Tuesday, July 2, 2013

Cucumber Crostini

A couple of weekends ago, we went to Kelsey and Brandon's for their birthday cookout. After reading lots of recipes, but not finding one that I liked, I created these cucumber crostinis to take to the party. These turned out to be a perfect summer treat. They're like a fun appetizer version of cucumber tea sandwiches.

Cucumber Crostini
- cucumbers, seeded and large diced, 2-3 cups (~ 2 large regular cucumbers or 6 pickling cucumbers)
- 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
- 1 bunch mint
- 1/2 bunch dill
- garlic powder
- salt
- chives, chopped, for garnish

Remove the seeds from the cucumbers (you can also choose to peel them, but I didn't) and cut them into a large dice. You want them to be easy to eat, but still have some crunch!  Then, pat dry with paper towels. In a separate bowl, whip the cream cheese and add mint, dill and garlic powder.  Add the cucumbers to this mixture, adding salt to taste, and  stir well to incorporate.  For best flavor development, refrigerate for 12 hours.

To prepare the crostinis, slice french bread into thin slices. Drizzle with olive oil and garlic powder and toast in oven until golden brown. Allow to cool, then top with a spoonful of cucumber mixture and garnish with chives.

Enjoy!

I'll share the recipe for these chili lime shrimp cups soon! 

Monday, July 1, 2013

Goodbye Reader

via
I'm sure you're well aware of the demise of Google Reader by now. But, just in case you're not up to speed, Google Reader will no longer be functional after today. Google says that it's been losing popularity (I don't believe), but really I think it's a push by them to use Google+ and similar features over there.

So, what are you using now in it's place?  I'm using a couple of things until I find my favorite. For the most part, I've been using Feedly. But, it's not my favorite. I've run into some issues with it synching what I've read across multiple devices. If I've read a bunch of new posts on my computer and then browse on my phone, sometimes they show up as unread still. There are also some kinks with navigating, but maybe I will get the hang of it. I'm also a little worried that Feedly depends on Google functionality, it seems to synch with Google data every time I log in, I don't know if it will be dependable after Google takes this away. I think I'm going to end up using another service.

If you're looking for the least amount of change from Google Reader, The Old Reader might be for you. It has a very similar setup. Once you've signed up, you need to upload you subscriptions by uploading the .xml file that you can download from Google takeout. After that, everything is very straightforward.

I also signed up for Bloglovin' and imported my Google Reader list, so that I would have that option. I like the layout and suggestions for new blogs to follow.  The only problem I've had has been in the actual reading, I don't like having to click the posts to read everything... I want to just be able to scroll through the entire post.

So, what have you settled on to replace Google Reader? Are you liking it even more than you thought?

P.S. If you're looking for another way to follow my blog, you can always sign up to get a message straight to your inbox each day that I post. Enter your email address into the box on the left sidebar that says "Follow by Email."

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Weekend Recap

We had a fun weekend celebrating lots of birthdays!
The Dining Room at Bida Manda
Friday night, we went out with my friends to Bida Manda in Downtown Raleigh. I had the green papaya salad with filet. I know it sounds weird, but it was so good! We went out afterwards for more fun and drinks. It was a great night :)
Green Papaya Salad with grilled flatiron steak
Green papaya salad, here with flat iron steak
Yummy cake from Sweet Memories



On Saturday, we went to Kelsey and Brandon's for a birthday cookout. The weather ended up being nice and it was great to hang out with friends.  I made a couple of appetizers that I can't wait to share here, hopefully later this week. Here are some pictures from that night.






It was a great weekend!

P.S. Happy Birthday Kelsey!!! (This was supposed to post yesterday!!)

Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Another year older.

Today's my birthday and even thought it's early in the day, I've already gotten tons of love from family and friends.

We are celebrating tonight with my family at Sitti in downtown Raleigh. This is one of my all-time favorite restaurants, I can't wait to take them.  Then on Friday, we're going to Bida Manda with my friends. Exciting week ahead!
Kelsey posted an amazing blog post with a photo collage over on her blog that I wanted to share here. So sweet!!
My sister posted this on Instagram and it made me crack up!!
And Kevin got me these gorgeous peonies last night. Love them, it's so awesome to wake up to beautiful flowers on your birthday!!

Hope everyone else has a great day, I know I will!!

Monday, June 17, 2013

Happy Birthday Darcy!

Four years ago, our dog Darcy was born. He has been such a big part of our lives and I can't imagine what it  would be without him. He is constantly bringing a smile to our faces and loves unconditionally.  Here are some pictures all the way back from when we got him!
The weekend we brought him home, Oct. 2009
Halloween 2009, that pumpkin was a little too big ;)
Christmas 2009
His first snow, Jan 2010
On his first birthday
Christmas 2010
Getting his stocking on Christmas
At the beach

4th of July!
Fall at our new house
Christmas 2011
On the deck, Spring 2012
At the beach
Fall 2012

Christmas with his new brother, Rory
This weekend at the beach
 Happy Birthday Darcy!!

p.s. Way to go if you made it through all of those pictures, lol.
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