Bed & Breakfast at Home

For those that aren't homebodies by nature, this "Safer at Home" ordeal might seem a bit oppressing. Even though I'm an introvert and revel in most every moment I get to spend at home, there are things I do miss. Church, chorale, dessert and coffee at Barnes & Noble, shoe shopping at DSW. (Online shopping is still a possibility, as far as I know!)

But instead of dwelling on what we don't have right now, let's think about what we do have. This is a significant gift of time. Time to clean the house, bake, go for walks, pamper yourself. Whatever you didn't have time to do before this, now's your chance.

With this post, I hope to provide some ideas for how to turn your home into a bed & breakfast. To make it wonderfully cozy so that you feel as if you're on vacation.

A Long, Hot Bubble Bath

Honestly, I'm more of a shower person. It's a bit faster than drawing a bath, and I think my hair gets rinsed out better. Baths are an occasional thing for me. But rarity equals luxury, am I right? When the news gets to be overwhelming, it's important to take a break and relax, if only for an hour.

Baths are my one weakness. ~Dorcas Lane, Larkrise to Candleford

This bathtub caddy was from Victorian Trading Co. a few years back, and is sadly no longer available. Shop a similar style at Pottery Barn. Or a more cost effective option would be to place a chair near the tub to hold all those extra bath items - book, candle, wine glass, towel, etc. Necessity is the mother of invention. :)

A Well-Made Bed

It's finally time for the semi-annual flannel/cotton switcheroo. This is one of my favorite parts about spring (aside from the trees budding out, and birds chirping, and flower bulbs shooting up from the ground... There's a lot to love about spring, what can I say?) Putting on some crisp cotton sheets feels so refreshing after months of fuzzy flannel.

A Filling, French-Inspired Breakfast

After being intimidated by crêpes for a while, I decided to give them a try. They seemed awfully delicate, but turns out they're just as easy to handle as pancakes, if you use the right kind of pan. I've been using a 12" ceramic frying pan, which has a generous surface area to work in. With a bit of melted butter, the ceramic is wonderfully non-stick and releases the crêpes like a charm. Here's a great recipe for these classic French pancakes. I love that you can whip everything together in the blender and make the batter ahead.

Flavor profile ideas

Just to get the ball rolling, but as always, feel free to be creative!

• Lemon curd and blueberries

• Cream cheese filling and strawberries

• Whipped cream and raspberries, with chocolate shavings

• Pecan streusel filling with maple syrup

And before I sign off, a delightful quote from Frasier, one of my very favorite sitcoms. Here's Niles explaining the best time to season your pans...

Saucepans in summer and crêpe pans in fall, when winter's upon us there's food for us all.

Let's make the most of this time at home!

Thank you for stopping by,

Eva