Cheers to the Earth

This past Saturday night some friends and I, and hopefully a lot of you out there, took part in earth hour, where between 8:30 pm and 9:30 pm we turned off all lights, tv’s, computers, etc…and enjoyed a lovely candle lit dinner. As we usually like to make our dinners have a bit of a theme (last month’s French night for instance) this time we created a contemporary North American night of dining. A delicious turkey roll that was kind of a made up recipe, which involved stuffing a large turkey breast with sauted veggies, Italian sausage and sage and then roasted to perfection, simple garlic smashed potatoes (SMASHED not mashed!), my first foray into baked spinach (recipe found here ). For dessert classic strawberry shortcake with a lemon pound cake base (recipe here) perfectly complimented by some Fruli ! All enjoyed basked in the light of flickering candles. Cheers to the earth! xo J

You Give Love A Bad Name!

Yeah, that's right! This is where I'll be tonight. Singing along to all the classic Bon Jovi hits! I honestly hope they stick to their old stuff because I don't know anything else.

And yeah, I wore my "liquid leggings" today specifically to feel a bit more rocker.

Happy Friday!




xo J

WEDDING WEDNESDAYS - destination Paris

Hello lovely people and sorry Wedding Wednesdays turned into Wedding MIA there for a while...So, I was just doing my usual wedding blog tour when I came across a destination wedding in Paris on Style Me Pretty. I highly recommend a visit to the site to see the rest of the photos by One And Only Paris Photography because they are incredible, or on second thought maybe I don't recommend it because you will die of envy and will want to go straight to the airport to fly to Paris on standby! And if you really want to sigh uncontrollably definitely check out the amazing collection of wedding photos in Paris at One And Only Paris Photgraphy.

So today's Wedding Wednesday lesson of the day is if you have the means, love everything Parisienne, and you and your hubby-to-be have the burning desire for an incredible destination wedding, GET MARRIED IN PARIS!! Yes, it's completely impractical, not at all economical, and the guest list will shrink dramatically, but a girl can dream on a Wednesday afternoon : ) Style Me Pretty Blogger Abby C. puts it so aptly, "put a beret on my head and hand me a baguette because I am ready to make a beeline to the most romantic city in the world!" So I actually haven't been to Paris, but the romance that oozes from the imagery from that magical city can only be a hint of what it's actually like. Paris I will come for you one day soon! And to all those bride and grooms who have the fortune of getting married there, post your photos so that we can live vicariously!

AWESOME!

"High- fiving babies -

because they don't usually leave you hanging. AWESOME!" - Neil Pasricha

If you ever have one of those days that just make you go "ugghhhhh", you know the ones, your cranky, irritable and you just can't shake off that bad mood. Those are the days that you need to pick up your trusty copy of The Book of Awesome, open to a random page and take a moment to smile about the little things in life.

Neil Pasricha started 1000 Awesome Things (http://www.1000awesomethings.com/) back in 2008, a countdown of 1000 things that honour the little joys in life, like getting served breakfast in bed, seeing a cop on the side of the road and realizing you're going the speed limit anyway, wearing underwear just out from the dryer, or a long hug when you really need it. 1000 Awesome Things has now been compiled in to a book, with The Book of (even more) Awesome to be launched in April 2011.

It is full of nostalgic anecdotes that will have you reminscing with every page, it is laugh-out-loud funny at times, and simply sweet and charming at others. A perfect pick-me-up for those rainy days! AWESOME!

xo J

Too yummy for pictures: Leek, Bacon and Pea Risotto

Hey Peeps,

So you're hungry - you want some yumminess for dinner, maybe you want to impress a date or a friend, this is the recipe for you. I've made it a few times, and every time it comes out ubber tasty. Try it soon - you will love it.

PS yup I was too hungry to take pictures, so this pic is courtesy of the team at Martha Stewart. "What the hell Jen?" you ask. I have no defense - I guess I'll just have to make more to show you another time. See what sacrifices I'm willing to make for you lovely people? I know, you're welcome ;)

Less talk - more recipe - click here to see it

PPS if you don't have leeks on hand - a bunch of green onions works very nicely.

xo
Jenny C

A lasting impression

Some websites you just happen to stumble across and they immediately suck you in, then two hours later you realize that you should probably get back to work. I think that is what happened to me when I first came across Tattoologist. I have one itty-bitty tattoo and I’m always playing around with the idea of getting a second and this simple site offers endless inspiration. Even if you have no desire to ink yourself, it is always interesting to see how people find new and creative ways to express themselves.



Some of my favorites:

Simple words in a lovely font

Hearts


A constant obession of mine, sparrows

Birds of a feather

Infinity

Images via Tattoologist

xo J

Une Belle Nuit

Thank you Jenny for kick starting me out of my haze of procrastination, all week I have been staring at my camera thinking I should really upload those pictures but never fully having enough motivation to do so hence I’ve been a very bad blogger.

Jenny did indeed out do herself with the Beef Bourguignon, it was melt-in-your-mouth delicious, she out did herself on the whole night actually, to the subtle décor, the music and the indulgent French butter slathered on perfect slices of baguette. Bravo Jenny, bravo!

Salad with proscuitto, fennel and pomegranate seeds and the BEEF!

La Belle Patate

My contribution was the French style accordion potatoes, possibly one of the easiest potatoe dishes. Simply pick out some lovely little new potatoes, slice them down one side (but not all the way through) stuff and slather them with garlic, olive oil, and your favorite fresh and/or dry herbs and then bake at 350 degrees for 30 – 45 minutes (depending on their size). As they cook they begin to open up and by the time they are done they have fanned out like and accordion.

Girl talk and the decadent cheese course

xo J

Bon Appetit! aka Julia Child is In-flippin-credible

Hey Amis!

Sorry for the content drought on Amis Are We this past week. Life has kicked into high gear but that's no excuse to leave ya hanging! We will do better, I promise!

What have we been up to? Well lots, but me personally I spent a good 7 hours last Friday night making Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon recipe for a french themed dinner party. It was intense!

See my guy had the boys over to his place for poker on Saturday, so obviously we ladies needed to take advantage of that and have a girly night. After some discussion, we hit on the party being french themed, you know because us ladies love the french stuff, but the boys in our life, yah not so much.

Anyhoodle back to the Beef! Well this was my first Julia Child recipe, and yipes, intense is truly the word to describe it. Just reading the detail of her recipes you see instantly her passion bordering on obsession with food. Every part of the recipe is built to maximize flavour. You pat each cube of beef dry so it sears nicely before braising, while the beef is braising, you cook the mushrooms and onions separately so that they don't fall apart in the stew. (Sidebar: hand peeling the skin off of pearl onions - also intense!)

Although the process did take a long time, there is a reason why Julia's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" is the tour-de-force of cook books - this lady knows her stuff! After resting overnight,  the beef was fall apart delicious. Us 9 ladies dug into that pot of beefy goodness with ardour, leaving just a wee ladle full as proof that it was even there.

I was so wrapped up in the cooking and serving (and eating) that I barely remembered to photograph this endeavour. So here it is, the one shot I snapped over the whole process. Luckily Jessy did take more pics, so I'll leave any expanding on the party in her capable hands.

Seen here is the beef, petit pois avec lardons (peas and bacon), and Jessy's accordion potatoes.
Delish!

Hmmmm maybe I should encourage more poker nights :)

xo
Jenny C

Imaginative, Compassionate and Devoted

That’s what I am as a Pisces, at least according to BCBG. As I was browsing the shops I came across this darling little ring at BCBG, one side has your astrological constellation and the other side says the name of your sign, with a delicate gold link band and since my birthday is fast approaching I couldn’t say no, the $24 price tag also made it an easy buy.

They also had bead bracelets with the same astrology charms, both would make a perfect little birthday gift.

xo J

5 Year Old Needs A Job First

Hey Everyone!

Happy Wednesday

Here's a video to make you smile - this five year old firecracker knows what she wants! Look out fellas :)




And as a little bonus the oldie but goodie, "Kittens Inspired By Kittens"



xo
Jenny C

One Day by Dave Nicholls

Some books are just made for curling up on a cold, rainy day in your most comfy and coziest spot and wasting away an afternoon, for me One Day fits perfectly into that category.

One Day follows the twenty year friendship between Emma and Dexter, revisiting them every year on the same day whether they are together or apart or even on speaking terms. Em and Dex, Dex and Em as they like to call themselves are flawed people just trying to figure themselves out. Sometimes they are endearing, charming, witty but sometimes they are self involved, immature and just plain stupid but you are always rooting for them to get it right, you get angry when they hurt each other and relish in their sarcastic banter, it makes you happy to see things go their way and sad when life throws them a curve ball.

"You're gorgeous, you old hag, and if I could give you just one gift ever for the rest of your life it would be this. Confidence. It would be the gift of confidence. Either that or a scented candle" - Dave Nicholls (One Day)

Oh yes….and of course, One Day will soon be coming to a theatre near you this summer.

xo J