Snowflake Ball

About a year and a half ago, I took up a new hobby.....I learned how to ballroom dance. Now, granted, most of my friends have been dancing for many years, but for one reason or another I didn't really care to take it up myself. But then I decided that maybe I should give it a try, and here I am now.

Anyway, a few weeks ago I went to an event called the Snowflake Ball. It was held at a local skating rink (no, we were not on skates!) and was a great chance to dress up. In our particular group we had 3 guys and 6 of us girls so a lot of time was spent just watching and taking pictures but that was still a whole lot of fun. :)

Here's a few pictures from the event:

 Pretty centerpieces!

 All the lovely ladies.

 Our whole group. :)

 The guys. Trying to look tough or something.

 Dancers!

 :) :) :)

 Ignore the man in the background. He wasn't supposed to be in the picture. :)

Fun times.

Better Than Olive Garden Breadsticks & Salad

We had lasagna last night. Very good lasagna, too. My mom also made breadsticks that taste pretty darn close to Olive Garden breadsticks, and I remembered that, since I have mentioned these absolutely amazing breadsticks to a few friends in the past, I was supposed to share the recipe with a few people so I figured I'd post it here for all of you.

Almost-Famous Breadsticks
Dough:
1 package active dry yeast
4-1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon fine salt

Topping:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Pinch of dried oregano

1. Make the dough: Place 1/4 cup warm water in the bowl of a mixer; sprinkle in the yeast and set aside until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the flour, butter, sugar, fine salt and 1-1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons warm water; mix with the paddle attachment until a slightly sticky dough forms, 5 minutes.

2. Kneed the dough by hand on a floured surface until very smooth and soft, 3 minutes. Roll into a 2-foot-long log; cut into 16 1-1/2 inch long pieces. Knead each piece slightly and shape into a 7 inch long breadstick. Arrange 2 inches apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover with a cloth; let rise in a warm spot until almost double, about 45 minutes.

3. Preheat the oven to 400. Make the topping: Brush the breadsticks with 1-1/2 tablespoons of the butter and sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt. Bake until lightly golden, about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the remaining 1/4 teaspoon of salt with the garlic powder and oregano. Brush the warm breadsticks with the remaining 1-1/2 tablespoons melted butter and sprinkle with the flavored salt. Enjoy!

And while we are at it, here's a recipe to make a really good salad to go with those breadsticks:

Almost-Famous Garden Salad
Dressing:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
3 tablespoons mayo
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning

Salad:
1 bag American salad blend
1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
4 small pickled peppers, such as pepperoncini (I would skip this, personally, but if you like hot peppers, go for it)
1 tomato, sliced, quartered or however you prefer it
2 tablespoons sliced black olives
1/2 cup croutons
1 tablespoon grated parmesan cheese

1. Combine all the dressing ingredients and 1 to 2 tablespoons of water in a blender or food processor. Puree until smooth.
2. Place the salad blend in a large bowl and top with the remaining salad ingredients. Drizzle with the dressing and enjoy!

Books Read in January 2012

I decided to keep track of the books I read during the month of January. I started out the month by reading the day away, so got to thinking it might be interesting to see how many books I would end up reading, as well as how many pages. I think you'll see a common trend in the books I read during the month of January:

1. Sunrise (Karen Kingsbury) - 301p.
2. No Distance Too Far (Lauraine Snelling) - 351p.
3. A Heart For Home (Lauraine Snelling) - 356p.
4. Love Finds You in Valentine, Nebraska (Irene Brand) - 303p.
5. Summer (Karen Kingsbury) - 338p.
6. Someday (Karen Kingsbury) - 309p.
7. Sunset (Karen Kingsbury) - 307p.
8. Leaving (Karen Kingsbury) - 316p.

That is a total of 2,578 pages this month! And as you can tell, I enjoy the Christian Fiction genre and the Historical Fiction genre. I enjoy those types of books because when I read them it is a chance to escape into another world for awhile without having to use too many brain cells....a good chance to relax. :)

What is your favorite genre? Favorite book?

Pho, Anyone?

Last night I had the opportunity to try pho (which is actually pronounced "fuh" but it is much more fun to make jokes about the name if you call it "pho").

It's delicious! The broth had an absolutely amazing flavor and then each person added ingredients in the proportions they wanted until the soup was completely customized in their bowl. First we added pasta (spaghetti or angel hair), then broth, then any combination of chicken, red onions, cilantro, mint, basil and bean sprouts, and then your choice of sriracha sauce or hoisin sauce (I opted for hoisin sauce as sriracha is pretty spicy, I'm told). It was pho-ntastic (see? fun to play off the name!).

Here's a picture of my bowl of pho to show you the finished product, since of course I took "pho"tographs of it:

Photoshoot!

We have had some snow lately! In fact, enough to close schools and some businesses. So yesterday, I had a snow day as my work was closed! Some friends asked if I would like to come take pictures with them and of course my camera and I don't turn down a chance for a photoshoot....so here's some pictures from our adventures:

   

  

  

  

2012.1

What better way to ring in 2012 than with good friends????

Beautiful, Beautiful

I was cleaning off my camera memory card and just had to share this picture of the Christmas lights downtown this holiday season. I love how this picture turned out. I'm very impressed with my new little camera and with iPhoto's "enhance" button. :) 

I took this picture a few weeks ago after work when a couple friends and I took time to walk around the boardwalk to admire the lights. It was a lovely holiday season and I am sad to see it be over so quickly, and sad to see all the beautiful Christmas lights that adorn our downtown area come down until next Christmas.