heart-shaped donuts

Valentine's Day is just around the corner and what better way to show your honey how much you care by making homemade heart-shaped donuts! I used this recipe for the dough (and used a heart-shaped cookie cutter in place of the traditional donut shape) and another recipe for the strawberry glaze. My favorite part of the process was surprisingly, not eating them, but making the dough. It was exciting to find the dough all fluffed up from rising overnight, and the same excitement came after cutting all the hearts out and seeing them rise again. I added fun sprinkles on some of the donuts to make them a bit more festive for the occasion. The only thing I'd do different this time is probably make some with a chocolate glaze on top and some with a cinnamon sugar coating to mix it up a little.

after the rain

Talula Trooper jacket, James Perse sweater,

Bebe black denim (old), Kamik rain boots

After a pretty long dry spell, we're finally getting some rain again. It rained for a good portion of the morning but by noon the skies had cleared and the sun came out. I know Hunters are one of the more popular rain boots, but I think Kamiks are just as nice, if not nicer. They are super comfortable and come in really pretty colors like eggplant purple and gemstone teal (yes, I made those names up). They also carry them in wild, fun prints too! This jacket is also a great staple to have and in this dirty army green color it's the perfect neutral to wear with just about any outfit (although if it was an all day downpour and I had to walk blocks in the rain this jacket wouldn't do). I just realized that I'm wearing two Canadian brands and they just so happen to be my favorite brands. Gotta love Canada, eh?

a short and SLO holiday

Last week I took a short trip down to San Luis Obispo for work. SLO is a quaint college town, and what I love about visiting besides the obligatory visit to Firestone Grill (for their amazing tri-tip sandwich) is the short drive to the coast, Pismo Beach. The weather was gorgeous while we were there, and before heading home I made sure to stop by the coast for a bit. This time, we happened upon this gorgeous lookout spot where you could see the ocean and beach from the cliffside. It appears that it's a good spot for surfing, fishing, and parachute jumping off of cliffs, but we just soaked in the sunny weather and breath-taking view. If ever in the area, I would definitely recommend checking out the quaint town of SLO as well as checking out Pismo Beach and having some clam chowder at the famous Splash Cafe. After that, go exploring and head a little North along the coast and you may just find yourself at the best lookout yet.

chocolate butterscotch pot de creme

I've been wanting to make this dessert ever since dinner a few years ago at Town Hall. It's the most delightful cream dessert. Smooth, silky, rich, sweet, and even better homemade. I found the recipe here and while it was pretty spot on, I would add more butterscotch chips to the recipe especially since you only use a bit of the butterscotch on top of the chocolate layer. Because the recipe doesn't require you to actually cook this in the individual ramekins themselves, it means you can put it in any cute jar or pot you want and that's exactly what I did. While the name itself Pot de creme (poh-de-creme) sounds super fancy and a bit intimidating it was an easy recipe to follow and is sure to impress guests at your next event. I took mine to yesterday's Super Bowl party (let's not even talk about how the niners played), but was sure to save a few at home to enjoy for myself- wonderful.