This past week I've spent a lot of time in the kitchen baking and cooking (which I'll admit is kind of a rarity for me). Here are some kitchen inspired pins from my board "From the Kitchen...".  

When I moved in to my new house last year I had to start from scratch in terms of getting kitchen stuff. There are some great pins with some unique and creative kitchen ideas and products that I didn't even know existed.

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I'm lucky to have a pretty great kitchen with lots of drawer and cupboard space and even a pantry (where I'm able to hide all my junk food). I love the idea of this for cutlery storage. Personally, I'm not a fan of the cutlery trays because mine seem to always collect crumbs and get dirty. Is it just me? This is definitely something that I am considering trying. 

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This bowl is a perfect cherry bowl (one of my all time favourite foods). I think that I could probably live on cherries and cherries alone. No more problems with trying to figure out with what to do with the pits or having two separate bowls (I feel like I'm hosting an infomercial).

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These Kate Spade dishes are amazing. I would love, love, love to have these and they can be yours for the low low price of $80 per place setting. I will just start saving now...

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This is a contender for the best cookie jar ever. I don't know if I've mentioned but I have a thing for ceramic animals so this is right up by alley. I have the perfect place on my counter for this little guy. 

1\\ Three words- Strawberry. Riesling. Slushy. I posted the recipe earlier in the week (super easy) and highly suggest you try it if you have the chance. 

2\\ So sad that I'm back from my vacation from D.C. It went by wayyy to quickly. Here is a picture of the Jefferson memorial. Quiet artistic if you ask me. 

3\\ Crossed something off of my bucket list. I was able to see Vincent van Gogh's 'Roses' at the National Gallery of Art while in D.C. it was amazing.

4\\ Cherry blossoms. I was able to see the very beginning of the bloom of the annual cherry blossom bloom in DC. don't let this picture fool you, they most definitely aren't out yet. Out of the hundreds of trees there, about 4-5 had bloomed. All of the crazy tourists (including myself) were crowded around these few trees snapping pictures.

5\\ The Metro in DC, although it is kind of stinky and dimly lit (you can't really tell very well in the picture) is a really cool place. 

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What is quite possibly the best summer drink in existence? (okay sangria is a close runner up). The answer in my opinion is a strawberry Riesling slushy. I will warn you, it does taste pretty boozy but, it is made up of mostly wine. I think when I first when to drink it I expected it to taste like a berry smoothie (because that's exactly what it looks like) It is super delicious!

Ingredients

-one bottle of Riesling (dry preferred) -750ml/25.4oz

-2 tablespoons of sugar

-1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

-2 1/2 cups hulled strawberries

What You'll Need:

-ice cube trays (two)

-a blender

1/ bottle of Riesling (dry preferably)         2/sugar           3/lime          4/ice cube trays

 5/ two and a half cups of hulled strawberries

Step 1- Pour one cup of Riesling from the bottle, cover, and set aside in the fridge. You will be needing this for a later step. In the blender add your remaining wine to your 2 1/2 cups of strawberries. Squeeze in approximately 1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice and add 2 tablespoons of sugar. 

Step 2- Puree all ingredients together. It should look something like the above. 

Step 3- Pour in to ice cube trays and place in freezer to set. 

Step 4- Remove ice cubes from freezer once frozen solid (this takes a few hours). Add the cubes back in to the blender along with the 1 cup of wine that you had set aside earlier. 

Step 5- Puree the mixture again. Make sure all large ice cube chunks have been crushed. At this step you may want to taste the mixture before pouring it and can add more sugar or simple syrup if you wish to make it sweeter. I will you warn you, it does taste quite boozy. 

Step 6- The easiest of all steps. Pour and enjoy!

Adapted from the recipe at BonAppetite.com

It's kind of hard to believe that it's Easter already. I mean really, it's already the end of March? Here is what I've been pinning this week. It's Easter themed, with the exception of macarons.  

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How cute is this origami bunny? I may be a tad biased though, I love origami. I'm sure if I tried to make it, it would look like a crumpled piece of paper. It's still cute though. 

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These are super cute. I realize they probably spell a diabetic coma for anyone who would ingest them but they are nice to look at. 

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I thought this was a really cool idea. Somehow I dont think that it would work out as well as they are showing it here. Very cool though!

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I saved the best for last. This past week I tried macarons for the first time. OMG. They are seriously the best things ever. I am pretty sure they are near impossible to make at home and I'm not going to even look in to how to do it because I know if I figured it out I would gain at least 20lbs in a matter of weeks. If you haven't tried any you need to get some...like now. 

Trip to D.C.

Lobby of the W Hotel

The W hotel is the place to be on a Saturday night apparently! The hotel itself is located at 515 15th Street NW (which happens to be right beside the US Treasury building and the White House). It has some amazing views from P.O.V. rooftop bar and terrace that include the Washington Monument, the White House and the Treasury Building among others. Unfortunately,  I didn't get a chance to snap any pictures while we were up there for drinks. 

View of the Washington Monument while waiting for our table for dinner.

Dinner at J&G Steakhouse.

Dinner was delicious. I had crispy organic chicken with sweet potato puree and bok choy. The boyfriend had prime hanger steak and frites. When I asked him to describe his experience he said "it was good". What can I say, he isn't a man of many words. 

A picture I took after dinner of the White House. Not bad for being taken with my phone. 

The D.C. Metro: A Magical Magical Place.

In all seriousness, I love the Metro as much as one could love a dark dreary underground mode of transportation. And for the love of god people, stand right, walk left. If you don't they hate you. 

The first sign of cherry blossoms. 

The first sign of cherry blossoms spotted on the walk to the Zoo. So pretty and so exciting!

Flamingos at the Zoo

The National Zoo is easliest one of the coolest zoo's I've been too. I was a little skeptical in the beginning since I heard that they didn't have any penguins but once I was quickly won over by the sloth bear (seriously, its the coolest thing ever). If you are in D.C. I highly, highly recommend you go. 

van Gogh painting at the National Gallery of Art

One of the favourite museums/buildings I visited during the week was the National Gallery of Art, specifically the West Building. I have loved van Gogh since my first art history class in 9th grade. Seeing some real-live-in-person-van-Gogh paintings is something I can now cross off my bucket list!

Jefferson Memorial

Cherry blossoms

Don't let this picture fool you. The cherry blossoms are no where near in full bloom. Out of the hundreds of cherry blossom trees there (hundreds) about 5 were in bloom. I am not ashamed to say I was one of the many people crowded around these few trees snapping pictures. They report that the peak blooms should be sometime around the beginning of April. 

National Botanical Gardens

I was able to visit last time I was in DC but got there just as it closed this time. What I really wanted was to take a picture of the outside since sometimes its used in the cut scene for Bones. 

Oh, and one last thing... I hereby swear that no matter how old I get I will never ever be too old or get tired of looking out of the airplane window. It is always amazing. 

What I've Been Pinning This Week

I suppose there are a theme to my pins this week..but I guess that's what happens when you go on pinterest while you're waiting for dinner! 

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Sweet tea vodka. Have you tried it?! It is quite possibly the most amazing flavored vodka I've ever had. I do have a weakness for Arnold Palmers so this is perfect. Adding one ounce to ariZona ice tea's Arnold Palmer is very dangerous...and I highly suggest it. Unfortunately it's not available in Canada which is kind of heart breaking.

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Apple pie! It is the perfect comfort food and this pin/recipe looks delicious.

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I thought that this book shelf idea looked really unique and interesting. It isn't until you take a closer look that you notice it is just a bunch of smaller boxes. This project would definitely be doable.

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I definitely have a soft spot for cranberry sauce. I mean on holidays I find it appropriate to treat it as a side dish rather than a condiment. This sandwich looks delicious and would be a perfect way to use your Easter leftovers.

Are You Watching: American Horror Story? 

               After I finished watching House of Cards that I mentioned earlier I needed a new show to watch on Netflix and I've heard good things about American Horror Story. I'm not sure why I thought it would be a good idea. Anyone who knows me well knows that I don't do well with scary movies. I am not ashamed to admit I'm afraid of the dark at 25 years old. (Note: I feel that I should tell you I'm writing this blog post as I'm watching the show. It's a good distraction and makes the show less scary to watch.)
              I vividly remember that my like/hate relationship with scary movies started in 6th grade. I watched "Changeling" at a slumber party at a friends house. What we were doing watching that movie when I was in 6th grade is beyond me. I remember sitting there in my friends basement in the dark just staring there HORRIFIED at the TV screen while all my friends just sat there and watched like it was no ones business. By the way, when I say Changeling, I'm not talking about the Angelina Jolie thriller movie circa 2008. I'm talking about the most horrifying movie ever made seen made in 1980. Also, important to note I never actually finished watching the movie. I stopped about halfway through. I don't exactly remember why but I'm thinking I probably faked a stomach ache and went home. I  have had plenty of opportunities to re-watch it and face my fears but I would sooner eat a pail of grasshoppers. 
           So, back on topic. American Horror Story is pretty unique in the sense that it is just a never ending scary movie. It is really well done. The picture above makes it look like some weird-o S&M show...which I mean I guess there are parts of. Also, if you did take my advice and watch House of Cards you will notice that American Horror Story features a familiar face. Zoe Barnes! 
           Anyway, I suggest that when you watch it you don't do it at night with the lights of because it is just a bad idea. (I understand that most of you aren't big babies like me...but this is just my advice)