Wednesday, May 30, 2012

{photo jigsaw} eat with me.


Doesn't this make you wonder about what the eye of a tornado looks like? This beautiful chandelier was one of the many design beauties that I came across in Las Vegas this past weekend. If you saw my Twitter over the weekend or saw my fbook, you'll know that my family took a road trip to celebrate my grandmother's birthday. yeah you read right, my GRANDMOTHER'S BDAY IN VEGAS. It was a fun weekend filled with cousin bonding time, lots of walking around, and even more eating. 
It began with Boiling Crab for lunch on Saturday. it was a messy, garlic-y, delicious venture leaving us all very thankful for our bibs. 

3 hours later the entire party of 20 sat down for a beautiful meal at Zeffirino in the Venetian. Although still ridiculously full from BC, we were able to enjoy their prefix course meal. 
co.clockwise: tomato&mozzarella, veal&fruit raviolli in pesto, eggplant parmigiana, and a variety of pastries with coffee
Of course there was cake after the show. A two layered cake of pistachio and raspberry complete with jam and mascarpone filling

Skipping over several mini meals in between our last meal together as a group was at Hachi, a modern Japanese restaurant, inside Red Rock Casino. 
food co.clockwise: poke salad, vegetable tempura, poppy roll


It was a wonderful weekend celebrating my grandma's birthday :) Now I am detoxing with delicious kale salad from the pomona farmers market and greek yogurt with blueberries.

Have a lovely rest of the week!

lots of lovee

Thursday, May 24, 2012

{recipe} butter me up. jam with me.


I know what I will do with my life notreally : if nursing fails for me I will go into canning & jamming. When did I become such a little house on the praire housewife? The moment when our loquat tree overflowed with ripe fruit and needed to be eaten or used. The moment when I came across this recipe for loquat jam.

In my opinion i think jam is smooth and jelly-like in consistency, whereas a fruit butter is a bit thicker. This is a butter. It is delicious. Strangely it tastes like pumpkin butter. whoknows.



Prep work: De-seed loquats and remove any of the tougher membrane in the center of the fruit. Skin should be left on, or at least some of it! The pectin in the skin will give the jam the buttery texture.

Recipe:
- 4 c. pureed loquats
- 1 c. sugar
- 1 c. water
*pinch of cinnamon optional*

1. puree the de-seeded loquats until almost smooth. Chunky loquats are fine as long as the majority is smooth in consistency
2. Combine puree and water in a heavy set pot and set on med heat
3. Once it comes to a bubble NOT BOIL, add the sugar.
**keep a close eye on the jam so it doesn't burn**
4. Turn the heat to low and let simmer/bubble until desired consistency.
5. If storing in a jar:
-- pour jam into the jar making sure to leave at least half an inch space at the top.
-- bring 2 c. of water to a boil in a wide pot
-- seal the jars and place them sitting in the boiling water for at least 10 min. This is to rid the chance of botulism and contamination
6. Keep refrigerated & enjoy atop toast :)

Happy jamming!

lot of lovee

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

{food diary} eat with me


1. Mother's day annual eating at Senor Fish 2. First stop in SF: Boudin for chowder bread bowls
 3. Bi-Rite Creamery in SF 4. Lavendar Honey &Salted caramel; Strawberry Balsamic&Creme Fraiche; Sorbet 5. Food truck reception: TheChairman's pork belly & duck confit steam buns w. coconut water 
6. visit to Tartine Bakery 7. tempting almond tarts

I suppose you could say I eat well, but in reality I eat well on the weekends. May has been filled with celebrations! Mother's Day, my mother's birthday, trip up to SF for a wedding, and this weekend I will be in Vegas for another birthday. MADNESS. All this coupled with finals fast approaching I have gotten backed up with all of the things I want to blog about. Get real time news on my Twitter of all these events and more :)

Have an excellent rest of the week!

lots of lovee

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

{photodiary} mother's day special









Mother's day weekend celebrations started off saturday morning with a trip to CalPolyPomona's annual strawberry festival! Mi madre had come home on thursday raving about the sweetest strawberries fromt he farm store, so we thought strawberry picking would be something fun for her. Too bad by the time we got out there all of the berries had thus been plucked :( So we walked around the farm, bought two bunches of kale for $1.25 and headed to lunch at Cassie's Soul Food Kitchen.

Fried chicken. Shrimp Po'boy. Oxtails. Mac&Cheese. Hot Links. Collard greens. Sweet Potatoes. Cornbread Dressing. Chicken&Spaghetti. Strawberry&Banana Cream Pudding. Peach Cobbler.
tell me you're not hungry now.
We pretty much ordered the entire menu. It's a small place but the portions and quality is fabulous! We walked around the antique row a bit to put off food coma. I'm still recovering from eating so much. Time to go make salad with my fresh kale and think about studying :)

lots of lovee

Monday, May 14, 2012

show some clavicle


Some people think that legs are attractive. Others think hands are attractive. I personally think the clavicle is attractive. What the hey is a clavicle?  The clavicle, otherwise known as the collarbone, is that bone that juts out a little near your shoulders and neck. Of all of my features I think my clavicle is what I am most proud of. It has the least injuries or blemishes near my arms.

This one shoulder ark & co. dress shows my clavicle. I like it a lot. It cost me $3 at one of my favorite thift stores. People kept telling me I look like a Greek goddess..debatable. My love for the brilliant beaded shoulder detail on this dress... is non-debatable. Mother's Day yesterday was the perfect excuse to throw it on :)


The weather forecast of this week is looking lovely. Have an excellent week!

lots of lovee

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

"I'm peacockin'"- Tom Haverford


What is this that I hear about Parks & Rec on NBC not coming back ??! If you don't watch Thursday nights done right yet. Do it.

The title quote has nothing to do with this post but it's appropriate because this weekend I went to the Arboretum with my fellowship group. It was a beautiful day and the peacocks and geese were out in full force. We spent the morning frolicking and exploring the natural space.
(creds: Alvin Teng)
On another note: the blogger disappearance recently is credited to Uni midterms and a mix of stress & exhaustion. Even now I am still in the midst of it, but I needed a break from it all so I took the liberty of  baking last night and uploading some pictures from my weekend :)

he thinks he's so cool 

Have an awesome rest of the week!

lots of lovee

Ephesians 4:29

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

eat with me. {bottega louie}


I appreciate skilled workers. Especially those with skills that I envy... like cooking perfectly poached eggs. If you are laughing at me right now you obviously don't know how hard it is to cook a perfect poached egg. It's an art. As is creating the fluffiest quiche.

This past weekend I had the chance to go to Bottega Louie for brunch with my aunt, and contrary to popular demand I did not eat a single macaron. Yes, I regret a little. However what I don't regret was the chance to watch them cook, and particularly the sous chef creating the eggs benedict and soft boiled eggs at the speed of light. (If by chance he is reading this, I am the girl that was staring at you for 15 minutes in awe. sorry for being creepy)
bottom to top: potato pancake,creme fraiche, red onion, spinach, smoked salmon, poached egg, & hollandaise sauce
spinach and goat cheese quiche with frisee salad & pear tomatoes =so fluffy! so nutty!
 proscuitto &barrata: potato pancake, barrata, prosciutto, basil, &drizzled with olive oil
We shared all three of the dishes and left full with tons of leftovers. Pretty pricey and the restaurant is very loud, so if you're looking for a quiet place this isn't it. Quality is good to try once if you're in the downtown area or looking to be hipster. 

green tea mojito was super refreshing and yums!
MIDTERMS ARE OVER.

lots of lovee



Yahweh Nissi. Yahweh Jireh. John 16:33