Over the days leading up to the start of Football Sunday, as Mike contemplated Fantasy Football, I contemplated home decor.  This is the 2nd year of FBS’s in our current condo of residence and I decided it was time for a decorative change.  As Mike pained over stats + projections + match-ups, I pained over frames + shapes + furniture.  Though his return on investment is still TBA, mine has already paid back double in aesthetics.

After a morning full of football recaps with intermissions of Ray Rice elevator footage commentary and overuse of the word “deactivated”, I left Mike to meet my friend Shereen for a chocolate croissant + cappuccino break.  This preceded an afternoon of home decor shopping down Queen St. West.  I was on the hunt for a few little touches to add some freshness to our home and Shereen was out for inspiration for her new condo.

Ideally, I would love to have purchased several new furniture pieces, but I’ve decided that we would make do with the furniture we have and invest in new ones once we are ready to move into our ‘forever’ home.  For the time being, I freshened up the place with 3 minor [but collectively major] home decor projects in combination with some decluttering.  Over the next couple weeks, I will leave Mike to his football as I busy myself with home decor.

…project 1: operation bar cart…

Since learning about all these ‘Ikea Hacks’ online last year, I’ve been itching to do one myself.  The need for a bar cart has been in my brain ever since Mad Men entered my TV viewing life.  Bar carts aren’t cheap [well at least the ones I want aren’t] and I have yet to find the exact one I have in mind.  To hold me over until I can find/afford the one I want, I Ikea hacked one.

This Ikea Hack is super easy and can cost as little as $57.60 [=$39.99 cart + 2 cans of spray paint @$5.49 + taxes].  The bar carts that I’ve noticed in furniture stores + vintage shops, were upwards of $300.  Mine came in under $200 with all my added cocktail accessories and additional cart components.  It’s gets as expensive as you choose to make it.

Here’s the step-by-step

[1] spray paint -since I was short on space, I left the cart dis assembled and spray painted the individual pieces | the paint dried in 15 minutes and I was able to get in 2 coats before sun down |  this will require about 1.5 cans of spray paint

[2] assemble – once dry, assemble cart  | if you have a the space to spray paint, it may be easier to assemble before hand

[3] accessorize -my first addition was this decorative tray | it was originally red and I spray painted it with a glossy white | I couldn’t be more pleased with its subtle shine and geometric shape that both add an extra decorative flare to the this conventional cart

This cart is equipped with a drawer – perfect for storing your muddler, spoons, coasters, bottle opener etc.

[4] alcohol -on the top shelf, stock your booze and other items that are more frequently used

[5] glassware -the middle shelf is perfect for rocks + short stemmed glasses as the drawer depth takes up some of the shelf height | on this shelf I stocked martini glasses + rocks glasses + a cocktail shaker + ice bucket + rimmer [** more on this below]

[6] more glassware -the bottom shelf has more height and can house your taller stemmed glasses.

[7] wine -my 2nd addition was a wine rack | I went with a more modular shaped rack to double as an extra glassware surface; perfect for my shot glasses! 

lower priced wine rack options:
ksp vina wine rack 6-bottle | Kitchen Stuff Plus | $14.99 | leave as is or spray paint white or gold
hutten 9-bottle wine rack | IKEA | $19.99 | + a coat of white paint would be affordably perfect
division nicket 6-bottle wine rack | Crate & Barrel | $34.95

**a cosmetics organizer turned rimmer! | this multi layer swivelling container allows you to store various salts and spices and is large enough to accommodate most glass circumferences – perhaps the most important part of a bar cart; for what is a caesar without a rim of celery salt?!

…the eats…

Last week I came home to 1 Mike + a pot of beans [in the form of chill] and this week I came home to 2 Mike’s + a pot of beans…and pork that had been slow cooking for over 6 hours!!!  As Mike entertained other Mike [a work colleague] over beers and football, Mike was slow cooking pork + baking bread + chopping apples and celeriac + stewing beans.  If you’ve yet to put it together, our FBS 2 meal was a pulled pork sandwich with a side of apple + celeriac coleslaw + ham hocks and beans.  

fresh baked buns

 apple + celeriac coleslaw

slow-cooked red beans with ham hocks

Mr. Pickles’s Pulled Pork
fr the book Come In, We’re Closed
by Christine Carroll + Jody Eddy

…ingredients…
[serves 5-6]

1/4c chipotle chiles in adobo
3tbs liquid smoke
1x 4-5lb bone-in pork shoulder roast
1/4c packed light brown sugar
1/8c kosher salt
1/8c smoked paprika
1tbsp coarsely ground black pepper
1tbsp chili powder
1tbsp onion powder
1/2tbsp powdered mustard
1.5c Johnny Two Sock’s BBQ Sauce

sliced dill pickles
1.5tbs water

in blender combine chipotle and their adobo sauce with liquid smoke + water | blend until smooth thick paste formed
place pork on a foil-lined sheet tray | coat w/ chipotle paste
combine brown sugar + salt + paprika + pepper + chill powder + onion powder + mustard | mix well
sprinkle entire shoulder w/ a thick layer of the spice blend
refrigerate for 12-24hrs

preheat oven to 225ºF [107ºC]
remove pork fr fridge | wrap completely in aluminum foil
prick pork shoulder about a dozen times with a skewer to allow the roasting juices to drain
place wrapped shoulder in a roasting pan
slow roast for 5-6hours or until meat is meltingly tender | temped between 200ºF [93ºC] + 225ºF [107ºC]
remove from oven | rest @ room temp for 1hr

to serve…
shred meat w/ fork or your hands | transfer to a large bowl
discard large chunks of fat or gristle
mix shredded meat w/ generous amount of bbq sauce so that its moist not wet [a ladleful or 2]
cover + keep warm in low one until ready to serve

layer on bun with pickles + extra bbq sauce.
be sure to keep napkins readily available; this may get messy

Johnny Two Sock’s BBQ Sauce
yields about 2 quarts [1.9L]

…ingredients…
8oz [227g] smoked bacon | coarsely chopped
1med yellow onion | coarsely chopped
3c Dr. Pepper
2c tomato paste
1c packed light brown sugar
1c freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2c molasses
1/2c white vinegar
1/4c smoked paprika
2tbs samabal oelek
2tbs onion powder
1tbs coarsely ground black pepper
1tbs garlic powder
1/2tsp liquid smoke + more to taste
kosher salt to taste

heat pot over med-high heat until hot
add bacon + cook until crispy | about 6min
add onion + sauté until translucent | about 6min
add Dr. Pepper + tomato paste + sugars + lemon juice + molases + vinegar + sambal + paprika + onion powder + garlic powder + liq smoke + 1.5c water | whisk to incorporate
lower heat and simmer for about 30 mins | occasionally stir
cook until sauce is reduced to a thick but pourable consistency
strain sauce through a fine mesh sieve | season w/ salt | cool to room temp = ready to serve

extra sauce stores well in fridge for several weeks or in freezer for several months

gold spray paint + bbq sauce + a Dallas win over Tennessee; what more can 1 ask for

xx