My Fascination Street

Sep 12, 2016

A Wonderful DTLA Dining Experience at LA Live

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. Live for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

I recently had the pleasure at dining at Ford's Filling Station at the JW Marriott Los Angeles L.A. Live and I have to say that I was seriously impressed. After four years in LA I've only ventured downtown a handful of times but because I'm mostly based here I try to explore as much as possible, especially when it comes to food!

I had my cousin in town from NYC so taking her down to Ford's Filling Station for Chef Bens great take on California cuisine seemed like an excellent idea. The location, energy and of course the food and cocktails at the restaurant were great. It's def on my list of things to do in LA, when I want to get out of The Valley and go somewhere cool and delicious.

We started off with their smoked brisket taquitos and their flat bread carnitas pizza. I love brisket and the idea of having it in a taquito was very intriguing. It was cooked super tender and the meat wasn't over seasoned. I wasn't sure what to expect but when I took a bite with the avocado sauce mixed with lettuce and cotija cheese as well as their red sauce and it all came together. This was one of our starters and it came with two pieces (see photo above) and all I can say is that I ate them all super fast! So much yum!

Up next was the flat bread carnitas pizza that my cousin had ordered. I'm not a huge fan of pork unless it's crispy bacon (more on that later) but the carnitas flat bread was out of control. It was full of flavor and even the bread itself tasted amazing. We were told that Chef Ben had recently visited Puerto Rico so the chicharones were inspired by that trip. I'm kinda glad he went there!

The bacon burger is one of their signature dishes so I had to have it. I love gastropubs and always judge them by their burgers. If the burgers are great then I know everything else will be as well. Ummm...the burger was great! I had it medium rare with the bacon a bit crispy and it was like biting into a slice of heaven. The burger had avocado in it which not only added to the taste but gave it a total SoCal vibe.

Scallops were also ordered and not only was the presentation beautiful but they were cooked to perfection. I've had scallops before and hated them but was urged to give this one a taste and it melted in my mouth. It wasn't chewy or overcooked. They were served with a corn and parmesan mix that we highly enjoyed as well.

We ended the meal with their strawberry shortcake and one of their drinks called a Quiet Storm which was like a Dark & Stormy but without rum. The drink was strong (win!) and was like an adult lemonade! I loved being able to have a different take on one of my favorite drinks.

The time spent at Ford's Filling Station was really enjoyable. The staff was extremely friendly and knew everything about the menu. Having background information on what inspired some of the meals was great and helped us decide what to order. Also, the ambiance was very relaxing and we weren't rushed at all as we were eating. We were able to keep the menu with us after ordering our appetizers and main course because there was so much that we wanted to try and they didn't want to rush us.

All in all it was a perfect place to bring my out of town guests for dinner in order to enjoy a meal at a great place with food that's inspired by SoCal with a seasonal cuisine. The space is perfect for a girls night out or a special event. It's also a nice place for a date night if you're in the downtown area. Or actually, it's worth going to downtown for!

Sep 1, 2016

10 Minute One Pan Pesto Chicken Pasta

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #OnePanPasta #CollectiveBias

Pasta is my absolute favorite meal but sometimes it takes a bit longer than I want it to. When I'm busy and starving I would always rather have someone homemade but end up picking something up on the way home because the thought of cooking for us doesn't work for me.

I've used Barilla pasta and their sauces before but this is my first time using their Pronto Penne. I wanted to make something that was super fast without using too many pots/pans so this was perfect. The meal that I made with this was pesto pasta with grilled chicken and I was pleasantly surprised by how quick this was to make. I used the pronto penne, Barilla's Pesto Sauce, grilled chicken that was pre-cooked and frozen and then my favorite staples: parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes. I love that Barilla Pronto Pasta cooks in 10 minutes and lets me cook a one-pan pasta meal without having to boil or drain water. It helps me save time and I'm not wasting any water.

While Barilla has a ton of great sauces to compliment their pastas I went for the Traditional Pesto Sauce. I love basil, parmesan cheese and olive oil so of course this is what I gravitated towards. The size of the bottle is great because it lets me use it for a whole box of pasta with their combination of authentic Italian herbs without saturating it. Check out my recipe below so you can try it yourself!

Now for every box of Barilla Pronto purchased at Walmart between 7/31/2016 and 10/31/2016 Barilla will donate 10 meals to kids in need through No Kid Hungry, up to a million meals*

Ingredients

1 box of Barilla Pronto Penne
1 jar of Barilla Pesto Sauce
2 cups of pre-grilled chicken
½ cup of parmesan cheese
¼ cup of red pepper flakes

Instructions

In a large saucepan pour a box of Barilla Pronto Pesto along with 3 cups of cold water, making sure to completely cover the pasta and cook for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add the entire jar of pesto, half of the parmesan cheese, the red pepper flakes and serve with the other half of the parmesan cheese. And voila! A perfect meal that cooks in under 15 minutes!

If you like this recipe and want to check out Barilla Pronto Pasta as well as the Traditional Basil Sauce check out the Ibotta offer where you can earn $0.50 when you purchase any Barilla Pronto pasta product at Walmart! You can also head over to Barilla's website to check out some other one pan pasta dishes and get inspiration for your own!

Barilla Pronto Pasta can be easily found in the pasta aisle at Walmart

*$1.00 can provide a child 10 healthy meals. This amount is based on individual experiences of grant recipients. Contributions will be used to reach the highest number of children facing hunger in America. Share Our Strength is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization.

Aug 29, 2016

5 Skincare Products to Perk Your Up & Calm You Down

Wake Up & Calm Down

Clean & Clear struck gold when they came out with this product. Not only was it a much needed additional to the world of skincare but it helps perk you up with the help of Vitamin C and ginseng. I like to use this with my Neutrogena cleasnser because I get my skin clean and scrubbed in one shot!

Speaking of Neutrogena, when I found out that they had a Makeup Remover Cleansing Towelettes- Night Calming is similar to their regular towelettes. It does the job of making you face squeaky clean with the addition of a nice calming scent I was super excited because I need all the help I can get to help me be relaxed.

While this product doesn't come out and say that it is calming in any way it does have lavender essential oils which are soothing. I love using Kiehl's Midnight Recovery Concentrate before bed because it's done wonders for my skin super fast. I naturally have AMAZING skin but insomnia is starting to take its toll so going to work looking refreshed is an amazing feeling.

Origins Ginzing Refreshing Scrub Cleanser is another way to perk up while washing your face. This scrub has my absolute favorite ingredient to use on my body: coffee! I've been using ground coffee to scrub my face and body for years so it's nice to use it without having my bathtub look like I was rolling around in mud all day. Along with the awesome ingredient the scent is so heavenly. The grapefruit, lemon and spearmint scent helps to perk up my skin in the mornings.

Michael Todd is a brand that I discovered last year thanks to them giving me their Soniclear to try out. Since then I've purchased a few as gifts as well as received a smaller travel sized one. Their Lavender Bar Soap is heavenly. I love lavender for the scent and it's benefits. Using this soap right before bed lets me be clean and smelling really great before I head to bed. Tossing and turning isn't so bad when you smell like lavender!

Aug 28, 2016

My Morning Green Juice

Oh juicing, I hate how it gets such a bad rap. First, people think it's only for weight loss and go into a long rant about why it's unhealthy to just drink juice. I normally let them go on and on until I remind them that I eat. And I eat a lot! But for the last two weeks I've been getting up earlier and giving myself more time between working and and heading to work in order to make a green juice.

Unless I'm super hungover I can't eat anything before 11am so having a juice after my workout fills me up and holds me over until lunch. A few years ago I did a juice cleanse with my cousin and it had me juicing beets, oranges, pineapples, the works. But 1: I'm not a huge fan of fruits and 2: fruits have TONS of sugar! On the flip side I was never a big fan of veggies until I joined my cousin in the cleanse. Before I started juicing I would die if i saw beets or celery in my food. And ginger? No way. I didn't want that anywhere near me. But now I love those and put tons of celery and some ginger in my morning juice.

Like I said, I'm not a fan of fruits but a juice made with celery, kale, spinach and cucumbers isn't the tastiest thing ever but when lemon and green apples are added it's like a whole new world. Suddenly it becomes something I always want more of instead of something I have to force feed myself. I used to always put carrots in mine but for some reason I stopped. Maybe it's because they made my beautiful juice look really gross. Okay not maybe, that's totally the reason.

Anyway, here's some green juice porn for you to look at along with the 'recipe' below.

Ingredients

Spinach

Kale

Celery

Cucumber

Swiss Chard

Green Apple

Ginger

Lemon

This is a juice so there really isn't much to it but before I put the leafy greens through the juicer I steam them for about five minutes. I do this because it's supposed to help the body absorb more of the iron. I also always squirt lemon on them after because vitamin c helps absorb even more iron. For me this is imperative because of my iron deficiency*. I also chase the leafy greens with lemon while I juice because it lets the juicer break it down better. I sometimes cheat by wrapping them around lemon wedges since the mouth of my juicer is so big. Also don't ask me how much of what is in it. I aside from always using a whole apple, cucumber and half a lemon the rest is just however much I think will fill a jar. I do have a food scale that I've never used though so I might weight everything one day for you guys.

I can practically juice everything whole but I like chopping.

This loud and scary beast doesn't photograph well

No filter, just good lighting and beautiful greens

The aftermath. What the veggies look like after extraction

Look at that amazing color! There's no way anyone can see that and not want to taste it. I love how the apple makes the earthy taste go away and the kick from the ginger. Because this isn't a cold press juicer it ends up being slightly cooler than room temperature which is great because I can't drink warm juice. The Vitamix is a great appliance for smoothies and soups but I can't ever get a smooth juice out of it and of course without ice it's always really warm and that's just gross.

If I don't chop the veggies and not including the time it takes to clean the juicer this takes about 10 minutes tops and I can finish drinking it while I'm getting ready for work much easier than I can with pancakes or an omelet. And then again, I'm getting what my body needs in one delicious and organic drink. Now let's just hope it sticks this time!

*Before anyone says popping a pill is better be aware that the body only takes in a certain amount of iron in that form. Trust me, I've done my research on that. Having cold hands and feet, along with always feeling tired isn't fun.

Stay Beautiphil This Summer with Cetaphil®

If you're anything like me you know that once the summer hits I love using skincare products that are tough enough to get all the makeup, dirt and oil from my face without being to harsh from my skin during these hot months. I also have to make sure that I mix my self-tanners and bronzers with a moisturizer that is light and long lasting.

This is where Cetaphil® comes into the mix. I first heard about this brand many moons ago when a cousin with super sensitive skin started to use the facial cleanser. Back then I was cocky and thought my skin was perfect (which it was in my early 20's) so I didn't think I had any use for it. Once I tried it though I was hooked. I used to wear a lot of makeup and the fact that Cetaphil® Daily Facial Cleanser didn't have any alcohol meant that I wasn't drying my skin in a effort to keep it clean.

The cleanser also removed my makeup without leaving icky residue behind, another plus, especially for a skincare junkie like me. Immediately I became a convert and started saving a great deal of money in my skincare routine. At this point though I was only really using their cleanser because I didn't know they had a wider range of products, as I was more interested in makeup than skincare at the time.

When it comes to the SoCal heat, moisturizer, SPF, and a bit of foundation are what my face requires. I have no interest in wearing so many products that might melt off my face so guess who came to the rescue this time? Yep! You guessed it: Cetaphil® yet again. Their Daily Facial Moisturizer with Broad Spectrum SPF 15 is exactly what I need. It's a very light moisturizer that I don't ever feel on my face and it keeps my skin hydrated throughout the day. If I'm staying out in the sun for a long time the bottle is small enough to carry in my purse or tote bag.

I love how easily it blends in without being greasy.

Now one thing I absolutely did not expect was for Cetaphil® to have a body moisturizer. I always knew about their cleanser and that they had a moisturizer but only for the face so imagine my surprise when I set my eyes on this beauty! I am a bronzing addict. I always want my legs to look like I just stepped off a yacht while on vacation of St. Tropez so I soak my legs in as many bronzers as possible. Unfortunately though they aren't very moisturizing and every lotion that I have has a strong scent that kills the sweetness of my favorite bronzer.

Cetaphil® Daily Advance Ultra Hydrating Lotion does none of that. It's thick enough to apply well without being greasy and I can easily mix it with my favorite bronzers or sun tan lotions. Not only that but it contains Epidermal Replenishing Complex⁵ (ERC⁵), which is unique combination of 5 ingredients that protects dry skin and enhances hydration. I love anything that keeps my skin from looking dry because that kills any cute spring or summer look.

I'm excited to have found that Cetaphil® had a broader range of products and it's great for anyone who doesn't want to use products that can potentially do more harm than good for their skin. And what's better than Cetaphil® having these great products? Well, the fact that they're affordable and can be found at Target, Walmart, Drugstore.com, or even your local supermarket.

I urge my lovely readers to stay #Beautiphil this summer and give Cetaphil® a try. It's a product I've written about before and I wouldn't recommend it if I didn't love it.

What is YOUR favorite Cetaphil® product? Tell me about it in the comments for a chance to win a $100 Visa gift card!

Entry Instructions:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:

Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#Sweepstakes” and “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.

The Official Rules are available here.

This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older (or nineteen (19) years of age or older in Alabama and Nebraska). Winners will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. The notification email will come directly from BlogHer via the sweeps@blogher email address. You will have 2 business days to respond; otherwise a new winner will be selected.
This sweepstakes runs from 8/8/16 – 9/30/16

Be sure to visit the Cetaphil brand page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ posts!
**This post is sponsored by Cetaphil. All thoughts and opinions are my own**

Aug 27, 2016

Two Ways Are Better Than One

Here we go again! Another side dish with the same three ingredients: tomatoes, basil and mozzarella cheese. But seriously there are so many great ways to make a caprese salad that there's no reason why I shouldn't constantly make (and write about) them!

Because I love to make use of my oven and cut down the amount of time that I'm actually standing and preparing something half of the time I decided to make my baked caprese salad in two ways: one with the cheese melted on the tomato and another with it being cooked different, like a chip. Guess which one I liked better?

Do I even need to go over the ingredients list for a caprese salad?

Baking the cheese, tomatoes and basil was a no brainer. There's a phantom food particle somewhere in my oven that makes my apt smell like it's going to burn down if I have it over 300 degrees so I have to keep mine at 275. After I marinated the tomatoes in salt, pepper and balsamic vinaigrette I topped it with some chopped basil and the cheese on top. I always make sure to top anything off with cheese because it's a great way to keep all of my ingredients together once the cheese starts to melt.

And this is it. This is the amazing side dish that you're left with once the cheese is melted to your satisfaction. How great does this look? I always top it off with pepper and serve it on my cutting board because I think it makes the colors stand out more than if it were on a black or white plate.

Now on to my favorite way to eat this. When I go carb free I tend to still want (read: NEED) something salty and crunchy but I of course stay away from the dreaded potato. Once I open up a bag of chips it is game over for me.

When I made my cheese shell tacos I noticed that if I leave the cheese in the oven for a really long time they get super crunchy so that's when I went on Pinterest to find out which cheeses would make the best chips. Mozzarella and Parmesan were the top ones that I saw so I used both just to see what it was all about.

Look at this. Tell me you don't want to devour this right now? Just writing this has me salivating! Unlike withe the baked caprese I chose to bake the mozzarella cheese solo this time and waited until it was starting to brown before topping it off with freshly grated Parmesan. This let the crisp get some great texture as well as flavor by having the Parmesan flakes melt into it.

This gets put on top of a drained tomato slice, topped off with chopped basil and a balsamic glaze and voila! You end up with the great flavor of a caprese salad with a nice crunch.

So tell me, which one of these is your favorite and what would you pair them with?

Love Affair with Lavender

Lavender is my go-to for 2016. I love the way it smells, tastes and how it looks. I never really paid attention to it until a few months ago and now I want it everywhere. I planted some lavender seeds in April that started to grow a bit but sadly, they stopped growing for me. I really want to use them to make soap but I read somewhere that in order to do that I also needed to get the oil.

So the search for lavender oil began. Unfortunately, it isn't cheap. It's one of the priciest oils I've searched for and it took me a long time to commit to getting it. I not only wanted the oil for soap making but because I really love the smell of glade's lavender vanilla plugin but wanted to try creating my own version.

Luckily I was sent Avenir Oils Lavender Oil to try out so far I love it! Before I even used it on my diffuser I spent a good 30 minutes passing it under my nose and soaking up the amazing, soothing scent. They're really light, super authentic and there isn't anything synthetic in the way they smell. After I was done with that I put a few drops on my diffuser and it filled up my bedroom quick with the light scent of lavender.

I have to resist the urge to use it all on my diffuser because I like putting some drops in the wash as well as in my soaps. I seriously want to put this in everything but I'll save it for some burning and the soap. Now if I could only get my lavender flowers to grow I would be in total heaven! The best part is is that it's only $7 and is 100% pure.

If you want to see what Avenir Oils has to say about the benefits of lavender in their write-up here.

Aug 26, 2016

Affordable Skincare Finds Where You Least Expect It!

This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Dollar General for IZEA. All opinions are 100% mine.

As a skincare and beauty blogger I "have" to constantly buy products to discover, discuss and compare. My bathroom counter, drawers and shelves look like a store counter and people love staying over because they always get to use a new product and I have so many things that I tend to give some away.

I'm blessed with almost perfect skin. I don't break out, I get oily once every few months and I have zero wrinkles. It's pretty amazing. I do however have to maintain it because a few years ago when I did nothing but stay out all night I felt like my skin aged drastically. At that moment I was buying and trying really expensive products but after a few years I decided to check out some affordable alternatives because it would help me save tons of money but would also let me buy MORE PRODUCTS!

After going the drugstore route for a few years I've built a great relationship with a few brands: Neutrogena, Clean & Clear and Simple. Those are the one I use the most for my skincare needs when I'm home as well as on the go. These are brands that I used before I became a skincare junkie and now that I've tried products ranging from $3-$65, I can honestly say that these brands really deliver.

Neutrogena's Deep Clean Facial Cleanser is a product that I mention time and time again. It really is wonderful and leaves my skin super clean without drying it out. I always make sure to have at least two in my bathroom: one for my skin as well as one in my shower. I also really love using Garnier's Daily Exfoliating Cleanser. because it gets deep into my pores and gets rid of all of the nasties that get in there. It's also great for the days that I'm trying out tons of moisturizers and foundation for my blog.

When I travel I always keep cleansing wipes handy, especially if the flight is really long! While I don't have my face in anything when I fall asleep on a plane I still like to be totally refreshed when I land and get some moisture back into my skin due to it drying out in the air. Simple Wipes are the way to go for me. They're super refreshing and lets me get rid of all the dirt thats built up in my face. I not only use them when I travel, I like to keep one in my gym bag because if I don't wipe my makeup of before working out my towel looks like it belongs to a clown!

The great thing about all of these products is that they can easily be found at Dollar General. I was surprised to find out that some of my favorite brands were sold there because it is technically a dollar store but with affordable great products. Knowing that they sell Neutrogena, Garnier, Clean & Clear, Simple, and a slew of other brands that I love is nice because I can either go to their store or order these products online at affordable prices (which as I mentioned before lets me buy more of them!).

Find these products and more at Dollar General. Not only do they carry the brands I love they also carry a ton of name brand items that have a wonderful reputation as well as their own Dollar General brand products. I'm glad I found a new place to stock up on everything I need for my skin in one shot. And if I'm not interested in leaving my apartment I can have them delivered individually or in bulk. Now how awesome is that! SO seriously, take my advise: Discover beauty products, tips and more in the Dollar General Beauty Zone. Your skin and wallet will thank you!

Making Plans for Diane

Today marks the start of a new year. I have 365 days until I'm a year older so I want to make the best out of this one. I have so many things that I want to do that I need to be organized. I can fall off s wagon super easy so have a planner is exactly what I need.

I've been seeing planners everywhere and while I'm obsessed with Bando I wasn't able to grab one of them as they sold out super fast. So I searched the web for the perfect one and luckily this cute one came to my rescue. I was able to get this Goal Digger planner for $25 and with the help of my cute pens I was ready to get to work.

Along with my planner I got these super cute pens to make writing more fun. Because my planner isn't a basic black and white one using colored pens gives it a bit more life and makes me want to write in it a bit more. Every week when I sit down to make my plans I choose colors that match my current mood and I write things that I actually plan on doing.

As per usual, I write down appointments and the like on the left side of my daily entries and things that I want to do that day, or by that day, on the right. This helps me get prepped for my week as there is nothing more satisfying than being able to check something off. It also lets me see all of my submission due dates physically.

I know that everything is digital these days and my iPhone is perfect for keeping myself on track but there's something I find really fun about writing goals down and being able to check them off. This year I plan on being a true goal digger!

Aug 24, 2016

Easy Caprese Sandwich

I love tomatoes. Love love love! They go with everything and make every meal super refreshing. When it comes to maintaining, and trying to shed some weight, I tend to eat low/no-carbs meals a few times a week and eating a caprese sandwich is one of my favorites. It's super easy, has cheese, which I love, and it's actually quite filling.

There really is no recipe needed and it's only 5 ingredients. If you make caprese salads the only difference is that you can use the top and bottom of the tomato to have 'buns'.

Most of my meals comprise of of these staples: tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and basil. Before I constructed it I added salt, pepper and olive oil and let things sit for about 10 minutes. While I love the taste of all of these ingredients separately they taste even better after marinating in that for a bit.

After that it was just a matter of adding some balsamic vinegar, put all together and it was ready to get in my belly. It's totally something you should try out if you love caprese salads and want to try it in a different way. Plus, if you like the feeling of eating a burger you can totally trick yourself into thinking that you're having one.

Subscribe to: Posts ( Atom )

Beauty

Shopping

Blogging

Latest Updates