Sweet Cherry Scones

I've been kind of, in reality, totally obsessed with scones at the moment. I guess I actually can't even say 'at the moment' because I've been obsessed ever since I tried the most monumentally, mind-blowing scones ever at the Diamond Head Market & Grille in Oahu, Hawaii. I was never one to love scones. They have a bad reputation of being dry and chalky... but ever since I met the 'one' I can't get the idea of delicious scones out of my damn mind!

I've come to realization with the fact that I will never be able to duplicate the glorious scones that come from the Diamond Head Market & Grille and that's okay by me. I guess I'll just have to visit more often ;)

Anyway, despite failures to replicate their famous Blueberry-Cream Cheese scones, I now know that scones can be very loveable. They don't have to be dry, bland or chalky. These scones are easy, delicious and moist beyond belief. Seriously, I had a craving for scones and whipped these up in less than an hour with not a drop of sweat or a wave of stress. The best part is that you can toss anything you want into them - I happened to have some fresh cherries on hand so that's what I threw in and it was delicious.

I imagine any fresh fruit would be perfect, possibly some dark chocolate? Lemon zest? Cream cheese? The possibilities are really endless!

Sweet Cherry Scones

Yields: about 10 drop scones

Adapted from here.

8 tbsn. unsalted butter, cut into cubes and frozen

2 cups flour

1/2 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 cup whole milk

1 1/2 cups fresh cherries, pitted and halved

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Combine all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Fold in the frozen cubed butter and use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal, but do this fast so that the butter does not melt. In a large measuring cup, whisk together the sour cream and milk together to combine then add to the butter mixture. Stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. Use a large ice cream scoop to drop the dough onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until golden brown. 

Tailored Tuesday & Travel

1. Theyskens' Theory 'Kudi cashmere and silk blend sweater'

looks uber comfy and soft!

2. T by Alexander Wang 'Silk crepe de chine blouse'

anything a. wang makes is a winner in my book

3. Iro Yulli 'Sequined jacket'

sequined but subtle.

4. Diane von Furstenberg 'Georgine cuff cropped basketweave pants'

ah mustard yellow, my love.

5. Christian Louboutin 'Panier 120 espadrille wedge sandals'

quite possibly the most beautiful espadrilles i've ever seen and killer!

6. Marni 'Stud trimmed leather shoulder bag'

this looks like i could fit my whole life into it

7. Cutler and Gross 'Oval frame acetate sunglasses'

vintage-y and chic

8. Yves Saint Laurent 'Arty gold plated glass ring'

arty is right! a fine piece of work all for your finger

9. Rollasole 'Emergency rollable ballet flats'

i wish i was a wear-heels-all-day-and-be-dandy kind of girl, but i'm not, so these are quite helpful

10. Raindrops 'Merde il pleut black umbrella'

translates to: "shit it's raining" - how awesome is that?

11. Gentsupply 'The Indiana leather adventure duffel'

adventure duffel is right! this looks like it's ready for anything

12. Old Faithful 'Shop day planner'

i love making plans, whether i follow them or not...

13. Essie 'Nail polish in mango bango'

the perfect coral

14. Canon 'EOS mark II full-frame digital SLR camera'

someday you will be mine.... someday...

{autumn aspens, vail, colorado}

ummm can i have my future wedding photo shoot here?!

{the golden pond, the netherlands}

what i would give to stoll through this little piece of eye-gasm

{nanpu bridge, shanghai}

i'm a sucker for fast-moving city lights

{san francisco, california}

still my favorite US city to date, but then again I haven't explored many...

{gloucester cathedral, england}

i could possibly revel in the details of this beauty for hours!

{killarney, ireland}

these cliffs are beyond breath taking!

{new york, new york}

such an amazing city, i'd love to visit it again

{venice, italy}

i gotta go see this before it sinks (though i hope it never does)!

All images from Pinterest and Net-a-porter.

Images are linked to their sources.

Roasted Garlic Hummus

If I were to have a relationship with any food on the planet, it would be garlic. It is my one and true love, and I've known it to be ever since I could remember. I've always loved it - love at first taste if you will. When I was younger (say adolescent, mid-teenish), I used to just simply fry up smashed garlic in some salt and pepper and eat it. Alone. I know, I'm weird, but that's how much I love the stuff.

When a recipe calls for 1 clove of garlic, I scoff, and triple (possibly quadruple) the amount. I've been working my way along making mezze appetizers (see here), since I can't get enough of the stuff and what better than to combine two of my obsessions: garlic and mezze. Together, their love child is the simply irresistible roasted garlic hummus.

I have a hummus recipe I adore that's simple, easy to whip up and delicious. I just tweeked it a bit by adding loads of roasted garlic and I was in heaven. With warm pita bread or in a sandwich, it is purely awesome! Plus, it's healthy and lasts for weeks!

Roasted Garlic Hummus

Yields: approximately 2 1/2 cups

adapted from Zov's Recipes and Memories from the Heart 

2 heads garlic + 2 garlic cloves

2 cups of canned garbanzo beans, drained

1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup of tahini paste

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cumin

1/2 cup olive oil + extra for drizzling over garlic heads

Preheat the oven to 400 F. To roast the garlic, peel off the outer layer of the garlic bulb, leaving the skins of the individual cloves intact. Using a sharp knife, cut off 1/4" of the tops of the garlic bulbs, exposing the individual cloves inside. Place the heads in a large piece of foil, then drizzle with about 1 tbsn. of olive oil. Fold and roast for 30 - 45 minutes or until the cloves are soft. Allow the garlic to cool until you can handle it. Once cool, use either a fork to fish out the garlic cloves or you can squeeze them out of their skins; set aside. Mince the fresh garlic in a food processor. Add the garbanzo beans, lemon juice and roasted garlic, blend until creamy, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Blend in the tahini, cumin, and salt. With the machine running, stream in the olive oil and blend until creamy and combined. Add in the jalapenos and cilantro, blend until well minced and combined. Serve and enjoy!

Tailored Tuesday & Travel

1. 3.1 Phillip Lim 'Belted satin peplum top'

so freaking chic!

2. Chloe 'Marcie large leather tote'

my dream is to own a chloe bag someday... crosses fingers!

3. Burberry 'Metallic leather ipad case'

because gold goes with everything!

4. Carven 'Pleated front cotton blend skirt'

cute and comfortable

5. Chloe 'Mirrored heel leather sandals'

seriously i love these - they're the most chic sandals i've ever seen.

6. Benefit 'Boi-ing concealer'

i love this concealer - it covers dark circles like magic

7. Orla Keily 'Luggage'

because even luggage needs some love

8. Karen Walker 'Helter skleter sunnies'

vintage-y cute

9. Nars 'Nail polish in rouge andalou'

the perfect polish to match any occasion

10. Panasonic 'RP-HTX7-W1 old school monitor headphones'

music is the best company

11. Uncommon Goods 'Bottlecap tripod'

traveling in alone or in a twosome makes it hard for picture-taking, this solves the problem perfectly

12. Ileana Makri 'Safety pin 18-karat rose gold diamond'

some serious bling

13. Apple 'iPad'

i think the best travel accessory: for boredom in airports, trains, hotels, etc.

{jiuzhaigou nature reserve, china}

the green is so striking!

{kynance cove, england}

supposedly there are gorgeous private coves you can have all to yourself here - sounds like love.

{geiranger fjord, norway}

every time i see a fjord, i can't stop staring at how beautiful they are, seriously.

{panchoran retreat, bali}

i can have an 'eat, pray, love' moment all to myself.

{patagonia, chile}

my heart will always belong to chile after studying abroad there. must see patagonia soon.

{petra, jordan}

to see something this striking, so unmoved by time would be amazing.

{portofino, italy}

um who lives there? and can we become best friends?

{santorini, greece}

this has been my dream ever since i can remember.

{swallows nest castle, crimea}

beautiful architecture + ocean + cliffs. what more could i want?

All images from Pinterest and Net-a-porter.

Images are linked to their sources.

Avicii + Mixtape

I haven't done a music post in ages it seems like. I had my finals this week... grrr, but on the bright side, I AM DONE and this weekend I'm heading eastward and upwards to Vegas to see one of the greatest House producers of all time... well I think so anyway. I'm talking about Avicii aka Tim Berg aka Tom Hangs aka Tim Bergling (his actual, real name), the 21 year old who reins from Sweden and has continued to drop insane tracks like rain comes out of the sky.

I don't know how he does it, but its pure eargasm every damn time. He's seriously the best thing to come out of Sweden since Ikea... and I f*cking love Ikea! I don't think a lot of my readers listen to house, but I urge you to give Avicii a listen. He self-describes his music as "big-room, melodic house." I think his emphasis on melodies really gives his music soul and really, just makes you want to dance, whether you're listening in your car or in a dark nightclub. Here are some of my favorites:

Avicii Man Man 

Tim Berg Alcoholic (Avicii Edit)

Tim Berg Seek Bromance (Avicii Vocal Edit)

Avicii Swede Dreams

 PREVIEW Avicii - Sweet Dreams (Swede Dreams Mix) by AviciiOfficial 

Avicii Street Dancer

Avicii "ID" aka Levels

 PREVIEW Avicii - "ID" by AviciiOfficial 

Tim Berg Before This Night is Through (Bad Things)

 PREVIEW #2 Tim Berg - Before This Night Is Through (Bad Things) by AviciiOfficial 

Avicii Penguin (Iacabone Remix)

Avicii & Sebastian Drums My Feelings For You

Nadia Ali Rapture (Avicii's New Generation Extended Remix)

Daft Punk Derezzed (Avicii Remix)

Bob Sinclar New New New (Avicii Remix)

Armin Van Buren Ft. Laura V Drowning (Avicii's Unnamed Mix)

 PREVIEW Armin van Buuren ft Laura V - Drowning (Avicii's Unnamed Mix) by AviciiOfficial 

Tom Hangs Ft. Shermanology Blessed (Avicii Edit)

 PREVIEW Tom Hangs ft Shermanology - Blessed (Avicii Edit) by AviciiOfficial 

{official site}

{facebook}

{beatport}

Other songs I'm obsessed with (links are to where you can download the song):

Craft Spells . Party Talk

Sebastian Tellier . La Ritournelle (Mr. Dan's Mix)

Body Language . You Can

Criminalminds . Raise Your Weapon (Deadmau5 x Madeon x Skrillex)

Sleigh Bells . Run the Heart (Bassnectar Remix)

J. Cole . See It to Believe It

Crystal Fighters . Xtatic Truth (Last Japan Remix)

The Dodos . Walking

Summer Heart . Please Stay

Sonny & The Sunsets . Too Young to Burn

Calvin Harris Ft. Kelis . Bounce

Dirty South Ft. Rudy . Phazing

Ella Fitzgerald . I Get a Kick Out of You (Cinematic Orchestra Remix)

Familjen . Det Var Jag

Jai Paul . BTSTU

Nancy Sinatra . Sugar Town

Tyga Ft. Adele . Reminded