Halloween Party Treats

Happy almost Halloween lovelies! Geoff and I are super excited to be going to a friend's Halloween party this Saturday. And being a Southern lady, I can't head to the festivities without homemade goodies in hand. I have been trolling the interwebs for ideas and came across the perfect gory treats- witches fingers! These are so gross and cool at the same time. I might even use some green food coloring to dye some of them green for that extra "witchy" effect.

Of course, Miss Hostess With The Mostess herself Martha Stewart had a great recipe for these on her site (its also written below.) They are super easy to make- I'll let you know how they come out! Anyone have any fun Halloween plans?

XO
-L

Ingredients

Makes 30

• 2 tablespoons red food coloring
• 30 blanched almonds
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
• 5 tablespoons granulated sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with Silpats (French nonstick baking mats) or parchment paper, and set aside.
2. Place food coloring in a shallow bowl. Using a small paintbrush, color one rounded half of each almond. Set aside to dry.
3. Separate 1 egg. Set aside the white. In a small bowl, whisk together yolk, remaining egg, and vanilla. Set aside.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine butter, confectioners' sugar, granulated sugar, and salt. Beat on medium speed until well combined. Add egg mixture, and beat until smooth, about 2 minutes. Add the flour, and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Wrap the dough in plastic, and chill until firm, 20 to 30 minutes.
5. Divide the dough in half. Work with one piece at a time, keeping remaining dough covered with plastic wrap and chilled. Divide the first half into fifteen pieces. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece back and forth with palms into finger shapes, 3 to 4 inches long. Pinch dough in two places to form knuckles. Score each knuckle lightly with the back of a small knife. Transfer fingers to prepared baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough.
6. When all fingers are formed, brush lightly with egg white. Position almond nails; push into dough to attach.
7. Bake until lightly browned, about 12 minutes. Cool completely.

From Martha Stewart Living Television 

Read more at Marthastewart.com: Ladies' Fingers - Martha Stewart Recipes

Witch Finger Cookies via RecipeGirl.com

Bloody Finger Cookies via Studio Surface Blog

3 Things: Falling for Fall

Good Tuesday morning lovlies! Its been hinting at Fall (finally!) here in Dallas and I couldn't be more excited. Visions of school supplies, yummy baked goods, leather boots, and cuddling in front of the fire bob around in my head- I can't wait! Here are three things that are helping me celebrate Fall's arrival-a gorgoeus supple leather bag, cozy sweater knit throw, and delicious peanut butter banana bread muffins.
Enjoy!

1. Sepia Saddlebag via Anthro
    (Could this bag be more gorgeous? The supple leather will just get better
    with age-definitely wishlisted.)

2. Chunky Ribbed Throw via Pottery Barn
    (Got this with some of our wedding gift cards & I am in love-its literally a
     huge sweater to wrap up in on the couch!)

3. Peanut Butter Banana Bread Muffins via Cooking Light
    (I made these this past weekend and they got eaten up soooo fast!)

XO
-L

Happy Weekend

Its Friday, and a lazy Labor Day weekend stretches out before us! A long weekend really could not be coming at a better time- I really need an extra day to finish up the last of my wedding crafts and get some extra rest. We will also be spending time with good friends BBQ-ing and hanging out by the pool. I can't wait to whip up a key lime pie for the occasion!

I hope everyone has a lovely, long, relaxing weekend!
XO
-L 

My Dog-Niece Roxy

Big Red- In the House!

Yes, I'm a total dork.  I am sooooo excited I got to bring home "Big Red" (my new Red Kitchenaid Stand Mixer) this weekend. This baby was a wedding gift from my Aunt Kathy and Uncle Tres and I spent the weekend mixing and baking away. I made whole wheat pizza crust (love that dough hook attachment!) We are gonna whip up a pizza this week and throw it on the grill- can't wait. Then I moved on to Paula's Chicken Salad. Ok, so I didn't use the mixer on this one, but its too yummy not to mention. Then it was back to Big Red for a batch of yummy Blueberry Walnut Bran Muffins. Yum-o. Love this recipe from cute little Cookie over at Workout then Cook. She seriously has 138 muffin recipes on her blog. 138! Thats crazy! I will definitely be trying her PB&J Muffins, Tomato Feta Muffins, & Lemon Poppyseed Muffins. Thanks for sharing so many great recipes Cookie. Check out her site for the yummy Blueberry Walnut Bran Muffins recipe and see below for Paula's Chicken Salad. (BTW, I'm not sure who Paula is, but my mom gave me this recipe and thats what its called...haha!)

Happy Tuesday Chickies!
XO
-L 

Paula's Chicken Salad Recipe

• 1 box of Rice-a-Roni, chicken flavor, cooked according to package and cooled
• 1 rotisserie chicken, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1 green pepper, diced
• 1 jar marinated artichoke hearts
• 1 cup fat free mayonnaise

1. Cook the Rice a Roni according to package directions & allow to cool.
2. In a large bowl, combine cooled Rice-a-Roni and remaining ingredients (including oil in artichokes.)  
   Stir until well combined. Serve alone or on cibatta bread for a yummy sammy!

Calvin is super excited about Big Red...

A few of my favorite things (right now)

Hey kids, I hope you guys all had a lovely start to your week. I was a bit bummed yesterday cause I had to come home from Tucson before Geoff (curse my few vacation days...) So he is still there soaking up the sun and golfing till Wednesday. So, to cheer myself up while my partner in crime is out of town, I am focusing on some of my fave new little treat discoveries. Nothing crazy, just little things that brighten my day.
Enjoy!

XO
-L 

1. Photography Apps on my iPhone
I am obsessed with Hipstamatic & Shake-It Photo (I used them to make the super fun snaps above, I am even using them for a photo for our thank-you cards.) Love using technology to make something old school cool.

2. Tofu Shirataki Noodles
How is it possible to eat pasta and it be low carb, fat free, & only 20 calories a serving?!! Its like magic!! I am officially hooked on these babies. Thanks to my future mother-in-law and sis-in-law for recommending them. I need some good options now more than ever because, with my wedding dress fitting being only a month away, I am trying to be really good. These will help me squelch the carb craving in a healthy way.

3. Betty Crocker Warm Delights Minis
Bride diet or no bride diet, I must have chocolate. And its my favorite in cake form. Geoff came home with a big stack of these things the other day (just another reason he is the best ever...) and (at 150 calories a pop) they are the perfect way to have my cake and eat it too-without derailing that hard ass spin class I just finished.

4. Obaji Clenziderm Starter Set
Hello genius skincare! If you have read my blog at all, you know that I have struggled with the dreaded acne all my life. I just finished a big round of (painful, expensive) laser treatments and now have lovely clear skin for my wedding, but I was getting stress breakouts. Not cool. So, to keep my newly acquired pretty skin under control, I am using this kit as prescribed by my derm. It is amazing! Thank you Jesus for this product. I'm no expert, but this is the only skincare product on the market with the solubilized  form of Benzoyl Peroxide, which basically means that it is small enough to actually penetrate pores instead of just sitting on top of the skin doing jack-squat. Read more here.