NomNom: Avocado Semifreddo

How is it August already?

Summer has always been one of my favorite seasons because it involves grilling, dining al fresco, enjoying refreshing drinks and taking vacations. I'll definitely be utilizing all the free time I have to squeeze in all the summer activities I want to do before the weather starts to cool down for Fall. This weekend I have plans to go stand up paddle boarding which has been on my summer bucket list! So looking forward to that.

Cooling down with any type of resfreshing desserts such as gelato, froyo and bing soo (Korean shaved ice) is something that occurs on the regular for me during summer days. I can never say no...it's a weakness of mine and I'm okay with that.

I was intrigued with making this because I've never had avocado as a dessert. That's just weird, right? But I love, love avocados so I had to make it and it doesn't involve an ice-cream machine. That's clutch right there.

I have to warn you though, if you're not a big of a fan of avocado (but whyyy?!) this dessert is not for you. There's a definite taste of buttery smooth avocado flavor in each bite but with just the right amount of sweet and saltiness from the condensed milk and pistachios that is mixed in. So good.

Since the main star of this dessert revolves around an avocado, does this count as being healthy? Me thinks so.

Have a great weekend. Xo.


Ingredients (Adapted from EveryDay w/ Rachel Ray mag) Serves:8
1 tbsp butter
1/2 cup raw pistachios, chopped
2 tbsp sugar
salt
cooking spray
1 large avocado
3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 1/2 cups cream

Procedure
1. In nonstick skillet, melt butter over medium-high. Add nuts, sugar and pinch salt; stir until sugar browns, 5 minutes. Transfer to plate.

2. Coat 5x9 inch loaf pan with cooking spray; line with plastic wrap, leaving 3-inch overhang.

3. In food processor, puree avocado flesh, condensed milk, lemon juice and pinch salt.

4. Whip cream to stiff peaks; fold in avocado puree and nuts. Pour into pan. Cover with plastic overhang; freeze until firm, 4 hours. Unmold on to platter. Slice and serve immediately.

Baby Blue

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin

Blouse-DVF

Shorts-Banana Republic (old)

Shoes-Stuart Weitzman

 Necklace-Alexis Bittar

Cuff-Kenneth Jay Lane (similar here)

Sunnies-Karen Walker

Clutch-Vintage

Hi everyone! Hope you've been enjoying the gorgeous humidity free weather we've been having the past couple of days. This outfit was inspired by the cotton candy skies I've been seeing lately and for some reason, wearing this color palette and soft, flowy blouse is very soothing to me. Work has been super busy and a bit stressful so I welcome anything that has a calming effect.

Have a great rest of the week. Xo.

NomNom: Green Smoothie

When it comes to lifestyle and food, I'm a firm believer in having balance. I personally don't believe in all these crazy diets and restrictions people put on themselves because something is too fattening or blah blah blah. Rather, everything in moderation is the way to go. I personally enjoy food too much to not to have that piece of cheesecake or slice(s) of pizza...I mean what kind of life is that?

What works for me is to have a balanced diet with some sort of exercise incorporated during the week (any type of cardio to get your heart rate up!) If I overindulge on the weekend, which is pretty much every weekend, I try to eat a bit more healthier the next couple of days. Again, balance.

When I first heard about juicing/green smoothies, I was skeptical yet curious to see what the hype was about. After a couple of trial runs on both, I decided that I prefer making smoothies over the juicing process because fiber isn't lost in the process and quite honestly smoothies are just more convenient.

Green smoothies aren't visually the most appetizing thing to look at, but it is really, really tasty. Trust. You don't taste the vegetables that goes into the drink and the natural sweetness from the fruit(s) masks the vegetable taste. Ever since I found this way to incorporate daily vegetables into my diet (since I'm not by any means a salad eating, vegetable loving gal), I've been sharing this recipe (and converting) family and friends into being green smoothie drinking machines. After making one for a friend, she texted me the following day with, "Buying spinach now." The following week, another girlfriend texted me saying she's been feeling more energized in the morning after drinking her newfound love of green smoothies. True stories.

Feel free to experiment with different types of fruits. Lately I've been adding strawberries and blueberries to the mix so I can indulge in all the fresh summer fruits before the season is gone.

It's a brand new week so why not jump start it with a healthy, energy drink? Drink up that chlorophyll.

Happy Monday. Xo.

Ingredients (Serves: 1)
1 big handful of fresh baby spinach
3/4 cup almond milk (I use vanilla)
1 ripe banana, peeled and quartered (frozen bananas work too!)
1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
2 tsp flaxseed (optional)
3 pitted Medjool dates, coarsely chopped (optional)
*I usually add a couple of ice cubes because I love to drink it icy cold

Procedure
1. Place softest ingredients first (banana, spinach, Greek yogurt) into the blender and top with the remaining ingredients, adding the milk last. Blend until smooth and feel free to add more milk if you want a thinner consistency. Serve immediately and enjoy.

Black and Blue Summer

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin

Shirt-Gap (recent and on sale)

Denim shorts-Zara

Shoes-KORS Micahel Kors

Purse-Chanel

Ring-Maison Martin Margiela

Sunnies-Karen Walker

Cuff-John Hardy

Happy Friday! One of the colors schemes I fell in love with over fall/winter was pairing black and blue together which is something I will carry through all seasons. I wanted to have pops of black show up from accessories in my outfit while paired against this super comfy and simple navy sweatshirt I bought last week. Comfy top, cut offs, and Chanel? This is basically my summer uniform;)

Have a great weekend. Xo.

Wide Stripes

Photos courtesy of Sung Shin

Shirt-Loft

Skirt-H&M (old)

Necklace-Alexis Bittar

Cuff-John Hardy

Purse-Chanel

Shoes-Michael Kors

Sunnies-Karen Walker

Hi everyone! Sorry for not posting my usual Weekend Snapshots this past Monday but I  decided to take a short break from it. It's starting to become a bit much on the weekends to remember to document everything I did and quite honestly, I'd rather much enjoy being in the moment with out having to remember to take a food pic, get good lighting, edit, etc, especially when I'm in the company of my friends (most of them are not bloggers). I also find myself getting annoyed if I forgot to take a pic of something I did over the weekend because then I can't really include that into the Monday post. I suppose I could but let's be honest here...an entry with out a picture is boring.

For the next couple of weeks or month my usual Weekend Snapshots posts might be replaced with either more food/outfit posts until I figure out what I want to do. Since it's become a surprisingly popular post, I don't know if I want to take it away just yet; but, in the meantime I'll be taking a break from it. Thanks in advance for being patient with me.

Wishing you a great week! Xo.