Monday, June 2, 2014

Nutella Cheesecake Bars.

The other night, I decided to have some friends over to watch movies and I wanted to have some really delicious treats for us to snack on. I had an extra large jar of Nutella and decided to use it to make a cheesecake. I cut up the cheesecake into small bar in order for it to be portable/hand held for everyone to easily eat.

Ingredients.

I used Oreos for the crust instead of graham crackers because...well, who can't get enough of chocolate? So I layered the cheesecake into 3 levels: the Oreo crust, plain cheesecake, and Nutella cheesecake.

3 layers of deliciousness: Oreo crust, plain cheesecake, and Nutella cheesecake.


Recipe:

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of Oreo crumbs
  • 1/4 cup melted, unsalted butter
  • 16 ounces of cream cheese at room temperature (very important!)
  • 2 eggs at room temperature
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup Nutella
Directions:
  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and butter an 8x8 baking dish and line with parchment paper making sure the parchment is well pressed in the corners.
  2. In a food processor, pulse Oreos until they become crumbs. Add in melted butter and pulse until moistened. Press Oreo mixture evenly into the bottom of the baking dish and bake until the crust is set about 12 minutes. Set aside.
  3. Mix cream cheese, eggs, sugar, 1/4 cup heavy cream, and vanilla until its smooth. Put 2/3 of the mixture in a bowl and set aside. Add Nutella  and a tablespoon of heavy cream to the remaining cream cheese mixture. Pulse until smooth.
  4. To assemble, spread the plain cheesecake mixture over the cooled Oreo crust. Then pour the Nutella cheesecake layer on top of the plain cheesecake layer and spread evenly. 
  5. Bake on the center rack of the oven for 35 minutes or until the center slightly jiggles.
  6. Remove from the oven and cool completely on a cooling rack. Then refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
  7. When ready to serve, lift the cheesecake out of the pan and cut into 16 squares and serve.
Voila!



Camilo's California Bistro.

Yet again, I am on a constant search for the best brunch spots in LA and I came across Camilo's, which definitely ranks high on my list! Camilo's is local, found in Eagle Rock on the main street, Colorado. It's very homey and has a clean, classic atmosphere.

I am a huge fan of Eggs Benedict in general, and the "bennies" here really good. The hollandaise sauce is really lemony and adds a really complimenting flavor to the dish. 

My boob shaped Eggs Benedict :P.


My girlfriends I came here with ordered sweet breakfast dishes, which included Bananas Foster Waffles and French Toast dipped in Grand Marnier. This isn't your average IHOP french toast and waffles! 

Bananas Foster Waffles.

I loved the selection of AM drinks here too. My go to drink is a Bloody Mary and I liked that Camilo's kicked it up by adding soju instead of vodka.

Array of brunch cocktails. 

There is an entire section of the menu dedicated to Mexican style breakfasts like Huevos Rancheros and Chilaquiles. I really need to come back here to try these...I couldn't help but glance over to the other customer tables to look at these south of the border dishes and they were all mouthwatering. Needless to say, it may take a while for me to go through my list of hot brunch spots, but I will be coming back here!

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Springtime Trends.

So as a follower of trends, fashion is one of my favorite trends to follow. I scope out the fashions for each season and pick the ones are, in my opinion, the most fashion forward, ready to wear, and fun! I enjoy sharing my picks to my followers, as I have done for last summer and fall, and now I'm going to share my Spring 2014 picks.

This time, I'm going to do this a little differently. So I'll give a general statement about a fashion trend that is hot this spring and in then the picture below will show an example of the particular trend and how to include it in your wardrobe/lifestyle. So here goes!





1.  Pastel Blazers

Blazers are classic for a wardrobe, and this spring, adding a pastel colored blazer can add depth and variety into your outfit. This Straight Cut Jacket is available at H&M. 


2. Wedge Sandals

Up your shoe game with a chic heel or wedge sandal. An intricate design makes for an interesting pair of shoes that isn't so basic and one dimensional. Go for something these Leather Sandalettes from H&M.


3. Two Toned Manicure

Sticking to one nail color for your mani is SO 5 years ago. Try mixing it up by including two tones of the same color into your look. I find that its cute to use these two Essie colors: "Hide and Go Chic" and "Butler Please" to create a French Manicure look. I use Hide and Go Chic for the the base and Butler Please for the tips. These colors are available at any beauty or drug store such as Ulta or Target. 


4. Gold Plated Accents

If you know me, you know my favorite color is gold...and purple...but mostly gold. So this trend sparked my interest real quick. Adding a piece with a gold plated accent is really eye catching and chic. I've seen it done on belts, jewelry, and even on clothes. I personally love it on handbags and clutches like this The Duchess Crossbody Bag.


5. Vibrant Makeup

I love everything Marc Jacobs, so when I found out he has a new makeup line at Sephora, I was on it like white on rice! I love vibrant makeup colors for spring and I think it's a great way to include the prominent colors of the season into your look. This Lovemarc Matte Lipstick in Gossip-Matte Hot Fuchsia is a great color to do this.


6. Turban Headbands

I really love the turban look. I feel like it may be overplayed at festivals like Coachella, but in every day life, I think it brings a really nice frame to the face and adds some dimension to your look. I'm not a fan of the ones that cover your entire head, but I like the ones that are like headbands. Much like this Floral Head Wrap from Nordstrom. 




What do you guys think?! 




Monday, April 14, 2014

Grilled Cheese Invitational.

This weekend, my boyfriend and I attended "The Last" Grilled Cheese Invitational in downtown LA. I say "Last" because I really think its a publicity stunt. But anyway, I had never been, so I was really excited to try out the different types of grilled cheese sandwiches. When we entered, there was a sponsored tent that was serving free grilled cheese sandwiches. The bread was sponsored by La Brea Bakery and the cheese from Cabot. I chose a rustic white bread with pepper jack, gruyere, and cheddar cheese, which was great...but it definitely wasn't enough to satisfy our cheesy appetites!


So we went on to the trucks. The Grilled Cheese Truck was there and had a special, which my boyfriend had...
Grilled Cheese Truck Special: cheddar cheese, black forest ham, arugula, and blueberry bacon jam.

I went for the Cheesy Mac Melt, which had cheddar cheese and macaroni and cheese in between the bread. SO good!
Cheesy Mac Melt. 

Even though we were pretty full at this point, I couldn't help myself but to get a sweet grilled cheese sandwich as a dessert. I spotted a tent run by the Cheesy Amigos, which had this amazing sandwich...

Strawberry Grilled Cheese: cheddar cheese, Nutella, strawberries, and bananas.
photo from thrillist.com

Mother Dough.

Who isn't a fan of pizza? Not many, I bet! I absolutely love it...the marriage of different kinds of cheeses and tomatoes on fluffy dough is a taste to die for. I've found that finding the perfect pizza joint with the best combination of these ingredients and more is hard. For years, my favorite pizza was from the Round Table Pizza near my house, but since it closed down, I haven't been able to find a place that makes me LOVE their pizza. Even other Round Table chains have been sub par.

My friend and I heard about this place, Mother Dough, in LA and wanted to try it out. Let me tell you guys, it was so delicious! I really enjoyed the pizza there and they also had other dishes that complimented the pizza so well.I have to say, the Burrata salad was one of the best salads I've ever had. The Burrata was made in house and sat atop arugula and heirloom tomatoes.

Burrata Salad.

 We ordered the prosciutto and arugula pizza and it was great. A lot of places skimp on the prosciutto, but not here!



The pizza was cooked in a wood oven, bringing out all the flavors of the ingredients, especially the dough.

Wood burning oven.
photo courtesy of yelp.com

To finish, we ordered a chocolate flourless cake with fleur de sel caramel...simply amazing.


Friday, March 14, 2014

Apple Pan.

I revisited one of my top burger spots recently and thought that since I hadn't shared it with you all, I would write a post about it...Apple Pan in Los Angeles. As mentioned in a previous post, my friend Natalie and I have been on the hunt for the best burger in LA and this place was on our list. The Huffington Post named it the best burger spot in LA. I wouldn't say its the best, but it's pretty damn good! It's a cute 50's inspired diner, serving classic meals, but best known for their steak burgers. It's totally worth checking out. Don't make the mistake of asking for no relish, because that's their secret.

Steak Burger with the works.

Seriously, so delicious.

I loved the way they served their drinks!

Pumpkin pie to finish.


For other hotspots from my adventures in burgers, check out my previous post!

Monday, March 3, 2014

Oscars 2014: Winners and Fashion.

Who was blown away by the Oscars tonight? I was pleasantly surprised with how fun it was to watch...it didn't even feel like it lasted 3.5 hours! Ellen was so great, and props for her shout out to my local Big Mama's and Papa's Pizza!!

I'll start off with my best dressed ladies tonight...

Olivia Wilde in Valentino.
Portia De Rossi in Naeem Khan.
Lupita Nyong'o in Prada.
Charlize Theron in Dior.

And now the best dressed men...
Kevin Spacey in Burberry.
Jared Leto in unknown.
Leonardo Di Caprio in Giorgio Armani.


This year, I promised myself that I would watch all the nominated movies for Best Picture so I could judge objectively rather than just rooting for my favorite actor or favorite movie like I have been doing for years and years. They were all so great and I finished watching them quickly and went on to even watch some films that had other nominations like August Osage County, Blue Jasmine, and Frozen. Therefore, objectively, here are my thoughts on tonight's winners...

Best Picture: 12 Years a Slave...so deserved! I wouldn't have had it any other way.

Best Actor: Matthew McConaughey was truly amazing in DBC and his award was deserved...I just oh so wish my Leo could finally be awarded!

Best Actress: Cate Blanchett...honestly, she played her role in Blue Jasmine really well, but (not to be cliche) Meryl Streep was jaw droppingly superb in AOC and I strongly feel she should have won this.

Best Supporting Actor: Jared Leto...all other nominees were so great in their respective roles, but please call me when you play a transgender AIDS victim who so aptly immersed himself in his character and made us believe in Rayon. Fantastic!

Best Supporting Actress: Lupita Nyong'o...honestly, I'm blown away. Her first role out of school and she performs beautifully and really captures the range of emotions and the struggle of her character, Patsey.

Best Animated Feature: Frozen...I thought Frozen was cute and I laughed a few times during the movie, but I was a little disappointed that it took the cake over Despicable Me 2. I thought DM2 should have won this one, but maybe I am partial to minions :)

What are your thoughts??