SFS

 ( a photo of mine from the last SFS session )

I'm really excited that Miss B. is hosting another Souvenir Foto School. This session's theme is "Food + Foto" and each week students will turn in a photo of anything food related but it should be part of a personal theme. I keep wavering in my decision. Assignments are due each Sunday so I need to decide soon. And since I'll be posting each week's photo here on the blog, I thought maybe you guys could help me decide. Vote below if you don't mind!



And if you are interested, sign up for SFS here. I'd love to have you as a classmate!

Glam Gingerbread

As I mentioned...I'm so ready for the holidays this year. Can't wait to decorate, enjoy cold weather with a cup of hot cocoa and of course decorate gingerbread houses. My hubby and I have done our fair share of gingerbread houses--all via the simple kits found at any store. I'm thinking this year it would be really, really fun to take things up a notch with the Gingerhaus kits from Sur La Table. I'd love to make an entire village.

So do you have any holiday traditions that you are looking forward to?

Tasty Travels

Wouldn't it be so fun to add the Top 10 Foodie Holidays to your must-see (or maybe must-taste) list and cross them all off? It would be really neat to be able to claim you've tried them all. I've dined on two of them already: New Orleans gumbo and a NYC hot dog. Both are 100% worthy of being on the list.

I have to say pasta in Naples, Italy sounds like the best of the other 8 options to me. What would you most like to taste? Have you already sampled any of these "must-eats?"

photos from here and here

Seaside Stop

Sadly our Florida beach vacation was clouded by a bit of rain. We managed to get a few hours a day by the sea but thunderstorms sent us seeking other ways to entertain ourselves. One day we headed down the scenic 30-A to take a peek at Rosemary, Seaside and Alys Beaches. It was really neat to see how each community on the 30-A coast boasted its own unique charms.

Airstream trailers lined the streets in Seaside and served up tasty treats. My hubby checked out the goods at Barefoot BBQ. Of course I had to check out the cupcakes at Queen Bee Cupcakes.  Sweetcakes from an adorable trailer? Who can beat that?! I sampled the Red Velvet and the Vanilla Chocolate with some icy cold milk. In between the two Airstreams we visited were a few others serving up goods: Fruit Cocktail offered juices, purees and adult beverages and Frost Bite served shaved ice in unique flavors. I couldn't help but drool a bit over the Tolix chairs too!

Creole Creamery

Combine the fact that I've been to NOLA more times than I can count with my love of ice cream, throw in a few beaming reviews and I still can't figure out why it has taken me all this time to finally head over to the Creole Creamery. On this last trip I refused to head home without making a pit stop and I got my wish.

Creole Creamery has been around for years and is a favorite for locals and foodies alike. Known for their unusual and rare flavors, each batch is made with fresh ingredients and when they are gone, they are gone. The list of flavors they've concocted over the years is quite lengthy and drool-inducing.  I decided to try two scoops that were the epitome of South Louisiana--Red Velvet and Black & Gold Crunch. Of the two the red velvet was my favorite with luscious cream cheese ice cream and chunks of the New Orlean's staple--the cake. MMmmmmm!

If you are ever in the area, I highly recommend dropping by. It was a delight--especially on a record breakingly hot day in LA. Next time I want to try: Banana Malt (an ice cream flavor) and Molasses and Oatmeal Cookie. The sherbets and sorbets sound delish too. The thought of doing the Tchoupitoulas Sundae Challenge crossed my mind since the options all seemed so appetizing! Take a peek at their flavors...which would you try?

Back. Besh. Books.

Hello out there! I know you must have thought I vanished.
It was a busy week and I feel like soon I should be back on blogging track.

I just returned from spending a few days in New Orleans, one of my favorite cities and of course it was a great time. As always the case when I visit, our trip was filled with tasty meals. Before heading home I had the chance to dine at Lüke, one of John Besh's restaurants. We popped in for lunch and the chef himself stopped by too. The food at Lüke was excellent and I'd highly recommend it if you are ever in town.

John Besh himself made a pit stop at our table to say hi and I got him to autograph a cookbook to me. I'm really excited because a few of the recipes from the menu are in the book, so it will be fun to try them out at home. And if you aren't in town perhaps the cookbook would be a great addition to your kitchen! The photos in the book are beautiful and I love that it tells a bit about the Louisiana culture. Of course each and every recipe in the book looks delish so it would be a wise investment for any foodie.

Tomorrow I'll share another yummy stop. See you then!

*Note, I did not get a photo with the chef. Kind of bummed and kind of sad since I'm a photographer right?

I Scream for Ice Cream!

I seriously might scream of joy if I received something as cute as this in the mail. Ice Cream Party in the mail?!?! Are you kidding me? This has my name written all over it. Think it would be too pitiful to send one to myself?

Mind Reader

Lola and I must be sharing some sort of cotton candy brain waves. As I mentioned actual cotton candy is a little much for me, but cupcakes...I can so do cupcakes! I might just turn my home into a cotton candy cupcake stand soon. Mmmmmmmm!

Cotton Candy

Ever since I went on a little photo safari at our local carnival a couple months back I can't seem to get cotton candy out of my head. And I don't even really love the stuff. I think I just love the look of it and the nostalgia + whimsy it symbolizes.  I added a couple new prints to my shop, themed around the spun sugar.

Want more cotton candy goodness? You've got it! I've compiled a little vignette of some of my favorite fluffy candy inspired treats. Enjoy!

1. Ryan Reynold's is Sweet
2. Divine Twine 
3. Printable Cotton Candy Labels
4. A Field Journal's lovely Cotton Candy Photo
5. Cotton Candy Kid from The Black Apple
6. Aquolina Pink Sugar Perfume--with notes of Cotton Candy
7. Cotton Candy Dress
8. Candy Colored Necklace
9. Martha Stewart's Pretty Display
10. Little Sweet Treats by EvaJuliet 
11. Cotton Candy Clip/Brooch
12. Polka Dot Clutch
13. Candy Girl
14. Cotton Candy Photo

Must Make List

It is so unbearably hot here in Louisiana that cooking is not something I enjoy these days...which makes me sad! I miss it. Here are a few treats on my "must make list" this summer. No oven required!

• Pop Corn Ice Cream with Salted Butter Caramel Sauce
• Cilantro Chicken Salad
• Perfect Party Cake
• Tomato and Watermelon Salad
• Salt Water Taffy
• Watermelon Lemonade
• Avocado on the Half Shell

What's on your list to try this summer?

The Tiny Kitchen

Do me a favor...If you are near Baltimore, enjoy one of these treats from The Tiny Kitchen for me. They look so sweet!

Macaroon Love

I've been dreaming of some pillowy macaroons the past few days. Perhaps the reason I love sweets so, is that they are almost always not only tasty but pretty too! I found Shell Sheree's shop and was instantly drawn to her sweet illos of the coveted confections. Perfectly sweet!

Danger! Danger!

My tastespotting addiction yielded a very beautiful result several weeks ago when I clicked upon the stunningly lovely La Tartine Gourmande. Hours upon hours can be spent reading her tales, drooling over her recipes and sighing at the sheer brilliance of her photography + styling.

Danger, danger! Don't even think of clicking this link unless you are prepared to spend hours loving the site for its fabulousness while simultaneously loathing it for making your cooking (life, recipes, photography...insert any number of terms here) look quite bland!


All photos copyright Béa of La Tartine Gourmande.

BEST Burgers

My dad makes the best burgers in town...the best burgers around really! Summer time is the perfect time to fire up his grill and I love to reap the benefits. I found this cute print by Kelly Lasserre and thought it was too cute not to share. Besides being cute it is a perfect reminder that the little things can really make each day!

They Draw and Cook: I Love!

So glad I found the They Draw and Cook blog. Artists submit their illustrations/drawings + recipes. It is such an amazing collaboration. I'm hooked!

Honey Do's

Lately, I've been on a honey kick. I have a favorite local honey that I've stocked up on and I just love it. Did you know milk and honey helps relax you? And honey on fresh warm biscuits is to die for. Makes me so sad that the honey bees need saving. Honey = lovely + yummy. Enjoy some of my favorite honey and bee finds below...

Cup of Tea in the Morning
Honey Bee Watercolor
Bee Pressed-Glass Tumblers
Honees Candies--best candies, i l.o.v.e. them!
Bee Cookies
Tea & Honey Photograph
Bee Yourself Print
Bee Hive Cake Pan
Honey Bears

Feel the buzzzzzzz!

Happy Things

The past few weeks I've found a few items that I really love and are making me happy. So I thought I'd share them with you guys so maybe they can make you happy too.

Crest Vivid White
Having fair skin I have to work extra hard to keep my teeth looking their whitest (my dentist told me that those with fair complexions have it the worst because their skin tones make white teeth look less white). Even with a very good grade of white teeth my skin takes a bit of the glow away. So I tried this toothpaste a few weeks ago and have been using it since. I love it. It leaves my teeth feeling all slippery like I just left from a cleaning and maybe it is just me but I feel like my teeth look whiter.



Mini Nilla Wafers
They are so freakin' cute! Everything is cuter in "mini" form right? And they make banana pudding in individual glasses extra fun!

Silly Putty
Yep, I'm going on 30 and this is on my list. The other day when doing some gardening my hubby found a Silly Putty Easter egg from our hunt that was never found. Ever since I've been playing with the goopy stuff when pondering blog posts, and on computer breaks. The yellow clump sits on my desk for when I need a putty break. Okay that's pretty sad huh?


Sleep Machine App
I love falling asleep to the sound of rain. Like a sound machine in my iphone, I program this app each night and drift off to sleep and it shuts itself off. Pretty nifty.

What things are making you happy these days? Making your life a bit more fun and maybe easier? I'd love to know!


**I am not being compensated for this post, nor did I receive any free products. Just sharing the love...

Gimme a Pizza That!

So I have to fess up and admit that I have hundreds of recipes bookmarked, torn out from magazines and dogeared in the many cookbooks I own (I collect them). That's not the confession part. This is: Of these hundreds very few have I actually tried. But over the last year or so I've really made an effort to cook beyond my "regulars" and the hundreds (although still in the hundreds I'm sure) are dwindling. But as fast as I can attempt these recipes I find more that I add to the list...I'm thinking of have a tastespotting addition too but that's another story for another day. Okay, so I feel better now.



Good news is I found a recipe last that nearly made me jump out of my chair run to the store and get ingredients right that very second. It is good news because it only took me a week to find this recipe and try it. And boy oh boy am I glad I did! Last night I made the famous Pioneer Woman's pizza dough and made this tasty little number. Hubs and I had tried a pizza like this a few years ago on vacation so I knew if it tasted as good as it looked in Ree's photos it'd b good. And to quote my hubby, it was "phenomenal." The pizza dough was so easy to I'm going to be a pizza making queen now. I can't believe I waited this long to try a PW recipe.

Do you have a fave recipe that you found online, in a magazine or cookbook? Please share...I surely need to add more to my list. ;-)

P.S. Please excuse the goofy title + bad photo...the pizza smelled so good I couldn't focus on getting a good shot for fear of it cooling off before I tried it!

If You Like Pina Coladas...

Lately I've been craving pineapple like no ones business (and no I'm not preggers). I think it is a combination of the Dole Whips I had in Disney World (oh so good) and the fact that I've heard "The Pina Colada Song" no less than 5 times in the last week. Couple that with the fact that I've got my annual "beach fever" an you can probably see how pineapple would be appealing.



When spending way to much time browsing Tastespotting last weekend I came across a recipe for Pina Colada Macarons and nearly fell out of my chair. Seriously!? Tropical macarons?!? This is too much! Oh yea, and the fact that the macarons actually look a bit sandy just seals the deal. I've never tried my hand at french pastry making but now you won't be able to stop me. I predict by weeks end I'll be dining on these lovelies, listening to Jimmy Buffet and laying out in the sun in an attempt to "transport" myself somewhere tropical.

Join me?

Sour Cream Muffins

I've never been shy about my love for Sucre. Mmmmmm, just typing the name of this sweet boutique makes me drool on my keyboard a bit. Okay, anyway...they posted a recipe for Sour Cream Muffins and if they are as good as every thing else they make then I'm in trouble. I thought I'd share the wealth with you guys. Let me know if you try them/like them!



P.S. I'm working on knocking out a couple of large items off of my "30 before 30" list this week. Posting may be sparse but I'll be back on track in no time.