Tuesday, February 15, 2011

One More Thing...

Yesterday I tried this brilliant recipe for Filet Mignon in Red Wine Balsamic Reduction. I was drawn to it because it seemed so simple. Normally I steer clear of cooking meat because I'm not a very good cook...I can't really tell when it's done and I tend to overcook it. But this recipe for filet mignon looked so easy and didn't require that many ingredients, so I thought, what the hell, why not?

It was delicious.

I got a little less than 2 lb of meat, substituted more shallots for the mushrooms (ick!) and used regular wine (Red Diamond 2008?) instead of cooking wine. I also didn't cook very consistently; for example, I had to take the pan off the heat for a sec while I cut up the shallots (oops...). But the meat turned out great nonetheless, and I had enough for about 4-5 servings (it was so good I had to eat two slices out of the eight). I cheated a bit and served it over pre-made garlic mashed potatoes, but really, I can only do so much cooking in a day.

I think this is a perfect recipe to make for dinner guests (or, even better, an indulgent meal for yourself). It's simple, quick, and turns out amazing results. Although make sure you have a corkscrew on hand if you're using a new bottle of wine...I had an interesting time trying to open a bottle of wine without one (it's possible, though not recommended).

Halfway There

It's day 15 of the 30 for 30 challenge and I seem to be going strong. I still have a few items that I haven't even worn yet, but I'm also starting to re-wear some things. Here are the days you missed:

Day 8: Jeans, grey 3/4 sleeve, new knit cardi, grey suede boots
Day 9: Blue skirt, (sweater tights), white cowl tank, (khaki coat), brown wedge boots
Day 10: Jeans, purple plaid button up, grey suede boots
Day 11: Jeans, black striped tank, grey heather jacket, Chucks
Day 12: Jeans, dark grey cowl sweater, red peep toe wedges
Day 13: Jeans, white 3/4 sleeve tunic, Chucks
Day 14: Black "skinny" pants, dark grey cowl sweater, grey suede boots
Day 15: Pinstripe pants, black knotted sheer blouse, new knit cardi, peep toe flats

I included some things in parentheses just so I could remember the full outfit, but they aren't part of the 30 items. I still have to talk about the cardigan I finished knitting, but I will save that for later.

On another related note, I made my first sale on Smashion! Yay!

Monday, February 7, 2011

30 for 30 Update

Day 1: Black "skinny" pants, gray tank, turquoise jacket, peep toe flats
Day 2: Black slacks, cream polka-dot sheer blouse, long black cardigan, black wedges
Day 3: Black "skinny" pants, cream floral lace blouse, long black cardigan, peep toe flats
Day 4: Jeans, black knotted sheer blouse, open gray cardigan, grey button boots
Day 5: Jeans, black striped tank, Chucks
Day 6: Floral-y print dress, grey tights, grey suede boots
Day 7: Pinstripe pants, pink/coral top, open grey cardigan, peep toe flats

Sorry, no pictures, but none of the outfits were that fabulous anyway...otherwise, so far so good, right? The only problem I've encountered so far is that Spring is coming early. I picked out clothes mainly for layering or wearing alone in relatively cold weather (Bay Area Winter). But it seems that Spring has decided to intrude on my fun and make things all sunshine-y (and pollen-y). I can make do with a light blouse and pants/skirt, but that allows for much fewer options for outfits. We'll see how this goes.