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    Food & DIY

    Where did the weekend go?

    March 2, 2015

    Photos by Ale Veyna

    Outfit Details:
    Free People Scarf (Similar here, here and here)
    Old Navy Chambray Shirt (Similar)
    H&M Chunky Cardigan (Similar)
    H&M Trouser Shorts
    Black Tights
    Madewell Loafers (Similar here and here)
    I’ve you haven’t figured it out from the title of this post, lately I’ve been feeling like I don’t have enough time to do everything that I want to do and have this feeling of being burnt out that I just can’t shake off. I think part of it is that I’ve been trying to fit in all these things that I love into my schedule–such as running, reading, blogging, crafting, writing, meditation, etc.–but I haven’t given myself enough time to rest. I need to work on being okay with not achieving everything on my to do list, realizing that I can’t do everything at the same time, and giving myself a break every once in a while. Please excuse me if this sounds repetitive from previous posts, but this is something that I constantly need to remind myself to do, especially since I often find myself in a similar state of being.
    Something that really helped me somewhat shake off the feeling of being overwhelmed was getting out of the house most of the day Saturday. Doing that got me away from my laptop and gave me a break from working on this space; I also made an effort to not be glued to my phone while I was out and about. I really love social media and this blog, but sometimes I think focusing too much of my time on those things prevents me from living in the moment. Sometimes it’s nice to disconnect and not feel the pressure to find some special highlight to share with the world through Instagram or Facebook.
    Other than me struggling to find time to recharge, it was a very good weekend, even if it was too short. As I mentioned before, I was out of the house most of Saturday and spent some time in Downtown L.A., attended an event at my old workplace, and then ended the night by going out for beers and pizza with my sister Ale. It also cooled down and drizzled a bit over the weekend, and the weather made it easier for me to take things slow; I kind of hope the rain sticks around for a few more days so that I can get the hang of this new, much slower pace.
    xoxo,
    Helen
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    Food & DIY

    Bacon and Gouda Cheese Croquetas

    February 25, 2015
    I studied abroad in Madrid about 5 years ago during my junior year of college, and one of the things that I miss most about the experience is all the delicious Spanish food that I had during my short stay. I lived with a wonderful host mom named Pilar, and she was kind enough to cook up a variety of Spanish dishes for my roommate and me. Out of all the wonderful food that Pilar introduced me to, my favorite had to be her recipe for croquetas(croquettes). For those of you who haven’t had croquetas before, I would describe them as delicious bites of fried dough mixed with anything from chicken, jamón serrano or cheese. They do take a bit longer to make than most recipes, but the extra work is definitely worth it. My biggest regret is not asking Pilar for her recipe before I left Spain. Fortunately, I found a recipe on Hungry Sofia that was easy enough for me to follow, and I adapted it this weekend to make delicious Bacon and Gouda Cheese Croquetas. Today I’m sharing this recipe with you so that you can learn how to make these delicious bites for yourself.

     

    Recipe adapted from Hungry Sofia Blog
     
    Bacon and Gouda Cheese Croquetas
    INGREDIENTS
    (Makes 20-24 large croquetas)
    12 oz of bacon (cooked and chopped)
    3/4 cups of cubed Gouda cheese
    2 1/2 cups of milk
    1/2 cup of flour
    6 Tbsp of butter
    Salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg
    4 eggs (beaten)
    2 cups of bread crumbs
    DIRECTIONS
    Mix the bacon and Gouda cheese in a food processor or a blender until they form a paste.
    In a small pan, melt the butter on low heat. Once the butter is completely melted, begin to slowly stir in the flour until it forms a thick sauce. Only do this for a couple of minutes to keep the mixture from burning.
    Heat the the milk in another pan until its warm, but don’t let it come to a boil. Pour the milk unto the butter and flour mixture and stir it until it begins to thicken and forms a doughy texture. Remove from heat and then fold in the bacon and Gouda cheese paste into the mixture. Make sure to add a pinch of salt, pepper and nutmeg as you’re mixing in all the ingredients.
    Leave the mixture in the pan and let it cool down to room temperature. Once it’s cool, store it in the fridge for at least an hour. This will make it easier for you to work with the mixture once it comes down to making the croquetas.
    Once you’re ready to make the croquetas, you’re going to take out the dough mixture out of the fridge and place the beaten eggs and bread crumbs in separate bowls. Use a large spoon to scoop out the mixture from the pan and roll it into a ball shape. Dip each croqueta into the egg mixture and then roll it in bread crumbs until its completely covered. Do this until you’ve used up all the dough.
    Pour about 1.5-2″ of oil in a large frying pan and set to medium heat. Dip the croquetas and use a fork to turn them over until they are browned on all sides. Transfer the croquetas unto a paper towel and let the excess oil drain. And now you’re ready to serve these delicious treats!
    —-
    I really hope that you all enjoyed this recipe post. I’m so happy that I now have more time to work on creating content like this for the blog. Although it’s fun to dress up once a week and take pictures, there’s something more satisfying for me about documenting a project from beginning to end. I started this blog as a way to improve my skills set, and so far I have learned so much. However, I’m really looking forward to improving my photography and finding new ways to be creative as I begin to add more DIY and recipe posts to my little corner of the internet.
    On a different note, I hope you’re all having a great week so far. I have the day off today and I’m going to spend part of it watching the series finale of my favorite show Parks and Recreation. The show is so funny and I love how much the characters have grown over the years. The current season has also been extremely touching and has brought me to tears so many times. I just really hope that the show has a good ending. Since I’ll probably have watched the final episode once comments start rolling into this blog, I’d love to hear what you all thought of the finale if you happen to keep up with the show.
    xoxo,
    Helen
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    Food & DIY

    Berry, Almond and Chocolate Overnight Oats

    February 11, 2015

    My goal this year is to get back on track with my health and develop/relearn better habits.  I used to be the type of person that woke up at 6 A.M. in the morning to workout and I always made time to eat a healthy breakfast. I’m not quite sure what triggered me to change that routine last year, but at some point in time I did. This change eventually took a toll on my body and, last year, I was sick more often than I had ever been before. Although I hope to eventually be able to wake up early enough to workout and eat breakfast at home, I know that I don’t have that discipline to do that right now.  One of the changes that has helped me get back on track–at least when it comes to eating breakfast in the morning–is preparing breakfast that I can take with me to work. Overnight oats have been a great addition to my diet because they make for an easy and delicious on-the-go breakfast, and I like that it’s easy to experiment with different ingredients and proportions. Today I’m sharing one of my favorite overnight oats combinations:

     

    Berry, Almond and Chocolate Overnight Oats
    Ingredients
    3/4 cup of dried oats
    1/2-3/4 cup of mixed berries (I used blueberries, blackberries and raspberries)
    A handful of sliced almonds
    A handful of chocolate chips
    1/2 cup to 3/4 cups of almond milk
    1 Tbsp of agave syrup (optional)
    To prepare this overnight oats recipe, simply pour all the dry ingredients into a half-pint mason jar, top off the jar with almond milk and agave syrup, and then store the mixture in the fridge overnight. Then simply grab the mason jar from the fridge on your way out the door in the morning. I really wasn’t kidding when I said this is an easy breakfast to prepare! You can enjoy overnight oats warm or at room temperature, but I like to eat this particular recipe when it’s cold. You don’t want the berries to get too pruny by popping them in the microwave.
    I hope that you enjoy this recipe. Now that I have a bit more time, I’m going really make an effort to include more recipe and DIY posts. Please let me know if there is anything in particular that you would like to see on the blog. As always, thank you for reading and have an amazing rest of the week!
    xoxo,
    Helen
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