Focaccia + My Pursuit of Being a Baker

I am always looking to challenge myself a little bit and I finally decided to tackle focaccia bread! I'll admit throughout the process I was met with bouts of anxiety… will the dough rise?  Did I let the yeast bubble enough? My friend Colleen was over and asked if she had to help me, I said no but that it would turn into The Little Red Hen story that I used to read as a kid. I would put in all the work and she would want a piece of bread at the end but she didn't help out! So the bread making adventure began...

I felt inspired to make focaccia because my boyfriend's dad will make it all the time and he makes it seem effortless. I thought it was going to be 1,2,3 and I'd be shoveling focaccia into my mouth… apparently there is a lot of waiting time during the process to let the yeast do its job. 

:INGREDIENTS:

1 package dry yeast

1 cup warm water

1 tsp honey

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp kosher salt

1/2 cup + 1 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

1/2 onion, thinly sliced

10-12 cherry tomatoes, thinly sliced

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

:DIRECTIONS:

1. In medium bowl, stir together the yeast, honey and warm water. Let it rest until bubbles form at the top. (About 10 mins)

2. Stir in the flour, 1/4 cup olive oil and 1 tsp of salt. Once it is well mixed. Knead it on a floured surface until smooth. (About 5-10 mins)

3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and wrap it in plastic wrap and let it sit there for about an hour. 

4. While you anxiously wait for it to rise you can chop 1/2 an onion and toss them into a skillet with a TBSP of olive oil and let them cook for about 20 minutes until they are caramelized. Stir it occasionally. 

5. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.

6. Remove the dough from the bowl and press it into a cast iron skillet. Then with your CLEAN finger press light little holes into the dough and let it sit there for about 15 minutes. Then drizzle the dough with 2 TBSP olive oil.

7. Slice the tomatoes thinly then sprinkle them over the dough. Then add the onions, salt and parmesan to the top and toss it into the oven for about 20 minutes!!

8. Get ready to enter a carb coma!

Olives + Orzo… What More Do You Need?!

One thing you should know about me is that I love orzo and I will find any excuse to cook with it! If you've never had orzo, shame on you, but it is a small rice - shaped pasta that cooks quickly and is great for a lot of dishes.

Having lived in Milan for 3 months a lot of the dishes I made at home consisted of mozzarella, pasta and olives. Sounds kind of plain but the pasta in Milan was so rich in flavor and the fresh mozzarella and olives were a perfect compliment to the pasta. So I stumbled upon this recipe on Bloglovin and the dish was so abundant in color and reminiscent of my meals in Milan that I  had to give it a go…

:INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 whole Lemon (juiced)

1 clove Garlic (Minced)

Salt and Pepper 

12 oz Orzo Pasta

1 cup Red Grape Tomatoes

1 cup Yellow Grape Tomatoes

1 cup Kalamata Olives

1 cup Chickpeas

1/4 of a Red Onion

2 TBSP Fresh Parsley
1 cup Crumbled Feta

:ASSEMBLY:

1. Bring the water to a boil and throw the orzo in. Usually cooks within 8-10 minutes.Drain it then set it aside.

2.Use a cutting board to dice the tomatoes, olives, onions and parsley into small pieces. 

3. Open the chickpeas and drain all the water then set to the side until you combine all the ingredients. 

4. In a jar combine the olive oil, lemon juice, salt/pepper and garlic. Shake until well combined. 

5. In a LARGE bowl toss in the orzo and all of the ingredients. Then evenly drizzle the dressing over the mixture and combine until it is evenly distributed. 

6. I like to add the Feta cheese last so that it stays fresh and doesn't get too soggy. 

7. Lastly add salt and pepper to taste but because the olives are already pretty salty, add cautiously!

The end result is a delicious, vibrant and fresh salad. It's nearly effortless to make and it's great to pack for a smart lunch! 

5 Places You Can't Miss In Milan

It has been a little over a year since I moved back from Milan and as bloggers are flocking to the city for fashion week I thought I'd share some of my favorite places to visit!

1. Luini's - I've written about Luini's before but it's worth another mention! The BEST panzerotti in Milan. It's a fact. I had never heard of it before I got to Milan but by the time I left I'm positive I was 70% panzerotti. Get there early to avoid the lines but regardless don't let the lines deter you, they move quickly with the help of their suited up bouncers!

Via Santa Radegonda, 16 Milano Italy

Open 10am-8pm

Closed on Sunday*

*I had my heart broken a few times when I would forget it was closed on sunday.

Luini's website

2. Princi - One of my FAVORITE places to grab lunch. While they are probably better known for their breads and foccacia. I was always queueing up for their octopus salad. TO DIE FOR. There sweets selection can't be missed either. It's just around the corner from Duomo so you can always take it to go and sit on the steps of the church! There are also 4 other locations around the city!

Via SPeronari 6, Milano Italy

Open: 7am-8pm

3. Shocolat - One of my FAVORITE places for gelato is Shokolat. It's near Cadorna and only a 5-10 minute walk from Duomo. Of course I flocked there every other week for the nutella gelato, the gelato being merely a vehicle for nutella. 

Via Giovanni Boccaccio, 9 Milan Italy

Open: 7:30am-1am

4. Bastianello -  Thankfully I only discovered this pasticceria about a month and a half before I left Milan because I would have come home 10 lbs. heavier. Every pastry there is beautifully made and they taste just as good as they look! The sfogliatella being my favorite! Right off the San Babila stop. 

Via Borgogna, 5 Milan Italy

Open: 7-10pm

5. Magnum -  Naturally I would recommend 3 sweet shops. My final recommendation is Magnum. You get to be a little creative and invent your own bar and add exotic elements like dried rose petals and passion fruit! How could you resist?!

Piazza Santa Maria Beltrade, 1 Milan Italy

Open: 8:15am - 8:45pm

Go get lost in the streets of Milan and enjoy Fashion Week!

We Are Ready For Our Oscar Ballots...

What would you do with $50 worth of iTunes gift cards?! Go on a film binge, DUH! At least that is what Marc and I did this past week. In exactly one week we consumed 6 films and 11 short films.

We discovered the world of short films on Saturday night after dinner and Gameworks and we are oh so grateful! We watched our first short film Feast and as the credits were rolling we both turned to each other and somehow both realized we had just entered the world of short films and it felt like an exciting black hole with endless possibilities.  

We hesitantly rented Gone Girl. I wasn’t as reluctant to see it but Marc doesn’t care for Ben Afleck but it was supposed to be a good film so we bit the bullet and rented it. Neither of us really knew what it was about, Marc was under the impression from just the cover that it was going to be a 2 hr. movie about a detective (Ben Affleck)in search of a little girl… We were both WAY off on the mark. I won’t spoil it for anyone that hasn’t seen it yet but it sent us for a loop to say the least. The ending of Gone Girl sent us both on a rant spiral for a good hour after the film. Does justice exist anymore in movies?! Do bad guys just get away with everything these days?! Seriously! That film took a toll on us and even made us a bit defensive the next night during Birdman…

You will be glad to know that we made a swift recovery and were able to fully enjoy all of short films!

Feast was probably my favorite (5/5 stars) and it also won Sunday night for Best Animated Short Film! If you watch Feast you MUST watch The Damn Keeper, so beautifully made and the whole concept and result was stunning!

We found that each short films more than likely will always have a twist ending and each time they surprise me! After watching so many short films Marc and I were ready to fill out our Oscar Ballots and were sitting by the phone waiting to called upon to be jurors at the next Cannes Film Festival. Needless to say we are confident in our short film judging skills.

: Films we watched :

Fury

Birdman

Nightcrawler

Gone Girl

Gattaca

John Wick

: Short Films we watched :

Feast

The Damn Keeper

A Single Life

Me and My Moulton

The Phone Call

Boogaloo and Graham

Sweet Cocoon

Cosmic Love

Picture Paris

Aya

Black Angel

*Ranked from Favorite to I could’ve gone without that in my life.*

DIY : Metallic Art Project

Friday I was in the mood to be a little creative so I gathered my brushes, paint and canvases and got to work…

:SUPPLIES:

Brushes - any size

Canvas

Paint

Metallic Paint

* All can be found at Hobby Lobby*

Painting and listening to radiolab is exactly what I needed.

:Directions:

1. Paint the canvas with 2 coats of any chosen color. Allow 20 mins to dry. 

2. Take your metallic paint and apply it generously to either end letting the brush fall away towards the middle of the canvas. Apply 2-3 coats.

3. You're done! Easy, simple project to add to your art collection.

While I waited for the paint to dry I spontaneously was inspired to put these lights up in my room being the rolling rack. All it took was 5 minutes, a hammer, 3 nails and a little creativity! Since I hung them up, I haven't turned them off!

Homemade Protein Bars + Baking With My Kryptonite

I've been on the hunt for a great protein bar recipe for weeks months now. Now in full disclosure I am probably risking my life to make these bars because I am HIGHLY allergic to peanuts, almonds, all that stuff. So why am I making these bars you might ask? My boyfriend eats granola bars every morning for breakfast and there isn't much protein in them so I thought I could probably pretty easily make a protein bar that tastes better than your run of the mill chocolatey protein bar.

I love this recipe because it has all natural ingredients, no preservatives and I can pronounce everything that's put in the bar!

During this entire process I tried my best to not actually touch any of the ingredients, but I had my Epi pen on hand just in case...

:INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups rolled oats aka Old Fashioned Oats

1 cup whole almonds

1/2 cup dried cranberries*

1/2 cup dried apricots*

1/2 cup pistachios

1/3 cup walnuts

1/3 cup sunflower seeds

2/3 cup cashews

1/3 cup pure maple syrup or honey

1/4 cup apple sauce

1 cup (8 oz.) almond butter

*You can substitute the fruits for any dried fruit. I've made them before with blueberries and cherries. 

My almond butter kryptonite…

:DIRECTIONS:

1. Combine all of the dry ingredients into a large bowl and set aside. 

2. Measure out the almond butter into a microwave safe bowl and put in the microwave for 2 sessions of 18 seconds.

3. Combine the syrup and apple sauce into the bowl with the almond butter and whisk until smooth. 

4.Combine the almond butter mix with the dry mix and mix well.

5. Line an 8x8 baking pan with wax paper then pour the mix into the pan and spread it out evenly.

6. Place in the freezer for at least an hour, hour and a half if you have the time. 

7. Once they've sat in the freezer take it out and lift out the one solid bar by grabbing the wax paper and setting it down on the counter.

8. Use a knife (I used a butcher knife, a little extreme but it got the job done!) to cut the bar into how ever many pieces you like. It can make anywhere between 10-16 bars. 

DIY: Books + Pom Poms

I have always been able to see DIY potential in almost anything… kind of my sixth sense. My mom actually found this book, And The Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman, and after letting her read the book I began tearing it apart and collecting my favorite illustrations. 

:SUPPLIES:

So it is pretty simple. Find a graphic novel, I would recommend any book by Maira Kalman because every image carries meaning beyond the surface and they are usually accompanied by a witty, quick phrase. 

Then buy pom -poms or fringe (I bought these from Anthropologie). 

Have a glue gun on hand. I will find any excuse to use a glue gun, but that's just me! If you don't have one, any craft store will sell them for $8-12.

:DIRECTIONS:

Once you've collected your supplies…

1. I always start in the left bottom corner for some reason. I might have a slight case of OCD… You can start in any corner really.

2. Apply the glue every 2-3 inches.

3. When you reach a corner, apply the glue in a backwards L shape then curve the trim along the corner of the page.

4. Once you reach the corner you began, cut the trim where both ends meet.

5. Find the perfect wall to hang up your new piece of art!