shrooms.

who doesn't love a good appetizer?  one of my favs to make are stuffed shrooms.  they're so easy, they make a boat load, and they're scrumptious! 

{slice}

{mix}

{bake}

{eat}

here's the recipe:

12 whole fresh mushrooms

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper

directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Clean mushrooms with a damp paper towel. Carefully break off stems. Chop stems extremely fine, discarding tough end of stems.

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and chopped mushroom stems to the skillet. Fry until any moisture has disappeared, taking care not to burn garlic. Set aside to cool.
2. When garlic and mushroom mixture is no longer hot, stir in cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, black pepper, onion powder and cayenne pepper. Mixture should be very thick. Using a little spoon, fill each mushroom cap with a generous amount of stuffing. Arrange the mushroom caps on prepared cookie sheet.
3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the mushrooms are piping hot and liquid starts to form under caps.

a very long overdue post

so many ways to connect and share ideas, thoughts and news...i'm finally updating this venue as well...

on march 7th, 2012, evan and i went hiking at a little historic park in oahu - diamond head crater.  on this beautiful sunny afternoon, the love of my life proposed to me on a park bench. 

i couldn't be more excited, happy, and in love.  evan is my forever.  he makes me happier than if i were a kid again, inside a jump jump, waiting for the ice cream truck to get here.  i'm beyond lucky to have such an amazing man to be my partner, best friend, and teammate.  i can't wait for the rest of our adventures.



r&r

man, just looking at these pictures makes me wish i was back there in colorado.  sometimes, when life gets hectic, you need a little extended weekend.  spend some time with some great friends, and the great outdoors, will bring you back to your happy place. here are some pics of a much needed relaxing weekend in boulder. 

  



 

tea and cupcakes with ash



 



 

 

hipster boulder. hipster snowmen.



handsome man. beautiful mountain.

chautauqua and murray.



grand slam

the title of this post won't mean anything but to a select few - whitey, boodoodle, mollyryan, katiedoodad.  it symbolizes a name that will forever keep a memory in my mind.

eighty four years ago today (or so he says), marked the birth of a wonderful man.  he was a brother, a husband, a father, an uncle, a grandfather, a best friend, and a solider.  i've never met a more decent individual.  sure, he cussed and swore like every other grandpa.  but, he was kind and caring.  above all, he would do anything, and i mean anything for his grandchildren.  my grandfather, known to most of the world as Don, lived, loved and laughed his ass off.  his friends and most of his family knew him as Donald Minks.  however, his immediate family called him Ross.  he was a minimalist.  on his last birthday celebration, my family asked him where he wanted to go for dinner.  he replied - Dairy Queen.  what better way to ring in another year than with a blizzard?!  good choice, grandpa!  he was one hell of a card player.  i can remember being a tiny little toe head running around at family gatherings and finally finding a spot on my grandpa's lap.  he would teach me how to play cards and how to make an extremely stern poker face.  he taught me how to drive - although via a tractor.  he taught me the value of a dollar.  he taught me that no matter what, love your family.  he was an incredible man with so much love to give.  i sincerely appreciate every single thing he gave me.

love,
slam

capture the moments

i couldn't be more excited/nervous/anxious/overwhelmed about my christmas present from evan. he got me a Canon Rebel T2i.  i've been wanting to get into photography for a long time now, and i could never cough up the courage to buy a fancy new camera.  so... now that i have one... what do i do with it??

evan talked to a girl in boulder that has this awesome food blog and also has this camera.  she gave us some pretty great links to get started. 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/photography/category/basic-photography/
http://www.kenrockwell.com/index.htm

i can't wait to start exploring my creative side with this new toy!

These are a few of my favorite things...

Merry Christmas to all! I hope everyone got to spend time with their loved ones, eat delicious food and get a few presents. Here are a few of my favorite things...

The best and the most memorable parts of Christmas for me are playing games with my family and watching those classic holiday movies.

Happy holidays to you and yours!

success...

success tastes like a skinny vanilla latte, made by your own two hands. 

for my birthday, my wonderful, incredibly thoughtful boyfriend, bought me an espresso machine.  to go along with the new toy, he reserved a private barista lesson with the local coffee shop.  the terrific barista taught us both how to make lattes, cappicinos, mochas, and how to maintain the machines. i was overly thrilled! i couldn't wait to get home to try it out for myself. 

it took a few tries to get it just right, but finally, there was success!!

what a wonderful birthday gift.