Sweet Surprises

Hello, hello everybody! I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend. Mine was quite an eventful one. Saturday was the Media Sponsor Launch Party for RVA Fashion Week.

So it was time to get fashionable, or should I say… more so than usual hehe.
I love the back of this dress, and it’s made entirely out of merino wool so what it does cover will stay warm, mwahaha!
With my awesome friend, David!

(Photo credit to Erik Fox)

It was a fun night, and I got to spend it with a lot of really great people. Eventually, this little lady had to go to bed because casting for the various fashion shows was the next day. I’ve been trying to avoid puffy eyes for these so sleep and water have been essential! I can’t believe the shows are only a month away.

The other day I got a wonderful surprise in the mail.

My dear Liz knows me very well! Butterfingers are one of my favorite candy bars of all time, and she sent me a package of some variations that I’ve never even seen before.

And there were some more hidden treasures.

Easter came early. I’d never tried a Cadbury creme egg so of course she also sent me some and the mini eggs as well! This made my day, and every other day that I’ve been enjoying my favorite candy bar. I also tried a creme egg and I thought it was so cool that they make the fondant look like an egg complete with yolk. I don’t like eggs, and I’ve got a sensitivity to them but these… oh these will sit well with me.

Another surprise! After months of drinking from this cup, just the other day I noticed the message at the bottom, “take life a little easier.”
My roommate and I decided we’d have artichoke night!
Steaming them wasn’t working out, so we roasted them instead.
With a squeeze of lemon juice we were ready to enjoy and watch a movie.

Taking it easy, you know?

After reviewing Bakery on Main I was inspired to make my own gluten-free granola.

I loved the texture and taste that the cornflakes had in Bakery on Main’s gluten-free granolas, so I tried looking up some recipes on line. I couldn’t really find what I was looking for  so what’d I do? Well, I took ideas from different recipes and made my own!

Bird-of-Paradise Gluten-Free Granola

This reminded me of anywhere it gets hot because of the coconut, dates, and banana chips… hence the title.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup cornflakes, crushed

1 cup puffed millet

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/4 cup dates, chopped

1/4 cup shredded coconut

1/4 banana chips, chopped

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 coconut oil

a few spoonfuls maple syrup

Mix together the cornflakes, puffed millet, sunflower seeds, cinnamon, dates, banana chips, and coconut in a large bowl. Melt the coconut oil and stir in the maple syrup. Add to other ingredients and stir until coated. Pat into a 9 x 13-inch pan, and bake at 350 F until the flakes have browned a bit. Let it cool and break apart.

Oh beloved cluster!

I assure you this granola is so good that it is addictive!

Enjoyed with some Greek yogurt and caramelized blood oranges.
Moment of silence.
Now eat!

I wanted to bring up the question that I left you all in my last post, “what fear would you most like to conquer?” Some of the answers were things that I could definitely relate to. A lot of them had to with confidence, trust, and choices. I like to believe that we are all good in nature, but sometimes we end up picking up all these layers that make it harder to see our true inner-selves. Even makes it hard to trust ourselves as well! I’ve found that allowing time and giving compassion to myself has helped me grow into a more beautiful and fully-realized me. There are so many things that are beyond our control, but that doesn’t mean we have to have a solemn attitude. Instead, find acceptance in that, and learn to be flexible with the world. I think I’ll leave you guys with a great quote I once shared with you all by Nancy Stark Smith, one of the pioneers of contact improv, “the earth is bigger than you, so you might as well coordinate with it.

May you have a cheerful start to this upcoming week!

Hope You Had Yourself a Merry Little Christmas

Hello hello everyone! I hope you haven’t forgotten about me. I am going to have to catch you all up on things – and I have some major catching up to do for myself. I want to know what everyone has been up to! To get you guys back up to speed I decided to do things a little differently. I’m going to go backwards with two part post. This means we’ll be time traveling! If only I could time travel back to when women wore beautiful decorative hats! And then I’d go further back to BC times and listen to Plato speak.

So let’s begin! I’m going to start off with the day after Christmas!

Warm spiced vanilla oatmeal with banana, coconut oil, Cacao Bliss, and a crumbled gingersnap.

Then we got ready to meet up with some old family friends. I’ve known them since my family moved to America and I haven’t seen them in years! We decided to meet up at this Latin grocery store that’s the size of a regular supermarket. Usually, specialty stores are very small – so this was quite a treat.

They had a cafeteria-style eating area.

A machine that makes freshly-squeezed orange juice. It reminds me of the 70's.

I've never seen an arepa de choclo look like this, but it was delicious nonetheless!

Hi everybody!

Leche (milk) de moras (raspberries) and a HUGE tamal!

Afterwards we went and did some shopping. Surprisingly the mall wasn’t too crazy.

Big ornaments

A winter wonderland.

Oh my, I had to stop myself that day. We walked into a store and I was trying something on and then I turned around to my mom and said “I’m done.” I figured since me and some friends wanted to go on the hunt for some New Years Eve stuff, I should not go crazy all in one day. Save some for later! I feel my style is in the midst of another evolution. Although I always have my underlying style motto: keep it classy. But I will show you guys some things I got.

I feel like a horseback-riding, biker, crime-fighting woman of the future in these pants. And yes, I wore them out later that night.

Sequins shorts!

I seriously think I have had this extra surge of confidence go through me. I feel like being more daring. When I browse through fashion magazines I find myself “oo-ing” and “aah-ing” at all these wonderful clothes – so why shouldn’t I be able to pull it off? Besides, life is too short to be worrying about if something is too “crazy” to wear. Of course, if you don’t feel like it’s you then don’t do it. Everyone has their own style, so embrace it!

I remembered that I never showed you guys the black shoes!

Whoops! How did these little hermits and strawberries find their way here? Who am I kidding, these guests are welcome anytime!

I also got a rock star faux-fur vest.

And my best friend was rockin' it too!

Too cute to handle!

Before I forget! Matilda got a new do the other day.

And she's going to be stylin' in a super cute vest as well! Like mother like daughter.

I love this picture!

She came over and we got ready for a night out on the town. We decided to go to a place we haven’t been to yet. It was funny because when we got there we thought the lounge was very trendy and cool – a bit too dark – but we were wondering why the music wasn’t pumping. The music was good but not really heart-thumping and energizing. They did however end up playing some happy-go-lucky Beatles and James Brown tunes. So we did our thing. Then as we were leaving my friend saw there was an upstairs. Naturally, we went to go check it out. This was where the party was at!!! So we stayed for a while longer and danced our hearts out.

Random picture of the place outside.

So now let’s rewind one day and go back to CHRISTMAS! This is how it started out…

Snowmen bowls!

From a very dear friend!

This is why I love the holiday season!

My favorite ginger!

Gorgeous Brooke sent me a wonderful Christmas card and a glamorous wintery picture!

I made my dad a brochure of things around south Florida I think he'd be interested in doing + a bowl of Key Lime (R)Ice Cream.

Somethings he enjoys... opera, bike riding, spirituality, and healthy living.

Spiced pumpkin oats, a gingersnap, maple syrup, coconut oil, sprinkles, and macadamia-cashew butter for two eyes and a mouth.

Mmm butter stollen!

And Archer Farms' bread pudding yogurt!

And Archer Farms' bread pudding yogurt!

I made my mom some macadamia-cashew butter since she can't eat solid nuts anymore.

Another recipe from The Accidental Vegetarian - Grilled Eggplant with Nuoc Cham.

We were invited to a Christmas dinner so here are some prep pictures!

Make the crust...

Macadamias, walnuts, coconut-rolled dates, maple syrup, and cocoa powder = gluten-free and vegan crust! It’s practically raw too.

The cake part...

Tofu, coconut cream, lemon zest, vanilla extract, and some very ripe bananas.

Now into the oven it goes!

My dad looks like he's up to something.

Moroccan Stew

I followed the recipe that the lovely Lauren sent to me. Thanks so much girl! This recipe was a winner and I’m so glad I had leftovers. Actually, I just finished the last bit that was left. All the spices, veggies, and chickpeas cooking together for hours just made it out of this world. On top I garnished it with the “scented” almonds Bekah sent and cilantro. Mouth-watering.

They made pop-overs as well and had teenie roasted potatoes!

Look at what found its way on to my plate and I wasn't even looking for it!

This was such a cute little happy surprise. April! It’s a teeny purple potato!

Then it was time for coffee and dessert!

Happy with homemade tres leches complete with whipped cream and a cherry on top!

There was also a postre de nata which is basically a cream dessert. All these Colombian desserts! Where is the one I made?

A vegan banana coconut cheesecake with chocolate macadamia crust

Wow! That’s a mouthful (a delicious one). Here’s the recipe for the cake. Although I would make a suggestion: use a bit less banana and up the vanilla extract. Everyone loved how fresh tasting this cake was. And the crust… the crust was to die for!

Some of them were fellow vegetarians!

They shared stories of the different parts of the world they’ve been in and the various interesting people they’ve come across. They were so intriguing themselves. You can literally see their inner-glow in this picture! This was such a fabulous Christmas dinner. There was great food, wonderful company, and new friends.

More wonderful family friends!

Mom and I!

Passing a childhood book on to a new family.

This was such a reminder of what Christmas means to me. The whole day I was constantly reminded of how precious our lives are and the ones who are in it do care. And it’s so wonderful to feel that.

‘Twas the night before Christmas…

My dad walked into the house and told me I had a package!

It was from Maya!!! Look at the gingerbread people doing yoga poses! This was such a sweet package and not just because of the goodies. Maya, your words mean so much to me. Seriously, if you don’t now this young lady – you should. She’s one of my role models.

A yummy package from Maya! Jam thumbprint cookies, homemade marshmallows, pumpkin seed brittle, and world peace cookies!!

A yummy package from Maya! Jam thumbprint cookies, homemade marshmallows, pumpkin seed brittle, and world peace cookies!!

Homemade marshmallows - I'm never going back! You hear that Jet-Puffed?

So that is all for right now. Next post will be a blast further back into the past!

I hope each and everyone one of you have been able to spend the holiday season with dear ones and warming up with their love.

Finally

Hello everyone! I hope you have all had a wonderful wonderful week. For some of you, the holiday festivities have already started. Would anybody care to send me some delicious latkes? Mwahaha! Anyway, I really don’t know where to start. The past week was filled with finals, papers, and catching up with friends before my road trip back to Florida. So that’s where I am right now! And if anybody wants some sunshine, there’s plenty to spread around.

I’m going to start the post off with some more pictures from Art Basel.

Ai Wei Wei's sunflower seeds made out of porcelain.

Now take a closer look.

Okay I will save more for later! Now on to some food.

My dad flew back up to Virginia with me for business!

After a bad experience with airport food – stomach flu – I’ve been weary of eating it so I pack my own stuff.

Peppermint coffee drink standing in all it's glory.

Lunch for two

Soba noodles, edamame, a medley of vegetables + lemon juice + coconut oil + salt

While I was away I received a wonderful little package.

Bekah lovingly made all these wonderful munchies. Coconut chia granola, cumin, cinnamon + maple “scented” almonds, and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. Everything was taste tested by moi, and my parents. Well my mom didn’t get to enjoy the cookies since she wasn’t in Virginia. So delicious! Hey Bekah, you need to share your secret on how you made the granola – it’s incredible!

Leftover veggies and edamame with barley and peanuts.

Kale and more barley!

Can you tell that I love green? I drizzled sesame oil on top of it all and sprinkled on some toasted sesame seeds as well.

A most delicious dinner.

I smuggled an acorn squash from my Florida and I was ready to eat that baby! I roasted it with Canadian maple syrup, cinnamon, and coconut oil. I also made my mom’s secret recipe for red lentils with coconut oil. Can’t forget the sweet potato!

Persimmons

I always think of my darling darlings when I eat one! They’re so good with vanilla almond granola, vanilla yogurt, and cinnamon. Is there a certain food that just seems so precious whenever you eat it? A few on my list are figs, persimmons, dates, and white peaches.

Kale with toasted pine nuts and freshly grated parmesan. Someone baked tater tots – yay! Tater tots just sound so cute! I also had some Gardein crispy tenders. I squirted on some ketchup and Old Bay seasoning. I was a little kid that really liked their vegetables!

So easy and delicious!

I used up the rest of the penne pasta in the box. I sauteed some red onion, Tofurky Italian sausage, and garlic. I mixed it all together with homemade basil and toasted pine nut pesto, then grated some parmesan on top.

This papaya was grown in my parents backyard AND it's organic.

Even with this picture you can see that this papaya was bursting with flavor. BURSTING!

More pasta

Gnocchi, homemade pesto, and grated parmesan over a bed of kale.

That day I went for a walk around to different galleries with a friend, since I missed First Friday.

Message in a bottle ornament!

They look cuddly and cute but they're really sharp!

Beware!

Amazing jewelry - handwoven mesh.

Very illustrative wire work.

Let's take a picture of each other taking a picture!

Matilda and one of the gallery owners became fast friends.

Woodblock prints

More gnocchi love

My roommate’s boyfriend made this delicious thick carrot soup. I decided to incorporate it into my dinner. Thick carrot soup, kale, gnocchi with pesto, and parmesan. More please! Later that night I decided to take Matilda on a walk on one of the avenues with lots of pretty houses.

The holiday season is here!

I love Christmas lights.

It's like a waterfall.

A mountain of blueberry love all piled over granola and vanilla yogurt.

Colors!

Salted edamame + carrot sticks. Sandwich: cream cheese, tomato slices, and the last of my pesto! Then I was off to my last final exam of the semester. The trick is to think positive because most likely you do know your sh!t.

Last night in Richmond I had dinner at a friend's.

Maybe you recognize the Hello Kitty sandwich container? Afterwards we had some hot cocoa and were stuck to the space heater like mosquitos to a zapper! A friend of mine was playing a free show that night so we headed over there close to the time they were going to start playing.

Every band was awesome and so full of energy.

There were three couches set-up movie theatre style so comfort was thought of! It was a very cozy environment and everyone was into it.

They also had some random projections playing.

Well that was my brief recap of my week! My semester is done and it’s time to relax. And now that I’m back in Florida… you know what that means! Well, one thing I learned this past week is to “never allow someone to be your priority while allowing yourself to be their option.” Couldn’t have said it better myself, Mark Twain. Anyway, I hope everyone is doing wonderfully and surrounded with honey bunches of love!