 If you could plan the perfect day for yourself - what would you do? I would spend the day exploring someplace that I'd never been, stroll through a home and garden tour with friends and then have tea in the middle of the afternoon while sitting outside of the cutest little church in town.😉 I had no idea when I went to New Zealand that this is what my day in Greytown would look like but there I was - living my dream. 😅🏡🌺 ⛪️🫖      On this beautiful day, I had to keep reminding myself that it was the first week of February. I was so inspired by the beautiful gardens that I had to resist the temptation to come home and immediately start planting my spring flowers.😬🌷 It will be a few more weeks until it's warm enough here to start planting flowers. 
   We stopped and visited the sweetest little church on our garden tour and inside, they were serving Devonshire Tea. I had never heard of the term Devonshire tea before this and I had no idea what I'd been missing.😅 Devonshire tea - a traditional British snack comprising freshly baked scones, clotted cream, strawberry jam, and hot tea - google. We were served a scone and jam, a savory (mini bacon quiche), mini sandwiches and tea. We took our delicate china cups and plates outside to beautifully decorated tables that were set up in the church courtyard to enjoy our lunch. I wish that I would have taken a picture but apparently I was too wrapped up in the experience to think about pictures - and hungry.😂 I'm not sure what I enjoyed more the company, the homes, the gardens, the flowers or the tea. It was all amazing. I still have to wait for the weather to warm up a bit here before I can sit outside in my garden and enjoy Devonshire Tea so in the meantime, I'll be over here perfecting my scone recipe so I'm ready.😂 🫖  English Scones 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour ¼ teaspoon salt 3 ½ teaspoons baking powder 3 Tablespoons sugar 6 Tablespoons butter, cold and cut into cubes ¾ cup milk, warm but not hot 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 1 large egg, beaten for egg wash
 Bake 10-15 minutes.  Adding halved maraschino cherries to the dough before rolling it out was the best decision. These were ahhhh--mazing!  Ciao!
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 Dairy - small corner convenience store Jandals - flip flops Togs - Swimsuit Bach - Beach house Baths - Public Pool Bush Walk - hike through the woods Before my trip I had no idea that there were so many words that New Zealanders use that I wouldn't understand. 🤣 Check out these pictures of my very first bush walk.😉 
This was an amazing bush walk just outside of Wellington. I don't think I would label it as a strenuous hike but at one point I did take off my shoes to cross a very swollen creek. And that, in my opinion, is the difference between a walk in the woods and a hike.🥾😅 I think we can all agree that the best way to recover after a long hike is with a chocolate cupcake. It makes perfect sense now that there are so many pastry shops in the city of Wellington.😅 Here's my New Zealand travel tip for the day: Take a bush walk and then straight to a party shop for a sweet treat.🧁  These chocolate cupcakes dipped in chocolate ganache and covered with chocolate sprinkles aren't just for the choco-holics. They're for everyone who loves the cake portion of the cupcake far more than the frosting. I'm a fan of frosting but even I think that this is the perfect amount of sweet icing on top of a rich, dark chocolate cupcake.  Chocolate Cupcakes 1/2 cup butter 1 1/4 cup sugar 2 eggs 2 teaspoons vanilla 1 1/4 cup flour 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 3/4 cup cocoa powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 cup milk Ganache 13 oz. dark chocolate 1 cup + 1 tablespoon heavy cream
 
Ciao!
 It's taken longer than expected (thank you jet lag and strep throat🥺) but I think I've finally gotten my life together enough to share the pictures from my amazing trip to New Zealand last month. Fasten your seatbelts friends because there are a LOT of them.🤣📸 My plan is to spread them out over several blog posts so as not to overwhelm you but consider yourself warned - this is about to become a travel food blog. 😂  In case you missed my subtlety - Wellington was my first stop on this amazing adventure.😅  
 
 
 It took me entirely too long to go through the photos from my first couple of days on the North Island of New Zealand. My goal was to choose pictures that best captured the beauty of this place. The colors that I experienced New Zealand were like none that I've ever seen. They were brilliant and intense. These 16 unedited pictures don't seem to even do it justice but it's the best I've got.😅  Salmon. It was the first meal that I ate when I arrived in New Zealand, it was the last meal that I ate before I left and it was my favorite meal. I've always been a fan of salmon and I can't explain why but I'm here to say that the salmon in New Zealand hits different.🤷🏻♀️ As a general rule, I feel like food just tastes better when I'm on vacation and I have time to really enjoy it but this was more than that. It was more tender and flavorful than any other salmon I've ever eaten. This grilled salmon is my best attempt to recreate the salmon that I had in New Zealand. The fish was delicious but I did have to close my eyes and imagine that I was looking out over a brilliant blue sea with a warm summer breeze blowing through the open doors so I could get the full effect. 😅  Grilled Salmon 1/4 cup mayonnaise 2 teaspoons fish sauce 1/2 teaspoon honey 4 salmon filets 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper
 Ciao!
 For all of the men in my life who have asked me to explain the purpose of a "bridal brunch" --- 😅 A bridal brunch: an all-female pre-wedding event hosted by the bride or her family to thank the bridesmaids, close friends, and family for their support. A casual, relaxed opportunity to gather and celebrate before the big day. --- google It's common to host a bridal brunch on the day before or the morning of the wedding but after thinking it through, I decided that as the hostess, it would be far less stressful if we got together a little earlier so we could enjoy the brunch without having to worrying about the last minute wedding details. I really wanted to set aside some time to honor these amazing women for their dedication and support of the bride and her wedding.
 The bar was open for brunch! The loaded waffle bar.🧇😉 Complete with savory toppings like fried chicken and bacon and a whole assortment of sweet toppings like chocolate chips, Greek yogurt, bananas, raspberries, blueberries, hot honey, whipped cream, granola, strawberry jam, nutella, chopped walnuts, sprinkles and cinnamon maple syrup. Just in case the waffle bar didn't strike their fancy, I also provided some yummy protein options for the girls. Mini quiche are my favorite way to serve eggs at ladies brunches. My two quiche choices for the bridal brunch - sweet potato quiche - an old classic and a new recipe - BLT quiche. This one was definitely the crowd favorite.😋  BLT Quiche 2 cups fresh spinach 1/2 pound bacon 1 cup quartered cherry tomatoes 1 and 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese 8 large eggs Mini pie shells 2 cups heavy cream 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper
 Remove from oven and let sit 5 minutes.  Ciao!
 Cheers to the new bride.🥂 We've spent the last weekend celebrating the engagement of our girl and creating memories that will last a lifetime. As a mom, it warms my heart to watch my child be surrounded by people who love and support her. I'm truly grateful for all of the friends and family who generously and wholeheartedly showed up for her during special season of her life.
On a blog post that celebrates the girl who sprinkles sunshine wherever she goes... this sugar cookie biscotti recipe couldn't be more appropriate. Did I just compare the future bride to a crunchy biscotti? Yes, I did.🤣 But the sweet, colorful, sprinkle filled treat really does seem fitting for this girl who referred to herself as "cookie" for the first 3 years of her life.😂  I also think I just unlocked the key to seasonal biscotti. I'm picturing green sprinkles for St. Patrick's Day, red, white and blue for the 4th of July and red and green sprinkled biscotti for Christmas. Why haven't I ever thought about this before? 🤣 Sugar cookie biscotti with customized sprinkles may be my new go-to for holiday breakfasts.  Sugar Cookie Biscotti 3 cups flour 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder 1/2 cup butter, room temperature 1 cup sugar 3 eggs, room temperature 2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla 1/2 cup rainbow sprinkles
 Bake 25-30 minutes at 350.
  Ciao!
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