...and we're off!

The packs are (almost) packed.  The passports are ready for a new stamp.  The dog is thoroughly confused.  In just a few hours, we'll be leaving the 14.5 inches of snow that is still piled on the ground and heading to our warmer, tropical destination.  Hasta Luego!

Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas, Feliz Navidad, Happy New Year to all!

*Recipe* Momofuku Crack Pie (Gluten Free)

Ohboyohboyohboy.
This thing is amazing. 

Momofuku, which means 'lucky peach', is a totally hip bakery with four locations throughout New York.  I was watching The Today Show one morning when they featured a few of their desserts and I became totally enamored.  So, last night, I made the Momofuku Crack Pie, gluten free, for tomorrow night's holiday party.  It.  Is.  Todiefor.  And it sells for $44/pie in the store.  Whaaaaaat?!

Warning: I was way too excited to remember to take pictures on a consistent basis.

Momofuku Crack Pie

The recipe says it makes 2-10inch pies but I made a 9x13 pan for Crack Bars instead.

COOKIES

• 2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon flour (I used Pamela's Baking Mix)
• 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup softened butter
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 cup rolled oats (Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Oats)

Preheat oven to 375.

Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into medium mixing bowl.

In a larger bowl, or your standing mixer with the paddle attachment, beat sugar, brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Add egg and beat until incorporated.

Continue mixing while slowly adding dry ingredients to the butter mixture. Then gently fold in oats.

Spread batter into a 9x13 inch baking dish.

Bake until golden brown and set, about 20 minutes. Let cool.

Then crumble cookie to use for the crust.
CRUST

• Cookies (see above)
• 1/4 cup butter ( I had to add another tablespoon of butter to make the crust stick together)
• 1 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon salt

Mix crumbled cookies, brown sugar, butter, and salt in a food processor. If you use a blender, do a few smaller batches by pulsing to grind until evenly blended. The mixture should hold together when squeezed between your fingers. Then press the crust into your pie tins/baking dish. Set aside.
FILLING

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup plus 1 teaspoon milk powder
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 8 egg yokes
• powdered sugar for garnish

Preheat oven to 350.

In a large bowl, whisk sugar, brown sugar, salt and milk powder. Add melted butter, then whisk in heavy cream.

Add vanilla and whisk in egg yokes gently so you don't add too much air.

Pour filling into the pie shell or pan.

Bake for 15 minutes. Then reduce heat to 325 and bake until the center is giggly (but not runny) and golden brown, about 10 more minutes. Remove and let cool on a rack.

(this is what happens when you whisk in too much air)

(this is what happens when you overcook)

Chill completely and dust a little powdered sugar over the top.  Enjoy!

And now my bars are ready for the party!

This, seriously, is one of the best desserts I've ever made.

Interest in Pinterest

Have you heard of Pinterest?  It's an online pinboard where you can organize your favorite things.  Between house decor, recipes, wedding ideas, clothes or anything else you're interested in, you "pin" your favorites to a "board."  You can share your board, follow other boards and generally share the best of the web in your area of interest. 

Sounds intriguing, no?  So one slow day at work, I mentioned my curiosity (led by an urgent email from a certain Mrs. Valorz that I MUST SIGN UP!!!) to my crafty co-worker (shout-out to the party planner herself, Mrs. D. Shulman!) who immediately encouraged me to take the plunge.  So I did.  And I played around with it for an hour or so.  Until I got bored.  And I haven't gone back since.

Until now.

I had dinner with my favorite Altitude ladies the other night and Pinterest came up during our dinner conversation.  I was told that Pinterest was "made" for me.  Well, if that doesn't make me want to take another shot at it!  So I am announcing to you, my faithful blog followers, that I am embarking on a new Pinterest journey beginning today.  I'll let you know how it goes :) 

Are you on Pinterest?  Any tips/suggestions/comments about it?  I'd love to hear!

'Tis the Season

I love Christmas.  I love Christmas lights.  I love garland.  I love holiday music.  I love the holiday cheer.  I do not love the Salvation Army but that's a whole 'nother story.  So when The Mister and I returned from our Thanksgiving trip (shout-out to Goldie!) and took the puggle on a walk around the neighborhood, I realized that I was jealous of all the happy families who were outside hanging lights and decorating their house.  This being our first year of home ownership, I haven't had to deal with the every-other-house-on-the-street-is-decorated-except-ours syndrome.  Yes, it is a syndrome, as confirmed by my other Jewish homeowner girlfriends.

So, without discussing my decorating plans with anyone, I purchased this:

Isn't it pretty?!  I think it is the perfect wreath to give our home a little bit of holiday spirit.  I excitedly waiting for The Mister to get home and see our new decor.  Unfortunately, he didn't respond as expected.  "What's with the Christmas wreath on the door?"  Ummm, what?  Argument ensued as we debated whether or not a wreath is a Christmas symbol and therefore appropriate for our Jewish home.  In my frantic state, I pulled out all of our Hanukkah decorations and strew them throughout the house, least there be any doubt:

(notice the two menorahs)

We finally had to go to the ultimate source, MIL, who confirmed that a wreath is a wreath, not a Christmas wreath. Phew.  Not that we cleared that up, out came the decorative balls to fill the vase :)

And one last shot of our beautiful wreath!

The next-door neighbor's skating penguin display has nothing on us!

In conclusion, The Mister is beyond thrilled that he doesn't have to deal with Christmas lights, I am loving our limited decor - although I'm sure the Hanukkah collection will grow over the years - and we are thoroughly enjoying seeing holiday decorations on other homes.  Oh, and by the way, Anthropologie has the greatest tree ornaments... just in case any of you are looking.

DIY Headboard

I know, I know.  I've been sucking at the blog lately.  But I promise the next post is going to very thought-provoking!  Until then, as promised, I've included the steps to my DIY Headboard that is so proudly displayed in the guest bedroom - which recently hosted it's first post-renovation guest!

The materials are very simple: I purchased a wooden frame typically used to stretch canvas from the local art supply store, a staple gun, 1 yard of fabric and some batting.  That's it.  Picking out the fabric was the hardest part so after I became completely overwhelmed I went for black.  Kudos to you if you're not scared of patterns!

The wooden frame was actually harder to put together than it looked.  Luckily, I found a mallet in the garage that did the trick... or broke it... I'm not sure yet... :)

After the frame is together, staple the batting:

And THIS is how you know when you've purchased the wrong size staples!

Luckily I was able to hammer them in a bit further.
After the batting, do the same thing with the fabric:

Voila!  You now have a headboard!

Fabric headboards are so expensive so this is a great alternative to purchasing.  With a nicer, patterned fabric and a little more batting to make it thicker, nobody will ever know that you made it yourself!  Good luck!