White Owl Studio

WE BOUGHT A FOOD TRUCK!!!

Did I mention Dan and his friend bought a food truck?! They're going to make the most delicious things and sell them around town! Come get the first taste this Saturday during their inaugural event held at Headwaters Park from 2-6pm! See you there! 

They'll be specializing in a wide range of sandwich preparations using free-range, locally sourced pork, chicken, and duck.

Have more zucchini than you know what to do with? Try one of my favorite recipes below!

1. Zucchini Nut Cookies: The perfect sweet and savory whoopie pie! These were a total hit at work and at home.  I only made a single batch, for fear I'd eat the entire second batch if I made more (which definitely would have happened).  SO GOOD!

2. Zucchini Parmesan: I love that this recipe uses olive oil instead of a egg dip before breading.  A great lighter alternative.  And, there are tons of ways to serve these...

-Over pasta

-Over marinara sauce (shown in my photo)

-In a vegetable panini.  It took them to work this week to use up my left over!  Just add bread, spinach, tomatoes, cheese and toast up!

3. Grilled Zucchini: This is my husband's recipe and it makes the BEST GRILLED VEGETABLES! 

Slice 1/4" pieces of the squash (I find long ways to be easiest to grill with). Toss in a mixture of equal parts olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Salt and toss on grill. It works well with most all types of veggies. Here is a fancier version of the recipe.

Berry Tart

I made this summer berry tart for my mom's birthday last weekend. I must admit that I used pre-made crust to save time, but did whip up the filling from scratch and even added my signature vanilla beans! I also doubled the filling amount as I found it a little skimpy for my deep pie crust.

Dorm Collection

Baltimore Favorites

Another creative invite from a friend for a wedding this summer!  The composition book was a 5" x 7" greeting card with the lined paper printed on the inside.

S’mores Brownies

I tried out a recipe from my new copy of the Joy The Baker Cookbook this weekend!

Tip: If you do not follow her blog you are really missing out. Get on it.

These gooey delights were taken to a party Saturday night and devoured rather quickly. Five by me. I also went a little more aggressive on the mallow content than Joy, but I wanted every brownie piece to have it's own full crispy fluff.

Recipe #1 = delicious success! Next to try: kettle corn. Possibly my favorite snack of all time.

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

5 large eggs

1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup graham cracker, roughly crushed with your hands

12 big marshmallows  (I also diced 6 additional marshmallows and stirred them into the batter. These marshmallows dissolve when baked, so you can leave them out, or throw them in.  Up to you!)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 9×13-inch baking pan with 2-inch-high sides. Combine first 3 ingredients in small bowl. Stir butter and chocolate in a medium sized bowl over a  heavy  saucepan of simmering water.  Stir chocolate and butter in this double boiler until melted and smooth.

Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla in large bowl to blend. Stir in warm chocolate mixture, then dry ingredients. Fold in graham crackers.  Pour batter into prepared pan. Dot with 12 large marshmallows.  Bake until toothpick inserted into center comes out with moist crumbs attached, about 30- 40 minutes minutes.

Marshmallows will be browned and puffy but will deflate as the brownies cool.  Cool for at least 20 minutes than slice with a sharp knife, cleaning the knife with hot water if it gets too messy and sticky.  Serve or wrap individually in wax paper for storing.

Ombre Tights!

Cute tights from BZR on Etsy are being worn around my office today.

Updated Lighting: Half Bath

We've been going full speed on classing our home up before it's on the Neighborhood Tour June 23rd.

To update our lighting, a quick and easy swap was made in our half bath downstairs.  We had old frosted glass light covers with ridges that I really didn't like. I found clear, more domed covers at Lowes for $6/piece (couldn't find them online to link). They have little bubbles in them which makes them feel hand blown and a little more industrial.  The fixture we had was brushed nickel, and everything else in that bathroom is chrome, so I spray painted it, which only half-worked. The spray paint didn't come out as "chrome" as the lid showed on the can, but the fixture does look more chrome-ish.

I still might switch out the bulbs, but here she is for now. Welcome to 2012.

I've been on quite the smoothie kick lately. We have no Jamba Juice where I live, so I've been making my own Jamba inspired treats! The great news: they're SO MUCH CHEAPER to make at home. Smoothies are also a great way to get in your daily fruit servings and vitamin C.

My Strawberry Tsunami

-1/2 c frozen strawberries  (I buy these when they're on sale at the store, rinse, slice and toss in a ziplock right in my freezer for smoothie time).

-1/4 c frozen raspberries (I buy these when they're on sale, rinse and toss them in a ziplock in my freezer for smoothie time).

-One spoonful of frozen limeade mix (my secret ingredient!)

-1/2 c orange juice

-1 scoop strawberry or raspberry sorbet. Could also use orange sherbet.

-Ice as needed

Blend and enjoy!  Other things you could add to this mix to make it even more awesome: greek yogurt, honey, granola, flax seed oil, peanut butter, nuts. If you add Sprite is tastes like a strawberry daiquiri.