Friday, March 30, 2012

yummy lemon chicken


i made this for the family last night
it was a hit
the kids thought it was a little lemon-y 
but they cleared their plates... which is rare
i did not think it was lemon-y
i thought is was delicious  
so
i thought i'd share
-erin




Roasted Lemon Chicken
Ingredients:
2 tbsp. lemon zest
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 tsp. fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp. fresh rosemary leaves, finely minced
1 tsp. salt1 tsp. black pepper
2-4 lbs. of bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs or drumsticks
2-3 tbsp. melted butter

Directions:
Combine the lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, thyme, rosemary, salt and pepper in a large zipper-lock plastic bag.  Seal the bag and shake well to blend.  Place the chicken pieces in the bag with the marinade, pressing out excess air and sealing once more.  Refrigerate and let marinate for 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 425˚ F.  Remove the chicken pieces from the marinade and transfer to a baking dish, skin-side up, reserving the leftover marinade.  Brush the top of each piece of chicken with melted butter.



Bake for 50-55 minutes, until the skins are crispy and well-browned.  Halfway through baking, pour the remaining marinade over the chicken pieces in the baking dish.  Once fully baked, cover loosely with foil and let rest 10 minutes before serving.  Transfer to a serving platter, garnish with lemon slices and serve.

Monday, March 12, 2012

spring and sprout


we have a bird nesting 
and
the rain is falling

it's march in illinois
spring has sprung

let's pray it's here to stay

the kids were outside all weekend
riding bikes, jumping on the trampoline 
causing chaos in the cul-de-sac
I LOVE IT!

dan and i had date night in the city
we ate dinner at sprout
and
 i elbowed chef dale levitski in the stomach
oooops i'm such a klutz
and tend to make a scene
remember him from top chef?
now he probably has a bruise on his belly
due to my elbow

i'm kinda (really) short and jumped out of my bar stool
right onto chef dale
then i collapsed in a fit of giggles
oh man

for me
the evening was exciting because of the top chef thing
and i love good food
but
dan was excited because he knew dale in college
they were both competitive divers
and competed against one another
dan at miami of ohio and dale at iowa

we're both such nerds

that being said, the food was amazing
i enjoyed every single bite
we ordered the 8 course prix-fixe menu
and OMG
i nearly licked the plates

some of the highlights were

english pea 
(chilled soup)
speck | purple haze | radish |mint

pork
white bean | fennel | bacon | apple

salmon
cauliflower | escarole | faro | meyer lemon

this is AMAZING octopus dish... my absolute favorite. 
i couldn't find the explanation online :(

i realize i'm going on and on
but it was SOOOOO yummy!

if you're ever in chicago, run don't walk to sprout
(link)

hope you had a great weekend!
happy monday - e

Friday, March 9, 2012

a must watch

set aside a 1/2 hour of your day
it's worth it
i promise

then go to 

http://www.invisiblechildren.com/

and learn more :)

friday favorites... diy edition

adorable
simply drill holes into a tree ring
via

make your own anthropology letters
tutorial here
i love this
maybe for a housewarming gift?
via
diy your own mercury glass lamps
tutorial here
ikea billy bookcases into 
"fake" custom built-in bookcases
tutorial here
spray-painted popcorn tin
via
diy acrylic frame 
isn't this amazing?
tutorial here

are you doing any diy projects this weekend?
please share :)

happy friday, e

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

m.i.a.

i've been missing these last few days 
due to a few hiccups in my life

1) my computer died 
i took it to the genius bar 
and the diagnosis was bad. very bad.
the hard drive was dying. a sad, slow death.
 i had to replace my old macbook pro. boo!
but i do love new brand-spankin-new-shiny laptop!

2) my littlest is now wearing "underwears"
so, i've been taking his little buzz lightyear-clad bum 
to the potty every 20 minutes. dislike.
but he's darn cute in his undies!

my hubby picked up with new computer tonight.
they've been setting it up and transferring all my files.

thank goodness i didn't lose anything :)

have a great day! -e

Friday, March 2, 2012

some friday favorites

a lovely little office space

a curtain rod made from plumbing hardware

wax technique for egg decorating

love everything about it, especially for $199

spray paint plastic animal figurings to use as place cards

pan-roasted chicken with lemon-garlic green beans & red potatoes
*** one dish meal!!!!! ***
i made this a few weeks ago and it was so so so yummy
making it again tonight for guests!

happy friday friends!
xoxo-e