RORI'S ORGANIC ICE CREAM COMES TO SANTA MONICA!

Our very favorite ice cream, once only available in Santa Barbara and Montecito, has just opened a brand new shop in Santa Monica! Rori's Artisanal Creamery is the creamiest, highest quality ice cream out there and we just about lost our minds when we learned they were coming to LA. We stopped by over the weekend to celebrate their arrival.

These little hooligans couldn't get enough.

You can grab pints to-go, like I did. 

Check out these ingredients. Stellar stuff!!

Two scoops of Fresh Mint Patty for me after Brixton went to bed! ;) Welcome to LA, Rori!!! xx

Rori's Artisanal Creamery is located at: 910 Montana Ave., Santa Monica

DISNEYLAND

Yesterday we took Brixton to Disneyland for the first time. It's something I have been wanting to do since the day he was born. Jason and I used to go to Disneyland all the time, so we were really excited to take him. It was "interesting" with a toddler. Haha. The concept of waiting in line is still a bit foreign to Brixton so we didn't go on many rides. ("It's A Small World" went the best of the rides we did do). He LOVED the characters. That was the best part for him.

And these are both obvious tips but the two other things I would change/suggest:

1. Go in cooler months. I don't think heat makes it any easier for kids who are already exhausted by the long day and over-stimulating experience. Next time I think we'll go during the non-summer months.

2. If you plan to bring a stroller, make it as lightweight as possible. My jogger (as much as I love it) was WAY too big. It was extremely difficult to get on and off the tram and navigating through the crowds. A small and light stroller is ideal. 

My main concern with our visit was actually the food situation. So I spent a little time the day before to prep a picnic lunch and snacks, and I'm really happy I did. Before we left in the morning, I packed up our large camping cooler with the food and ice packs. When it was getting close to lunch, I went to the car for the cold food and brought everything back in a disposable bag. I tried to pack just enough food so that I didn't have to waste anything that wouldn't keep outside of the cold packs.

Disneyland doesn't have open grass for picnicking, so I set up our lunch on a lovely little bench at the beginning of Main Street. I brought a Turkish towel that friend Brandy gave to me as our "linen." I used a large piece of parchment paper as my "platter" which was tossed in the trash when we were done! I made egg salad sandwiches on Ezekiel bread, cruditΓ©s with my favorite spinach and leek dip from Joan's on 3rd and cheeses, crackers and salami. 

We love LA Croix sparkling water, which was nice and cold from the cooler!

The egg salad sandwiches held up well in the cooler too. 

Brixton found his ideal woman in Cinderella.

And I found good lighting for a selfie.

Kisses for Mickey.

For dinner, we went to La Brea Bakery in Downtown Disney.

Pappardelle with sausage and braised short rib. 

All fun days must end in ice cream. It's the law. We stopped by HΓ€agen-Dazs in Downtown Disney for our scoops.

Till next time, Disneyland! You were great! xx

My outfit - Overalls: Madewell, Purse: 3.1 Philip Lim via NET A PORTER, Shoes: Adidas, Hat: Brixton

Brixton's Mickey T-shirt: Atsuyo Et Akiko

IT'S ICE CREAM SEASON: RORI'S ARTISANAL CREAMERY

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Santa Barbara-based Rori's Artisanal Creamery is one of our all-time favorites and we were more than happy to go and eat their ice cream for "the sake of the blog." If you find yourself in the Santa Barbara area and needing the most delicious organic ice cream, Rori's has two locations: one in Montecito at the Montecito Country Mart and the other in downtown Santa Barbara, inside the SB Public Market. 

Why we love Rori's: 

Their grass-fed, organic ice cream, made with Straus Family Creamery dairy, is some of the creamiest ice cream I have ever tasted. They also make their own regular and gluten-free cones. 

Their cute SB Public Market location.

Take some to go!

Fresh mint patty and John Martin (coconut and chocolate chunk) on a gluten-free cone went down real easily.

B ate the top and the bottom of his vanilla cone. Can't wait for my next Rori's scoop! xx

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GLUTEN-FREE PEACH + BLUEBERRY CRUMBLE

I am continuing the #NationalPeachMonth party today with this gluten-free and refined sugar-free peach + blueberry crumble. I have been making this a lot lately and it has been quite the crowd pleaser! I like that the crumble is "real food," packed with organic fruit and sweetened with maple sugar, instead of refined or cane sugar. And it's got lots of good healthy butter! Say what?! "HEALTHY BUTTER?!" See my post from last week about the health benefits of high quality, grass-fed butter. So here we go! Let's make a summer fruit crumble for the whole family to enjoy!

Filling Ingredients:

5 - Medium Sized Peaches, cut in 1/3" slices

3 Cups (1-1/2 Pints) - Blueberries

1/2 Cup -  Maple Sugar

1/4 Cup - Pamela's All Purpose Gluten-Free Flour

Juice of One Lemon

2 Teaspoons Cinnamon

1 Dash of Salt

6 Tablespoons - (Good Organic!) Cold Butter, Cubed

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Preheat overn to 375 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine peach slices, blueberries, maple sugar, gluten-free flour, lemon juice, cinnamon and salt. Gently toss until fruit is completely covered by the other ingredients. Add butter cubes and toss until better pieces are thoroughly scattered around the fruit. Pour fruit filling into a pie dish and bake for about 30-35 minutes, until the blueberries start breaking. You want to make sure that you see blueberry "goo" before you proceed to the next step. 

While the fruit filling is cooking, make the crumble topping.

Crumble Ingredients:

1-1/2 Cups - Finely Ground Almond Flour

3/4 Cup - Almond Meal

1/2 Cup - Maple Sugar

1/4 Teaspoon - Salt

1/4 Teaspoon - Cinnamon

6 Tablespoons - Butter (left at room temp for 5-10 minutes. If butter is soft, it won't make crumble as well), cubed

**I like the combination of two almond flours for the topping. I prefer the taste of the finely ground flour but I think adding a little course meal adds better texture. If you only want to bother with one type, use finely ground flour and make it total 2-1/4 cups.

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In a clean bowl, combine the almond flour, almond meal, maple sugar, salt and cinnamon. Stir until combined. 

Add butter cubes and with your hands, mix into the dry mixture, until the crumble looks like damp corn meal.

Place the crumble back into the oven and bake for 20-30 minutes, until the crumble topping is golden brown. 

Allow to cool for 30 min. before serving. Serve with homemade or Straus Organic Vanilla Bean Ice Cream for the ultimate summer treat. 

IT'S ICE CREAM SEASON: SALT & STRAW

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Our ice cream series continues with crowd favorite, Salt & Straw! Founded by two cousins in Portland, Salt & Straw began with a push cart and quickly became one of the West Coast's most beloved ice creams, expanding to three shops in their flagship city and one in LA.

Why we love Salt & Straw:

Their "farm-to-cone" ice cream, using fresh, local ingredients, is out of this world delicious. They have some of the best flavor combinations out there and have been hailed by The Wall Street Journal as "the new standard to beat." 

And for you die-hard fans, you can join their "Pints Club" and for $65/month have five seasonal pints delivered to your door.

Charming exterior in LA's Larchmont Village.

If you would like to think of Salt & Straw at all times, you can purchase a mug for your morning coffee.

I'd be more than happy to take some of these babies home.

Double scooper 4LYFE. On top: Sea Salt with Caramel Ribbons and my fave Salted, Malted Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough.

Hubby opted for a classic Root Beer Float. 

Salt & Straw, Los Angeles is located at:

240 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles. 10AM-11PM Daily.

We will continue our ice cream endevours until the fall! 

xx!

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