Friday & Fabulous: Operation Get the Shop Open.

I thought today I would just dedicate a post to a shop update and what's coming for bake boutique. For those of you who don't know, I took the shop space on the square a few months back, long before I had planned to. We were mid PCS living in a hotel but I didn't want to give up the space so with a lot of encouragement and support from my husband I rented it. This is why it feels like the store is never opening but really- about now is when I am ready. Thanks to some new friends, I have met some really great people/connections and finally have some help with my little Sofie! Other than my sitting and waiting for the Department of Health to catch up to speed, we are on our way. Taking an old run down spot on an old square that is trying to be rejuvenated is not something that happens quickly. Yes, I guess it is if you are cleaning it, painting it and throwing in some retail items. No if you want it to be the way you envision, clean, efficient and to code for a food establishment. As it stands I would say the doors will be open in the next 2 weeks and if they aren't, it isn't on me. ;) The Watertown Daily Times will also be doing a piece on me and the shop.... so when you see that you know we are open! It's a very exciting experience and such a baking time of year. I think opening close to October is quite perfect. Before you know it we will be taking Thanksgiving Pie orders and serving up cinnamon/pumpkin treats galore! I have to thank all of our new fans for their interest and support, I promise the wait has been worth it and I really hope you enjoy the small little bake shop that I felt was missing from this little city that is a small town.




Speaking of pie....... I am not 100% ready to let go of summer entirely so last night I made an apple pie with local apples a friend brought me and some strawberries. Holy heaven if I don't throw the rest out all of my marathon training will be out the window.
I am a firm believer that pie should be messy, piled high and visually uneven goodness. Pie that comes out of a factory is not for me.... Did you know my dad works for Entenmann's? Love them, but I want a pie that looks like its been loved, not manicured.

Enjoy the before and afters....out of the oven and in my belly. =)

Friday & Fabulous: 71 Days, 22hrs, 51 mins.

Before my ramblings start and the point gets lost, here is my page for the MS Society- we need your help. I am running 26.2 miles in support of one of my best friends who is fighting this disease.

https://secure3.convio.net/nmss/site/Donation2?idb=1065089416&df_id=28516&FR_ID=13714&28516.donation=form1&PROXY_ID=8023003&PROXY_TYPE=20



71 Days. That is how many days till I run the NYC Marathon. I have been battling this marathon in my mind for close to 3 years now. I started running seriously in 2006 when my husband deployed to Iraq. I had to physically beat myself down to stop my mind from getting the best of me. In 2007 my best friend and I starting running a bunch of races with the New York Road Runners and in 2008 starting the 9+1 program to get guaranteed entry to the 2009 ING. Lucia got in and I got a Sofie. No regrets but 9 months of pregnancy and a c-section recovery can seriously make a runner INSANE. I cried the entire 5 hr broadcast last year and clocked Lucias progress every step of the way. It was amazing and I was SO proud of her. I busted my butt while living in Oklahoma for 9 months, ran some beautiful places got into the ING NYC Half for March 2009.... somehow... probably the Elgin, Oklahoma address got me into the 2010 lottery. This is all great and as a runner I am accomplishing all of my goals but this one is bigger this year.... Regardless of the lottery I was running this marathon with the Run for MS Team in honor of one of my best friends..... I think I wrote my reason for choosing this charity on my fundraising page so I will just quote myself again here:

"Life takes us on many different paths with many different challenges. Last year I came to find out one of my best friends since the age of 11 was diagnosed with MS. It was my first time being faced an illness like this touching someone so very close and so young. For obvious reasons, I decided to take my helpless feeling and my love of running and put them to work in her honor."


Running has helped me conquer so many fears and hopefully it will help conquer other challenges like fighting this horrible disease.

I have to say when I went to run the Half marathon I wrote a great damn blog and I think everyone should read it.

http://bakeboutiqueinc.blogspot.com/2010_03_01_archive.html

Friday & Fabulous: babylady inc.

Let me start off by saying I am MORTIFIED that this feature hasn't arrived earlier. I have no excuse. No moving, no baking, no baby, no army should ever get in the way of featuring one of the most fabulous women I know. Now to sum up this baby lady who was not always with babies.... ;)

I met Kat Alcantara, now Kat West when I was a fresh faced F.I.T. student, barely 19...... I had some great connections and landed a job at the Columbus Avenue Betsey Johnson Boutique. I had known of Kat many years before when I was a kid sneaking into the village to buy rave tickets and records. She's maybe 5'ft tall, but she towered over that Patricia Field's (yes, the real pat field of sex in the city fashion styling fame) counter...cigarette in tow and septum ring of fury. She was this tiny little filipino girl that scared the crap out of me. When the day came that I had the honor of meeting her years later in that hot pink store, I learned she was anything but scary. She was warm and mothering and as we now know, that was her true calling. Kat and I spent a lot of time in that store crying over boys, giggling over boys, catering to ridiculous celebrities... ignoring washed up ones who apparently didn't get the memo and making a decent living doing what we loved at a very very young age. Our careers took us separate ways but we remained the closest of friends and always supporting each other in the hell that is Fashion. After conquering motherhood and missing her other true love... she has launched babylady inc., a beautifully crafted children's line that has been nurtured and creatively cared for the way only Kat could. I am so proud to be her friend and fellow "not just a mom" entrepreneur. We both launched our businesses at the same time with the same fears and here we are. Kick ass kitty, they haven't seen anything yet.




You can view the full BLI collection online here:


http://www.babyladyinc.com/fall_2010.html#1

*that gorgeous model Vivienne is MY goddaughter. mmmm hmmmmm......

Friday & Fabulous: Fusilli for you.

I know it has been a while since I've kept up with Friday & Fabulous but now being settled, I will get back on track. For all of our new fans to Bake Boutique, Friday & Fabulous is my personal blog post each Friday which features things, places, designers or whatever it may be that we think are.... you guessed it, FABULOUS. It is a creative off-shoot from my new life of baking to fill that fast paced creative void I left back in the world of fashion.

To kick off this summers first F&F post I am actually sharing a recipe.... yes I know, it's rare... and if I see it show up in the local deli I will ask you to name it after me. Anyhow, as a runner summer is usually when we amp up training, for me I just started 18 weeks of pure hell training just in time for our heat wave with 1000000% humidity right along with it! Every summer I create a new cold pasta salad to keep stocked in the fridge and I would feel bad not sharing this one because it really came out awesome. I hope you enjoy it pre- run or sitting on your butt in this unbearable heat. ;)

Florio's Fusilli Fuel

1 package of Fusilli (whole wheat or the real thing)
1 green pepper diced
1/2 onion diced
2 tsp garlic powder * or to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp onion salt
balsamic vinegar
olive oil
1 can of cici beans (chick peas for the rest of you)

boil your water and cook your pasta, read the bag if you don't already know.
in a saute pan coat with olive oil and brown your onions and peppers adding about 1 tbs of balsamic and your garlic powder. Let caramelize.

Take your cooked pasta in a bowl and add the turmeric, mix well spreading the seasoning all over and giving the pasta a nice color- don't add much more than suggested or it will overpower your flavors. mix in onion salt and a few dashes of balsamic and coat well. Mix in your cici beans and add your onion pepper mix to pasta- mix well and chill.

enjoy!

xoxo d

Friday & Fabulous: Keeping it local.

My apologies for taking such a long hiatus. Most of you know we have been doing our "PCS" (militarycorrectness) move back to NY from Oklahoma. One month later we are still in hotel, waiting to close on a home and I am trying to get all of my ducks in a row for the store. Having that said I don't have a ton of blog time but I really wanted to feature this artist. Leaving NYC and coming up to Northern New York really has me on a mission to utilize local farmers, artists and vendors in every way that I can. He is a Watertown, NY native and an unbelievable talent. A local here (thanks Deanna) sent me his way as he does really ornate and unique cake toppers. We have since chatted a bit on fb and I am excited share his work with all of my friends back in the big city...;)



The artists name is Eric Zabriskie. I am clearly not a journalist so I didn't even attempt to do some sort of interview with him. Really, I am going to provide all you need to know..... check him out, commission his work or buy his stuff on etsy. fabulously home grown.

Eric Zabriskie


FB:

http://www.facebook.com/ezabriskie?ref=ts#!/ezabriskie?v=info&ref=ts

web:


etsy:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/weddingsandwire

web:
http://ericzabriskie.carbonmade.com/

Friday & Fabulous! You are mine New York.

Fabulous? Probably not for most people, but for me... yes. This weekend, just one week shy of my daughters first birthday I will be running the NYC half marathon. 13.1 miles after flying from Oklahoma to NYC may not sound like fun to most. I get that, but for me it is. This race marks a huge accomplishment (if I finish) after training since September for a February marathon, getting injured, missing that race and by sheer luck getting picked for the NYC half in a lottery. It's way beyond this race for me. When I run I run because I was the kid who couldn't run a foot. I was overweight, had terrible asthma and probably just didn't want to put in the effort. I dreaded running. Little did I know that the thing I loathed as a child would get me through the toughest time in my life and later make me stronger mentally and physically for everything else to come.

I ran away from a war. A war that in my mind I didn't know if my husband was coming home from. I ran away from having to go home to an empty house at night. I ran from my fears and anxiety. The final 5 mile race I ran in Central Park on October 28th 2007 had a private and personal deal attached to it. I promised myself that if I finished that race (it was my longest run to date) Steve was coming home safe and sound and I had to stop running away. So, I finished... 14 months of a horrible horrible deployment for our Army Brigade hit me at the finish line and every emotion I bottled up came pouring out. My husband came home safe and sound. We had a beautiful little girl in 2009 and after a very very long pregnancy of not being able to run, I am back. Any running mom will tell you that it is ALOT of work. Oklahoma terrain is definitely a place to challenge yourself and I think I am understanding why the Army put Basic Training here. Did you know that it was possible for wind to constantly blow in all directions continuously and just never go away? I have embraced the Southwest and as I head home to New York, I have a lot of attachment to my little Wichita Mountain Range in Oklahoma.. America is really beautiful- you just have to go out and experience it for what it is and nothing more.

SO... my entire point of this post is that I have continued to run for many reasons. I run for my mind so that I am a better mom, a better wife and a better member of society. But in my heart I am running in honor of for all service members who are likely dealing with a lot worse than a measly 13.1 mile run. To the Veterans who literally, cannot run. I run for them.

So as I cruise down 7th Avenue where my life started as a student at F.I.T., straight into lower Manhattan where our world changed forever right in front of my eyes...I will remember when I run, I am always moving forward. Even if sometimes it helps me run away.

Fingers Crossed, wish me luck.

Friday & Fabulous! The 3 Grapes makes good wine.

Years ago, probably about a year before I could legally drink wine... my best friends mom was in love with an Australian red wine that consisted of 3 grapes. I am sure if I did some digging or went to school to be a Sommelier, there is a fancy word for a red wine trio... but I call it the 3 grapes. Merlot, Cabernet and Syrah. Anyhow, it's fabulous.. and whatever that Australian wine was that she would purchase by the case in East Hampton back in the day (1998 LOL!), I had yet to have something as good until now. I can't properly describe wine the way it should be... but it is FABULOUS. Like, "Did the 2 of us just polish off 3 bottles of that?" Fabulous.

A very sweet friend I made here in Oklahoma gave me this bottle of wine for my birthday last week and to my surprise... it is my Australian 3 grapes....Made in America. Washington State to be exact.



CMS Red comes from the Hedges family Estate and is just one of an array of wines. I plan to slowly and responsibly sample all that they have to offer- plus a case of the red. ;)

You have to love their history (check their site) and partial roots in Champagne, France. We all know how I feel about France, then they throw in the word Chateau and Hedges basically sealed the deal for me. I am a fan only 1 bottle deep.

Here is Hedges site:

www.hedgesfamilyestate.com

And here is their Facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Hedges-Family-Estate/321517375233?ref=search&sid=558654407.809874202..1&v=wall#!/pages/Hedges-Family-Estate/321517375233


Perfect for hiding in the house during all of this horrible weather we are all having...

Happy Friday Everyone..

XOXO
d

Friday & Fabulous! Ballard Designs

So I am trying to get into the home thing. Being a creative person it is a struggle to just not have a knack for interior design. Needless to say... I am trying. I like most people lay around and day dream about falling into a pile of money and ordering the entire Restoration Hardware catalogue. The other day I got one in the mail I had never heard of but was quickly sucked in. Cheaper, endless themes and moods, fabric by the yard and cleverly named sale section on their website... "estate sale". I have yet to order and I will let you know how the quality and service is... but as of now, I have about 36 our 89 pages folded. Good thing we move next month. =)

www.ballarddesigns.com

Happy National Pie Day!

It was brought to my attention that today January 23rd 2010 is National Pie Day...Google apparently didn't get the memo since I don't see any cute dancing pies spelling out their header today....can you hear me rolling my eyes?

In honor of this little holiday I did make some pies, but went a little non traditional with the style and crust. I chose to do more a sweet tart crust rather than a plain boring pie crust, dry and no flavor right? I had some cherry filling, not the compotey kind, but the no sugar added kind. Dolled that up and broke out my mini tart dishes.

Here's how it went down and what we ended up with. Enjoy!

Belated Friday & Fabulous: The Food of France: A Journey for Food Lovers

So I am a little late.... that's my style. Not to mention I missed last week entirely. Blame it on the Army. ;)

This weeks Friday Fabulous is a beautiful French cookbook I bought for Steve that was probably secretly meant for me. I bought it for the photographs and ended up falling in love with the simplicity of this extremely sophisticated book.

The Food of France: A Journey for Food Lovers....

You can purchase it here:

http://www.amazon.com/Food-France-Journey-Lovers/dp/155285681X

Friday & Fabulous! Fabulously American Made.

*happy new year*

ok let's just cut to the chase. long before I was a new mom I had a very strong opinion on the quality of of baby and childrens items, how poorly they are made and where/how they are made. having traveled to the very areas where these items are manufactured definitely didn't ease my concerns. My other issue was the lack of imagination many kids have today, and it isn't their fault. Between the rapid advance of technology and the demands that modern every day life throws at us parents... extra help from half human toys can be harmlessly welcomed. I'm not a doctor, a therapist or teacher... but common sense is common sense. When children can't make do with a few rocks and some dirt like we did, alarm bells should go off. It has nothing to do with humans advancing and everything to do with excess. Kind of ironic since this blog focuses at times on features of excess!

After shutting my brain off and letting Sofie play with whatever toys she wanted regardless of where they came from- I sacrificed her safety and am now taking charge.

This weeks Friday & Fabulous in 2010 is dedicated to Fabulously American made toy companies and retailers that will only sell American made products. On top of taking the question mark out of what could possible be lingering in those toxic toys, you are supporting American business. International trade is an amazing thing and I am all about big business but now we are close to completely destroying something my grandparents literally bled for and I as an American am embarassed. It's out of control and time we start giving back to our country and ourselves. EVEN if it means missing that blue light special.

Back to basics people... you will proudly end up with a generation of kids way more advanced than any computer will ever make them. And they will actually work hard for the excess we've shoved down their throats.

Here are some companies to check out:
Toys of USA
http://www.toysofusa.com/

Amerikid
http://amerikid.com/

Linwood Inc.
http://www.lindenwoodinc.com/index.html


Maple Landmark Woodcraft
http://www.maplelandmark.com/

Holgate Toys
http://www.holgatetoy.com/Default.aspx

American Plastic Toy Company
http://www.americanplastictoys.com/

Shop For America
http://www.shopforamerica.com/home.php?cat=4&storeid=sfa