In the kitchen: butterscotch pot de crème.

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So let's not talk about yesterday's loss. The Ukes just couldn't get going; I knew it was going to be rough when, within the first three minutes of the game, France had two corners.

Instead, let's talk about one of my favorite desserts from one of my favorite restaurants in my absolute favorite neighborhood of Minneapolis. No hyperbole at all. We've been to Tilia quite a few times, for birthday brunches, summertime dinners, a particularly warm St. Patrick's day, and graduations. One afternoon, Andrew and I ordered their butterscotch pot de crème, created by Zoe Francois (who happens to be our go-to for all things pizza and bread). It was perfectly smooth, rich, and best yet, topped with a thin layer of crème fraîche. And then, we found that Zoe posted the recipe online.

I made these for our dinner party we had last week. Truly, this is such an easy dessert, but sounds so much fancier and more difficult than it actually is to make. I didn't grab a photo of the finished product...I actually had to run to grab the crème fraîche just a few minute before the appetizers went out. And that is reason number 23 out of 1098 of why it's best to live near two grocery stores.

Butterscotch pot de crème, via Zoe Bakes. 
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2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1/2 C brown sugar
2 C heavy cream  
1/2 vanilla bean, scraped; or substitute 1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt
4 egg yolks
Crème fraîche, for serving. 

Preheat the oven to 325.

Cook the butter and brown sugar over medium heat in a heavy saucepan, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the sugar has completely melted and the mixture starts to turn brown and turn smoke slightly.

Add the cream one cup at a time, cooking the butterscotch until the seized sugar cooks down again. Add the remaining cup of cream, vanilla, and salt.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg yolks. Temper the yolks with a ladle or two of the cream mixture, whisking until warm. Pour the yolks back into the cream and slowly whisk to combine. Strain out the vanilla beans.

Divide the custard into four 4-ounce ramekins. Place them in a baking dish and pour in hot water to reach half-way up the sides.* Bake for 25-40 minutes, depending on the heat of the water and your oven. Once the custards have set, remove the pan carefully, and allow the custards to cool in the water bath. Cool until they come to room temperature, then cover and chill for at least one hour (but they can easily be made a few days in advance, which makes this a perfect dessert for parties!). Before serving, top with crème fraîche.

*I find it helpful to have a kettle of hot water going before you start tempering the yolks. That way the water is hot and ready to pour for the water bath, and it's easy to do without splashing up your kitchen.

I love these for so many reasons. Zoe says you don't have to serve it with crème fraîche if the contrast of the sour and sweet isn't your thing, but for this Uki girl, who can't ever get enough sour cream, the topping is absolutely necessary. Enjoy!

The best day.

Over two months have passed since our wedding day and I'm still over the moon. So many people I've talked to have said their wedding day was the best day of their lives. I've had many "best days" in my life, but none really do compare to our wedding weekend; those days were truly the most wonderful, happy, and love-filled days I can remember. Everything all flew by so quickly, despite the months of planning that lead up to it, and that's why I'm so, so grateful to our amazing photographer. Sarah Blesener's photos allow me to relive our day over and over again. She captured what I want to always remember as well as those little moments that I didn't even know were happening around us. It's impossible to pick favorites, but here are a few that I love...

We had an absolutely incredible time at our wedding, and Sarah's photos remind me of just how lucky we were to be surrounded by our friends and family on our favorite day. We can't thank you enough! 

Life by numbers.

100: days until our wedding. There's a lot of planning that still has to get done between now and then, but I'm so excited to celebrate. How amazing is it that I get to marry the person I love in front of all those we love?

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48: hours until we'll just about be crossing the border into MN. YES.

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1: final left for my sister before she is a college graduate! WOOHOO!! Go Gophers, go Minnesota, and most of all, go D!

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2: types of European Championships Chelsea FC can currently claim. We watched them win the Europa League final this afternoon. Slightly different than the Champions League Final from last May (okay, a lot different), but it was still great to see them win. There will be a new Champions League winner in a few weeks, but until the Germans fight it out, we've got both trophies.

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12: Yesterday MN joined 11 other states in making history. I love home.

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74: degrees of perfect weather this afternoon. I could have stayed outside for hours.

29: days until Cheremosh performs at the Cowles Center! Get your tickets, people - this is going to be a great show!

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200: number of pages Andrew guessed he has written this semester. A rough estimate, sure, but the actual one can't be too far off. I'm so proud of how hard he's worked to get through this first year! I'm guessing the photo below expresses his sentiments towards me right now, considering how much coffee we've gone through this last week...

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MN Mondays: Minneapolis rules.

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I first saw this list on a fantastic Minneapolis tourism website and could barely contain my excitement for our trip home in a few weeks. Everything on this list is perfect, and I want to do every single one at some point in my life. I'm pretty sure we've checked off many already, but I wouldn't mind revisiting some favorites, including sidewalk dining down Nicollet Mall, everything involving St. Anthony Main and Lake Harriet, and, a true city gem, the Mill City Farmer's Market. I also love that Kramarczuk's made the list - a childhood tradition that is now making a real name for itself! 

If you're looking for things to do in the City of Lakes this summer (hint hint, dear friends and family who are coming in for the wedding!), check out this list. Even if you're a homemade Minneapolitan, challenge yourself to explore some of the neighborhood treasures you may not have yet seen. Sometimes the best things to do are truly in your own backyard! 

I think this post marks an unofficial countdown to summer...who's with me?!? 

Saturday Post No. 7

I had to snap this photo at a work outing last evening. I need some Hennepin. Two weeks to go. 

Don't have plans this evening? Need something to do while your freshly-baked paska is cooling? Go see my Ukes dance at Festival of Nations at the St. Paul RiverCentre! Three of our groups are dancing throughout the day and into tonight, and would love to have your support in the audience. 

After weeks of searching, we finally found ramps this morning. Andrew was like a kid in a candy store at Whole Foods and is now scouring the web for the best recipes to highlight this springtime treat; our favorites so far include ramp pesto and zucchini with ramp aioli. Stay tuned for results later this week, if we can control ourselves long enough to take a photo. 

Five things.

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How is it May? This means the year is nearing its half-way mark, which freaks me out entirely. I don't know where time has gone, where exactly spring is hiding, or how it's been a year since graduating from law school. The fact that time is rushing by so quickly is countered by the fact that it seems like forever since we've been home to Minneapolis. Thankfully, Andrew's parents visited a few weeks ago to bring some family/MN love to MKE, but then again, HOW was that so long ago?!? I feel like I'm trapped in this weird zone where everything is moving so quickly and I feel like there's still much to do in so little time, and one where it seems that the days are taking forever and summer will never come. Anyone else feel this way? 

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More on time: today is our five-year anniversary. Fast-forward from one Guinness each and a night full of conversation at Brit's to two graduate degrees (with a third in progress), a ring, a move, a lot of cooking, more wine, and an upcoming wedding, and we're here. I'm so glad we went to Brit's that night, after several weeks of old school flirting and discussing class reading assignments. So much has changed, but not really - we're still committed to each other, our families, and the life ahead of us. I can't wait to marry you, Driy!!

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We'll be home in Minneapolis in exactly 2 weeks from today. We have an actual countdown going on our chalkboard, we're that excited. 

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Both my sister and Andrew's sister are graduates this year! My sister graduates in a bit more than 2 weeks and Andrew's sister graduated earlier this week! Way to go, ladies!! We're proud of both of you and will celebrate LOTS when we're home. 

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It's Orthodox Easter this weekend, which is strange because I don't remember the last time that the two Easters (Orthodox and everyone else's) were so far apart; usually, there's just a few weeks between the two. I don't think it helps that the first Easter was so early, either. To all those celebrating this weekend - have an extra slice of paska (and lots of extra syrna paska and kovbasa) for me. I'm quite sad about not having any. I was going to bake some and make syrna, but a) I was at work for too long to bake and b) NO ONE sells farmer's cheese here. I was complaining about this to my mom, who was equally surprised and indignant: "but it's Wisconsin, how do they not sell farmer's cheese in Wisconsin?" I don't know, and I'll be upset about it for a while. Oh, and I would love to see if any of my Ukes decide to embrace the other holiday going on this weekend...if someone decides to be brave and go have their burrito blessed in their koshyk, please send me photos. You would make my week. 

MN Mondays: Spring break at home.

Get ready for a photo overload - here's the recap of our lovely not-so-spring-like spring break in MN (seriously - I had to shovel our driveway. Go away, snow.)! 

We left at 5:00 in the morning on Thursday - we were so anxious and excited to get back home! Medyk eagerly greeted us on our arrival and quickly jumped into the lap of his best friend. 

As always, a lot of our family gatherings centered around food. We were able to get reservations at one of the newest restaurants in town, Smack Shack, and enjoyed a night of seafood with our families. We almost had everyone together in one place that night, which is a rare and wonderful treat. 

Last year for St. Patrick's Day, it was 70 degrees and sunny. Even though the weather was not at all like that this year, we still managed to have a fantastic day spent (partially) outside: we celebrated Butcher & The Boar's 1st birthday! Andrew even won some of their meat to take back with us to MKE! I had attempted to document this momentous occasion, but the photos didn't turn out...too much Irish music (and beer and smoked sausage...). If you look carefully at B&B's photos from that Sunday, though, you can see me and my sister in the corner of one of them. We're famous now!

Minneapolis is such an amazing city (not biased at all, am I), and it's making an even bigger name for itself thanks to its food and restaurants...but really, it's the best because that's where all our favorite people (and dogs) are. Being able to eat, drink, and catch up with friends and family is, in my opinion, an absolute perfect way to spend a week, even if the weather doesn't cooperate. Going out, staying in, hot, cold, doesn't matter. To us, the week was all about being with those who we care for most.

We can't wait to be back.