friday

happy friday! no, really. i'm so happy it's friday. what a hectic week! and it's only going to get more stressful, as there are only five weeks left of winter term. what? how did that happen?

currently loving

1. this lip balm. i've been using it for about a month and it's life-changing! also, my sweet grams, who sent me valentine's day kitchen supplies. 

2. made from sugar, hemp milk and coconut milk, this vegan salted caramel sauce is unreal. i want to ladle it over everything.

3. the greensicle from sip. i woke up embarrassingly hungover on sunday morning, so drew graciously brought me this magical smoothie. it made me feel human again.

4. my little nugget. even though i love her every day. even though she's sitting on the kitchen table in this picture, leaving hairs that will undoubtedly find their way into my food at some point.

bensimon

when i recently found these bensimon sneakers via madewell, nostalgia got the best of me and i snatched them right up. despite being a bit unattractive, they were everywhere when i traveled through europe, and now i know why: they are so comfortable! it took me five years, but i finally have my own pair of these little french tennis shoes. now i just need to take another trip so i can properly break them in...

wilco

'tis the season to be spoiled by great live music, apparently. we're seeing wilco tonight!

the wood brothers

we saw the wood brothers this past friday night, and as expected, it was absolutely perfect. every time i leave one of their shows, my heart feels so full. if you ever get a chance to see them live, do yourself a favor and go. it's such a treat.

and if you're not familiar with their music, listen to my playlist!

de la warr

my very talented friends in portland are trying to raise money to record their first full-length album. check out their kickstarter for more information. this song is my favorite. i'm always blown away by the vocals!

(another) brown rice casserole

heidi swanson, of 101 cookbooks, holds the key to my heart. whole grains, vegetarian, goat cheese (these are my buzz words). it seems like every day i'm running to the grocery store to gather the supplies to make her recipes. even though i adapted this brown rice casserole for thanksgiving dinner, i knew i had to give this one a try as well.

spinach and brown rice casserole 

2 1/2 cups cooked brown rice 
1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh spinach 
4 ounces organic extra firm tofu, crumbled 
4 cured black olives, 4 kalamata olives, 4 castelvetrano olives, chopped
small red onion, diced 
1/3 cup pine nuts, toasted 
2 tbsp olive oil 
1/2 cup parm cheese 
1/4 cup feta 
3 eggs 
1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp pepper, pinch crushed red pepper 
pinch dried italian seasoning mix (oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme) 
fresh lemon juice

preheat oven to 400 degrees f. grease a 10" round baking dish with olive oil. in a large bowl, combine rice, spinach and tofu. next, stir in olives, onion, pine nuts and olive oil. stir in the feta and 1/4 cup of the parm cheese. in a separate bowl, whisk eggs with salt, pepper, crushed red pepper, and italian seasonings. fold eggs into the rice mixture, then pour everything into the baking dish and sprinkle the top with the remaining parm cheese. bake for about 30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and the casserole is set. serve in a bowl and sprinkle with a bit of lemon juice.