2010 memorial day

waking up to homemade doughnuts is never a bad way to start a day off from work. of course for me that was not my fate but i did wake up and prepare doughnuts so that my little sisters could wake up to that. when i say homemade what i mean is i popped open a can of pillsbury rolls and fried them in a pan and then coated them in sugar. when i purchased the rolls they didn’t have the normal ones so i picked out the flaky layer honey butter ones. they worked just fine but they are better with the original pillsbury rolls. after breakfast we picked up my cousin and headed to the city for a day at the sf zoo. sadly this didn’t happen since we drove for 20 mins and couldn’t find any parking. we decided to head to the mall for lunch and shopping. we ate at olive garden and we had a really hot waiter.. seriously he was totally cute!! we started with an appetizer sampler and one of my sisters ate calamari for the first time and she liked it. i told her it was squid after it was all gone and she still said she would eat it again. after lunch and shopping for hours we went back to my house and ate bronco billy’s pizza and hung out. it was such a fun day to spend with my cousin and my sisters.

this love will never fade...

the way you move me, it's crazy
it's like you see right through me

today a dear friend of mine got hitched. my friend the tiny dancer married her best friend and they are truly the best thing to happen to one another. he brings so much love and light into her world and i'm so grateful that they found each another!! it's such a joy to see her so happy and to know that together they can take on the world. i wish them the very best life and love has to offer as they walk through this life long journey hand in hand with their best friend. i can't wait to see what the future has in store and watch their love thrive as the next chapters of their lives unfold. -ohana

zen

ate dinner at a place called zen in alameda for the rehearsal dinner of my friend the tiny dancer. here is a picture of my shoyu chicken. it's chicken braised in sake, shoyu and ginger served with rice. it was good but what was even better was the sweet potato tempura fries served as an appetizer.

the ninja

tonight i wanted a smoothie and i was able to finally use the new ninja blender thing i took from my dad's storage. i had frozen strawberries, frozen pineapple & passion fruit, a fresh mango and 1/2 a fresh banana. the only thing missing was juice which i dind't have so instead i used a can of sprite. it turned out to be good with a little fizz added and it was able to satisfy my smoothie craving.

tobasco crock pot

as promised a picture of my awesome tabasco crock pot that i love SO MUCH, thank you to the griffins! actually i need to give a few more shout outs cause nearly everything in this picture was given to me and i hope it makes you happy to see that they are on display in my kitchen. above the crock pot is a sign i was given a few years ago as a bday gift from emjay. it's been hanging in my kitchen ever since. this sign is the inspiration behind my blog signature. also, to the right is a chicken that was part of a christmas gift from my friend the tiny dancer. she knows how much i love roscoes and that one day i want to have a kitchen themed around it.

fine, fresh, fierce

this morning at around 12am i picked up my little sisters from the airport. they are visiting from florida for about 2 1/2 weeks. after leaving the airport i took them to in-n-out so they could experience the tastiness. i thought it'd be cool since it's something they don't have in florida. i'm happy to report that they both really liked their meals and milkshakes.
while listening to the radio today we heard the new song by katy perry called california girls four times. my sisters and i rocked out and enjoyed the novalty of the song since they are currently in california. the song provided a catchy beat that makes it easy to car dance to. my favorite line from the song is 'nothing comes close to the golden coast' and i'd have to agree. it's fun visiting other places but i'm a california girl through and through. it's not that i'm apossed to living in other states but for me it'd have to be for short periods of time or a year at most. i will always return to the west/golden coast since my heart will forever been here, i love the bay like i love l.a. if you're from here then you understand why it's a place you can't be away from for too long.

house of chicken & waffles

these chicken and waffles were not nearly as good as roscoe's but it was still good. it was a fun treat for me since we all know how much i love this crazy combo and with roscoe's so far away i'm on a journey to find a suitable substitute. the first thing that didn't compare was my drink. since they don't offer the eclipse i ordered the sunrise and it was too sour. the difference between the two drinks is that the sunrise only has orange juice and lemonade but the eclipse adds fruit punch to give it the perfect sweetness. the second thing that didn't measure up was the gravy as i felt it lacked flavor and it failed to add anything to the chicken. i did enjoy my mac n cheese. as for my chicken and waffle i was surprisingly satisfied which i don't remember being after my last visit at the house of chicken and waffles. i am sure i'll go back to help fill my craving but it's just not the same. my chicken breast had a nice crisp outside with a juicy inside. my waffle was good but it didn't come close to the tasty waffles at roscoe's. there is a special flavor or secret ingredient (crack i'm sure of it) in the batter at roscoe's that makes you crave it and makes all others fail in comparison.

throw back thursday - that boy is mine

i'm making this the throwback pick of the month for two reasons:

1. this is one of the many songs i taught to my little sister when she was only a few years old and she used to crack me when she sang this one specifically.

2. if the obvious reason of hottie body noah puckerman didn't come to mind then you must not be a fan of glee. when the song started i was cracking up and i wanted to watch it over and over. i wish that boy was mine and i think he is a great reason for a girl fight.

cheesy bread

in yet another attempt to clear some room in my freezer i was able to find several items to contribute to a delicious meal. spaghetti sauce with ground turkey and olives served over parmesan potato gnocchi, a side of broccoli and cheesy bread. this cheesy bread is a bread that my mom used to make when we were younger. she used cream cheese mixed with some garlic powder and spread it over the french bread then she sprinkled with cheese. i think the green onion part is something that my sister added to it later. it was really good, all except the part when i burned the crap out of my tongue tasting the sauce. happy thoughts... i was able to use bread, ground turkey and gnocchi all from my freezer.

chicken & mac n cheese

i had leftover buttermilk from the dressing i made for the bomb party and i was able to find a recipe to use it. for dinner i made chicken, broccoli, macorroni and cheese. the recipe called for bone in chicken but i used boneless chicken breast and cut it into smaller pieces so it'd cook faster. i prepared the chicken sunday morning before i headed to church and let it set for nearly 10 hours.

buttermilk chicken
1 ½ cups buttermilk
8 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbls. paprika
1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
¾ tsp. black pepper
6lbs bone-in chicken
• in small bowl or measuring cup, combine the buttermilk, garlic, paprika, salt & pepper.
• divide the buttermilk mixture & chicken between 2 large resalable plastic bags. let marinate in the refrigerator, turning the bags occasionally, for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
• heat grill to medium-low. remove the chicken from the marinade (discard the marinade) and grill, covered, turning occasionally, until cooked through, 30-40 minutes.

also, it said to cook on a grill but i cooked it on the stove in my grill pan and i liked the results just fine. i'm sure the flavor would've been a little better off the grill so next time i'll try it.

fun cupcakes

my cousin and i found a booth selling cupcakes at the rummage sale and decided to treat ourselves. look at the cute ones we found. mine was a green apple with chocolate cake and vanilla frosting covered in green sprinkles, i like that there is a bite missing. my cousin got a hamburger, i forgot to ask him but i think it was yellow cake with a slice of brownie for the patty and frosting as the ketchup and lettuce. when we finished the sale we needed to eat something other than sugar and we ended up at red robin. it was fun to see my cousin and my aunt and i'm grateful for their help!! it ended up being a great day spent with family.

fun.

the name says it all! this eclectic group was able to bring together different elements from several different forces and unite to form the band FUN. nate formally from the format, jack of steel train and andrew formally from anathallo. this group is lead by nate ruess who decided not to let his powerhouse voice and talent be ignored after the split of the format. someone should be kicking themselves for letting the split happen but lucky for us he moved on and is still recording. not often can you find a singer who sounds just as good live as he/she does on their cd but that’s exactly what nate did. in fact he may have sounded better live than on the cd. be calm is the first song on their debut album and if you listen to it or any other song (except the acoustic version of take your time) on the aim and ignite cd you’ll see that it’s anything but calm. if you check it out and are not sold after the first listen i'd urge you to play it again. his voice is electric and it sent a shock through everyone who was in attendance at slim's tonight. from the moment they stepped out on stage to the very last song the entire group performed with such a high level of enthusiasm. they perform with such joy that you could see how grateful they are to be doing what they love. this was my second time seeing them and i’m not sure how but they were better than the last time. i'm sure it helped being the headliner instead of opening for jack's mannequin. whatever amped up their performance i'm glad and i was happy to be in attendence.

30 second to mars

i'm dumb for deleting the witty post i previously wrote. not gonna try to write that again so this post is to at least document that tonight i went to see 30stm for my second time. we even printed out fake tattoos of the triangle symbol and i wasted 3 of them trying to get one just right which never happened. we ate at a small place near the fox theater in oakland where i had a teriyaki chicken sandwich. i'd never been to this venue before but i can't wait to go back. not only was it conveniently located close to bart but the venue was great. neon trees opened and they were not nearly as good live as they are on cd. in their defense the sound was off for about half of their songs and once that was fixed they did sound much better. the singer was a little awkward but the chick drummer was cool.neon trees was followed by mute math who i thought did really well. the drummer was a little creepy but he's good. he put on a great show and he played a fun song with water bouncing around up and down on his drums. their singers voice sounded great in the theater and he even did a handstand and flip off the piano.finally jared and 30 seconds to mars hit the stage and put on a great show. i do wish that jared sang more and talked less but hey i'll forgive those blue eyes that can do no wrong.ps if you don't look like jared leto or have those mesmerizing blue eyes please do not try this at home. and by this i mean the eye liner or long hair.

alexisonfire

thankfully last minute i found someone to go to the show with and lucky for me i was able to see alexisonfire tonight. i know that most people don't like this type of music, as for me i do listen to some of the hardcore/screamo stuff. my love for music stretches too wide to be completely closed off to hardcore or screamo based bands. although i'm not a fan of musicals, opera or classical i can appreciate that they have helped mold or shape the music world and some of the artists i love. at slims there are always several opening bands before the main group comes out and tonight was no different. there were 3 bands that opened but i don't have much to say except there were several songs i did enjoy but most of it i could have done without. aside from the music i did witness one of the singers swing the microphone around and around to which it finally landed upside the head of a crowd member. not only did it hit like a ton of bricks but the sound echoed through the speakers and somehow the dude was unfazed by this massive blow to the head. it didn't matter to him or to me cause once dallas green took the stage all was right in the world again. it's an understatement for me to say that dallas green's vocals add a unique and soulful spin to the band we know as alexisonfire, but yet there you have it. his guitar skills and voice prevailed through even the screamiest of hardcore songs. dallas is the man!! he and the entire band of misfits whaled as they rocked out across the entire stage. when the show came to a close i was left in awe from the amazing talent we'd just witnessed. thanks for coming to the bay and gracing us with your loud and noisy presence!

seis de mayo #3

since the birth of my blog didn't happen until this year i'll go back a few years to fill you in on the significance of this day. first off i do realize that yesterday was cinco de mayo and no i didn't get my days wrong. this story began on may 6th, 2007 when 6 girls were ready to embark on a 7 day mexican voyage. before boarding the ship we checked in and while checking in i may or may not have let a few words slip out about my friends carrying something suspicious in their bags. needless to say these words to me were funny and said in fun but that didn't seem to matter. before we knew it 3 of us were sequestered to a large room with several security guards waiting for the long beach police. that's right the police when i say police i mean 10 long beach officers. to make a very long story short we received the third degree and were detained for a few hours. after a strict security search of all our possessions we were finally able to leave and they let us board the boat with no legal action. what more can i say except that bad decisions make good stories and this story is worth celebrating for years and years to come.lucky for me i was able to turn this into a celebration of my/our independence from the law. i celebrate by throwing an annual bomb burrito party and feed my friends who love me endlessly even after this unforgetable situation.

bomb food 5-6-10

although i'm posting this recipe i didn't follow it.. hahaha!! i thought i did until now. i was a little sadened by my pork and wondered why it wasn't as flavorful as the one's i'd had before and i just figured it out. i normally make things up as i go and figure it out fine but i'd had this pork before made by someone else and mine didn't taste the same. what i did was add all the ingredients to the crock pot in the morning and let it cook all day instead of cooking it with a little water and then adding the ingredients at the end when i shredded it, MY BAD!! it was good but it wasn't as rich in flavor but overall still tasted fine. no one got sick or anything so it really did turn out but next year guys i'll do it right and it will be better than just ok. i really need to start reading directions and actually learn to follow a recipe!!
i also made homemade pinto beans for the first time, mexican rice and carne asada which i bought from the chavez market ready to cook. one of my friends even surprised me with a jug of mango mint mojito that was very good!

cafe rio pork

pork roast: put it in a crock pot with a little water and cook until very tender (about 8 hours on low).
shred pork and add:
1 can enchilada sauce
2 cloves minced garlic
1 small can diced green chilies
1 can Coke (not diet coke)
1 cup brown sugar (or 1/2 cup, 1 cup is pretty sweet)
salt to taste
cook for one more hour

creamy tomatillo dressing

1 package ranch buttermilk dressing mix
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 cup mayonnaise (or half mayo and half sour cream)
3 fresh tomatillos
1 cup fresh cilantro
2 cloves garlic
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
put everything in a blender and puree. refrigerate for a couple of hours and if you need to, adjust by adding more buttermilk to thin it out, or sour cream to make it thicker.

set it and forget it

not sure why or how i haven't let myself embrace my love for a crock-pot until now. i think it is due to the fact that i didn't grow up eating meals cooked in one so i didn't know how to do it. i've always heard people rave about how easy it was to use but i didn't really know how to tackle this daunting task. my fear for the crock pot decreased a little when i received the most adorable one ever from the griffins last year. i'll take a picture of it so that you can see for yourself but to me it's the best ever!! i love hot sauce and i have a collection of them from the places i visit so this allows me to leave the crock pot on display. i was previously overwhelmed with the idea of using it so i started with something easy.. hot wings. i fried the chicken on the stove and just let them stay warm in the pot while marinating in the hot sauce, cheating i know. since then i've only used the pot a few other times and only once other time to actually cook a full meal in it (which did not turn out very good). today i kicked away any remaining fears i had and now i submit myself fully to the use of this wonderful invention. i had a few friends over for dinner after church and i knew we'd be too hungry to wait for a meal to cook. so i woke up an hour early to prepped the pork roast. i started by placing the pork roast in a bowl with a package of mccormick pork seasoning with water and let it set. i then cut the potatoes and adding them to a bowl with baby carrots and flavored with a package of lipton onion soup mix. i added the roast, potatoes and carrots into the pot and topped it off with an onion. turned that baby on high to set it and forget it. i was gone for several hours and returned home to have dinner already cooked. the meat was so tender and the flavors i mixed made for a tasty meal. since this turned out great and i am no longer going to let my pot sit only for display.

pampas

tonight we celebrated a friend’s birthday by going to dinner in palo alto to a new place we’d never been to called pampas. it’s brazilian bbq and for dinner of course i chose the unlimited rodizio and side bar. with an endless array of meat such as but was not limited to: filet mignon w/parmesan, lamb chop topped with balsamic vinegar, spicy chicken legs, pork loin adobo, brazilian pork sausage, tri-tip, bacon wrapped turkey, leg of lamb, skirt steak and top sirloin.those are the meats i tried in the order that i liked them but there were several other options that i didn’t try. it was a hard choice to decide which meat was my favorite but in the end the parmesan put the filet just barely ahead of the lamb chops even with the edge of the balsamic vinegar. i did however eat 3 of those chops so that should tell you how close in the running for my favorite meat dish. aside from the meat the bar was ok but it only had a few options that made me go back for seconds. i really like cooked veggies but most items served on the bar were cold and i ended up not eating the veggies i normally love. at the side bar they did have a mango coleslaw that was good, some very tasty garlic mashed potatoes and even tastier coconut sweet potatoes. as if this food wasn’t enough ate too many cheesy bread balls and gilled pineapple. i seriously don’t know why more restaurants don’t have grilled pineapple available on the menu, it’s amazing!! i guess i was so excited about the pineapple that i never got a picture of it.. oops. we ended the night at the griffins for gelato and girl talk.

tyrone wells

i know i should be strong enough to walk alone. to make my own way down this winding road. but i am broken and i need you please to, pull me through. i need someone to hold onto. pull me through i don’t know who else to turn to. when life is a struggle and i am in trouble i need you to pull me through. thanks to tyrone these lyrics keep playing in my head this past week. i have been stuck in a mini pity party and this cd has helped make me happy. i couldn't find a you tube video to share but i think everyone should check out the metal & wood cd i purchased almost 2 weeks back and i'm in love with it! i enjoy the entire cd but the tracks i'd like to call your attention to are running around in my dreams, happy as the sun and the birds sing. tyrone has a few free shows in july around the hollywood area so if anyone is intersted.. hint hint.. i'd love to go.