Happy Valentine's Day

Let's be together forever.

You are my best friend and the greatest man I know.

For realsies.

THE GREATEST!

Happy Valentine's Day my sweet love.

I love you Danny

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Amaretto-Soaked White Chocolate Dipped Cherries

 

40 fresh cherries
750 mL bottle of amaretto (about 3 cups)
12 ounces white chocolate chips
Vegetable oil

With a knife, make small ¼-inch cuts into the bottom of each cherry. Place the cherries into mason jars, filling each jar about ¾ of the way full.
*(If you are making these for a party and you don't want to bother your guest with cherry pits, try using needle nose pliers to carefully pull out each pit where you cut your X).

Fill each jar with amaretto to just cover the cherries. Close each jar securely, and shake gently for 10 seconds before placing into the refrigerator. Let cherries soak overnight, or up to 48 hours.

Strain the cherry mixture (you can reserve the slightly cherry-flavored amaretto for cocktails) into a colander. Pat down each cherry with a paper towel or cloth until each one is dry.

Melt white chocolate chips in the microwave, adding vegetable oil as needed. Stir well to create a chocolate coating.

Dip each cherry into the white chocolate coating. Let excess chocolate drip off before placing the cherries on to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or silpat mats.

Refrigerate for at least 15 minutes before serving. Keeps best in the fridge for up to 1 day.

 

Adapted Recipe and Pictures from Formal Fringe.

A Romantic Dessert Served On The Titanic: Baked Apples With Custard And Meringue

This beautiful dessert was served on the Titanic in 1912  –– Apple Meringue. Baked apples and creamy custard with an ethereal meringue. 

Ooooh how romantic!

This post comes to you by the very talented lostpastremembered. You should check out her fascinating post on heroes and cowards, love stories and tragedies of the Titanic.

I'm thinking about making Danny this for our Valentine's dessert

xoxo

 

Baked Apples With Curtard And Meringue

 

Serves 4

 

2 Lbs apples peeled, cored and sliced

2 T butter

¼ to 1/3c sugar (to taste, the custard and meringue are sweet)

Juice of 1 lemon

3 egg yolks, beaten

3 T sugar

pinch salt

1 3/4 c of scalded milk (whole milk)

1/2 t vanilla

 

 

5 egg whites

5 T sugar

pinch cream of tartar

Melt the butter, lemon and sugar and toss with the apple slices. Bake the apples at 350º, covered,

till soft but not mushy, 30 - 40 minutes, tossing a few times. Drain the apples. You can reduce the liquid to a thick glaze and put in the bottom of your container but if you don't drain them the custard will be too liquid. Fill oven proof dishes 1/3 to 1/2 full of apples, to your taste.

Combine the yolks and sugar and beat until smooth. Add the salt and scalded milk. Pour it over the apples. Place the custard apple cups in a deep baking pan and fill the pan with water until the cups are half submerged. Bake at 350º until the custard is mostly firm about 50 minutes. Chill.

 

 

Combine egg whites, sugar, and cream of tartar in a large mixing bowl. Beat on high until the sugar granules have dissolved and the meringue can hold stiff peaks.

 

When apple custard is cooled, pipe or spoon the meringue on the top and put in a 350’ oven for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

 

Recipe adapted from lostpastremembered.

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True Food: Cucumber Honey Lemonade

Danny and I went to True Food Kitchen with some friends; it's this great new great restaurant by Dr. Andrew Weil. "True Food Kitchen is about flavor, freshness, variety, quality, nutrition and balance. It’s about enjoying healthy whole foods that are rich in vitamins and minerals."
Their entire menu is centered on the principals of Dr. Andrew Weil’s Anti-Inflammatory Diet & Food Pyramid. According to Dr. Weil: “Following an anti-inflammatory diet can help counteract the chronic inflammation that is a root cause of many serious diseases, including those that become more frequent as people age. It is a way of selecting and preparing foods based on science that can help people achieve and maintain optimum health over their lifetime.”

Sounds good to me!

I ordered a delicious mushroom pizza with a lemonade cucumber refresher made with cucumber, honey and lemons.

Here's how to make it.

*You'll need a juicing machine for the cucumber...

Yields 2 drinks:

2 Small Lemons

4 Tablespoons Honey

1/2 Cucumber*

3 Cups of Water

Ice

Squeeze the juice of 1 lemon into a glass.

Add 2 talbespoons of honey into each glass.

Add 1 ½ cups of water to each glass.

Stir until honey has disolved.

(add more water, lemons or honey to taste -- some people like it sour some like it sweet)

Thinly slice 4 rounds from your cucumber for garnishing and set them aside.

*Place 1/2 of a cucumber into your juicing machine and set juice aside.

Add ice to each lemonade cup.

Pour the green cucumber juice over the top of the honey lemonade and add  your cucumber slices.

Drink up.

P.S. Here are some pictures of True Food Kitchen...

DIY: Bracelet Making Board

Ummm why didn't I think of this?

SO SIMPLE.

 I have always tied the loop to my shoelace or placed it under a stack of books when I make bracelets.This looks much easier!

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Hollywood Hike

Dan and I hiked to the Hollywood sign with a few of our friends last Saturday. It's an easy 4.3 mile hike with amazing views! After our hike we went to Mashti Malones for some tasty herbal ice cream.

Shanny and Me

A 360 view of LA!

Danny

Some Friends!

The Griffith Observatory in the distance.

Mashti Malone!

I love Mashti's!

My favorite is Herbal Snow -- rose water ice with basil seeds, lemon, cardamom and Arabian gum!They also have creamy rose, lavender, saffron, pomegranate, faludeh, sour cherry, orange blossom, and green tea.

It was a fun morning.

Dueling Piano Bar Night With My Ladies

We had a girls night out at the Derby Dueling Piano Bar for Kels and Julia's Birthday. Fun stuff -- complete with an embarrassing birthday dance in front of the the whole bar to "Baby Got Back". Ha-ha I wonder who requested that?

Derby has the best cheesecake EVER! So yummy and rich with a graham, toffee crust!