Honey Butter

Honey Butter is simple but a showstopper. Taking 5 extra minutes to prepare this yummy stuff will go a long way with your guests and/or your tastebuds. The ingredient list couldn’t be simpler, honey + butter, just like the name states. Take equal parts of your favorite honey and salted butter and make your way to the closest mixer.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 cup salted butter (room temp)

• 1/2 cup honey

DIRECTIONS

1. Using a mixer (hand or stand) begin whipping the room temperature butter.

2. Once whipped, add the honey a little at a time, whipping after each addition.

3. When all honey has been added, whip for about a minute more on high. Transfer to a ceramic or glass bowl and cover. Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Better than your Mama's Cornbread

Being from Los Angeles, cornbread wasn’t ever high on my list of favorite foods because frankly, I hadn’t really had many opportunities to enjoy it. I went to college in Arkansas and later moved to Houston, Texas post college and while in the south had quite a few chances to enjoy my share of cornbread. Sadly, they all seemed dry to me and not worth the calories until, the Houston Rodeo. Chili & cornbread: Hit. The. SPOT. I wasn’t sure if it was the phenomenal chili or the best cornbread I’d ever tasted or maybe both. What I did know was that I now had a mission to accomplish. Recreate the goodness.

My mom had a solid chili recipe that I knew I could dress up so I decided to tackle the cornbread. Like any good search, I started with Google and read recipe after recipe, surveyed reviews, looked at pictures and finally settled on a highly rated recipe that described the end result as moist. I figured that was as good a place as any to start and over the next year, I continued to play with the recipe until I found “the goodness”.

If you’re looking for a dense, salty-sweet cornbread that pairs well with, well, everything, look no further than the recipe below. Don’t thank me, thank the Houston Rodeo.

INGREDIENTS

• 2/3 cups salted butter (plus a little extra for topping)

• 1 cup granulated sugar

• 3 large eggs

• 1 2/3 cups whole milk

• 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

• 4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

• 1 cup medium grain cornmeal

• 1 teaspoon salt

• Approx. 4 tablespoons honey

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 400F.

2. Cream room temperature butter and sugar together.

3. Add in eggs and milk, combine.

4. Sift in flour and baking powder, mix together.

5. Add cornmeal and salt to batter, mix just until combined.

6. Grease 9 x 13” glass baking pan and pour in batter.

7. Cut slivers of butter and place about 12 small pieces (each piece about 1/4 tablespoon or less) across the top of the batter. Drizzle with honey. Bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean.

The Extended Pack

We’re dog lovers. Did I mention that? One more time, DOG LOVERS. My family has always had a family dog or two so I’ve never been without a dog in my life. At this point I can’t imagine life without a dog because every worthy memory I have is tied to a dog with a loyal and loving heart. Over the years we’ve had the best pups that have made my life so colorful and I think the other doggies in our life at the moment, the Extended Pack, deserve a shoutout for, well, just being their cute, quirky selves.

FAYE & RUSTY

Long story short, I had the great idea to bring home puppies from an Arkansas shelter while I was home for Christmas break during college. Two long plane rides, and two puppies later, I had one for Kainoa (older brother) and one for Nakoa (younger brother). If any of you know what it’s like to bring home a puppy, or in this case, puppies, it’s instant love. And chaos. And sleepless nights. And chewing. And potty training. And the list goes on and on and on and yet, it’s all beyond worth it. Faye and Rusty are from the same litter and are a medley of Shepard, Boxer, and others (we think the more breeds the merrier!!!).

Faye - 7 yrs old + female + sweet + calm + daddy’s girl

Rusty - 7 yrs old + male + curious + cuddler + fort master + daddy’s boy

OLIVER

The newest addition comes in the form of an 8 month old Miniature Goldendoodle named Oliver. True to his breed he’s a smart little guy and true to his age, very curious. My younger brother’s girlfriend Cathy, affectionately known (by me) as Kitty, is his mama and introducing a puppy to a mature group of dogs was an unknown. Let’s just say we’ve had varied reactions.

Bagheera, the sweet one of the group turned out to be a grumpy old man and wants Oliver to follow the rules and stay out of his space. We were definitely surprised.

Rusty and Penelope, the difficult ones, had the typical reaction: assert dominance and attempt to bite if the puppy approaches. No surprises here.

Faye has been the star of the show and the keeper of Oliver’s heart. She plays well with Oliver but is stern when needed and Oliver thinks the world of Faye.

The Origin Story

2012 was a good year.  I graduated from college, moved to Stafford, Texas and in with my boyfriend Zac.  We didn’t really know anyone in the area and the apartment felt quiet.  I then did what any reasonable person would do and jumped on Petfinder.com to see if there was a furry friend in my area that would like our home.

Well, I found my soulmate when I saw a robust, white dog with spotted ears.  She looked like something I needed to squeeze and just like that, I knew she was the one.  We adopted Penelope from Noah’s Ark Bayou Sanctuary in Alvin, Texas. She was about four years old, severely overweight, heartworm positive, riddled with skin cancer and had a lazy disposition; but she was mine.

We brought her home and we were instantly inseparable.  Zac put Penelope on a diet and workout plan which consisted of walking down the stairs once a day (and carried all others) because that’s all she could manage.  Over time Penelope had numerous surgeries to take care of her health issues and by the end of the year, we were looking at a different dog with a new lease on life. 

Six years later and she’s still my very best girl.  You can follow Penelope on Instagram @pink_white_plump_lovely.

By 2013 Penelope was quickly becoming a spoiled only child.  Everyone and everything was living and breathing just for her.  So, we started up the search again on, you guessed it, Petfinder.com.  We knew Penelope needed a male counterpart that was bigger than Penelope, so she would be forced to get along.  Penelope tends to think of herself as large and in charge.  Noah’s Ark Bayou Sanctuary came up in our search and we had such a great experience the first time that we started looking at their adoptable dogs.

Even through my computer screen I could tell he was a shy boy.  His big brown eyes were calling my name and we quickly found ourselves in Zac’s truck heading down the highway to Alvin, Texas. 

Bagheera was timid when we arrived and had lived at the shelter for 4 years.  He was one of the most tenured guests and we were nervous because Penelope tends to think of herself as everyone’s boss and we weren’t sure how she’d act.  Penelope and Bagheera met and seemed unphased which was a shock.  Turns out, they lived together the entire time they were at the shelter because Bagheera was the only dog Penelope could get along with.  Meant to be?  I think yes.  Bagheera wasn’t sure about Zac and wouldn’t let the Zac pet him so I called him to me to see if he was more trustful of girls.  He sniffed me cautiously and then BAAAAM, my face was covered in sloppy kisses.  

You can probably guess the rest, but in case you can’t, Bagheera came home with us that day and we became a family of 4. 

P.S. Zac quickly became Bagheera’s favorite and still holds that spot today