Sprinklesmobile

The cupcake movement continues! Just when we thought people were moving on, Sprinkles is opening a new store today (thank you Kelly for the heads up) on the Gold Coast. The store will be followed by a cupcake truck, spreading baked goodness all over Chicago. Here's my Q- How will I know how to find it? Or is that part of the trendy frustration that accompanies the food truck thing? Anyway, it doesn't stop there. Feast reports that Magnolia is planning on a location in Chicago as well. Basically, it's raining cupcakes in chicago. Yay.

Zucchini Linguini

We made this pasta with a giant farmer's market zucchini for lunch on Sunday and would definitely do it again. We used kalamata olive since they were already in the fridge. The breadcrumbs sound unnecessary, but add a great little bit of crunch to the dish. Its a quick one too, 30 minutes from start to finish.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4 to 6.

Coarse salt

1 pound linguine

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling

3 cloves garlic, peeled

4 medium zucchini, halved lengthwise, then sliced very thinly crosswise

1 large red onion, thinly sliced

20 Gaeta or Nicoise olives, pitted

1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Sicilian

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/2 cup Breadcrumbs

DIRECTIONS

Fill a 10-quart stockpot with 7 quarts water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add 2 tablespoons coarse salt. Add pasta, stir until water returns to a boil, and cook pasta, according to package directions, until al dente.

Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add oil and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes. Add onion and zucchini and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add olives, oregano, and red pepper flakes; season with salt to taste.

Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water. Add pasta to skillet and toss to combine. If pasta seems dry, add reserved cooking water 1 tablespoon at a time, tossing between each addition. Transfer pasta to a large platter, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with bread crumbs; serve immediately.

First published May 2008

*Recipe and photo from martha

Friday flowers

*via frolic

Summer BBQ at the cottage

I am so in love with this fabulous dinner party thrown as the kick-off to my friend Missy's weekend-long family celebration in Mattapoisett, Mass. The family came in from all over to celebrate the baptism of Missy's sister's youngest daughter and, wow, did these parents put on a beautiful party! The menus and invites were printed on maplewood which coordinated back to wood plates and utensils as well as the maplewood smoked meats that were served for dinner. The chic long table has a great natural sea-inspired feel with an abundance of organic materials and pretty, muted water colors. Missy's sister arranged the blue hydrangeas from the garden in clay pots herself. The food was prepared by a chef friend, Wayne Gibson, from South Coast Local in Mattapoisett. And to top it all off, handmade milkshakes and fireworks! Ahhhh, this is what summer looks like. Congratulations to Ivy and her parents on her baptism and a perfect weekend.

Food: South Coast Local, (508) 450-9539, Mattapoisett MA

Party Design: Canestri Design, Sonoma CA

Linens: La Tavola Linens, Napa CA

Friday flowers

Ahhhh, the beginning of dahlia season. obsess. love. swoon. have a great weekend and happy bday wishes to kelly!

*flowers by Saipua

Beach blues

Its hot and I would seriously like to be hitting the beach in some cool blues. Hat and scarf/wrap, Calypso, Bikini at anthropologie, tote at Gap, umbrellas at Pottery Barn.

Serious garnish

We made bloody marys for world cup final watching this weekend, paying special attention to my favorite part- the garnish. Our skewer featured genoa salame, swiss cheese, pickles and a pimiento stuffed olive with a celery stalk on the side. YUM.

Bloody recipe from Anne Burrell's show, Secrets of a Restaurant Chef. She is kind of over the top goofy but really does a good job of explaining the steps to the recipes.

Ingredients

• 1 quart vegetable juice
• 3 tablespoons celery salt, plus more for rimming the glass (after making this, I think a little less is better)
• 2 tablespoons horseradish
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 to 2 teaspoons Sriracha
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• Lime wedges
• Vodka
• Celery stalks, for garnish
• Large green olives, for garnish

Directions

In a large pitcher combine the vegetable juice, celery salt, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, Sriracha and sherry vinegar. Stir well to combine.

Add some celery salt to a small plate.

Run a lime wedge around the edge of the cocktail glasses and then dip the glasses in the celery salt. Fill the glasses 2/3 of the way with ice cubes. Add 2 ounces of vodka to each glass and then fill the rest of the way with the Bloody Mary mix. Stir to combine and garnish with celery stalks and olives.

Friday flowers

Whew! For a short week, that was pretty long! Am looking forward to a friend in town, pedis and the farmers market tomorrow. Have a happy weekend!!

Streamers

Love the streamers from this wedding on 100 Layer Cake. So breezy, summery and romantic. I like that this couple is not afraid of color. More sweet creativeness: the shutters used for escort cards and the funny but totally true signage.

Paper planes

Cute folded thank you notes from Minted. I bought a set of these for my brother and his fiancee. Casual, fun and with the option for coordinating address labels (bottom photo).

Could paper planes work for a wedding? I think it would be a smart play on a destination theme. Check out these save the dates and these cards.

Friday flowers

Have a great 4th of july weekend!! Hopefully your weekend will involve sparklers, grilled corn on the cob and maybe popsicles or sweet patriotic treats to round things out.

Illuminated

I love the masses of candles on this long wedding table. Romantic and gorgeously summery outside in the dark with a glowing centerpiece. Its the kind of lighting that makes everyone look so glam and pretty. From 100 layer cake.