home-baked goodies

If I was a bath and body specialist who spent my days dreaming up lovely scents and rich creamy lotions, this is probably what my line would look like. Philosophy has some great gifts for the foodie that you are not gifting food to. The price point is reasonable and the packaging really drives the idea home. In addition to their online store, you can usually find these yummy products at Sephora and Nordstrom.

gifting goodies

I'm working on a project that involves gifts from the kitchen. There has been a lot of brainstorming and a lot of shopping for just the right details to make the ideas come together perfectly. Yesterday I was hit with a heavy dose of holiday cheer in none other than The Container Store. If there is one near you...you should go. They have an amazing selection of products to gift goodies in. Everything is very reasonably priced as well. I came home with my fair share of the store (seen above) and even more ideas for foodie gifts. My ideas are underwraps for now, but check out a few of my favorite ideas this season here.
Another splurge yesterday was this very essential shimmering sugar and luster pearls at Williams Sonoma. They don't have them listed on their website, but if you walk in the store, you must take a peek. They have every color under the sun and the shimmering sugar comes in silver, gold, and white. They are reasonably priced at $5.00 and will make cookie decorating so much fun. The luster pearls will become buttons on my gingerbread men within the hour. Off to make my men of ginger...

what a week

I'm so thrilled that December has finally rolled around. Like so many, it truly is my favorite time of the year. If only December could be 60 days instead of 31...As much as I enjoy the holidays, there just never seems to be enough time to enjoy them to their fullest. I already feel behind and it's only December 2nd!The family was in town last week and we enjoyed an amazing parade view from Robby's office followed by Thanksgiving dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in the city. (GASP!) No, I did not cook Thanksgiving dinner this year and I still feel bad about it. It's like I've committed a sin as a food lover! My family had already celebrated a homemade Thanksgiving dinner a few weeks earlier and we wanted to take advantage of every minute they had in the city. It also didn't seem very logistical when we don't own a table to eat our Thanksgiving dinner at. Oh well. I was sure that there would have been some unique novelty-like feeling about eating out on the most beloved food holiday of the year. I'm glad that we did it once, but let's just say that I've already been dreaming about what our Thanksgiving table will look like in 2010. Hopefully we'll own a table by then. (and have somewhere to put it!)I hope you all had a lovely Thanksgiving and that your turkey's were moist, mashed potatoes were fluffy, and pie crusts were flaky and golden brown. I did manage to make the cranberry salad that we snacked on throughout their stay. To kick off December, I want to post a few gifts ideas that I think would be perfect for those food lovers that you love most.I can't get over how great these food notepads are. The packaging that these babies come in really seals the deal. Originally I found these for $41.00 each! Thanks to Kelli's tip, find them here for only $2.17 a piece. Merry Christmas to me!How much fun would the grocery store be when you've jotted your items down in this good looking notepad. Each list is perforated so you can rip it right off without those ragged edges.Messy eaters in your house? A napkin has never looked so good tucked into the collar of your shirt. Currently sold out...these would be an easy project to make on your own.

That's all for today...but stay tuned this week. I'll be posting some easy holiday recipes, homemade food gift ideas and ideas for decorating your Christmas tree with goodies that come from your kitchen.

thanks

Thanks to the lovely stephmodo and Your Heart Out, I had a little feature today. My favorite part was coming up with what my favorites are. I'm clearly a sucker for all things red & robin egg blue. I've decided that red is definitely my power color and the blue softens me up just a bit.

a few favorites

Cookbooks: no one does them better than miss Ina herself (Barefoot Contessa)
Chop: my cuisinart mini-prep is perfect for everything from pico de gallo to chopped cranberries
Flavor: fresh herbs, butter, and kosher salt are staples around here
Cook: le creuset makes long lasting sturdy cookware that is also pretty to look at
Measure: I love my magnetic stackable measuring cups that stay together nicely
Tools: due to lack of space, my cooking tools sit nicely in a ceramic pitcher turned tool holder
Hands: tongs are hands down my favorite tool in my kitchen...literally acting as an extra set of hands

my kind of card

I love this literal take on a candygram. I've recently discovered the lovely blog inchmark and admire the simplicity of the ideas. Wouldn't a box full of gumballs beat out that Hallmark card for your birthday?
photos: brooke hellewell @ inchmark

chef julian

Anybody see this cutie on the Today show this morning...he is adorable! Five-year-old Julian Kreusser has his own cooking show in Portland called The Big Kitchen with Food. You can watch his segments online and the best part is when he forgets what he is talking about and asks Mom for a little help!

to do list

The new husband is out of town for 1 week in a few days so I'm starting to create a "keep myself entertained so I don't get sad to do list."

#1 on my list: watch the complete series.

dish this

I found this bookcase turned dish display hutch at IKEA for a whopping $59.00. So much better than storing lovely dishes behind cabinet doors.

yum

Visited this sweets shoppe in Boise. Scrumdidiliumptious!
p.s. still working on finishing the whirly pop

new hobby

I've always admired people who are faithful to a hobby. I think I need to pick one up...how does collecting vintage cookbooks sound?

sew sweet: moda home

First of all, the plank cooking class went great (despite smelling like a campfire for the next 48 hrs.). More tips, techniques, and recipes just around the corner.

Right now I'm in L.A. with my mom and aunt working on the wedding and trying to multitask by taking a few meetings as well. Today we came across the most darling designer line at the LA Market and I couldn't help but share it with everyone. Take a look at the amazing things this company makes. So charming and sweet!

experience: grocery shopping

I love to grocery shop. There is nothing like wandering the aisles of a fully stocked, perfectly organized grocery store while listening to the sweet sounds of Air Supply, Whitney Houston, or Wilson Phillips. (aka: Elevator Music) If you were raised on FM 100 then you know exactly what I'm talking about.

Recently a lot of people have been asking me if I ever plan to open my own restaurant. Other than the idea of bringing great food to people, owning a restaurant has really no appeal to me. Nights, weekends, holidays, food costs, employees, critics...Yikes! Although, I am developing a deep interest in owning my own grocery store one day.

Oh the ideas...

bought it

Shout out to a hometown favorite: cherries

local favorites

To wrap up my take on the cupcake, I thought I'd share a few of my local favorites. The cupcake trend seems to be finding its way even to the Salt Lake Valley.

Curious Cupcake

Sugar Rush

So Cupcake

Mrs. Backer's Bakery

Next on the shopping list...

I really want this...soon.

Curious Cupcake

I couldn't help but share a recent foodie find in Utah. I have yet to partake of these fabulous creations, but it is at the top of my TO DO list once I return to Utah. Gourmet cupcakes seem to be very trendy these days. The hottest cupcake finds here in LA include Sprinkles and Yummy Yummy Cupcakes. I have ventured to these hotspots on more than one occasion to brighten a gloomy day and I look forward to making Curious Cupcake a place for serenity in the beehive state.