Getting pregnant is now cute!

One of the challenges I faced when I got pregnant was trying to get my clothes to fit as long as I could (yes, I did the rubber band trick) and finding cute pregnancy clothes. It was either Peapod (expensive!) or Motherhood, a cheaper version but fairly standard.  And although Target and Old Navy had some options as well, some of the styles were a little more basic for my liking. Now, I'm seeing more and more retailers like Ann Taylor Loft and now Forever 21 tapping into this 1 billion dollar industry and coming up with maternity wear that's cute, hip and affordable. So go on, get pregnant, and still look cute! Although...there's nothing cute about vomiting, swollen feet and mood swings.  Unfortunately, there's no way to cover that up~

Ready...Set...Eat

I've been getting lazy and frankly too tired to update my blog with pictures of what I've been cooking but trust me, I have been cooking. Since my husband is now a full-time student, we had to cut back on our eating-out and using food out of our pantry..GASP! I usually leave my pantry food for blizzard days. It is satisfying to know what one is capable of making with a can of chickpeas and some spices. Here's a collection of meals that I made and since I only have a minute to scarf down my food before Ethan pulls me away to play, I took them with my iPhone so they're not great quality. Enjoy!

Pulled pork tacos

Braised chicken with gnocchi and mushroom sauce

Fish chickpea curry over rice and naan

Chicken Donburi

Mandu Guk

Full belly

Hi Ann Taylor Loft..when did you become so cute?!

As I was browsing my favorite blogger's pages, I noticed a lot of people posting super cute outfits and all of them were linked to Ann Taylor Loft. Now, I'm not a regular shopper but they've revamped their entire line. The clothes are perfect for that stage where you don't want to look like a tween and you're not ready to go into Talbots, just yet. I LOVE LOVE LOVE all of them...

Kidorable Wear

I hate rain, so anything that makes a rainy day seem a little better, I will buy! And eventhough today is a gorgeous and sunny day, I justified my purchase of this adorable rain coat with the fact that I can never find anything cute for my 19 month old son to wear. This is a painful but true statement. I don't know how many more years of torture I can handle of walking into a store and seeing rows of cute dresses and pink and green outfits and then you find the lonely boy section which consists of the same plaid shirts and khakis. This blog would be a lot more interesting if it was filled with pictures of a cute Asn girl dressed in a pink and green dress, with a white cardigan, white tights, and pink Hello Kitty shoes. Yes, I have thoughts about this!

Korean cooking: quick and yummy

My typical working day is comprised of me getting up, get Ethan ready for his day, go to work, come home, and start cooking dinner for my husband and I while I'm feeding Ethan. And the rest of my week is the sentence before times 4. Then weekends fly by as we try to fit in "family time" and leisurely activities such as grocery shopping, cleaning, and walking Blair (our dog) for more than 5 minutes at a time. This is where Korean food comes to the rescue. It is by far the simplest way to eat. Just about every dish requires these main ingredients: garlic, sesame oil, soy sauce, and sugar. But in my case, I usually go to Korean Korner and pick up some pre-seasoned galbi and panchan and voila, dinner in 15 minutes.

Doing the flap...

With mother nature finally coming to her senses and giving us sunshine all of this week, I decided to think about spring and everything that it means to me - cleaning, allergies, Easter, pollen, skirts without tights, Claritin, pastel colors, and did I already mention allergies? One of the trends I want to try is the girly flaps that I've been seeing on a lot of celebrity looks and magazines. Here are a few of my favorite:

Taiwanese beef noodle soup

This is a late post but better late than never, they say. During the snowmageddon 2010, I noticed that everyone somehow turned into culinary experts and were displaying their creations on Facebook. Among the most popular dishes was the Taiwanese beef noodle soup. I often indulge in this hearty soup at Joe's Noodle house. However, since I had no way of getting there and was completely snowed in, I decided to take on the challenge. Out of all the recipes out there, this one seemed to be the one that I could make out (mainly because I had most of the ingredients on hand with a few substitutes).

4 hours later....

exploring prints

So lately I've been noticing a lot of prints for dresses and tops on one of my favorite blogger's pages. I am currently adoring Yumi Kim's collection. But since I can't afford even the items on sale due to our upcoming life changing event*, I am forced to find the "Looks for Less" options. It is somewhat rewarding finding a steal but those prints are totally calling my name! So I found one of these options below that I'm completely torn on...Some look cute on the model and then questionable on their own, what about the quality, how short is it?! all these questions and more...help!

1. This first option is from Forever 21. I like the print eventhough it's defined as "Cheetah" (I'm not a huge fan of animal print. I don't like the matching belt but that can be easily switched.

2. This second option is from American Eagle. It is a pretty standard flower pattern but I'm digging the pleating and the pockets!

3. I just love this unconventional shirt dress and the fact that it's not plaid! I live in my plaid shirt, but lately I've been seeing it everywhere!

FLIP FLOPPIN'

Old Navy is having their flip flop sale..but they're not telling you about it, so stalk up on them now! You know they're only good for one season but for $1.99 (or 2 for $5) who cares?! Plus, they're not as deadly as JCrew flip flops. I haven't met anyone who hasn't fallen flat on their face (butt, cheek, arm, or nose - ouch!) while wearing Jcrew flip flops. Sorry Jcrew, love you but you need to change your flip flop manufacturer. Happy floppin'!

Meal Planning: Week of January 25-29

Monday: Linguine tossed with peas, prosciutto, mushrooms and onions (source: me)

Ingredients to buy: none

Recipe: linguine, peas, thick slices of prosciutto cut in ½ inch pieces, cut mushrooms, chopped onions, olive oil, and unsalted butter.

Cook linguine separately, toss in frozen peas at the end and boil for 5 minutes, drain pasta and peas and run under hot water – drain again. In same pan, sauté onions, prosciutto, and mushrooms in olive oil and 1 tbsp of unsalted butter until lightly browned. Toss in the linguine and peas and mix well. Serve immediately.

Tuesday: Dinner at Dave Parent’s house – pizza

Wednesday: Turkey Burgers with Cranberry Sauce (source: http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/turkey-burgers-cranberry-pomegranate-sauce/)

Ingredients to buy: red wine, parsley, rosemary, English muffins

Recipe:

For the Sauce:

1 bag fresh cranberries

1/2 cup red wine or port

1 cup pomegranate juice

1 cup sugar

For the Burgers:

1 1/2 pounds ground turkey

2 tablespoons each parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme

1 shallot, finely chopped

1 large clove garlic, finely chopped

1 rounded tablespoon Dijon mustard

Salt and pepper

1 tablespoon EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil

8 slices extra sharp white cheddar cheese

4 large sandwich-size English muffins, toasted

Butter, for toasted muffins

8 pieces Bibb or leaf lettuce

Combine cranberries, wine, juice and sugar in a pot, bring to a boil and cook cranberries until they pop. Reduce to thicken sauce, about 15 minutes or so. Allow sauce to cool.

Combine turkey with herbs, shallot, garlic, Dijon mustard, salt and pepper. Form 4 large patties and cook 5-6 minutes on each side in EVOO in large skillet over medium-high heat. Cover burgers with cheese and tent the pan with foil to melt cheese during the last minute of cook time.

Serve on buttered, toasted sandwich size English muffins. Set burgers on a couple of slices of lettuce and set tops in place with lots of cranberry sauce.

Thursday: Gordon Ramsay's Sticky Baked Chicken Drumsticks (source: http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/gordon-ramsays-sticky-baked-chicken-drumsticks/)

Ingredients to buy: none

Recipe:

Olive oil, to drizzle

10 chicken drumsticks – I will be using a whole cut up chicken instead

Sea salt and black pepper

For the glaze:

6 tablespoons honey

3 tablespoons fish sauce

4 teaspoons light soy sauce

Juice of 1 1/2 lemons

3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

4 teaspoons sesame oil

Yields: 5 servings

Heat the oven to 400°F. Lightly oil a large baking dish. Season the drumsticks with salt and pepper and arrange in the dish in a single layer. Drizzle over a little olive oil and bake in the hot oven for 20 minutes.

Prepare the glaze in the meantime. Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl until evenly combined.

Take the chicken out of the oven and pour over the glaze, to coat each drumstick. Return to the oven and bake for another 20 to 30 minutes, turning several times, until the chicken is tender and nicely glazed.

Let the chicken rest for a few minutes before serving. For a balanced meal, serve with steamed rice and purple sprouting broccoli or green beans.

Friday: Potato Kielbasa Bake (source: http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/food/recipes/potato-kielbasa-bake/)

Ingredients to buy: 1 lb diced hash brown potatoes, sauerkraut

Preparation

2 tablespoons EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil, divided

1 pound kielbasa (Polish sausage), cut on an angle into 1-inch pieces

1 pound frozen, diced hash brown potatoes, defrosted

1 large onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons flour

2 cups homemade chicken stock

1 cup milk

2 tablespoons yellow mustard

2 cups refrigerated sauerkraut

1 tablespoon butter

1/2 cup shredded Swiss cheese

1 cup of broccoli florets chopped (my ingredient)

Yields: 6 to 8 servings

Preheat oven to 400ºF.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO. Cook kielbasa until brown and crispy, about 3-4 minutes. Remove the sausage from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Add the hash brown potatoes into the same pan with the sausage drippings and cook until brown and crispy, about 4-5 minutes.

While the hash browns are crisping, place a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat with one turn of the pan of EVOO. Add the onions, garlic, salt and freshly ground black pepper and cook until tender, 5-6 minutes.

Sprinkle the flour over the ingredients in the pan and cook for about 30 seconds. Whisk in the chicken stock, milk and mustard. Bring the gravy up to a bubble, then reduce the heat and add the sauerkraut. Cook until the gravy has thickened and the sauerkraut is heated through, 3-4 minutes.

Stir the reserved kielbasa into the gravy and sauerkraut, and transfer the mixture to a 9x13” casserole dish. Top with the hash brown potatoes and a sprinkling of shredded cheese. Dot the top of the casserole with the butter then transfer to oven and cook until the cheese has melted.