Recipe: White Peach and Blackberry Crumble

i was so excited to find time to bake this week! i find baking and cooking so relaxing and such a good stress reliever, especially when i am making something new and it ends up being delicious! 

lately i've been obsessed with crumbles. i found this one here and it was so yummy!

DIY: Succulent Garden

i've wanted to add little succulents to our house for a while now. last week i finally had a free afternoon and decided to give it a try. Things you need: vase (i used pots from anthropologie and mini mason jars), small rocks, soil, succulents. Add a thin layer of rocks to the bottom of the vase, fill half way with soil, arrange succulents, add more soil and you are done!  

Recipe: Peach and Creme Fraiche Tart

desserts with peaches are one of my weaknesses. i loved this tart because the peaches are kept fresh, if fact there is no baking involved at all! and it doesn't even feel like eating a dessert, but more like a fresh, healthy breakfast! the crust tastes like a lara bar and the cream with the peaches is to die for! everyone should make this! :)

Trip to Europe...Part 3

old town bern, switzerland

i can't believe that is has already been over two weeks since we got back from europe. it all seems like a dream now. (part 1, part 2)

interlaken, switzerland

the most picturesque little town in the alps 

lauterbrunnen, switzerland

the sound of music?

of course every day involved pastries

paragliders in the alps

glacial lake in interlaken, switzerland

Recipe: Black Bean and Rice Skillet

one of our current favorites for a quick dinner. 

heat a little olive oil in a cast iron skillet. add half an onion, finely chopped. cook until softened.  to the onion, add two cups of cooked brown rice, some fresh lime juice, chipotle powder,  one cup of black beans, and a splash of water. stir and cook on medium heat until heated through.

add a handful of spinach. when the spinach is slightly wilted make a small well in the rice and crack an egg into it. generously sprinkle with goat cheese and cover. cook for a few minutes, until the egg white is fully cooked, but the egg yolk is still soft.

sprinkle with fresh cilantro and avocado. 

enjoy!

original recipe can be found here

Trip to Europe...Part 2

bern, switzerland

continuing to sift through the four thousand photos i came home with! missing this trip so much already! (part 1 here)

no place like france!

after eating croissants there all others are now ruined forever!

amazing hike that ended in exploring ruins of an 11th century castle!

Trip to Europe...Part 1

this past june i had an amazing opportunity to travel to europe with my family. i can't even begin to describe this trip! although i have been to europe before this trip really did exceed my expectations. i told my husband that had he been able to come too (medschool ruins everything!) i would have probably not come back! we stumbled upon towns and villages that i thought only existed in disney movies, hiked up to ruins of thousand-year-old castles, walked through vineyards, and ate croissants for every meal!

village of riquewihr in alsace, france

can never get enough of the cobblestone streets!

most adorable boulangerie with the best cafe au lait...kaysersberg, france

my favorite village of all time...kaysersberg, france

our lunch...a baguette fresh from the oven (literally watched it bake!)

riquewihr, france...not real life!

Recipe: Overflowing vegetable tart

this tart is a compilation of different recipes with an addition of things that we had at home. how this whole thing started i am not even sure, but we had potatoes, leeks, and zucchini at home and i have been having an ongoing love-affair with goat cheese so i decided to combine everything into one dish. at our house we also eat tomatoes with just about everything and the little colorful heirloom ones were perfect here. 

the finished tart was more delicious than i ever imagined! there is still left over dough in the freezer anxiously waiting to be made into another one of these. :)