Food

Throughout the year, my family and I often enjoy the delights of what we call a "Kitchen Sink Salad". It all started with Gigi, my husband's grandmother, who would often create one of these beauties for dinner. So easy to prepare and different every time, perhaps it should really be called "Everything But the Kitchen Sink Salad". It is an easy way to use the fruits and veggies from the fridge. I include a variety of beans, meats, potatoes and sometimes fruit. The kids love to choose what is going into the salad and love putting it together. It is a great way for them to take part in preparing dinner and usually guarantees that they will eat all that is put upon their plates. Whatever ingredients I have on hand are free game. The end product is always a gorgeous melange of colors and bursts of flavors. Since the salad itself is so easy to assemble, it is a favorite go to meal in our house.

Sunday night's Kitchen Sink Salad...including bell peppers, tomatoes, black beans, tuna and carrots 

I prefer to top it with a light coating of a traditional French vinaigrette:

• 1 clove of garlic, minced, 
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 t French Dijon mustard
• 2 t red wine vinegar
• 4 t extra virgin olive oil
• In a small bowl, mix the garlic, vinegar and mustard together. Add the olive oil and whisk vigorously. Add a touch of salt and pepper, to taste and pour immediately on your salad. The light addition of this dressing is the perfect compliment to your salad. 

Bon appétit!! 

~c~

Food

I'm all about easily prepared and delicious food, but those two qualities rarely go together. However, with a few common ingredients that are pretty much around every kitchen, I know I can always make oven roasted garlic in a hurry. Straight out of the oven, spread on a piece of artisan bread, and sprinkled with a little sea salt, it doesn't get any better.*

All you need is:
1-2 whole bulbs of garlic
Cooking spray
Aluminum foil
Sea Salt

First, you spray the bulb with the cooking oil, covering it completely in a thin coat. Next, wrap the bulb in tin foil and place in the oven at 375 degrees for about 12-15 minutes, more or less. When you unwrap the tinfoil, you should see a golden brown color to the bulb. Start to peel away the layers, and you'll notice the individual cloves are soft and golden. Spread on a piece of bread, and sprinkle some sea salt on top to taste. Yum.

*The yum factor clearly depends on the fact that you are a garlic fan and/or do not have a date later.








~m~

Food

I am Liz Lemon. Ok, not in the way that she lives in New York City, has Jack Donaghey as a mentor, or has a handsome geeky boyfriend with killer cheekbones (hello, James Marsden??). But the girl is an incessant eye roller, loves Star Wars in a very unhealthy way, and adores food. I'm sure that there are more glamorous and less socially awkward characters on tv to feel a connection to, but to me, the woman who rocks glasses and sings a song about cheese is the one I (over)identify with.

Recently, I went to a cheese party, an idea that I'm sure would receive the Lemon seal of approval. A friend and I have been talking about this for a while, and when it came together, it was everything we wanted it to be. A small group of friends were asked to bring cheeses and the only stipulation was that it be something a bit different. We were not disappointed in the spread. Even the brave, lactose intolerant partygoers were pretty excited.

Blessed are the cheesemakers....

Among the offerings were a smoked Gouda, a delicious Bleu Cheese, several goat cheeses, including a goat brie, some queso fresco, panela, and a delicious truffle pecorino. Along with the cheeses, there were various compotes, nuts, prosciutto-wrapped breadsticks, olives, mushrooms, charcuterie, and a delicious goat-cheese cheesecake.

Non-dairy goodies

I brought two types of cheese that I love. The first type was Spanish Manchego. I served it along with the traditional membrillo, which complements the cheese so well. This is how I was first introduced to Manchego while traveling through Spain. It's absolutely delicious.

I also took a nice wedge of brie. Usually, I love to serve brie with warm apricot preserves and roasted walnuts on top. But I picked up this great compote that has fig, pear, and orange. I've always served goat cheese with fig preserves, but I really loved the way the fig tasted with the brie.

Found this goodness at Spec's

Everything was so perfect. I understand more than ever why Liz keeps eating hard cheeses after all her root canals and sings a song about working on her night cheese.

She has a great dental plan.

I have those glasses. And that poptart.

~m~

Fun

When you're a diehard fan of something, you usually wear your heart on your sleeve when it comes to your devotion. In the case of the awesome shirts at TeeFury, fans of all sorts of pop culture icons can wear their hearts directly on their chests for the whole world to see.

I first learned about TeeFury a few weeks ago because of one of those ads that you see on your Facebook page. I saw a t-shirt that looked like an art nouveau poster, but when I looked at it closer, it was a picture of Gob Bluth, a character from the brilliant but now defunct Arrested Development.

"GOB Nouveau" from May 5, 2012

My heart stopped, the purchase was made, and from that day, I've kind of been hooked.

The deal with these shirts is beyond cool. They are only $10, but that's not even the best part. The t-shirts are truly limited editions in the fact that each shirt is only sold for one day, and the designs are submitted by various artists. While I find that really unique, it's also quite painful when you start scrolling through the gallery to see the previous designs you missed out on. The pain only continues when you realize that if you are lucky to find one of the designs on eBay, they are almost always XXL and the price is always more than the original ten bucks. But, again, if you're a diehard fan, you might just end up paying an incredible amount of money for that cheap ten dollar t-shirt that celebrates all you love.

~m~

"Theatre de la Rebellion" from July 24, 2011

The inspiration- Alphonse Mucha

"The Kiss" from February 14, 2012

The inspiration- Gustav Klimt

"Sherlock's Mind" from March 14, 2012

The inspiration- The amazing BBC series Sherlock

Inspiration Part Two- Benedict Cumberbatch....
Sigh.

Fabulous Summer Fun

Diva-tini time!!

With summer quickly approaching, it is time to think swimsuit, sunscreen, floppy hats and, most importantly, poolside refreshment!  I was recently introduced to this delicious beverage and am glad that I was. 

This diva-tini is easy to prepare...

• Fill a poolside appropriate glass with ice


• Fill 1/3 of the glass with Effen Cucumber Vodka


• Top with soda


• Add a twist of lime and leave in for garnish


• Place one slice of cucumber on the rim for an added touch

Chink, chink, mes amis!  Enjoy!

~c~

Fashion

When I was little, I always knew my mom was around just by smelling the air, which always had a hint of her perfume, Chanel No. 5. And I distinctly remember having to take magazines to grade school for an art project and being kind of shocked that my copies of Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, and Architectural Digest were the only ones there in a pile of Good Housekeeping and Better Homes and Gardens that the other kids brought. Fashion, art, and design have always been a part of my life, from the very beginning, thanks to my mom.



She has always been this incredibly stylish woman, and she can get away with certain looks like no other. My mom's an artist, and she sees clothing and accesories as just another form of expression. She can mix a shirt from Forever 21 and pair of antique emerald earrings and just look... stunning. I love that she dresses with absolute abandon and just wears whatever she thinks is beautiful, no matter where she is going. She'll wear her Indian diamond jewerlry and beaded sari skirt to work. As a teacher.



My Mom the Style Icon is a blog that celebrates the stylish influence that our moms have on us. This blog is just an open love letter to all moms. Scroll through the pictures and see how these outfits from the 70's, 60's, 50's and 40's look so gorgeous and modern. I think of my awesome friend Christy and how she is so influential in her daughter's style: her daughter Sabrina is already writing her own blog, Fun With Accessories, after seeing her mom write about things that she loves on this one. And the love for clothes that these two share just proves the maxim "Like mother, like daughter."



Happy Mother's Day to all those fabulous moms out there. We love you.

~m~

My mom at her bridal shower-

Love the hair and the earrings!

Fashion

While browsing the aisles of Barnes and Noble recently, I stumbled upon this little treasure:

The Fashion Coloring Book by Carol and Lulu is fascinating and hilarious at the same time. Fashion inspired toys and books are nothing new. I remember loving my Fashion Plates, a series of interlocking plastic plates that you could mix and match to create outfits that were very Lauren Hutton, very 70's cool.

                                                                                                                                                                                       
But this is not some amateur coloring book about Disney Princesses. Please. This takes it to a whole other level. With the iconic Alexander McQueen "Armadillo" shoe on the cover, you know things are serious. This book features quotes from famous designers, fashion games and activities, and pages of designs from Céline, Versace, Stella McCartney and others. I'm struggling to figure out who the target demographic is: incredibly rich pre-teens who are already label whores or poor teachers who wish to be label whores. Here's a sample of the entertainment that appears in the book:

________________ (name) is late to the Marc Jacobs fashion show! She grabs her _____________ (accessory) and her ____________(accessory) and races out the door. But she never forgets to _____________ (verb) her hair.

And when you tire of playing Neiman Marcus Mad Libs, you can color in pages that are scattered with quotes from sartorial geniuses, like this one from Karl Lagerfeld:

"If you throw money out the window throw it with joy.
Don't say 'one shouldn't do that'--- that is bourgeois."

A coloring book that teaches parts of speech AND vocabulary? Amazing. And if you're still not sold, there are pictures of Anna Wintour and lingerie from Agent Provacateur just waiting to be colored.
I'm off to go find my markers.
~m~

My Fashion Plates were never this fashionable.
  

 Or this sexy.

Chanel Coloring Page

Anna Wintour NEVER looks this happy.