DIY Sunglass Holder

DIY Sunglass Holder

 

Derika celebrated her birthday a couple of weeks ago, so I can finally post this DIY Sunglass Holder that I made for her. I don’t know if you remember, but Derika and I went a little sunglass crazy when we were on our Cape Cod trip.

 

Sunglasses

 

I am sure that some of you are wondering why it is necessary to have more than one pair of brightly colored sunglasses. I feel that you can never have too many sunglasses and I/we love to coordinate. Since our trip, these sunglasses have been hanging out on our dresser, which works just fine for optimal sunglass to outfit coordination. However, when you have to move one million sunglasses in order to dust the dresser, it can get kind of annoying. I love homemade gifts and had my heart set on making at least one thing for Derika for her birthday. So to get inspired, I started scootin’ around Pinterest and came across a couple of different versions of sunglass holders. They all looked pretty simple to make, but as I was gathering supplies for this project, I ended up altering my version a bit based off of what I already had at home to work with.  This whole project was super easy and only cost me $12…Winning! Derika loved her gift and dusting the dresser is now a breeze! Follow my simple steps below to make your own.

Here is what you will need…

 

Supplies

 

Supplies

 

Directions

1. Remove the glass from the picture frame and flip it over.

2.  Depending on your frame size, you will need to decide there you would like to screw in your 4 eye rings.

 

Eyehook in frame

 

*Note –  I got some of my sunglasses out, and measured the distance between where each wire would hang, so that when the glasses hung on the wire they would not be touching.  If you don’t get the placement right the first time you can always move your screws.

 

eyehook placement boxes

 

3.  Attach your wire to the eye screws.  Make sure you cut the wire long enough so that you can wrap it a few times around the eye screw. If you find that your wire is a bit loose once you attach it to the eye screw, just give the screw a half turn or so to tighten the wire.

 

Wire on frame

 

That is all there is to it! Have fun making a sunglass holder for yourself and for you friends for X-mas!  I can’t believe I am already thinking about the holidays, where did summer go?

 

Happy Crafting!

 

 

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Spicy Garlic Fridge Dill Pickles

Spicy Garlic Dill Pickles

 

I am back and I am sorry for my absence! I have been having a little bit of technical difficulties with my trusty MacBook. The track pad decided to have a mind of it’s own, and it made it almost impossible to do anything. The track pad kept trying to send random emails to everyone that I know, and it constantly changed the size of the images on my computer screen…super annoying! Let’s just say that I could not get anything done and that I am really grateful for AppleCare!

In other news, I felt the first nip of fall in the air yesterday and it has sent me into full panic mode to embrace every last ounce of summer. I love all of the summer produce, and I just wish that I could keep it around all year long. This desire has forced me to dabble in a bit of pickling and canning.  Some things have turned out and others have not. I was at the grocery store yesterday wallowing in my sorrows of the impending winter, when I spotted a mountain of Kirby cucumbers that were just begging to come home with me. So I loaded up my basket and decided to attempt my first ever refrigerator pickles. The pickling gods must have been shining down on me, because they turned out like a dream! Here is what I came up with.

Dill Pickle Supplies

Ingredients

  • 6 smaller, fresh Kirby (pickling) cucumbers
  • 3 tsp. kosher, coarse or pickling salt (I used Diamond)
  • 3 TBS Fresh Dill, chopped
  • 6 Cloves Garlic, peeled and smashed
  • 2 Small Hot Peppers of your choice, tops removed
  • 1 C White Vinegar

 

Directions

1. Slice your cucumbers very thin. I sliced mine about 1/8 to 1/4-inch because I like my pickles to be on the crispy side.

 

Pickle Thickness

 

2. Place the cucumbers in a 1-liter lidded jar.

3. Add the salt, dill, peppers and garlic to the jar, then pour in white vinegar.

 

Pickle Ingredients in a Jar

 

4. Close the jar and give it a few shakes to begin distributing the ingredients.

 

Dill Pickles in a Jar

 

You’re going to find the liquid level pretty low, but try not to stress out. Within an hour or two, the cucumbers will wilt and release some liquid, the liquid in the jar should become a perfectly balanced pickle brine cover the pickles. If this does not happen don’t worry, just add more vinegar until the cucumbers are covered.

Place jar in the fridge, and try to shake it the next few times you are back in the fridge. You can eat them as little as 2 hours later, but they become super tasty about 8 hours. They’ll keep in the fridge, submerged in their brine, for 3 weeks, but I doubt they will last in the fridge for that long.

Happy Pickling!

 

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Eat and Drink in Santorini

Eat and Drink in Santorini
Ahhhhh, Santorini…I can’t think about you and not want to go back!  I also crave a glass of chilled white wine and a warm bowl of fava dip, whenever you enter my mind.  Santorini is famous, food-wise, for a few things:  yellow split peas, tomatoes, and wine to name a few. The white wine grapes are called Assyrtiko, and you can see them growing all over the island. The most common way to prepare yellow split peas is a dish called “fava.”  Fava has nothing to do with fava beans.  It only uses yellow split peas.  (Fava beans are used very rarely in Greece, because a significant chunk of the population is allergic to them.) As for the Santorini tomatoes, you will find them in all of the salads, and see them growing all over the island.  I actually think that they are the best tomatoes that I have ever had…Sorry Midwest!

When Derika and I are on vacation, we have a list of things that we would like to see and do. If we are not checking items from our list, we are lounging by the pool and/or beach, or we are eating and drinking our way through our vacation spot.  This is why I needed to do a separate beverage and food post in addition to the “9 Must Do Travel Adventures in Santorini.”

Below you will find a list of our favorites from our time that we spent eating and drinking our way through Santorini. If you want to find the website for the location, I have linked each site to the underlined title of each favorite. Enjoy!

Restaurants

(in alphabetical order)

Dionysos in Atlantis

This was the first restaurant that we stopped in on our first trip to Fira.  We ended up popping in here for lunch, because I saw that they had Domatokeftethes aka Tomato Fritters.  I have never had a tomato fritter and I soon realized that you could get tomato fritters at most restaurants in Santorini. This restaurant was average, but it looks like they are going to be opening a Santorini Brewing Company tasting room in the front of the restaurant in the near future.  It would be a good place to stop, if you can’t actually make it to the Santorini Brewery and why not try the tomato fritters while you are there. 🙂

 

 

 II Cantuccio

On the last night of the trip, I was really craving pizza.  So Derika and I popped into II Cantuccio in Firastefani for some Italian food. Derika got the pesto pasta and I got the pizza. It was a little different from what you can get in NYC, but I loved it!

 

 

Lucky’s Soulvakis

If you want a proper gyro while you are in Santorini, you need to stop at Lucky’s in Fira. They were soooo good and cheap, I wanted to eat one every day. A proper gyro is kind of like a California burrito; it has a bunch of meat in it (or falafel in my case) topped with feta, veggies, tzatziki, and French fries all wrapped into a toasty warm pita. YUM!

 

 

Mama Thira’s

I read a ton about this restaurant before we actually made it to Santorini, so it was for sure on our list to check out.  What really got me excited was the view from the restaurant, and their emphasis on fresh and local cuisine.  Everything that we had tasted like a Greek grandmother was cooking us stuff that she caught and harvested that day. The servers were super welcoming and I am still thinking about the truffle ravioli.

 

 

Sea Side by Notos

This restaurant is located in Perivolos and is super fancy.  We just strolled in for a beverage after a lovely day in Perissa. We didn’t eat here, but if you want a romantic dinner, I would highly recommend this place. Whoever decorated Sea Side; put a lot of time, effort and money into this place… it is gorgeous!  It is what you would imagine the most epic beach bar/restaurant to look like in your dreams, but this place actually exists!  I wish we were hungry, just so I could order something here. I think that if we had more time we would have definitely come back.  Instead we saddled up to the bar and ordered a cocktail.  I then had the bright idea to order an ouzo shot because I have never had one.  I am not a huge fan of black licorice; so I don’t know what I was thinking…you can see what I thought of it below 🙂

 

Ouzo Shot

 

Onar

Our first night in Santorini, we ended up strolling towards Fira and landed at Onar in Firastefani, because we wanted to just relax and take in the view.  We ended up staying for a great cocktail and some fava dip.  This is where I first fell in love with the fava.  I actually ended up buying some dried fava beans, from a local vendor near Onar. I am hoping that I can recreate this amazing dip!

 

 

Sunset Taverna

While we were in Amoudi Bay in Oia, we had lunch at a seaside restaurant called Sunset Taverna.The view was beautiful and Derika swears she had the best mussels of her life here. My salad was pretty amazing as well. It was exactly what we needed before seeking out the swimming hole just around the corner from this restaurant.

 

 

Tranquilo

My favorite restaurant on the island! Before our trip I did a little restaurant research, because I was a little paranoid that the food was not going to be vegetarian friendly.  Gosh, how wrong I was! This vegetarian probably ate the best on this trip, than any other vacations that we have ever been on!  During my research I stumbled upon Tranquilo and I put it on the MUST EAT HERE LIST! They had vegetarian options, and I loved how colorful the restaurant looked.  All I have to say is that during the whole trip this is the only place that we ate at twice and we ordered the same thing both times!  The salads are huge and everything that we had there tasted fresh.  The view of the Mediterranean Sea did not hurt too much either! I highly recommend the tabbouli salad, the hummus, and the falafel pitas with the fried local white eggplant…Sooooo Good!

 

 

Final Foodie Tips!

 

 

Bars, Wineries and Breweries

Santorini Brewing Company

On the only day we rented a car our first stop was at the Santorini Brewing Company.  We loved the donkey labels and had been drinking the beer throughout our trip, so it only made sense to go and visit the brewery.  They offer free tasting and a small tour of their facility, which is the only brewery on the island. We chatted with the lady at the brewery and she gave us 3 recommendations for wineries that we should check out, and two of them were walking distance from the brewery!  Winning!

 

 

Canava Roussos Winery

The first winery that we checked out was Canava Roussos.  It had a lovely patio, so we decided to get two flights to see what they had to offer.  We really enjoyed the wine and the little snacks that they served with it.  Our favorite snacks were the yummy Santorini tomatoes and the tomato paste…even thought I thought the tomatoes did not really go with the wine.

 

 

Argyros Winery

From Canava we walked to Argyros and made it there just before they closed.  We loved all of the wines they had to offer and we especially loved the dessert wine and homemade chocolate paring. The chocolate was actually made out of wine. We did not get any chocolate to go, because unfortunately it was way too hot to cart chocolate around.

 

Dani with Argyros Sign

 

Gaia Winery

Our favorite winery of our whole trip was Gaia winery (pronounced Yay-yah), because it was on the beach…how can you not love a winery right on the beach! They do wild fermentation for some of their wines and the view is so picture perfect. We caught them just before they closed, so after our free tasting, we decided to buy a bottle and head to the beach.  We were the only ones on the beach, which was a nice treat!

 

 

Santo Winery

After ALL of the fun at Gaia Winery, we raced to Santo Winery so that we could check out the sunset and have a nightcap.  Ok, so this place is kind of a tourist trap, but it is so so huge, you barely even notice all of the other people there.  Also the sunset here is probably one of the best on the island and should not be missed!

 

 

Palia Kameni

We stumbled upon this lovely bar after checking out the kissing fish spa (weird, but do it!) This was one of Derika’s favorite places that we stopped at the whole trip.  The cocktails were super fancy and the view was something that you see in photos.  I just wanted to hang out there all day and enjoy the picture perfect view and their frosty beverages!

 


I look forward to hearing what you get into on your trip and hope you enjoy the suggestions. I could really go for a frosty beverage and a sunset right now after all that writing about it!

Cheers!

 

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Homemade Sriracha

Homemade Sriracha

 

Yup, I went there…I made homemade Sriracha that you will want to put on ALL of the things. I will be the first to admit it that I have a hot sauce addiction. I currently have 10 hot sauces hanging out in my fridge, and I welcome anyone that wants to share their favorites with me.

My current favorite hot sauces are Cholula and Gringo Bandito, but I have a large place in my heart for the almighty Sriracha.  I mean Sriracha is like the Lady Gaga of hot sauces, and all of the other hot sauces are just trying to make their own way, but they keep on getting compared to Lady Gaga.

Cholula has been on the top since day one of my hot sauce love, I fell in love with Gringo Bandito when we were living in San Diego, and Sriracha snuck in when we were living in Seattle. Seattle has a decent sized Vietnamese population where you will find some of the best pho of your life.  I had no idea what a pho (pronounced: fuh) was or what a Sriracha (pronounced: see-ROTCH-ah) was until my first Vietnamese experience and there was no turning back.  Just recently I noticed that Sriracha has a bunch of preservatives in it, and that doesn’t make me super excited.  I am not going to stop eating it, I just thought that it would be fun to see if I could make my own without all of the mystery ingredients in it.  I also know that my homemade version will not last months in my fridge, but I don’t expect it to be around that long to go bad.  Below is the secret to my hot sauce madness…enjoy and I can’t wait to hear what you think!

 

Fresno Peppers

 

Ingredients

  • 1.5 Cups Fresno Peppers or Red Jalapeno Peppers, stemmed, seeded, and roughly chopped (Wear gloves when chopping and set seeds aside)
  • 4 Fat Cloves of Garlic
  • 1/2 Cup Sweet Onion, roughly chopped
  • 1 Tsp. Ghee/Vegetable Oil
  • 1 15 Ounce Can of Tomato Sauce
  • 1 TBS Tamari
  • 3 TBS Rice Vinegar
  • 2 TBS Honey

 

Directions

  1. Remove the stems and chop the peppers removing most of the seeds.  Set the seeds aside. Use your rubber gloves for this whole process…I learned the hard way 🙂
  2. Add the chopped peppers to the bowl of a food processor/blender fitted with a regular blade and process for a few seconds until they are finely minced, then scrape into a bowl.
  3. Add the chopped garlic and onion to the food processor and also process until finely minced.
  4. Add the ghee to a sauté pan on medium high heat and add the garlic and onion and cook for about 1-2 minutes or just until fragrant, stirring so they don’t burn.
  5. Add the chilies and the tomato sauce, some seeds (go light on the seeds, you can always add more) bring to a simmer, and then lower the heat.
  6. Add the tamari, rice vinegar and mix well.
  7. Bring to a boil and simmer for about 5 minutes, then remove from the heat and let cool completely.
  8. As the sauce is cooling stir in the honey.
  9. Transfer the sauce to a blender and blend until the sauce is smooth and the pepper seeds and skins have been completely incorporated. Make sure your space is well ventilated when you are doing this…just sayin’.
  10. Taste the sauce and add more honey, tamari, vinegar and seeds to taste. If the sauce seems extra thick add a teaspoon or two of water to loosen it. Blend again then pour into a sterilized jar or container.
  11. Refrigerate for up to 1 month.

 

Sriracha without text

 

Boom!  Homemade Sriracha!

 

Sriracha

 

I have been putting this sauce on everything and I am already gearing up to make my second batch. Now I just need to figure out if I can can this stuff so that I can enjoy it throughout the winter

Enjoy!

 

 

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5-Minute Pesto

5 Minute Pesto
Oh my god, it is basilpalooza at the farmers market and I am in love!  I am obsessed with basil and I wish that it were available in this quantity all of the time. Since it is not I have to find a way to capture this magical summer gift, so that I can enjoy it year round. This is where the 5-minute pesto comes in. I can’t stand to see the basil that I buy go bad, but there is no way we can eat that much before it does. To solve this problem, I have been whipping the basil up into a quick and easy pesto that I have been freezing to enjoy at my own pace.

I have been messing with my pesto recipes for years and I always seem to over complicate it, and it never seems to turn out right. I finally decided to take a few steps back and just start by combining the 5 basic ingredients that make up a good pesto. To my surprise I did not have to do much more than that…well maybe just add a little salt and pepper! So stop toasting your pine nuts and investing in fancy Parmesan cheese and go back to the basics. You will probably be able to make the pesto quicker than you can read this recipe 🙂

Pesto Ingredients

 

Ingredients

  • 1.5 Cups Fresh Basil Leaves
  • 4 Cloves Garlic, peeled
  • 3 TBS Pine Nuts
  • 1/3 Cup Fresh Grated Parmesan
  • 1/3 Cup Olive Oil
  • Kosher Salt and Freshly Ground Black Pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Combine basil, garlic, pine nuts and Parmesan in the bowl of a food processor or a Vitamix blender.

2. With the motor running, add olive oil in a slow stream until the sauce is blended to your desired consistency.  I find that I like mine a little chunky so I blend it just before it turns into a paste.

3. Add salt and pepper to taste and more olive oil if you need to thin it out a bit.

4. Store your pesto in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week or freeze it in small containers and thaw it our as you need it throughout the next few months.

 

Zucchini Noodles with Pesto

 

Slather your pesto onto sandwiches, salads or over your favorite noodles!

Enjoy!

 

 

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9 Must Do Adventures in Santorini

Santorini
Derika and I just returned from an amazing vacation in Santorini.  We went for 10 days to celebrate our 10-year anniversary and our 3-year wedding anniversary. I can’t believe how quickly the time has gone…10 Years!  Santorini has been on both of our bucket lists for over 10 years now and I can tell you that it was worth the wait. We decided instead of island hopping that we would just relax and spend the whole time in Santorini. I did want to go and check out the other islands, but there is something so nice about arriving to a travel destination that you know you are going to be at for an extended period of time. It gives you some time to relax, and really get comfortable with your surroundings.

Instead of doing one huge post to cover all of the amazing things that we did over the 10 days, I thought that I would break it down into a few posts.  Below you will find a quick overview of my “9 Must Do Adventures in Santorini.” Make sure to click on the photos, because each section has its very own gallery with captions. 🙂

 

1. Take a Sunset Sailing Tour

Our actual anniversary is 4th of July, which happened while we were in Santorini, so I wanted to do something special for that day. When we travel I never really book any adventures in advance. I usually just research the heck out of a location, and make a list of all of the things that I would like to do. This way the vacation can happen organically, and when we are looking for something to do we can just refer to my handy-dandy list. Since I wanted the day of our anniversary to be a little special, I decided to book a sunset catamaran sailing adventure. This was one of two things that I planned in advance for our whole vacation. It was also the only day on the island that we experienced gale-force winds and white cap waves…go figure!

To my surprise they still put us on the catamaran…the waves were insane, but we had an amazing time aside from trying to avoid the puke slopping over the side of the boat from seasick passengers. I tend to get a little seasick, so I planned ahead and we were wearing Sea-Bands…if you are prone to motion sickness, I highly highly recommend these! The sunset boat ride consisted of swimming at a White Sand Beach (which you can only access by boat), swimming at Red Sand Beach (where we snorkeled and they fed us a veg-friendly Greek themed dinner), and we stopped at a volcano in the caldera to take a dip in the hot springs.  Our final stop was right outside of a town called Oia, where we watched one of the best sunsets of our whole trip! I splurged on the semi-private sailing tour and I would highly recommend it.

 

2. Go to Perissa for a Day of Fun at the Black Sand Beach

We ended up going to Perissa and Perivolas (these two beaches are connected) twice during our stay on the island. We fell in love with the miles of comfy beach chairs with cocktail and food service, the amazing black sand beach, the Mediterranean sea, cute shops where I bought my first romper, the endless rows of the most amazing open air restaurants that I have ever seen (with some of the best food that we had during our whole trip), and all of this was easily accessible by bus…Winning!

 

3. Open Air Cinema in Kamari

The second thing that I planned in advance while we were in Santorini was to go see a movie at the Open Air Cinema in Kamari. Before our trip I stalked their website and just decided to go for it. A movie with cocktails under the stars is my kind of evening! This hidden gem should be high on your list if you have a free evening in Santorini. Buy your tickets ahead of time online, and they will let you into the theater first, so that you have your pick of the seats. All of the movies are shown in English with Greek subtitles, and you can see the list of movies that are playing ahead of time online. Enjoy your movie under the stars, while shipping local wine and munching on buttery popcorn. It is soooo magical and the perfect way to end a long day at the Kamari Beach.

 

4. Sunset in Oia

Oia is known for its amazing sunsets and let me tell you that it did not disappoint. I would recommend making reservations at one of the cliff side restaurants so that you can enjoy your meal over a lovely sunset. This is one tip that I wish I had known in advance. However, as we were bumbling around Oia trying to get away from the sunset crowds, we got lucky and found a cozy bar right next to the Golden Sunset Villas (right near the windmill) with a great view and pitchers of sangria to enjoy with the sunset. Not a bad way to watch one of the best sunsets of your life!

 

5. Visit Some Wineries

Santorini has grapes growing all over the island. We were there just before crush, so we got to see the actual grapes growing on the vine…so neat! They weave the vines into little baskets and the grapes actually grow really close to the ground and not on grape trellises like they do in the US. We rented a car for one day with the goal to hit a few wineries and to see what other cool nooks and crannies we could find on the island. Stay tuned for a full write-up on some of our favorite wineries and tasty beverage spots on the island.

 

6. Rent a Car or ATV and Zip Around the Island

Usually when we travel to a different country we always rent a car so that we have the freedom to zip around as we please. However, the public transportation was so easy in Santorini, that we took advantage of it the whole trip. We decided to rent a car for one day, so that we could hit some of the wineries that were on our list and discover other parts of the island that were not accessible by bus. Over the course of the day, we found some amazing local cherries, drove up to the top of some mountains to enjoy the amazing views, ate lunch on the opposite side of the caldera overlooking the town that we were staying in and went swimming at some secret beaches… I highly recommend zipping around on your own for at least one day.

 

7. Eat Like A Local

Before our trip I was a little nervous about the vegetarian food options on the island. I was hoping that I would be able to eat more than just salads and Greek yogurt (even though I was really excited about trying the Greek yogurt). To my excitement I was pleasantly surprised with the vegetarian and the non-vegetarian options that the island had to offer. I did eat my fair share of salads, but the salads were jam-packed with some of the best tomatoes that I have ever had (sorry California), homemade feta cheese, and a boatload of other amazing veggies. I was just glad that I was not eating iceberg lettuce the whole time. Some of my favorite things I ate on the island was a fava dip, a lovely dish similar to hummus that is made from yellow split peas and olive oil and topped with capers and red onions. I also fell in love with Veggie Gyros, basically a Greek version of the California burrito and the Santorini Salad that was a salad packed with a ton of tomatoes, veggies, capers, feta cheese and topped with olive oil. For more info on the places that we ate at on our trip check out my ‘Eat and Drink in Santorini’ post.

 

8. Hike to Oia


So this recommendation needs to come with a disclaimer…all of the things I read about Santorini before our trip recommended that we stroll from a town called Fira to a town called Oia, to see the best views on the island. So on our third day of our vacation when we were debating on what to get into that day, I decided that it would be the best day to check the Fira to Oia stroll off our list. Going into this adventure I was picturing a lovely stroll through cliff side towns that would eventually land us in Oia, where we would hang out for the day and catch a sunset in the evening. Sounds amazing right??  What ended up happening, is that the “stroll” started out the way that it was described, but then took a drastic turn and became a full on hike, during the hottest part of the day, up and down huge hills with random spray painted rocks that were very few and far between directing our adventure.

I bet at this point you are wondering why I am recommending this adventure! So here’s the deal… If I had known that it was a full-blown hike before I took Derika on this adventure, I think that we would have been mentally prepared. The day before we spent the whole time drinking and eating rich foods…not the type of meal you want to start a hike off with. I like to hike, especially if the views are amazing and there is a tasty beverage waiting for me at the end. This hike totally had all of these things going for it, just know that it is a decent hike that will make you sweaty and you will get sunburned in weird places. It will take you a minimum of 2.5 hours with no breaks. So plan to do this in the morning or late afternoon (not during the hottest part of the day, like we did) and pack your water, your sunscreen, your hiking shoes, your camera and your sense of adventure! Yay! On this HIKE you will see some of the most amazing views, and you can reward yourself with a frosty unicorn beer and swimming in Amoudi Bay afterward.

 

9. Eat and Swim in Amoudi Bay

After our adventurous hike to Oia, we were hot, thirsty and hungry.  We stopped off at a cute cafe to enjoy some fruit ice, basically a Greek Slurpee and then headed off to downtown Oia to do some shopping.  Our main goal was to shop our way to Amoudi Bay in Oia , because I read a ton about the amazing seafood and the possibility of a swimming hole. We eventually found the bay, but we were shocked that we would have to trek down 300 slippery steps that were covered in donkey poop. I wanted to cry a little bit, but I wanted to swim more. So down we went in our sandals. You can hire donkeys to take you up and down the steps (because the stairs are that epic…hence the donkey poop on the stairs,) but I felt bad for them so we didn’t. We did not slip to our death, but we came close and we had to negotiate our way around some very moody donkeys at the bottom of the steps. Putting all of this aside, it was soooooo worth it! Derika claims that she enjoyed some of the best mussels of her life, and we also found the local swimming hole, which made me ALL of the happy! To find the swimming hole… when you get to the bottom of the treacherous stairs, make a left, walk through all of the open-air restaurants and follow the small trickle of people heading off around the cliff. You will be rewarded with a great place to go swimming and a huge cliff to jump off of!

 

Whew!  Now I want to go back….

If you are thinking of going to Santorini on your next travel adventure, stop thinking and just go. It was just as beautiful as all of the pictures and it lived up to all of my expectations and then some. If you are looking for a great place to stay, check out Ira Hotel (get a room with a caldera view).  It is located in a cute town called Firostefani just outside of Fira, and it is walking distance to everything you could possibly need.

Enjoy!

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Spicy Manhattan Cocktail

Spicy Manhattan Ingredients

 

Derika and I have been living in NYC for 10 months now and I can’t believe it…where has the time gone!? We just realized this the other day, as we were sipping a Manhattan, which has become our drink of choice since we have moved here. There is something so entertaining to me to be able to order a Manhattan in Manhattan, and it is so surprising how different one person’s version can be from the next. While we were discussing our favorite places to get this classic cocktail in the city, we realized that we seem to fall in love with a certain cocktail in each place that we live.

  • San Diego it was champagne, St. Germaine, club soda with a twist of lemon.
  • Seattle it was fruit flavored mojitos, because I had a ton of mint growing on our balcony.
  • Michigan it was lemon lime soda with raspberry vodka and a lychee.

The Manhattan is a classic drink that is usually made with a base of bourbon or whiskey; currently we are making ours with bourbon. I think that we prefer bourbon because we hit up the Kentucky Bourbon Trail on our road trip from San Diego to New York, and we have been obsessing over bourbon ever since. We have also realized that a good bourbon cherry can really make or break a Manhattan. In order to guarantee a perfect cherry, I have been whipping up my own bourbon cherries. If you don’t have the time to make your own cherries, I have found that these cherries will also do the trick.

With the winter that we just had, Derika and I had plenty of time to perfect our Manhattan recipe. We thought we had nailed it until Melissa aka Comet Atcha; an old roller derby teammate of mine from Seattle came to visit us.  During her last visit she surprised us with 6 bottles of amazing cocktail spices from Addition.

 

Addition Cocktail Spices

 

These cocktail spices have pretty much been a game changer in most of our cocktail making adventures. Addition Cocktail Spices are handcrafted in Seattle’s Georgetown neighborhood, and are super awesome because they use a traditional maceration processes while using out of the ordinary spices, fresh herbs and peppers to create their magical products. Using just a few drops of these spices adds a unique spicy and savory layer to your cocktail. Also, if you aren’t much of a tasty beverage person, these spices can change your plain old soda water into something ohhhhh, so sassy.

As most of you know I love all things spicy.  So to kick my Manhattan up a notch, I have been adding the Szechuan Pepper Cocktail Spice to my Manhattans. The outcome has been epic, and I don’t think that I will view Manhattans the same way from here on out. Below you will find the Double D Manhattan recipe with our secret ingredient…the Szechuan Pepper Spice.

 

Addition Szechuan Pepper Spice

Enjoy!

 

Ingredients

Directions

1.  Get a fancy glass and put a fancy ice cube in it.  The glassware and ice cube are just as important as your ingredients. We have this ice cube mold and love it!

2.  Add 4 ounces of Bourbon, (we used Bullet Bourbon) to your glass.

 

Adding the bourbon

 

3.  Add 1/4 to 1/2 ounce of Vermouth, (we used Punt e Mes Vermouth). I like mine a little lighter on the Vermouth.

 

Adding Vermouth

 

4.  Add a couple of shakes of orange bitters, (we used Fee Brothers West Indian Orange Bitters).

 

Orange Bitters

 

5.  Add 3-4 drops of the Addition Szechuan Pepper Cocktail Spice.  You can always add more is you like it super spicy.

 

Addition Szechuan Pepper Spice

 

6.  Add 1 bourbon cherry to your glass and set 2 aside for a garnish…you can never have too many boozy cherries!

 

Bourbon Cherries

 

7.  Add a splash of bourbon infused cherry juice.

 

Bourbon Cherry Juice

 

8.  Stir and make your cocktail a little sassy by garnishing it with an orange peel and 2 bourbon cherries.

 

The Perfect Manhattan

 

Boom!  You now have the most perfect Spicy Manhattan!

Why stop with just cocktail spices?? In addition to amazing cocktail spices (no pun intended), Addition also has a line of sauces that you can add to your beer…I am sooo not kidding and I can’t wait to try them.  Are you wondering how you can get your hands on some of these cocktail spices? I am super excited, because I just realized that they sell their full line of beverage spices online. If you are in NYC you can get them locally at the Chelsea Market and at The Meadow in the West Village.

If you would like to get your hands on a FREE bottle of the Szechuan Pepper Cocktail spice, so you can recreate this magical cocktail. Check out the Glitter Spice Facebook page for your chance to win your very own FREE bottle of Szechuan Pepper Cocktail Spice compliments of Addition!

 

Free Szechuan Cocktail Spice

 

Happy Cocktail Making!

Contest Disclaimer
The contest is open to U.S. residents only. One winner will receive one bottle of Addition Szechuan Pepper Spice. The contest is open to everyone over the age of 21. You have until 11:59pm pm on Friday, July 18th, 2014 to enter. Winner will be contacted on Monday July 21, 2014 via a Facebook message and will have one week to message me their address to claim their prize. The prize may not be exchanged or transferred and no cash alternative will be offered. Liability cannot be accepted for entries, which are lost in transit or not received due to technical difficulties. No purchase necessary.

 

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Glitter Spice’s Travel Essentials

Travel Essentials

 

I am currently in the process of packing for our 10-year anniversary trip to Santorini, Greece! I can’t believe that a trip that we have been talking about for so long is finally here. I also can’t believe that Derika and I are getting ready to celebrate our 10 year anniversary AND our 3 year wedding anniversary! Where has the time gone!? As I have been running round like a chicken with my head cut off trying to get organized for the trip, I began to throw together a collection of things that will definitely be underneath the seat in front of me on the plane. This list is a combination of things that will make my flight more pleasant, in addition to things that would be a pain in the butt to try to purchase when I got to my destination.

I have to admit that I am a TERRIBLE packer; I just want to bring ALL of the things! I am really trying to work on it and with each trip I get a little better…baby steps. As a rule, Derika and I try to not check our bags (unless we are forced). We keep our travel bags on the smaller end, which helps me from getting carried away. I find that the bigger the bag, the more stuff that I cram into it. I have not been out of the country in 3 years, so I admit that I am a little out of practice. Since I am constantly struggling with what to pack, I figured that other people must struggle with this as well. So I thought that I would share some of my travel essentials with you. I am hoping that by walking you through my essentials, it will help me to streamline things a bit.

Here is my current list in no particular order.

 

Glitter Spice's Travel Essentials

 

  • Sun Hat – I have super fair skin, so whenever I travel to a sunny location I try to bring at least one sun hat. I don’t want to end up 18 shades of magenta before I have even started my vacation. Also nothing is worse than a crispy scalp that you fried in the sun. It is not that I cannot buy a hat when I get there; I just prefer to have at least one hat with me that I know I will feel comfortable in.

 

  • Playing Cards – Whether you are on the plane, in the hotel bar, or hanging out in the airport terminal. It is always nice to have some playing cards to help pass the time.

 

  • Sarong– Derika has 4 sarongs from her college days that have become a very valuable travel companion. The sarong is great, because it acts as a super thin easy to pack towel for the beach. It can also be used as a quick bathing suit cover up. I hate putting dry shorts over a wet bathing suit. The sarong solves this problem, because you can easily wrap it around you on your short hike back to your car for dry clothes.

 

  • Trail Mix – I LOVE snacks! As some of you may already know, I think that having the right travel snacks are key to winning any trip. Read my tips and tricks here.

 

Travel Snacks

 

  • Gum – Gum is a must for me when I am flying, and fresh breath will make you and your neighbor a happy camper. I once got on a plane and the woman next to me asked if I had just gotten done eating garlic!? I hadn’t and yet I was totally mortified.  It was probably her shoeless feet that were causing the smell, but I popped a piece of gum in my mouth just to be sure.

 

  • Bathing Suit – I don’t care where I am going; I always bring my swimsuit. There is nothing worse than getting an unexpected opportunity to frolic in some water and you don’t have your bathing suit. I don’t know about you, but I am not a huge fan of swimsuit shopping, so it is always nice to know that I have one on hand that I feel comfortable in.

 

  • 3oz Travel Flask – A couple of years ago I discovered the most amazing thing. YOU CAN BRING YOUR OWN FLASK ON THE PLANE!!! I really don’t need my flask for this trip since we are flying internationally, but I like to bring it when we are traveling in the US. The great thing about this flask is that it is 3 ounces. I can fill it up at home with my favorite alcohol, and then put it in my toiletry bag with all my 3 ounce travel bottles. You might get questioned at airport security, but I have always been honest when they ask if there is alcohol in my flask and I have never had it taken away. This will save you ALL of the money on the plane! 🙂

 

3oz Travel Flask

 

  • Reusable Bag – I love the teeny reusable Chico bags that have a carabineer attached to them, and can fold up into a convenient little traveling sack. I have one of these bags attached to my purse at all times. You never know when you are going to need a bag, and once you get use to carrying this around with you, you won’t even notice that it is there.

 

  • Face Wipes – These Rodan and Fields face wipes have been a game changer for when I travel. They are called eye wipes, but you can use them on your face, neck, hands etc. They even have a moisturizer in them that leaves your face feeling clean and refreshed. These are just a nice added bonus to help you freshen up after a long flight.

 

  • Julia the MTU – Oh, Julia the Mystical Traveling how I love you so! Julia is always in my purse whenever I leave the house, so it only makes sense for her to come with me when I leave the country. She is a great travel companion who LOVES to photo bomb.  She also enjoys long walks on the beach and twinkling her hooves in the sand…

 

Julia on the Beach

 

  • Perfume – I like to have a teeny travel bottle of perfume with me when I travel, so that I can use it to help me freshen up between the airport and the hotel. You can usually find a smaller version of your favorite scent right next to where you purchased your full-sized perfume.

 

  • Sunscreen – We made the mistake of not bringing sunscreen with us on our last international adventure. This mistake forced us to buy a $23 bottle of spray sunscreen when we were in Tahiti, that did not even work when we got it back to the hotel! That was the first time I have ever returned sunscreen. We didn’t think about how far the sunscreen had to come in order to get to the island and were not prepared to sell our first-born in order to keep me stocked up on sunscreen for the trip.  I want to make sure that we can go to the pool right when we get to our hotel, so having some sunscreen on hand will help to make this happen.

 

  • Deodorant – So fresh and so clean clean! I don’t really need to explain why deodorant is a nice thing to have after a long flight.  However, I am currently in the process of testing out a handful of natural deodorants and I am currently in love with this one LAVANILA The Healthy Deodorant. 

 

  • Light Weight Scarf – The temperature can change so quickly when you are traveling. You can go from sweating your brains out in the taxi to freezing your tush off in the airport. The scarf is a quick fix to an unexpected temperature change, and it also is great to have as extra cover just in case you get seated by the window and forgot to put on your sunscreen. Scarves also make me feel fancy 🙂

 

Mojito

 

  • Travel Brush– I am not lucky enough to have curly hair like Derika. So it is nice to have a teeny brush with me when we land, so that I can try to tame the weird airplane bed head until we get to the hotel.

 

  • iPad – I load my iPad with all of the movies that Derika does not want to watch and have a movie marathon on the flight. I also download a handful of books for long flights to help the time go by. Watching movies on the plane is amazing, because they make the flight go by so much faster.

 

  • Sunglasses – I always forget, break or lose my sunglasses when we are traveling, and I usually end up buying a pair while we are traveling. I enjoy picking up the random sunglasses on our travels. However, it is really nice to have a good pair on you for your travel adventure.

 

Sunglasses

 

  • Light Jacket – Once again the temperature tends to change pretty quickly when you are on the plane, so a light jacket is always nice to have. Even if you don’t put on your jacket, it acts as a great pillow when you need one. I am currently obsessed with the Lululemon jackets (see photo below). They are lightweight and you can get a lot of wear out of them before they look like they need to be washed. They also make me look very very fast 🙂

 

Lulu jacket

 

Thanks for helping me get ready for my trip! I hope that this post helped you as much as it helped me. Surprisingly, I still have room in my bag! I am probably going to try to squeeze in a crochet project and some haribo gummy bears (my guilty travel pleasure).  Now I just need to figure out what sunglasses I am going to bring…

 

Happy Traveling!

 

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Simple Salsa Verde

Salsa Verde

 

To say that I have a small addiction to chips and salsa is an understatement.  I could probably eat chips and salsa every day if I had the chance.  Heck, I made Derika take me out for Mexican food on both Friday and Saturday last weekend…I seriously have a problem. Last week Tuesday, my friend Erin reached out to me to see if I might like to grab a tasty beverage or dinner.  It occurred to me that it was Taco Tuesday, which meant I needed Mexican food, but the last two times we went out for dinner we went to the same Mexican place. I didn’t want to suggest it again, so instead I invited her over for Veggie Bowl-Ritos. I was planning on making them for myself that night anyway, and it is always better when you share. I also had some tomatillos hanging out in my fridge that I was dying to turn into some salsa.  I just discovered salsa verde a few years ago, and I have to say that I am in love. You will be shocked how surprisingly simple this salsa is to make.  With the warm weather that we have been having this salsa is refreshing on a warm summer day. Here is what I whipped up in less than 30 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 4 Tomatillos
  • 1 Large Jalapeno
  • 4 Cloves Garlic
  • 3/4 Cup Vidalia Onion, diced
  • 3/4 Cup Cilantro, diced
  • 1 Lime
  • Couple Pinches of Salt

 

Directions

1. Peels, wash and dry the tomatillos and sent them on a tin foil lined broiler sheet with the jalapeno and the 4 cloves of garlic (still in their skin).

Tomatillos and Jalapeno

 

2. Place the tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno under the broiler, checking them every 3-5 minutes.  You want all of the things under the broiler to form a nice charred skin.  The garlic will brown up first, so remove it when it does and continue to flip the jalapeno and tomatillos until they are charred on all sides.

3. Remove them from the broiler and set aside to cool.

 

Roasted Tomatillos and Jalapenos

 

4. While your broiled veggies are cooling, dice up the Vidalia onion and the cilantro and set aside.

5. Once the tomatillos, jalapeno and garlic have cooled, remove the skin from the tomatillos and garlic and remove the skin and seeds from the jalapeno.  Place the peeled  tomatillos, jalapeno, and garlic in your food processor or Vitamix. Don’t worry if you can’t get all of the skin off your broiled items.

 

Peeled Tomatillos and Jalapeno

 

6. Blend the tomatillos, garlic and jalapeno until smooth.

7. Add the onion, cilantro, lime juice, and a couple of pinches of salt to your pureed tomatillos and pulse in you food processor until you reach your desired consistency.

 

Salsa Verde

 

8. You might need to add a little water to thin it out a bit.

9. Transfer your salsa verde into a container with a lid and put it in the fridge to cool until you are ready to serve it.

 

Salsa Verde

 

10. Enjoy it with your favorite tortilla chips or dump it all over your Bowl-Rito… Es muy delicioso!

Enjoy!

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Spicy Lettuce Wraps

Spicy Tofu Lettuce Wraps

 

So the heat continues and I am still not complaining after the winter that we had, I am just getting more creative with how to not use the oven on the sweatiest of days. We have also officially opened up the Double D Bistro and we are now taking reservations. 🙂

 

Double D Bistro

 

We are lucky that the windows of our apartment overlook a quiet street and a courtyard. We open the windows and slide our bar stools up to the window, and it is immediately transformed into a bistro…Word on the street is that the Double D Bistro is known for its amazing cocktails! Check OpenTable for the next available reservation! 😉

Lately, I have been whipping up things that I can quickly sauté without making the apartment feel like a sauna. This is where the lettuce wraps come into play. They are simple, refreshing, fun to make and the possibilities are endless. The farmers’ market has been filled with an abundance for bright and colorful produce, and I have fallen in love with creating really bright dishes with all of my amazing produce finds. Go check out your local farmers’ market and whip up these simple lettuce wraps this week!

 

Processed with VSCOcam with c1 preset

 

Ingredients

  • 1 Pound Extra-Firm Crispy Tofu, or protein of choice
  • 1 Head Romaine Lettuce, approx. 8 pieces, washed and dried
  • 1 C. Onion, diced
  • 2 Cloves Garlic, minced
  • 1 C Celery stalks, diced
  • 1 C Carrot, diced
  • 1 C Radicchio, sliced thin
  • 2 TBS. Jalapeno, diced
  • 2 TBS. Scallions, diced
  • 1/2 Avocado, chopped
  • 1 Tsp. Gheeor Coconut Oil
  • 2 TBS. Tamari
  • 2 TBS. Honey
  • 1 Tsp. Smooth Almond Butter or Peanut Butter
  • 1 TBS. Sriracha Hot Chili Sauce
  • 1/2 Tsp. Granulated Garlic

 

Spicy Asian Sauce Ingredients

Directions

1. To make the sauce, mix the soy sauce, honey, almond butter or peanut butter, Sriracha and granulated garlic together in a medium-sized bowl. Whisk until smooth.

2. Taste and adjust the seasonings as you’d like. Set aside.

 

Spicy Asian Sauce

 

3. Prepare your protein of choice and set aside.

4. Add the ghee or coconut oil to a sauté pan over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the onions, turn down the temperature just slightly and cook until they’re soft.

5.  Add the garlic, celery, carrot, radicchio and cook for about four minutes, until veggies start to get soft.

6. Add the protein and a 1/4 of the sauce mixture to the veggies. Mix all ingredients until well coated. Add more sauce if needed.

7. Remove from the stove and transfer to a serving bowl.

 

lettuce wrap supplies

 

8. Add the sautéed mixture to the individual lettuce leaves.

9. Garnish with avocado, scallion and jalapeno and additional sauce or hot sauce.

10. Roll the lettuce leaves slightly and eat the heck out of them.

 

Enjoy!

Posted by & filed under Avocado, Jalapeno, Lettuce, Onions, Peanut Butter, Sriracha, Tofu. This post has 2 comments.