Can I Per-Suede You?

It's mid-winter and I don't know about you but I'm over my boots. I love them, I do, but I'm tired of rotating them. So it's time to add some fresh options to my closet. I'm looking at suede booties. They can be dressy or casual and the suede texture is perfect for winter.

Modcloth, Here, There, and Everywhere Bootie, $79

Starting strong with these taupe lovelies. Talk about versatile.

Easy Spirit, Deckland Suede Bootie, $39

Remember Easy Spirit? Yeah, this is not your gramma's leisure shoe.

Express, Western Ankle Boot, $69

A little heel never hurt anyone, right? Love these modified cowboy boots.

Sole Society, Tashi, $89

Spendy? Yes. Neutral, goes with everything, and has some personality? Heck yes.

How are you sprucing up your shoe game this winter? These booties in a beautiful suede are calling me name.

Be fabulous today!

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360 Stud

Where my girls at, from the front to back? Well apparently they're wearing front to back earrings. You haven't heard? They're all the craze. Studs with attitudes. Let me explain.

Banana Republic, Ice Crystal 360 Double Side Stud Earrings, $39

How fun are these? Perfect for work or play or dress up.

Dorothy Perkins, Front and Back Stud Earrings, $11

The price is right with these sassy black studs.

Ann Taylor, Pearlized Front to Back Earring, $39

Let's update the pearl earring and bring it to the 2000s.

BaubleBar, Pave Cone 360 Studs, $10

A little bling with a sexy cone stud. Something different and fresh.

Simple studs are a thing of the past, I'm all about the 360, front to back glam.

Be fabulous today!

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All In: Casual and Comfy Saturday

Hey lovebugs! Happy March. Can you believe it? We're three months into 2015. Are you making the most of it? Since its the first Monday of the month we're going All In for under $100. This month's look is casual cool. It's not any special occasion it's just a regular weekend of style and comfort.

Jeans/Zip Back Sweater/Necklace/Flats

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Friday Foodday

Happy Friday lovebugs,

I'm headed home this weekend for my mom's birthday. I hope you have a great one too.

Concorde

c/o Fogged in Lounge

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 oz gin
• 1 1/2 oz dry vermouth
• 1/2 oz lime
• about 4 oz ginger beer 

Directions

Stir all but ginger beer with ice cubes and pour into a 10 oz glass. Fill with ginger beer. Lime garnish.

Breakfast Risotto
c/o A Taste of Home Cooking

Ingredients
4-6 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons butter, divided
3 oz. pancetta, chopped
1 shallot, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/4 cups arborio rice
1/3 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup grated Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese
Fresh chopped parsley, minced (optional)
Poached eggs for serving

Directions
Pour the broth into a saucepan and bring it to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat so the broth is at a simmer. 

In a heavy-bottomed skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the pancetta and cook until it has crisped and rendered its fat. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

Melt the remaining butter into the pan, and then add the shallot. Cook until tender, then stir in the garlic just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the rice, coating with the butter and toasting the kernels until they are translucent, about 2 minutes.

Add the wine to the pan. Scrape up any browned bits and allow nearly all of the wine to be absorbed by the risotto. Add a ladle-full of warm chicken broth to the rice. Stir frequently and do not add another ladle of broth until the first is almost completely absorbed. Continue to stir frequently, adding broth by the ladle, until the rice is creamy and has just a slight bite in the center when you try it. This will take about 25 minutes.

Off the heat, stir in the cheese and pancetta. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately with poached eggs on top.

Key Lime Pie
c/o Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients

Crust

1 1/2 cups (155 grams) finely ground graham cracker crumbs (from about 10 crackers) 16g 2.5T

3 tablespoons (40 grams) granulated sugar

2 pinches sea salt

7 tablespoons (100 grams) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

1 1/2 tablespoons finely grated lime zest

3 large egg yolks (though extra-large would do you no harm here)

1 14-ounce (396-gram) can sweetened condensed milk

2/3 cup (155 ml) fresh lime juice (from about 1 dozen tiny key limes or 4 persian/regular limes)

To Finish

3/4 cup (175 ml) heavy whipping cream

1 to 2 tablespoons powdered or granulated sugar, to taste

Directions

Heat oven: To 350°F (176°C).

Make crust: Combine graham crumbs, sugar and salt in a medium bowl and stir until mixed. Add butter and stir until crumbs are evenly coated. Press crumbs into the bottom and up the sides of a standard 9-inch pie dish. I like to use the outer edge of a heavy measuring cup to press in neat, firm sides but nobody will be the wiser if you just use your fingertips. Bake crust until lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Set on cooling rack while you prepare filling. Leave oven on.

Make filling: Zest limes into the bottom of a medium bowl until you have 1 1/2 tablespoons. Beat zest and egg yolks with an electric mixer until pale and thick, about 5 minutes. Add sweetened condensed milk and beat until thickened again, about 3 minutes more. Squeeze zested limes until you have 2/3 cups juice. Whisk into yolk mixture until combined. Pour into graham crust and bake pie for another 10 minutes, until set but not browned on top at all. Let pie cool completely before adding topping — you can do this outside (thank you, January!) or even in your freezer (but don’t forget about it) to hasten the process, and your pie reward, along.

Make topping: In a medium bowl, beat cream and sugar until soft peaks are formed. Spread over top of chilled pie. Ideally, pie should be chilled at least another 2 to 3 hours with the cream on top so that it can fully set before you take a slice, but whether that happens is between you and your pie. 

Key lime pie keeps in fridge for a week, though certainly not around here.