Where did the time go???!!!

I admit, I committed probably the worst blogging offense in the blogging world. My name is Elaine and it's been almost 2 years since my last post. Two years???!!!! What happened to the time? SO much has happened in the past 2 years and the only way I can think to catch everyone up is by making a list. Before I make my list, I want to attribute this renewed enthusiasm for blogging to my amazing friend, Amanda (Supermanda!). Amanda just recently moved to the Netherlands to reunite with her husband and to start a new grownup post-doc position. She started a new blog to document her new life called Life at 4C, please check it out if you are curious about an American living in Holland!

Back to the list, I love lists, don't you? What happened in the past 2 years you ask?

• The boyfriend and I purchased a house, which came with a complete renovation of the bathroom, kitchen, and laundry room!
• We bought a lot of new house stuff like a ceiling fan, a dining room set, new curtains, and new windows.

• I have been taking aerial silks classes (my arms are definitely more toned and stronger!)

• I am engaged to the love of my life (The wedding is this summer)!
• We are temporary dog owners! We inherited my soon-to-be sister-in-law's tiny teacup Pomeranian, Chanel, while she teaches English in Indonesia.

Chanel definitely likes James more than she likes me.

In list form, it doesn't look like much has happened, but each thing on the list has been pretty major! More to come so make sure you stay tuned!

Leftover with a Twist!

I am finally feeling creative enough to start blogging again. In the past 6 months, I just haven't felt very inspired. I don't know if it's because work/school has been crazy busy or the fact that most of my free time (weekends) has been taken up by house-hunting. Regardless the reason, I felt the urge to blog today so here I am!

Last week I used my handy crockpot to cook a turkey breast roast with lots of delicious veggies. The meal was a success, but I was left with tons of leftovers. I am not a fan of leftovers and will usually eat it for one more meal (lunch the next day) and be sick of it. I had so much turkey breast, veggies, and delicious broth left so I wanted to do something different to hide the fact that this was still the leftovers. The weather is turning a little chilly and boyfriend has been asking for me to make chili again so that's exactly what I did! It was a simple and no brainer meal since the broth had tons of veggies already and all I had to do was to shred the turkey meat and add a few cans of beans and some spices.

As an added twist, I decided to make some Trader Joe's tater tots to go with the turkey chili. I love chili cheese fries, so I thought why not substitute the fries with some tater tots. This also gives me the chance to try out the Trader Joe's brand of tater tots!

Shred some turkey meat (I usually use ground beef)

Saute some extra onions and mushrooms.

Add the shredded turkey in with the onions and mushrooms.

Add one can of black beans, one can of garbanzo beans, and half a can of corn.

Stir in the broth, add one small can of tomato paste, and one large can of diced tomato.
Add smoked paprika, chili powder, cumin, parsley, and cayenne pepper. Stir and simmer on the stove for about an hour.

Follow directions on the bag, bake at 400F for 20 minutes.

Voila! The final product with a sprinkle of cheese! The tots are on the bottom ^_^

The texture of the turkey chili and definitely different from regular turkey. I think this is mainly due to the turkey meat, which falls apart more easily. The tots fell apart due to the hot chili so I think I will wait for the chili to cool a little bit before combining them together. I am looking forward to getting back into the blogging world and sharing my stories and foods with all of you! I hope this post helps to inspire you for the upcoming week =)

Menu planning

I love throwing dinner parties! I don't do it as often as I would like because I throw myself completely into the planning mode and spend more time planning or grocery shopping than working >_< This week I am having two different groups of friends over to my apartment for dinner. The first dinner already happened on Tuesday, and the second dinner is going to be on Friday. Here are my personal guidelines for menu planning:

1) Brainstorm menu ideas ahead of time, taking into considerations your guests' tastes, diets, and allergies. Also keep in mind how many people you will have over and if your party has a theme!

2) Read over the recipes carefully. Nobody likes surprises in the middle of cooking >_<

3) Make a list of all the items you need for cooking/table setting then take an inventory of what you already have in your pantry vs. what you need to get at the store(s).

4) Grocery shop before the day of the dinner party. I found that if I wait until the day of the party to grocery shop, I tend to forget things here and there, which makes me stressed and not able to enjoy the process of cooking =(

5) Think about what you can make/prep ahead so you are not scrambling around before your friends arrive. I like to socialize with my friends while we drink some wine and enjoy the appetizers, not running  around the kitchen while everyone else is having a great time.

6) Always end the meal with a good dessert because as the actor William Powell said, "Dessert is probably the most important stage of the meal, since it will be the last thing your guests remember before they pass out all over the table."

7) Last and not least, enlist the help of your significant other if you can. There is nothing wrong with a team effort!

These personal guidelines have worked brilliantly for me everytime! Do you have any specific things you do when you plan for dinner parties??

Anniversary

Sorry peeps....I've been totally behind on the posting >_< It's been a super crazy few weeks at work and I'm just now able to focus on something else besides my failed experiments =(

A few weekends ago Boyfriend and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. I can't believe it's been 2 years! It's so cliche but time sure flies by when you're having fun! Boyfriend surprised me by getting me some gorgeous lilacs and stargazer lilies delivered to my office.

These flowers stayed alive and blooming for about 3 weeks and had the most amazing smell that permeated the whole hallway! The flowers came with a simple message, " A gift of two wonderful years. Love you." How can I not love this man??!! 

We celebrated our anniversary with a wonderful dinner at Rei Del Gado Brazilian Steak House in Gaslamp. If you are a meat-eater, this is the place for you! The restaurant has no menu, has an awesome cold bar (salads, shrimp cocktails, assortment of cheeses, king crab legs, etc.), soups, and a hot bar (rice, potatoes, fish, mussels, etc.)

The best thing about this restaurant is the unlimited supplies of meats! The servers (hot Brazilian guys with large skewers and knives, how can you not love it?) come around with different types of meats and stop by your table if you have this little thing below turned to green!

Yum....I'm getting hungry just posting these pictures! We finished the dinner off with some coffee that came in the most adorable coffee cups!

It was a wonderfully simple and amazing anniversary! I can't wait for our next anniversary and the many more that will come after that =)

Antiquing

A few weekends ago I went with some girlfriends from my PhD program to go antique shopping. I've never gone antiquing before so I was totally psyched about the experience! My friend Sarah is a veteran antique shopper, and she took us to her favorite store in Oceanside!

We first stopped at an adorable little cafe in Oceanside called Hill Street Cafe & Gallery for some lunch!

Then it's onwards to the antique shop! The shop is amazing! I guess I never went antique shopping before because I always thought I wouldn't have the patience to dig through a bunch of old stuff, but this shopping trip definitely changed my mind!

There were so many amazing finds in plain sight or hidden in the corners! I now think of antique shopping as a treasure hunt and I can't wait to go again!

Meeting the neighbors

My apartment complex recently had a BBQ and pool party. Boyfriend and I have lived in this complex for almost a year now yet we've only met about a handful of our neighbors. You would think that living in such close proximity with other people would lead to more social interaction not less, but go figure!

The party included an appetizer contest with the chance to win a $75 Visa gift card! I was so amped when I found out about the contest that I immediately started to plan my appetizer. I decided to go with an always popular appetizer, double tomato bruschetta (adapted from Allrecipes).

It was the perfect day for a pool and BBQ party. The weather was gorgeous and people were feeling very sociable!

PS. That's my patio on the right in the picture above :)

I love this picture of all the kids in the apartment complex playing in the pool!

There were so many amazing looking and tasty appetizers! Some looked quite strange but was delicious nonetheless! 

Sadly, I did not win the appetizer contest, but that's ok because it was super fun making the bruschetta and meeting the neighbors! I can't wait for next year's BBQ and pool party! 

Do you know your neighbors???

Impromptu date night

Have you ever had an impromptu date night? Boyfriend and I had one last week. I'm not the most spontaneous person in the world, but this was a very nice surprise that I wouldn't mind repeating ^_^

We went to Cucina Urbana, which both boyfriend and I have heard rave reviews. I didn't really know what to expect because I have only ever driven by the place. I was delighted by their decor, atmosphere, and food! Oh boy was I in love with the food *sigh*....no offense boyfriend LOL :P

The restaurant was dimly lit with a great combination of modern and rustic feel to it.

Even on a Thursday night, the place was packed and we were not able to get a table. However, we did get two very comfortable seats at the pizza counter! What it that, you ask? It's a long shared table right in front of the pizza kitchen! You can watch the chefs prepare your pizza!

I love the wood they used on the walls below. I think I want this in my own kitchen one day!

Oh! These cute bird lights were right above our seats! Aren't they cute?

Now let's talk about the food! If you love Italian, this is the place for you! Oh I am getting hungry just writing about it. For appetizer, we ordered the fried squash blossoms stuffed with herb ricotta cheese with purple basil pesto and cured lemon aioli on the side. OMG!!! So good! I've never had squash blossoms before and boyfriend hates squash, but we both loved this dish! A definite must-try if you come to this place!

For our entrees, boyfriend ordered the speck and pineapple pizza and I ordered the braised short rib pappardelle. Both were excellent! The pizza had a nice spiciness to it and the crust was perfectly cooked.  The pappardelle was out of this world! The short rib was so tender that it flaked apart and the sauce.....I think I can drink buckets of that sauce!

Of course, no Italian dinner is complete without some vino! I ordered the syrah from Paso Robles. It was dry and slightly spicy, just the way I like it! I think I am improving my tolerance for wine....YES!