Mediterranean Miss

Archive for the ‘Decor’ Category

Yasas dearlings!
Along with this regular posting thing, I’ve decided to give you some regular recipes, too! You’re invited to breakfast, lunch, and dinner as of now for a couple of days a week ^~ This post includes a recipe for my favorite potato salad, although it’s not your typical mushy disaster featuring poor pieces of potato just drowning in mayo. Feel free to skip down to it if you’d like; it’s delicious and I don’t blame you for wanting to learn about it asap!

The theme of my weekend can be described as: Rest, Renovations & Really good food ;D ideal, no?

The renovations/decorating all started when I found a kijiji ad offering 15 decorative white boxes for sale for just $25.00. I checked out the picture below and decided it was worth the hour-long drive to pick them up. ONE box alone can set you back for $25, so it was a deal I couldn’t resist!

Boxes for sale! 15 for $25? Yes please.

I am currently in the process of “polishing” the decor in the loft. It’s been a year since I moved, and while I have all of my furniture, etc, the place isn’t quite finished. As an editor-in-chief-to-be, I’d like my home to have a little bit of wow-factor ^~ Unfortunately, the loft-style layout doesn’t have much storage, which means that I am always working to maximize that compromise between decor and efficiency. My student-budget isn’t that flexible, either! These boxes (especially when you can get a good deal, like I did) are a godsend. I have a wall of bookshelves, and they do a beautiful job of making everything elegant, yet organized. See?

A sleek way to glam up a bookshelf: decorative boxes and coffee table books

The bookcases are from Ikea, as are the shelves set on a slant to display my favorite coffee table books. They’re always a conversation-starter, especially  “Dogs in Vogue, a Century of Canine Chic” The discount section of your local Chapters/Indigo/Barnes&Noble, etc, will always have a couple of beauties for very attractive prices. They’re a decorating essential in the Miss household! Mine range in topic from Dogs in Vogue to Vanity Fair Portraits, The Natural History of Unicorns, Barcelona and a cocktail book dedicated exclusively to champagne & sparkling wine-based drinks. Your books say a lot about you!

• Question: What are some of your favorite decorating tricks?

While I focused on the decor, Andrew was hard at work on functionality. He brought his toolbox (a man with a toolbox. swoon.) and went to work on my lights, wall hangings, and general repairs, along with his trusty sidekick. He was a wonder and kept on laughing at my delight. “After all,”  he kept pointing out, “I’m an electrical engineer. This stuff is easy.”

My boys at work <3 Dolce is always willing to lend a paw.

While my wonderful boys were hard at work, I decided to hop to it and get dinner going. Cue potatoes, lemon, dill and a good twenty minutes spent deveining and peeling raw shrimp:

My Favorite (Mediterranean) Potato Salad

Ingredients:

• 1 bag small red potatoes
• 1 bag raw shrimp, whole
• 1/2 bunch fresh dill
• 2-3 tbsp capers (packed in sea salt vs in vinegar)
• Juice of one lime
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Green Onion (1-2 stalks, chopped, white parts only)

Method

1. Bring salted water to a boil and boil your potatoes, whole, until fork tender.
2. Meanwhile, peel & devein your shrimp, then toss in olive oil, salt, pepper and dried italian herbs
3. Broil your shrimp for 3-4 minutes per side (or until done)
4. Drain and quarter your potatoes
5. In a big bowl, combine potatoes, shrimp, dill, onion and capers.
6. In a separate bowl, combine lime and olive oil. Stir well (three parts oil to 1 part lime) and toss potato salad to coat
7. Serve with a glass of white wine, as I enjoyed mine the next day <3

Just as good the next evening

Leave the lime in with your leftovers for an additional shot of flavor the next day

Please make this tonight, and tell me what you think!! I love this recipe. Andrew did too, but, as he said, “what’s not to love?” It features simple, fresh ingredients with brightness from the lime and smoothness from the olive oil. I dare you to go back to mushy mayo potatoes.

Bon Appetit, my dears! See you tomorrow <3