Category: yummy

tequila tuesdays

it is no secret that i love a good cocktail – from my strawberry mules to my sparkling summer sangria, i never say no to something bubbly. when my beautiful godsister told me about these blood orange margaritas she’s been making, i had to have one. little did i know she was using a base that i love – on the rocks!

 

 

doesn’t that just look delicious?

 

so here’s what you need:

 

1. on the rocks – the margarita

2. blood orange italian soda

3. lemon

4. sugar

5. pineapple or watermelon

 

and for the instructions:

1. sit items in the freezer until ice cold but not frozen

2. apply lemon to the rim of your cup

3. dip in sugar

4. drop in the fruit (she uses the fruit in place of ice cubes and prefers pineapple but the market was out so we did watermelon which i will likely do every single time)

5. pour in the on the rocks margarita

6. top with blood orange italian soda (i would say 2-3 ounces is good)

7. stir

8. enjoy!

*i was sitting outside on a hot day so i added a few ice cubes to mine and it was perfect

 

this is a photo of me with the beauty (and brains) behind the creation above

 

if you try it, please let me know what you think!

 

xoxo,

k. tap

boxfox

prior to last month, i had never heard of boxfox and now, i am here to tell you about how much i love this company.  it is gift giving made easy while also having the ability to be totally unique and customizable if you so choose.

 

in may, i had a surprise delivery from my dear friend, nicole.  she is always on top of the latest and greatest in health, beauty and yummy treats, which is not surprising with her working on the love goodly team.  this is the box she gifted to me:

 

 

it included:

  1. a rose gold ink pen
  2. a floral notebook by rifle paper co.
  3. rose hibiscus coconut water hydrating face mist by herbivore
  4. cold brew gummy bears by sugarfina
  5. genmaicha green tea by no. six depot

 

with the month of may typically being a rough one and those emotions being heightened due to the pandemic, the craziness of work and the racial injustice in our nation, each of the five items have served a special purpose.  i love being able to put pen to paper to jot down thoughts, ideas, feelings and all of the things i am trying to figure out how to say in person.  i have been working on my skincare regimen because now that i am 30, i am ultra aware of how our skin is the largest organ on our bodies so i am treating it as such – shout out to my rose hibiscus face mist! i started drinking caffeine regularly again once we were sheltering in place and these cold brew gummy bears are the perfect midday pick me up.  and who can say no to a warm cup of tea to just soothe the soul?

 

as if i was not already obsessed with boxfox, a second surprise one arrived courtesy of one of my favorite couples, gio and liz.  liz has a super dope blog, by the way.  you can catch up on that here.  gio and liz regularly tune into my instagram live sessions and before even hearing my last one in full, gio told liz that i sounded sad.  i am typically good at compartmentalizing so the fact that he could pick up on that was quite telling.  fast forward to them surprising me with my second box in lieu of the hug we couldn’t do due to covid-19.  this box was equally awesome but had totally different items:

 

 

  1. two face masks by lapcos
  2. a sparking rosé candle by voluspa
  3. a stainless steel champagne flute by corkcicle
  4. dark chocolate with smoked sea salt by compartes
  5. 52 lists for calm by moorea seal

 

first of all, i teared up when reading the message both because i was so shocked and just touched by the thoughtfulness of my friends.  clearly, gio and liz picked up on the skincare obsession.  i have a stainless steel wine glass but did not know how much i needed this corkcicle.  while i do not eat chocolate often, when i do crave it, i like it balanced with sea salt or caramel.  and a book that involves list making and calmness?  that has kristin written all over it.

 

so i am sure you are interested in boxfox because who wouldn’t be?  there are prearranged boxes to choose from or you can build a box from top to bottom based on category, budget and vibe.  there are gifts for everyone on here, including dads (if you need to send a belated father’s day gift). and even amidst covid, they are shipping in three to six business days.

 

if you are looking for a birthday gift, bridesmaid boxes, graduation gift or something to just show someone how special they are to you, boxfox is the way to go.  if you have any questions, let me know!  i am working on building some boxes of my own as we speak.

 

xoxo,

k. tap

 

 

bacon wrapped stuffed jalapeños

happy friday!  i truly mean that – i am actually having a good day and during quarantine, that is absolutely something to be grateful for.  for those of you who know me personally, you know i like my food with a kick.  i eat a fresh jalapeño or serrano literally every single day whether it is chopped up over a salad (especially my savory southwest salmon one), thrown in a taco or put on a toasted bagel with cream cheese – i just think things taste better with a little heat.  i cannot believe i have not posted about these sooner but better late than never.  so, let’s get down to business.  here is what you will need to make my bacon wrapped stuffed jalapeños:

 

ingredients:

  • 5 large jalapeños
  • 5 strips of bacon (avoid thick cut)
  • 4 ounces of cream cheese (i use onion & chive or jalapeño for extra flavor but if all you have on hand is regular, it will get the job done)
  • 1/2 cup of grated cheese (this is up to you – i mix it up between the italian four cheese blend from trader joe’s, mexican blend or sharp white cheddar – the first is what was used today)
  • garlic salt
  • onion salt
  • black pepper
  • ranch dressing (hidden valley never disappoints but if you have a different brand on hand or like to make your own, do you, boo!)

*i don’t have a particular amount of seasoning that i use – i just sprinkle a few dashes and call it good.  i rarely measure my seasonings.  a trick to be sure you are not putting too much is to sprinkle it into your hand so you can see how much you are putting in before adding it to the mixture

 

 

now, to make these bad boys!

  1. preheat the oven to 400 degrees
  2. rinse your jalapeños and slice them in half lengthwise
  3. scoop out the contents and sit to the side
  4. put cream cheese, grated cheese and seasonings in a bowl and mix together
  5. if you enjoy extra heat like me, dice the jalapeño contents up and add to the cheese mixture (if this sounds scary skip this step)
  6. use a teaspoon the stuff each jalapeño half – it should look like this:
  7. take the five strips of bacon and tear each strip in half, then wrap each strip around a stuffed jalapeño (if presentation is super important or if you are serving these to guests, stick a toothpick or two in each to be sure the bacon stays perfectly in place – i am out of toothpicks and am serving no one because of shelter in place)
  8. place on baking sheet and put in oven for 25 minutes (i do not spray the baking sheet because the grease from the bacon doesn’t allow the stuffed jalapeños to stick)
  9. remove from oven and plate with a side of ranch dressing
  10. enjoy!

 

 

if i want something savory and indulgent that is not packed with carbs, this is my go to.  who doesn’t love spicy, cheesy, bacon-filled goodness?

 

make them and let me know what you think!

 

xoxo,

k. tap

 

p.s. it is friday so don’t forget to make yourself a cocktail.  my strawberry mule is definitely delicious!

monday mules with king st. vodka

hi lovelies!  with surveys showing that alcohol sales have increased by about 60% during quarantine, i figured i would switch it up from banana bread recipes to cocktail recipes.  all throughout undergrad and grad school, i was known amongst my friend groups for making tasty drinks that snuck up on you.  this strawberry moscow mule is no different.  here’s what you need:

 

ingredients:

  • king st. vodka
  • ginger beer (my go to is by fever tree)
  • a few strawberries
  • a lime wedge
  • ice

 

 

and now, for how to make it:

  • fill a cocktail shaker with ice and 5-6 strawberry slices
  • add two shots of king street vodka
  • shake vigorously
  • strain over fresh ice into a mule mug
  • squeeze line wedge over (the now) strawberry vodka
  • pour ginger beer into the mule mug
  • garnish with additional strawberry slices
  • enjoy!

 

 

i chose king st. vodka for a few reasons.  i love kate hudson as both an actress and entrepreneur.  when i found out she had a vodka, i was definitely curious.  while quarantined, she was on the ellen show and mentioned how somewhere between 20-30% (i am forgetting the exact number) of the money made from each bottle was going to help aid bartenders during quarantine (since they are obviously out of work).  i have been paying close attention to how companies are treating their employees during this time and it has definitely shifted where i have been making my online purchases.  just something to think about.

 

this vodka is incredibly smooth with nearly next to no bite.  i cannot wait to make other drinks with it during quarantine so when i host my first event when social distancing is over, my guests will have an array of king st. cocktails to choose from.  also, how gorgeous is the bottle?  that is just an added bonus.

 

i purchased my bottle online from bevmo but have linked the king st. vodka site directly in the event you are not near a bevmo or bevmo does not deliver to your state.

 

i also linked a similar cocktail shaker set to the one i have.  i found mine on mega sale at nordstrom rack.  this one from amazon is definitely comparable.

 

have you tried king st. vodka yet?  what’s your favorite vodka based cocktail?

 

xoxo,

k. tap

 

 

 

french toast friday

okay, guys.  i am honestly super hyped about this post.  when i cook brunch for guests, i tend to take a more soul food/southern approach – think fried chicken, country fried potatoes, scrambled eggs with melted cheese, biscuits with honey butter and your body weight in mimosas (with a variety of juices to choose from).  while i have never had a single complaint about the aforementioned, it takes forever and is a total bitch to prep and clean up.

 

that being said, there are three brunch items that are more simple that i have always been hesitant to tackle because a family member already does them perfectly.  the best grits belong to papa – a real life black cowboy with three horses in los angeles (i know, that probably deserves its own blog post).  now, omelettes and french toast belong to my dad – they both come out perfect every single time.  i had never tried to cook any of them – it is like feared messing them up, especially because dinner is my favorite meal to prepare.

 

well, i finally got over my fear and made truly phenomenal french toast.  i essentially merged a variety of recipes and threw my own spin on it based on what i had in my fridge/pantry.

 

here are the ingredients you need:

 

  • 4 eggs
  • 1/4 cup of vanilla soy milk (any milk would work but i only use milk for baking that calls for it so the vanilla silk soy milk was what i had on hand and it worked for me)
  • 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
  • 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • 4 tablespoons of sweet cream butter (i used salted based on the flavor i was going for but you could likely modify this)
  • 8 slices of thick cut bread (i used organic white thick cut toast from trader joe’s)
  • berries of choice (i used strawberries)
  • powdered sugar
  • maple syrup (i used organic maple syrup by simply balanced which can be found at target)

 

now, for the directions:

  1. whisk together the eggs, milk, vanilla extract, sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon in a dish that is big enough to turn bread over in
  2. use a large skillet to melt the sweet cream butter over medium heat
  3. toss the bread into the mixture and be sure it is saturated on both sides
  4. put bread in skillet a fry until there is a golden brown coating on each side
  5. remove from skillet and plate
  6. top with berries, powdered sugar and syrup
  7. enjoy!

 

 

i paired the french toast with scrambled eggs with melted cheese and a couple of strips of bacon.  it did not disappoint and even has felecia’s stamp of approval!

 

when combined with the right sides (of your choosing), i would say this is enough to serve four people (with each person getting two thick slices of french toast).

 

if you make it, please let me know how it turns out!  i have loved seeing the posts of many of you trying your hand at my banana bread and lemon bars.

 

xoxo,

k. tap