Business Attire

Top: Gap
Camisole: North Face
Pants: Delia's c/o Mustard Seed
Heels: Nine West c/o Mustard Seed
Big Ring: Dominican Republic sidewalk vendor
Little Ring: Tiffany c/o John Paul (it's an almost daily staple!)
Belt: Banana Republic Outlet
Blazer: J.Crew c/o Mustard Seed

The job of a temp is not especially exciting. We work in the office environment, answering phones and filing paperwork (at least, I do) without really getting a chance to form a relationship with the company we're at. Of course, this also means we usually walk blindly into the office without knowing the dress code. On the first day, should we go full-blown suit? Cute top and skirt? Are Fridays dress down attire?
The best I've come up with is to have one or two outfits that convey professionalism and freshness. Today I went for the more professional look: the blouse is covered without being stuffy, and the boyfriend blazer is cut to allow the sleeves to roll up. The pants and heels, though, say, "I mean business" (I hope!), and accessories are kept to a minimum.
This top is actually a tunic; it looks great paired with leggings and cute flats. Love pieces that can work double time!
Oh, and PS, this top was ironed when I put it on this morning. This is what happens to silk when you wear it for ten hours straight!

Bran Muffins

The problem I so often encounter is that I absolutely love to bake, but I also love to be healthy. That 'but' gets in the way- I can't bake and be nutritious simultaneously. Baking implies sugar, evil white flour and gasp! BUTTER. Healthy, on the other hand, conjures up images of bland iceberg lettuce and cardboard whole wheat breads.
Enter this genre-defying bran muffin. Both tasty and healthy (well, as much as a muffin can be), it's got bran, whole wheat, dried fruit and minimal eggs and sugar. My only beef is that I've never been able to squeeze more than 8 or 9 muffins out of this recipe. If you're making them for brunch, you may want to double the recipe.
They're exceptionally delicious fresh out of the oven with honey and a dab of butter.
Trust me.
I wouldn't lie to you.

Bran Muffins (My mom gave me this recipe; I have no idea where it's from!)
1 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
1 cup whole bran cereal
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
Pinch of salt
1 slightly beaten egg white
1 c. skim milk
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. raisins
1/4 c. dried cranberries
3 Tbsp. canola oil

1. Spray muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray and preheat oven to 400.
2. In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, bran cereal, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Make a well in the center.
3. In another mixing bowl, stir together egg white, milk, brown sugar, dried fruit, and oil. Add to the flour mixture and stir until just moistened.
4. Fill prepared muffin cups 2/3 full and bake for 15-20 minutes.

The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay

Chabon won a Pulitzer for this work, centered, essentially, on escape. Joe Kavalier and Sam Clay, cousins and work partners, create the hugely popular "Escapist" comic book in 1930s NYC, and their stories continue, though not always together, through Surrealism, Antarctica and suburbia into the 1950s. It was one of those books that you hate to finish, knowing the next book will pale in comparison. Chabon is descriptive with his characters, but still lets the reader's imagination run...morChabon won a Pulitzer for this work, centered, essentially, on escape. Joe Kavalier and Sam Clay, cousins and work partners, create the hugely popular "Escapist" comic book in 1930s NYC, and their stories continue, though not always together, through Surrealism, Antarctica and suburbia into the 1950s. Kavalier is constantly trying to come to terms with his past life in Nazi-occupied Prague and the family he left behind, while Clay just wants to make it in the comic book business and leave his mark somewhere.
It was one of those books that you hate to finish, knowing the next book will pale in comparison. Chabon is descriptive with his characters, but still lets the reader's imagination run a bit wild, especially with his chapters of comic book narration. Interspersed throughout the novel are narratives of The Escapist and his entourage, lending The Amazing Adventures a tinge of the fantastic. The book contains tragedy, romance, lives unfulfilled, adventure, and magic; what's not to love?

Boho freak

My wonderful photographer is out of town for Memorial Day weekend, leaving me photoless for outfit Tuesday! In lieu of a new outfit, how about the story of an old one?
I absolutely love Almost Famous, and the clothes Kate Hudson wears throughout the film really made an impact on me in high school. The winter of senior year, I traveled to NYC with my cousin and aunt, meaning I (the Florida girl who had never really seen the point of winter coats) was in need of warm clothing. My mom, who has never really meddled with my fashion sense even when I really probably needed her to, agreed to purchase a jean coat from Delia's or Steve Madden. This coat was everything I could want: medium wash denim, knee-length, and lined in beige fuzzy stuff (kind of like wearing a flokati rug inside a coat). It reminded me of a coat Kate Hudson wears at the first party she takes William to in the movie, and I thought I was incredibly boho chic and would take NYC by storm.
Anyway, four years later, my sister was visiting me in Saint Augustine and we were going through my closet together. She remarked that my denim coat is kind of animal looking; maybe I should try reversing it so it looks like a fur coat? Not only is it incredibly difficult to button inside out, but it leaves me looking like this:Not really my best look. Maybe I'll steer away from boho chic in the future.

Spicy Macaroni and Cheese

Is there anyone in the entire world who doesn't like mac and cheese? It's got two of the best possible food items combined into one magnificent, simple dish: pasta and cheese. There are endless combinations for making this dish your own, from the boxed variety (only acceptable when you're in a rush) to upscale versions made with truffle oil (a little over the top, by my standards). While I enjoy the homemade baked versions, especially if there's a breaded top to crunch through, this recipe is chock full of veggies and flavor and done in a skillet. The original idea is from the Pioneer Woman, whose website defines sinfully delicious, but I scaled back some of the spiciness, and added more vegetables. Hey, everyone could use extra veggies in their diets!
Everything about this recipe works: the pepper jack cheese melts perfectly into the rotini curls, the onions and red peppers make a delicious pair, and the corn adds some sweetness to the spice of the cheese and salsa. We've always got leftovers, but they seem to go pretty quickly.
I have no idea who eats them. Honest.

Spicy Mac n Cheese (adapted from Pioneer Woman)
4 c. (1 bag) curly pasta (use your favorite; mine's rotini)
1 onion, diced (red, white, yellow, again it's your pick)
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 c. salsa
1 bag frozen corn
2 c. grated Pepper Jack cheese
3 cloves garlic, minced
Dash of red pepper flakes
1 c. half and half
Olive oil
Salt and Pepper

1. Boil pasta until al dente. Drain, and set aside.
2. In a large skillet, add olive oil. Saute onions, pepper, garlic, red pepper flakes, and corn over medium heat until slightly soft. Add salsa and stir until heated through. Turn off heat.
3. Add pasta, half and half, and cheese. Stir gently, and taste. If needed, season with salt and pepper.
4. Serve gigantic portions into bowls and eat up!

We usually just eat this as our meal, and it is completely filling. However, if you're a meat lover, some ground beef or spicy sausage would be great to round this meal off!

Casual Friday Squared

Outfit:
Gap button-down
Target shorts
Michael Antonio sandals
Vintage belt
Anthropologie earrings

It took a long time for me to be okay with the denim on denim craze that is sweeping the nation.
All right, perhaps not the entire nation, but celebs and other people in pictures seem to really pull this off, and I figured, "How hard can this really be?" The mission was helped along by this top, purchased during a buy one, get one free sale at Gap. Is there anyone who could resist a deal like that? The button-down is surprisingly light for the summer, and the color doesn't pair perfectly. This is key in making denim work together; no matchy-matchy here. The shorts were originally knee-length, but we petite girls can't really pull that off.

This belt holds some significance for me. My sister surprised me with it a long time ago (probably 10 years?), after I'd said I loved it at a Tennessee vintage store. It's so completely lovely: the little flowers with their cute colors, the embossed leaves, the funky brass buckle. Seriously. And the best part is, it looks exactly the same when Haley bought it ten years ago, and probably hasn't changed since it was made in the 70s. Accessories should always come with a story.

Green Olive-Lemon Chicken

Okay, I'm going to level with you: I hate cooking meats. Even fish is just too much for me to deal with sometimes. During the process, I'm just sitting there thinking, "This is going to be undercooked and someone is going to get sick and then their stomach will just fall right out and it will be all my fault for not just making a stupid salad!" My man usually has to step up to the plate if we're going to have steak or pork or mahi-mahi. He's a saint for several reasons.

This recipe, though, is soo good, I'm willing to face my fear of cooking chicken. Lemon and green olives are a perfect flavor combination: slightly tart and salty, and the lemon helps detract from some of the bitterness of the olive. Serve over white or brown rice. Trust me. You don't want to waste any of the delicious sauce, full of shallots, white wine and cumin. I'm going to eat leftovers of this meal while typing this post.

I made a couple of changes to the original recipe, but they're small and done because I don't have a zester.

Lemon Chicken with Olives (adapted from Real Simple, here)
2 Tbsp. flour
Juice of 1 lemon*
1 tsp. cumin
Salt and pepper
1 lb. chicken tenders
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 shallots, thinly sliced
1 c. green olives, halved
3/4 c. white wine

1. On a plate, combine the flour, cumin and 1/2 tsp. salt and pepper. Coat chicken with flour mixture, tapping off any excess.
2. Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in two batches until golden, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer to a plat.
3. Heat remaining oil in skillet, and reduce heat to medium. Add the shallots and cook until soft, 3-5 minutes. Add olives, wine and lemon juice, and bring to a boil.
4. Place chicken back into skillet. Simmer, covered, until the chicken is cooked through, 4-6 minutes.
5. Enjoy!
*When squeezing lemons for their juice, just use a mini-strainer to catch the seeds. Plus, mini things are ridiculously cute, even if they're kitchen utensils.

Let The Great World Spin

McCann's book mostly takes place in August 1974, when Philippe Petit tightrope walked between the Twin Towers in NYC, although the event is not at the forefront of each narrative. Although it's called a novel, I would prefer to classify this book as a series of vignettes that are connected by a handful of characters you would not expect to be in the same circle. McCann has done a beautiful job of telling each narrator's story: a monk who has unexpectedly found love with a Guatamalan nurse, the...more 2009's National Book Award winner is poignant, lyrical, and spellbinding. McCann's book mostly takes place in August 1974, when Philippe Petit tightrope walked between the Twin Towers in NYC, however the event is not at the forefront of each narrative. Although it's called a novel, I would prefer to classify this book as a series of vignettes that are connected by a handful of characters you would not expect to be in the same circle. McCann has done a beautiful job of telling each narrator's story: a monk who has unexpectedly found love with a Guatamalan nurse, the mother who has lost her son in Vietnam, an older woman who takes two young girls into her home. Ten chapters, separated by descriptions of Petit's walk, make up the book, and eight of them are excellent. Two, "Tag" and "Etherwest", didn't seem to fit in as well, and I found myself skimming the pages quickly to get to the next chapter. Don't let that deter you from picking up this gorgeously written novel; not only will you look smart reading an award-winning book, you'll want to devour every word on McCann's page.

Two lines in the book stuck with me: "All respects to Heaven, I like it here" (the title of the first chapter), and "I gave them all the truth and none of the honesty" (p. 303).

Summer Happy Hour

Outfit:
Anthropologie top
Urban Outfitters skirt
Anthropologie shoes
F21 earrings
H&M clutch

Happy hours are wonderful because you can dress up or down, depending on where you sip your cocktails. On Friday we celebrated a friend's birthday by going for a drink at Circle Bistro on Washington Circle, which means I got to go for the dressed up route! These heels are absolutely fabulous, but killer on the feet after more than a few blocks, making them perfect for the very short walk to the lounge. I wanted to keep the rest of the outfit simple so the shoes really stand out; the earrings are just to bring some red up to eye-level. Massive earrings are a must at cocktail hour.

I would briefly like to note that the Barefoot Russian drink at Circle Bistro is perfect for summer. Super refreshing, and full of pineapple juice!

Banana Pudding Pie

To be quite honest, John Paul and I should not be allowed to live together. We love each other a whole bunch, and laugh the vast majority of the time, but we also eat TONS of baked goods because neither of us has the willpower to resist a good dessert suggestion. So when I mentioned last week that I was craving banana pudding, John Paul immediately seconded the idea, leaving me no option but to find a decadent, refreshing banana pudding pie recipe to satisfy our enormous appetites.

Oh, did I ever find a delicious summer dessert. I started off with a pie crust made from Nilla wafers, filled it with vanilla pudding and bananas, and even added a little sweetened condensed milk to finish it off. To make the pudding thicker, I used half and half, which does sweeten it more than if I'd used just milk. If you're not crazy about really sweet desserts, use just milk, or bypass the sweetened condensed milk. Obviously, it's not healthy in the least (although the bananas add a bit of potassium; can that please count?), but it is perfect after lunch on a hot day, when baking dessert is too much work. And, really, we can't be expected to eat salads all the time, anyway.

Crust (From Country Living, here)
50 vanilla wafers (I used 70-80 mini wafers)
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
5 Tbsp. melted unsalted butter
1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350. Combine wafers, sugars and salt in food processor and pulse until finely ground. (If you don't have a food processor, use a blender or put everything in a big Ziploc bag and crush with your hands. Or feet, there's no judgment.) Stir in butter and vanilla, then press into a 9-inch pie pan. Bake for 10 minutes, then set aside to cool.

Pudding* and Banana Filling
2 packages instant vanilla pudding (you can make your own; I'm just a bit impatient)
1 pint half and half
1 1/2 c. 2% milk
1/2 c. sweetened condensed milk
3 bananas, thinly sliced

Combine half and half, milk and pudding mix into medium bowl. Whisk for two minutes, until smooth. Spread sweetened condensed milk onto bottom of crust. Add 1/3 of the pudding, place banana slices in one layer on top of pudding, then repeat two more times. After pie has been assembled, chill in refrigerator for at least two hours. Serves about 10 slices.


*I used Trader Joe's instant vanilla pudding, which calls for 1 3/4 c. milk for each package, and two packages filled the pie crust perfectly. Double check other pudding brands' prep instructions if you're iffy about the filling.