{New Cookie Flavor} Lemon Lavender Oatmeal Shortbread

Even though we had a mild winter this year, I'm glad Spring has finally arrived. It has been a crazy winter for my family and myself, but I'll save that story for a rainy day. All I can say is that I'm ready to shed the gloom and start to bloom anew {Did see what I did there...? Spring... Bloom anew...}.

When I think of Spring... I think of citrus, rhubarb pie, flowers, riding motorcycles, asparagus, peas and my birthday {had to throw that in there}. With that in mind, I headed into our kitchen to recipe test and our latest cookie flavor was created; Lemon Lavender Oatmeal Shortbread.

Our Lemon Lavender Oatmeal Shortbread is a delightful twist on a classic. We lightly toast and freshly ground oats... the earthiness of the oats is further enriched with a floral bouquet of crushed lavender and sweetened with our house-made lemon sugar. You can purchase them here.

By the way... this is just one of a few new cookies coming to our Spring/Summer Seasonal Gift Box. Stay tuned for our latest cookies. Want a hint for our next flavor...?! It contains dried fruit of an herb. Have you guessed what it is?

{Share Our Strength} NYC Food Blogger Bake Sale

“We are vegetarians… Not because we want to be, but because we have to be”

                                                                            - Marina (my grandmother)

This is a quote I will forever remember and repeat when times are hard. My grandmother was a witty lady and she always made me feel like everything was going to be okay.  

While writing this particular post, I didn’t think I would find myself evoking so many emotions.

I am the daughter of a single mother. So, at times, life was a bit strained. Sometimes we went without. My mother didn’t always have it easy, but she made it work for us. Every penny was pinched and budgeted… And nothing was ever wasted.

Sometimes we would have a soft boiled egg for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Left-overs were turned into soup that would be stretched until the next paycheck. That being said, I can’t say I ever recall going to bed hungry.

Can you believe that nearly 1 in 5 children in America go to bed hungry?! It doesn’t have to be this way… Come take the No Kid Hungry pledge with me. 

Why take the pledge?

Because ending childhood hunger is the most significant thing we can do. Together we have the power to make a difference.

Would you like to do more? No problem… All across America, people are hosting bake sales to support Share Our Strength. 

Come join and/or support the movement to raise funds to end childhood hunger in America by 2015!

Event: NYC Food Bloggers' Bake Sale

When: April 28th, 2012

Time: 10:00AM - 5:00PM

Where: Brooklyn Flea

          176 Lafayette Avenue (between Clermont & Vanderbilt Ave.)

          Brooklyn, NY 11238

For more information, check out the NYC Food Blogger's Bake Sale tumbler and Facebook page.

Wedding Favors

Have you heard of Wedzu? No…!? Well, you should! Wedzu is an online marketplace dedicated to everything weddings, from wedding dresses to the most amazing handmade items for your ceremony to reception.

As I mentioned before in a previous post; my husband and I wanted to elope, but it didn’t quite happen the way we planned it. We ended up putting together a “reception-ish” hootenanny {it really wasn’t a hootenanny… I just like that word. Hootenanny…} together in less than a month. *sigh* Wish Wedzu was around when I got married!

With wedding season around the corner, I wanted to tell about a little something we’ve been working on. Based on my experience of trying to put together a wedding in less than a month… I put together a line of pre-designed wedding/party favors that is available on Wedzu and Etsy.

I know there are pre-packaged favors out there, but how many lollipops or bottle openers do you really need or want?! There’s nothing wrong with that, if that is what you want to do. I just think it tends to look generic… my main problem, is that they never really look like it was chosen and/or designed just for you and your special day.

I think it’s all in the details. With that in mind, I tried to design our favors with an artisan feel yet with a touch of whimsy and elegance. At the moment, we have 3 different styles and 20 colors to choose from.

Don’t see a style or color you like… don’t worry! We are working on other styles and I would be happy to discuss packaging option and ideas with you.

I believe that every special event should end on a sweet note… whether it’s your wedding, birthday or any special event.
 

 By the way... Happy Leap Year!

New Year... And Resolutions!

I’ve always enjoyed New Year’s Eve. Not because of all the parties, food, and cocktails, but because my mother taught me that it’s a time to be grateful for what you were blessed with throughout the year. It’s also a time to reflect on the changes we want and/or need to change. 

I do not necessarily enjoy looking back on the past, but I love looking forward to the future… 

Usually by November I’m so ready to shed the old to start anew. Its day 18 of 2012… How are you guys making out with your New Year’s resolution?! Not so good?! Did you overreach this year?! Do you normally make any resolutions?! 

I normally do not make New Year’s resolutions because I tend to waaaaaaay overreach. And usually by April I’m completely disappointed with myself, but this year I did make one. 

My resolution this year is to you, my blog friends and family out there. I pledge to post at least one or two posts a month. Yeah… yeah… I know what you’re saying… “Oh boy… here we go again!”

As I admitted before {here}; I’m an extremely private person and writing a blog is a challenge for me, but this is a hump I need to overcome. 

Oh… by the way, Sugar ‘n Pickles just turned two years old three days ago! Isn’t it so amazingly scary how time flies by?! 

Looking forward to 2012 with you blog friends! Happy New Year!

Zucchini with Garlic Fritters

 Between work and family functions, it has been crazy busy… and I mean crazy.

Before starting my own business, I used to miss a lot of family functions and gatherings. I used to work crazy hours and at times I barely even saw my husband; especially, during the holiday seasons. I can’t really say that the crazy hours stopped since I started my own business, but at least now I am able to attend family gatherings.

Anyway… enough with the business talk. That could be a post in itself for another day. Maybe, I’ll save that for a rainy day.

Last year my brother-in-law got engaged to his longtime girlfriend and last Friday was the rehearsal dinner. The rehearsal dinner was very relaxed, easy going and jam packed with friends, family, and family-to-be.

The highlight of my evening was actually getting to see my nieces and nephews. I don’t get to see those little munchkins very often. A couple of years ago, my sister-in-law moved a state away in order to leave the city life behind to experience life on a farm. 

 My nieces and nephews couldn't be happier. Those little munchkins love telling me stories about their new family members/farm animals. I think now farmer B (my sister-in-law) has something like two horses, 30something chickens, goats, ducks, cats, dogs and other animals that I’m sure I left out; I really need to go on a road trip with my husband and visit the farm.


In the risk of sounding spoiled, farmer B always visits bearing gifts from her farm. Tomatoes, summer berries, peaches, squash, corn… you name it. She grows it! This time around, she gifted us with tomatoes, cantaloupe, zucchinis and summer squash.


After a weekend of family packed festivities and eating, I honestly didn't feel like cooking Monday night. Since farmer B’s zucchinis were staring at me, I decided to make zucchini fritters. My husband and I enjoyed these little fritters with a salad and a glass of wine.  

  
Zucchini with Garlic Fritters

Recipe: inspired by Sunil Vijayakar's recipe for 'Courgette and Parmesan Fritters with Garlic and Mint' from his book "Deep Fry"

1lb 10oz/750g Zucchini, trimmed and coarsely grated

1 cup All-Purpose Flour

1 Garlic Clove, minced 

2 Eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon Baking Powder

pinch of Sugar

Kosher Salt and Ground Black Pepper to taste

Oil for frying, I used corn oil

Place the grated zucchini in a large sieve and press down firmly with the back of a spoon to remove any excess moisture/water from the zucchini. I used a potato ricer instead of a sieve. I find that using a potato ricer gives you the best result. {I also use this method for potatoes when making hash browns} In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients until mixed thoroughly. 

Pour about 3/4 -inch to 1 -inch of oil into a large heavy frying pan. Heat the oil to 350F. Working in small batches, drop spoonfuls of the zucchini mixture into the hot oil. Fry the fritters until golden, turning once {about 3 - 4 minutes total}. Remove fritters with a slotted spoon and drain on a cookie sheet lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with Himalayan pink salt {optional} and serve immediately.

 

Part 2: Wedding Anniversary and a Road Trip

Do you know what's better than a spur of the moment road trip? Having Le Pain Quotidien located directly across the street from your hotel. I’m in love with this bakery and wish I had one across the street from my house. No actually, make that two blocks away; I have to at least squeeze in some kind of exercise after eating all that bread, tartines, tarts and pastry I would eat there regularly.

I am completely jealous if you happen to have one near you. By the way, still kicking myself for not trying their Pain aux Chocolat… Agh, totally craving one right now!

As I mentioned before, hubby and I have never visited DC. So, we were pretty excited to see our nation’s capital. We each had a list of places, museums and monuments we wanted to see before we left. We were armed and ready with camera, cellphone, and maps in hand.

Isn’t it silly being tourists? You’re always confused, lost or all of the above. I have to admit, even with map in hand and directional signs everywhere pointing you to the right direction; we got lost. LoL… I’ll blame it on dehydration. We were there during a heat wave, but we sucked it up. We braved the sun and sunburn later that evening. We’re troopers, at least in my mind. :) After all, we only had 24 hours and everything to see

 

Part 1: Wedding Anniversary and a Road Trip

Last weekend was my 7^th wedding anniversary… time flies. It seemed like it was just yesterday that I was stressing out about putting a wedding “reception-ish” together in less than a month. My husband and I wanted to elope, but in the middle of making plans to Vegas to get married by Elvis (I know that sounds super corny, but I love Elvis!) word got out.

Needless-to-say, our family wasn’t really happy about that. So… they convinced us to get married at the courthouse and have an “intimate” family dinner. The dinner guest list started getting bigger and bigger… and bigger. I think you know how it goes; “Oh, you have to invite so and so, they will be really upset if you don’t.” The small intimate family dinner became more of a reception with about 85 guests. It was very stressful, but it was fun.

Since that day, we don’t really plan anything for our anniversary. We just go with the flow…

After our Saturday morning breakfast; hubby asked me if I wanted to have dinner at Chef Todd English’s newest restaurant, Crossbar at the Limelight. Of course my reply was, “heck yes!”

By the afternoon, I started craving Southern BBQ. I asked the hubby if he wanted to go on a road trip searching for some Southern BBQ. Without skipping a beat, he Googled BBQ pits around the area. As he searched, he found out that DC was having a Summer of Food Month and that weekend was Belgium Food Week.

We looked at each other… DC it is! As I packed a weekend bag, he booked the hotel. By early Saturday evening, we were in our car trucking from Jersey to DC. I love being care free! As sad as this sound, we have never been to Washington DC. So, we were super excited.

Our commute was perfect until we hit Baltimore, MD and bumper to bumper traffic. We were stuck in traffic for hours during a heat wave; oh, did I mention our air conditioning isn’t working. Yup! Gross…

We arrived at the hotel at 10:00PM exhausted, but excited to start our morning.