Vinoteque on Melrose.

Last weekend, my boyfriend and I were looking for a cute little place to have dinner and we stumbled across this place, Vinoteque on Melrose Ave, which I remembered my cousin, Mimi, suggesting to me. It's known for it's amazing wine selection and tapas style meals. For those that don't know, tapas are small plates which are shared among the table. Vinoteque was a good fusion of French and Spanish style tapas.

What I loved the most about this place was the ambience in the outdoor patio where we sat. It was a courtyard area with vines growing all over the walls, a calming fountain in the center, and a projection of a film noir silent movie playing in the background. It was a really nice date spot, but I would also totally come here with a girlfriend and I saw a group of people celebrating a birthday in a secluded cabana.

Make sure to ask about the wines! Most of the wines are French and I had a hard time deciphering what was what so I just ordered one that wasn't so great. Luckily, they allowed me to taste it and order another one since I didn't like it.

We started our meal with truffle fries (of course, my favorite) and the dipping sauce was a type of salsa, which really complemented the fries.

Then we had some fried artichoke hearts and let me tell you...I dreamt about these after eating them, because of how good they were. I have a mind to recreate these babies on my own at home.

Next, we had little mini Croque Monsieurs, which are French ham and cheese sandwiches. They were topped with balsamic vinegar, which really completed the dish. We also had these amazing sliders, which I really enjoyed. It had a tasty combination of sun dried tomatoes, onion jam, and harissa mayo...this was to die for.

Lastly, we ended our meal with the usual tapas dessert...churros! They were mini bite sized churros and were paired with a caramel sauce and boysenberry jam to dip the churros in.

If you're looking for a place to catch up with a friend or to impress your date, Vinoteque is definitely the place! 

Sweet Cherry Pie.

This past weekend, I was invited to one of my girlfriend's homes for afternoon coffee. I was super excited about getting together with my friends and I wanted to bring some homemade treats with me for us to share, but I was really in a time crunch and didn't have time to make a dessert from scratch.

Thank goodness I had some pie dough I made a few weeks ago stored away in my freezer and ready to go! I cut one corner and bought a canned cherry pie filling to go into my dough for the sake of time, but despite it not being homemade, it was still delicious.

I still wanted to put my own spin on the pie so instead of making one giant pie, I made mini individual sized pies! They were so cute and easy to distribute to whoever wants them without cutting into a whole pie and making a mess. I also made a lattice crust to give it that extra aesthetic to make it look like a miniature pie. It's super easy!...

After making the pie crust (recipe at end of post), use a cookie cutter or a cup to cut circles from the dough that are 4 inches circles. Place the circles into buttered muffin/cupcake tins and fill them with the cherry filling, 1/4 of a cup.

Photo courtesy of tablespoon.com. 

Then get to work on the lattice crust! Use a pizza cutter to cut small even strips of dough and use basic weaving over and under techniques to create a rustic look with the lattice. With this size of a pie, I used 6 dough strips in total: 3 horizontally and 3 vertically. Brush the top of the pie with an egg wash (a beaten egg) to give it that golden finish in the oven.

I baked these babies at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cherry filling is oozing and voila!

These could have come out a little prettier, as my lattice crust needs a little work, but these pies tasted like perfection. Little personal cherry pies with sweet, juicy cherries wrapped in a soft, buttery crust. These are sure to appeal to your guests tastebuds as well as their eyes!




Pie Crust Dough

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all purpose flour (sifted)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup butter (cold)
• 5-7 tablespoons cold water 

Directions:

1. Put flour into a mixing bowl with the butter.
2. Using a pastry cutter or dough hook, cut the butter into the flour.
3. Add the salt and water. 
4. Mix until dough is formed.
5. Cut the dough in half and wrap both separately in saran wrap.
6. One can be used for freezing. The other should be put in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to cool before rolling it out to use. 

Miniature Cherry Pies

Ingredients:

• Pie crust (recipe above)
• 4 cups of pie filling (the filling can be altered at your choice i.e. apple, blueberry, peach, etc.)
• 1 egg, whisked

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 12 muffin tins with butter or cooking spray.
2. Roll out a single pie crust on a flat surface. Use a large cookie cutter or a cup to cut out circles that are 4 inches. Press each circle into the bottom of the muffin tin so that a tiny rim of dough sticks out at the top. Repeat with the other 12 tins.
3. Fill each cup with 1/4 cup pie filling, or until the filling nearly fills the cups. 
4. Use the remaining dough to cover the tops of the pies. To make a lattice crust, use a pizza cutter to cut out thin strips of dough, then lace together to form a lattice. To make a standard crust, cut out a circle of dough large enough to cover the top of the crust. Use your fingers to gently press the top crust to the bottom crust until they stick together and no gaps remain. 
5. Use a pastry brush to brush the tops of each pie with the whisked egg.
6. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the filling begins to bubble.
7. Remove and let cool for at least 15 minutes. Then carefully use a knife to loosen the edges of each pie and gently lift each pie out. Serve immediately or cover and refrigerate. 

Summer 2015 Fashion.

It's June and its finally getting warmer outside, which means its time to break out your short shorts, bathing suits, and espadrilles in your favorite warm summer colors! Some fashion pieces never go out of style, but its always a good idea to add trendy, new things to your wardrobe. This summer, I'm obsessed with six new trends that I want to share with you. They can all be used separately and incorporated into your current pieces or even worn all together. Here they are! My summer must have trends for the 2015 season...

1. Updated Aviator Sunnies: Aviators are a universal sunglass shape that looks good on almost everyone, so when I saw these new age Prada aviator sunglasses, I knew I had to have them. They are a fashionable spin on a classic sunglass. Ditch your played out cat eye sunglasses for these! Available at Nordstrom. 

2. Stacked Jewelry: Gone are the days of a statement necklace or ring. Welcome the stacking of more slender and elegant pieces of jewelry to complete your summer look! I love these stackable zig zag rings. These particular rings are gold, rose gold, and white gold with diamonds from Levik's Jewelers. You can also find similar but more affordable rings in department stores, but investing in a few pieces of fine jewelry is beneficial for any fashionista.

3. Fruit Patterns: I love the fresh look of fruits on various items of clothing, especially for the summer! My favorite are pineapples...they just scream summer. I found these cute shorts from Sears. They work really well and look great for festivals.

4. Fringe Details: I'm loving fringe details throughout many pieces of fashion this summer. I especially love them on these gorgeous shoes from Miss Guided US. How can you not be obsessed with these?

5. Rosy Brown Lips: I'm trading traditional summer red lips for these smoky pink shades, which I think is super elegant and fashion forward. Most of all, its not an expected shade that everyone else is going to be wearing this summer. This shade can be found at Sephora.

6. Watches with Fabric Bands: I'm so over the typical bracelet, metal band that everyone wears nowadays...I'm looking at you, Michael Kors watches! Instead, opt for these really fresh looking watches from Daniel Wellington. This particular watch is called Classic Southamptom Lady...it doesn't get more summer than that. They come in multiple colors that fit anyone's taste. I got mind from Levik's Jewelers, which is now an authorized Daniel Wellington retailer!



What do you guys think? Are there any other trends I should consider this summer? Let me know! I value all fashionista opinions. Happy shopping and happy summer! 

Met Gala 2015.

Somehow, my invitation to the Met Gala always gets lost in the mail every year! But that doesn't mean I still don't admire the fashion from afar and this year was no different. Last night, the most fashionable elite strutted their designer looks to fundraise for the Metropolitan a Museum of Art Costume Institute in New York City. The theme this year was "China: Through the Looking Glass" and I was pleasantly surprised that many of the attendees dressed for the Asian theme.

I was majorly stunned by all the fashion. I loved the risks people took with their looks and while some might have missed the mark, others were spectacular!

This year was all about the barely there nude dresses. I loved them all but Beyoncé killed it with her look! She was my favorite of the three. 

Beyoncé in Givenchy

Kim Kardashian in Roberto Cavalli

Jennifer Lopez in Atelier Versace

These were all stunning looks but my top three favorite looks of the night were what I thought were most elegant and fashion forward looks...I die for Gigi Hadid's dress! 

Rosie Huntington-Whitely in unknown 

Gigi Hadid in Diane Von Furstenberg 

Kerri Russell in Altazurra 

But of course I can never forget my Met Gala queen who always slays the Met's red carpet, Sarah Jessica Parker! She may look like her head is on fire, but damn she looks good with it! SJP, you get it girl! 

What did you guys think of the fashion at the Met Gala this year? Let me know if I missed any other beauties! 

Republique.

I love everything about France, especially the cuisine. So when I heard about Republique and its French inspired bakery and architecture I knew I had to see it for myself. I came here for lunch with my brother and was immediately mesmerized by the rows and rows of pastries next to the cashier.

After ordering our lunch (and a bunch of pastries), we sat at our table, which was lit by the sun beams coming in from the skylight windows from above. It was a bit of a cold day, but the natural lighting made it feel like we were sitting outside.

The design and decor of the restaurant also was reminiscent of Paris and some of its Gothic architecture.

I'm a sucker for glass door refrigerators. I love seeing the products available at restaurants!

When our food was brought to us, I couldn't wait to start eating. I know it was lunch time, but Croque Madame's are one of my favorite French treats and I couldn't resist. Meanwhile, my brother ordered a burger that had dry aged beef. The drinks vary each day based on seasonal items available. We ordered a delicious grapefruit lemonade. The Croque Madame, by the way, was spot on!!

I was loving this wine tower where the bottles were used serve us water.

I have this thing with floors and their beauty. I was loving this green, white, and black tile!

We took our yummy pastries home to enjoy. My favorites were the glazed and chocolate donut like bombolinis. Pictured are also a chocolate bundt cake, banana Nutella croissant, and a coffee cake.

Lemon Ricotta Pancakes.

Last year, I ate at a cute little bunch spot in Santa Barbara called Scarlett Begonia and had the best lemon ricotta pancakes. Since then, I've been trying these pancakes from other brunch spots and I have yet to find one that was as good. Obviously, I can't be going to Santa Barbara every weekend for brunch so I decided to try to make these pancakes on my own. My lemon ricotta pancake recipe was so delicious and I'm very excited to share it with you all!

These are the ingredients I used. I like using Kodiak Cakes pancake mix because it has a hint of honey in it, which just adds a little extra flavor to pancakes. I also like using fresh blueberries rather than frozen, I think it makes the pancakes taste fresher. Most recipes suggest using whole milk ricotta cheese, but let's face it...summer is coming and even though I'm eating pancakes, a girl's gotta cut calories somewhere, so I used low fat ricotta cheese.

When adding the ricotta cheese, the batter will look a little curdled. Do not panic, this is normal! The cheese makes it a little lumpy. It's important to not mix the batter too much to make it smoother.

A griddle is the best way to get the perfect pancake.

Short stack of delicious lemon ricotta pancakes!

Ingredients:

Makes 6 pancakes

• 1 cup of Kodiak Cakes pancake mix
• 1 cup of water
• 1/2 cup of low fat ricotta cheese
• 1 tablespoon of lemon zest 
• 2/3 cup of blueberries

Directions:

1. Mix 1 cup of pancake mix with 1 cup of water.
2. Then, mix in 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese. Do not over mix it. The consistency should be a little lumpy.
3. Wash and fold in the blueberries.
4. Heat a griddle to 325 degrees and butter the griddle. I like using cooking spray instead, but either one works. 
5. Ladle a spoon of the batter onto the griddle. Let it cook until bubbles start forming at the top (about 1 minute).
6. Flip the pancake and let the other side cook for about another 30 seconds. 

Voila!!

Clean Lines.

I'm always on the lookout for the newest nail trends, because let's face it...they don't change that often! I'm not that big of a risk taker on nail shapes because I'm obsessed with my own squoval shape, but new designs are always on my radar.

This season, I'm obsessed with clean lines on nails. Letting your natural nail shine through alongside a cute spring color makes your nail design look really modern and cool. I love the geometric and architectural lines in this look by Buff and Tweeze...

And I'm head over heels for these tiny shapes traced onto nails by Olive and June...

This was my attempt at creating this look. I used masking tape and French tip tape to create the clean lines and painted over them. I removed them when the nail polish was completely dry...

Whether its at a salon or a DIY at home, this look is sure to keep you ahead of the trends and is a perfect spring look!