Bake, Eat, Sleep.

This has been a pretty eventful week. Just trying to enjoy my summer before "real" school starts up again. So a quick little update..I started the advance level in my baking school, which means my focus is mostly on pastry arts and cake decorating. Honestly, it's not an easy feat. Cake decorating is so freaking hard. Most days I just want to pick up my cake and hurl it across the room. But I have to keep reminding myself that I need to keep practicing. Because truly practice makes perfect. Even though it's hard, I think I'm head over heels in love. I long for the days that I'm in baking school, frosting a cake, listening to my ipod, lost in my own little world. I am truly in love. SWOON! Here's a couple of pictures from this week. Enjoy!

 mini orange chiffon cakes before.

 After

 Quiche fixings

 Four layer chocolate mousse cake.

Homemade pizza with white sauce, swiss, gruyere, mushrooms, garlic, and kale. YUMS

Happy Labor Day weekend everyone! May it be filled with great company and good food!

Crystal Cove

Slow down and open your eyes because you'll never know what you might find. 

AYCE Fried

What is it about the fair that allows one to consume as much fatty, fried goodness just for the heck of it and not feel guilty about it one bit. I won't deny it, I see the fair as my annual pass to let loose and basically be a kid again. As I grow older and older, these very moments are the ones I want to continue on. These subtle reminders are the very thing that I need to enjoy life. It's such a treat to walk by different food stands and be in awe at how many things can be fried. It's an instant smile maker when you see children's faces light up when they're petting a cow, or a goat, or any kind of animal at the petting zoo. It's these images that makes me happy. I love the fair. Can't wait for next year's!

Meats, meats, and more meats.

A camel and it's bucket love affair.

Multicolored bundt pans. So cute!

Australian Fried Potatoes with ranch and cheese. 

Beer competition.

Happy happy day everyone! 

Shut Your Pie Hole.

What a lovely Saturday to spend in Los Angeles. I decided to tag along with a friend who needed to run some errands and pick up succulents for an up and coming wedding. It's amazing to see her work, as she eyes miscellaneous objects and creatively begins planning future ideas for her clients. She is simply a magical wizard of wedding planning. 

So our first stop was the flower district to pick up mini succulents. 

Second stop was Wurstkuche for some yummy sausages and Belgian fries. We decided to share the Duck and Bacon with Jalapeno Peppers sausage, topped with Sauerkraut and Sweet Peppers. So good! The sausage was so juicy, with a subtle kick from the jalapeno peppers. Loved it!

                        

After lunch we walked to The Pie Hole, which was conveniently located right across the street from Wurstkuche. Nestled in the heart of Los Angeles Art District is the cutest little pie shop I have ever set my eyes on. My friend and I ordered a slice of the Mexican Chocolate pie. It was delicious. So rich, chocolatey, with hints of cinnamon, and the most amazing graham cracker crust I have ever tasted.

 To work off the hefty amount of sausage and pie we consumed, we walked around admiring the different street art  painted all around.

Me: Hey go model in front of that painting

Cat: I can pose however I want?

Me: Yeah of course.

...and this is what she does. Haha

This is definitely a perfect Saturday. Now for the cherry on top? I'm off to a BBQ. Hope ya'll are having a grand day as well! 

Happy Saturday!

So Beachy.

I'll admit it, I totally take the beach for granted. It's a shame that I live so close yet I never go. I think last year I went to the beach once. ONCE! Can you believe that? It's just an insane thought because I absolutely love the beach. I love the sweet, salty smell in the air, the feel of the grainy, soft sand on my feet, and just laying out, stress free, without a worry or a care. I always make the same promise every year to take full advantage and go to the beach as much as I can. Hopefully this will be the year that I keep that promise. 

Well, as you all know I had my wisdom teeth taken out on Monday, so it's been a very lazy, unproductive week for me. Day 3 I started to go crazy. So a friend and I decided to go to the beach. What a perfect way to be acquainted with the world again. We laid out, dipped our feet in the icy blue sea, and ate fish tacos. Yeah, it was pretty great. =) 

Here are some random pictures of Newport Beach, enjoy!

Happy Summer!

I see seaweed cookies.

Lately, I seem to have a lot on my mind. Such trivial things that shouldn't bring me down, but yet they do. One issue I am dealing with at the moment is my teeth. I've been having the craziest aches and pains due to my wisdom teeth growing in. By the way.. why do they call it wisdom teeth? I think it should be called stupid, pain in the butt teeth. Anyways, now I have to take them out tomorrow and I'll admit, I am pretty nervous. Yes, I know it's going to be a breeze, and it'll only take one hour of my life, but the anticipation is killing me. Hopefully, it'll go smoothly and I'll be able to go on with my life within a couple of days.

So today I decided to keep busy and do the one thing I love, bake! I can't explain how magical baking is. Simply put, it helps ease my mind. I decided to take a recipe I learned in baking school and put my own little twist. Here is what I came up with: a sweet, salty, crunchy cookie topped with seaweed. Yums.

Enjoy your hard, crunchy food my little blogworld, as I eat soups and mush for the week!

Happy bakings!

Lessons.

Look blogworld! Look at what I made in baking school today.

Chocolate mousse with berries.

Chocolatey deliciousness. 

 

Scones with raisins, walnuts, and cranberries. 

Lesson of the day: It's never too late to go back to school and learn what you love. Trust me. 

Black Hogg

A couple years ago, I spontaneously packed my bags and hopped on a plane to spend a year in New York. I had no idea what I was going to do once I got there, where I was going to live, and how I was going to survive with the limited funds in my bank account but somehow I made it. Thinking back on those days I can honestly say it was the best year of my life. Yes, I struggled, and yes, I was completely broke, but one thing that I never compromised was food. I literally worked to eat, pay rent, and eat. I miss New York everyday. I know I've found where I'm suppose to spend the rest of my life, but until then I can only dream, and live off of the amazing memories that I keep in my heart.

Living in Los Angeles, Silver Lake is my tiny get away to New York because it reminds me of my days spent in the Lower East Side. It might be the tiny unique stores, or the beautifully weird walks of life on the streets, but mostly it's the restaurants that transports me back to LES. I love walking into a unpretentious space, with minimal modern decor, filled with smiling people eating good food. That's exactly what Black Hogg is all about.

Popcorn Bacon with Maple Crema. Once you pop that sucker into your mouth you instantly bite into a  crazy crunchy exterior,  that burst into your mouth with a huge piece of bacon, surrounded by it's own flavorful juices. Yums. 

Roast Brussel Sprouts, Bacon Vinaigrette, Garlic Bread Crumbs.  

Ale Cod Battered Cod, Salt&Pepper Ruffled Chips, with Homemade Tarter Sauce. 

Wild Mushroom on a Brioche Box

Roast Marrow Bones, Breakfast Radish Salad. 

Black Hogg
 2852 W. Sunset Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90026

Sunday Funday

What does a perfect Sunday look like for me? Starting off the day eating at Euro Pane, digging into the BEST egg salad sandwich ever. Imagine flawlessly cooked soft boiled eggs, covered with the creamiest yet light mayo, on top of a crisp spring mix, freshly baked multigrain bread, and a spread(sun dried tomato concoction?), oh the spread that makes the sandwich utterly magical. 

After breakfast, me and my friends headed over to the Pasadena Rose Bowl Flea Market to get our vintage fix on. I absolutely love walking around and looking at the most amazing timeless pieces of art, furniture, and most importantly CLOTHES. Pasadena Flea Market is the perfect place to people watch as well. You get all walks of life there, which truly makes me smile. 

After the flea market, I went to church with my friend. It's been years, YEARS since I've last gone. I'm really glad I did though. I feel lighter. I hope to continue to keep going, start a new journey, and hopefully I'll be able to share with all of you my stories. =)

Lastly, I finished off the day by working out. I ran two miles, lifted weights, and did some yoga. WHOOZA!

Yup a perfect, perfect Sunday. Hope you all enjoyed yours as well! Until next time!

Silent Saturdays

*Good food, great company, friendliest staff, relaxing atmosphere.

Bar + Kitchen, Los Angeles

My Kind Of Day.

Float on duck. Float on..

Poor ducks. 

The cutest little house in Chinatown.

The sea of fans of free music.

Grimes performing at Make Music Pasadena

Best seat in the house.