Combine flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, and allspice in a large bowl. Use a hand held whisk to combine all the ingredients together. Set aside.
Using a stand or hand held mixer combine sugar and oil. Blend all ingredients together. Whisk in eggs
one at a time. Continue to mix all ingredients. Take your dry ingredients that we put aside and combine
it with the wet ingredients. Allow the batter to mix. Now hand stir the carrots and pecans. Once ingredients are mixed go ahead and machine mix it for an additional 2-3 minutes.
Line cupcake pan with oil or baking spray. Use a spoon to fill the cupcake mold. About 2-3 scoops of batter almost 3/4.
Bake cupcakes for 14-18 minutes. Then cool the cupcakes in a cool rack for a minimum of 30 minutes.
before icing.
Cream Cheese Frosting
2 packs of cream cheese (softened)
1 unsalted butter (softened)
2 cups of powder sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients using a machine mixer. Cool frosting in a refrigerator for a hour before using.
Sorry for not being able to post any personal fashion pictures this week. Unfortunately, work has occupied all my time and im sadden i haven't had any time for myself except sleeping between shifts. Instead of nothing I figured I would just share the H&M Spring/Summer 2011 editorial spread. Enjoy. Happy Earth Day.
Dos Caminos, is a mexican chain restaurant and I personally enjoy going to the Soho location. This restaurant is rather trendy it has a wonderful outdoor seating area that overlooks Houston Street. Inside is a bit small and narrow but the interior is low lit and somewhat romantic. Dos Caminos, is always packed but you can place a reservation via Opentable.
My personal experience is always good in here. I never have any problems with the service. The food is delicious and I think the entrees are great in size and price. My favorite dish is the pollo a la plancha. The pollo a la plancha is a spiced roasted chicken over saffron, peas, and raisin. It's an amazing dish that is savory and sweet. With all Mexican/Latin cuisines I just love ordering sweet plantains. It's a great simple but yummy side that will compliment any entree you order.
**Caution this recipe requires a lot of arm work .. you will notice a lot of mixing**
Take out a large pot and turn your stove to medium high heat.
Drizzle and fill your pan with extra virgin olive oil. Once the oil is hot, add your diced onions, and garlic. Mix the ingredients until the onion is semi-carmalized.
Add 2 lbs of chicken wings and mix the ingredients together. We want to season our chicken wings with black pepper, garlic powder, and salt. Mix all the ingredients together well. Allow the chicken wings to semi brown it should take about 5 minutes. Then add 1/2 cup of soy sauce, 1 can of tomato sauce, 2 cups of water, sliced tomatoes and mix all the ingredients together. Take your lid and cover your stew. Allow the stew to cook until it's boiling. Approximately cook for 10-15 minutes.
Reduce your heat to medium low. Add chopped potatoes, 1 cup of water, and mix all your ingredients together. Take a break from mixing and cook the stew for 10 minutes. Allow the potatoes to cook.
Add chopped bell peppers, 1 can of mushroom, fish sauce, and sugar. Mix all the ingredients together.
Then add 2 cans of quail eggs mix one more time. Cover your stew and allow everything to cook for
Established in 1939 L&B Spumoni Gardens is one of Brooklyn's finest establishment. It has been catering the community for over 70 years. L&B's can be described as a very family oriented place. The restaurant offers outdoor and indoor dining. During the summer days the outdoor dining area gets extremely packed. It is definitely a popular hang out joint for many of the locals.
L&B's is famous for there silician pies. The silician pies also referred to as "squares" is packed with pure simple ingredients such as tomato sauce and cheeses. This simple but super delicious snack has been featured in many T.V. shows such as "Man vs. Food". The restaurant offers a super menu of many popular italian dishes. My favorite dish besides the squares are the chicken parm heros. Don't forget to save room for dessert. The italian ice and spumoni's are just some of the few desserts that you must try. My favorite is the vanilla chip italian ice. It is a perfect treat to end your L&B experience.
Turkey Burger, Banana Chocolate Latte, and Waffle fries
Heavenly.
Max Brenner, is a fanastic restaurant that any chocolate lover dreams of. I enjoy coming here for brunch because they have an amazing variety of breakfast and lunch dishes. Besides the entrees their dessert and beverage menu will make you want to drool. My favorite indulgence from Max B. are the speciality milkshakes and choctails. I cannot stress how heavenly it is. My favorite has to be the banana split latte but the eighties milkshake and pure chocolate truffle granita are just as good. The drinks are served in a cute cup that reads "Drink Me"and I cannot help but say "Yes! Please!".
The prices are average. The atomsphere is vibrant. The interior decor reminds me of a chocolate factory. The service is impeccable. The only downfall I have is that it can get pack especially after 10am and the tables are a bit close from each other. The best thing about this place is that they offer reservations so if you want to avoid the crowds book through Opentable.
7 egg yolks
1 whole egg
1 can of evaporated milk
1 can of condensed milk
1 cup of granulated sugar
1/4 cup of water
pinch of cream of tartar
1 pack of fresh raspberries
1 box of classic yellow cake mix
**(be sure to add the ingredients listed on the cake box also)
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Use a kettle or a medium size pot, fill it with water, and boil it under medium heat.
Take a large frying pan and we're going to prepare the caramel on medium heat. Add 1 cup of sugar,
1/4 cup of water, and a pinch of cream of tartar. Mix well with a wooden spoon and allow contents
to simmer. It is very important to not disturb the cooking once it's over direct heat because we want
to allow the sugar to caramelize to a light brown color.
In a large bowl add 7 egg yolks, 1 whole egg, 1 can of evaporated milk, and 1 can of condensed milk.
Use a whisk to whisk all the ingredients together. Set it aside.
To make the cake mix please follow the directions written on the box. Once completed put the cake
mix aside.
By now your caramel mixture should be ready. Be sure the caramel is a light brown color.
Immediately pour the caramel into a baking pan 8" or 9" inch round. Use a kitchen towel or baking gloves to tilt the pan so we can cover the entire bottom of the pan. Add your flan mixture. Then carefully pour the cake
mixture into the pan. Evenly distribute the cake mixture. You can take a butter knife and evenly spread
the top part of the mixture until it's nice and smooth.
Carefully place on your pan on top of a larger pan. We are going to use a water bath technique. Pour the
boiled water into your larger pan. Fill the water were the custard filling should be. Bake the cake for 1
hour and 25 minutes.
Once the cake is finished allow the cake to cool off for 30 minutes. To unmold the cake take a knife and
carefully separate the edge. Take your desired serving platter and place it on top of your cake. Carefully
flip the cake over. You should be able to unmold the cake and voila. Refrigerated the cake for 2-3 hours
before serving. Once it's ready garnish the top with raspberries or any fruit you desire.
If you're a fan of wings and you want to try a unique wing joint then BonChon is the place to go.
BonChon is a South Korean based franchise restaurant and it's known for their crispy wings. There are several BonChon chains around the city but my favorite location has to be the one on St. Marks. The St. Mark's location can get extremely busy due to the mass traffic of college students and of course everyone knows St. Mark's is the meca of cheap good eats. During the weekends the wait time can get insane so I would advise you to have an early dinner or lunch.
Typically, a wing joint has many variety of wings to choose from but BonChon only comes in two flavors soy garlic (sweet based) or spicy soy garlic. The wings are heavenly crispy, juicy, and simply scrumptious. I usually order sweet potato fries with my wings. The fries are very delicious. If you're thinking about drinking be sure to order the watermelon soju. It's a refreshing drink served in a huge watermelon that has been carved out to act as a punch bowl. Very creative huh? Be sure to pace yourself because this drink is a creeper. Another thing if you're not in the mood for wings Boka offers many variety of korean dishes and sushi.
I am pretty excited for this particular post just because this is my 1st fashion food friday post. I want to try new things for my blog to keep it fresh and interesting for my readers. So, every friday I will try to post my personal fashion and a restaurant adventure.
Shirt+Belt: Thrifted Jacket: Charlotte Ronson Short: Lucky Brand Undershirt+Necklace: Forever21
Hat+Bag+Bracelet: H&M Booties: Call it Spring Stockings: Target
My favorite thai restaurant can be found in park slope on the corner of 5th avenue and 1st street. Song's interior can be best described as industrial. The dark gray walls, low watt bulbs, exposed bricks, and metalwork gives off so much character to this chic urban restaurant. The kitchen is exposed on the corner of the restaurant and I personally enjoy watching the chefs cook.
Song, offers many flavorful dishes that is very budget friendly. A typical entree on average can cost about $7.50 and not to mention the portion is insanely huge. Customers will not be disappointed. The only downfall that they only accept cash. If you're planning to try this restaurant be sure to bring cash because cards will be rejected. Another note, this place can get extremely pack and they do not offer reservations. So, I would advise you to try it out during lunch or early dinner.
So, yesterday marked the first day of spring. Unfortunately, here in New York the weather can be described as abnormal. For instance last friday mother nature rewarded us with 70 degree sunny weather. It was such a great treat to take a break from all the winter clothes. Now, it's monday and it seems that spring has disappeared on us. The weather took a slight detour and we're back to cold and wintery mix weather. Just blah. To brighten up the matter if you haven't got a chance to see the H&M Spring 2011 campaign featuring Gisele Bundchen here it is. I am totally in love with the bohemian collection. What do you think of the pieces? Which one would you purchase?
I'm sure every women can relate that finding a good pair of jeans is hard. Yesterday, Levi stores
allowed customers to get a custom Levi's Curve ID fitting. You might be wondering what is a Levi Curve ID? As we all know women comes in all different shapes and sizes. So, Levi's came up with an easy way to find perfect jeans that fits your body type. I highly recommend taking the time to check out the Levi's website and take the Levi Curve ID quiz.
So I took the quiz and it looks like I'm Bold Curve. I am not a big fan when it comes to jeans but I must admit that my favorite pair of jeans I own are Levi's. I'm curious to know what everyone's Levi's Curve ID is so let me know how the quiz went or if you own a pair I would love to hear your reviews. :)
You will need the following ingredients:(serving for 4)
* 1/2 pack of imitation crab sticks (preferably use Japanese crab sticks)
* 2 salmon fillet
* 1 cup of mayonnaise (use real mayo not reduced fat)
* 6 teaspoons of masago
* 1 cup of mirin
* 1 cup of sugar
* 1/4 cup of soy sauce
Step 1 - Crabmeat Filling
Take your crab sticks and use your fingers to separate or shred the sticks apart. Once your done take a knife, cut your crab sticks into cubes, and then separate the crab even more with your fingers. Put
your crab in a bowl and add 1 cup of mayonnaise. Mix it well. Then add 3 teaspoons of masago and
start mixing all the ingredients together. I like to add an additional 3 more teaspoons of masago for
extra flavor and color. Mix more.
Step 2 - Prepping the Salmon
Be sure to wash and pat dry your salmon fillets. Take a sharp knife and begin slicing your salmon into
thin slices. (Please be very careful not to slice your fingers off.) Slice your salmon until you reach the skin. Discard the skins.
Step 3 - Assemble
Look for one nice wide salmon slice and begin shaping the slice into a semi-circle. Use your fingers
to spread the salmon. Take a scoop of your crabmeat filling and put it on top of your semi circle slice.
You want to shape the crabmeat filling into a dome. After that take more salmon slices and begin to cover the sides of the crabmeat filling. Make sure it's firm and shape it into a circle.
Step 4 - Baking
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Take out a pan and cover your pan with aluminum foil. Carefully take a spatula or knife and tranfer your salmon to the pan. I like to use a toaster oven vs. a conventional oven. If your using a conventional oven I found the baking time is a bit longer so be sure to monitor your salmon. Bake the salmon for 15 minutes. Once your done add a little bit of masago on top and drizzle your salmon with the sweet brown sauce. Adjust your oven to a broil setting. Put the salmon back in the oven and allow it to cook for 5-8mins or until the top is a little bit burnt.
Sweet Brown Sauce Recipe
Turn your heat to medium. Add 1 cup of mirin, 1 cup of sugar, and 1/4 cup of soy sauce into a small saucepan. Stir the ingredients until the sugar has dissolved. Allow the ingredients to cook until alcohol (mirin) evaporates and becomes slightly thick. Turn heat off and let it cool off. You can store it in a tupperware and refrigerate for a few weeks.
* 1 pack of imitation crab meat (I used Osaki Brand in my video)
* 1 pack of smoked salmon
* 1/2 cup of mayonnaise
* avocado
* mango
* cream cheese
* masago
* sushi wrap
* 4 cups of sushi rice
* 1/4 cup of rice vinegar
* 1 tablespoon of sugar
* dash of salt
* cold water
Kitchen Utensils:
* bamboo sushi rolling mat
* saran wrap
* 1 large wooden bowl
* plastic utensils
* plates
* bowls
* rice cooker
* scissors
* small saucepan
Step 1 - cooking the rice
Add 4 cups of sushi rice into your rice cooker bowl. Rinse the rice with your hands several times in cold water. Allow the rice to soak in water for about 15 minutes. Once soaked, drain the water, and add 4 1/2 cups of water into bowl. Begin to cook rice.
Once rice is cooked, open lid, and allow the rice to sit for an additional 15 minutes. After 15 minutes take your rice and transfer it to your large wooden bowl. Cover the rice with a paper towl and set it to the side.
In low heat take out a small saucepan. Add your vinegar, sugar, salt and stir until sugar and salt has dissolved. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes. Turn off stove and allow vinegar mixture to cool off.
Once vinegar mixture is cooled carefully pour the mixture into your bowl of sushi rice. Mix well with a plastic spoon.
Step 2- Prepping the bamboo sushi rolling mat
Take out your bamboo sushi rolling mat and your going to cover the entire mat with saran wrap. I usually wrap 3 times to assure the bamboo is entirely covered front to back. (Helpful tip #1) If you have a gas stove you can seal your edges by carefully placing the mat above the flame. The heat allows the saran wrap to shrink and by shrinking it actually seals it. You can also try a blow dryer or just use scotch tape to seal the edges.
Step 3- Snowcrab and Philly
Snowcrab Mixture
Shred and chop the imitation crab meat. Once chopped put your crab meat into a mixing bowl. Add your mayo and 1 teaspoon of masago. Mix ingredients well.
Philly
Slice your smoked salmon and cream cheese.
Go ahead and slice your avocado and mango.
Step 4- Arranging your rolls
Take your sushi wrap and cut about 2 inches off. Place the wrap on the rolling mat, add sushi rice, and carefully spread the rice all over the wrap. (Helpful tip #2) Use a plastic spoon or knife to spread the rice evenly. The rice is very sticky and using plastic utensils makes spreading easy. After your down flip the wrap carefully and be sure the flat side of the rolling mat is faced up.
Snowcrab roll add the following:
1. snowcrab mixture
2. avocado
Philly roll
1. smoked salmon
2. avocado
3. Cream cheese
Add your desired ingredients. Carefully roll your sushi and press lightly to seal. Use your rolling mat and begin to tightly roll your sushi. Start at the side nearest you and begin to roll and squeeze towards you. Be careful not to press too tight or else your sushi will fall apart. (Helpful tip #3) You can wet your hands with water to assure the rice won't stick to you.
Step 5- Decorate by adding toppings
Take one of your sushi rolls and spread masago all over. The red color makes the sushi attractive and also it makes the sushi yummy.
Try fresh mango for a different approach. It's wonderful on either snowcrab or philly roll.
Be creative.
Step 6- Preparation
Warning: Please be very careful when handling sharp objects.
Use a sharp knife to cut the sushi to 6-8 pieces. I usually don't use the sushi ends. Also I find dipping the knife in cold water makes slicing easier. You get a cleaner cut in my opinion. Plate. Serve. Enjoy.
Special thanks to my roomie Ai for sharing her sushi tips :)
Elegant Dresses. Lights Flashing. A Famous Red Velvet Carpet.
For anyone who is a fashion expert the Oscar's can be best described as the superbowl of fashion. It's an ultimate wow event that can either leave you speechless or confused. I'm not a big fan of the actual Oscar show but the red carpet intrigues me. Have you ever imagine yourself walking the red carpet? What would be your ideal red carpet worthy look? If I had the opportunity to attend the Oscar's I imagine myself aiming to wear something romantic, fashionable, old hollywood glamour, and exquisitely elegant.
The four dresses above are my top picks of the red carpet looks. Natalie Portman looked amazing in her off the shoulder Rodarte plum dress. No wonder she won best actress, lol, no she really deserved that Oscar. Most importantly she's pregnant. For someone whose pregnant I have to say she looks divine, happy, and blessed. Congrats NP you earned it. Beside Natalie's dress I was fascinated with Cate Blanchett's pale lavendar Givenchy couture gown. Talk about being different and creative. I absolutely love the design and how artistic it is. The mustard yellow embellishment is a great touch and the clean cut sleeves makes it a futuristic look with a touch of elegance.
