White carrara marble makes my heart go...

Pitter-patter!

When I saw it standing there I heard Agnes say, It's so fluffy I'm gonna die!

I finally had an opportunity to visit the slab I mentioned in this post...

And, I was a bit disappointed to find it's not quite perfect. What this means is that

in order to get the best possible, (most perfect) area out of this slab, they'll have to

cut it down. Way down. Which means my dream carrara marble island-top might

turn out to be more of an extra-large carrara marble cutting board. Now, I hadn't

considered that as an option before; but considering how much it cost to have my

Corian fabricated, not covering my island completely may keep me out of trouble!

So we'll see... I have until Friday to pull the trigger on my slab. One thing's for

certain. I certainly cannot live without at least a little bit of white carrara marble

in my kitchen and I am positively giddy to be one step closer to getting it slipped in!

Oh, and PS... Yes, I am aware that marble is a natural surface so imperfections

are to be expected... And, as I was reminded today, embraced. But I just can't do it!

A little Kitchen time!

I went into this weekend looking forward to a little kitchen time!

Specifically, I wanted to bake! However, instead of baking, I

spent most of yesterday organizing my baking goodies...

But after a quick trip to Costco for butter and sugar this morning...

There was no stopping me and no more excuses not to get my bake-on!

Red velvet cupcakes with Martha's buttercream recipe to be exact! By the way, if you

haven't heard, the secret to really great cakes and cupcakes, and breads too is this cake

enhancer from King Arthur Flour. I initially began using it because it helps cakes and

cupcakes last longer. And, with there just being two of us at home I figured it would

help cut down on the number of cupcakes I usually end up feeding to the raccoons

that live on our property. But even better than the way it stretches the life of your

cake and cupcakes is how much better it makes them taste! Trust me... Get some!

How cute are these cupcake liners I picked up at Bake it Pretty

in Asheville? I was sorry to learn that they have closed their store...

But fortunately for me, I stocked waaaaaay up during our last trip!

So let's bake some red velvet cupcakes!

I don't know about you, but I find pouring my batter into liners

a whole lot less messy than dipping it with an ice cream scoop!

Red velvet cake batter always looks like ketchup to me!

I know... It's just me!

I also know it may seem silly to bake just one

cupcake when that's all the batter that's left...

But if I dumped it, I wouldn't have this last, perfect cupcake!

Now that my cupcakes are baked and cooling in front of the open window, it's

time to whip up some of Martha's Buttercream Frosting... It's so good!

 Being so close to Valentine's Day, I think a little pink might be in order!

Just two drops is all it takes...

For perfect pale pink buttercream!

Decorating my cupcakes will be especially fun since I'm totally stocked

up on disposable pastry bags. I mailed a couple of boxes to friends so when

a friend at work told me she was going to the secret savings spot to pick

up a box for herself, I asked her to pick up another three boxes for me!

Disposable pastry bags is the way to go because buttercream is

especially difficult to clean out of those reusable decorating bags!

And, I am all about the easy clean-up!

I'm also all about this decorating tip!

Because I love the little poof it gives us, huh, Bing? Bing's been

staring at me for a while now... Do you want to know why?

Because I hit pause on the cupcakes and have started my dinner prep!

And, Bing can smell seafood a mile away!

Tiger prawns, lump crab and scallops are on the menu tonight!

And... Cupcakes for dessert, of course!

One for you... One for me!

By the way... I finally broke down and ordered one of those photo light

tents many of my blogger friends rave about. I like the clean backgrounds,

and the light it provides long after the natural light in my kitchen has

disappeared. I like the way it diffuses light to eliminate shadows too!

So if you're in the market for one and wonder what it

might look like after you pop it up in your kitchen...

Now you know!

Now... Go, and have yourself a Happy week!

Organizing

Last night I went to a friends house to decorate cupcakes she baked to serve at

a baby shower she's hosting today... When she asked if she could borrow a few

cake stands too, I said, Sure! Decorating those cupcakes and the call I received

later from a friend in Kansas looking for input about her cake recipe inspired

me to plan my own baking adventures to keep me busy on this rainy weekend!

However, after it took me thirty minutes to dig out four cake stands, I decided my

time would be better spent organizing my baking stuff, rather than baking. First

step was to corral my cookie cutters... They were everywhere! In drawers, inside

cake pans, but mostly in my cake stand cabinet where they were under, on top of

and around almost every cake stand I own. Whenever I reached for a cake stand,

fifteen or more cookie cutters jumped out at me. Well, no more! Today I rounded

all of them up and put them away into storage bins. Now, my whole collection is

contained in one place, organized, and very best of all... So much easier to find!

Oh, and best, best of all...

My cake stands can breathe again!

I have just enough space left for the cake stands my friend

has borrowed. So if you see me buying another cake stand...

Smack me!

That goes for cake pans too!

I really don't need anything else for the kitchen...

But it's so hard to resist new things!

Speaking of new things... You know that feeling you get when you see a

cute guy? Well, I picked out a slab of white carrara for the kitchen island

yesterday that made me feel the same way! Why am I picking out carrara

for the kitchen when it's been less than three years since we installed new

counter tops and this larger island top? Well, every morning when I step

onto that little piece of carrara in my shower, I am reminded how much

I still want it in my kitchen. So while I'm not ready to risk getting divorced

over asking for a third remodel of my kitchen, I am thinking a little, (or

a lot) white cararra for the top of my island might be a nice compromise!

I like the butcher block that used to be our old island, but it's just not,

nor can it ever be the carrara I've always wanted. But now that I've pulled

the trigger on a slab of creamy white carrara to call my own, it means by

this time next week I will be a much happier and content kitchen camper!

Right Leo?

We'll just have to figure out how to slip that 125-pound

piece of carrara into the kitchen without being noticed!

Me-weekend, Day 3 & 4!

Oops... Didn't mean to leave anyone hanging! 

Yes! There was in fact a day three, and a day four in the fabulous 4-day Me-weekend, which followed my birthday last week. And, while I did have every good intention of updating before now, hot yoga happened to me on Monday night. So for now, I'm letting hot yoga take the fall for the absence of any updates since day 1 and day 2!

Day three of my me-weekend was arranged weeks ago... You see, my friend SpaBoy relocated back to his home in High Point from Chapel Hill last week so this weekend was our first opportunity to get together without one of us having to drive an hour and a half. I had his house rented for over two years; however, after my tenant vacated, SpaBoy and I decided it was high-time for him to high-tail it back to High Point! I'm so happy about this for so many reasons; but especially because his return means we'll be spending more time together doing the thing we do best... Shop!

And, that's exactly what we did Sunday! First, we met for lunch at PF Chang's, then we walked the shops at Friendly Center... We stopped in at Sur la Table where we exercised my professional discount card, then we hit the Apple Store and then Williams-Sonoma for even more goodies! Since I found this post by the lovely Lora, macarons have been on my mind. But everyone knows that you cannot properly create macarons without a food scale.

So when I saw this one on the clearance

rack at Sur la Table for $14, it was a must have!    

I had to make a bee-line to Williams-Sonoma for mini-rubber scrapers

after seeing this post on Dara's blog last week! I cannot wait to duplicate

her success with this yummy recipe... But my first thought as I read along

was that popping Nutella out of my measuring spoon would be so much easier

and less messy if I had a set of these super-cute mini silicone scrapers! Now,

I have no valid excuse for also buying this set of 3 mini spoonulas, except to say

they were on sale... And, for this Catholic, not buying them would have been a sin!

On the way home I stopped at the best kept secret in my area... It's so funky, a bit

gritty, and up until just recently, when the Law changed in North Carolina and the

employees were finally forced to stop smoking inside the store, I wouldn't even

venture in unless I had a lavender-scented hand wipe to cover my nose. But all of

that aside, the deals there are always so amazing, I didn't mind sacrificing a few of

my pricey lavender hand wipes! So what do I find there? Well, the store is packed,

wall to wall, ceiling to floor with items from every department in any retail store

you might shop. I'm talking Target to Bloomies! But... Everything for sale there

is at least 50% off, if not 75-90% off the suggested retail prices. When son #2

moved out I picked up everything from a locking mailbox to a coffeemaker by

Krups, shelving from Pottery Barn and kitchen tools from you-know-where!

Admittedly, most of the items are discontinued but a lot of it is brand new stock

that has simply been salvaged. You see, if a truck carrying goods is in an accident

or burglarized, the carrier's insurance pays the manufacturer for the entire load,

even if the shipment hasn't suffered any damage at all. Then, the carrier sells or

auctions off the merchandise for the insurance company to stores like this one!

So what prompted this latest visit to my secret savings spot? Honestly, I was

after latex surgical gloves! My s-s-s carries tons of hospital supplies, such as

disposable gowns, surgical masks and caps, barf-trays, and even empty/fillable

prescription bottles. And, they usually stock a ton of surgical gloves... Usually!

Anyway, since I cannot stomach touching raw meat, and won't polish my silver,

copper or clean my oven without protecting my hands, I go through a lot of latex

gloves in my kitchen! Sadly, I didn't find any on this trip. However, I did find a ton

of these handy food-service poly gloves! And, at only $1.95 for a box of 500, they

will do just fine until the next shipment of latex exam gloves finds its way here!

But you know me, so you know that I didn't just buy gloves... No! Eight bottles of

my favorite shower gel also flew into my cart, (only $14 a bottle!) and then, as I

was browsing the baking supply corner, grabbing up all the .25 silver-foil covered

cake boards I could, I spotted the very best deal ever! And, since this is all that

remains of my stock of disposable pastry bags... This deal arrived just in time!

That's right fellow baking-fanatics...

I'm talking about 18" disposable pastry bags...

On a Roll!

Squee!!!

I have already used one, and these pastry bags are every bit as durable

as the bags I paid much more for, but at a fraction of the price! My
friend Melanie, aka The Coupon Goddess would be so proud of me!

And, these bags are longer, which means they'll hold

almost twice the volume of my old, expensive bags,

and the extra length makes them easier to fill too!

Of course, let us not also discount the convenience of being on a Roll!

I found other rolls of 18" disposable decorating bags here, but just

look at their price! Doing the math, my roll of 500 bags would

cost well over $150! So at $9.95, at my secret-savings-spot...

I grabbed several boxes! And, I'm thinking of going back to buy more. But again,

doing the math, I'm not sure that I will still be baking when I'm 108 years old. So
I might be forced to leave some for other area bakers to discover... Drat!

Okay, that was day-3, Janet... What about day-4, you say?

Day four brought the adventure of my very first Hot Yoga class!

I listened carefully to the advice of my dear friend and Hot Yoga

devotee, Teresa and took along everything she advised me to pack! A

bottle of frozen water to hold against my pulse-points, a bottle of water

with fresh-squeezed lemon juice added, to drink during class and a plain

water for the drive home. Plus, a towel for my mat to prevent slipping and

a cold, wet towel to wipe sweat from my face and arms. Check, Check!

I arrived as prepared as I could possibly be. I am also delighted to tell

you about the best Hot Yoga studio in the area, if not on the whole

East coast! I am impossible to please, and so sensitive to stinky smells,

and yet, Hot Yoga Therapy in Kernersville impressed me with the

cleanest, freshest-smelling workout studio I have ever experienced, and

the most knowledgable, caring and helpful staff anyone could ask for! I

also found the advice and warnings about the hot yoga experience on

their website particularly helpful. Therefore, none of what I felt came

as a surprise to me. It doesn't mean I enjoyed the dizziness, nausea, or

the overwhelming fatigue I felt following my first class. It just means

it was not a surprise! Nevertheless, I didn't give up, I stayed for the

whole class and at the end, when our instructor announced that we

had just endured 105 degrees with 46% humidity for 90 minutes, I

felt really good about my first hot yoga experience! Dizzy, terribly

nauseous, and I do not remember driving home... But I felt good! So
good in fact, I am paid and signed up for 20 more Hot Yoga classes!