happy lady eats

{happy lady makes}: black eyed pea coconut dessert...

Coconut milk is a staple of Thai food as well a common ingredients in many Southeast Asian desserts. My mom used to make a dessert called kao neo tao dam {white beans with sticky rice in coconut milk} all the time when I was a kid. Whenever I make it now, it instantly it brings me back home {I love how food can do that}. While usually served with sweet sticky rice, I often enjoy just the beans and coconut milk on it's own because sticky rice can take a long time and some advanced planning. The bean component is so simple to make yet savory, salty, and sweet all at the same time. Here's how...

{local inspiration}: beet & grapefruit salad

I love being inspired by ingredients and combinations used in a restaurant dishes especially when they're simple enough to make at home. This seasonal greens + baby beet salad at Cucina Urbana is so fresh, light, tasty, and a nice treat to recreate. Simply combine beets {red or yellow}, grapefruit {or pomelo} segments, thin slices of ricotta salata, candied pecans, and a light vinaigrette for a summery, colorful, and refreshing salad.

{photo by Happy Lady Eats}

the BEST key lime pie ever...

For every holiday, get-together, or BBQ, I make and bring my signature frozen key lime pie. Now I have always made it clear that I didn't come up with this recipe, but today is the day where I reveal to you my very closely guarded secret and source: #1 there are no key limes used in this key lime pie {just regular limes} and #2 this recipe was created by the ever so amazing, Ina Garten. It is so simple, so tasty, and really may be my favorite dessert to make. Because I lack the careful planning and precise measuring that baking often requires, this pie makes it fail-proof even for me. 

{top it with}: sun-dried tomato pesto

...mix chopped fresh basil, diced sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts, salt, pepper, garlic, a touch of vinegar, and olive oil for a tasty topper on pasta for dinner or atop toast for a quick snack...

{photo by happy lady eats}

{top it with}: pomegranate seeds

...especially delicious covered in chocolate or on top some homemade tart frozen yogurt! And, these ruby-colored gems are conveniently available pre-packaged at Trader Joe's.

{photo by happy lady eats}

emu love...

The other day, this Happy Lady and some fun foodie friends stumbled upon an emu egg at a local farmer's market. With it's gorgeous dark turquoise exterior, we were intrigued and happily paid $10 for this fine large-and-in-charge eggy specimen.

{happy lady makes}: milk boba tea

I love treating myself a milk boba tea. Creamy, sweet, caffeinated, and doused in chewy fun - it's the perfect dessert-and-beverage-in-one. I previously shared some recipes found on the web for creating this sweet concoction. However, I found that most of these recipes and cafe-bought milk boba tea tends to be ultra rich {from the dairy creamer used} and super sweet {from the pre-mixed syrups}. So I now whip up my own version at home and have come up with my own process which I find to be much easier, less heavy, and equally as tasty which I am sharing with you today.

kitchen notes...

Keep a mind on things with these handy and oh-so-adorable in paper helpers...

{photo by the designers. recipe cards by Rifle Paper Co. and freezer labels by the Small Object}

{happy lady makes}: spicy & tangy shrimp stir-fry

  

Stir-fries are absolutely one of my favorite things to make because they fit into my "throw together" method of cooking, and the flavors and options are endless. Here's a super simple yet super tasty spicy and tangy shrimp stir-fry {passed onto me from my friend Jubi from her friend Sally} and modified a bit to my liking for a sweet, tangy, and spicy delight! Enjoy!

a mini D.I.Y. cake...

I stumbled upon these delectable images from a photo shoot I worked on with Karen Wise a few years ago. I absolutely adore decorated cakes, but we didn't have time to have one custom made. So I purchased the mini vanilla frosted cake from a local grocery store, covered it in wonderfully white coconut flakes, and topped it with the tiniest of daisies...and voila...a custom cake that we used for a wedding-themed photo shoot!

{photos by Karen Wise}