Chinese Chicken "Salad"

I'm definitely feeling like it's my last quarter here at UCSB. Why? Because I don't want to do any of my school work. I'm exhausted and I don't even want to do anything but sleep. Mmmm Sleeeeep :) That is all that is on my mind. And I'm upset because at the end of last year I took caffeine out of my diet, but with all the reading that I have to do, I've pretty much given back in to caffeine, just not Dr. Pepper so much. 

What does any of that have to do with the post?... Absolutely nothing. The recipe I originally found was from Ina Garten on FoodNetwork. There are a few Chefs from Food Network who's recipes I absolutely love and are typically never a fail for me. Ina is one of those Chefs. This recipe I was a little iffy about. The entire peanut butter ingredient threw me off and I wasn't sure if it was going to be good or not. There are those people who LOVE peanut butter, Sean, and those who KIND OF LIKE it, Me. It turns out, it wasn't overwhelming at all. I technically wouldn't call this a salad also. Especially since I found that serving it over brown rice made it even better, but I don't know what else it could be called. 

DIY Yellow Floral Necklace

It's been super nice out lately... well except for the little storm that came on Friday, but other than that it's been sunny. I really want to go out to the beach and relax especially since I've been stressed lately. Graduating in about 8 weeks is officially freaking me out and looking for a job, fixing my resume and writing cover letters on top of school work and beginning to tutor Junior High students is stressful for me. I'm super lucky that I have an amazing boyfriend who helps me with just about everything, no matter what kind of attitude I throw at him. And I'm lucky to have a beach just minutes away from my place. This necklace was inspired by that beautiful weather and I'm excited for summer to come.


*Update* I did list one of these necklaces on my Etsy shop if you are interested in buying it. 

Stewed Spicy Chicken with Spinach

This weekend seemed like a super long one. Probably because I spent all day Sunday and all of today either on my couch or in my bed. I started feeling sick on Friday, but with the amazing weather lately, Sean and I decided that going to beach was better than staying in. For that moment it was worth it, but now I wish that I was 100% healthy because the sound of an 8am class tomorrow doesn't sound appealing at all.

Being sick, I made this chicken hoping that all the spice would kill whatever is in my system... along with chugging mint tea with loads of honey and fresh squeezed orange juice. This recipe is originally called Dak Bokkeum with Spinach (Korean Stewed Chicken with Spinach), but I couldn't find any Korean chile sauce at the grocery store or at the local Asian market here. Instead, I used something that I have in my fridge... Schug* It's a Yemen chili  that is used like a hot sauce and traditionally served with Yemen foods, such as Malawach (my fav!) and Jachnun. This chili is commonly found in Israeli grocery and super markets or you can make it on your own. There's a red and a green version, I used the red schug. I'm pretty positive that if you used any type of chili paste or sauce, this chicken will turn out really delicious.

Fusilli with Caramelized Onions, Peppers and White Wine

One plus about visiting my parents, other than spending time with them, is that they get all the current issues of Food Network Magazine, Cooking Light and a few others. They usually the past few months issues in a pile stacked away waiting, knowing that when I get home that is one of the first places I'll go. Flipping through the pages, I saw this recipe and it was immediately added on my list of things to make.


I don't know about you, but I absolutely LOVE caramelized onions. When I was younger, I remember my mom used to make them when she made steak and I could each the entire pan if I wanted to. It was do delicious that the steak didn't really matter to me. When I saw this recipe and I saw the onions, it was my next meal. It's really simple and the crunch from the toasted panko bread crumbs is perfect. I had to hold myself back from eating the panko and onions before I started making the sauce and pasta. The original recipe doesn't have bell peppers, but I thought that this dish could use some color so I grabbed my bag of bell peppers out of the freezer and tossed them in last minute.

DIY Batman Flats

I kept telling myself that I would post this early in the week and then Sunday got pushed to Monday and then to Tuesday. With leaving my parents to unpacking, starting my last quarter of school and then celebrating my friends 21st birthday, my place is a mess and I already have a lot of reading to do. I'm super excited to be finally graduating in June, but I'm even more excited to show you these Batman comic book flats.

Just a warning, these are not made for rain. Sean, I ruined these shoes in the rain. Sean and I went out and he said that we would be inside and not in the rain. Less than an hour later, I was walking in the rain. Ugh!! It totally destroyed them. Luckily I bought the entire first volume instead of just a single comic so they can be fixed. Anyways here's how you can make them.