Her Modern Kitchen

Eating & Living in Austin, Texas

Lifestyle

Dirty Chai Old Fashioned

by

The Dirty Chai Old Fashioned combines chai flavors with Devils River Whiskey’s Coffee Bourbon for a sophisticated, boozy coffee-chai cocktail.

Dirty Chai Old Fashioned

Devils River Whiskey provided me with complimentary bourbon in exchange for a recipe creation
but all thoughts, opinions, and images are my own.

I’m not a bourbon drinker but I seem to always concoct bourbon-based cocktails and this Dirty Chai Od Fashioned combines my love for coffee and chai with Devils River Whiskey’s Coffee Bourbon.

Dirty Chai Basics

If you aren’t familiar with a Dirty Chai, it’s a coffeehouse drink that’s made by mixing steeped chai tea with a shot of espresso and steamed milk.  It’s got that kick of caffeine wrapped in the warm hug of cinnamon, cardamom, and ginger.  In short, it’s made for those of us who love fall spices but don’t want to go full-blown PSL.

Mixing up the Dirty Chai Old Fashioned

Now, when it’s 5 o’clock and you’re looking to mellow out rather than perk-up, that’s when you lean on mixing up my Dirty Chai Old Fashioned for a sophisticated, boozy coffee-chai cocktail.

My Dirty Chai Old Fashioned starts with an easy simple syrup that’s then used to steep chai tea bags.  I prefer Tazo Chai tea because personally, I think it has the best flavor.  It’s neither too gingery or cinnamony, just the perfect balance of all the traditional chai flavors.

Looking for more dirty chair inspiration? Check out my Dirty Chai Cupcakes.

Once the syrup has cooled, I use Devils River Whiskey’s new Coffee Bourbon, a cold-brew steeped bourbon, to bring in the necessary ‘shot of espresso’ expected in a Dirty Chai.  Stirred up with a squeeze of lemon and a few dashes of bitters and this cocktail is ready to go.

Dirty Chai Old Fashioned Pin

I prefer my old fashioned served with a large, ice cube that melts slowly and mellows out the drink but you can pour your Dirty Chai Old Fashioned over whatever kind of ice you’d like.

Happy sipping.

Dirty Chai Old Fashioned
 
Save Print
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1
Ingredients
  • For the chai tea syrup:
  • 1 cup, sugar
  • 1 cup, water
  • 4 chai tea bags

  • [b]For the cocktail:
  • [/b]1.5-ounces chai tea syrup
  • 3-ounces Devils River Coffee Bourbon
  • 1-ounce fresh lemon juice
  • 3 dashes bitters
  • cinnamon stick, star anise, optional for garnish
Instructions
  1. For the chai tea syrup: Make the chai tea syrup by bringing the water and sugar to boil over high heat. Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Once the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and steep the tea bags in the syrup for 15 minutes. After 15-minutes, drain the tea bags, remove from the pot, and allow the syrup to cool to room temperature. Store unused syrup in a tightly sealed container in the fridge for up to 3-months
  2. Make the cocktail: To make the cocktail, place all of the ingredients in a whiskey glass and stir clockwise 40 times until all ingredients are combined. Top with ice and garnish with a cinnamon stick or star anise as desired.

 

 

 

 

Reflecting on Body Image and Sharing My Own Story

by

A body image post is different than my normal content but my body image story is something I’m now ready to share. Whether that be to help others or to simply document my thoughts for me, I’m not sure. Be kind with your comments.

Alyssa

I had an eating disorder in college known as orthorexia. At the time, it wasn’t officially acknowledged in the medical world but it’s something that is more commonly talked about and diagnosed now than it was 10-12 years ago.

Orthorexia, in my case, was an obsession with healthy foods.  Basically, I had a mental good and bad list of foods and could only eat the things on the good list.  Eating those on the bad list meant I had to make up for it with insane amounts of exercise.

However, orthorexia didn’t just spring up out of nowhere. 

My entire life I’ve had body image issues — stemming from grade school when kids would make a beeping sound on the bus when I backed up to find a seat because I was bigger than others.

I remember my grandmother telling me at 9 years old I had to lose weight and to be skinny like one of my friend’s Mom.

I remember my own Mom doing Slim-Fast shakes when I was in high school to lose weight and I used to sneak cans in the summer to also slim down. (Sorry Mom, if you’re reading this…maybe you knew?)

I was always the bigger girl.

I can draw a line from these incidents to the onset of my orthorexia.  In fact, I remember exactly when my orthorexia started. It was between my junior and senior year of college, I was taking summer classes and living off-campus and started eating melon and cottage cheese for lunch each day.  From there, my obsession just grew.

Over the course of a year, my 5-foot 9-inch frame dropped to a low 113 pounds with a lean 9% body fat. I lost my period, had the peach-fuzz hair common with eating disorders due to malnutrition, and was physically weak.

And while I loved my size 00 jeans at the time, I was miserable.  I was constantly thinking about food, counting calories, trying to find the purest thing to put in my body, or planning my next workout.  It was exhausting.

It also meant I wasn’t much fun to be around socially.  Each restaurant menu had to be thoroughly vetted before I agreed to eat there, ensuring I could find something on the menu to modify to fit my ‘good food’ criteria.

I would sometimes wander around the grocery store checking nutritional labels, hoping to discover new foods that fit my good list but mostly putting things back on the shelves.

I was emotional, probably because I was hungry and stressed by keeping my mental good/bad food list.  Eventually, my Mom put me in therapy.

But I’m not sure therapy helped. 

Honestly, dating <3M helped. He told me to love myself the way I am.  And he still tells me I’m beautiful and perfect just the way I am.  He is my constant as I wrangle my food issues, allowing me to change my mind on restaurants or cooking a million times, knowing I’m struggling but trying to improve.

Because even now, I still struggle….always comparing, critiquing, and self-talking myself into body positivity.

In all honestly, I don’t think an eating disorder is anything that’s ever truly gone.  It’s with you, always. Waiting for a stressful moment, a trigger to reappear, or morphing into something similar — for me, that’s an inability to truly relax and de-stress.  It’s a constant fight, pushing the thoughts away with an internal conversation of self-assurance.

So why am I sharing this now? 

It’s because through these past 6-months of social distancing I’ve been able to reflect, learn, and grow.  Pushing the negative thoughts deeper, learning to accept, live in the moment, appreciate, and listen to my body. And to just slow down.

Maybe it was tearing myself away from the rest of the world that allowed me the time and mental capacity to truly concentrate on myself. In all honesty, I’m not sure why this happened now or why it took so long…

But here’s what I’ve learned…

Carbs and desserts aren’t scary. Pasta and cupcakes were usually reserved for dining out (even though I bake a ton, I rarely ate more than a bite).  I now eat them throughout the week and enjoy it.  There’s still small parts of guilt or worry but I’m learning.

60-minutes of formal exercise 5 days a week is not required.  I don’t need a gym membership, a meticulously structured workout, or an exhaustive sweat session daily.  Listening to my body about what it wants each day, whether that’s lifting, cardio, or just stretching and a dog walk all count as physical fitness.

My body will tell me what it needs.  Does it need a big brownie, a crisp salad, or a gooey cheese? It knows. And I should trust it.  It will also tell me when it’s full and it’s had enough.  I was just too busy planning and counting in the past to hear it.

Taking 30-minutes to myself to decompress from the day is good for my mental health.  This means putting on pajamas, washing my face, and relaxing with a face mask or reading to help draw the line between work and ‘offline’ time. It also means setting my phone in the bedroom and leaving it there to stop the endless scrolling and comparing.

It’s all baby steps.  And maybe something most people have known all along.  But for me, I’m just grateful I’m learning it now.

Have you struggled with something similar?  If you’re looking for resources on body positivity or eating disorders check out this podcast which offers tips and provides additional resources. 

Homemade 80-Day Limoncello

by

80-Day Limoncello is a smooth, sweet lemon liquor that can easily be made at home with just lemons, vodka, simple syrup, and time, 80-days time to be exact.

When <3M and I visited Italy a few years back, I loved how the little family-owned restaurants we dined at ended each meal by serving a small glass of limoncello.  It was served perfectly chilled and was enough just enough for 3-4 sips — the ideal ending to a rich meal.

And, unlike the limoncello I had previously in the States, this limoncello was smooth with a crisp lemon flavor and a balance of sweetness.

80-day_limoncello

After returning home, I had limoncello on my bucket list as something I wanted to make but it wasn’t until last year that I actually set about researching limoncello and the process.

What I found was that it’s ridiculously simple to make. 

Limoncello is nothing more than vodka, lemon rinds, simple syrup, and time.  After reviewing tons of recipes about limoncello, I decided I wanted to make it the more traditional way, using 100-proof vodka and steeping the lemon peels in the vodka for 80-days to ensure tons of lemony flavor which attributes to its name, 80-day Limoncello.

80-day_Limoncello

The peels of 48-lemons. It took me a couple of hours…

And, since sometimes I get overly ambitious in the kitchen, I decided I was not only going to make limoncello for <3M and I but I was going to make enough limoncello to gift all our friends for the holidays.  The recipe I’m sharing below is good for 1-liter of vodka and once the simple syrup’s added, you’ll have just under 2-liters total for keeping or giving away.

80-day_Limoncello_Vodka

Thank you Twin Liquor Dollar Sale for saving us money on these liters of vodka

For my own doing, I quadrupled the recipe to make twelve 12-ounce bottles of limoncello (with still plenty leftover for <3M and I to stash away for our own sipping).  Let’s just say, I highly overestimated how much limoncello I’d needed to make.  But I’m not complaining.

80-day_limoncello

Here are a few tips for making 80-Day Limoncello:

  • You can use 100-proof vodka or higher grain alcohol, like Everclear, if you want an extra kick to your limoncello.  I went with vodka because Everclear is a bit too much for my personal taste.
  • Choose organic lemons and make sure you wash and rinse them well before use.  I recommend organic because whatever chemicals are on your lemons will end up in your limoncello and you’ll want it to be as clean, pure, and smooth as possible.
  • Since you’ll only be using the peels, you can juice your lemons afterward and save the lemon juice by freezing it. I froze mine in ice cube trays.  It’s great for making these ridiculously delicious lemon bars with raspberry sauce.
  • When peeling the lemons, be careful not to get too much of the white pith.  The white pith is bitter and you don’t want your limoncello to be bitter.
  • Be sure to make the limoncello in a large, clean, sanitized glass jar.  I used this giant, 64-ounce mason jar and it worked perfectly.  It was also great when making kombucha.

When it comes to sweetening & bottling your 80-day Limoncello:

  • The best part about making limoncello at home is that you have complete control over the sweetness.  My recommendation is to start with less simple syrup, let everything sit for the final 40-days, then taste again and adjust by adding more syrup right before bottling and declaring it done.

80-day_Limoncello_Filtering

  • While infusing for 80-days, your limoncello is bound to have small particles of lemon in it that broke off from the main peels.  To ensure a clear, clean limoncello, use a cheesecloth to filter the limoncello as you bottle it.

80-day_Limoncello_Bottling

  • If you’re looking for cute bottles to bottle your limoncello, I found these and absolutely love them. They’re beautiful with a rubber stopper and not too big for bottling and sharing your limoncello.

Best of luck! And if you start your limoncello now, you’ll have it with plenty of time to spare for holiday gift-giving.

If you’re looking for some more alcohol options, try this unique Smoked Cardamom Old Fashioned recipe using curried rye as a base.

80-day_limoncello_Pin

80 Days Homemade Limoncello
 
Save Print
80-Day Homemade Limoncello, infused with lemon peel and steeped for 80 days
Author:
Serves: 2 liters
Ingredients
  • 12 organic lemons, washed, rinsed, and dried
  • 1-liter 100-proof vodka
  • 4 cups of water
  • 3 cups granulated sugar

  • Recommended 'equipment'
  • a large glass jar that can be covered and has been properly sanitized
  • bottles for storing the completed limoncello
  • cheesecloth
  • funnel
Instructions
  1. Using a paring knife, peel the lemon rind away from the flesh, careful not to remove too much fo the white pith. Place the peel in the large glass bottle or jar (enough to hold at least 60-ounces of liquid)
  2. Pour the vodka over the lemon peels, give it all a good stir, secure the top and place the jar is a dark, cool location where it can sit undisturbed for 40-days to infuse
  3. After 40-days, combine the water and sugar in a large saucepan and bring to boil, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and let cool completely
  4. Add half the simple syrup to the vodka & lemon peels, stirring to combine. Taste the mixture and add more syrup if a sweeter flavor is desired. (Remember, you can adjust sweetness again after the second infusion)
  5. Cover the jar and place it back in a cool, dry place to sit undisturbed for 40 more days
  6. After 40 days (80 days total), taste your limoncello. If it's still not sweet enough for you, make more simple syrup, following the instructions from earlier, and continue to add the syrup to the limoncello until the desired sweetness is reached.
  7. Bottle your limoncello in clean, dry, sanitized bottles, discarding the lemon peel. To remove all lemon peel and the small particles that may have broken off while infusing, place a small square of cheesecloth over a funnel and strain your limoncello through it.
  8. We keep a bottle of limoncello in our freezer, storing it there for whenever we want a little something sweet after dinner.

 

Summertime Favorites: Beauty & Skincare

by

Summertime beauty and skincare favorites I’m loving right now.

I’ve really dove into skincare during quarantine and found a few new-to-me favorites.  Since I’m always curious about other people’s skincare, I thought I’d share mine. Let me know if any of my favorites have made your list too.

Summer_Beauty_Skincare

Brazilian Bum Bum Cream has been all the rage on the beauty blogs I read so when the Sephora birthday gift happened to be Bum Bum cream, I was beyond excited. And instantly loved it. The smell reminds me of a beachy summer vacation.  It’s coconutty, sweet, and smells delicious.  IDK if it works to tighten skin while moisturizing but I caved and bought a full-size because it smells and feels glorious on my skin.

Versed Dew Point Moisturizing Gel is a great light-weight summertime moisturizer.  I love the gel formula because it doesn’t feel greasy under my makeup but still leaves my face feeling hydrated.  I use this as my daytime moisturizer. The price is right too at just $14 and it’s lasted 4-months!

Honesty Beauty Oil is something I use every evening. It took me a while to warm up to oils but I really like it. This one has a light, pleasant smell and I like the way it moisturizes my face right before bed. After regularly using the oil, I found my skin feels more hydrated in the morning when I wake up.

Tip: Oil should always be the last thing you apply to your skin (day or night) unless of course you’re using sunscreen then put the sunscreen on last.

Ole Hendricksen Cold Plunge Mask has been a summertime staple.  It’s a cooling clay mask that reduces pore size and controls oil.  It’s perfect after a day in the sun and makes me feel extra fancy anytime I wear it.  Plus the color makes it fun.  I use this twice a week after exfoliating.

Tula Rose Glow & Get It Brightening & Cooling Eye Balm perks up my eyes each morning.  It has some shimmer in it along with a cooling effect and a burst of caffeine to make sure I look extra perky on those early morning Zoom calls.  It’s easy to apply too, just run it along your eye bags and Boom! You’re bright and ready to get it.

Tip: Did you know you should apply skincare products from your hairline to your bra line?  Because when you’re 80, you don’t want to have a youthful-looking face with saggy neck and decolletage, do you? Make sure you cover all of it so you age flawlessly 😉 

Peter Thomas Roth Cucumber De-Tox Hydra-Gel Eye Patches pair well with the Cold Plunge Mask or before using the Tula Rose Eye Balm.  I keep these in the fridge for an extra cooling effect and pop them on in the morning while drinking coffee. They have cucumber and caffeine in them to help de-puff eyes and reduce dark circles.

Tip: You can find these eye patches at Walmart online for $28 compared to $52 at Ulta, Sephora, or Amazon. Save some money! 

Cocokind Vitamin C Serum is something that took me a while to start using regularly but once I did, I noticed my skin looked brighter, fresher. Vitamin C helps even out your skin and is said to help with aging (wrinkles!). I like the Cocokind serum because it’s not too pricey and seems to actually work.

Got any beauty or skincare favorites you’re loving? I’d love to know about them. Tell me in the comments!

What I’m Listening To: Podcasts

by

As a podcast hoarder, I’m rounding up and sharing my favorite podcasts that I’ve been listening to during my daily pandemic walks.

One of the ways I’ve spent time during this pandemic is listening to podcasts.  I listen while walking with the dogs, walking by myself, or walking on the trails in our neighbor. In fact, I’m motivated to go for frequent walks, just so I can listen more. It’s so relaxing to just be in nature, tune out from the world, and settle into a podcast — even as the temperature’s rising here in Texas.

Podcast and journaling

I also love popping in my headphones and listening while I’m cleaning around the house, doing yard work, or tackling one of the home projects I detailed out to kick pandemic boredom.

And, because I’m a podcast hoarder, I’m never short on anything to listen to.  Below I’ve rounded up some of my favorite favorites in hopes of you find something new to listen to as well.

Health, Nutrition & Food

Newsy Stuff

Lifestyle, Pop-Culture, Business

True-Crime

Got any favorite of your own? Drop them in the comments below! I’m always looking for new podcasts to listen to.

Day in the Life: My Quarantine Routine

by

I always enjoy reading people’s daily routines so I thought I’d share the quarantine routine I’ve settled into for the past 7 weeks.

Looking for the PB&J Low-Sugar #FabFour Smoothie recipe?
Scroll to the bottom!

The cactus I walk by every morning in our neighborhood

6:00am: Alarm goes off! Yep, I’m still waking relatively early.  I like a slow start to my day.  I wake up, drink a glass of water, down some probiotics, and make a cup of cold brew (straight-up black).  Then I spend about an hour getting caught up on work things, reading the. news, or browsing some blogs.

7:00am: I’m happy to report I’ve maintained a regular workout schedule while in quarantine.  I’ve been doing the virtual Camp Gladiator workouts 3 days a week and riding my Peloton 2-3 days a week (AlyssaRidesTX) paired with strength training in our makeshift garage gym.

Virtual Camp Gladiator Workout

Virtual Camp Gladiator Workout

8:00am: Doggy walk!  I’ve been walking the dogs every day for at least 30-minutes while getting caught up on my podcasts.  I love that we have trails in our neighborhood so I can soak in some nature.  But TBH, I think the dogs are over walking.

Lucky to have trails in our neighborhood

8:40am: Speedy shower and getting ready for the day.  On workdays, I’m all about showering, getting dressed, and even doing my hair before my first meeting of the day.  I know some may think this is silly but for me, I need this sense of normalcy.

Fully dressed and ready for the day

9:00am: I’m usually sitting down at my desk to begin work for the day.  I’m here for most of the day with some changes in scenery intertwined with all the necessary food & drink breaks.

PB&J Fab 4 Smoothie

PB+J #Fab4Smoothie

10:00am: Breakfast! I‘ve been doing intermittent fasting so I’ve been fasting for about 14-hours at least 5 days a week (mostly workdays).  I usually break my fast with a smoothie — I love the #Fab4Smoothies by Kelly Leveque, who’s all about science-based nutrition that doesn’t spike your blood sugar (which typically drives cravings).  My favorite is a PB&J smoothie (recipe below!). I also pair this with another coffee either hot or cold and my favorite Califia Farms almond coconut milk creamer.

My little workspace. I call this the Executive Desk

I work until about 1:30pm with breaks to let the dogs in and out then usually make lunch.  

1:30pm: Lunches lately have been big salads, my go-to starts with a base of dark greens, homemade vinegar dressing plus cucumbers, tomatoes, chicken breast, kalamata olives, and hummus.

After lunch, it’s back to work! Working at the desk, working on the back patio, working on our balcony where the breeze is just spectacular.  We also invested in a wifi extender so we could work efficiently on the balcony with 5G speeds.

Balcony views and some Vitamin D

5:00-5:30pm: I try to wrap up work around this time and close my laptop.  I usually do some light housework like dishes, a quick mop, vacuuming, or laundry.

6:00pm: <3M and I usually end our day on the balcony with a drink (wine, cocktail, kombucha, sparking later, it all depends on the day but I’m trying to be conscious of not drinking so often). Since we really haven’t seen each other all-day (he works upstairs and I stay downstairs) we recap our days with one another then he usually checks out social media stuff while I read on my Kindle.

Wine & Snack Plate

Happy hour snack plate on the balcony

6:45pm: Time to make dinner.  We’re trying to make dinner at home 5 nights a week and limit our takeout to twice a week.  Our dinners range from freezer meals and leftovers to grilling to more complicated ‘date night’ meals.

Dinner meal

All about those one-pot meals

7:30pm:  We wrap up dinner, clean up the kitchen and put the house back in order.  I usually change into pajamas around this time, wash my face and sometimes head back out to the balcony and read for 30 or more minutes.  There may also be a small bowl of ice cream or some dark chocolate in here to end the day on a sweet note.  I love the NadaMoo & Halo Top ice cream or the Lily’s dark chocolate which is sweetened with stevia.

Lily’s salted caramel is my favorite!

8:15am: <3M and I settle down for the night and watch some TV.  We recently finished the Breaking Bad series, are wrapping up Ozarks season 3, and lately I’ve been loving in the Back to the Future series.  It may be some of my favorite movies ever.

10:00pm: We’re typically in bed, I may read for a few more minutes if I’m not quite tired yet then it’s lights off.

So that’s been our quarantine life on repeat.  In all honesty, the day goes by pretty quickly and it’s a nice pace with lots of time for calm and self-care.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Low Sugar #FabFour Smoothie

Now tell me, what’s your quarantine routine?

PB & J Fab 4 Smoothie
 
Save Print
Prep time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 1 smoothie
Ingredients
  • 1½ cups almond milk
  • 1 tablespoon ground flaxseed
  • 1 tablespoon peanut butter
  • 1 tablespoon PB2 (powdered peanut butter)
  • 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
  • ¼ cup frozen raspberries
  • ½ cup frozen spinach, optional
  • 4-5 small ice cubes, optional
Instructions
  1. Put everything into the blender and blend until combined. If you like a thicker smoothie, throw in a couple of ice cubes. Pour into a glass and sip away.

 

Green Cleaning for Pet-Friendly Homes with Art of Green

by

On National Love Your Pets Day, remember the importance of choosing green cleaning products for the safety of you and your pets.

This post has been sponsored by Art of Green®.
All thoughts and opinions are my own.

There’s a lot of chatter about eco-friendly, green cleaning products and the importance of them in our homes to ensure toxins aren’t leaching into our body.  But if you’re looking for even more of a reason to make the switch to greener product, consider how these toxins impact your pets and how choosing Art of Green® products can help keep your home safe, clean, and smelling great.

Dusting the tabletops

Cleaning Chemicals and Pets

The Pet Poison Helpline ranked household cleaning products as the sixth most toxic item for dogs which include products like bleach, laundry detergent pods, and phenol-based disinfectants.

Strong acidic or alkaline cleaners are the most dangerous to pets because of their corrosive nature.  This includes things like toilet bowl cleaners, lye, drain cleaners, and bleach (just to name a few!). 

Specifically, bleach is a powerful agent that can erode paw pads if pets walk through it and can cause damage to mouths, throats, and stomachs if ingested. It’s also easy for pets to mistake laundry or dishwasher pods as treats, causing stomach irritation, vomiting, or coating their airways which prevent breathing.

Thinking about the damage cleaning products can do to our pets is just plain scary! And, while some of this may seem obvious, you never know where our little friends will end up sticking their nose, tongue, or paws which is why it’s important to choose natural, clean products for use in homes with pets. 

Choosing Green is Easy

If you’ve been following my blog a while, you know I’m an obsessed dog-mom to Stella & Persie, our two boxer babies, and two of the main reasons why I consciously choose green cleaning products for our home.

Stella specifically loves licking the outside of our stainless steel dishwasher and Persie loves to lick the floors after a fresh mopping (I know, they’re such weirdos). It worries me to think they could be licking up chemicals or having harmful materials transferred to their fur causing irritation or upset stomachs if ingested if I didn’t choose eco-friendly cleaning products.

Mopping up the floors

Art of Green concentrate makes a great base to safely mop floors with pets in the home.

To ease this worry, I’ve swapped our standard cleaning products for Art of Green, making it the go-to cleaning agent in our house.  Art of Green products are safe to use around pets and free of harsh chemicals like parabens, phthalates, glycol solvents, artificial color, and phosphates.  It’s also safe for sensitive skin, which is important for my own use as well as our pets, and convenient to pick up while shopping at H-E-B,  making it an easy choice.

Green Cleaning in a Pet-Friendly Home

If you’re looking to add some green cleaning solutions to your pet-friendly home, here are a few ways to utilize green products while keeping a tidy, clean house for you and your best friend.

Puppy placemats to make dining tidy (and classy)

Place a mat under your pet’s food and drink bowls when they eat to help catch crumbs and water splatter.  Easily wipe it down a few times a week with AOG wipes and wash up their bowls regularly using some AOG concentrate and water.  Stella is especially picky about clean dishes at our house, some times refusing to eat or drink until she’s given a freshly washed bowl. AOG makes it easy to meet her demands.

Cleaning up the doggy placemat

AOG wipes are an easy solution for keeping Stella’s doggy placemat clean and smelling fresh.

Squeaky clean toys

Regularly disinfect your pet’s toys.  A little wipe down on hard toys once a week can help keep them clean and remove foul smells.  For plush toys, we toss ours in the washer and give them a good spin with an eco-friendly cleaner.  Much like the floor, you want to use safe products on anything your pet would or potentially could put in their mouth and Art of Green makes for an easy solution.

Create a doggy cleaning station

Setup a ‘dog cleaning area’ for your pet near the door you frequently use to let your pet in and out.  We keep a basket of old towels next to our backdoor to quickly wipe muddy paws or brush dried grass off of Persie’s back after he’s had a good roll in the yard. It helps reduce the amount of dirt tracked into the house and for when those muddy pawprints sneak in, I mop them up with a mixture of Art of Green concentrate and water.

Our doggy cleaning station includes towels, a spray water bottle, and even a pet foot squeegee.

Don’t underestimate your vacuum

This seems basic but if you have a smart vacuum, it takes very little effort to set up a daily cleaning to pick up dog hair, grass carried in on their paws, or pieces of toys chewed off by your buddy. Quick, daily vacuuming helps decrease odor and makes your house feel kept with minimal effort in-between tougher, deep-clean vacuuming days.

Keep their ‘spot’ tidy

Stella and Persie love to snuggle on the couch so to keep our furniture clean, we keep a doggy blanket nearby.  Throwing a blanket or even a proper pet couch cover over your pet’s usual nap spots allows you to regularly wash the cover using an eco-friendly detergent to keep your home smelling fresh and free of excess fur.  If your pup is crate trained and considers their crate their ‘spot’ be sure to give your pet’s crate a weekly wipe down. Using AOG wipes makes quick clean-ups easy and helps decrease smells.

Love Your Pet Green Cleaning

Do you have any green cleaning tips for keeping a pet-friendly home? Share them below.

 

My 2020 Baking Bucket List

by

I really enjoyed my 2019 baking bucket list so I’m excited to do it again for 2020. This year’s focus is on cakes, revisiting a few 2019 bakes, and yeast bread.

I really enjoyed my 2019 baking bucket list, even if I did slack off for a few months during the late summer and fall.  However, I did catch up on all my baking bucket list items in December and while I haven’t posted about all of them yet, I plan to write the final two, croissants & soufflé, in the coming weeks. 

In fact, I actually completed my final baking bucket list item, soufflé on December 31st.  I almost let it slip because I really didn’t care about making a soufflé but I finished it up for lunch, making a Black Truffle & Goat Cheese Soufflé — it was delicious!

Since I really enjoyed my baking bucket list project this past year, I decided to do another one for 2020!  I really enjoyed making cakes this past year so I’ve loaded up my baking bucket list with cakes to improve my skillset.  I’ve also doubled up a couple of months and left an ‘Other’ category in case I want to make something extra one month/use it as a holding area for other baking ideas that come to mind.

My 2020 Baking Bucket List

January: Challah Bread

February: Cookie Cutter Cake & Macaroons

March: Sourdough Bread: Chocolate Sourdough Babka, Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls, Sourdough Crackers

April: Geoed Cake

May: Watercolor Cake

June: Gallette, maybe a savory heirloom tomato & goat cheese?

July: Pinstriped Cake

August: Shag Cake

September:  Mirror Glaze Cake

October: German Apple Strudel

November: Croquembouche Tree, maybe creme de menthe flavored?

December: Snowflake Jellyroll Inlay & Cookie Cutter Cake (again, for the holidays)

Other Options: Palimers, Kougin-Amann, Madeleine, Biscotti, Crepe Cake

 

 

 

 

6 Clean & Tidy Tips to Ready Your Fridge for the Holiday Season

by

Before the holiday rush kicks-off, give your fridge some TLC for National Clean Out Your Fridge Day on Friday, November 15th with my tips & cleaning hacks.

This post has been sponsored by Art of Green®.  All thoughts, photos, and opinions are my own.

The onset of the holiday season means your fridge is probably going to be doing double duty storing all the treats for your festivities as well as your regular eats. Before the holiday rush kicks-off, give your fridge some extra TLC for National Clean Out Your Fridge Day on Friday, November 15th with my tips for keeping your fridge clean and organized throughout the holiday season.

Fridge art of green cleaning

6 Clean & Tidy Tips to Ready Your Fridge for the Holiday Season

Take Inventory Weekly

Each week, take a skim through your fridge and inventory any items that are closing in on their expiration date.  Prioritize these foods for eating in the coming days and toss anything that’s past its peak.  This will help you minimize food waste and ensure you have room for any new groceries you bring into the house.

Clean Before You Shop

I usually grocery shop on Sundays, which means on Sunday mornings my fridge is the barest making it prime for cleaning. I use this day to not only take inventory but to also wipe down the shelves, remove crumbs, greasy fingerprints, and put everything back in its place.

To simplify this task, I like to use Art of Green wipes.  AOG products are non-toxic, 98% naturally derived and come in two scents, lavender eucalyptus and citrus & white flowers.  I find the fresh citrus scent works well inside the fridge.  And, because the Art of Green products are green, I feel safe using them around food items in the refrigerator because they’re free of parabens, phthalates, glycol solvents, artificial colors, and phosphates.

fridge art of green wipe down

On top of being green, AOG products actually work (unlike some other green products) to remove grease or sticky bits of food and on the outside of my fridge, they’re great at getting rid of greasy fingerprints on the stainless steel without leaving streak marks (one of my pet peeves!).

Lazy Susans Are Your Friend

You might think lazy Susans are the thing your grandma had on her kitchen table to swivel around salt & pepper during family dinners (at least mine did) but they’re actually a miracle worker in the kitchen.  I love having lazy susans in the refrigerator, specifically for frequently used condiments or hard to reach items that get tucked into the back corners.  Lazy susans also help keep your fridge clean since you can easily remove them to wipe away drips or leaks with your AOG wipes.

Fridge lasy susan

Utilize Clear Bins for Fridge Organization

Since a fridge can quickly become overcrowded during the holiday season, I like to store items in clear plastic bins.  I picked mine up at Target in a few different sizes.  Not only do I keep the bins on shelves, but they’re also tucked into drawers to help compartmentalize items that may roll-around (lemons!) or leak (raw meat, which should always be kept on the lowest shelf).

fridge plastic pins

Much like the fridge itself, I wipe down these containers weekly with a little Art of Green which leaves them clean, sparkling, and ready to be filled again after my weekly shopping trip at H-E-B where I also pick up my AOG products.

Get Your Fridge a Can Caddy

With a growing obsession for sparkling waters, our fridge is constantly filled with cans.  However, cans take up a lot of room and are difficult to stack which is why I utilize a can caddy in the refrigerator. It holds about 9 cans, I can easily move it around if I need to and it keeps the cans from rolling or toppling over. Super convenient. Definitely worth the investment.

fridge art of green

Store Food for Optimal Refrigeration

While you may believe packing everything into the fridge will keep your food safe, overpacking a refrigerator can cause potential cooling and food safety issues.  Refrigeration relies on proper air circulation to keep foods properly chilled and can become a hazard to all those holiday leftovers if they’re tightly packed.

clean fridge

It’s also important to remember where in your fridge to store specific items to ensure optimal temperature:

  • Doors tend to be the warmest and should be used for condiments, juice, and water.
  • Task the upper shelves for leftovers, dairy, ready-to-eat food, and herbs.
  • Bottom shelves are great for meat and fish since they usually are the coldest and below other fridge items, in case the packaging leaks.
  • Crisper drawers with high humidity are best for veggies & fruit. Since produce emits different gases that can cause items to ripen or parish more quickly than normal be sure to store like items together (apples with apples & carrots with carrots).

So tell me, how do you tackle fridge organization?  Do you have a specific plan for the holidays to keep it clean?  If not, use National Clean Out Your Fridge Day this Friday to put my tips to use and get your fridge in shape.

Fridge Pinterest

Cookbook Review of Hello, Cookie Dough by DO founder & CEO Kristen Tomlan

by

If you find yourself randomly eating cookie dough from the bowl & love delicious, creative cookies then you need Hello, Cookie Dough in your kitchen.

hello cookie dough brookie bown

Before we dig into the Hello, Cookie Dough review by DŌ  founder & CEO, Kristen Tomlan, let me give you some quick context on how much I love DŌ, the edible cookie dough shop in New York City.

Last year, I was traveling to NYC a bunch and became obsessed with DŌ, Cookie Dough Confections in Greenwich village. DŌ  serves up bowls of edible cookie dough and it is delicious. 

hello_cookie_dough_fluffernutter

My first taste of DŌ was their fluffernutter creation with a combination of peanut butter, marshmallow fluff & dark chocolate chips.  It was love at first bite (because hello, I’m a peanut butter lover through and through).  The fluffernutter was beyond good, it pretty much had me melting and doing a happy dance in the middle of the sidewalk in front of DŌ in New York City. I instantly became obsessed.

hello cookie dough chocolate chip cookie

And while DŌ does ship their edible cookie dough across the country, it’s rather pricey and there are only pre-selected flavors available.  So, whenever I was in NYC, I’d have a few cups of cookie dough delivered to me an hour or so before heading to the airport, stuff it in my carry-on and immediately put it in the freezer when I got home to Austin.  This ensured I had an everlasting supply of DŌ to get me through until my next trip to NYC.  My go-to flavors quickly became the Oatmeal M&M, Brookie, and Fluffernutter. 

But now, the days of carryon DŌ are over thanks to the new release of DŌ’s new cookbook Hello, Cookie Dough by DŌ founder & CEO, Kristen Tomlan. 

I was one of the lucky few who got to preview the cookbook prior to its release TODAY, October 15th.

hello cookie dough brookie swirled

Now, not only can I now make my own endless supply of cookie dough, but I also found Kristen’s cookbook to be a real gem cover to cover and a book I honestly enjoyed looking at and reading.

Delicious Recipes

  • Kristen offers up 110 different recipes including classic and seasonal DŌ favorites.  She provides instructions on how to customize recipes to your own taste with added mix-ins or mash-ups of flavors.
  • I’m personally excited to make Dunkadoō, It’s Always Samoa Season and You’re a Goddamn Magical Unicorn (because it’s sprinkle filled and swirled with colors!).
  • In addition to cookie dough, there are also recipes for cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, cakes, crepes, donuts and other endless confections that really help round out the book and showcase the full spectrum of edible cookie dough and Kristen’s baking talent.

Kristen’s Story

  • To kick-off her cookbook, Kristen shares the story and inspiration behind DŌ including what led her to open the storefront.
  • I love getting insight into cookbook authors’ backgrounds and Kristen really had me connecting with her through the obvious passion she has for baking and DŌ. 
  • Her story was complemented by family photos of her with her siblings and her marriage to husband, Trey.  All beautiful touches that really bring the cookbook to life, making it feel as if it was written by a friend.

hello cookie dough bites

Thoughtful Touches

  • Throughout the Hello, Cookie Dough you’ll find tons of helpful tips for novice and experienced bakers including multiple tips on how to make pasteurize flour which is required for edible cookie dough (don’t worry, it’s super easy so don’t be intimidated!).
  • Each recipe is also marked with a specific icon that helps bakers quickly scan and choose a recipe depending on their needs, dietary restrictions, or the time they have to actually make the confections.  I found this super useful and appreciate the extra guidance.
  • Conversions! As a baker, I hate halving and doubling a recipe.  You can very easily make a mistake while measuring each ingredient but Kristen thought of it all — she provided half, one and a half, and double recipe measurements for DŌ’s most popular recipe, the classic Chocolate Chip Cookie.

Spectacular Recommendations

  • In Hello, Cookie Dough, Kristen shares a recipe for homemade sprinkles (!!!) but she also provides recommendations on where DŌ purchases all of their eye-popping sprinkles creations — Sweetapolita. So you can make cookie dough as beautiful as what you’d find in the DŌ shop.
  • If you’re looking for that Insta-worthy cookie, Kristen teaches you how! Her recommendation for adding extra toppings to cookie dough balls prior to baking or suggesting to cover every square inch of a cookie with sprinkles to really make it pop help us all make eye-catching desserts!

hello cookie dough bites 2

So, after thoroughly reviewing the Hello, Cookie Dough cookbook, I finally settled on making my first recipe (well, two to be exact) the ever-famous DŌ Brookie mix — a magical combination of a chocolate chip cookie swirled with decadent chocolate brownie batter.  After precisely following Kristen’s directions for pasteurizing my flour (and letting it properly cool) my Brookie mix turned out O-M-G delicious, just as if I purchased it from the DŌ shop in the city.

While the recipe did make a ton of cookie dough, and because it’s so rich, I chose to freeze the majority of my dough into a bite-sized pieces so I could treat myself when a craving hit.  And, because DO’s recipes are not only made to be edible cookie dough but also to bake, I baked off a few as well (<3M declared them one of the top homemade cookies ever).

If you’re interested in hello, cookie dough, you can snag a copy today on Amazon.