Spring Kitchen Refresh

We were so excited to visit Maria’s beautiful home!

She and her husband run the popular blog Two Peas & Their Pod, which if you haven’t read, you need to check out her food! I love getting recipes from her site even though I am not the best cook, but I’m slowly getting there. We started by styling her kitchen and giving it a spring refresh! See our latest webisode:

We just got this brush holder in the shop and we’re so excited about it. It’s neutral, textured and brings so much to the space while also holding brushes you might now want on display. It looks so pretty next to a beige planter.

We started by adding a great wooden cutting board that’s designed with a unique round handle, while also being functional. The vintage white colanders are great for adding different shapes to the shelving, while also contrasting with the cool black pitcher. We used out little salt cellar to tie in the black pitcher and provide a cute place to store salt. It’s all in the details! Limes were a perfect touch because green is her signature color! We threw them in a darker bowl so the limes would really stand out. We use these wood and marble stands in so many projects because they are vintage and modern at the same time. They work in so many kitchens!

You can never have enough storage in the kitchen! We like to add some clear canisters to store our visually appealing ingredients, and some stoneware canisters to conceal the rest while also adding texture.

We love this charming french crock. It holds utensils in style while pairing perfectly with our gray marble spoon rest. Pairing a spoon rest next to your spoons will make cooking so much easier. Every room in the house needs a candle! The dark green glass brings the perfect amount of color, while the candle can cover the scent of any accidental burning in the kitchen.

We love to swiftly store our recipes in this box because it looks pretty and works as a prop to hold up your cookbooks! To complete your makeshift bookend you can use decorative seltzer bottles to hold the other side up! We love how they add to the found, collected look we always strive for.

Can we talk about this pizza board? It makes a statement in the kitchen with its vintage logo and large size. It goes perfectly with our retro bread box and marble bowl. Since we have so many neutrals in this corner, we brightened it up with some fresh tangerines. We buy them from our local health food store because they have those decorative, whimsical leaves.

Now for the fun part! Maria made us some delicious wild rice and kale salad from her site. We learned some tricks like how to massage the kale leaves, how to make a lemon balsamic dressing everyone will like, and what you can add to make your salad less boring!

Kale and Wild Rice Salad

If you don’t have wild rice, brown rice will work too. If you don’t like goat cheese, feta cheese is also good. The salad is best the day it is made, but you can keep it in the refrigerator in a container for up to one day. I like the leftovers the next day. For the Salad:

• 1 large bunch kale
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• Pinch of Kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 cup cooked wild rice
• 1 large apple, chopped
• 1 avocado, chopped
• 1/4 cup dried cranberries
• 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
• 3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

For the Dressing:

• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 tablespoon fresh squeezed lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• Dash of salt and ground black pepper

1. In a large bowl, add the kale, olive oil, salt, and lemon juice. Massage the kale with your hands until the kale softens, about 2-3 minutes. Add the cooked wild rice, apple, avocado, dried cranberries, almonds, and goat cheese. Gently toss.

2. To make the dressing, combine the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice, maple syrup, and mustard in a small bowl or jar. Whisk until smooth. Season with salt and black pepper, to taste.

3. Drizzle dressing over the salad and gently toss. Serve immediately.