TRAVEL - KANSAS CITY, MO

Kansas City, MO wasn't a place I was dying to visit, but we were invited to a wedding out there and it was awesome!  All we did for 3 days was eat BBQ.  Kansas City is known for their delicious BBQ and every time we met new people we talked about our favorite BBQ spot.  While there we tried three main BBQ joints, they are were all really really good, but here is my ranking of them.

1. Oklahoma Joe's 

2. Arthur Bryant's

3. Gates 

TRAVEL - MONTREAL

Over Labor Day weekend my boyfriend and I drove up to Montreal for about about a day and a half, I wish we were there longer!  It was a very low budget trip, so we spent hours exploring and doodling/watercoloring in parks.  We also ate POUTINE which was amazing!!!  I haven't been eating as many fries or fried foods lately (idk if you have noticed, no fry reviews in a long time), but I had to have poutine, and now I want it all the time.

(I was also pretty terrible at taking pictures on this trip.  Sometimes when I'm having a really great time I forgot to stop and take pictures to remember the awesome moments.)

WISH LIST - BACK TO SCHOOL

This Wednesday is my first day of school for my second year of grad school!  Unless I really mess something up this year, this will be my last first day of school ever!  Here are some things that would really make this year amazing.

Herschel Backpack

BKR Water Bottle

Madewell Dress (Perfect for the first day)

Poppin Pens

Baggu Laptop Case

Rifle Paper Co. Notebooks

ART - STORM KING ART CENTER

Storm King Art Center is a huge, amazing, outdoors sculpture park about an hour upstate from NYC.  I have been thinking about making the trip up there since I first heard about it more than a few years ago at an NYU Art History class.  Finally, my boyfriend and I decided to make the drive, and it was totally worth it!  Experiencing art at Storm King is such a different experience than viewing paintings 5 feet apart from each other with 100 other museum goers.  It's peaceful, quiet, and extremely enjoyable!  I would recommend bringing a picnic and some snacks, we brought a bunch of spam musubis (don't judge, I grew up in Hawaii) and fruit snacks!

Here's a few snaps from our trip.

FOOD - BUTTER MOCHI

Have you ever had mochi before? Pinkberry and froyo places serve bite sized pieces, this one is better and buttery!  I have found that people either love or hate the texture, its kind of gooey and chewy.

What you will need: 
2 cups mochiko (you can find this at any Asian market)
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
1 block melted butter
1 cup coconut milk
1 cup whole milk
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp vanilla

How to make Butter Mochi:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Mix the wet ingredients together.  Add in the dry ingredients.  Pour mixture into a greased 9 x 13 pan.  Bake for an hour or until a golden brown.

Enjoy!

FOOD - GOODIE GOODIE (HAWAIIAN STRAWBERRY SHERBET)

Goodie goodies is kind of a strange name for a food, right?  I realized this the first time I told my boyfriend about it, and he gave me that look like, 'oh you are talking about another weird Hawaiian thing'.  Regardless of the name, it is super delicious and really easy to make!

Goodie Goodie is a Hawaiian sherbet like dessert.  It doesn't have cream like an ice cream, and its not made of real fruit like sorbets.  I have been feeling a little homesick lately because I am not going home at all this summer, so to compensate I have been making a lot of foods that remind me of home.   So, if you like Hawaiian snacks, stay tuned!

What you will need:
- 3 cups strawberry soda (or 2 cans if you can find them)
- 1 can of seltzer (or club soda) or 7 Up (use seltzer if you like a plain strawberry, 7 Up if you want a little bit of lemon)
- 1 can of sweetened condensed milk (14 oz)

How to make Goodie Goodie:
- Whisk together ingredients.
- Chill in the refrigerator for a few hours (or overnight).
- Pour into an ice cream maker and prepare according to your ice cream makers instructions. *
- Transfer to a freezer safe container and freeze for at least 2 hours.
* If you don't have an ice cream maker, skip chilling in the refrigerator and freeze in a freezer safe container, mixing every hour until frozen.

Enjoy!

DIY - STAMPED CAT TOTE

Just in case you didn't already know... I love cats!  I have been wanting to add some cat inspired pieces to my wardrobe but have had some trouble finding what I wanted, so I made my own tote.  This one is pretty easy if you have a little bit of patience.

What you will need:

- Canvas Tote (Mine is from Miju, the shape is awesome and it has a zipper and inner pocket)

- Black acrylic paint

- Sponge 

- Scissors

- Sharpie  

- Paintbrush 

- Water

- Something to line your bag with while painting (I used craft paper)

How to make the tote:

Place craft paper, or something in the bag to block paint from seeping through the other side.  (I forgot to do this at first, so my bag has minor imperfections)

Draw a cat on the sponge and cut out.  Paint the sponge with watered down acrylic paint.

Stamp cats on the tote bag in a pattern of your choosing.  Let dry.  Repeat on other side.

Enjoy your stamped cat tote!

FOOD - STRAWBERRY RHUBARB JAM

One thing I absolutely love about summer is the influx of fresh fruits and veggies! In Hawaii, most things are in season year round, so I wasn't used to having unsweet fruit in the winter.  It has made me really appreciate good fruit come summer time!

Last summer was the first time I had a strawberry rhubarb pie, and I have been totally obsessed since.  Strawberries are my favorite fruit and the addition of rhubarb adds a nice tart flavor.  This week the farmers market at union square had so many fresh things to choose from!  I came home with a bunch of strawberries and rhubarb for jam.  This is the best jam I have ever had, and I do not like most jams.  Its nice and tangy, not too sweet!

What you will need:
- 1 lb fresh strawberries
- 1 lb rhubarb
- 1 1/2 cups white sugar
- 1 lemon, juiced and zested
- 1 3 oz package of liquid pectin

How to make Strawberry Rhubarb Jam:

Clean the strawberries and rhubarb.  Quarter the strawberries and cut the rhubarb into 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces.  Combine the strawberries and rhubarb in a large bowl and add the sugar.  Let sit for about an hour to get the juices flowing.

Prepare water bath and canning jars.

Add strawberries, rhubarb, sugar, pectin, lemon juice, and lemon zest to a pot or pan (I used my new Le Creuset dutch over!)  Cook until thick, about 220 degrees.  You can also test the jam, by putting a little bit onto a cold plate (leave one in the freezer while preparing everything else), if it gels on the plate, its ready.

Jar the jam and process for 10 minutes.  Let cool overnight on top of a folded kitchen towel.

Enjoy!

FOOD - PEANUT BUTTER SPECULOOS COOKIES

I just tried the Speculoos Cookie Butter from Trader Joe's that everyone is obsessed with.  It's really delicious, it get why it is always sold out.  Even though this cookie butter is made out of a lot of cookie, I turned it back into a cookie, with peanut butter!

What you will need:

- 1/2 cup Peanut Butter
- 1/2 cup Speculoos Cookie Butter
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1 tbs brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 cup flour
- 3/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt

How to make Peanut Butter Speculoos Cookies:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Mix the peanut butter, speculoos, white and brown sugar together.  Add it the egg and vanilla.  Mix in the dry ingredients.  Bake for 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

DIY - FLOWER CROWNS

This past weekend, I threw a late birthday bbq in prospect park.  It was so much fun! Besides eating a ton of food (I made caramel cuts and rice crispie treats, and we grilled a ton of burgers and hotdogs) we made really cute flower crowns!  These flower crowns remind me of the haku leis we make Hawaii!

It was my party, so I didn't spend any time taking how to photos, but this DIY is really simple.  All you need is wire (I got some wrapped in green raffia), floral stem tape, scissors, and flowers.  Measure you head with wire, cut leaving a few extra inches, and twist the ends to connect the circle.  Snip the flowers with about an inch of stem.  Wrap the flower stem to the wire with the floral stem tape, lay the next flower over the wrapped stem part and wrap with floral stem tape, repeat!

Super simple and super cute!  I loved how everyone's crown was unique even though we were all using the same two types of flowers!

TRAVEL - CALIFORNIA

I just spent 9 glorious days in California (they were all amazing even though I got really sick and lost my voice for part of the trip)!  First my boyfriend and I flew out to LA to check it out because he had never been and I haven't been since I was really young, so I didn't remember anything about it, then we headed to San Francisco to meet up with my family (they came from Hawaii).

I forgot to take a lot of pictures because the trip was really that good, but here are some pictures I managed to take.

LA:

In and Out Burger

LACMA

Hollywood 

Venice Beach 

Some other things we did in LA: Saw a really funny show at UCB, brunched at Cliff's Edge, and hung out at the farmers market.

SF:

My Dad and brother being silly in J Town

Ferry Building

Japanese Garden at Golden Gate Park

California Academy of Sciences

Botanical Gardens at Golden Gate Park

Other fun stuff we did in SF: Ate a lot of food (I'm still full from this trip), got beef jerky at Jackson Market, went to the farmers market at the Ferry Building, went on a bike ride through the park, had brunch in Sausalito and spent a day in Berkley.

Even though I just got back to NY I really want to go back to California (especially since NY summer has really begun, I HATE NY summer) or really anywhere that doesn't have smelly heavy heat.

FOOD - PICKLE MAKING (ATTEMPT 1)

This weekend I made dill pickles for the first time from scratch and it was super easy!  I think I will have to make a batch every week to keep up with how fast my boyfriend eats them.  Because this was my first time, I decided to make half of them refrigerator pickles had I put half through a water bath so I could keep them around longer.  These pickles were really vinegary and not salty enough for my taste but they are still pretty good!  I will definitely be making subtle changes the next time I make pickles and report back!

What you will need:
- 6-8 kirby or pickling cucumbers (they are shorter than regular cucumbers)
- 2 cups apple cider vinegar (next time I am going to use half apple cider, half white vinegar)
- 2 cups water
- 3 tsp pickling salt (pickling salt is different than normal salt because it does not have any additives, next time I will bump this up)
- 8 garlic cloves
- 2 large sprigs of dill (next time I will use dill seed for a richer flavor)
- 1 tsp mustard seed
- 2 tsp whole black peppercorns
- 4 pint jars or 3 quart jars

How to make Dill Pickles:
- If you are going to use a water bath, prepare the water bath.
- Bring the water, vinegar and salt to a boil.
- Distribute the garlic, dill, mustard seed, and peppercorn evenly into the jars
- Cut the ends off the cucumbers then slice into quarters
- Pack the cucumbers tightly into the jars
- Cover the cucumbers with the water, vinegar, salt brine
- Cover jars and either place in the water bath for 10 mins or place in the fridge

Enjoy!

FASHION - DENIM SHIRTS

I have been on a little denim shirt bender lately (I think I am up to 6 denim/chambray shirts).  I love wearing denim shirts with everything! They always match and are always comfortable.  Denim shirts are also great for all seasons, I wear them alone or with a sweater in the winter and rolled up in the summer.  I am not really one to show a lot of skin in the summer so light denim shirts are my go to.

Here are my most recent denim shirt purchases:

Madewell (dark) 

 Madewell (two-tone) 

J. Crew (Sold Out)

I would also recommend any denim/chambray shirt from J. Crew or Madewell.  Can you tell they are my favorite?

NO MORE GOOGLE READER

I am so sad there will be no more google reader come summer.  Follow me on bloglovin!

FOOD - CARAMEL CUTS WITH CHOCOLATE CHIPS

I have been pretty MIA lately.  I added more hours to my work schedule and still have a full time school schedule which means I have been really tired and have no free time.  There are about two more months of the semester left, so I will probably be really crazy busy till then, but I did find time to make these super easy caramel cuts (also known as blondies) that we used to get as a special treat at school.  Winter always makes me a little nostalgic about my upbringing in Hawaii and that leads to me craving food from Hawaii.  If you went to Punahou School like I did, or really enjoy super easy delicious baked goods then you will love this recipe.

What you will need:
- 1 stick butter (very soft/ almost melted)
- 2 cups dark brown sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups flour
- 2 1/2 tsps vanilla extract
- 2 tsps baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- Handful of chocolate chips (optional)

How to make Caramel Cuts:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- Mix the butter and sugar (I use a KitchenAid stand mixer, but mixing this recipe by hand is fine)
- Add in the eggs and vanilla, mix
- Add dry ingredients, mix
- Line an edged cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray with non-stick spray (or butter) so the Caramel Cuts don't stick
- Flatten the dough into the cookie sheet
- Sprinkle chocolate chips onto the dough and press in a little (its easier to spread the dough into the cookie sheet without the chocolate chips in it)
- Bake for 20 minutes

Enjoy!

FOOD - MACADAMIA NUT BRITTLE

When I was growing up in Hawaii, I didn't appreciate a lot of the local foods until I moved away and realized I couldn't get them anytime I wanted.  One of these things is macadamia nuts.  They are just so delicious (but really fatty)!  My wonderful mother recently sent me a care package filled with Hawaiian and Asian goodies I can't get in NY and a lot of macadamia nuts were apart of that.  I have never had macadamia nut brittle before making it, but I assumed it would be delicious and I was right!

What you will need:

- 1 can of Mauna Loa dry roasted macadamia nuts (4.5 oz)
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup light corm syrup
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1 tbsp softened butter
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1baking soda
- candy thermometer

How to make macadamia nut brittle:

Measure out the butter, vanilla, and baking soda.  Set aside.

Chop macadamia nuts in half or quarters if they are really big.

In a 2 quart saucepan combine sugar, corn syrup, water and salt.  Stir till the sugar is evenly distributed, then do not stir while the sugar combination is cooking.  Insert candy thermometer.  Cook the sugar combination till it reaches 275 degrees then add the macadamia nuts.  Keep cooking the sugar combination till 300 degrees.  Take off the heat and very quickly mix in the butter, vanilla, and baking soda.  Be careful, it will foam up a bit.

Pour mixture onto a a cookie sheet with a silpat mat or greased parchment paper.  (A silpat mat will make it a lot easier to break apart later.)

Let cool then break up brittle into desired sized pieces.

Enjoy!