revisiting...mon anniversaire!

it's long come and gone, but it was indeed a quiet, sunny and pleasant birthday. on december 16th i woke up and took a bike ride to berkeley where i went into guerilla cafe and had a light yet tasty birthday breakfast and coffee. continued riding through the berkeley hills, grabbed a red velvet cupcake at a nearby cupcake shop, then off to a manicure and pedicure session. arrived home to take my dog tuula for a nice long walk. finally got all gussied up in a warm sweater dress, tights and boots and went out to dinner with el esposo and brother-in-law. our final destination for the night was chez panisse, for the most decadent and beautiful birthday dinner. appetizers, main courses, wines, and desserts later we had very little energy to continue onward with the night. so we skipped the plans we had in mind beforehand and headed straight home. for once there were no crazy loud anything, no dancing, no bar hopping or night caps. tucked ourselves in and called it a night. nonetheless, a very delicious way to end the day.

two meals. one love.

Yesterday, felt like a sunday instead of a monday. Perhaps it was the aftermath of 4th of july weekend and no work that made it feel that way. So David(el esposo) and I decided to use this time to catch up on things we never have time to do as a pair. Cleaning, organizing, backyard work, painting, shopping, building, making and cooking:) We stopped to grab some ingredients early in the day for lunch and dinner. I made tasty, juicy lamb burgers with an interesting avocado yogurt spread and my better half prepared a scrumptious and hearty savory bread pudding for dinner. Behold, both recipes....try them!

Lamb Burgers with Avocado & Yogurt spread

1 1/4 lbs. of ground lamb

2 cups of thinly sliced red onion soaked in ice cold water for 30 minutes(for crunch)

2 1/2 tbsp fresh mint chopped

1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic

salt and pepper to taste

1 ripe avocado

2/3 greek yogurt

thick slices of tomatoes and/or lettuce pieces

whole wheat burger buns or ciabatta rolls

mix the lamb, 2 tbsp mint, 1 tbsp garlic, salt and pepper and form about 6 patties (forming bigger patties will make about 4 smaller ones will form about 6)

grill em' or fry em' on a pan, i did about 2 minutes each side on high heat. toast your buns and make your spread. mash your ripe avocado into the 2/3 cups of yogurt, mix in the mint and garlic (1/2 tbsp of each)salt and pepper to taste, spread it on top of the patty and add your other fixin's (red onion slices, tomato, lettuce)Super easy, mega tasty!

Asparagus with Manchego Cheese Bread Pudding

1/2 loaf french bread , cut in small cubes (we used hearty acme bread)

1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion , diced

1 pint (2 cups) halved cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes

1 bunch asparagus , cut in 1/2-inch pieces on the bias (3 1/2 cups)

8 eggs (we used clark summit farm eggs...delicious and organic)

1 cup milk

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese

1 tsp. kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 cup shredded manchego cheese (oh, delicious spanish goodness!)

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
then place the french bread cubes in a lightly greased 13x9-inch baking dish.
Place the extra virgin olive oil in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, 3 to 4 minutes.
add the tomatoes and asparagus. Cook another 2 minutes, and then pour over the bread cubes in the casserole dish.
whip the eggs, milk, Parmesan cheese, salt and black pepper. Pour on top of the vegetable mixture. Sprinkle the Manchego cheese evenly over the top.

Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Serve immediately!