Happy Monday!

Me + Rob, Halloween 2011

have a spooky weekend + happy halloween!

For the halloween weekend I hope to eat loads of candy, be impressed with all the clever costumes and dance til my feet hurt (which might not take too long since my costume requires heels). Both weekend nights are booked with parties, which already shows up last year. Luckily, the weather is looking to be fairly mild, phew. I love any excuse for fun pictures-- so excited!

be safe + happy halloween!

and...

+ halloween decor: awesome pacman garland.

+ tried + true: amazing recipes I consumed this week...

+ a video: this made my heart swell, I absolutely love this idea...balloons.

+ winter wear: mountain peak beanie!

+ Merida, Spain: wow! what a fantastic skate park.

+lol!: really creative/hilarious halloween costume idea. (more here...)

+ goodbye autumn: tear.

+ naturally curly haired ladies: genius tips from the real deal.

+ style envy: adore this fall/winter look!

+ make your own: grown-up halloween candy...

+ paper love: stripe & field envelope liners.

+ etsy want: tripod lamp. (also, this made me laugh)

+ anthropologie: the tumblr.

(photo via--don't you miss being a kid sometimes?)

Deep thought thursday...

(via)

first snow...

i knew it was coming. the end of october is always the sweet spot.

A craving: Chicken Pot Pie...

It's comfort food season alright. Last week I woke up with a craving for pot pie. I've never made one and there isn't a recipe in my family, so, of course, I looked to the trusty internet for guidance. After browsing several recipes, I liked this one because it had just the right kinda goodness in it-- lots of chicken, yummy veggies and a creamy, buttery sauce. I decided to poach my chicken but you could easily skip that step by buying a rotisserie. I also decided not to make the crust from scratch (gasp); instead I used refrigerated biscuits because of time. I think someday when I'm feeling a bit more ambitious I'd like to make my own but the biscuits worked out just perfectly. This recipe would work great in small individual ramekins as well but I opted for the full dish because that's what I had on hand.

Okay, so I'm not trying to toot my own horn here but this was so fantastic (maybe it was all that butter??). I don't think any one of us had a speck of food left on our plate. Seriously, it's that good.

Chicken Pot Pie

adapted from Annie's Eats

Filling Ingredients:

+ 3 tbsp. salted butter

+ 1 yellow onion

+ 1 lg or 3 small russet potatoes, diced

+ 3 cloves of garlic, minced

+ 8 oz (1 carton) button mushrooms, sliced

+ 1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper

+ 2 cups frozen peas and carrots

+ 3 lg chicken breasts

+ 3 1/2 cups of chicken broth

+ salt & pepper for seasoning

Sauce Ingredients:

+ 8 tbsp salted butter

+ 1 cup flour

+ 1/2 cup heavy cream

+ Dash of hot sauce

+ salt & pepper for seasoning

Crust Ingredients:

+ 1 pkg of Pillsbury Golden layer flaky biscuits

Directions:

Poach the chicken by placing it in a pot that's just large enough for one layer. Pour the chicken stock over chicken (make sure it completely covers the top of the chicken by at least 1/2 an inch). Add a pinch or two of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to a simmer. Partly cover the pot and cook for about 10 min. Turn off heat and cover completely, let the chicken cook for 10 more min in liquid. Remove chicken and shred into small pieces. Set aside the chicken broth for the sauce.

For the filling, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and potatoes, saute for about 5 min. Mix in garlic and mushrooms and cook for about 15-20 min (or until potatoes are tender). Once vegetables are cooked, add the shredded chicken and frozen peas and carrots and let cook about 2 min more. Stir in red pepper flakes and salt and pepper to taste.

For the sauce, melt butter over medium heat in saucepan. Add flour and whisk until smooth. Using the chicken stock from the poaching step, whisk in flour mixture until it becomes the consistency of cream soup. Mix in the cream, hot sauce and salt and pepper to taste.

Next assemble the casserole by pouring the filling in a large baking dish. Next, pour the sauce over the filling and stir to combine well. Lay the biscuit rounds on top of the filling (you may want to flatten the biscuits a bit to fill more surface area) and brush the tops with egg white if desired. Place the pot pie in a 375° F preheated oven and cook for 30 min until bubbly. Serve & Enjoy!

** FYI: The dish in the photos is from night 2 (leftovers are the best) and is smaller than the original one I cooked the pot pie in...which was 13in x 9in.

Bits of my weekend...

Pumpkins, pumpkins, pumpkins--picking, scooping, cleaning, carving, roasting. This was my whole Sunday. I shot a roll of b+w film as well at the wedding and at a brunch outing but it'll be a few days until I get it back. I was actually very impressed with the end result of our pumpkins (mine is the owl)...we all got pretty into the whole carving thing, it was kinda funny. Afterwards, we roasted pumpkin seeds and the whole apartment smelled like fall. It was total bliss.

Have a happy weekend!

Isn't this the best picture? How much fun would it be to fill your car with apples? What are your weekend plans? I really want to do some fall related activities this weekend, go apple picking or to a pumpkin patch. I have a wedding to go to tomorrow night, one of Rob's high school friends. The weather here has literally been perfect lately. I have to admit, I'm not quite ready for those cold winter days-- just stay like this for a few more weeks, please? Enjoy yourselves!

check it out...

VINTAGE finds: for a modern world.

KITCHEN gadgets: and you thought nothing could replace your KitchenAid mixer...

COAT lust: patterned!

BIKE bling: love this crocheted wheel!

ETSY find: hilarious.

MODERN art: Growing vases installation!

SWEET treat: pops.

PATTERNED leg-ware: lovely tights...

LESSON in apples: heirloom varieties. (P.S. DIY-apple chips)

YEAR caps: another wonderful calendar.

JOINT tattoo: part of a whole.

EMBROIDERED x-rays: What?!

CAT lady: artwork.

BLACK cab: Feist.

(photo via my guide to happiness)

New specs.

I've been needing a pair of glasses for a long, long time. I'm shamefully totally reliant on my contacts or have been until now. It started to become a bad habit. I'd wait until the very last second to take them out before bed...no mirror, just feeling around. I'm not squeamish about touching my eyes but it can't be healthy to just be poking around in there, right? Well, while checking out some of my daily blog reads, I noticed ads for BonLook and Spex Club. Both sites offer prescription glasses for really reasonable prices, which is fantastic for a poor soul like me! After trying a few on, I ended up choosing the Ricky style from Spex Club in the tortoise shade. I got them in the mail a few days ago and I'm really happy with them. Hooray for new glasses, better late than never!

Deep thought thursday...

(via)

Mom came to town...

Sorry for the lack of posts these past few days! My mama was in town until yesterday morning and I don't even think my hands touched the keyboard once over the weekend. We had a blast shopping around the antique stores on Saturday. The weather was just perfect. She's been to Denver several times before but this felt more intimate because it was just us girls. We went horseback riding in the Garden of the Gods on Sunday which was gorgeous! My horse was not on her best behavior though, she kept going in reverse or randomly stopping. I tried my best to capture the view but it was kind of difficult taking photos on the move! Thanks mom for a fun visit! You're the greatest!

Deep thought thursday...

(via)

Life scenes.

Thought I'd share some photos since I haven't really been posting on my weekends lately. These are from several occasions...driving home from work, walking around the park, a fundraiser for a friend, flying kites (if you look closely at the 8th photo you can see a tiny tie-dyed kite in the sky). A pretty random assortment but I like them, hope you do too! Lots of leaves and pretty sky.

three cheers for breakfast...

I am not often a breakfast skipper, it is calculated into my morning routine. I usually lean towards the savory side (I could put an over-easy egg on top of anything!) but on occasion the sweet side calls. Here are a few morning fixin's to wet your Tuesday appetite! Good morning!

+ My breakfast Pinterest.

+ Love these blogs on breakfast.

+ Tumblr love.

(all photos and consumption via me!)