Hi all! Today my buddy Andrea over at For The Love Of is showing her readers how I helped her create an orchid and fern centerpiece for her dining room table. Please stop over and say hi and learn how to make this easy and quick arrangement for your home!
It’s no secret that I LOVE summer! My little girl and I share a July birthday and combined with all the beach days, bicycle rides, bbqs, ice cream cones and outdoor concerts…well it pretty much encompasses all the things I love in life.
As far as our dinners around here, I have definitely been switching things up and making my menus a bit more light and grill friendly. This yummy recipe was an older one I stumbled across in my recipe folder filled with lots of handwritten recipes and torn out pages from magazines. You will NOT be disappointed! The hubby and I SCARFED up our food, it was that good.
To make it a little kid friendly I just sliced up the steak, made her a simple salad of lettuce, carrots and garbanzo beans on the side and added a slice of the DELICIOUS grilled ciabatta . She was happy!
So get all the ingredients before this weekend and make sure you don’t forget a nice bottle of wine to go with! This is perfect for a relaxing dinner on the patio.
Makes 4-6 Servings
40 minutes
Ingredients:
1 pound hanger, skirt, or flank steak
1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more
Freshly ground black pepper
1 medium tomato (about 6 ounces) halved
1 tablespoon minced shallot
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/4 cup plus 5 teaspoons of olive oil, divided
4 spring onions or 6 scallions, bulbs halved, dark-green parts discarded
5 1/2- inch thick slices ciabatta
8 cups mixed summer lettuces (such as mizuna, baby mustard greens, and tatsoi) *I just used baby herb greens and it was great!*
3/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn into 1/2 inch strips
Preparation:
Season steaks with 1 teaspoon salt and pepper; set aside. Grate cut sides of tomato on coarse holes of a box grater into a medium bowl down to the skin; discard skin. Add shallot and vinegar; whisk in 1/4 cup oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside. Vinaigrette can be made 1 day ahead.
Heat a gas grill to high. Toss spring onions in a medium bowl with 1 teaspoon oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill onions until just tender, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into 2″ pieces.
Grill steak until seared and cooked to desired doneness, 3-5 minutes per side for medium rare, depending on steak’s thickness. Transfer to a cutting board. Let rest, about 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, make croutons. Brush both sides of bread slices with remaining 4 teaspoons (or more) oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill bread until dark golden brown and nicely charred in spots, about 2 minutes per side. Set toast aside until cool enough to handle, then break into roughly 1″ pieces.
Thinly slice steak against the grain. Toss lettuces, basil, spring onions, croutons, and some of the vinaigrette in a large bowl. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add steak and toss gently to coat. Serve with remaining vinaigrette along side.
Enjoy!!
Mother’s Day is right around the corner. Do you know what you’re doing for your momma? We basically all want the same…. a little relaxation and appreciation for all our hard work and pain! *wink wink* So let her relax and spoil her right. Give her a day that’s all about treating her nice.
1. I NEED this skirt! Ok need may be a bit much, but want? Oh yes…definitely. Sheridan French was brought to my attention by a friend of mine. Thanks Trista! And I instantly fell in love with her gorgeous tunics, bright colors, and THIS SKIRT!!!! It would be perfect for summer soirees, date nights and my birthday in July. It’s absolutely beautiful and it needs to be mine.
2. This soap caught my eye at West Elm a few weeks ago. My husband comes from Swedish ancestry, so I tend to pick things up that even hint at being swede. Haha! The smell is divine and it looks so preppy cute on the countertop.
3. Our dogs are mostly indoors, so consequently they require big cushy beds to lounge on. They currently have beds from Martha Stewarts’ line at Petsmart and I haven’t been too happy with them. And…they are definitely NOT as cute as this Dash and Albert dog bed! I’m a huge fan of the line and have been very happy with the quality of their products. These will be seen in my home soon I think.
4. We ventured out to the desert for the big Coachella event a few weeks ago. Having previously attended the concert (this was my eighth year), I knew that makeup tends to melt right off your face. I decided to give this beauty balm a try after hearing so much about them. Light weight coverage, primer, moisturizer, anti aging treatment, and sunscreen all in one….it sounds too good to be true. However, I can tell you first hand THIS IS THE BEST STUFF!!! I’m hooked. It gives my blotchy, acne prone, sensitive skin a nice amount of coverage and hides my flaws, and I’ve also noticed an overall improvement to the texture. You must try this!
5. I instantly fell in love with this tunic when I laid eyes upon it at Anthro. It’s has a slight vintage feel and is just the look I tend to lean towards for summer. It will be a great piece to dress up with bright skinny jeans and wedges or down with cutoffs and sandals.
6. It’s no secret that I love a good monogram. This pillow would look adorable in our British inspired living room.
Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!
The other day I joined my good friend Jenn and her adorable new baby Laird for a little Ikea shopping trip. I like Ikea (mainly for the meatballs), to stock up on Swedish food (my husband is from Swedish roots) and usually to grab cheap supplies for parties. This time I was searching for items to decorate my husbands’ new office! That will be another post for sure.
I’m not always the biggest cheerleader of Ikea to be honest. I think cheap finds, but I also want things to last and I don’t always find that combo there. But this time I was pleasantly surprised to find quite a few items that looked really good and of quality!
This Flatweave Rug caught my eye just as we were checking out. It was just laying across some boxes in the wrong area. It looks much more expensive than it really is. But like most flatweave rugs, you get a great look for a great price!
It’s no big surprise that I love anything woven, rattan, cane or the like. It gives a room such a warm cozy feeling. Another thing I love…a shot of black in a room. This Rattan Chair fits both those bills! I think a bright floral pillow and a light weight throw would look great on this chair.
This Buffalo Check Bedding isn’t new, but everytime I see it at Ikea I fall in love with it all over again. It’s just perfect for a little girls room. It also comes in tan and it would be great paired with dark navy accents and rustic furniture for a boys room.
I’m sort of still kicking myself that I didn’t grab these Pastel Check Towels. They’re kitchen towels, but they would be SO cute as napkins for our Easter table! They’re borderline neon they are that bright. You could also unfold them and hang them off the table as placemats. I think I need to go back and pick these up!
Another fabulous piece for your table! This Stripe Table Runner would just be the perfect first layer on the table. I would line up colorful tulips in vases down the center of this. Pretty!
I about fell over when I saw this Graphic Pillow. It is THAT good! TEN DOLLARS PEOPLE!!!! And it looks so much more expensive than that. I wanted this, but it really wouldn’t go in my house. But someone needs this. Please go buy it.
Another shocker was this Poster Set of 3. It looked like something wonderful I would find on Etsy. These would be adorable in a little kids room. I may go back and get the set just for the London poster….being the big ol’ Anglophile that I am. It would look cute in my office.
These lanterns are a staple at Ikea, but I’ve never seen these Pastel/Neon Lanterns before. My friend Jenn and I both went nuts for them. She’s already planning on buying a bunch for her annual Fiesta Del Sol party, that she and her family throw every summer. Umm, and how cute would they look along with the pastel check towels as napkins? Cute!
This Oversized Floor Lamp is going to find a new home in my husbands’ office. $69! And it’s large and such a great look for a room. A must.
I am off to spruce up our patio area for some major lounging this weekend! It’s set to be in the 80s all weekend…HALLELUJAH!!! I see surfing, sun bathing, bbq’ing and doing nothing in our future.
Hope you have a good one too!
