I love making healthier, tastier alternatives to meals I usually only eat at restaurants. This Thai Curry Rice Bowl can be made with low fat coconut milk without sacrificing taste and flavor. The addition of corn and roasted red bell peppers are great and the brown sugar adds a nice sweetness.
Curry differs from country to country and this recipe reflects the Thai way, meaning soupier than its Indian counterpart.
Like the spunky innovators they've always been, Viktor and Rolf shook things up and embraced the new with their Spring 2009 collection. If you've ever dreamed of sitting in the front row, or anywhere in the same building for that matter as one of the duo's fun and fantastical show, now you can. Or at least you can view as anyone else would, from Carine Roitfeld to Viktor and Rolf devotee Tilda Swinton.
The digital show, which cost as much as a live one to put on, with over 50 technicians employed to make it right, stars Shalom Harlow and ?Shalom Harlow, the raven haired pallid beauty wears all the Swarovsky crystal encrusted creations. Granted, even with the wild black and white geometric leggings and bold striped ruffles, this is one of the team's more modest servings, it's still a grand display of fun fashion.
The site also takes you back to previous collections. Remember the Pierrot collection, where white clad ladies stepped out of Harlow's mouth? Or last season's literal statement collection (No!) Oh, and there was the one where all the models held their lighting and music on their shoulders.?Yes, friends they're all there, and make sure to look at the spectacular and funny Bedtime Story.
It's great to see all their work in one place, even if the beautiful design can sometimes be hard to navigate through.
We decided to fly to Maine (JFK-Portland totally affordable and so quick) and do a little Maine lobster scenic end of summer tour!
We arrived in Portland absolutely starving, and went straight to the first lobster shack on our list (we compiled a lil lobster roll list from chowhound and the site with the absolute most thorough lobster roll thesis we could find- )
Our first stop was the “Lobster Shack” at Two Lights Park, named for it's two lighthouses its a quick drive from Portland airport and even without a proper map we managed to find our way. It's a beautiful spot, very scenic, breezy and a decent roll– I have to admit it was not our favorite, but the views made it well worth it!
Then we were on our way to Rockland, Maine were we had a room booked at the Berry Manor.?The Berry Manor it turns out was featured in a food network throw down. Famous for its homemade pies and the “pie ladies” we figured we were in for a treat and we were not disappointed. The Berry Manor was large and charming, with just enough of that “bed and breakfast” charm. Pies were available to eat at all hours of the day, in fact there were pies, ice cream and other pie toppings on hand at all times! The pies were deelicious!
Our big Splurge in Rockland was dinner at?Primo, We were just planning to go for $1 oysters at the bar but our host at the Berry Manor was nice enough to get us a reservation. Even though it was a little bit of an unexpected hike from the Inn and a little more upscale than I was expecting (I don't think anyone expected us to walk there) it was well worth it! It's one of those seasonal restaurants that uses local produce and meats, a really great treat to go to outside of NY.
We tried a few small dishes and asked if the chef would make us a vegetarian entree of her choosing (the chef is Melissa Kelly) and the dish was incredible, a mix of fresh veggies and spices..
Rockland is a small, walkable quiet town. There was plenty to see and eat
in our 2 days there and I'd go back anytime to explore more. We had one rainy cold Maine day that gave us a chance to visit the Farnsworth Museum. It's mainly themed towards Maine artists and art about Maine/New England but their collection is extensive and there were some awesome quilts and folk art exhibits.
I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham! I'm seeing Lindsey Buckingham!
After an inevitably draining shopping excursion through IKEA, nothing is more welcoming and refreshing than a glass of Lingonberry Soda on ice. (Photo from Flickr). Ever mindful of affordability and customer satisfaction, they of course offer free refills too, for which I was very grateful.
It tastes like a cranberry spritzer but more tart. Lingonberries, a favorite in Sweden, are becoming more recognizable in the US thanks to Ikea, which offers it not only in sodas, but jams and syrups as well. The berry is high in vitamins and often used in herbal medicines.
The soda is made by Kristall, a Swedish company that also makes their light, none to sweet and all natural beverages in Apple, Orange, Raspberry, Cranberry, and Lemon/Lime as well as more exotic flavors like Pear and Black Currant (both of which can be bought by the bottle in the Ikea food store – I plan to pick some up on my next visit).
Originating in Europe, French Burnt Peanuts have been popular in this country for decades. I always pick up a bag in Philadelphia in the Reading Terminal Market candy shop.
Made of only sugar, a drop of food coloring and peanuts, they are a lovely yearly treat. Here's a recipe to make them yourselves.
Good food and cozy atmosphere are key to Grape and Grain's charm, but the local hidden gem also possesses a less easily definable quality. It's a warm, welcoming place, the kind you find yourself lingering in with lively conversations, adding your wine induced laughter to the spot's joyful din. It was only made more pleasant by the playing of Fleetwood Mac's Rumours, and yes, the entire album, even the unfairly underplayed and excellent Never Going Back Again and I Don't Want to Know.
We booked a table for a Friday night out with a big group and were greeting by a very friendly and accommodating staff. We started with two orders of spicy pita chips and bean dip (a favorite of my friends who had been there before) and it set the tone of a yummy meal. Our cheese plate was great with the soft Vermont choice (sorry the specific name escapes me) being my favorite.
For a main course Jim and I shared a sandwich of salami, roasted red peppers, manchego and arugula – a nice flavor combination that would be worth trying at home too. We also split the ultimate comfort food for non health conscious people, a tasty meatball pizza. I know nothing about wine, but the red my friends chose for the table was good and affordable. They also have three Chimay options and other beers for non winos.
They accept reservations, which was a god send on a packed weekend evening, but it's a pretty laid back spot where you could probably snag a table for two without too much of a wait. It's a good place for groups or an inexpensive, but still intimate and romantic date. The lighting is dim enough to afford no really good photos with my camera, but on the plus side, the votive candles make everyone look attractive.
As a devotee of good character actors, be they Clancy Brown, Karen Black, or Brad Dourif (not to be mistaken, as he often is for Stephen Dorff) – I thought it was time to recognize another great, the big guy with the googly eyes, the awesome Pruitt Taylor Vince, a man you have surely seen in one of his many television and movie appearances.
Deadwood, Constantine, CSI, Touching Evil, Monster, LA Confidential, Identity, The Cell, X Files, Natural Born Killers, Beautiful Girls, JFK, Jacob's Ladder, Wild at Heart, Mississippi Burning, Angel Heart…
Obviously he was erroneously not included in Entertainment Weekly's recent articles about Hollywood's hardest working character actors.
This Monday marked the end of the promising and troubled life of Guillaume Depardieu, he died of pneumonia at the age of 37. While he never lived up to the true potential of his career–imbued with strongly handsome features, he could have at least equaled the career of his father, Gerard–I personally was quite taken with him when I was a teen.
With long golden hair and a beautiful face, I watched him with deeply crushing eyes in Tous Les Matins du Monde, which was directed by Alain Corneau (director of last week's movie pick, Serie Noire) and co-starred his father. I remember very little about the film except for Guillaume's face and was later so heart broken to hear about his constant struggle with drugs and the horrible motorcycle accident that took his leg.
It's very sad again to hear of his death, which came far too soon.
I was initially solely attracted to Beach House by the lovely cover of their eponymous album. You may recall that I love mixing my costume jewelry–particularly fake pearls and gold–and just look at that font! But as we all know, good cover art doesn't necessarily make for a good album or else every Yes album (after the Yes Album, of course) would be the greatest thing ever. Beach House, however, lived up to its image.
What a pretty, pretty album. It's dreamy and quiet but not without its catchy bits and a full, lush sound–which is quite a feat considering the band consists of only two people: Alex Scally on guitar and keyboards, and Victoria Legrand on vocals and organ.
Out of Baltimore (one of their videos is directed by fellow Baltimorian Skizz Cyzyk, the founder of the now defunct MicroCineFest film festival where, I might add, my senior film played in 2000) the duo are one of the indie world's newest “dream pop” artists, a seemingly apt category name for such calming and transportative music, but after reading about the genre, I feel they're a bit more melodic than atmospheric and sound-scapey–which is all right by me. A definite album for day long repeat, particularly if you need to hear something relaxing and smiley, as every song is as soothing as the last.
Their sequined website should have tour updates (though none are planned for right now) and you can watch some videos there too.
*In a sad case of too little information too late, I just found out they played here Friday night 🙁