A couple of years ago, my friend Michelle turned me onto Simple Things in West Hollywood and it’s been really hard to stay away ever since. They have these delicious little bite-size pies and the location is really convenient for a mid-day lunch when I am out prepping, but my real addiction is with their pretzel roll. They serve a pulled chicken sandwich with chipotle barbecue sauce on the softest, most perfectly salty pretzel. On Monday, we shot a picnic … +more
My favorite thing about tarts, quiche, and other egg based dishes (omelettes, too!) is that they lend themselves to a little bit of experimentation and creativity. You can simply open up your refrigerator door and pull out all of the leftover veggies, herbs, and cheeses from the week’s previous meals, and then come up with your own unique combination! I have been wanting to expand my repertoire of quick and delicious appetizers for mid-week shindigs that arise on the fly, … +more
Last Friday, I mentioned that I was hosting a girl’s brunch at my place to celebrate some exciting new developments over here at The Effortless Chic. For the last 18 months, I have been balancing the act of creating fresh, fun content for this site along with all of my styling projects. I knew I wasn’t taking full advantage of the opportunities in either because, let’s face it, there are still only 24 hours in a day! In an effort … +more
Happy Monday, friends! How were your weekends? I’ve been wanting to bring back our Cocktail Hour ever series since it took a hiatus a few months ago. When the weather started to cool off in the fall and we were no longer spending so much time outdoors enjoying drinks with friends, I sort of lost my cocktail creating mojo. (Gasp!) Then Valentine’s Day began to approach. There’s nothing like a fun, girly holiday to make you want to mix up … +more
I have a major sweet tooth. If I didn’t have more self control I could easily forego major meals and head straight to dessert. Aaron’s a pretty smart guys so it didn’t take him long to discover that the way to my heart was through cookies, cakes, and other delectable confectioneries! Have any free time on your hands this weekend? Nothing says you I love you like a delicious made-from-scratch dessert that you made all yourself! Here are five that … +more
You know the saying, bad things come in groups of threes? Well, apparently it applies to cooking. It all began when I stumbled upon this beautiful image and recipe on Pinterest. The beautiful colors and detail made me completely forget that I don’t even really like gnocchi. I went to the market, bought the ingredients, dirtied just about every dish and pan in my kitchen only to end up with a sticky, lumpy mess. It was not pretty. (Aaron swears … +more
Oh the things that happen in January! Not only have I been overwhelmed by the urge to de-clutter and organize everything in our house, it seems I just can’t pass up a good recipe these days. On Friday afternoon, I wrapped up work as quickly as possible in order to bake these little doughy gems. While one baking sheet was in the oven and I was forming the pretzels for the second, I received a call about the job I … +more
