COFFEE TALK

Welcome to this Friday.  Fridays are so full of promise, setting us right on the edge of the weekend - close enough to taste the adventures to come, but just distant enough for anything to seem possible. 

This is the beginning of a new weekly series that I am titling “Coffee Talk.”  It’s a compilation of all the things I would gush over if you and I were sitting down to chat over lattes.  It’s weekend plans, current obsessions, and likely of bit of Pinspiration.  I hope you love it.  

Now, before we begin, cream or sugar?  Both?  Okay good, I knew I liked you. 

These are currently sitting in my freezer, just waiting for their hot, oily fate.  They are destined for Mr. Pedantic’s guys game night, but I have secret dreams about eating them all myself this afternoon and leaving those boisterous boys with my sad bag of rejected veggie chips.

Fortnum & Mason's Breakfast Blend is basically the only tea you ever need to buy.  I discovered the wonder that is Fortnum and Mason while we were in London and I pretty much lost my mind.  I think we spent about four hours in that multi-leveled paradise, and that is a modest estimate.  Their teas have been the best we have ever sipped, and my then-skeptical husband is now very thankful that I insisted upon bringing back a suitcase full.   

In other news, I have become a total snob and refuse to drink tea with white sugar.  I know, I hate me too, but once you get used to the caramel-y notes of these dainty cubes, it’s hard to go back.   

Mr. Pedantic is trying to teach me to play Destiny but so far it has only resulted in me nearly knocking him unconscious with a controller and screaming profusely at the television.  For real though, I’m in it solely for the fancy costumes, which he tells me are known as “shaders.”  Only aliens stand between me and a dreamy sci-fi wardrobe.  The worst part is that I have to take frequent breaks otherwise I get motion sick.  Dork alert. 

This apron is pretty much a cocktail dress and I'm down with that.  

For the past couple years, I have tried to pick out very intentional Valentine's Day cards for Mr. Pedantic, and I am pretty sure this valentine is going to be the winner this year.  It says it all. 

I made these spring rolls years ago with my mom and we LOVED them, but for some reason we never made them again.  I have no idea why.  Lately, however, I cannot stop thinking about revisiting them.  I have a feeling that they will be ending up on next week’s menu.  I’m also really wanting to try my hand at Pad Thai.  I don’t know… For some reason all my cravings are Asian right now.

I made this for dinner Tuesday night and…it just didn’t thrill me.  I am thinking that it needs an extra dose of brown sugar and maybe some pineapple juice?  

I bought a lovely, canvas-bound edition of this book while we were in London because my You’ve Got Mail-loving heart could not resist.  My sweet daddy gifted me several other volumes from the series for Christmas and I cannot get enough of these charming stories.  They are the perfect no-fuss winter reads.  True, they might fall more into the children’s genre, but their unadulterated sweetness will capture your heart. 

I’m going to try my hand at a Unicorn cake next month and I am already nervous.  I think the horn (is it called a horn?) is going to be made out of a sugar cone dipped in white chocolate.  If I have to knead gum paste the game is over. 

What are your plans this weekend?  I am hoping to finish up the office-organization project that has been going on for the past several weeks, and will definitely be making a cheesecake.  Catch all the creamy, graham-cracker-y action on my Instagram stories.

Happy, happy weekend! XOXO

Sincerely, 

Pedantic Foodie

The Weekend

Hey there, welcome to this Monday! 

I had to force myself to type that exclamation point because it made me feel like a bit of a faker. Truth be told, I am fighting exhaustion with all my might today and I can't say that I'm winning. Can I just get an espresso IV, please?  Or how about a nap?  Yeah, that's not going to happen...

I hope you are beginning your week with an extra dose of zip and energy.  I hope you are still high on the joys of the weekend, and bubbly with excitement for the the next seven days that lie ahead. Another bright, warm, and likely humid, August week awaits us, let's live it!  

....But maybe treat yourself to a coffee first so you can actually function.

Thankfully, my Monday morning stupor has by no means stolen away the joy that this past weekend left behind.  It was a good one.  

Friday evening the fiancé and I piled into the car with good friends and empty stomachs, and drove until we reached what we believe to be the home of the best burgers in this country.  They are, in fact, pretty amazing.  Fried pickles and shoestring fries are just a small part of their majesty.  It may not look like much, but this is where your greatest burger dreams come true. 

Saturday was filled with packing up boxes, filled with our newly acquired housewares from last weekend's bridal shower, and toting them out to my parent's garage for temporary storage.  We will be holding the keys to our new home in just three weeks!!!  Which means... I have a lot to do.

We bravely bore the heat of the August afternoon and painted furniture before making a much-needed slurpee run.  Did you too drag obscenely large cups up to your local gas station for Bring Your Own Cup Day?  I had not had a slurpee in ages, (like maybe 4 years?) and the near-instant brain freeze reminded me why.  

I countered the cold sugar with hot wings later that night.  Now I really, really do not like spicy foods... but put a plate of hot wings in front of me and it's gone.  It's totally worth having greasy fingers for the rest of the night.

Does it sound like all I did was eat all weekend?  Well, it's kind of true.  

My very sweet fiancé had surprised me with a bag of fresh cheeses and some locally cured salami flavored with, you guessed it, black truffles!!!!!  And it was not one of those "truffle infused" kind of deals either.  This salami was very generously speckled with tiny flakes of rich, dark truffles.  I think I have mentioned my truffle binge once or twice here recently (ahem... Truffle & Brie Macaroni and Cheese), which is pretty much the most pretentious binge ever, but this salami was the icing on my unmami cake.

Would you hate me if I made truffle popcorn?  I have had it on the brain for weeks now but I feel like that's pushing things to a whole new level of obnoxious.  But I do not know how much longer I can resist...

Happy, happy Monday!  Oh, and get your food processor for the super quick and super delicious frozen yogurt I've got coming to you later this week!

Sincerely,

Pedantic Foodie