Going home was the reward for all that hard work over the semester and surviving those few atrocious weeks in between Thanksgiving and winter break which were inevitably full of stress, final projects, exams, and surprise assignments (professors always seemed to love piling on even more work at the end of the semester -- why??) But then, when you made it through all of that, you got to go home and relax. Eat cookies. Drink hot chocolate.

So, perhaps that's why this year didn't really feel all that Christmas-y. I was already home. There was no anticipation or build up towards the holidays. I've been done with school since before Thanksgiving. Plus, I've been so preoccupied about finding a job that I don't think I really thought all that much about the holidays. Ugh, finding a job these days is impossible! Seriously. How do people do it? Anyway, that brings us to today's chamomile apple tea -- the perfect antidote to feeling stressed. It's nice and warm and cozy and soothing -- the perfect drink to curl up with a good book or by the fireplace. It would be absolute perfection if there were snowflakes lazily drifting down from the sky -- but, alas -- it is still raining here. Oh well -- I can always pretend!

Chamomile Apple Tea
makes about two cups

Ingredients
2 cups apple juice
2 tablespoons of chamomile flowers
A dash of cinnamon
Honey

In a small saucepan, bring the apple juice to a boil. Remove from heat and add the chamomile flowers, letting them steep for a few minutes. If you can't find chamomile flowers, chamomile tea bags will do just fine. Use one or two, depending on how strong you want your chamomile. Strain the mixture into a bowl then pour into cups. Add some honey and a dash of cinnamon for some pizzazz! Enjoy!