Valentine's Decor - Things I'm Loving

We'll folks, I've been hit by Cupid's arrow. I am officially ready for Valentine's Day and another reason to decorate my house. I'm getting out my Valentine's Day decorations this week and have been looking around some other blogs and websites for new inspiration. I'm still loving the decor I used from last year (which I will share once everything is complete), but I think it's fun to add in a new decor or DIY projects each year. 

Here are some things I'm loving...

Front Door

Via

Via

Mantle

Via

You can always find some great ideas on Pinterest. And Lil' Luna also has some great Valentine's ideas!

For recipes I always turn to Bakerella, Picky-Palate and Annies-Eats. 

Where do y'all go for Valentine's ideas? I'm always looking for new blogs to read and find ideas from, so please feel free to share!

Hope everyone is having a great week!

The Doyles

Braised White Beans with Rosemary

Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a great weekend!

Has anyone had the white beans at Zoe's Kitchen? They are delish! I really wanted some this weekend, but with the icy conditions we had here in NC, it was easier to make them at home. They take a couple hours to cook, but man is it worth it! Such a yummy warm comfy dish! It went great with our turkey shish kabobs and greek salad last night for dinner. 

Braised White Bean with Rosemary

Ingredients:

4 cans great northern beans, drained but not rinsed

1 onion

4 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup olive oil plus 2 tbsp

1 cup vegetable stock

2 springs rosemary

1/2 tsp salt, plus salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Dice onion and saute until translucent in 2 tbsp olive oil. Add salt and garlic and cook until fragrant (~1 minute). Add beans, 1 cup vegetable stock, 1/4 cup olive oil and rosemary and  cook on high until bubbling. Reduce to a simmer and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Stir/mash beans and add salt and pepper to taste. Add pot to a 300 degree oven and cook for an additional hour. Serve warm as main dish, side dish or as a dip with pita chips.

Give this recipe a try! You will not be disappointed!

The Doyles

From Blue to Green...A Spur of the Moment Project

Has anyone ever gotten the urge to just do something to your home? You just randomly feel the need to complete a home project right then and there with little to no planning!? I would definitely consider myself a planner, but for some reason last night I was really in the mood for a quick project. 

So, last night after dinner I said to hubby, "I think I want to paint the garage door green". His response? "Yeah, sounds good," because clearly the Ravens vs. Patriots game is way more important than one of my many home project ideas. 

Let me get you up to speed on the door...it was sky blue. It has been sky blue since we bought the house. I do not know the back story on why it was painted (very poorly I might add), but I do know that if you live in North Carolina and are NC State and Duke fans, you do not need a Carolina sky blue door in your house. 

I am all for pops of color, but when it's the wrong color, it was time for it to go. 

So, I headed downstairs, grabbed the green paint can and paint brush from the garage and proceeded to paint the door. I then got the "you're doing this right now?" comment from hubby at which I replied, "I told you I wanted to paint the door green." :)

I wanted to use one of the current colors in the house so it would tie in with the current color scheme. I went with the same green that is in our half bathroom.

What do you think?

Before

After

I'm really happy with it! Has anyone caught the "I need a project now" bug and completed any quick home projects recently?

The Doyles

Our Holiday in the Sun

Hello everyone! I am finally getting around to posting about our fabulous family vacation to the Caribbean. The week before Christmas, we hopped a plane to Miami, met up with my parents and boarded a cruise ship for a 7 night Caribbean cruise on the Celebrity Reflection. We had a fabulous time! This is Celebrity's newest ship and was beautiful! 

We went to four islands, San Juan, Puerto Rico, St. Maarten, St. Thomas and St. Johns. We sight-seed, shopped, snorkeled and relaxed on some beautiful beaches!

San Juan

St. Maarten

St. John

The views were breathtaking!

On the ship, we relaxed by the pool, enjoyed the spa, went to some fantastic shows and ate some amazing food. Did I mention that we ate? The food on the ship, especially at the specialty restaurants was excellent!

Hot stone loungers in the spa

Solarium 

Hubby and I in St. Thomas

My wonderful parents

 Lobster tail made table side. Yum!

Pistachio creme brulee

We had a blast! Mom and I are ready to plan the next one! I'll leave you with a shot of a Caribbean sunset. Doesn't get much better than this...

Hope everyone has a great week!

The Doyles

Blowing the Resolutions Recipe

You'll have to forgive me. I know I'm supposed to be starting the new year right with some healthy eating and should be posting some healthy yet yummy recipes right about now. Unfortunately, my head, definitely my stomach, and well pretty much all of me is longing to be back on a cruise ship in the middle of the Caribbean sea enjoying some family fun, sun and some incredible food. Calorie counting is not back on my radar yet. 

I promise I'll get back on track right after I share this oh so delicious dessert recipe. The inspiration...

A warm deep dish chocolate chip cookie with vanilla ice cream we had on our first night on the ship. Quite possibly one of the best desserts I've ever tasted! So simple, but SO delicious!

I was going through the cruise pictures on Saturday and had to recreate it. I had found a recipe for deep dish cookie pies on Pinterest several months ago, but never made it because I needed to be cruise ready...you know, in a bathing suit...in the middle of December. EEEK. This definitely was a pin now, make later deal. And since I'm already off the healthy wagon, why not make it before getting back on right?

So here's the recipe in all of its gooey, chocolaty glory. The key is to make it a little under baked. You want it to be a little doughy in the middle. :)

Deep Dish Chocolate Chip Cookies

originally from Blue Eyed Bakers

1 stick unsalted butter, cold & cubed

1 stick margarine, cold & cubed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon table or fine sea salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup milk chocolate chips

In the bowl of electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugars until well blended and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time and beat until well incorporated.

Into the bowl, add the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder and mix until combined. Gently fold in chocolate chips.

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Fill ramekins 3/4″ deep with cookie dough.  Set ramekins on baking sheet and  bake on the middle rack of the oven for 13-16 minutes, or until just slightly golden brown on top. 

Best served immediately out of the oven. Top with vanilla ice cream, more is better than less. Enjoy! :)

Since these are best right out of the oven, I only baked two of the four and wrapped and froze the other two. Now, we have two saved and can just thaw them and bake when we fall of the healthy wagon again are craving something sweet.

They were delicious! Clearly I couldn't even wait to take a picture, I had to dive right into mine! Hubby loved his too. These were pretty close to the one on the cruise.  It's definitely a must try! 

Okay, well I'm off to look up healthy recipes or to the gym...back on the wagon I go! 

The Doyles

Happy New Year

Hello blog friends! Happy New Year! I am back after some fabulous family time and relaxation! Hubby and I unplugged for a while and spent our 2012 holiday season on a Caribbean cruise with my parents the week before Christmas and then spent Christmas in Florida with hubby's family. Once I get the pictures all organized I will be sharing some of my favorites. We are back now and ready for a great 2013! 



I began blogging in September of 2012 and am super excited to continue to share with you all in 2013. I hope everyone has a blessed year! 

The Doyles