The Best Salsa Recipe Ever

For years upon years, I have wandered the earth searching for the perfect store-bought salsa.  Just recently, I realized there is no such thing.  Thanks to The Pioneer Woman, I learned that in order to put salsa in a jar, make sure it stays fresh and sell it in stores, it has to be preserved, typically using vinegar as a preservative.  YUCK!  I mean, I like vinegar in some things, but not my salsa.  That totally explains why I am never satisfied with store-bought salsa!  So again, thanks to that food goddess, The Pioneer Woman, I tripped upon an amazing recipe that I've been making now for almost a year.  I don't really use exact measurements, so it has a slightly different taste each time, but it still always turns out delicious, like a fresh, just-brought-to-the-table restaurant salsa.  

What you will need:

Blender

Can opener

1 can of whole tomatoes

1 can of Rotel (diced tomatoes & chilies)

Half of a medium-sized white onion, roughly chopped

Your choice of pepper --> I typically use 1-2 jalapenos, depending on their size

1-2 cloves of garlic --> I like LOTS of garlic, but you have control

Cilantro --> I am obsessed with cilantro, so I pretty much use 1 whole bushel (sans the stems)

1 tsp. sugar

Salt, pepper & cumin to taste

The instructions are simple:  Just throw it all in a blender and blend until you're happy.  I blend it up pretty good, but some people probably like their salsa a little on the chunkier side.  

That's one of the great things about homemade salsa...you have all the control.  If you wanna get creative and throw in some crazy extra ingredients, by all means, do it ya daredevil.  I have even made a green version of this salsa using canned tomatillos instead of canned whole tomatoes.  

Hope you enjoy this recipe as much as I do, and remember, YOU have the power, my friends.

xoxo

Cousin Lunch Date in Bastrop,TX

I am very fortunate that two of my maternal cousins (and good friends), Esther and Sarah, live in Giddings where they work at Camp Tejas, which is just about an hour and fifteen minutes east of Austin.  Occasionally they journey over to the state capitol for a dose of city life, to explore with their camp "families" and/or to get their Target fix.  I've been able to meet up with them a handful of times for a meal (food is key in any Kitchen gathering), ice cream and a much-too-quick catch-up visit.  Even if our time together is short, we still manage to have a blast!

Today was one of those days where I got to see one of them, and it was wonderful.  Sarah and I met halfway, in Bastrop, for lunch at Maxine's Cafe downtown.  I had never been to downtown Bastrop before, and it wasn't the most amazing place I've ever been to, but there was something very quaint and comforting about it.  Something beautiful that somehow gets lost when you live near a big city.  Maxine's was great!  I ordered the fried green tomato BLT with onion rings, and Sarah got the monte cristo sandwich with sweet potato fries, and of course, in pure Kitchen fashion, we had to share a piece of coconut cream pie.  And let me tell you, my friends, that was THE best coconut cream pie I've ever had, and I don't regret one bite!  Rich, creamy goodness.  Mmm mmm mmm.  Okay, enough dwelling on the pie.  Seriously though, if you ever randomly find yourself hungry in Bastrop, you know where to go.  So after lunch, we wandered around the town square and down to the river and the Kansas City Bridge, happily chatting whilst dying from unbearable Texas heat.  After a quick jaunt to Ross, we parted ways with promises to meet up again soon.  Here are some pictures from our afternoon:

xoxo

My First (Not To Be My Last) Blogging Conference

Remember when I mentioned that I was going to the Texas Style Council conference a couple of weeks ago?  Well, it was this past weekend, and it was so much more than I had ever dreamed it would be.  When I think about all of things I learned and experienced, I am excited, overjoyed, enthusiastic, inspired and, most of all, overwhelmed (in a good way).  It's like my eyes were opened to this whole new beautiful world of women that are just like me.  I know it sounds so cheesy, but I've always felt a little strange compared to other members of the female population, sort of off balance or something.  It was just really nice to be surrounded by people who have very similar interests and ideas, but still each individual has their own identity and specialty.  I probably sound like a weirdo who isn't making any sense, but I swear it makes sense in my head.  Here's a quick rundown of my weekend:

On Saturday I attended five sessions:

Life Blogging 101 with Jenni of Story Of My Life, a fellow Austinite
Monetization 101 with Bethany of The Glamorous Housewife
Self-Photography 101 with Elizabeth of Delightfully Tacky
Personal Budgeting 101 with Kelsey and Eric of Words of Williams
Create Your Media Kit with Tieka of Selective Potential

On Saturday night, all of the TxSC sponsors gathered in the Texas Ballroom at the Hyatt Regency for the ultimate Prom Party complete with 80s #1 hits, a rowdy dance floor, free schtuff, photobooths galore and a cash bar.  'Twas loads of fun.

And on Sunday I attended four more sessions and had the pleasure of hearing Elsie and Emma speak about what they've learned from blogging.

Children on the Blog & Social Media with Katie of Skunkboy (This will be relevant when I have kids because I do plan to continue blogging into motherhood.)
Do Your Dreams Now with Jessica of Noonday Collection
Handling Your Critics with Jen of Jen Loves Kev
From Blog to Book with Becky of Chipper Things and Megan of Greetings From Texas

(Top: Q&A Sunday Afternoon, Left: Elsie & Emma, Right: Katie from Skunkboy)

Every single session I went to was super entertaining and informative, and all of the speakers managed to hold my attention the entire time which is just astonishing.  Well done, ladies!

Lots of Work & A Little Play

I would say this past weekend consisted of a nice balance between work and play.  I worked from early morning into mid-afternoon Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but each of my days had a sweet finish.  On Friday, I came home to Jason and my aunt Kandace, who had dropped off my cousin Kody and some of his friends at a nearby state park for a camping trip.  Instead of driving all the way back to Houston that same day, to my delight, she decided to spend some quality time with us.  We chatted about this and that for a few hours (as per usual) before Jason served up a most delicious supper for the three of us - pulled pork sandwiches with baked beans and homemade potato salad.  After gorging ourselves and indulging in a little fresh-from-the-box Beer of the Month Club craft beer, aunt Kandace introduced us to the newest Netflix original series, Orange Is The New Black.  We watched the first two episodes and decided we'll have to continue watching, whenever we have time that is.  (Side note:  Both of our schedules are insane and all over the place right now.  We rarely see other for more than a few hours at a time these days, and it's the absolute worst feeling in the world.  We've been sitting on two Netflix DVDs for two weeks now, and we're falling behind on our weekly shows!)

femmeandfortune.com

On Saturday, we both got home from work around the same time and quickly got ready to drive up north to meet some friends for dinner in celebration of Corey's 29th birthday.  We were all first-timers at Foreign & Domestic, a little neighborhood restaurant in North Central Austin off of 53rd Street.  The food was pretty pricey, but overall very enjoyable.  We ordered a couple plates of crispy beef tongue which was actually really good, and I ordered corn soup with pickled shrimp, which was interestingly served cold.  That was my first time to try cold soup, and I'm still not sure that I liked it.  For my entree, I got braised goat over corn pudding and pickled cherries.  I wasn't a fan of the cherries, but the goat and corn was a brilliant combination.  Jason and I shared the rocky road sundae for dessert, which was pretty tasty.  My favorite part of the whole meal was probably the cocktail I ordered three times - The Cyclist, a lethal mixture of Session lager, preserved lemon and ginger beer.  SO delicious.

tastytouring.com

Yesterday,  Jason and I both got off work about an hour late and came home exhausted.  After sharing our unpleasant work stories, we brushed off the day and made another trip northward to see his parents and grandpa where we enjoyed some light conversation and a light dinner of Thundercloud Subs.  Despite our exhaustion, we decided to power through and see a movie at Alamo Drafthouse since it had been quite a while.  We chose Only God Forgives, the new Nicolas Winding Refn film starring Ryan Gosling as a quiet maniac.  It was a really pretty movie that showcased brilliant cinematography akin to that of Lynch and Kubrick, paired with a beautiful score that I would gladly sit and listen to all day long.  The story was pretty basic and the dialog wasn't much to be desired, but overall I found it entertaining, which is indeed the whole point of a film.

Forbes.com

Shop Dreaming

Happy Friday, little lovers. 

One day, I will have a room in my house dedicated to the art of carnivals.

Now, here's a list of things I want, but cannot afford at the moment:

Free People Marina Embroidered Dress

                                                                                            

Kate Spade Mug

                         

Westward Leaning 7.2 Sleeping Beauty Sunnies

Kate Spade NY Shawna Shades in Pale Mint

KitchenAid Stand-Up Mixer

Marc Jacobs Classic Q Izzy Handbag

Anthropologie Oxfords

Apple iMac

To round out this super random post, I present you with my current favorite song, "Sinful Nature" by Bear In Heaven.  The video for the song is basically a weird, David Lynch-esque interpretation of Pretty Woman.  I could take or leave the video, but the song is absolute gold.  Enjoy :)

xoxo

We Went To The Beach

In the midst of all the hustle and bustle Jason and I are both currently experiencing at work this summer, we were able to escape to the beach for a couple of days.  We drove into Galveston Sunday afternoon and met up with my mom, sister, brother, aunts and cousin for dinner at Landry's on the Seawall.  My family lives in Houston which is only about an hour away from the island, and, to my delight, they decided to take a little trip to spend some time with us at the start of our mini-vacation.  Monday, we treated ourselves to breakfast at Waffle House and then spent a couple of hours in the sand and sea before wandering into town to browse the shops, have lunch and pick up some treats at the famous La King's Confectionery on The Strand.  After a few more hours down on the shore searching for seashells and enjoying the breezy, overcast day, we made our way back down to the east end for dinner at The Spot, where I had the most delicious coconut shrimp!  The trip was short, but oh-so-sweet, and it made me even more anxious for our trip to the Pacific NW in September where we will spend EIGHT days away from the madness!

xoxo

By the Sea, By the Sea, By the Beautiful Sea

Jason and I are off to Galveston on Sunday!  I am so excited!  I know Galveston doesn't have the prettiest of beaches, but that was my beach growing up in Houston, and it will always be a precious place to me.  We would go a few times a year when I was younger.  

Shopping and lunching on the Strand, biking down along the sea wall, building sand and drip castles, spending hours upon hours at the Stewart Beach water slides and getting some old fashioned ice cream and candy at La King's.  

I am ready for relaxation and rejuvenation after that crazy holiday weekend at work!

Historic Pleasure Pier - entertainmentdesigner.com

Backyard BBQ Summer Playlist

First of all, I hope you all had a fabulous fourth of July with lots of beer, hot dogs and pseudo-patriotic enthusiasm!  I had to work until 11 p.m. last night, but afterward I was able to meet up with Jason, Corey and our friends Kyle and Krista, who are visiting from San Francisco, for some celebratory beers in honor of America's birthday.

It's been a while since I've posted one of my notorious playlists (hardy har), but I swear it's not me!  It's my aging little MacBook that is just barely trucking along at this point.  It refuses to play ANY videos, music links or really anything that requires Adobe Flash Player because apparently my computer is too old to undergo the updates.  Oh, and it can't handle the latest version of Spotify either (which is why I can't take screen shots of my Spotify playlists as I have in the past).  I would love to run out and buy a new one, but unfortunately money doesn't grow on trees for this household, and I would prefer to save my money for our upcoming trip to the Pacific Northwest.  Maybe after the trip I'll start factoring a new computer into my budget!  Until then, please bare with me and accept my typed out song listings.  Here are some of my favorite songs to blast during the summer.  I'm talking windows down, salty beach air, the smell of sunscreen, the taste of popsicles, summer love and everything else that makes our hearts go pitter-patter this time of year.  I encourage you, obviously, to check these songs out for yourself via Spotify, iTunes, Grooveshark, Pandora, YouTube or however else you kids listen to music these days!  Enjoy :)

"Goodbye" - Best Coast
"Catalina" - Allah-Las
"Dream Captain" - Deerhunter
"Royals" - Lorde
"Down By The Water" - The Drums
"Baby" - She & Him
"Sleepwalker" - Nerve City
"Smooth Sailing" - Queens of the Stone Age
"Indigo Meadow" - The Black Angels
"Cola" - Lana Del Rey
"Solitude Is Bliss" - Tame Impala
"King of the Beach" - Wavves
"Demons (Diplo Remix)" - Sleigh Bells
"Wild" - Beach House
"Such A Bore" - Bass Drum of Death
"The Purple Bottle" - Animal Collective
"Don't Worry Baby" - The Beach Boys
"You're So Fine" - Ricky Nelson

xoxo

Link Lovin'

I thought I would take a little time to share with you some things I have come across on the inter-webs as of late: things I am currently pining for, things I found beautiful and/or things I felt inspired by.

Maeby says hi!

+ + +

Elsie & Emma of A Beautiful Mess are constantly giving me ideas and inspiration so I wasn't the least bit surprised when my jaw-dropped open in awe of the cuteness that is this back porch party they hosted last weekend.

The 'back porch party' post lead me to peruse the West Elm site which only led to tears and disappointment because I cannot afford anything at that shop, and we don't have a house to decorate just yet anyway.  BUT that won't stop me from drooling over these glass jar light pendants or these outdoor orb lanterns.

How adorable is this handbag from Modcloth?  Instant love.

A few delicacies I've made recently: the Pioneer Woman's baked french toast, baked eggs in a spicy tomato sauce courtesy of A Cozy Kitchen and a brownie sundae baked in a jar!  All delicious and all repeat-worthy!

Top Left: Baked Eggs in Spicy Tomato Sauce
Top Right: Baked French Toast

Last night, I attempted another recipe from A Cozy Kitchen, Goat Cheese and Apple Tarts, to take over  to our friend Amanda's as a post-dinner treat.  They were pretty delish, but probably would've been better fresh out of the oven!

(Something you should know about me: I am obsessed with goat cheese! It works out well though because Jason stopped eating dairy back in March, but he can still eat goat cheese because it doesn't contain lactose.  Therefore, I can make all the goat cheese dishes I desire!)

I recently participated in a giveaway put on by A Beautiful Mess in which all of their sponsors contributed gift cards and/or items from their shops.  I fell head-over-heels in love with this dress from Red Clover Boutique.

Lastly, this isn't really something I found online, but I wanted to share it anyway!  Jason and I went to Roll On Sushi Diner in North Central Austin the other day, and it was so good.  It's probably the best sushi I've had in Austin.  I was beyond satisfied with the Half-Baked Californian roll that I ordered.  So, if you ever find yourself craving sushi in Austin, check this place out!

xoxo

Wednesday Summer Inspiration

I don't know about you guys, but I am beach-dreaming like MAD!  Grooving to the Beach Boys, craving pina coladas, pining for a new pair of oversized sunnies, inhaling the summer air and wishing I could go swimming in the sea...

XOXO