Day off, plans, and foooooooood

I have to day off! A big thank you to Jessica Swann for picking up my hours today! I'm making alfajores style cupcakes, going to the bookstore, making something tasty and pasta-y for dinner, working out, and cleaning house. I also need to make arrangements for boarding Malo and Maggie this weekend, because I'm...

...going to see Anthony Bourdain and the Salvador Dali exhibit in Atlanta! Aack!

But I digress, on to food!

Ricky's london broil, with my brussels sprouts. A team effort, and a delicious dinner. I will one day master the grill, until then it will be up to him to cook beef this perfectly. ♥

Thai tofu curry with green beans, yellow bell pepper, and carrots with red curry, coconut milk, and fish sauce served over jasmine rice.

I worked late (too late!) last night, but I'm off today so it was okay. This morning I actually got to make myself breakfast, which rarely happens. An omelette (two egg, I never do three) filled with mushrooms, thyme, red bell pepper, scallions, and goat cheese, a couple of German-style breakfast sausages, and coffee in my new mug! Love it? Come on, it's a bear, you love it. Go to your local Starbucks and pick one up.

cookies, chicken, cheesecake, and interesting child palates.

Pistachio Cardamom Sugar Cookies. I used a teeny bit of rosewater in the dough. The combination of rosewater and pistachio reminds me of desserts at Indian restaurants, and that makes me happy.

Dinner last night was quick and simple. Rigatoni with chicken and broccoli in a garlic and white wine sauce. I made some garlic bread and that was that.

Dinner tonight! Ricky invited his friend Bobbie and her son Brandon over for dinner. I had no idea what to make, so I went with chicken. Chicken breasts (bone in, skin on) crisped in a cast iron skillet and then finished in the oven, seasoned with just salt and pepper. I also made wild mushroom risotto, green beans, and an arugula salad with a lemon vinaigrette. I swiped some balsamic vinegar reduction on the plate, and it was perfect with the chicken. To drink we had Gewurztraminer, the peppery notes were lovely with the arugula and the earthiness of the risotto.

My first cheesecake! Not the prettiest thing I've ever seen, but I'm proud of it.

Vanilla bean cheesecake with a little clementine zest. I love vanilla bean paste, and I use it in pretty much anything that calls for vanilla extract.

With melted chocolate on top, for Brandon. He's six. He ate everything on his plate at dinner, green beans and all. This was the only part of dinner he didn't like. Go figure!

For mine I dotted on some of the balsamic vinegar reduction. It was divine. I don't know what prompted me to eat my cheesecake with vinegar, but I'm glad I did.

I'm off to work out for the second time today (I skipped it yesterday) and go to bed. I open in the morning at work.

Oh! I got my hair cut today and I love it! My head feels about 2 pounds lighter.

I missed my kitchen

Leek and potato soup with bacon and goat cheese.

Coconut cupcakes filled with...

...saffron pastry cream. Topped with coconut cream cheese frosting and toasted coconut.

Pretty much the most delicious cupcake ever. They're on display on the lovely three tiered cake stand that Chantal and her daughter gave me for my birthday. I love it!

Pork cutlets with mustard and mushroom sauce, served over spaetzle. On the side I made Brussels Sprouts, but I shredded them and cooked them in red wine and cider vinegar with some garlic and caraway seed. Awesome, and rather German tasting.

Chicken curry. I swear, we eat this at least twice a month.

Skirt steak with pepita salsa and homemade guacamole. Also, I'm playing around with different settings on my camera. I like this one!

is this weird?

I am not pregnant.
Petunia Pickle Bottom had a sale, and they brought back a few items in discontinued patterns. My favorite is Afternoon in Katmandu, and they had this Cross Town Clutch in the pattern.
So I bought it.
I own a diaper bag, and am babyless.
Nesting much?
Look how pretty it is though!

CR♥

A really big centipede. I love bugs! Except dragonflies, as we all know.

so many monkeys!

Baby two toed sloth. It looks like a baby Yoda.

Whassa matta?

I don't know how many of you know this, but sloths are my favorite animals of all time. You couldn't hold the three toed guys, but this little two toed sloth was wrapped up in a blanket and she was perfectly content to lay in your arms and look around.Sloths are amazing animals. They're prehistoric, and there are only 6 varieties. They have no close relatives, and the next closest critters to them are armadillos and anteaters. Pretty fascinating, read about them here.

A hollow tree trunk in the rainforest at Cahuita National Park. How cool that there is a new plant growing inside?

Almond trees were everywhere, and so gorgeous

Almonds! I'd never seen them like this, so cool!

Me holding a very large grasshopper. I also ate a termite, at the suggestion of our guide, but I don't have a picture of that. I'm fun on trips. =)

Crab eating raccoon!

One of my favorite lizards, the Basilisk. They run on water, giving them the nickname "Jesus Lizard."
We're back in Florida, where it finally feels like Autumn. It's nice to be home, and to have our pets back. I miss CR already though, and I can't wait to go back!

mas CR♥

Us at the Jaguar Rescue Center in town playing with spider monkeys.

So much fun! They just jump and lay all over you. It was such a great experience.

Ricky relaxing in the hammock on the balcony.

The beach!

My new favorite beverage! Coconut water. Out of a coconut. With a straw.

Here I am riding a horse.
(Anybody?)

Happy smile freckle face

Grandma, they didn't make Mai Tais, so I got this. Close enough?

Walking along the beach I saw a pretty shell and dug it up. It was a (live) crab! I'm practically Steve Irwin.

Taking a walk.

Hammock legs. Beds are overrated. I just want to hang a big hammock in my room.

rainforest canopy zipline

Ricky's 30th birthday was on November 1st. In celebration, we went on a zipline tour of the rainforest canopy.

Here we are near the end. I don't recall why I was looking at him like that, but I think it's funny.

A wild toucan! Very cool.

I don't know what I was expecting. Dainty little lines from tree to tree maybe? This was the first line. So long! So high! What have I gotten myself into?
After the first one, I got the hang of slowing and stopping and had an amazing time! Ricky loved it too, and shot a few videos. I'm pretty sure I win the best wife award for greatest birthday present ever. ;)

Here I am with a biriba fruit. Never heard of it? Yeah, me either. It felt like goo and tasted like a mushy citrusy banana. Interesting, and fun to look at. Read about the biriba fruit here on wiki.

That's me! It was such a blast! If you ever get the chance, absolutely do this!