Decorating for a Cinco De Mayo Fiesta + RECIPE

I love holidays (any excuse to decorate and I am on board) and Cino de Mayo is no exception. It's all about mexican food, drink and decorations. I am a sucker for Mexican Food so I love learning new recipes and finding new decorations for fun and festive get-togethers. 
Why not try some colorful mexican themed banners, fun colorful flowers + tablecloths?

Want to learn how to make tissue flowers like these?
Check out a step by step DIY here.
or check out how to make these here.


On the menu for my fiesta...Out of this world SHRIMP TACOS (my fave!)
This recipe is from Real Simple (where I get most of my recipes)

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
  • 3 tablespoons milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled
  • 3 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 2 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 4 limes, cut into quarters
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 8 6-inch corn tortillas
  • 2 to 3 cups finely shredded green cabbage
  • bottled green tomatillo salsa


Directions

  1. Whisk together the sour cream, mayonnaise, milk, and cumin. Set aside. 
  2. Skewer the shrimp. (If using wood skewers, soak them in water for 10 minutes beforehand.) In a small bowl, combine the butter and garlic.
  3. Preheat a gas grill to high; adjust to medium after 15 minutes. (If cooking over charcoal, allow the coals to burn until they are covered with gray ash.)
  4. Brush the skewered shrimp with the garlic butter. Place them on the grill with the limes. Cook about 4 minutes on each side or until the shrimp are opaque and the limes are browned. Remove from grill. Lightly salt the shrimp.
  5. Grill the tortillas for 30 seconds on each side, then place inside a paper bag to keep warm.
  6. To serve, pull the shrimp off the skewers and divide them evenly among the tortillas. Top with the cabbage, sour cream sauce, tomatillo salsa, and a spritz of grilled lime.
  7. This is the method i use: Broil the shrimp and limes about 4 inches from the heat using the Total Times above. Wrap the tortillas in foil and heat in a 350° F oven for 15 minutes, or wrap them in a napkin and microwave for 3 minutes

Trust me...it is absolutely DE-LISH!




images courtesy of...
vintage domino
elizabeth ann 
martha stewart

oh! by the way, happy st. patty's day!

Today is the one day of the year when green prevails over every town in our nation.
i think it's pretty awesome.
Such a bummer when this awesomely cool holiday comes in the middle of the week.
Anyone have anything fun planned today?
I am recovering a small stool in my apartment with some pretty green fabric tonight 
with my cousin (i saved the project for this special day + i can keep myself busy while my sweetheart is away. yes!)
hope you dolls have a great day!














I thought I would throw this in for good measure...
i'm kind of obsessed with it.
images courtesy of...
shopbop. design-files. decodetective. desire to inspire. domino. john locke. little green notebook. tobifairley. thenoisiest. the bottom of the ironing basket

in the mood for pink + red

Pink + Red.
The colors of Valentine's day,
The colors of love.
It should be used with caution, however, because the colors evoke romance.
 Nobody can deny a little romance in their home...its much too blissful!
Hope you are all having a happy weekend and getting your home ready for the month of love.








images via apartmenttherapy, sarah kaye, sunnysblog, practicalprincess, makingitlovely

a holidays worth of memories

So, our little holiday dinner party turned out to be a huge hit. My cousin (the lovely roommate) and I worked so hard on making our cozy + blissful home into a party pad.
The dinner was fantastic, we had tortellini and fresh turkey meatloaf, amazing sauces and a cheese platter that anyone would die for. In fact, one of our party goers stayed at the cheese spread all night. ;) (i heart you matty!)
I love holiday parties and the holiday spirit! 

UNFORTUNATELY, our wacko neighbors have been complaining about bedbugs...
(sidenote: their place is so cluttered and messy and they always leave their trash 
by the front door for weeks...yuck!)
The ORKIN men came the day after our dinner party, turns out they have to exterminate the entire building! ugh.
Our happy + beautiful christmas tree aka 'chrissy' died. 
She couldn't handle the poisons. 
Needless to say, we are utterly bummed.
Bright side: we get to do the whole 'decorating the tree while listening to Christmas music' madness all over again. 
I guess its worth looking at the brightside.
For now, some pictures from the fiesta to document our beloved Chrissy!

my cousin and i (the happy hosts)


we miss you Chrissy!





hostess with the mostess

Right now I prepping for my holiday party tomorrow night. 
Lot's to do...
Champage to buy, napkin rings to pull out, flowers to arrange, and shoes to match my new outfit I got for the occasion.
Tomorrow the guests will arrive, and not only will I be wearing a glamorous outfit, 
I will be wearing one of my most favorite aprons.
But, sadly, I am desperately wishing I had a new one. 
Jessie Steele makes my favorite accessories for the hostess. 
You cannot miss her stuff.
Check her website out, they make the perfect gift for any hostess....trust me!


outdoor tea time

There is nothing like spending the holidays on the west coast. It means warm weather, beautiful skies and if you are lucky you might get a little pool time in. I was thrilled to be in Palm Springs this Thanksgiving with the people I love the most. We did our fare share of scarfing down the goodies and to offset the overflowing stomachs, we had tea time. It was so lovely to sit on the patio for some good visits and tea. Oh what a joy it was! As a domestic woman I love to create beautiful settings to sip tea and such...here are a few I'd like to keep in my mind. 





(images from: HousetoHome)
xoxo

happy thanksgiving!


I LOVE THANKSGIVING TIME!
Last night was my first sighting of the holiday. I was driving around the beautiful neighborhoods of Hollywood and saw a huge christmas light display on a gorgeous home. I went home immidiately and played some christmas music. It gave me the chills. I love all of the smells of this time of year, the fall just makes me so happy. It's truly the beginning of the holiday season. Even the Starbucks has the pumpkin lattes on special. 
I am spending this holiday week in Palm Springs, CA with clark's family. It will be my first holiday with the Koelch's. His mom, grandma and sister are so much fun and I cant wait to cook with the family. I will be bringing one of my favorite recipe's from the FAT FREE VEGAN blog. The double-layer pumpkin cheesecake is out of this world. Everytime I make it, its gone in 5.3 seconds. I am so excited to celebrate, my vegan way! 
HAPPY HOLIDAYS! re

Double-Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake
(printer-friendly version)

8 ounces Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese (look for the non-hydrogenated version in the yellow container)
12 ounces light firm silken tofu (or extra-firm)
1/2 cup agave nectar (or sugar)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup pumpkin puree (canned, not pumpkin pie mix)
2 teaspoons rum (optional)
3 tablespoons brown sugar or natural sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon grated fresh nutmeg (please!)

1 pre-made 8-inch graham cracker crust (or oatmeal cookie crust)

Preheat the oven to 350F.

Put the first set of ingredients (toffuti through vanilla) in a food processor and puree until completely smooth. It should be silky smooth--not chalky or lumpy.

Remove a cup of this mixture from the processor and spread it in the bottom of the crust.

Add the next set of ingredients (pumpkin through nutmeg) to the ingredients remaining in the food processor and process until well blended. Smooth it carefully over the white layer in the crust, heaping it slightly in the middle. Bake until the center is almost set, about 50-60 minutes. (Insert a toothpick. If it comes out liquidy and cold, give it more time, until the center is firm.) Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Refrigerate until completely chilled, at least 3 hours. Serve to delighted guests. (Don't tell them it's vegan, and they won't know!)

Serves 8. Per serving (not including the crust): 218 Calories (kcal); 7g Total Fat; (28% calories from fat); 4g Protein; 35g Carbohydrate; 0mg Cholesterol; 179mg Sodium.


xoxo