Upper Sweetside

One of my favorite people I follow on Instagram is a baker — Upper Sweetside — who happens to be a mother from my kids’ preschool. Everything she bakes is fun, creative, and delicious. She not only cares about the look of the cake / cookie / treat, but also the taste. My type of dessert! Pretty and delicious. She recently posted Taylor Swift cookies, so I purchased several, to accompany us to see the Taylor Swift movie.

 

I couldn’t decide which one to get, so I ordered a mixture of them all.

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Taylor Swift Crafts

As I mentioned before, I was lucky enough to attend the Taylor Swift concert in late July in Seattle — and ever since then, I have become totally and utterly obsessed. Dare I say it, I am on the road to become a die hard Swiftie. Everything targeted at me on my instagram reels is Taylor, I have read every article about her, etc….I am (gasp) obsessed. And that means I have listened to hours upon hours of her songs — I can NOT stop. All that said, my biffle from undergrad is at a whole OTHER level of Swiftie-hood. She knows every word to every song, has gone to one show in North America and already has tickets for Europe, etc…She lives and breathes Taylor Swift. She is *also* an incredible artist — INCREDIBLE — unbelievable. If you ever give her an art assignment, she rocks it and blows it out of the park (like my 25th birthday party invitation, my Master’s Thesis cover –yes, very true, the alley mural). She is THE person you call when you need anything (art related or not) and is the most loyal and unbelievable friend. Lucky to have her in my corner and have the opportunity to see all her beautiful artwork. All that to say — she created the most unbelievable unique pieces for her Taylor Swift concert that I have to show you all! Talk about inspiration!!!! It is insanely beautiful.

 

This is Bridget on the left and her daughter Olive. Bridget embroidered the jean jacket with all Taylor’s albums and then made shoes with all the flowers that Taylor mentions in songs. Yes, Bridget went DEEP.

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Needlepoint Pointers

If you are a needlepointer (or interested in needlepointing), then this post is for YOU! In the past 16 months of my new found hobby, I have done a lot of research (and trial and error) on what works and doesn’t work. And because I am a sharer, here are various tips / pointers on websites, threads, anything and everything needlepoint that has worked for ME! (And if you have any favorites, please share with me, too!)

 

My most recent project!

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Hibiscus Tea

As many of you know, my mother is from Mexico., and because of this, most of her cooking is influenced by her heritage. The main drink that we always have in our house is Hibiscus Tea. She goes to the local Mexican tienda and buys pounds and pounds of dried hibiscus flowers to make the juice / tea throughout the year. Unfortunately, I am both lazy and unfamiliar with a Mexican tienda in NYC, so I have yet to recreate this drink. However, recently, at the local grocery store, I came across, sachets of hibiscus tea! Yes, more expensive than bulk leaves — but so convenient and easy! I can’t wait to try all the different flavors and make it in NYC!

 

Not only does my mom loves hibiscus tea made from scratch, but she also loves tea. She is a tea snob and knows more about tea than anyone. And apparently, this tea company, Steven Smith Tea Company, is wonderful and she loves it.

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Custom Needlepoint Canvas DNS by Design

As many of you know, since April 2020, I have become an avid needlepointer. I spend a lot of time planning a project, working on it, and finishing it. I love (and hate!) the process of it, but I absolutely love having a final product — especially when I am proud of the work. I have spent hours upon hours searching for canvases that strike a chord with me, but more often than not, I am left uninspired and wanting more. I absolutely loved making my Notorious BIG footstool, as well as my Tupac pillow, and I wanted to find something in the same genre — cool, hip, unique, exotic, and colorful. Unfortunately, after my own search,  I never found anything. Thankfully, a friend told me to contact Denise, of DNS by Design, who can custom paint any canvases, any size, any photo. And boy, did I luck out in finding her! What a gem!!!!

 

The final product of my Biggie stool.

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Haven’s Kitchen Sauces

Now that I am back to NYC, I am all about fast, easy dinners. I like simple, delicious, and healthy meals that do not require much thought but are still tasty and good for you. So when I came across Haven’s Kitchen Sauces on Fresh Direct, I jumped especially because my friend Katie Carey, happens to be the brains and beauty behind these delicious sauces! Can you believe how small this world is? TINY! And can you believe how amazing these sauces are? INCREDIBLE.

 

So good. So good. So good. Worth repeating and eating more and more and more of them.

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Scrumptious Banana Bread

The other morning when I was at my good friend’s house, she had just pulled banana bread out of the oven (how she makes banana bread while dealing with two kids on a school morning amazes me to no end!). She offered a piece, and although I had already eaten breakfast, I couldn’t say no. And HOLY crap, this was the best banana bread ever. Thankfully, she sent me the recipe and here it is!

 

This is how I bake....6:30 am on a Sunday morning, in my pajamas, totally disheveled, with my little baking partner (my 4 year old), with flour all over myself. But at least I am wearing FEATHERS undies.

This is how I bake….6:30 am on a Sunday morning, in my pajamas, totally disheveled, with my little baking partner (my 4 year old), and flour all over myself. But at least I am wearing FEATHERS undies. (I promise you this photo was not staged — Ken took  a photo of me because he said it looked ridiculous with the hand print).

 

Ingredients:

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Roasted Broccoli

Hi all-

 

Sorry about the hiatus.  I had the below post scheduled for Friday, but it didn’t seem right to post anything given all of the craziness going on.

 

Particularly coming from a mixed-race marriage/family, I wish I had something intelligent / insightful / constructive to say.  But all I feel is sadness and helplessness.  It feels like we are in a bad movie right now, and my fear is it’s only going to get worse.

 

The only thing I know I can do is to hug my kids and talk to them about race and everything that is going on. And to pray for all of the families and friends directly affected.

 

——————————-

 

 

Last month, while spending a weekend with dear friends, I was served (lucky me) the most scrumptious broccoli I have ever eaten in my life. I didn’t care that there was anything else being served, the broccoli was TO-DIE-FOR. It was a grilled broccoli recipe from Barefoot Contessa. Here it is.

 

A green forest

A green forest

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Sweet Potato Pudding

Ever since January 6th, I have been trying to decrease my sugar intake. I must admit (pat on my back) that I have done a very good job for the most part, with only some small slips here and there. Recently, I developed a recipe for sweet potato pudding that I can’t stop making and eating. Warning: there is some maple syrup in it — so while  sugar-cane free, there is still some (a very small amount) of sugar.

 

Yam / sweet potato. (Tomato / Tomat-oh)

Yam / sweet potato. (Tomato / Tomat-oh)

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Savory Zucchini Pancakes

Happy New Years! Happy 2016! I am currently in the process of coming up with my New Year’s Resolutions, and will post those on Monday.  In between my deep thoughts; mad rush packing up west coast for east coast (sob!); savoring the last minutes, hugs, and kisses with my brother, his family, and my parents; and waking up at 3 am to catch a 5:15 am cross country flight (no joke), I have had little time to thoughtfully compose the resolutions. So stay tuned! Until then, here is a recipe for some zucchini savory pancakes — nutritious and delicious.

 

Ingredients:

 

Ingredients

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