Steppin Out Right!

I recently bought these shoes, and absolutely LOVE them!!! I encourage everyone to go out and buy a pair. Not only are they really cute and comfortable, but TOMs is a great cause to get behind. For every pair of shoes sold, a pair of shoes is donated to a child. Often, in impoverished societies, the greatest predictor of wealth and success is ... shoes! That is because having shoes is a prerequisite for attending school. Thus, without shoes children are unable to get an education, and without education you can't get a job, and without a job you can't get $. See the trend? So go out and support this cause while also indulging yourself in Spring's hottest shoe trend (espadrilles!)

Thing to try: Multi-grain dough

One of my most favorite foods is pizza. I know the trend is now wheat everything, and while I fancy myself some good ol' whole wheat, I recently stumbled upon Whole Foods Multi-Grain pizza dough, and can I just say.. UH-MAZ-ING. I made this little beut last night.

Seriously, you should try it the next time you're in there! I think I love the ruggedness of the dough- there are actual seeds and grain bits in it. It's also very filling.

Enjoy.

Happy Earth Day!

Today, let's all take a moment (or two) to think about the state of the Earth, and how our taking lifestyles have truly affected the Earth's ability to give. While you're thinking, why don't you visit some of these awesome websites that offer great going green ideas that you can implement in the various aspects of your life.

REMEMBER: You don't have to completely change in one day. Start small, and work with manageable changes. These are the kinds of efforts that will last the long haul. Can't buy a green car? That's fine! Start recycling all of those Starbucks cups you consume.

Green is Universal

Ecorazzi

Inhabitat *green housing and architecture*

Frugal for Life

Eco-Chick

Things I'm obsessed with: Breakfast Edition

If you know me, then you know i love breakfast. I love it so much, that I have been known for eating breakfast for dinner, lunch, snack, you get the picture. If you know me, then you also know my love for oatmeal. I love it plan, snazzed up, in smoothies, to bake with, etc.

But what I really love lately is Muesli. It really is the BEST breakfast, tasty but very filling. You won't even need a morning snack with this meal!

What you need:

1 1/3 cup oatmeal (old fashioned best, but quick will do)

2 cups milk* (I use vanilla *soymilk.... honestly JUST DO IT)

1 banana, sliced thinly

1/2 cup raisins (or any other fruit, I have used both blueberries and strawberries, and for this recipe I used blackberries!!)

1/2 cup almonds (or walnuts)

1 tsp cinnamon (I never measure, the most cinnamon the better!!)

1 sour apple, chopped

Mix everything up to the apple together in a plastic tupperware or covered bowl.

[It should look like this, kind of watery. Don't worry- the oatmeal will "cook" in the milk and thicken overnight like magic!]

Refrigerate over night.

[It should look like this in the morning. See how thick it is? And you didn't even cook it!!]

Add chopped apples.

Wake up an enjoy your tasty, healthy breakfast!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Croc Pot Chicken Stroganoff: Seriously Delicious

If you haven't used your Croc Pot in a while now is the time to turn it on. My friend Suzy had the idea and she slow cooked this bad boy for a good 5-6 hrs, and let me tell you I was beyond impressed with the result.  

Chicken Stroganoff is the ultimate soul-food. It is so tasty and so very hearty. It was also topped to Goose Valley's fusion blend of  Basmati & Wild Rice™ . The two are match made in heaven. The fluffiness of the wild rice and creaminess of the chicken stroganoff keeps you coming back for more. And then some. Below is the recipe(adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients

• 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
• 1/8 cup margarine
• 1 (.7 ounce) package dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup
• 1 cup of Goose Valley Basmati & Wild Rice Fusion™

Directions

1. Put chicken, margarine and dressing mix in slow cooker; mix together and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours.
2. Add cream cheese and soup, mix together and cook on high for another 1/2 hour or until heated through and warm. 
3. Serve on top on wild rice.

Shake Shack

I have had Shake Shack before but (due to not having a blog at the time) never blogged about it. Umm...let me just tell you. it is AMAZING, and pretty close to IN-N-OUT Burger that's in California. After a hard day of shopping in the city with my good friend Amanda, we were starving and needed food ASAP.  They make fresh, straight off  the grill, quality burgers. I ended up getting the double cheeseburger with everything on it (lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles) It is cooked to perfection, served medium-rare on a potato bun.  We spilt fries and a peanut butter/ chocolate shake. It was everything I could imagine and more. This place is perfect if you are craving a solid burger in the city. Your taste buds will gladly thank you.

Mmm... Breakfast Burrito

scrambled eggs

avocado

mango salsa

sour cream

sriracha 

multi-grain tortilla

=

yummm

Hungry, why wait

I couldn't help but be amused by today's RueLaLa login screen... eggs anyone?

Jamie Cullum - Don't Stop The Music

If you haven't heard this cover already, you must.

Poll: Working out Single or Double?

So the latest fitness trend seems to be working out with your partner. There's definitely pros to such a situation, namely spending time together while also getting in one's daily workout. But the question is, does this really work? Can you get your guy or girl to workout with you, and still have an effective workout? Has anyone ever actually done this? I'm dying to know!!

KALE is the new black

Whoever said spinach was the new queen bee is well, wrong. This spring (and Yes, it's finally spring here in the northeast!!) it's all about the leafy green Kale. Surprisingly, I have used Kale in recipes that I never would have thought of- i.e. FISH TACOS! I found the idea and recipes for this new food adventure in a Shape article and have shared it here with you. Enjoy.

Tilapia Tacos

Prep time: 10 minutes

Cook time: 0 minutes

1 c coarse-crumbled leftover cooked tilapia

fillets (recipe 40)

1/4 c red onion slivers

1/4 c thinly sliced kale

1/4 c canned diced tomatoes, drained

2 Tbsp crumbled feta cheese

2 tsp olive oil

2 tsp lime juice

tsp cumin

tsp red pepper flakes

2 9-inch whole-wheat tortillas, warmed

In a mixing bowl, combine tilapia, onion, kale,

tomatoes, feta, oil, lime juice, cumin, pepper

flakes, and salt to taste. Toss. Spoon onto

tortillas. Fold tortillas in half. Cut each half into

two pieces.

Per serving: 291 calories, 14 g fat (3 g saturated), 571 mg

sodium, 25 g carbs, 4 g fiber, 18 g protein

Kale Chips

1 bunch kale

1 tblsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray cookie sheet with nonstick spray (e.g. PAM). Wash and dry kale thoroughly. Remove kale leaves from stems and lay out on cookie sheet. Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and garlic powder. Bake until edges are brown, but not burnt. Should be 10 minutes, but in some ovens up to 15 minutes.

Enjoy!

The Strapless Wonder Bra: Marketing Gold.

come and jump.

DIY: Make A Wine Bottle Lamp

 I'm totally doing this.

http://remodelista.com/posts/lighting-maison-martin-margiela-bottle-lamps

If an opportunity comes your way that scares you, take it.

l

Check out this great interview with Tina Roth Eisenberg from SwissMiss.

my favorite part: 

What advice would you give to others who are looking to get into design?

•Do as many side projects as you can. 

•Be hungry and try to learn new things. 

•Experiment.

•Surround yourself with inspiring, smart people.

•Try to find a side of 'design' that really makes you happy. 

•If an opportunity comes your way that scares you, take it.

eliminating the "noise"

Hey there,

So Vanessa and I started this blog a while back and due to us both being pretty busy we lost touch with it. This makes me sad because we were sooo excited about it when we created it.

This past weekend ignited the flame.

Last Friday night I had dinner at John's of 12th street. Which I will blog about later(amazing homey, classic italian). My best friend and roommate Amanda was talking about the Tina Fey talk that she had just went to. I could just tell how inspired she was just by hearing her talk. Basically saying that if you really want something you can make it happen. If doesn't matter where you are or what you are going through. Tina Fey is proof of this. She is super successful(hilarious), driven, and self-made. 

Amanda had also been reading the new Bethenny Frankel book, called A Place of Yes. One of the things that stuck out in my mind was a term Bethenny called "noise", saying that anything telling you "you can't do it", or "it will never work", "I'm too busy", "I'm not good enough", etc. are all just excuses therefore holding you back from what you truly want and can achieve.

This really got me thinking... Granted, I'm not still sure where I want to be in 10 years from now but what I do know is I love design, food, and talking about the two. So here it goes. Hope you enjoy. 

-NRB

NRB EATS: Juniper in Brooklyn

Upon walking around in Willaimsburg with my girls(Amanda and Nicole- oh and ps they will have a section in here soon). We quickly became famished and NEEDED food STAT. We soon came across a cute little cozy place called Juniper. We browsed the menu outside and were sold when we saw "pulled pork" and "mac & cheese" comfort food options. 

 We ended up getting the mac & cheese, grilled cheese and pulled pork, doing the spilt-ski(I think I should probably patten this). Which is when you each get something different and share everything. It really is the ultimate way to go. I got the pulled pork with the spicy fries. The pork was soo TENDAAH. The sauce that was on it was divine and the fries = perfection.  We talked to the owners after who were very warm and friendly. I would definitely recommend this place if you need a good, hearty quick bite. Also- my(apologies for not having pictures of the others - it will never happen again).

Best Eggs Benedict I have Ever Had

I went to Resto for the first time over the weekend and this seriously was THE BEST Eggs Benedict I have had in my life. The egg and waffle combination satisfied my sweet & salty craving to the MAXXXX. It was the perfect pair. It came with a side salad and homefries(both so good). I also got the "sammy the bull" bloody mary which was kind of spicy but in a good way and it came with a provolone and sopressata stick. Amazing. Go now.