We love fridays...

Kit and I are always off on fridays and we really try to make sure that we don't plan stuff so that we can just have a date day. Needless to say, we have had a really fun day being together. We had breakfast in a hole in the wall place in Brea called Choice Burgers.

(Don't let the name fool you, the breakfasts are really good...)

Then we headed to the Apple store, which Kit could seriously spend HOURS in. (It is fun to see all the new products and toys...) We are now the owners of snow leopard (which, thanks to my favorite nerdling, will make my technology life so much easier and faster.) Then we headed to Williams-Sonoma and finally found a jalapeno stuffed pepper griller.

(Our friends Mark and Jamie introduced us to it and it has changed our grilling lives...) The options are endless of how you could personalize your jalapenos.

Then we headed to Trader Joe's and got some ingredients to make the following recipe for lunch. Giada really has a gift. We made this recipe and we both loved it. It's crazy easy too!

Tuscan White Bean and Garlic Soup

and Grilled Crustini Bread

~from Giada~

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 1 sage leaf
• 2 (15-ounce) cans cannelloni beans, drained and rinsed
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 4 cloves garlic, cut in 1/2
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 6 slices ciabatta bread
• Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Directions

Place a medium, heavy soup pot over medium heat. Add the butter, olive oil, and shallot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallots are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the sage and beans and stir to combine. Add the stock and bring the mixture to a simmer. Add the garlic and simmer until the garlic is softened, about 10 minutes. Pour the soup into a large bowl. Carefully ladle 1/3 to 1/2 of the soup into a blender and puree until smooth. Be careful to hold the top of the blender tightly, as hot liquids expand when they are blended. Pour the blended soup back into the soup pan. Puree the remaining soup. Once all the soup is blended and back in the soup pan, add the cream and the pepper Keep warm, covered, over very low heat.

Place a grill pan over medium-high heat. Drizzle the slices of ciabatta bread with extra-virgin olive oil. Grill the bread until warm and golden grill marks appear, about 3 minutes a side. Serve the soup in bowls with the grilled bread alongside.

We hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as we did. Again, this woman is brilliant!

Happy Friday!