moodboard : rainy weekend

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what a murky weekend it's been here in new york city. besides the wind chills and constant drizzle, it's been a pretty good one. my mom and i celebrated this ominous weather by baking espresso chocolate cake and fig & walnut biscotti. yes. that's right. TWO baked desserts. 

we're still making our way through the (best-ever) chocolate cake before it goes bad. which will be easy.

since this blog is still in it's inception, this post is the first of its kind. moodboards.

colors, inspiration, lovely things, and basically anything that catches my eye when i scroll through my pinterest and/or tumblr feed. 

this moodboard is inspired by this northeast sprinkle storm. dark + natural tones, indoor baking, and fresh spring flowers, and of course, sweaters. and the somewhat mellow weather.

sweater / sea / brittle / coat / petals / mountains / fish tails

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besides this moodboard, i'd like to introduce you to someone who i've been following for a while. 

valentina, also known as tuna (boon), has become an instagram sensation.

other than being the only thing that my LA friends talk about, man, can she sing. 

this girl has so much talent, it's un-explainable.

even though i do not know her personally, she seems like such a flawless character, and it would be pretty amazing if i met her the next time i visited los angeles.

which will be soon, i hope.

please listen to one of her soundcloud posts, it's very lovely.

a few friends

although we've never encountered each other face-to-face, i have photography-savvy friends around the world. i'm oblivious to the fact of how incredibly talented, creative, and committed each and everyone one of these splendid individuals are. from the united kingdom to the san francisco bay area to nevada, these young, humorous photographers are always striving for the finest capture.

top row: henry "howl" hemulen. curly-haired dreamer of the uk. aspiring to become one of the new york city folk, and meet alice gao. we call him "crumpet man" for obvious reasons.

middle row: dominic laxague. explorer of reno, nevada. obsessive over all plants, inside and out. always talks about how one day he will visit the great iceland. constant sweater-wearer.

bottom row: will suiter. adventurer of the san francisco sea. fog-follower. i'm absolutely positive he has a crush on each and every potted succulent plant alive. we call him "fish". also for obvious reasons.

i encourage all of you to explore their accounts on instagram, and follow their journeys around the corners of the globe. each of these gentlemen have many stories to tell in their square captures, and all have a stunning view of the world.

in many ways, i am jealous of how skilled and ingenious these fellows are, and someday i hope to master the fine art of photography just as they have. i also hope to meet them all one day.

but for now, we are currently curating and laying out our ideas for a magazine: articles on pot-plants, local restaurants, food, amenities, things we adore, and of course, our own photography. 

it is still up in the air, but just know that the three of us are hard at work! i will release more information about this soon-to-be magazine in a few more weeks. for now, be sure to follow the magazine's official instagram!

until then, have a lovely start of spring!

olive oil oatmeal cookies

good morning from new york! it's been such a great weekend… baking… indoors… while the sun is out and it's the first time in months where the temperature has actually peaked 50 degrees. yup, i know, BAKING IS TOTALLY WORTH IT. the feels, people! the FEELS!

anyways, i haven't shared my favorite links from this week…

• dominique ansel has created another fad, and the sheeple (aka sheep-people. google it.) have gone at it once again

• this salad might give me superpowers. it's awesome and i need to try it.

• i might have finally found a recipe for the super-duper-good coconut curry cashews that i found at the chelsea market a few weeks ago!

• i could marry this illustration

• but then again...

my favorite song for this week is seriously amazing, and you should listen to it….

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moving on...

woahahahhhhh.

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i don't think it can get better than these babies right here.

(hint: roll over the image below with your mouse)

INSTANT BAKING. yeah, that's right. throwing some of my html skills at you.

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here we are. with these fantabulous cookies. i mean just YOU and these cookies. because once you eat them you'll be tempted to eat them ALL. 

but that's okay. *whispers* because they're healthy.

*continues whispering* and they're flourless. and vegan.

*dracula laugh*

olive oil oatmeal cookies – w/ toasted coconut, raisins, cacao nibs, and anything else you can think of

makes 12-16 cookies

adapted from mangia

1 1/2 cups rolled oats (gluten-free if necessary)

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt (or less if you don't like the sweet-salty profile)

heaping 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tbs olive oil

1/4 cup + 1 tbs unsweetened almond milk (more if needed)

1/4 cup raisins

large handful of cacao nibs

1/3 cup toasted coconut flakes (on a pan on medium-high heat, toast coconut flakes for about 3 minutes, or until golden)

00. preheat oven to 375 degrees

01. use a food processor to grind the oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and brown sugar into a fine flour

02. pour "flour" into a large bowl and fold in olive oil, almond milk, and raisins, and cacao nibs

03. gently fold in coconut flakes, as not to break them (entirely)

04. take small piece dough, and roll into a ball (be sure to taste test, just to make sure that it's not poison or anything…) and place on a baking sheet. repeat.  

05. flatten balls into round disks (unless you want baked cookie truffles, which is totally OK.)

06. bake in the oven for 6-8 minutes. i baked mine for 7.

07. eat.

healthy(er) honey-roasted cayenne almonds (+ walnuts)

goodness gracious me.

delicious, crunchy, sweet, spicy, and salt-y. (ha! it rhymes…)

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the magnifying-circle-thingys practically speak for themselves!

this honey nut mix is a delectable after school/work snack that can be made in a spiffy, (which is perfect for people with homework to do. like me).

although these may be healthier than the typical handful of candied mixed nuts, they still have a lot of sugar because of the amount of honey in the recipe. (but still, they're scrumptious, so who cares).

honey-roasted cayenne almonds (+walnuts)

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1/4 cup honey

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2-1 tsp cayenne

1 heaping cup whole almonds

1/2 cup walnuts (whole or pieces)

1+ tbs sesame seeds

1 tsp salt

01. preheat oven to 325 degrees F. line baking sheet with parchment paper

02. in a pan/skillet on low, warm honey, cinnamon, and cayenne. (make sure the honey does not burn) (note: i sprayed the pan with canola oil so that the honey wouldn't stick to the pan)

03. once honey is warm, add almonds and walnuts, and coat in the honey

04. remove from heat, and spread an even layer of the sticky nuts on baking sheet

05. sprinkle with sesame seeds and salt. bake for 15 minutes. remove from oven and let cool for at least 1 hour (or until hardened)

06. endlessly snack!

oh, clementine

hello all!

as a lot of you may have noticed, i've changed platforms. which means that this blog is no longer supported by tumblr. to celebrate, my lovely mother and i created this scrumptious clementine cake. just for all of you clementine lovers to enjoy.

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okay, i lied. this cake wasn't exactly to celebrate my only somewhat successful platform transfer, but for a little party we were throwing at our apartment for a family-friends meet last night.

either way, i'd like to think it was for my success.

anyways, just look at this cake! i don't think there is a single flaw in this cake (other than the melting glaze that ended up soaking into all of the little holes in the cake and moistening it up. wait, there's a flaw in this flaw...)

BUT SERIOUSLY. CITRUS PEOPLE! CANDIED CITRUS! and CLEMENTINES! and KUMQUATS! i'm telling you now, no faults in this (delightful and aromatic) cake. 

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just a little frosting porn (?!) for you all before adding the citrus slices… 

as well as the finished piece, whose pictures are not as cheery because of the winter-where-the-sun-lasts-ten-minutes sunlight. 

and the drip… 

and the finale...

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almond clementine cake 

adapted from call me cupcake

makes 12-14 servings

the cake:

6 clementines

6 eggs

1 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar

2 1/3 cup almond flour

1 heaping teaspoon baking powder

the candied citrus:

2 clementines

a lemon

a lime

1/2 punnet kumquats

1 cup water

1 3/4 cups sugar

the icing:

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1-3 clementines

the cake:

01. place the clementines in a pot of water (enough to cover), bring to a boil, and cook for 2 hours (submerged). drain. when cooled,  mash/chop/process (juice, pith, peel, and all).

02. preheat oven to 375 degrees F

03. butter a springform pan (8-inch, or 9-inch)

04. in a standard mixer, beat eggs. add sugar, almonds, and baking powder. mix. add in clementine mixture, mix.

05. pour cake mixture into springform, and bake for 40-50 minutes on the middle oven rack. (start checking for doneness at 35 minutes with a skewer/toothpick)

06. remove cake from oven, and let cool on a rack, (cake still in the pan)

07. once completely cooled, remove cake from springform

the candied citrus:

01. slice clementines, lemon, lime, and kumquats thinly (as thin as possible without breaking the shape)

02. bring sugar and water to a boil in a rimmed saucepan. add sliced citrus and let simmer for 20-25 minutes. remove and let cool on parchment paper.

the icing:

01. sift powdered sugar in a large bowl. cut clementines in half, and squeeze juice into bowl like a lemon. start with 1 clementine, and add more until the desired consistency is reached.

02. pour over cake, let harden.

03. add candied citrus over top

wants + wishes

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       01    /    02    /    03    /    04    /    05    /    06    /    07    /    08    /    09

Ever since discovering for my love for photography, I’ve also discovered my love for modern-antique kitchen gizmos, like the ones above.

The simplicity. The modern-esque home-y looking mugs and vases, it’s all incredibly visually appealing to me. Very. Appealing.

1. Everyone needs a handmade wheel-thrown mug in their life
2. A signed copy of Vegetable Literacy by Deborah Madison – get your education on vegetables, and eat them too
3. The Market Bag; the iconic fold and shape of a brown paper bag, now waxed and sturdy, and perfect for your lovely food goodies
4. A citrus wreath to brighten up your kitchen
5. The beautiful Folded Bowls, to fold into the palm of your hand. Perfect for feeling the warmth of your soup in the cold winter.
6. An enamel Butter Warmer. Because who doesn’t love butter?
7. A minimal stoneware flower vase for your bare dining table
8. A color-dipped baking dish – that pop of color is exactly what your kitchen’s been missing
9. Apple-a-day lamp. This quirky lamp is made from an apple juice jar, and it’s at the top of my wish list. (Says something, doesn’t it…)

These things are currently on my priority wish list (especially number 09)! The following items are available for purchase at Food52’s Provisions shop.

Hope you have a great weekend!

maple buckwheat clusters

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look at that par-fait!

it’s the recipe you’ve all been waiting for!

maple-cinnamon buckwheat clusters aka the “gold” aka izzy’s golden goodness aka i-just-created-my-own-recipe-and-i-am-so-proud-of-myself clusters.

i’ve been reading a lot of recipes for buckwheat groat granola, and a lot of them require a dehydrator, a machine that i wish i owned. and recently i’d seen gracie’s comment that said she toasted hers on a pan. so i thought “why not?”.

…although, mine are clusters…

izzy’s golden goodness maple-cinnamon buckwheat clusters

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a large quantity of buckwheat groats (you can find them in the bulk section at whole foods)

1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon

1+ tbs maple syrup

01. preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit, and line a baking sheet with parchment paper

02. on a pan at medium-high heat, toast your buckwheat groats and cinnamon, making sure that all of the buckwheat is evenly toasted

03. once toasted, pour your maple syrup over the buckwheat (the pan should sizzle, and the syrup should bubble a bit)

04. stir the buckwheat groats so that clusters begin to form. it’s okay if some of the groats don’t cluster-up

05. put your sticky buckwheat clusters on the already lined baking sheet

06. bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, or until the clusters are hard and crunchy

07. eat, nibble, and enjoy

only in brooklyn

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yesterday (or a few weeks ago), we took a trip to williamsburg, brooklyn (aka the most hipster-y hipster place that i know in all of new york). if i could live anywhere else in the city, it would be here. 

first, we headed to breakfast; to a spot you’ve most likely have already spotted on this blog.

its name: reynard , [and to this day, it’s my (second) favorite brunch spot]. 
its location: the wythe hotel on none other than wythe street on the outskirts of williamsburg. 

any place with a choice of steel cut oatmeal for brunch is bumped up to the top of my favorites list. it just so happened that reynard is one of them, and i got just that. mmmm, creamy steel cut oatmeal with sautéed apples and cinnamon. even though we could easily make this at home, it was completely worth every penny.

after our beautiful, sun-lit breakfast, we made our way to the heart of williamsburg, where we visited a few of my favorite spots:

• mast brother’s chocolate factory (where you become engulfed with the delicious smells of cocoa beans)
• the art library (home of brooklyn’s very own sketchbook project)
• handsome dan’s candy (my favorite cute candy shop ever)
• bird (where fig trees are everywhere)

i think i will be coming here again, to explore new places. until then, stay tuned.