7 Things

I was very excited when Jenn over at Pea & Crayons tagged me in her Stylish Blogger Award and asked that I share 7 things about myself. Yay! It's my first fellow blogger award! Obviously I love talking about myself (you know you're a blogger when...), so this award is extra fun :)

Here's how it works:

1. Make a post + Link back to the person who awarded you this award - Donezo!

2. Share 7 things about yourself - Don't mind if I do!

3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers so we can share the love - On it!

4. Contact these bloggers and tell them they've won!

So without further ado, here's 7 random things about me!

1. Aruba never gets old to me, even though I go every summer. Sometimes I cry when it's time to come home.

 

2. I've seen You've Got Mail many more times than I can count. And still look for it on TV every so often. (Did I mention that I own it, too?)

3. I had a crush on Shaun for almost 3 years before we started dating. He was my high school crush who I admired from afar! Who knew 10 years later we'd be very happily married?

4. I use all Lush hair & body products (that's all-natural, organic people, and it works!), thanks to my sister Christine. This includes a shampoo bar, conditioner bar and alternating between Happy Hippy & Olive Branch body wash.

5. My entire sock drawer needs a major overhaul. Each and every sock in it needs to be thrown away and updated, from boot socks and athletic socks to tights and knee highs. It's just one of those things that I never think to spend money on!

6. I own no less than 10 different blue and green shades of nail polish. Obsessed much?

7. Each and every comment that I get on the blog leaves me perma-smiling all day long. Thanks to everyone who has been commenting lately, I hope you are enjoying the site!

So there you have it. 7 random things about me! What are some random tidbits about you?

And to pay this fun forward, I'm selecting some more fab bloggers to participate! These are all blogs that I'm loving right now - keep up the great reads ladies! Hope you'll all accept :)

Baking 'N Books
Bites and Bliss
Black Book Kitchen Diaries
Delish Living
For Sweets Sake
Haute Apple Pie
Healthy Eating for Ordinary People
Keep it Sweet
Like Mother Like Daughters
OliePants
Pretty Good Food
The Cookie Battle
The Healthy Apron
The Ketchup Diaries
What Megan's Making

Take it away girls!

Things I'm Crushing On

Last night I went out for dinner with these lovely ladies (minus the handsome man)...

 My sisters Christine & Kimberly and our friend Danielle...and my cute husband

We went to La Carbonara, one of my favorite NYC restaurants. It's quaint, cozy, serves up delicious Italian food and is fairly inexpensive. I dig it. We followed up dinner with a little trip to Milk Bar in the East Village. I'm sorry to report that I forgot my camera! But I plan to make many more trips in the future so I can give you a proper rundown.

Meanwhile, since it's a snowy Friday and I'm all about comfort, I thought it would be fun to share some things that I'm like totally crushing on this week.

Momofoku cookies

{source}

Though I could have easily devoured anything on the menu at Milk Bar (including cereal milk-flavored soft serve...is that genius or what?), I must have had residual holiday cravings since I went with a single cookie; a cornflake, marshmallow and chocolate chip concoction that was sticky, sweet and just all around wonderful.

Panko breadcrumbs

{source}

I used these in Rocco's buffalo chicken tenders and my life has been forever changed. Crispy chicken in the oven? Sans oil? Yes please.

Boardwalk Empire

The clothing, the set design, the indulgence, Michael Pitt...it's a gorgeous production and a gripping story. Oh and the fact that it's yet another show to come out of New Jersey doesn't hurt either. As for Steve Buscemi? At times, I forgot it was him. Somehow I see an Emmy in his near future. Shaun and I burned through the first season in one weekend and are now on a serious hunt for our next TV-on-DVD obsession...taking recommendations.

Jets/Fantasy Playoffs

Though I'm still bummed about the Giants, I'm excited for round 2 of Fantasy Football and I'm happy that my favorite Jets fan is happy. Jets party to commence tomorrow night at 6pm for the 8pm game.

Arnold Cinnamon Raisin Sandwich Thins

{no photo}

I forgot to snap a photo, but had to share anyway. They're cinnamony-raisiny goodness for 100 calories. Plus, when toasted they make the office kitchen smell like heaven and suddenly everyone wants to be my friend.

Tea, especially when served in my Anthropologie R mug

It's yummy and  pretty. 'Nuff said.

Anjou Pears

I received some in a Harry & David holiday gift basket at work and have been eating 1 per day ever since. They are juicy, sweet and delicious! A nice change up from my usual apple.

My Built Lunchbag

Shaun got it for me for Christmas and I have used it everyday since, even if only to cart a banana and Babybel cheese to work.

More snow

It's happening in NYC right now! Good thing I got my rubber boots on!

So there you have it...all the things I'm loving right now. What are you crushing on this week? What are your weekend plans?

If I Was a Stay-At-Home Wife + Spinach Pinwheels

If I was a stay-at-home wife, our apartment would be clean.

If I was a stay-at-home wife, our laundry would be done.

If I was a stay-at-home wife, our closets would be organized, our bed would be made and our walls would be painted.

If I was a stay-at-home wife, Shaun could pick whatever he wanted to eat that night for dinner...and I’d make it!

Or, I’d simply find anything I could in my pantry and refrigerator and try creative ways to use up what we have.

The latter would probably be the case.

Last week, I had a few days off from work between Christmas and New Year’s. With that whole snow storm thing, I was trapped in the apartment for a solid 2 days, which kind of made me feel like a stay-at-home wife. So you know I got my cooking and baking on. When I realized I had a sheet of puff pastry still in my freezer, left from my Christmas Eve vegetable tart, I simply had to find a way to use it. And then when I found a simple recipe on the back of the package, I knew it was primed for some changes to make it even more delish.

Shaun claimed it was one of my best creations ever. So I guess he won't mind if I just come up with dinner on my own after all :)

Spinach & Onion Pinwheels
*Adapted from Pepperidge Farms
1 sheet puff pastry (1/2 of a box)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 tbsp water
1 C mozzarella cheese, shredded
1/4 C Parmesean cheese, grated
1 onion, sliced
1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained
kosher salt
flour, for dusting the pastry
butter & olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a skillet, cook the sliced onions in a bit of butter and olive oil on very low heat until they soften and start to brown. Mix them frequently so they don't burn. We are starting the carmelization process here, but I don't think mine got quite that far. Roll out the pastry with a bit of flour. Brush some of the egg over the entire pastry. Stack the spinach and onion on top.

 

Add the cheeses and roll it on up. Carefully.

Slice off the edges so you're starting with clean, sharp ends. Slice up the pinwheels.

 

Lay them on a foil-lined baking sheet, sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

Brush the tops with the egg mixture. Bake for 15 minutes, until browned and bubbly.

Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Though this is a great party food (and will probably make an appearance at our green-themed Jets party this Saturday night), we had it for dinner along with some butternut squash puree (another bystander of my use-everything-in-kitchen-raid).

 

So there you have it. A yummy, easy dinner that took almost no time to prepare. We both loved the sauteed onions in these pinwheels since it gave them an extra, subtle boost of flavor - completely worth the extra time to let them brown on the stovetop. Though I suppose with a dinner this easy, there's no reason to become a stay-at-home wife.

So what do you think? Do you ever go on a kitchen raid to use up what you have? What's the craziest concoction you've ever come up with?