Yummy Winter Soup

This is Butter Bean, Sun-Dried Tomato & Pesto Soup. My roomie and I made this recently and it was freakin' delicious (if you're a soup person). It was filling and perfect for this chilly weather.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pints of chicken or vegetable stock (we used chicken)
Two 14 or 15 oz cans of butter beans (Cannellini or Lima beans are an alternative)
4 tbsp of sun-dried tomato paste (regular tomato paste can be used)
5 tbsp of pesto (homemade or store bought)

1. Drain and rinse the beans. Put the drained beans in a large pan/pot with the stock and bring just to the boil.

2. Reduce the heat and stir in the tomato paste and pesto. Cover, bring back to simmering point and cook gently for 5 minutes

3. Transfer about six ladlefuls of the soup to a blender or food processor, scooping up plenty of the beans. Process until smooth, then return to the pan.

4. Heat gently, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes, then season if necessary. Ladle into four warm soup bowls :-D

*Add some shaved parmesan on top or another cheese if you prefer.



For some yummy bread on the side we used a ciabatta loaf and cut it into circles. Put a bit of butter on them and a bit of shaved parmesan cheese (yes I love parmesan cheese) and put them in the toaster oven until cheese was melted and golden brown on top. YUM!

ENJOY!

Blazing Sangria ...

So when I first saw the new Loreal commercial with Gwen I loved it!! ... Here's a quick link to it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVWLL7qoZr4 ... She always has amazing red lips, and she's the only reason why I sometimes wish I had pale skin.

The flash makes it look kinda pinkish, but it's really not. It's kind of like a fruit punch color.

I did some swatches of what it looks like with a pinkish-red lip liner and with a red lip liner. The pinkish one is Plush Red by NYX. The red one I used is from Sally Beauty Supply.

On the left is the lip color on top of Plush Red. Middle is lip color by itself.
Right is lip color on top of red lip liner from Sally's.

I used it with red lip liner. Doesn't it look kinda like fruit punch? And it doesn't look as awesome as it does on Gwen :-(

But it really does last a long time! I put it on around 6:30. Went out to the Laugh Factory that night, had a few drinks, and afterward the color was still bright. Does dry lips a bit but small price to pay, just exfoliate later :-)

Ugh! I always do the pomp/ponytail thing! LOL I don't know how to style my hair for crap!

Violets and Lavenders ...

So I did this look like two weeks ago when I went out to dance ... I've been wanting to use my Violetta lipstick for the longest time!! ... The shadows I used are pretty soft colors but glad I got to use a bright lip because I tend to tone it down for work and leave the bright colors for the weekend :-)






Eyes:
Too Faced Shadow Insurance all over
MAC Bare Study Paint Pot
Sephora Colorful Mono Shadow in Creme Caramel #11 (my go to neutral shade)
STILA eyeshadow in Tone (Blended up Crease)
MAC Blanc Type mixed with Shroom for highlight and inner corner
Urban Decay 24/7 (top & bottom) eyeliner in Oil Slick
Urban Decay 24/7 (bottom) inner corner eyeliner in El Dorado

Lips:
MAC Magenta Lip Liner
MAC l/s in Violetta mixed with MAC l/s in Pink Nouveau (just a little)
MUFE Glossy Full Couleur in #5 (Purple tone lip gloss)

Blush: MAC Mineralize blush in Dainty

Jazzy Blues

So I actually did this look a long time ago but never got around to posting it. I don't wear blues very much because I feel like I can't pull it off very well, but this didn't turn out too bad ...





PRODUCTS USED:

All over eye- Too Faced Shadow Insurance

Lid- NYX Jumbo pencil in Slate

Middle of Lid- Lime Crime Magic Dust Shadow in Medusa

Outer Corner- MAC She Who Dares (Just a tiny bit)

Crease- Benefit Shadow in Don't Quit your Day Job (discontinued)

Highlight and Inner Corner- NYX Shadow in Opal

Eyeliner- Sephora Liner in Flashy Blue

Bottom Liner- Sephora Liner in Flashy Orange

Adventure at Sur La Table

Sur La Table is a store that sells kitchenware and they have some locations that provide gourmet cooking classes and I went to the one in L.A. by the Farmer's Market. It was so much fun!! The boyfriend got me two seats for Christmas so I could take someone else so I took my BFF, because she almost pee'd in her pants when I told her about it :-) Anyway, I had it in my head that each person was going to make everything on the menu and be able to take it home to share, but unfortunately that wasn't the case. It was fun anyway, the class was divided in groups and everyone got to participate in helping to make each item. The class was called Winter Bistro Classics with Le Creuset (oh and each person got to take home two baking dishes by Le Creuset, which apparently was Julia Child's favorite kitchenware brand). Here are pics of the dishes that the class made together. My favorite was the Roasted Potato and Fennel Gratin, it was creamy and cheesy deliciousness. The rest of the menu included Gamay-Braised Lamb Shanks with Nicoise Olives, Thyme and Fresh Chevre Tart, and for dessert Dark Chocolate and Cherry Clafoutis.

Chef Martin Gilligan

The Lamb (which looked great, but it was kinda gamey :-/ ) and plus I'm not
a big meat eater ...

The Roasted potato and fennel gratin (amazing!!)

This was a cucumber salad he added to the menu which was really delicious too!

Carrots and green apples cooked and roasted with brown sugar
(also added to menu and was delish!)

Thyme and Fresh Chevre Tart

Dark Chocolate and Cherry Clafoutis with Vanilla Bean whipped topping!!

Happy faces and full tummies!

If anyone wants the recipes to the items that were originally on the menu (plus the cucumber salad) I can scan them and email them to you just email me at missmakeup21@gmail.com.

Versatile Blogger Award!

Thank you to Tribute Books Mama, for giving me the Versatile Blogger award ... I really appreciate it ... Check out her blog if you're a bookworm like me, lots of suggestions and book talk, love it!

http://tributebooksmama.blogspot.com/

The rules for these awards are:

* Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to them in your post
* Tell us seven things about yourself
* Award 15 recently discovered new bloggers
* Contact these bloggers and let them know they've received the award(s)

7 things about me:

1. I have one more semester left until I receive my Masters in Public
Administration! Yay!
2. I eat too much cheese.
3. I love watching Bobby Flay's Throwdown.
4. I live in a ghetto town called Norwalk, CA.
5. Everyone tells me I look like my dad.
6. I'm pretty sure I'm a shopaholic (but I'm trying to quit).
7. I have one older sister.

15 Bloggers:

1. Beauty Ambition
2. Beauty Junkie In London
3. A Rose by any other name would smell as sweet
4. Beauty by Krystal
5. Blush & Bloom
6. Chica Bloggerista
7. Feather
8. Funny Face Beauty
9. Glamour Kills Makeup Artistry - The Beauty Blog
10. Hell Notes for Beauty
11. Lipsticks and Lightsabers
12. MsGlitterazi
13. Wifezilla, etc ...
14. The Lifeaholic
15. JaaackJack

Sorry I didn't know how to link everyone's blog to their names on the list ... I'll try to figure it out :-/ (FIGURED IT OUT THANKS TO OTHERS' HELPFUL TIPS! :-)

MakeupJunkie88's first official giveaway

Hello! Just want to tell everyone about this awesome give away! And also to say that Priscilla's blog is awesome and if you aren't already following you should!

http://makeupjunkie88.blogspot.com/2011/01/my-1st-official-giveaway_18.html

Wet n' Wild Meg Last Lip Color in Smokin Hot Pink

So its obvious that the word on the street is Wet n' Wild is a great brand that offers great products at affordable prices. I was hesitant to try stuff because years ago a lot of drug store brands weren't that great. Or maybe I didn't know anything because I wasn't a makeup addict and I didn't know how to apply makeup fo shiz! Anyway, so I decided I should see for myself and I actually really like it! :-) I saw these line of lipsticks on @shadownukks' youtube channel and really liked the color she had (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0nTP5yknFA) ... They did not have Stoplight Red when I went to the store, as a matter of fact they only had two colors left: Smokin' Hot Pink and some other pastel baby pink. So I chose Smokin hot pink and here it is :-) I love it!







And for fun I thought I'd share a pic of these new earrings I got. Super cute from the Macy's Material Girl collection (only about $8 bucks for these and a pair of little silver studs). I just got my ears pierced last June for the first time ever! Crazy right! So I'm loving earrings at the moment :-D



Thanks for stopping by fellow bloggers :-)

Butterbeer

So I'm finally going to start my Harry Potter inspired looks. I've seen a lot of girls do looks inspired by the different houses like Gryffindor, Slytherin, etc. but I wanted to do looks inspired by different places, spells, and other common things that frequently pop up in the stories. So my first one is inspired by 'Butterbeer'. If you're not a huge dorky Harry Potter fan like me then here is a link to what Butterbeer is: http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Butterbeer. So I tried to recreate the colors of Butterscotch since that is how the taste is described ... Hope you like it and stay tuned for more inspired H.P. looks :-)






What I used: *NOTE- Shadows are all MAC

Lid: Goldenrod
Outer Corner: Texture mixed with a bit of Wedge
Inner Corner: A bit of Amber Lights and Shroom
Highlight: Malt mixed with Blanc Type
Eyeliner: Stila Smudge Pot in Bronze

Zucchini Torte

So I actually got this from a cookbook called "Mexican: Healthy ways with a favorite cuisine" by Jane Milton. FYI it was freakin delicious!!

Ingredients:

1 1/4 lbs zucchini
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 small onion
3 fresh jalapeno chiles, seeded and cut in strips
3 large eggs
1/2 cup grated Monterey Jack or mild Cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbs butter
salt to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350. Trim zucchini ends and slice them in thin rounds. Heat oil in large frying pan. Add zucchini & cook for few minutes, turning them over at least once, until they are soft and beginning to brown. Using a slotted spoon, transfer them to bowl.

2. Slice the onion & add it to oil remaining in the pan, with most of the jalapeno strips, reserving some for garnish. Saute until the onions have softened and are golden. Using a slotted spoon, add onions and jalapenos to zucchini.

3. Beat eggs in a large bowl. Add self-rising flour, cheese & cayenne. Mix well, then stir in zucchini mixture, with salt to taste.

4. Grease a 9-inch round shallow ovenproof dish with the butter. Pour in the zucchini mixture and bake for 30 minutes, until risen, firm to the touch and golden. Let cool.

5. Serve the torte in thick wedges, garnished with the remaining jalapeno strips. A tomato salad, sprinkled with chives, makes a colorful accompaniment.

ENJOY!!!!

Christmas and NYE makeup

Below is my makeup look on Christmas Eve. Hot pink and smokey purple. The hot pink I used was a Barry M color that I bought in March when I went to Ireland and I finally used it, yay! The purple I used was Signed, Sealed by MAC



Below is my New Years makeup ... I used a lot of different brands. Benefit, Lime Crime, Urban Decay, MAC, and I think Stila too ... the lashes were by Sephora ... loved them!