Weekend Snapshots

 

This weekend I...
1. Used some of my new Sephora arrivals from the F&F sale.
2. Baked pumpkin whoopie pies for the first time. Will post recipe later this week.
3. Wore my new shoes I bought from last Friday's Last Call NM shoe sale. Such a steal for $45!
4. Discovered quite possibly a new favorite (red) wine from my friend's housewarming/halloween party: chocolate red wine. It reminds me of liquid chocolate truffle. It tastes divine.
5. Hung out around Georgetown area after the crazy unexpected snow we received on Saturday.
6. Spent some quality time with Mandu<3

How was your Halloweekend?

NomNom: Sriracha Chicken Wings

Along with fall like food things such as pumpkin or apple based dishes, football also comes along with the season. *Yay* <insert sarcasm> Anyways, when I think of football I associate it with wings, beer, and totally-not-good-for-you accompaniments. But then I came across this recipe by an amazing food photography couple who blog about their recipes and journeys and let me tell, it is the perfect healthier version of buffalo wings. The recipe doesn't require any butter nor does it deep fry the wings BUT it tastes just as delicious as any buffalo wings. TRUST ME. Did I lose you when I said there's no butter and no deep frying? Well if you're still with me, keep on reading....

This was only my plate. I went back for seconds. Don't judge.

Does this look spicy to you? That's cuz it was. I started to sweat--I mean glow as I was eating my wings.

Whether you watch football or not, you don't need any excuse to eat wings. Try this recipe and I dare you to tell me that this doesn't taste as good as your traditional buffalo wings. Happy Friday.

Recipe (adapted from whiteonricecouple.com)
About 2 pounds chicken wings, lightly coated with oil, tips removed
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 cloves finely minced garlic
1 small onion, minced (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup ketchup
1/4 cup Sriracha hot sauce or any chili hot sauce (or more for a spicier sauce)
1 tablespoon vinegar
1 teaspoon fish sauce or soy sauce
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 425° F.
2. On baking sheet, spread chicken wings out on sheet and lightly coat wings with vegetable oil. Bake in oven for about 20 minutes, then flip chicken wings over and bake for about another 20 minutes, or until fully cooked and crispy brown.
3. In sauce pan, heat the 2 tablespoons  of vegetable oil and add onion and garlic. On medium heat, continue stirring the onions and garlic until they are golden brown, but not burnt. Allowing the onions and garlic to reach a golden brown stage will bring out the extra fragrance and flavor. Then add ketchup, siracha hot sauce, vinegar, fish/soy sauce and ground cumin.
4. Stir well and let simmer for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.  After chicken wings have finished baking, toss wings in sauce. Serve warm.

Shades of Red

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin
Shirt-Banana Republic

Skirt-H&M

Bracelets-David Yurman

Necklace-Lee Angel

Clutch-Laura Merkin

Shoes-Loeffler Randall

Sunglasses-Stella McCartney

So my obsession with red continues and this time it manifests in this H&M skirt I bought recently. I wore this to a meeting I had with my real estate agent to sign some papers for my new place! Yup, I will be a first time homeowner and am beyond excited and nervous of all the *gulp* responsibilities that come with it. I've been researching some interior decorating blogs and shopping for furniture as of late but between that and work, it's been a bit overwhelming. Nonetheless, I was in a great mood waking up so I wanted my outfit to reflect what I was feeling with bright and bold colors. Happy Wednesday everyone!:)

Weekend Snapshots

This weekend I...
1. Found myself randomly at Old Navy and ended up buying a cozy knit sweater (amongst other things) for an incredible deal.
2. Met up with some girlfriends for dinner to catch up on life happenings.
3. Caught up with some of my favorite food and fashion magazines.
4. Bought several lipsticks in shades I've never worn before. I'm excited to experiment with these bold colors since I never wear lipstick. "Beauty, to me, is about being comfortable in your own skin. That, or a kick-ass red lipstick." Gwyneth Paltrow


How was your weekend?

NomNom: Rosemary and Garlic Roasted Potatoes

Of all the ladies from the food network, I have to say that Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa is the one person whose home I would love to be invited over to. She always gives off this warm, pleasant, and welcoming vibe and presents her meals in a way that makes you want to be invited over. It doesn't hurt that she lives in the Hamptons either HA! I came across her rosemary and garlic roasted potatoes recipe a couple nights ago which was actually perfect timing, because for some odd reason I was craving potatoes. The thing is, I never crave potatoes--in fact, I'm very picky when it comes to eating potatoes. For example, I love french fries but dislike baked potatoes. I'll eat mashed potatoes only when I'm in the mood for it (which is rare), but other then that I'll pass the dish right along. Yea, call me strange but that's the way I feel about them. I made this quick and easy dish to satisfy my craving and oh my gosh were they DELICIOUS. The marriage of rosemary and garlic is a union in food heaven but then again any dish which has garlic as one of the star players is always a win.

 I actually added a little more garlic then what the recipe 

called for cuz I have a love affair for garlic.

A little off topic but whenever I type the word potatoes I always have to second guess myself if I spelled it correctly. Am I the only one neurotic like that? No thanks to Dan Quayle. Anyways, back to the recipe. Not only was this a super tasty side dish but the prep time was easy breezy and for that, this dish will most likely be rotating on my dinner menu from now on. Bon appetit!

Recipe (adapted from Barefoot Contessa)
1 1/2 pounds small red or white-skinned potatoes (or a mixture)
1/8 cup good olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoons minced garlic (3 cloves)<---I added 4 cloves
2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary leaves

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Cut the potatoes in half or quarters and place in a bowl with the olive oil, salt, pepper, garlic and rosemary; toss until the potatoes are well coated.
3. Dump the potatoes on a baking sheet and spread out into 1 layer; roast in the oven for at least 1 hour, or until browned and crisp. Flip twice with a spatula during cooking to ensure even browning.
4. Remove the potatoes from the oven, season to taste, and serve.

Wanderlust: Italy Part due

Following up from my post on my vacation, one of the things I absolutely love when visiting a foreign country is exploring their cuisine. I love to try things I've never eaten before (not exactly Andrew Zimmerman level though) and I believe that sharing in a country's cuisine is the best way to get to know their culture. One of the most outstanding eats I encountered on this trip was fried anchovies in Cinque Terre. Since this town is along the Italian Rivieria, seafood is obviously a staple in their food. Some of you may be thinking, "fried anchovies?? Uhhh." But trust me, it was absolutely fantastically delicious. It's considered street food and comes in paper cones that reminds me of something that french fries would come in. Squeeze some lemon juice on those little fishes and it's game over. I feel like anchovies get a bad rap here in the states, perhaps because they're prepared too salty but this was not the case. Ok let me stop with the anchovies, I think you get the picture. Another thing I stuffed my face in was pesto. Pesto sauce is usually made from basil leaves, pine nuts, pecorino cheese, garlic, and olive oil and it actually originates from this region so they had pesto everything on restaurant menus and it was divine.

 

Dont be fooled by this one picture of gelato. You know that saying, "When in Rome do as the Romans do?" Yea well, I did exactly just that. I had gelato every.single.day....sometimes even twice shhhh. Gelato is an Italian frozen treat that has the similar make up as ice-cream but it has less butterfat content which makes it healthier. This is what I told myself everyday to justify my daily gelato needs HA! My favorite flavors and trust me, I tried them all, was pistachio and fragalo (strawberry). Sigh I will miss this.

 

When deciding which wines to go with my meals, I chose each restaurant's house wine 95% of the time because they were locally produced by the restaurant. I felt like it would be a disservice if it wasn't drank, right? I'm a fan of white wine and oh my, it tasted mighty good throughout all the restaurants. Crisp, slightly fruity, and refreshing was the general taste for the whites.

As always, thanks for reading and taking the time to share in my adventures. If possible, go travel, explore and see the world. It will change your life.

Wanderlust: Italy Part Un

I just got back from vacationing in Italy a couple days ago and am still sorting through all the pictures I took. I have so many to share that this will be most likely be divided into several different posts:) I couldn't have asked for a better vacation because the weather was perfect (high reached to upper 80's and the lowest it got was in the 70's). I visited Pisa, Florence and Cinque Terre and each place made a lasting impression on me; however, the most memorable out of the three was Cinque Terre. Cinque, in Italian means "five" and there are five towns along the Italian Riveria (Monterosso, Manarola, Vernazza, Corniglia and Riomaggiore). I rented out an apartment in Manarola and was drawn by the loveliness of this place overlooking the Mediterranean. Similar to the remaining 4 other towns, it is built on cliffs overlooking the sea and in order to get to the other towns you can either hike the connecting paths, take the train or a boat. They are not accessible by car so those are your only options!

I hope you enjoyed some of my travel pics but there's more to come so stay tuned;) "The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page." -St.Augustine