Guest Post - Maggie of SPICE

Today I want welcome one of my fave bloggers, Maggie of the amazing food blog SPICE.

My mouth literally waters as I read and obsess over her recipes and pictures.

Her posts are awesome and entertaining! I check her blog religiously.

Enjoy!

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I am beyond excited to be here at Susannah Styles! Not only do I adore Susannah’s blog, but I’ve been in her wonderful kitchen and know she is quite the chef (and hostess).

My name is Maggie and I blog over at SPICE about my culinary adventures and life after graduating from Ole Miss.  I am currently in my second to last phase of culinary school in Memphis. Thanks for letting me share one of my very favorites recipes on one of my very favorites blogs.

As far as I’m concerned it’s still grilling season. Yes it’s the middle of October and yes I pulled out my boots and Barbour this weekend, but it is still 80 degrees and football season, right?

I am about to share with you the very best burger recipe. Ever. I wouldn’t lie to you, I promise these are the best burgers you will ever put in your mouth. The coolest part is, you can make them at home. So get out your kitchen aid and fire up your grill, it’s time to house ground your own burgers.

Recipe adapted From Cook's Illustrated.

Makes 4 burgers.

INGREDIENTS

10 
ounces sirloin steak tips , cut into 1-inch chunks (see note) or T-bone (what we use at the Giffin household)

6 
ounces beef short ribs (boneless), cut into 1-inch chunks


Kosher salt and ground black pepper

1
 tablespoon unsalted butter

4
 hamburger buns , soft 

4
 slices American cheese


thinly sliced onion

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place beef chunks on baking sheet in single layer, leaving 1/2 inch of space around each chunk. Freeze meat until very firm and starting to harden around edges but still pliable, 15 to 25 minutes.

2. Meanwhile,  Ignite about 6 quarts (1 large chimney or about 6 pounds) charcoal and burn until coals are completely covered with thin coating of light gray ash, 20 to 30 minutes. Spread coals evenly over grill bottom, position grill rack above the coals, and heat until medium-hot (you can hold your hand 5 inches above grill surface for no longer than 3 or 4 seconds).

3. Using kitchen aid grinder attachment feed meat cubes through, being sure to alternate cuts, sprinkle with kosher salt along with way. After the meat is ground, mom lays beef on a 1/2 sheet tray, covers it, and then lays another 1/2 sheet on top and presses until the ground beef is fully flat and even (this ensures equal burgers). When your ready to grill, portion the patty’s. Grill to medium/medium rare and serve with toasted and buttered buns

Mom and I made these burgers a few weekends ago when I came home for a visit, we had our burgers with bacon-fat French fries, enjoy yours however you please and be prepared to eat more than one.

Monday's Must Have

The T3 Bespoke Featherweight Dryer, Tourmaline II

That is a big, fancy name for this awesome hair dryer.

I don't have super thick hair but I have a ton of hair on my head.

I had been using a Chi hair dryer and it took me at least 10 minutes to dry my hair.

My sister got me the T3 hair dryer for my birthday.

It takes me at the most 5 minutes to dry my hair

AND

that little contraption at the end of the dryer helps to blow it out straighter and with less frizz.

As Heather on the RHONYC would say "Hollllaaaa!!!"

Sally also gave me the diffuser attachment because she knows our hair will break off if we straighten it every day.

Highly recommend this for curly headed people!

Get it here.

I asked my sister Sally what she does to her to get her curls so light and smooth. 

Here is what she does and how I tried to copy her...

She starts with damp hair and adds Aveda Be Curly 

Sorry about the pics! Cam wasn't around to help me.

 Then she flips her entire head over and diffuses her hair upside down.

Next, she flips her hair back over and finishes with a little Bumble and Bumble Surf Spray.

I flipped my hair back over and went back through with a small curling iron to fix the crazy curls around my face.

I highly recommend the T3 Bespoke hair dryer! It's SO fast, super light weight, and does a fabulous job!

Voila!

5 Things I Love

True life.

Blondbre? Blonde + Ombre 

Loving it on LC but is it for me?

2013 someecards Calendar

Light up the Family letter  boxes. Novogratz for CB2.

Love my furry little friends. TONS of snuggling with them the past week.

They both got out of our backyard Saturday without us knowing.

A sweet lady led Rosie back to our house but Gus was missing for 30 mins.

Doesn't seem like a long time to most but I was losing it. I wasn't ready to for him to leave me yet.

I was going back and forth from hysterical to "YOUR HIS MOTHER YOU HAVE TO FIND HIM" mode.

After a while another sweet lady called and had him in her house.

Thank the LORD for kind people. These are not "outside dogs."

I'm about to cry again writing about it. I've had a rough week y'all. 

SO, squeeze and snug with your pups a little more this weekend. I was def not ready for my Gussie to go away.

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Yoga & "Just Anxiety"

This post is going to be a bit more real that my usual ones. So heads up!

Over the last year, I have become obsessed with yoga.

To the point where I almost signed up for a sixth month course to become a yoga instructor. But I would have had to miss the Ole Miss-Georgia game. Ohhhhh no. #priorities

I take classes at Joyflow Yoga in Ridgeland, MS. 

It's a good workout but nothing too serious.

The most positive thing I have gotten from yoga is the affect it has on my attitude and anxiety.

At times my anxiety can get out of control.

I literally make myself sick from being so anxious. Not fun. Not cute.

For example, the morning of our drive to Fernandina.

(the first night of our Islamorada trip we stayed there to break up the drive) 

I was doing fine. I had gotten up, dressed, and ready to go. Then all of the sudden, I started thinking about all of these "what if's"?

What if I get sick from my stomach problems on the ride down there?

I hate being sick at a gas station!

What if it rains the whole time?

It will be a waste of my parent's money!

What if we don't get along with Sally's new boyfriend?

I will def be the reason for that!

What if Gus' eyegunk comes back while we are away?

I can't find his meds!!

I know, I know. First worst problems. White girl problems. Whatever.

All of that raced through my mind in the span of seconds.

I started sweating and getting stomach cramps.

I went into my usual anxiety attack mode and then all of the sudden I got control. 

I went into Cam's office, turned off the lights, and turned on the fan.

Cold air works wonders for me.

For some reason, it just hit me that everything I was feeling and thinking was "just anxiety".

For not-so-anxious people this doesn't seem like a big deal but for an anxiety freak to realize that it's "just anxiety" is HUGE. 

Cam can tell me a hundred times that it's "just anxiety" and I while I appreciate him trying to help I will still continue to panic. 

Anyways, I was in Cam's office in the dark and decided to try a few yoga positions to see if that relieved my stomach pain. 

After only five minutes of basic poses and stretches, I felt a million times better.

Centered. Relaxed stomach. 

No I didn't feel amazing, I was still kind of shaky but my breathing and stomach were much calmer. 

But still. Just knowing that yoga can help me control my anxiety and it's side effects is amazing. 

Success!!

Well I think that's enough about me and my issues.

I highly recommend trying yoga if you have some of the same issues that I do.

It's good for you.

To anyone reading in Jackson, I love taking classes at Joyflow and would love to have you join me!

I have also tried Jillian Micheals' yoga workout dvd. I do not recommend. it.

Jillian is a man hoss. 

She is all about making you sweat not so much on the calming and centering.

I recommend following Yoga Journal on Pinterest and downloading Yoga Free on your iPhone or iPad.

They are great to refresh your memory on poses if you are traveling or haven't been to a class in a while. 

I like to do this sequence if I am feeling anxiety coming on.

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Try it sometime! 

My Nephew's 1st Birthday

Last week my darling nephew turned one.

First of all, I literally cannot believe that I am someone's aunt and that that person is now ONE. I feel like he was just born. It's nuts.

Second of all, I LOVE A PARTY. ESPECIALLY A THEMED PARTY!

Jack's party was absolutely adorable!

It was a candy themed party called "Jack's Sweet Shoppe". The invitation was so sweet! Ha :) 

"Regrets to the Sugar Mama" Love it.

I have always admired my sister-in-law's taste but she blew me away with this party.

I think it was the attention to detail that got me the most. So precious!

The birthday boy with his sweet mama and grandparents.

The entrance to their house. Love this sign! 

It was made specially for Jack by Celebration Yard Candy in Tyler, TX. 

CUTE stuff!

 Love their giant storks. 

LOVE.

The candy bar. 

Every detail is covered from the table cloth to the personalized banner to the individual description tags on the candy. 

Personalized stickers on each candy bag that read "Thank you for making my birthday so sweet!"

The drink station featured "Sugar Mama's Sweetheart Cocktails" and personalized cups that said "Jack is one!".

I love personalized cups for a children's birthday party. 

Hart Hopkins family in Waycross, GA dominated the birthday cups every year when I was growing up! 

It was a very common occurrence as a child to visit any of my friend's houses and be served a drink in one of the several cups from any of Hart's birthday parties. 

Snacks, goodies, and another really cute set up. 

Big kids playing. Even the swing set was decorated. 

More party goers and super cute lanterns!

Sweet Baby Jack enjoyed his cake!

So sad that he won't be a baby for much longer but I can't wait for more precious parties like this one as he grows up. 

Monday's Must Have

I first stumbled on to Amanda Sterett's jewelry at Bridgette's in Tyler, Texas last year. Tyler has great shopping!

Her earrings are my fave. Just stunning. I fell in love. 

When I got back to Jackson, I started stalking Amanda Sterett's website and I was sold.

Not only does she design all of the pieces herself, she also teaches refugee women the art of jewelry making so that they can earn money. Such a beautiful thing to do. Brings tears to my eyes as I'm typing.

Here are some of my favorite pieces from her fall 2012 collection.

Rose Earring 

Chloe Earring

Bennett Earring

Parker Earring

Girl Crush

Allison Williams of Girls on HBO

Currently obsessing over Allison Williams this week. She was my favorite from the Emmy's last week.

LOVED her make up. LOVED!

If you want to read more about how to get Allison's Emmy look, click here. 

She just seems like such a sweet, normal girl that you could watch Bravo with. 

And she's gorgeous and has a great, timeless style. 

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