Giving Thanks

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with happiness, health, love, and gratitude! I know I did! I had a great day because I was with my family. As you all know, I love decorating, setting the table, cooking/baking, and preparing for the holidays..Thanksgiving is probably my favorite one! The aroma of the turkey, stuffing, and pumpkin bread in the morning is luscious. I am so lucky to have a mother and grandmother who know how to cook and bake so well. I got to learn from the best! My grandmother makes a killer stuffing that we look forward to every year. This year I wanted my family to do something different that we never have done before so I prepared a small writing activity (yes, that's the teacher background in me!) for everyone to do before we ate. It was nice thinking about what we are all grateful for, writing it down, and sharing it, and most of all, we will get to look back on it.

My list of thanks

Pumpkin bread! My fav!

Love Fall/Thanksgiving colors!

Almost ready for dinner..

Sweet potato casserole was AMAZING! Recipe will be posted soon! 

BEST.apple.pie.EVER! Recipe to follow..

What are some Thanksgiving traditions of yours? What are you thankful for?

Tasty Tuesday

It's 'Tasty Tuesday' and Thanksgiving in two days? Good times all around! Last week I had a little extra time on my hands so decided to spend some time in the kitchen! I made an awesome vermicelli recipe that I hadn't made in such a long time (it's not very weight friendly!) and created a delicious, easy appetizer, Parmesan Zucchini Crisps, for any future parties. Both were delish AND easy. How can you go wrong? We all want to make easy, low maintenance meals but if they're delicious, even better, right? The vermicelli is a great recipe if you have a group of 5-6 people over, but don't make it if you're watching your waistline! The Parmesan Zucchini Crisps are great to make as an appetizer or a vegetable side dish to a chicken or a fish.

Parmesan Zucchini Crisps

2 medium zucchini
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
1/4 cup italian seasoned breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 400°. Place foil on a baking sheet. Spray the foil with non-stick cooking spray. Slice zucchini into pieces 1/4 thickness. Place the zucchini rounds on the foil (they should be in one layer). Once the rounds are on the foil, rub each one with olive oil. Mix the parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl or plate. Dip each zucchini round into the cheese mixture. If it doesn't stick, place some of the mixture on the rounds. Sprinkle any extra mixture over the zucchini. Bake at 400° for 22-26 minutes. If you want them crispy (that's when they are the best!), leave them in for 26 minutes and if need be, turn the oven off and leave them in for a few minutes longer (just make sure they don't burn!). If you like them on the softer side, cook them for 22 minutes. The thinner they're sliced, the crispier they will be.

Serves: About 40 pieces

Vermicelli

1 box vermicelli pasta
4 tbsp. butter
1 cup chopped onion
2 packages mushrooms
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/2 cup peas

Boil water for pasta and cook vermicelli according to the directions on the box. Rinse, pat dry, and slice fresh mushrooms. Set aside. In a large skillet melt butter. Add onion and garlic, sauté for 4 minutes on low heat. Add reserved mushrooms. Sauté for 5 minutes. Stir in peas, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Cover and simmer on low for 5 minutes. Once the vermicelli is done and drained, place it in a serving dish. Add 1 tbsp of butter to saucepan. Stir in mushroom mixture. Serve immediately.

                                                                                    Serves: 4-6

Don't forget to let me know if you make any of these & how they come out! Tweet pictures :)

Enjoy! Happy cooking!

Weekend Happiness

It's that time again..Who has the Monday blues? I certainly do! This weekend seemed to FLY by! One of my most favorite things about the holidays (regardless of which one you celebrate) is decorating. I love getting into each season and making my environment fall ready. I started decorating for fall a month ago but I love getting into Thanksgiving! It's such a festive holiday with my favorite foods and smells. Who doesn't love the smell of turkey and stuffing baking in the morning? Yum! I have been really busy so just got around to really putting out some of my favorite fall/winter decorations.

Better late than never!

Finished product!

  

Favorite fall candle.. and pretty too!

They give off a delicious cinnamon smell..

Tasty Tuesday

Every Monday I'll be sharing a recipe that I love. I love to cook and bake but since I haven't had much time as I have in the past to do so, I'll be sharing mostly easy, delicious, low calorie meals that you'll be sure to love. Please let me know if you want me to share anything in particular or if you have a great recipe that you love, please tweet me @ alexis_jordana to share!

Chicken Piccata

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless, pounded thin

2 tsp. kosher salt

2 tsp. black pepper

1/2 cup flour

1 tbsp. vegetable oil 

2 tbsp. unsalted butter

1 lemon

3 tbsp white wine

4 tbsp lemon juice

1/2 cup capers (drained)

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves (optional)

Directions:

Combine flour, salt, and pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge chicken breasts in flour mixture. Shake off the excess.

In a large frying pan, heat butter and vegetable oil over medium heat. Add chicken breasts. Cook about 4 minutes on each side until tender and opaque. Remove and keep warm.

Add wine to pan juices. Cook 1 minute, scraping up brown bits from bottom of pan. Add lemon juice and bring to a boil. Return chicken to pan, cover with lemon slices and cook until sauce thickens slightly, about 3 minutes. Serve garnished with capers and parsley.

On the side: For a vegetable, try either peas, broccolini, or roasted string beans and asparagus. I make a delicious, garlic infused broccolini. To make it, place broccolini in a sauce pan, add 2 tbsp olive oil, 4 cloves of garlic, 2 tbsp of lemon juice and cook on medium-low heat until the broccolini is slightly browned and soft.

Notes:

1. Cut 4 breasts of chicken in half so there are 8 (for leftovers the next day). It is also thinner which gives off more taste. If you only want 4 pieces, cut 2 breasts in half.

2. Put the chicken over pasta or rice pilaf for an added starch.  If adding pasta or rice, you might want to double the sauce (especially if you're making 8 pieces of chicken)

'Bachelor' Bombshells

Ashley & J.P.
Source: Wetpaint

The Bachelor is going on it's 17th season and there are more 'Bachelor' bombshells now than ever! For starters, former bachelorette, Ashley Hebert is engaged to JP. Ashley began by being one of the favorites to capture Brad Womack's heart on the 15th season of 'The Bachelor'. When that romance did not last after the show, Ashley got her second chance at finding a husband on the 7th season of 'The Bachelorette'. Ashley and JP's wedding will be televised on December 16th at 9:00 on ABC. This will be the third 'Bachelor' wedding, behind Trista & Ryan and Jason & Molly.

Jason & Molly
Source: Zimbio

               









Other exciting news.. Jason & Molly are expecting their first child together. Jason has a son, Ty from a previous marriage. If you all remember correctly, Jason and Molly didn't have an easy road after the show ended without the drama..but could it have been "the MOST dramatic season"? Well, I'll leave that up to you to decide. Just as a reminder.. Jason chose Melissa Rycroft to be his wife at the end of his journey on the show, but much to the viewer's surprise (or not?), Jason shocked Melissa on the 'After the Final Rose' show and told her that he didn't see their relationship working out..and then came the even bigger surprise..Jason told Molly she is the girl for him and that he made a big mistake. It was probably the most controversial, surprise ending (yet Chris Harrison continues to say each season is the most controversial or shocking). All is okay now! Melissa is happily married with a child, and currently starring in the All Star season of Dancing with the Stars, her second time around. Jason and Molly look very happy, despite all the criticism and skepticism they received when they got back together after Jason dumped Melissa on national television.

Arie & Courtney cuddle on their second date.
Source: Wetpaint

Remember the most dramatic season finale when Ben chose the unfriendly, argumentative Courtney over sweet, down to earth Lindzi? 'Bachelor' viewers, including me were SHOCKED. Courtney was the black sheep of the house, separating herself from the other girls, and her claim to fame statement, 'winning' when she was asked how she felt about Ben. Courtney appeared to only be on the show for the purpose of 'winning' and getting the media exposure. I know I was stunned when their relationship after the show lasted a good year. I was waiting to see the headline, "'Bachelor' Ben & Courtney split". Well, that time has come! They split about a month ago, surprise, surprise and the most interesting part about it..Can anyone take a guess? Courtney moved on pretty quick..with..none other than Emily Maynard's runner up, Ari Luyendyk Jr. But wait, there's more.

Source: US Weekly

October was a month of break-ups for Bachelor couples. Around the same time of Ben and Courtney's split, Emily Maynard broke it off with fiancé Jef Holm. Out of all the Bachelor/Bachelorette couples, I had the highest hopes for Emily and Jef. I never really cared for 1 f Jef until the last two episodes of the show when he showed his more vulnerable side to Emily, professing his love for her and then seeing her fall in love with him, and introducing him to her daughter, Ricki. She was so sure of this decision, to choose Jef that she sent Ari home on their last date, before the final rose ceremony. Don't forget, that, according to Chris Harrison this was the most shocking and controversial season finales ever (along with every other season, lol). America fell in love with 'Jemily'. They looked ecstatic on After the Final Rose and their future looked bright. Maybe it's just me but I think Emily should have chosen Arie. Not only did they have an intense physical connection, he also was very supportive of her and Ricki. Arie, 31 does have a very busy lifestyle as a race car driver (which Emily is very familiar with because her ex fiancé was in the industry as well) but he did seem that he was ready to settle down for the right girl. Jef, 28, on the other hand, is in the beginning stages of marketing his company, People Water, which potentially made him too busy and consumed for Emily and Ricki. I never thought 'Jemily' would work out because of his high energy and young at heart attitude. He seemed like the life of the party when Emily was a mother, ready to settle down and have more children. Two people at two different places in life. This finally became apparent when they decided to part ways, despite the cheating rumors that plagued the couple in the summer during a family vacation with Jef's family. Despite the recent rumors that Emily is now dating Nascar driver, Jason White, she has denied the rumors, stating she is still single. Her and Jef's break up seemed amicable. So sad for Ricki, who went along with her mother on part of the Bachelorette journey to find a guy that would serve as both Emily's husband and Ricki's father. With Emily's "thing" for race car drivers, do you think she should have chosen Arie? Share your thoughts with us here!

TGIF

Well, Friday has rolled around once again. Is anyone as surprised as I am at how quickly the weeks ago? I can't believe that we're well into November already and the holidays are upon us.

First off, I love that the city is ALMOST back to normal. Compared to it looking like a ghost town last week, I'm glad to see so many people back on the streets heading to work, etc. It looks like the good ole' New York that I love! You get used to the pushing, shoving and fighting crowds so when no one was around it was SCARY!

  

Love my new Gorjana Wrap Bracelet

I love the gold & brown toggle and detail. It makes it so easy to pair it with other gold bangles and cuffs.

I am obsessed with head wraps for Fall but especially this gold one by Tasha

Fall photo with Ozzie! Love this guy!

Every week until the holidays I'll be sharing one thing from my holiday wish list. Feel free to send me anything on your holiday wish list too to alexisjlevy@gmail.com or tweet me @alexis_jordana and I'll share them on the Daily Dish! Have a good weekend! :)

Manicure Monday

I love the fall, mostly because of fall nail colors. I'm in love with the hottest fall rage, oxblood. Who isn't? There are so many choices when picking out a color for my manicure..it is seriously OVERWHELMING! I might just have to get them done every week this month to try out all the different shades. I'm a big fan of OPI but will occasionally go with Essie. I usually stick to those two brands because that's what the salon has. These colors are on my to-do list this month:

I just did this color and love it! 'William Tell Them About OPI" 

'Skyfall'

'Lincoln Park After Dark'

'Casino Royale'
I love the dark, oxblood colors but sometimes I like to lighten up the mood and use a lighter color.

'Velvet Voyage'
I love this Essie color! It's chocolate meets amethyst

'GoldenEye'
Gold is always a great fall color but this just looks fab & chic for a classy night out or a night time event.