The Sound of Music Sing-a-long – closed

the-sound-of-music-1920x1080We’re lucky enough to get to attend a performance or two at the Hollywood Bowl every year. It’s always fun to pack a picnic and spend an evening watching a show. We’re big fans of the bowl, so I was really excited when I was offered a chance to give away a pair of tickets to The Sound of Music Sing-A-Long.

First of all, The Sound of Music is such a fantastic film. We re-watched it recently and it is just so great. Seeing it at the bowl would be such fun. One lucky reader will win a pair of tickets to the show on Saturday, September 21st.

All you need to do to enter is comment on this post and tell me your favorite song from The Sound of Music. For an extra entry, just become a fan of Cute + Delicious on facebook. Just make sure to tell me in a comment that you’ve done so. A winner will be selected at random.

This giveaway has closed! The winner, chosen by Random.org is AJ!

pie contest

vegan_pie 222I went to the KCRW pie contest this past weekend, even though it was quite warm out, I couldn’t resist the allure of pie. They had a vegan section and I was able to sample a few of the pies. There were a handful of savory pies like the one above, but they were mostly sweet pies. There was a lot of pie (so please excuse me if I get some of the flavors slightly off).

vegan_pie 219 This fruit pie had an awesome shortbread crust.

vegan_pie 221 Some of the vegan pies were also gluten free, like this cherry ginger pie.

vegan_pie 220 I ran into Trina who made this delicious lemon cream pie.

vegan_pie 224 Veronica made this amazing pumpkin pecan pie. I’m not even a fan of nuts and it was really good.

vegan_pie 225 Did I mention it was hot out? It was rough on the cream pies like this chocolate pudding pie with coconut cream.

vegan_pie 223vegan_pie 226 There were lattice berry pies and apple pies. I kind of just wanted to eat pie forever. I ended up making seitan pot pie for our food share inspired by all these pies.

There were lots of pretty pies that weren’t vegan that I’ll share below for the sake inspiration, because they could of course easily be made vegan. In truth I don’t know who won but it was fun to sample. Perhaps next year I’ll enter a pie myself.

labor day

labor_day 226labor_day 225labor_day 227This labor day seemed particularly long. Saturday feels like forever ago. We started out with hike in the San Gabriel valley. Since it was so hot, we chose a trail that we knew was shady, but it ended up being quite a bit warmer and more strenuous than we intended. It was still really nice to get outdoors though.

labor_day 220labor_day 224birthday_cake labor_day 219labor_day 228We celebrated my mother’s birthday with some friends. Isabelle made a lovely cake, and when it was remarked that she was becoming a regular Martha Stewart she replied: “Who’s that?” I still don’t feel remotely old but it is slightly strange to see kids I used to babysit grow into adults. Time is curious.

I made some baked spinach artichoke dip for the occasion. I tried something different from the last spinach artichoke dip but I think I like the original recipe better. I’m still tinkering.

I tried this new vegan ice cream that my mom picked up. It was quite good, but more than that, the cold brewed coffee was serious stuff. I probably wouldn’t be writing this post right now if it weren’t for that ice cream.

labor_day 221labor_day 222labor_day 223 We played games including a short but lively game of baseball, where one of the dogs would steal the ball if you hit it too far. Does this make it sound like I played? I did not. Though I did enjoy playing a game of Minotaur. I’m more of a board game kind of girl.

Other things:

  • Meeme and Mochi turned 5! Those little rascals. I love those cats so much it’s ridiculous.
  • We saw Blue Jasmine which I really loved. I’m usually not particularly fond of films about ultra rich people, but Cate Blanchett is truly fantastic. I really thought that everyone was great actually. Even though it’s a tale of distress, it’s still fun to watch. I like many Woody Allen films, but I am not an uber fan as I find many people are. Yet, I think that the “Allenness” of this film makes it work. It was entertaining and surprising. Shawn pointed out it’s has some similarities to A Woman Under the Influence, one of my favorite films.
  • I guess this weekend means that the end of summer is nigh, but it’s been terribly hot. I can’t wait for the cool fall air to make an appearance.

Did you do anything fun or relaxing this weekend?

the fourth

photoWith the fourth of July on a Thursday and no exciting BBQ plans, Shawn and I went on a bike ride down to the beach. We hopped on the Ballona Creek bike path and rode to the beach. The ride is just long enough to feel like you’re going somewhere, but not too long to be strenuous. We hung out for a bit at Mustache Bridge, ate popsicles and just enjoyed the cool beach air.

bike rideIt’s been nearly a year since I tried to figure out some kind of exercise routine. I still haven’t figured it out. It’s really time to start being mindful of having more activity in my life, as much too much of it is spent sitting at a desk or on the couch.

Besides all that, the rest of the holiday was lovely. We feasted on vegan chili dogs and potato salad and watched SCARFACE and JAWS with friends.

vegan pizza day 2013

vegan_pizza_ 221vegan_pizza_ 220Vegan pizza day was this past Saturday and as usual we went all out. Joined by Jenn and Scott, we trekked out to Woodland Hills to visit the original Pizza Cookery. We’re huge fans of this restaurant. Not only do they have an old school family atmosphere, they’re also one of the last hold outs serving Follow Your Heart cheese (which I prefer over Daiya). They also have the most amazing cheesy garlic knots. I dream about these damn things. Which is all to say, it’s worth the drive out there, even if it’s 100 degrees out. We all split a southwestern pizza, which had a bbq pizza sauce and vegan bbq chicken. Good stuff. Great way to start the day.

vegan_pizza_ 223vegan_pizza_ 224vegan_pizza_ 222vegan_pizza_ 225 Next stop was Mowhawk Bend where we met up with a few more friends. They had a bunch of specials for the occasion including the infamous macaroni & cheese calzone. Unfortunately, the specials were all kind of a let down. I was super excited about the new trinity pizza topped with cashew cheese but it was severely lacking with no sauce and just a thin layer of cheese. The peach pizza was the biggest hit of the bunch, but more of a dessert than anything. Mostly we just enjoyed the drinks and good company.

vegan_pizza_ 219 No vegan pizza day is complete without a trip to Masa of Echo Park where we’ve visited for vegan pizza day last year and the year before. I can’t get enough of their deep dish pizza, which really means I can eat about two slices before feeling like I’m going to explode but they’re so good.

It was quite a pizza adventure. Maybe next year we’ll have our own pizza party.