Vintage Monday: McCoy planter

Picked up this little McCoy planter at an estate sale a few weeks ago.  This is my favorite shade of green, can't wait to get a little yellow flower for it.  Pansies maybe?

on a break...

We've got family in town this week so I'll be taking a little blogging break.  Lots of baking, cooking, shopping, watching movies and puppy kisses to catch up on!

Vintage Monday: Zebra sequin top

Sorry about the late Vintage Monday!  Here's one of my favorite pieces we sold at the shop this past weekend.  It was found by Sydney in the great Midwest and is such a special vintage piece!

Austin Restaurant Week: Uchiko

Here are some belated pictures from a delicious meal at Uchiko during Austin Restaurant Week.  You can check out the menu here.  Suz and I shared two appetizers, chose the same main course and then had two amazingly decadent desserts. Two must have items that I highly recommend: the crispy brussels sprouts and sweet corn dessert!

Wishlist Wednesday: Penguin sweaters

I really wish I knew how to knit!!  A current oil spill in New Zealand has affected the blue penguin population and rather than traumatizing the penguins more by scrubbing and cleaning them immediately, the rescuers are putting little wool sweaters on them so they won't try to groom themselves and inadvertently swallow the toxic oil.  Skeinz yarn has provided detailed instructions and a mailing address where you can send the sweaters to be used in the rescue effort. We had the opportunity to see the little blue penguins during our visit to Phillip Island in Australia and I hope that this mess can get cleaned up quickly and that these little penguins stay warm in their wool sweaters!

Original story and picture here

Vintage Monday: Pyrex jars

Reason #572 why I love Pyrex: their jars are perfect for storing your favorite treats!

Tasting menu at Perilla NYC

Sorry for the lag in blog posts, I'm currently in Cinci-tucky visiting family.  Thought I'd post some belated pictures of one of the highlights of my NYC trip last month--dinner at Perilla.  I had a wonderful time with my hosts as we sampled the delicious seven course tasting menu. 

I missed the first two dishes because we were too busy raving over them  (both seafood dishes).  Then came:

Sweetbreads (even if you fry them, they're still sweetbreads)

My favorite dish: fresh ravioli in brocolli cream sauce with shaved truffles.
I LOVE truffles and have never had such large pieces of them before--heaven!
(sorry this didn't photograph well, but look at the size of the shaved truffles!)

Duck breast with pate (this was so rich and decadent)

Served along with a duck meatball for some duck overload goodness!

At this point, our palatte cleanser, which was a refreshing sherbert with lemon curd

could have been our dessert and I would have been perfectly happy

But of course, dessert was presented and we enjoyed a minature version of

Perilla's famous chocolate souffle along with coffee cream and a freshly baked hazelnut biscotti

Delicious food and wonderful company made for a memorable evening.  Thank you Tara and Chad!

Favorite Friday Recipe: Ko lo mee

 

This is one of our favorite meals to eat in Singapore and something we never thought we could recreate.  It turns out that it's a really simple recipe, especially if you use some short cuts like we did! 

Ko lo mee (also may be known as dry wanton noodles)

BBQ pork: 

• buy from your favorite Chinese restaurant (this is the aforementioned short cut!  but B has found a recipe for this so we might be trying it out soon)

Vegetables:

• I have no idea what these are called.  I just got some from the Asian grocery store that looked vaguely familiar and then asked the checkout counter lady
• Cut vegetables into 4-5 inch long pieces
• Blanche in hot water for 2 minutes
• Place in ice bath
• Drain and let sit before adding to noodles and pork

Noodles:

• These can be found in the freezer section of the Asian grocery store, hopefully it'll say "Wanton Noodles" in English on the packet
• Boil water and place noodles in one spiral at a time -- 3 minutes
• Strain noodles out and place in cold water for 1 minute
• Put back into boiling water for 1 minute (supposedly this process makes the noodles more "al dente" like.  I think it helps with the starch)
• Drain and mix with sauce

Sauce:

• Mix 1 tbsp oyster sauce, 1 tbsp sweet dark sauce (this should be thick), 1 tsp soy sauce and 1/2 tsp sesame oil
• Add one spiral of noodles and mix
• Serve vegetables and meat on noodles and enjoy! 

Missoni for Target zigzag pouf

This zigzag ottoman pouf is probably one of my favorite items from the Missoni for Target collection.  The colors work well in our living room and is perfect as an extra seat, surface for one of my many trays, or a puppy resting place.

Wishlist Wedneday: Cutipol Goa flatware

Good looking flatware makes my heart go pitter patter.  I'm more than happy with my vintage Canoe Muffin by Ecko Eterna but sometimes it's ok to look at other options right?  The above eye candy of the day is brought to you by the Cutipol Goa line.

Vintage Monday: wooden penguin nesting dolls

My favorite find from the Brooklyn Flea