Posts from — June 2013

This is by far the cutest looking post I ever put up – in all its peach and yellow glory. But I just had to join the paleta craze by making a few of my own. My son loves mangos. I love peaches. We both love popsicles. Win-win situation.

Ingredients
1 cup of puréed mango (I bought mine already peeled at Trader Joe’s)
1 cup of puréed peaches (I boiled them first and removed the skin before putting them in the blender)
2 tablespoons of raw sugar
1/4 cup of water

Preparation
Heat the water and add sugar until it dissolves. Combine the purées in a mixing bowl and stir in the water/sugar mix. Fill your molds to the top (I left a little bit of room) and that’s it! This will fill 6 large molds or 8 small ones. I left it in the freezer about 4 hours.

The only time I got a chance to throw on a pair of sexy heels this week was when I went to the Hammer Museum last Friday evening. Every time I go, I have to stop at Gustave Moreau’s Salomé Dancing before Herod. It is by far my favorite depiction of Salomé, who I became obsessed with when I first saw Regnault’s version at the Met (many moons ago). I can’t explain why my subconscious mind is drawn to this femme fatale, but it is. Oh, who am I kidding. The story of Salomé is enthralling and full of sex and violence. It’s like watching a captivating film except in this case your mind finishes the story. For example, Moreau’s painting does not show the head of John the Baptist. It focuses solely on Salomé, who appears magical. Her posture is delicate and demanding at the same time. And being the Baudelaire and Delacroix junkie that I am (like Moreau), I just cannot get enough of the drama and passion. And the black cat. Of course, she rests in the shadows of the painting. This is why I love art history. It’s an escape into a romanticized world. Even in tragedy.

I also received this wonderful little book from the Princeton University Art Museum as a gift. I kept it by my computer the last few days as a little reminder to surround myself with more art.

My friend (and awesome recipe developer) Nicole makes an amazingly delicious chipotle mac salad, which officially became one of my favorite side dishes ever since I had a taste of it during a trip to Santa Barbara. The salad is in fact so yummy, that Fresh & Easy stores packaged it and it’s now available for purchase. I immediately grabbed one for us to have but needed to make something to go with it (although I could easily sit and eat the container ala carte if no one was looking). I was going to default into making a burger but was really in the mood for a BBQ flavored sandwich – but with no grill – I used my slow cooker to make BBQ pork sliders. With 4th of July around the corner, I think this is a great idea if you’re having friends over.

Ingredients:
Pork butt (I bought one that was 2.58 lbs, which makes about 10-12 servings)
1 large yellow onion (chopped)
1 bottle of Fresh and Easy whiskey BBQ sauce
1 cup of water
1 tspn of bay leaf
1 tspn thyme leaves
1 tbspn minced garlic
1 tspn black pepper

If you’re going to use pork butt or shoulder, I highly suggest removing the layer of fat on top.

Cooking directions:
Before placing the meat into slower cooker with water, I seasoned it with the ingredients listed (as if I were making it in the oven, poking holes and inserting the ingredients into the meat). I let it cook for about 4 hours on high before shredding the meat in the slow cooker. I added the BBQ sauce and let it cook for another 2-3 hours on low, occasionally breaking up the meat. Once it was perfectly shredded, I toasted the buns in the oven for about 10 minutes, added pickles and dinner was served.

And because you cannot possibly have sliders without macaroni salad, I recommend you try the chipotle version I raved about. You can get all of those details on Presley’s Pantry. Hope you have a wonderfully, delicious 4th of July celebration!

The older I get, the more I embrace a less is more approach to my wardrobe. I can’t say I ever over-did it anyway (except for the 90s when I had purple hair) but as the years have gone by, my focus has changed. I love a very clean look with one piece that speaks for itself, like this skirt. I really like the pattern of the embroidered flowers, and as tempted as I was to pair it with an orange or fuchsia top, I decided to showcase the floral design with a classic white tee. The pockets are great too, and was the perfect skirt for the Hammer Museum’s Richard Artschwager reception on Friday, which took place outdoors (the humidity and heat in LA did not disappoint). For a pop of color I went with a high pigment lipstick and bright nail polish, and accessorized with very understated, delicate necklaces.

(Top: F21. Skirt: Sweet Sinammon. Shoes: Zara. Lipstick: Bite Beauty. Nail color: Mary Kay. Necklaces: Urban Outfitters)

My week in pictures is short this week. My son and I have both been feeling under the weather. A few trips to the doctor caused work to pile up, so I have spent a great deal of the week catching up. My lovely cat Athena always senses when I’m not feeling well, and tends to keep her eye on me throughout the day. She didn’t leave my side while I worked.

In other news, I started a workout routine a couple of weeks ago, and found that I am in love with coconut water. In fact, I’ve been using coconut for its overall awesomeness (inside and out) for years but I seriously cannot get enough of this stuff. I wrote an article about its beauty and health benefits for , have a look.

My son started the week off with soccer camp but wasn’t up to going yesterday. He’s been relaxing at home, but hopes to go today. His sneakers are barely worn in. Although we have not been feeling like our regular selves, the gestures of love that I’ve received this week have not gone unnoticed. Sometimes everything else needs to stop in order for you to really live those moments of gratitude and take care of yourself – mind, body and spirit.

Recently I’ve been noticing that 5pm is creeping up on me a lot quicker than it used to. As much I plan menus and set up what we’re going to eat for the week when I grocery shop, I really felt I should incorporate more crock-pot meals during the week to help the days run smoother. Plus, I just love crock-pot dinners. That simple. There’s nothing better than coming home to the smell of heaven after a long day. It’s really a treat. I started looking up crock-pot recipes and cookbooks and found (how SEO smart is that title, huh?). My son loves chili so I tried out their Chili Chicken recipe with a few variations, and we really enjoyed it. Here’s their recipe with my changes in parenthesis.

Ingredients:
Three chicken breasts, cut into pieces (I used organic chicken)
1 cup of onion, chopped
1 cup of bell pepper, chopped
2 cloves garlic
2 tbsp vegetable oil (I used extra virgin Spanish Olive Oil)
2 cans stewed tomatoes, Mexican Style (I stewed the tomatoes myself. Depending on how much sauce you like, I would suggest about 10 medium organic tomatoes)
1 can chili beans (I used 1 can of organic vegetarian chili beans)
2/3 cup picante sauce (see below for picante recipe)
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp salt

Cooking Directions:
Use a skillet to sauté garlic, onion, pepper and chicken in oil. Move them to slow cooker and stir in the rest of the ingredients. Cook this for 6 hours on low heat. Makes 6 servings.

Picante Sauce:
1 can of tomato puree (I used a few of the stewed tomatoes and measured 16 oz in the blender)
1 tbsp white vinegar
1/3 finely chopped onion
3 finely chopped jalapeño peppers (my son thinks you should add more!)
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cup water

Cooking Directions:
Combine all the ingredients together and cook on a medium heat. Bring it to a boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer until it becomes thick. Once thick, remove from heat and let it cool. The recipe book says to put the picante sauce in a jar and ended the directions there for some reason. I added it to the crock-pot and let it cook with the rest of the ingredients. Six hours later, we added avocado and had ourselves a wonderful dinner!

I bought this bandage pencil skirt and belt in April right before heading to Miami for an all white cocktail party. I bought it with intention of eating a lot and needing something to hold it all in. Admittedly, I plan many of my outfits around food. The skirt does wonders sucking it all in. However, if you don’t have a rock solid tush, it will snug that in too. Just saying. But it’s a sacrifice if you want to eat the night the away and not look bloated. Needless to say, I’m a fan of the skirt and I love that you can dress it up or down. I’ve always loved the way corals/oranges look with whites and blues. Such a clean, nautical feel. I paired the outfit with a nude bag and beige heels and let the rest do the talking.

{top: Zara, skirt: BCBG here, belt: BCBG here, shoes: Steve Madden here, tote: Michael Kors here, nail color here, lip color here}

Lately I’ve been feeling that my ultimate source of inspiration has been missing from my life – Art. I’ve been working so much and have gotten so caught up in the day to day, I’ve completely neglected my greatest passion – with the exception of an occasional art show here and there. Looking at, talking about and creating art is what keeps me most inspired, and I’m at my happiest when I surround myself with beautiful and thought provoking images. To remedy this, I decided I needed to take moments out of the day to grab an art book, sketch something simple or photograph all the things that inspire me throughout the week. To start, I organized all of the art books I love the most and the ones I’ve collected during grad school to make them more visible in my living room. In doing so, I noticed that I had quite the little collection of Frida related books. Something about her work invigorates me, and it was just what I needed after several long few weeks in front of a computer screen.

There have been a few last minute events I needed to attend (and dress quickly for) in the last few weeks. I have to say that I’m in love with Mary kay’s Zen collection for spring. The Pink Pagado lip laquer has been my go-to color and absolute perfection for day and night.

I’d been wanting get a pair of beige ankle strap heels, and fell in love with these. So much so, I bought the flat version too! I’m not a fan of flats but there’s no way to get around it. I’m not going to kill myself shopping at Von’s for eggs in 5 inch heels. These two are perfect for those days when your outfit is versatile enough to change shoes for a quick day-to-night look. I’m always thinking of on-the-go solutions, which was the case when my friends and I decided to take on an impromptu visit to Bergamont Station to catch a few shows before they closed.

We caught the very end of the Herb Alpert exhibit at Robert Berman Gallery.

And this week we also said goodbye to the seventh grade. We celebrated the beginning of summer vacation with cherry snow cones at the Farmer’s Market, which was also a perfect way to end the week.