Bella Incanto.: May 2011

Saturday, May 28, 2011

The Hangout Festival.

So I realize it has been, well, quite some time since I last posted. But I have been so unbelievably busy the past few weeks, making it extremely difficult. This past weekend I went to the Hangout Festival. It was amazing and I cannot wait to go back next year. Also since summer began, I took up hooping as a new hobby, it is so much fun and great exercise. There will be videos to come shortly! In the meantime, this picture makes me long for the beach each time I look at it.

View from our balcony.

Some of the crowd at Umphrey's McGee.

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Dinner.

Last night, my friend and I decided to eat in, instead of spending too much at a restaurant. We made Pesto Pea Salad by the Barefoot Contessa, and Paula Deen's Zesty Roasted Garlic Bread as well as Chicken Boudine. Not only were the recipes easy to follow, but they yielded an absolutely delicious meal. As if our dinner wasn't heavy and filling enough, we made a sinful dessert as well. We spread Nutella on one side of two slices of Italian bread. Then we topped it with marshmallows and bananas, grilled it on a panini grill, and garnished it with strawberries and whipped cream. Amazing.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Lazy Lake Days.

The past few days have been full of sun, rest, and relaxation. When the opportunity arises, I never pass up a trip to the lake or the beach. As I've said earlier, nothing beats relaxing by the water and having a drink with friends. The weather has been surprisingly cool lately, but fortunately it warmed up just in time and the water and weather could not have been more perfect. Though it has been nearly two weeks since my summer officially began, my visit to the lake really served as a great start to the beginning of a beautiful summer.

Sunday, May 8, 2011

Mother's Day.

Late last night I made two desserts for my family's Mother's Day brunch today. By my parents request I made a gooey Mississippi Mud cake, as well as a cream cheese pound cake I had been wanting to make for weeks. The Mississippi Mud was definitely the least picturesque of the two, but still delicious. I served this delectable pound cake with freshly whipped cream, strawberries, blueberries, and a scoop of Spumoni ice cream on the side.

The batter was so smooth and so thick, the only things keeping me from eating it all were the pack of cream cheese, 3 sticks of butter, and 6 eggs mixed in.

So its not perfect on the outside, but its the inside that counts right? And I think it just adds character.

Unfortunately, I don't have a picture of the cake as it was served, but it looked beautiful and tasted delicious. Happy Mother's Day!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

at home.

I have a weird obsession with vases and jars. Yesterday, and today, while shopping at one of my favorite stores, at home, I picked up three beautiful vases as well as a few Mother's Day gifts. All that's missing are a few crisp white hydrangeas.

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Wednesday.

So it has been a week since the tornadoes hit Tuscaloosa, and almost a week since I was forced to return home. Fortunately some good, in the form of pictures, has come out of this. Now that have a generous kitchen and my full closet to work with, I can finally take real pictures and cook some amazing goodies to share with each of you. Stay tuned. :)

In other news, I am shamefully admitting that other than Easter sunday, this previous sunday was my first time to attend church in an embarrassing amount of time. However, it was a great opportunity to break out of my gross college routine of a too baggy sorority shirt and nike shorts. I was able to piece together an outfit that made me feel great and helped me hide any amount of guilt I was feeling inside.

I wore a 3/4 navy ruffle sleeve button front top and a brown belt from Anthropologie to help pull the nautical look together. The skirt is amazing and a perfect summer staple.

*Note- The David Yurman bracelet with the buckle is slightly different, mine is diamonds instead of gold. However, I love David Yurman's way of mixing metals beautifully.