Chicken with Honey-Beer Sauce

For any of you that follow me on Twitter you may know that yesterday I attempted my very first straight-off-Pinterest recipe and I just wanted to share the results. Mostly because the results were good, no one has food poisoning, and my kitchen is still intact. So, definitely, this recipe is an all around winner.

The Pinterest Inspiration

Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a little bit. I can cook. I've had very few outright kitchen disasters. The thing is I don't very much like cooking, but I'm trying to turn over a new leaf. Be a little healthier and more domestic. We'll see how it goes.

So on to yesterday's little kitchen adventure. I'll tell you right now that I'm obsessed with pinning and liking, but I haven't really tried anything that I've saved. I'm determined to change this too. Which brings us to yesterday's dinner recipe: Chicken with Honey-Beer Sauce (not to be confused with Honey Boo Boo Sauce, because, just...no). I don't even drink beer so it wasn't immediately clear why I gravitated towards this recipe, but I'm glad I did.

I gathered together my ingredients.

It was a semi miracle I had everything required.

Instead of using a skillet I used a deep pot with a lid, my way of trying to contain splatter, because if there's one thing I hate it's cleaning stainless steel. Ugh.

The finished product sans decorative parsley. Really good, if I do say so myself.

Tender, tasty, and great served with mashed potatoes and salad.

Here's my rating:

Taste: 4.5

Difficulty: 3

Mess: 3.5

Make Again? Yes

Chicken with Honey-Beer Sauce

Cooking Light, September 2012
makes 4 servings
per serving: 245 calories, 4.5g fat, 7.8g carbs, 0.2g fiber, 40g protein

Ingredients:

2 tsp. canola oil
4 (6 oz.) skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp. salt
3 tbsp. thinly sliced shallots
1/2 cup beer
2 tbsp. lower-sodium soy sauce
1 tbsp. whole-grain Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves

Directions:

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add oil to pan; swirl to coat. Sprinkle chicken evenly with pepper and salt. Add chicken to pan; sauté 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

2. Add shallots to pan; cook 1 minute or until translucent.

3. Combine beer and next 3 ingredients (through honey) in a small bowl; stir with a whisk. Add beer mixture to pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook 3 minutes or until liquid is reduced to 1/2 cup.

4. Return chicken to pan; turn to coat with sauce. Sprinkle evenly with parsley.



Do you have any favorite Pinterest recipes?

Celebrity Bride: Anne Hathaway

Celebrity brides are always a fave topic of mine -- what the dress looked like, who designed it. It's akin to my obsession with baby names. This week's celebrity bride is a known clotheshorse so you just knew her dress was going to be something to talk about. That's right, this weekend Anne Hathaway got hitched to Adam Shulman in Big Sur. Hathaway, not surprisingly, wore Valentino.

While these pictures are kind of hard to make out, US Weekly is reporting that the dress was fashioned out of "ivory silk point d'esprit tulle" and had a hand painted train (How do I get me one of those? Aside from agreeing to an awkward Oscars telecast with James Franco...)

From the sketch of the dress it appears that said train was actually painted a soft pink, although it's hard to see in the photos. I love the softness of the dress and the volume of the skirt, as well as the off-the-shoulder design and cathedral length veil. It's a very feminine kind of drama.

Anne's headpiece? I can see this being a love it or hate it kind of thing. Personally, I could do without it. From these pics at least it looks like a medical bandage wrapped around her head. Thoughts?

Anne's dress has some elements that bring to mind some other famous celeb wedding dresses. Anne's hint of pink was done more dramatically by Gwen Stefani whose Christian Dior featured ombre before it was huge.

And the off-the-shoulder look immediately reminded me of Katie Holmes' Armani for some reason, although I much prefer Anne's version. Katie's crumbcatcher was almost as unfortunate as Tom's couch jumping.

Of course, on the big screen we've seen Anne in bridal gowns before. Like the fitted, off-the-shoulder Vera Wang number that she wore in Bride Wars. Very urban chic.

And the very royal off-the-shoulder lace number she sported in The Princess Diaries.

What do you think of Anne Hathaway's wedding dress?

Does it stack up to the silver screen versions?

 

Photos: USWeekly, imnotobsessed.com, styleite.com, People

Valentino at the Ballet

I've always been a big fan of Valentino Garavani. His sophisticated, ladylike designs. His adorable pugs. I was pretty excited when I heard that Valentino was going to design costumes for the New York City Ballet's Fall Gala. Of course, such a gala also means lots of other famous faces and dramatic dresses. And, let's be real here, I can resist neither.

 

 

My fave of the night? Sarah Jessica Parker in drapey floral Valentino.

The dress is gorgeous, but those purple, sparkly heels just slay me.

 

 

Anne Hathaway was also in floral Valentino. Perhaps less successfully.

 

 

 

Other big trends of the night included--shocker!!--Valentino red.

I think Karolina Kurkova did it best.

 

 

There was also a proliferation of New York city black, which doesn't really get better than on Iman, who seems to have raided the Fountain of Youth and is hoarding her spoils.

 

 

I. Have. No. Words.

 

If you were wondering what your table might look like at such a gala...

 

 

 

Happy Weekend!

 

Photos via The Daily Mail

Wedding Wednesday: Back It Up

Dramatic. Gorgeous. Showstopping.

 

A wedding dress with a dramatic back will definitely keep your guests' eyes busy during your ceremony. Plus, just think of the pictures.

 

What do you think of this Veluz Reyes bridal gown?

 

Photo via bellethemagazine.com

High on a Monday & A Giveaway Winner

Happy Monday all! I'm back--again!--and hoping to get settled into a regular blog posting schedule once again. First off I'd like to congratulate Sam from Realm of Fiction for winning The Portrait of Alatiel Salazar giveaway . Keep an eye on your inbox for your free copy of the novella! Now here's a Monday thought:



I hope you all have a wonderful day!

Image via Pinterest

Book Tour: The Portrait of Alatiel Salazar

Hello everyone! I know I've been MIA as of late, but this summer has really kicked my butt--in a totally good, but absolutely busy way. Now that I'm back home with regular internet access I hope to begin posting on a regular basis again and I'm so pleased that my first post back is also my first blog tour. Today my blog is the stop on the blog tour for Steven Katriel's gothic horror novella The Portrait of Alatiel Salazar, currently available for $0.99 on Amazon. While this is not the type of book I typically gravitate towards, and the opening pages were a bit slow, I soon found myself pulled in by the author's prose and the haunting feel of the story. I definitely think this one is worth checking out.

Here's a summary:

When Gabriel Holland’s beloved Helena vanishes from his life, he journeys to the home of disgraced artist Cristian Salazar, the man he holds responsible for her disappearance and the death of several friends. Once in the town of Carliton, Gabriel finds only malice and mystery in the tales told by the few brave enough to speak ill of Salazar and the sinister Cousin Beatriz. And within shadows, in the guise of night, walks Alatiel, the creature Helena has become.

Interested? Leave a comment below for your chance to win a electronic copy of this novella!

Wedding Wednesday Inspiration: Blue & Limonata

How pretty is this?

A perfect way to offer up refreshing beverages to your

guests, especially at a laidback wedding inspired by all

things vintage and repurposed.

What do you think?

Photo via Pinterest