Raleigh, NC

I had a great time on a visit to my hometown of Raleigh this past weekend. I got to see a few Biscuitvilles which made me happy and the weather was so nice I got to have an outdoor Italian lunch. This downtown has gotten so much better since I left. My friend Jayme took me to a cool new bar called Foundation that serves regional beverages where I had a quick Blanton's. Yum. I took this picture on the train back home.

 

Now I need to go brine my wild turkey. Here is a song for Raleigh.

Farmer's Market Creamy Tomato Soup

The weather was so beautiful this weekend when the husband and I walked down to the 14th and U Street Farmer's Market to reserve our Thanksgiving turkey. As always we found some incredibly delicious, fresh and locally grown vegetables. I was surprised that we even found some pretty good looking tomatoes this late in the season. The vendor was giving out free recipes so I picked up one for Creamy Tomato Soup. I made if for dinner Saturday night and it was super delicious. Luckily we had also picked up a fresh baguette to serve with it. Here's the recipe:

CREAMY TOMATO SOUP

6 tbsp unsalted butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp course salt
3 lbs chopped ripe tomatoes
1 cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
1/2 c heavy cream
2 small onions, chopped fine
1/2 c. dry white wine
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook, stirring until onions are transparent, about 3 min. Add wine, tomatoes, salt and pepper.  Cook for about 5 to 10 minutes. Stir in basil and remove from heat.

let cool slightly. Transfer about half of the tomato mixture into the blender. Cover lid with clean dish towel and hold lid securely in place and blend soup. Continue until all of the tomato mix is blended.

Place back in saucepan. Add cream and adjust consistency with water  if necessary. Season with more salt and pepper if desired. Serve with toasted sliced of baguette and fresh grated parmesan cheese.

Enjoy!

Can I have all my board meetings in this room, please?

OK. So it's from a The Elk in the Wood Lodge in London but it could be the best board room ever. From Remodelista.

Ponchos!

I'm seeing ponchos everywhere these days and I'm definitely feeling it. Who cares if they're mildly difficult to wear? They look so cool. It's better than a Snuggie. Southwestern print is the way to go.

Southwest Poncho at F21

Drape Poncho at F21

Chunky Yarn Poncho at F21

Dolce Vida Dora Poncho at Shopbop

Bona Drag's Flair

I thought it would be fitting for this upcoming pagan holiday to say how much I love the spooky jewelry offerings at Bona Drag. If you get your hands on one of these amazing pieces feel free to call me jealous. Their selection of clothes is great, too. Happy tricking and treating!

Talon Cuff, Bona Drag

Hummingbird Scull

Batt Cuff

Yard style

How bad do I wish this was my backyard? Almost as bad as I wish I had a backyard.

I love everything about this: the contrast of straight and curved lies, the cement poured fire pit, the stone wall. Just beautiful.

Warm and Cozy Coat

The past couple days have been cold and rainy in DC. I love Fall clothes but no so much being cold. Having completely worn out my old coat I'm in the market for a new one. Buying a new coat is no small purchase considering you wear it everyday in Winter and it's got to be of pretty good quality to keep you warm. I have already professed my love for the Anthropologie Deep Woods Toggle coat which is helping me figure out what I want. Let's take a look at the options:

Deep Woods Toggle Coat

Then I spotted this similar one at Topshop for much cheaper!

Furry Hood Duffle Coat

This one looks warm and cute.

I love the vintage style of this one! So cute.

You can't really go wrong with this puffer from j crew:

And this one from Patagonia would definitely keep me toasty. (By the way, I lOVE the design of their site.)

I will report back on my final purchase.