Morning darlings… has everyone’s week gotten off to a good start? We had a fun weekend with lots of stops at some of my favorites around town. I’d planned to stay in and cook lots of cozy, healthy meals, but it turned out to be too pretty and sunny outside for that! Friday night was drinks that turned into dinner at Drink.Well (remember when we did our mixology class there?) Saturday was lunch at a great new spot in town, Epicerie, that serves French-Louisiana cuisine and means that I’ve finally found a spot in Austin that sells Blue Bottle beans (hooray!). Then we capped it off by heading to Elizabeth Street Café with Bri & Angela (in town from LA) for pho & banh mi and met up with some of my fave ladies Ana, Chelsea and Kerri. Oh, and who watched Downton last night??! It was a great weekend indeed, and I’m excited for a happy, healthy week ahead with lots on the agenda. Which brings us to today’s board. This month is all about fresh beginnings and clean eating, and while I wouldn’t necessarily plan an entire party around such an ascetic concept, winter kale is the perfect symbol for the type of farm-to-table dinner party I’d love to host this month. Kale has become such a staple on every menu, and I think that a lot of people who may have once shied away from it are becoming converts. It’s all in the way you prepare it – Sarah provides a great tutorial on how to massage kale (seriously) so that it loses its bitterness and becomes much more delicious in its raw state; I like to sauté mine with golden raisins, red pepper flakes and pine nuts. Do y’all have any favorite ways to consume this power food? Please share in the comments… especially since I happen to need some lunch ideas this week!
*images: {row 1} chris craymer via dustjacket attic, via here via kathryn’s pinterest, a well traveled woman {row 2} photo by Jeremy Harwell & styling by ginny branch stelling via 100 layer cake, ulrika ekblom {row 3} a well traveled woman, the art of food, leo patrone for kinfolk {row 4} luminous photography, this homemade life, tim walker photography, jeremy harwell.
