the candy house

Growing up, one of my favorite holiday traditions was that of The Candy House.  An antique of sorts - this hand-crafted, wooden structure was handed down from a great grandmother luckily ending up in my mother's hands.  Ever since us kids were old enough to frost, we've been decorating the house with a splattering of sweet treats.

As described last year, however, like almost all Krieg Family activities, the event has turned into somewhat of a sport - a competition for who can adorn their side in the most creative, artistic, original, esthetically pleasing way possible.

Gretchen, Sam and I always get our own side (Stefan joined my team permanently last year), but we've had a rotating competitor on the fourth.  This year, mom stepped up to bat.

And like in any good Krieg Family competition, there is a winner.  In this case, based on the number of votes accumulated for each given side.  So what better way to help us determine a winner than to ask all of you to cast a vote.  Check out our work below and tell us:

1. Which is best
2. Which is worst
3. Which aspect/detail is your fav
4. Your guess of whose side is which

SIDE 1:

Highlights include: a lit candle in the left window,

a decorated, front-yard Christmas tree,

and a pile of wood with a licorice-y ax

SIDE 2:

Highlights include: a caramel fence w/ swinging door,
elevated steps up to the front entrance (complete w/ frosted windows),
and sliced-almond siding

SIDE 3:

Highlights include: pretzel-log cabin style,
a colorful fence,
and an outhouse decorated with fragrant Christmas wreaths
(to keep smells at bay)

SIDE 4:

 Highlights include: an American flag hanging above the garage,
a snowman leaning on a pile of snowballs,
and a vintage car headed out for a Sunday drive

Leave your vote in the comments - we'll report back soon with the winner!

xoxo

KK

more thanksgiving goodness

In addition to some epic pie-making, our Thanksgiving Day came with a whole host of other fun traditions. 

The Krieg-Gallun clan has been known to produce some very serious competitions - chief among them those that take place on Thanksgiving.  On one such occasion, a touch football game ended with a broken femur and full-leg cast.

This year, we tried to keep it a little more kid-friendly, opting for a family soccer game on Liz Krieg Field. 
(Liz Krieg being my mother who had a beautiful turf field hockey field built in her honor because she was just that awesome of a coach.)

With players of all ages, we managed to keep things friendly with my dad even pulling off a few headers:

In addition to some sports, we made time to prep a perfect balance of healthy and not-so-healthy dishes:

spicy sausage stuffing

spinach, persimmon, pomegranate, walnut,

pear, butternut squash salad

We got all dressed up and headed over our lovely grandma's house for a big, delicious dinner.

Sam carving his upside-down-roasted turkey

 

And then sampling it

(right off the bone of course)

with his new brother

The evening ended with those to-die-for pies and one unreal dance performance by a very energized cousin:

Watch out Justin Bieber - he's coming for you

 

xoxo

KK

perfect pies

Did you have a good Thanksgiving weekend?  Ours was jam-packed with ridiculously fun activities, delicious food and tons of good company - all starting with one perfectly decadent Thanksgiving Day.

As is traditional in the Krieg Family home, we spent the day prepping pies.  And by pies, I don't just mean 1 or 2.  I mean seven.  And even that was a very light year for us (just-a-bit-excessive) pie lovers. 
One year we cranked out no less than 13 before 3. 

While it used to be the full Krieg clan in the kitchen each contributing equal amounts to the pie creations, we've since relinquished the majorities of duties to the premier pie maker among us.

Any guesses on who that might be?

 

My 6'2", 238 lb, football-playing, soon-to-be investment-banking (little) brother.

As has become tradition, Sam got help from a good high school friend who has mastered the art of rolling out the perfect pie crust.  The two of them spent the day preparing batch upon batch of dough, and then batch upon batch of fillings.

While they prepared the vast majority of the pies, they introduced the newest member of the family to the tradition as well - teaching Stefan how to roll the dough evenly without letting it crack.

 

 

He did pretty well, only needing a little bit of help in the transfer of the crust to the pan.

(Look at how serious that face is in the transfer.  He knew Sam meant business.)

 

The pies all (even the one they let me roll out) turned out amazing.  Our best year yet.

 

 

 

Do you have any special dishes you make every single year?

 

xoxo

KK

favs for thanksgiving

Can you believe it's Thanksgiving already?  This fall really flew by, but I'm not complaining - I LOVE this type of weather, this time of year, this holiday.  Especially when I get to head home to Milwaukee for five days of jam-packed family fun.  (And my jam-packed, I mean literally: my mom sent all us kids a word document chronicling our schedule so we can all be prepared for what they have in store: a whole lot.)

Stefan and I are hopping on the red-eye tonight to head home, and knowing the plans for the next five days, I can tell you right now you won't be hearing from me.  So today I'm bringing you my favs for Thanksgiving to get you in the holiday spirit:

 

For table-setting:

 

kids' table with hand-drawn placemats on kraft paper

(with extra crayons for drawing of course)

from here

 

click here for more ideas on how to do kids' tables

 

a luscious mix of wintery greens in rustic wooden boxes

is the perfect way to adorn the grown-ups' table

from here

 

 

For drinking:

 

pumpkin pie white hot chocolate

from here

 

 

For eating:

 

quinoa, sweet potato & dried cranberry stuffing

from here

 

 

For dessert-ing:

 

there's just something so sweet about things in mini

from here

 

And just for fun:

 

READ THIS

I am most certainly a Williams-Sonoma LOVER,

but I couldn't help but laugh when reading

What are you up to for Thanksgiving?

xoxo
KK

melanie

Last night we attended Klugergiving - an all-friends, potluck-style Thanksgiving dinner hosted by our good friends: the Klugers - Melanie, Andrew, and Lola (their adorable puppy).

Not only was their house (yes! a house! oh the glories of the East Bay...) impeccably decorated with cheerful yet sophisticated stylings, Melanie had out-done herself by perfectly decorating their abode for the festivities. 

In addition to a gorgeous table lined with tulips in mason jars and simple white votives, she had placed luscious snacks (a decadent spread of cheeses, a tantalizing tray of olives and all sorts of vegetable munchables) all around their wide-open living room-kitchen-dining room for easy snacking while we sipped our Pinots.

Meanwhile, Andrew was manning the turkey...

 

...which came out beyond perfect: brown and crispy yet tender and juicy - exactly how anyone likes it.

 

In addition to the turkey and make-your-own-potato & sweet potato-bar prepared by the Klugers, we had all sorts of goodness supplied by our plethora of guests:

1. a spinach, pear, persimmon, walnut, roasted Brussels sprout salad (compliments of the Fischers of course)

2. braised cabbage + carrots

3. a killer, spicy sausage stuffing

4. a homemade apple pie

5. nothing BUNDT cakes mini-cakes (if you're looking to send something to a friend or family member, these most certainly fit the bill)

 

Melanie also planned all sorts of fun games to entertain us as we dined.  She had prepped a bunch of chalkboards for us to pass around the table and write what we each thankful for. 

She then read them all aloud and had us guess whose was whose.  So. much. fun. 

 

But not only did Melanie plan and host a killer Sunday-night bash while being five-months pregnant (in four-inch heels mind you...), she's been blogging up a storm for her new styling biz: Head over Heels.

 

She guest blogged over at the Collection on how to style a bump when heading to a wedding...

 

 

 

 

 ...and then over at The White Dress on how to do polka dots...

 

 

...and then over at vmac and cheese on what to bring on one's honeymoon...

 

 

 

...and THEN (as if that weren't enough) a shoot she styled was featured on the one and only Once Wed!

 

 

 

Not to mention all the fabulous posting she's been doing over at Head Over Heels.

This girl has been BUSY, and yet - she makes it look so easy.  How does she do it?

 

xoxo

KK

grammar

Growing up, I absolutely deplored when my grandma Nana would nag me for improper word use.
"Gretchen and I, not me!" she would bemoan me time and time again.
My younger brother Sam was exactly the same.  He would constantly pester all of us to perfect our prose.  He was (and still is) a grammatical snob.

Did it really matter? I would always think to myself post one of their tirades.  You still no what I mean. 

But years later I have come to realize that - yes, oh yes, grammar matters quite a lot.  It is a known fact that people make a first judgment about one another in a matter of minutes, and one's grammar - oh lovely, sneaky, tricky grammar - is one of the first cards to be shown.

So thanks to all of you who have corrected me along the way.  I hope you'll continue to do so every. single. time.   

 

xoxo

KK

stiletto & spice

So sadly I was solo this past weekend as Stefan (who had to be in Germany for work today - Wednesday) spent the weekend in Switzerland visiting his fam.

He was totally enamored by the newest addition - his new niece Melissa:

In addition to some drink, dinner, and Williams-College-football-watching girlfriend dates, some friends and I decided to schedule a private cooking class with the fabulous Claudine of Stiletto & Spice. 

I've always been a fan of cooking classes, but every time I'm blown away by the complexity of the dishes we usually learn.  They're delicious (and almost do-able) when we're in class with the constant help of the head chef, but the recipes are too technical and complex for me to ever attempt at home.

Claudine's curriculum couldn't be more different.  She's all about simple, non-technical, easily-substitutable, yet still packed-full-of-flavor-and-nutrition one-dish meals.  In her three hour class, you learn how to prepare and cook five uber delicious meals, prepping all the ingredients so you're ready to go for the entire week.

It all starts with a trip to the grocery store.  Claudine will gladly do the shopping for you, but, as she so accurately told us, the purchasing is part of the total learning experience.   

 

A few days before our cooking date, Claudine sent us a long list and was available to answer any and all our questions via phone and email:

fresh or frozen edamame? 

organic or conventional broccoli?

brown rice or whole wheat pasta? 

 

The awesome thing about her methodology, however, is that it really doesn't matter - her recipes work with almost any variety of ingredients.

 

When we arrived to our class (held in the rock star kitchen of one of said friends), Claudine was waiting with adorable recipe booklets.  We started by chopping and cleaning all our veggies while we cooked up some quinoa (which would serve as the base for two of our dinners) on the stove.

Meanwhile we began cooking a sample of one of our dinners.  Tomato-rosemary salmon with asparagus and bulgar:  

Take 1 cup of bulgar, 2 cups of broth and pour it in the bottom of a cooking dish

Cover bulgar with trimmed asparagus

Then top asparagus with salmon fillet seasoned with salt and pepper

Garnish with tomatoes and rosemary

 

Once the quinoa was ready, we prepared a sample of another night's meal: Miso-glazed black cod with edamame quinoa and a Miso slaw.  Sounded like something fancy enough to be served at a five-star restaurant, but with instructions and ingredients simple enough for me to actually make it at home. 

 

Unreal.

We also learned how to make:
> fresh pea risotto in the oven (seriously - how simple is THAT), to be served with roasted pesto chicken
> fish tacos (need I say more?)
> shrimp-broccoli-pesto pasta made in ONE POT - you cook the pasta, shrimp, and broccoli in the exact same water (adding them each in at a different time to perfect the cooking), drain them, toss with pesto, and top with pine nuts

The best thing about all of these dishes?  You can swap in any veggie or protein or grain depending on what you're in the mood for.

We went home with the basic ingredients prepped to make these five meals all on our own that week (veggies chopped, dressings and sauces made) plus the knowledge of how to make a plethora of nutritious meals down the road.  Pretty good deal if you ask me.

xoxo
KK

hosting made simple

So I have a tendency to be a bit overly ambitious when it comes to hosting parties.  I get all Martha Stewart on myself wanting to hand-craft everything from the invites to the decor to the cocktails to the snacks to the dessert. 

Time and time again, I've attempted such a soiree and the result is always the same:
I am scrambling around madly trying to finish everything before guests arrive,
I never do and end up spending the duration of my party in the kitchen (and begging my guests to assist),
and then everything turns out - well - mediocre. 
And you know how I feel about mediocrity: it sucks.

For my Stella & Dot trunk show, I decided to wave the white flag and do everything as easy as possible, with just a touch of homemade.

First, the invites:
Rather than hand-design and hand-make custom invites, I opted for one of Paperless Post's free varieties. 

Much cuter than I could have ever crafted

Then, the drinks:
I opted for just simple red and white wine with a few non-alcoholic options (limeade, iced tea, lemon-infused water).  No fancy cocktails here.

Next, the snacks:

 

Because my guestlist included a bunch of health-conscious babes, I did a big vegetable platter (all store-bought, pre-cut, already-washed varieties) complete with my signature dip (1 container of fat-free greek yogurt + a packet of ranch seasoning - you can eat the WHOLE thing and it's only 100 calories).

 

For my more savory snack, I took it up a notch yet still keeping it simple.  I bought a bunch of fresh baguettes, sliced them into extra-thin slices, tossed them with a bit of olive oil and salt, and toasted them in the oven until just on the verge of turning brown.

 

I let my fresh crostinis cool and then topped them with one of two super easy to assemble combinations.

One: crisp, crunchy fuji apple paired with creamy, buttery brie

Two: smooth, velvety ricotta topped with fresh figs and honey

I labeled them on our chalkboard cheese board

to make them extra special

Then last but not least - dessert:
Stefan stayed out of the apartment until later in the evening, arriving home right as it was time to quench everyone's sweet tooth.  Being the wonderful husband that he is, he happily picked up a tray of mini-pumpkin-spice cupcakes to pass around to the group.
"Wow, these are SO good," guests raved. "Did KK make these?"
Knowing that I am the type of person who would attempt such a thing, he replied: "Yes, yes - she did!"

Little did all my guests know that these little munchkins were not homemade, nor were they scored from one of San Francisco's plethora of cupcake shops which charge $4 a pop - all 24 of these little guys were purchased for a grand total of $1.99 at none other than Target. 

What are your go-to hosting secrets for making any soiree swoon-worthy without the stress?

xoxo
KK