Paint your face!

I'm just popping in real quick to recommend an excellent blog! Full disclosure: I'm totally biased because it's written by my friend Geri. She's doing a different makeup look every day for the month of April, ranging from practical (wedding looks, makeup that won't melt off of your face on a hot day, etc) to fun and wacky (Cleopatra, Ziggy Stardust). Bonus: she's really pretty and also her name is Geraldine. (I highly recommend having a friend named Geraldine because it's really fun to say.)

Thai style something or other

I wanted to try my hand at crispy tofu and I think I succeeded! I took 2 blocks of extra firm tofu, cut it into pieces and pressed it with paper towels to get the moisture out (I'm learning there's a method to do the whole block at once so I'll be looking into that). Then I coated it in a mixture of corn starch, salt, pepper and garlic powder. They needed about 6 minutes on each side over medium-high heat in a pan generously coated in oil. I also cooked up some onion in another pan and added a bag of frozen stir fry veggies to that, mixing in some green curry paste, sriracha and fish sauce. The I served the whole thing over rice and topped with peanut sauce and cilantro. I wish I could have added a bit of coconut milk, but I threw this together out of stuff I had on hand.

Full disclosure: this came out a bit salty which is a food crime I CANNOT abide, so I will have to be more careful next time. I think the fish sauce is betraying me. I've only cooked with it twice and I think I'm vastly underestimating its salt content. Rookie mistake. Live and learn! The tofu itself was great though. I make a chicken coconut curry with eggplant, potato and carrots and I can't wait to do a version with the tofu.

Adventures in hostessing

I love parties but I'm not one to throw them. The thought of a lot of people in my house has historically freaked me out, but I knew that living with Greg meant I'd have to add some hostessing skills to my repertoire. And what better way to break in the new house than to have 60-70 people over and commit to making a bunch of food! Oh boy. Unfortunately it was impossible for me to feed everyone, but I did what I could. Those that got there early were able to partake and I got some good feedback. I have to admit that I like showing off my skills a bit, so even though I was a bit overwhelmed at first it was a lot of fun. The food came out awesome, the turnout was good and I hardly freaked out at all...once I had a couple of drinks :) The best part though was sharing the evening and my home with some of my favorite people. I seriously have the most wonderful friends! People said that the house really reflected both of us, which was so important to me. One highlight: overhearing someone say "this house is really weird". I couldn't ask for a better compliment :)

So! As far as the food. I did empanadas because they're a good finger food and you can prepare and freeze them the night before. If you choose to do so, just individually wrap them in plastic wrap and bag them. Alternatively, you can place them in Tupperware separated by parchment paper to keep them from sticking together. I did a version with diced mushrooms, red onion and goat cheese but the beef ones were a real hit so I'm including the recipe here. You can put literally anything in an empanada, so have at it. I'm not a very experienced baker, so my dough is a little stickier than it should be. It comes out tasting fantastic, but I'm totally open to any modifications you guys can suggest. I also did some antipasto kabobs and cheesecake stuffed strawberries, both of which I found on Pinterest. Kind of an eclectic menu. Ideally I would have done some sort of theme, but sometimes it's fun just to make all of the random things you want to make.

Beef, Poblano and Potato Empanadas (makes 10-13)

Ingredients for dough:

-3 cups flour
-1 tbsp salt
-1 tsp sugar
-3 shortening (chilled is better)
-1 tbsp butter
-1/3 cup cold water
-2 eggs
-1 tbsp vinegar

Filling:

-Half pound of ground beef
-1 small potato
-1/2 white onion
-1 poblano pepper
-1 clove garlic
-Cumin, chili powder, oregano, salt and pepper for seasoning
-Cheese of your preference. I used a pre-grated mexican cheese blend for convenience sake but if I wanted to be a bit more splurgy I'd get a nice wedge of manchego.

Instructions:
1 - Mix together the flour, salt and sugar
2 - In a separate bowl beat the eggs then add the vinegar and water then set aside
3 - Divide the shortening and butter into small chunks
4 - Cut the shortening and butter into the flour mix (Look online for how to do this. I don't have a pastry cutter so I used two knives)
5 - Add the wet ingredients in and mix.
6 - Once it becomes stiff, kind smush it with your hands then knead on a floured surface
7 -  Wrap the dough ball in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour

While dough is chilling, prepare your filling. Hey that rhymed.

8 - Dice potato, poblano (removing seeds) and onion
9 - Saute in olive oil over medium heat until almost tender, adding the garlic after about 10 minutes
10 - Add beef and cook until brown
11 - While beef is cooking, add salt, pepper, cumin and chili powder. I'm sorry that i don't have precise measurements. It's all a matter of personal taste though I will say I'm quite generous with the cumin and chili powder. You can taste it when it's all cooked and dump some more in there if you need to

Let mixture cool then prepare the dough. Now's also a good time to preheat the oven to 375.

12 - Roll out dough on floured surface (add flour between the dough and rolling pin too to keep it from sticking)
13 - Cut into 6 inch circles
14 - Rolling out the scraps should give you an extra 2 or 3 empanadas so do that
15 - Place a spoonful of the beer mixture in each circle then top with a pinch of cheese
16 - Fold dough in half over mixture then crimp with the tines of a fork (super easy but google it if you're not sure)
17 - Place on greased cookie sheet and bake at 375 until golden brown. Should be about 20 minutes, but longer if you froze them the night before. Just keep an eye out and check every 3-5 minutes when you're on the home stretch. I've heard people say to paint egg on them prior to baking to make them shiny and pretty, so if you try that let me know how it goes!

Cheesecake Stuffed Strawberries:
 Recipe via Thesweetslife.com

 Antipasto Kabobs:
Recipe via thehungryhousewife.com (I accidentally bought green olives with pits so I couldn't use those, but I did add artichoke hearts)

And of course no party is complete without...

Cheers!

I'm in a rut! A funk. A fun deficit. I've been oddly antisocial, even though getting out for a bit is the answer to my restlessness. I'm not sad or down, just antsy and irritable and longing for the open road. Today I will be cured though, as Greg and I are taking off to Lake Charles after work. I've decided to stick to a tight budget, so wish me luck at the slots! Bonus: poboy's at Darrell's (they are oh so amazing - trust me).

make me pretty

A recent discussion about makeup has me thinking. I'm obsessed with makeup - a total product junkie. And that doesn't just apply to makeup but to skincare products as well (I've been investing in quality night creams since I was a teenager and I'm convinced it has spared me a few early wrinkles). I manage to stay within my budget, but I have so many products that it's almost overwhelming. It's not helped by the fact that I will buy basically the same lipstick over and over, convinced that this time that lovely cool red will work (It never does.)  I was going to make a post about my favorite products, but so many people do that far better than I can, so I decided to dig a little deeper.

I always read about the mythical, effortless beauties who can slap on 4 products in 5 minutes and be out the door. I even know some of them! But how they do it remains a total mystery to me. My routine takes 15-20, and I have no less than 10 things on my face at any given time. I don't go for an overdone look, I just strive for perfection. And when you have permanent, dark under eye circles, pale lips and strawberry blonde eyelashes you need a little more help than some of the others.

I envy those that don't have to wear makeup. Of course people say no one has to wear makeup and, while I agree in principle, good luck convincing me that it applies to my washed out visage. The truth is that if I were to come to work without makeup people would think me seriously ill, especially under these harsh fluorescent lights. I've set the expectation for how I should look and now I'm forced to live up to it. Not just for others but for myself.

When the maker of my favorite concealer announced it was closing its counters, I rushed to their website and bought 100 dollars worth. 5 tubes. I was unaware at the time that they would continue to offer many of their products online, but still - hoarding it gave me an added sense of security. I still have one tube left :)

So, obviously I'd be lying if I said some insecurity didn't come into play. It most certainly does. But I choose to think of makeup as a fun accessory, a tool that lets me be me but better. I can be bright and summery with shimmer and gloss, or vamp it up with my favorite red lipstick. If that makes me a bad feminist then so be it. I don't think it does at all. I do wish I were a bit less reliant on makeup, but not enough to participate in yesterday's "National No Makeup Day". What I'm saying is you can pry my lipstick from my cold dead hands.

In past relationships I remember sleeping in my makeup and rushing off to the bathroom to primp in the morning. At least for the first few months or so. The first night I stayed at Greg's I slept in it too, but it was due to lack of proper cleanser and moisturizer and to be honest because I probably fell asleep without thinking about it. But in the morning we ran to Target and bought my favorite facewash and daycream (which he let me keep at his place without protest - we hadn't even discussed if we were serious yet). After I showered and scrubbed off last night's mascara, I sat there and chatted while I reapplied. I didn't notice until later that I had let him see the "real" me, right from the get go. When I realized that, I decided it would bode very well indeed :)

For some people trust means confiding your secrets or sharing passwords or a number of other things. For me it's letting someone see me "without my face on" :)

I've been wanting to write a blog post about the current Republican war on women but I'm just too depressed. How would I attempt to outline such basic concepts anyway? Tedious and frustrating. I'm so discouraged and baffled and angry that I don't even know where to start. Besides, if you're a crazy, willfully ignorant, anti-birth control right winger and you're reading this, nothing I say will get through to you. And if you're not then there's no use preaching to the choir. My friends that are reading this know exactly what I mean because they feel it too. Maybe one of them will take the time to articulate it. Right now, I just can't.

This is not the country I know and love. I feel heartsick.

Danica Patrick irks me. Having watched a bit of racing with my dad growing up, I was immediately interested when I heard about a woman racer working her way up the ranks. She was petite and pretty and feminine, but none of that mattered because she was good. Imagine my disappointment when the FHM cover and the trashy Godaddy commercials started coming out. Here was a chance for a woman to be respected for her skill and yet she was playing into the same old bullshit; reinforcing a message that looks are what women have to offer - that sexiness, not talent, is our commodity.

 I know feminism means that she should be free to make her own choices and do what she wants with her body, and part of me admires the fact that her Wikipedia entry states she's an auto racer and model. I love living in a world where women can be both of those things at the same time. But I'd really love living in a world where a woman could race with the guys without having to take her tits out. I mean, is it really feminist if she's reinforcing problematic messages and helping perpetuate a system that keeps women from being seen as equals? I don't want to seem like I'm "slut shaming" or being "sex negative"* I'm just disappointed. I don't think that anyone has an obligation to be a role model, but it is disheartening to see someone squander that opportunity.

*Oh how I hate those damn terms - mention my disdain for strip clubs or prostitution and you will get slapped with a big ol' "sex negative" label in some circles which is absurd.. FUCK THAT, seriously. But that's a topic angry rant for another day.