With Memorial Day coming up next week, it’s time to start thinking about your plans for the long weekend. Whether you’re staying in town or traveling to a cooler climate, we can bank on there being an abundance of booze and food. It is an American holiday, after all. Rather than show up to your gathering of choice empty handed, we saw this awe inducing Strawberry Tart on Cupcakes and Cashmere and thought it selfish not to share. Bright, festive and drool worthy in appearance alone, this tart will have everyone thankful for a day dedicated to its enjoyment. C &C blogger, Emily, scored the recipe from Smitten Kitchen and recommends Seascape Strawberries for their sweetness, fragrance and vibrant color. Check out the recipe here and watch the process step-by-step to inspire your inner domestic goddess.

image via Cupcakes and Cashmere

The best way to keep warm in this cold weather? Just eat your way to a couple extra pounds and it’s just like throwing on a sweater. We have all the ways to pack on the “layers” with our redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs:

Melted cinnamon chocolate and a warm, freshly fried, sugar-coated churro sounds like the perfect start to our weight gain regime. Cupcakes and Cashmere dished how to make your own at home so you don’t have to venture out in the cold to face carnies or the crowds at Disneyland. The best part is you don’t need a deep fryer just a bubbling vat of oil, a thermometer and one of those nifty frosting piping bag with a churro shaped tip and the desire to be the toast of the town the next time a potluck holiday party invitation comes your way.

EaterAZ has some fighting words for Fox Restaurant Concepts in their most recent article, “Why We Hate Fox Restaurant Concepts” (subtle, no?), but turns out it was a love/hate relationship that spawned the nasty title. The new NoRTH in Arcadia is actually really good and every conceptual piece of the puzzle works, as per usual, right down to the trained flies on the patio. Okay, that last part may be a slight exaggeration, but the food is what really counts, right? Calamari, pork belly, “the burger”, the fall vegetable salad and some veggie sandwich we can’t pronounce were all highly recommended by the crew. Please read the fictitious tale of how the restaurant came to be as it is a true knee slapper.  »READ MORE

Boo! Ahh, Wednesday again. Candy is ’round every corner and pumpkin flavor has infiltrated pretty much everything edible. What does this mean for you you? Read all about it. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs: 

There are many things to love about fall. Since that tell-tale crisp air is non-existent, we have to rely on the food to bring about the true spirit of season. One of fastest ways to rot your teeth (but also one of the most delicious) is caramel corn and Cupcakes and Cashmere has all the deets on how to make it yourself. Butter, brown sugar melted and coated over perfectly snackable popcorn? We’ll take it. Here’s the recipe in all its oozing glory. »READ MORE

We have done the research and the “too much of a good thing” rule does not apply to food (blogs). Follow us down the rabbit hole and discover the joys of homemade peanut butter cups, anniversary celebrations and t.v. shows dedicated entirely to stuffing your face. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs:

In case you are reading this before your lunch break, we have a suggestion on where to go indulge thanks to Chow Bella. Turns out, Olive & Ivy is turning five years old today and rather than throwing a themed party and investing in a nightmare inducing clown, they are celebrating by practically giving away food (and literally giving away cake…guess that part is the same). Five dollar food and drink deals will be available all day. And, for the first 100 guests, free cake for dessert. High five! »READ MORE

My, my how the weeks fly. Wednesday is upon us once again and the AZCentral’s Arizona Taco Festival is so close we can smell the cilantro. Get your fill. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs: 

We love all things “hole-in-the-wall” which is why we were thrilled to hear about the new spot that opened up on Forest Ave. in Tempe. For college kids, this place is a mecca of convenience and delectability and use to house most amazing south Pacific inspired food from a place called Mai Island Grill. After Mai closed, it churned our gyros for a minute and has now been dubbed “Grilled Ave” according to Phoenix Rail Food. While similar to Mai Island Grill in theory and some presentation, Grilled Ave offers more Japanese and Korean flavors while offering “bento boxes” (like the Chicken Katsu box pictured) rather than the plate lunches of its predecessor. Teriyaki chicken, sushi and an eerily familiar macaroni salad are all on the menu so go check it out.

With Taco Town about to be erected next to Fashion Square, it is only right we pay homage to the 43 teams signed up to compete in the competition this Friday. The second annual Taco Festival is bringing new and diverse crows, according to (who else?) EaterAZ and our mouths are watering just reading about the talent coming through. No, we aren’t going to list all of them…in fact, we aren’t going to list any to avoid playing favorites in any way. If you have to know, you can read them here, but if you are all about the element of surprise then just know: they will all be delicious (some more than others so they can actually pick a winner to award the $7,500 cash prize). »READ MORE

If your stomach is growling and your blood sugar is so low you’re considering a trip to the vending machine as an alternative to eating your arm, you know it’s Wednesday afternoon. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs:

In honor of  New York Fashion Week, we thought it necessary to share this “Don’t Feed the Models” Cocktail recipe from Refinery 29. It’s funny and only an astonishing 178 calories. Suck one back to rock it like Miranda, Gisele or Heidi (even if you still look like a normal human being).  Recipe after the jump.  »READ MORE

Is there anything more comforting than a homemade chocolate chip cookie and a glass of milk? If so, please point the way as the summer time blues have set in for us big time. Thank goodness there are tireless food blog writers out there to help us through the lull. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs:

We think, just for this week, the blog Cupcakes and Cashmere should be retitled “Cookies and Cashmere” because of the amazing food porn to your left. Baked with Vahlrona chocolate chips and topped with Maldon sea salt (Emily’s own variations to the recipe), these classic chocolate chip cookies have us all nostalgic for simpler times. The recipe is available here courtesy of Real Simple and the result looks good enough to shove into your mouth by the fistful. »READ MORE

Hungry? Unfortunately we can’t really help you out with that this week. Not because we wouldn’t love to fatten you up Hansel and Gretel style, but because the blogs have spoken and food is not really on the menu. What we can offer you is a book review, 50 of the world’s best restaurants, five local restaurants participating in Restaurant Week, a popsicle recipe and a Chemical Brothers video. Hey, like we said, the blogs have spoken. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs. »READ MORE

It’s that time again. The best part of your week. The moment you’ve been waiting for. The time when you can take a sigh of relief because your endless page refreshing just to see this amazing headline has finally paid off. Here it is in all its glory: The in-depth review of Phoenix’s finest Food Bloggery brought to you by a food obsessed writer who (in all honesty) was forced in cruel and unusual ways to write this weekly post. But you don’t care about that, you just want the goods. Alright. we won’t deprive you any longer. Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs: »READ MORE

We’re going to keep this week’s food blog summation short and sweet. Sweet because we will be discussing everyone’s favorite indulgence: dessert. And short because not many people a) blogged or b) blogged specifically about desserts this week. Either way, your sweet tooth will be sated and satisfied. So release your inner Augustus Gloop and let the sugar coma commence:

Here’s a redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs. »READ MORE

Shove in mouth, chew, swallow, repeat. Apparently as fatty fat fattys with terrible eating habits, we Arizonan’s should do a little more to actually enjoy our food rather than mindlessly eating what’s put in front of us and then washing it down with 60 gallons of soda. With that in mind; Here’s a (healthy) redux of this week’s happenings in our favorite food blogs. And by healthy, we clearly mean beer, cheese and cheese infused fried beer battered things … »READ MORE

Get your crafting pants on because (drum roll, please) it’s DIY Friday! Time to channel your inner Bob Vila and transform some hideous vintage chairs into stylish pieces worthy of your rear. Recession friendly and easy as can be, Emily of Cupcakes and Cashmere offers this step-by-step guide on how to take flea market finds to a new level, which we will now gladly share with you.

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Let’s face it, you’re a winner. You’re one of those amazing people who receives flowers on your birthday, half birthday, anniversary, because you broke a nail arm, because you had a bad day, or for just being you. Your house is starting to fill up and you are running out of surface space in the kitchen and window sills to place all the fab vases. DLT and CupcakesAndCashmere.com have a solution. Why not hang them on the walls? »READ MORE