I learned about this place, ironically after an intense workout at Soul Cycle, which is across the street. One evening my son and I planned a foodie adventure and experienced excellent customer service, delicious food, and here we are again, back for their weekend brunch.

Initially I was skeptical to order their chicken and waffles, but I just took the challenge after listening to my server describe the juicy details of its creation. Let's face it, it's not too many places in Seattle to score prickle-brined chicken, fried to perfection. Match that with a delicious malted Belgian waffle and add in their spice honey and maple syrup and you may think you're in heaven.

What I like about Tavern Hall is the way their Chef develops recipes and flavors for their menu. Let's start with their starters, they serve chips and guacamole like other restaurants, but don't expect tortillas. Instead Yukon gold potato chips served with roasted pistachios, jalapeños, and cotija cheese. So unexpected right? This is definitely next on my foodie list to conquer. We've also had their homemade pretzels, and even the dipping sauces are flavors that you wouldn't expect. Such as their salted peanut caramel sauce or white cheddar jalapeño sauce, and although I don't eat pork, they say the bacon-onion sauce is a top favorite. Lastly, washing it all down with their strawberry mint lemonade is a refreshing treat.

The staff is always friendly and accommodating and flat screens are everywhere to catch whatever sport is on the tube. It's definitely a place to gather with friends or co-workers for happy hour, or a late brunch with family on the weekend, since it goes until 2pm. You won't be disappointed.

My son would argue, there isn’t anything “unicorn” about this drink, but when you have your favorite pastry chefs around Seattle design unicorn cakes and macaron cookies for your party, then the drink will have to follow suit and match the theme. 

I didn’t need any Pinterest inspiration, because everywhere you turn some company was serving up unicorn on the menu. The marketing guru in me, would love to know the numbers that Starbucks pull in during the 5 days they had everyone ordering a Unicorn Frappuccino.

They weren’t the only ones, as companies coast to coast with unicorn milkshakes, unicorn hot cocoa, unicorn grilled cheese, and my son and I recently ventured to our favorite doughnut shop, who debuted their unicorn horn doughnut for a week. 

As for this tasty concoction I whipped up, you will need the following to make your own for your next party. 

Tropical Unicorn Sorbet

Ingredients

Pineapple coconut juice

7 Up

Haagen Dazs raspberry sorbet

White chocolate (optional)

Sprinkles (optional)

Directions

Place rainbow sprinkles in a shallow dish, set aside.

 Melt white chocolate in the microwave. Dip the rim of your glasses in melted chocolate and cover in sprinkles. 

Pour equal parts of pineapple coconut juice and 7Up in a glass, followed by a scoop of raspberry sorbet.

Top with more sprinkles and whipped cream, optional.

Have you joined the unicorn craze? I encourage you to read Psalm 92:10 KJV for your inner unicorn inspiration, which for me is beyond a horse with a colorful mane and horn. It’s the calling and anointing from God on my life, and the rare and special places He has taken me through.

“But my horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of an unicorn: I shall be anointed with fresh oil.” -Psalm 92:10

First it was Unicorn Toast that was taking Instagram by storm, but it’s only so much you can do with a smear of cream cheese on a bagel. Then I spotted it first from Fancy Sprinkles, a Unicorn Grilled Cheese sandwich, which looked like a beautiful concoction of a unicorn sneezing, with sprinkles and colorful cheese oozing out of the sandwich. Now unicorns have taken over, and something I’ve rarely paid attention to, begin to capture my mind all because of a biblical discussion and a little girls love of unicorns and the King James bible.

This bible verse from Psalm 92:10 KJV resonated with me, and the unicorn took flight with me and my love of cakes, cookies, donuts, and grilled cheese sandwiches, all in unicorn form kept grasping my attention via social media. Let’s not even mention Starbucks debut of the Unicorn Frappuccino just before my birthday. Yes, I’ve tried it!

Make your own Unicorn Grilled Cheese with this easy peasy, and might I add, natural coloring recipe. The natural dyes were a pretty penny, but using vegetable based food coloring instead of regular was my preference and worth every penny.

Unicorn Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Ingredients

Brioche sliced bread

Beecher’s flagship cheese 

Gruyere cheese

India Tree vegetable food coloring (or your preference)

Butter

Sprinkles (optional)

Directions

Using a cheese grater, grate the cheese and then distribute evenly into separate bowls. Add your preferred choice of food coloring to each bowl, thoroughly coating the cheese.

Over medium heat, melt butter in your pan on the stovetop. Butter one side of each slice of bread before placing into the pan. Add cheese in columns on bread, like the photo below.

Place the other slice of bread on top, and after a couple of minutes as the cheese begins to melt, flip to the opposite side.

Once sandwich is browned on both sides, remove from pan and repeat until you have made the amount of sandwiches you need.

Try experimenting with various color combinations, which the children will love. Mixing red and blue to create purple, or yellow and blue to create green. Let their creativity come to life, with this fun lunch theme. Now as much as I love sprinkles, I was not as adventurous or should I say bold enough to try them this time. But I had a few more times as I approach my unicorn theme party to see if I will incorporate them.

Let me know if you give this a try, and what you think of Unicorn Toast, Unicorn Grilled Cheese, and my favorite, coming up in another post, Unicorn Mimosas.

Nothing better than surprising kids with special unique treats to up the level of “WOW” in their lives. Can you imagine your parents serving you a fun beverage inside of chocolate, which then you can eat when done. All after dinner, of course!   For any holiday I can find hollow chocolates on shelves, I love transforming them into beverage cups. I’ve served milk inside the Lindt Bear along with cookies, or egg nog around Christmas, and often punch for Easter Sunday. This was my first time making ice cream floats, and let’s just say the kids weren’t disappointed. 

If you want to step up the dessert excitement around your house, try these fun cups out yourself.

DIY Chocolate Bunny Beverage Cups

Supplies

Hollow chocolate bunnies 

Licorice for straws (or colorful paper straws)

Beverage of choice (floats, milk, juice)

Instructions

Using a paring knife, pierce a hole in the top of one of the hollow chocolate bunnies. Carefully widen the hole, without damaging the ears or going too far into the bunnies face.

Decide which beverage you want to serve inside. Use a small spoon for scoops of ice cream, or serve up milk or your favorite holiday punch. Remember, no hot beverages, or else your chocolate will melt and make a mess.

Insert straw and store in fridge to keep chilled, or in freezer if serving ice cream beverage.

Share your hollow chocolate cups creations with us, and tag us on Instagram using the #SeattlePlaydate hashtag and be sure to follow us. Continue to enjoy the season of Lent, and enjoy these fun recipes and more for your upcoming Easter Resurrection preparations.

It's been a busy couple of weeks in my house, and one of the hardest things to do after living life on the go for 2 weeks, literally only coming home to sleep, is to return to “home life” to begin cooking and scheduling mealtimes all over, and of course playtime. One of my favorite meals to whip up is General Tso Chicken with rice! 

Call it laziness or just maximizing on time, but I have fallen in love with “frying” chicken in my oven. Laila Ali really introduced me to something that is not only a lifesaver, but a time saver. Here is my easy peasy recipe for General Tso Chicken.

Ingredients 

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs 

Salt and pepper

Various spices (see below)

1 Cup all-purpose flour

1/3 Cup brown sugar 

Red bell pepper

Garlic (3-4 cloves minced, to taste)

6 Tablespoons butter

1 1/2 Cups Orange Juice 

Worcestershire sauce 

EVOO 

Directions 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Thoroughly wash and season your chicken thighs with spices of choice. Aside from salt and fresh ground pepper varieties, I also use mesquite garlic powder, cayenne pepper, red chili flakes, poultry seasoning, and various spice grinders from my spice cabinet.

After seasoning, lightly coat your seasoned chicken thighs with brown sugar before fully coating with flour. Place chicken on foil lined baking pan that has been greased down with a little EVOO and place in preheated oven for 25 - 40 minutes, depending on thickness of chicken, and oven temperatures vary.

In saucepan, sauté minced garlic and sliced red bell peppers for a few minutes, then add orange juice, brown sugar, butter, worcestershire sauce, and red chili flakes. Let simmer until thickened, 5 to 8 minutes. (You can always add a little cornstarch to help thicken.)

Check on chicken in oven, making sure to flip to opposite side for even cooking and crispiness of outside to avoid ending up with baked chicken.

Remove chicken from oven and let rest. When cool enough to handle, cut chicken into smaller strips or chunks, but it can be left whole if preferred. Evenly coat chicken in the sauce on the stove top and serve with rice. Voila!

When I tell you this is so simple to prepare and it taste so good, you will avoid the takeout version at all cost. As for playtime, one of the surprises for my son who loves to build Lego’s and everything else, was this Disney Metal Earth model kit. I thought it would be a fun project that he and I could work on together. I am excited to see how it comes out. 

This is how we return to normal to find the balance of home life again, and quality time. God brings us these busy seasons for a reason, and for me it’s an abundance of blessings, but I love finding rest in Him and returning to calm home life. Because I know another busy season is around the corner.  Mark 6:31 reads: “Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”

January was definitely the month of sandwich eating for my family, or at least meat between bread meals, and I am here to share these easy peasy recipes, that your family will enjoy. Especially when in a pinch, to fix something quick. 

Growing up one of my all time favorite sandwiches was a good old fashion French Dip. My mom would slice smoked beef brisket from our BBQ restaurant, layered in between buttered and toasted baguette, ready for me to dip into au jus broth. 

Well it’s been over 10 years since I’ve eaten beef, but I still had a craving for French Dip sandwiches, so I replaced the beef with roasted turkey tenderloins and my love for this favored after school treat was resurrected. Sometimes I bring a turkey tenderloin up to the restaurant so they can smoke it on the BBQ grill, which is the ultimate. Check out the recipe below.

Turkey French Dip Sandwiches 

Ingredients

baguette

turkey cutlets or tenderloin 

onion

bell pepper

salt

pepper

au jus packet (your preference, or homemade)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Season your tenderloin with with salt and pepper, and if you are adventurous like me with the seasonings, I also use mesquite garlic, chicken poultry seasoning, and I slice onions and bell peppers and wrapped it in foil. Place it in the preheated oven for 25 - 40 minutes depending on your oven and size of tenderloin to cook thoroughly. .

In the meanwhile heat up your au jus. There are various options, rather using the seasoning packet and add water via stovetop, the McCormick sauce in the jug, or making your own from scratch.

Slice and butter the inside of your baguette before toasting under the broiler in your oven, for just a few short minutes. 

Once your turkey tenderloin is cooked, let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing into the meat, which also helps hold in the juices. Eat and enjoy, letting that sandwich take a skinny dip in the au jus sauce. 

Thank me later! 

Another tip to fancy up your ground turkey cheddar chili dogs, is to add a little red wine to the ground turkey, beans, diced tomato sauce and let simmer with the other chili seasonings, which I love to include worcestershire sauce, and loads of seasonings again from chipotle pepper, oregano, sage, and basil. I love my seasoning grinders which come in an array of herbs and spice combinations. Top with cheese, and then once again melt cheese under the broiler, which is where this dog below is headed!