Weekend Treat: Ribeye Rub

We are fortunate to have a butcher down at the end of our street. He carries only organic and mostly local Virginian meats. If you're in the area, I really recommend him: Let's Meat on the Avenue on Mt. Vernon in Del Ray.

We picked up two ribeyes from him. My aunt has been in town stranded from the snow but two large cuts of meat are more than enough for three people to share. We just cut each piece of meat into three pieces and served each person two.

Jack fixed this rub for the ribeyes (you could do it on any meat) and they were divine:

2 Tbsp salt (we used course ground sea salt)

2 Tbsp pepper

1 Tbsp Cavenders Greek Seasoning

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp Lawry's seasoned salt

2 Tbsp cumin

Rub the mixture generously onto the steaks and make sure you leave them out until they are at room temperature before you put them on the grill. Cook to preferred temp. In case you're wondering, the sugar doesn't make the meat sweet but it causes a nice caramelized glaze on the outside of the steak.

We had 'em with twice baked potatoes and sauteed mixed beans and carrots. Yum.

Wood you be mine?

can't.get.enough.

Don't care of those beams are old, new, reclaimed, light, dark, high, low. I'll take 'em. Anywhere, anytime.

Photos from The Apollo Group, Southern Accents, My Home Ideas, House Beautiful (2), Reclaimed Timber.com, Martha Stewart (2), Coastal Living, Re-Nest Blog

HGTV Dream Home

Does anybody else dislike the 2010 HGTV Dream Home as much as me? And they keep airing it over and over again.

I am usually able to at the very least appreciate designs outside of my taste but I can't even remotely warm up to this. Normally I sit in front of the tv salivating over their annual Dream Home but not this year.

A house out in the middle of the desert? What kind of a dream is that? No thank you.

Stark, boring, bland entryway. Oh wait, are they trying to mimic the surrounding desert?

Of course you can't have nice landscaping - you are in the MIDDLE of a friggin' desert. Fugs.

I have a hard time finding a fireplace that I don't like but they've managed to find one that I detest. This looks like it should belong in the lobby of a Vegas hotel.

Decor like this all over the house. I know they were trying to display local art but bor-ing, ugly colors.

Maybe it's just me.

Really?

Saw this on Daily Candy today. WHY?



I can think of hundreds of ways to add personality (which is what they are calling them btw - chair personality socks ) to my chairs. How about some paint, fabric, varnish? You know, all those normal ways to spruce up furniture. But this? Um, no.

Love and Cabbage

I got married in October 2009. Thanks to my dad it was a wonderful wedding and so much fun to have so many people I love in one place. But, one thing I didn't love was my flowers. I think the problem is you have to order those suckers blind. I mean, the florist can only tell you what flowers they plan to use but you don't actually know what they'll look like until they show up at the church/reception. It wasn't that mine were ugly; they looked pretty. It was just that my florist used lots of things that I specifically said I didn't want like hypernicum berries. Not a fan of those prickly berries. Lesson learned: be more specific. Not that I plan on doing it again! But for all of those friends of mine getting married next fall, there's some advice for you. And here's an idea for you:

I came across an ad today from a florist that featured ornamental cabbage bouquets. Why didn't I think of that? So cool and so perfect for fall. Would have made awesome centerpieces as well.

Burns Supper

A toast to you, Rabbie Burns! Saturday night we're meeting up with University of Edinburgh alumni and friends for a Burns Night Supper.

Want me to save you some haggis?

Butchering It

I'm in the market. We've passed a couple of gems up because of no where to put it. I'm over it. If I find the perfect one, it is gonna sit in the basement until I FIND room for it.

Photos from Napa Style, Living Etc., Country Living (2), Southern Accents, My Home Ideas, Living etc.

Good night.

Long day at work. Didn't have the energy to fix dinner but luckily my husband took me out to one of our fave spots. Have to be back at work tomorrow at 6:30am. Wish I was here:

Photo from Illuminations: Living by Candlelight. One of my favorite books!

My favorite: Flower

Peonies! So happy and pretty. As soon as I have a permanent yard to plant things in, I'm gonna grow some.

Hello affordable fresh flower displays!

What if this was your bathroom??

No really. Pretend with me a minute. What if this was your bathroom?

Too much? I dunno. I think I might be in heaven...

Bathroom designed by Porfolio Kitchens.

Tuesday Tip: How to Keep a Pot from Boiling Over

This is one of the coolest kitchen tricks I've learned in recent years. I also learned this one from the hubby.

If you are boiling water on the stove, place a wooden spoon across the top of the pot and it will NOT boil over. No kidding. The wood on the spoon soaks up the steam and keeps the water from toppling over. Try it sometime; it works.