Got Apples?

I went over to my mother-in-law's for dinner and surprised everyone with candy apples! I used both red and green apples and coated some with caramel and some with the traditional red candy coating. I topped some of them with coconut and others with sprinkles. For the caramel ones, I decided to keep it traditional with and coat them with peanuts. I thought I'd share with you guys the end result! :]

Candy apples are a fun and easy, so try bringing them to a gathering instead of the typical cookies or pie! They'll be a hit! I promise! :]

Oh, to be a girl...

Rarely do I ever wear red lipstick, but it's always fun to play with makeup and hair. I love being feminine and being able to express my femininity by dolling up a little once in awhile. A lot of times we forget to take the time to take care of ourselves as we get caught up in the everyday rushes of our busy lives. We all deserve a little pampering, even if it is just to make ourselves happy. Whether you've got a hot date or you're just lounging around the house, it's always fun to remind yourself that you're beautiful!

Have a beautiful day! I'm off to grab lunch and run some errands!

the many faces of me.

just a random because i'm bored kind of thing. :]

fitness goal.

Lately, I've been slacking on my health and well being. As of tomorrow, I'm hoping to keep a consistent fitness regimen, and attempt to not treat my mouth and stomach as a garbage disposal, by refraining from throwing junk in it. After the holidays and a visit back home to see the parents, I've felt considerably more unhappy about myself, both physically and mentally. Hooray for being asian and having parents that like to fill you with love by feeding you nonstop! NOT. I'm sure that extra donut won't feel as good as I will once I reach my ideal physique. It's not like I want to lose a crazy amount of weight, and I definitely don't think I'm overweight. It's more of a self confidence thing. If I work out and eat healthy, I feel better, and that makes me feel confident. Anyway, I'll try to update my progress on here as I go on.

Let's get our tone on! :]

YAY for being healthy!!

So, what have i been up to? [photo overload]

Since I completely neglected my blog for 3 months and am now ready to continue blogging, I've decided to post up pictures of what I've been doing for those lost months. I recently made a trip back to Anchorage, Alaska (which is where I'm from), to visit family and friends during the holidays. So, there's those pictures, but also pictures from after I came back to San Diego. My visit to Alaska lasted a good 3 weeks. The weather was quite chilly, and I wasn't prepared for the drastic change from sunny San Diego to freezing cold Alaska. Although the weather kept me wanting to stay home, I managed to meet up with friends and show my bf (who's born and raised in SD) what Alaska has to offer. Basically, this post is just a recap of my favorite memories with some of my favorite people during the last couple of months. WARNING! There's a crapload of pictures! :D

in the kitchen.

So today, I decided to whip up the simplest tomato sauce ever made. I originally found this recipe on a foodie blog (smitten kitchen). you definitely have to check it out for some good eats. This pasta's not meant to be heavy or overwhelmingly flavorful. The only ingredients used are canned whole tomatoes, an onion, butter, and some good pasta.... tomato sauce at it's purest. Who would've thought that some butter and an onion would be all you needed!

Ingredients:

28 oz canned whole tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
5 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1 onion peeled and halved
pasta of choice... i would've used fresh pasta, but the box kind i found was pretty tasty. De Cecco is the brand, it's imported from Italy.

All that needs to be done is opening the can of tomatoes and emptying them into a heavy pot, add the butter and halved onion, and bring it to a simmer. Once it's simmering, bring down the heat to a medium low (more on the lower side) and simmer it for 45 minutes. Stir it occasionally and crush the tomatoes on the side of the pot with a wooden spoon. 45 minutes later.. voila!

You can either throw it over some pasta and call it a day, or you can add some parmesan cheese. In my case I sliced up a piece of fresh mozzarella and put it on top of the warm bed of deliciousness. :] I added a sprig of basil for an appealing effect, but these extra steps are completely unnecessary. :]

With the left over sauce, I made my bf a chicken breast topped with oozing melted mozzarella. All I did was season the chicken breast with salt and pepper, add it to a preheated skillet with some extra virgin olive oil, cook it on one side for several minutes, and flip it over. Once the meat had been cooking on the second side for a couple of minutes, I spooned some tomato sauce ontop of the chicken while it was still cooking. Then, I topped it with a couple of slices of fresh mozzarella and covered the pan with a lid. This next step is also optional, but a minute before the chicken is done cooking, I added some chicken stock to the pan and covered it back up with the lid. I feel like the steam and the moisture from the stock keeps the chicken moist and juicy.

Sorry the quality of most of these pictures isn't that great! It's the horrendous fluorescent lighting in my kitchen!

Cooking is like therapy to me! If you guys decide to try this simple tomato sauce, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Day One.

In my pursuit to become an avid blogger, i woke up this morning ready to do my first vlog. Although I recorded the video 2 times, it was an epic fail. Since I am new to this, I figured I would just go the simple route and record on my MacBook. Unfortunately, within the midst of filming, it cut me off within the first few minutes. Since the video was a bust, I decided to post pictures of the final outcome and which products I used. I will try again tomorrow, but this time I'll be using my bf's legit video camera :D. So this is it for now... at least there's something to look at! ;]

One rendition of a smokey eye:

Products used:

FACE:

Laura Mercier Hydrating Foundation Primer

Loreal True Match Color Foundation

MAC Mineralize Skinfinish Natural in Dark

Maybelline Expert Wear Blush in Pinch O' Pink

EYES:

Eyebrows: MAC Cork eyeshadow

MAC Rubenesque Paint Pot, MAC Smolder Kohl Eyeliner, MAC eyeshadows: Knight Divine, Cork, Embark, Retro Speck, and Carbon

Eyelashes: Maybelline Colossal Mascara, Korean Brand Eyelashes

LIPS:

Maybelline Color Sensations Lipstick in Pink Please

MAC Lipglass in Underage

Thanks for reading! Hopefully tomorrow I'll have a video up!

But... Later this evening, I might put up a really super easy tomato sauce and pasta recipe. Seriously, when I first saw this recipe I thought it was too simple to taste so good, but it's delicious!! Sometimes I feel the need to eat simply to simply eat! :]

GAH! it's been forever, but I'm back!

Apparently, I haven't posted a blog in several months...lol. I assumed it didn't matter since no one knows my blog exists anyway. But then again, what a terrible way to think! This blog was made for me, by me... therefore, I should really put forth more effort into staying consistent with my posts. From here on out, I hope to follow in the footsteps of the greater bloggers and stay committed to my blog. That being said, I have been quite busy. A lot of new and exciting changes are about to happen and I hope I'll be able to share the news when it does. Besides that, I've been overly stressed with an unfortunate situation, but after over 2 years, I think I'm finally able to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Regardless, I'd like to contribute to the blog community and let everyone into my own world. :] Going forth, I'll be sharing my makeup, hair, and food experiences with all of you... along with whatever life throws my way! Hopefully I'll then be able to bring more interest into my blogs and therefore gain readers. :D

The real blogging shall start tomorrow! Till then!