A Healthy Buzz

 Recently, a few friends had asked me to post some "healthy" cocktail recipes for the upcoming warm months, so here they are! 

I know, I know, alcoholic drinks will never be healthy. Good news though, I did find some recipes with fresh ingredients and natural sweeteners like blueberry nectar and agave syrup to help diminish the bad reputation sugary cocktails have. Just add a warm day at the beach, friends/family, and a great playlist and your recipe is complete.

Hope you enjoy :)

 Bloody Mary with Shrimp

22 ounces reduced-sodium V8

1 teaspoon horseradish

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon lemon juice

10 dashes Tabasco

Freshly ground pepper, to taste

3 ounces vodka, optional

Ice cubes

4 cooked shrimp

Shake V8, horseradish, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, Tabasco, pepper and vodka, if using, in a large glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Fill two tall glasses with ice and divide the Bloody Mary between the glasses. Garnish each drink with 2 shrimp.

 Blueberry-lime Margarita

2 cups ice

1 cup frozen blueberries

1 cup blueberry nectar

1/4 cup seltzer

2 tablespoons frozen limeade

1 tablespoon lime juice

3 ounces tequila, optional

1 lime wedge

Coarse salt

Combine ice, blueberries, blueberry nectar, seltzer, limeade, lime juice and tequila, if using, in a blender and blend until smooth. Rub rim of 2 glasses with lime wedge and dip in salt. Divide the margarita between the prepared glasses and serve.

 Iced Mint Green Tea

1/2 cup fresh mint leaves

3 green tea bags

2 tablespoons honey

4 cups boiling water

2 cups sake, divided

4 stalks lemongrass, for garnish

• Combine mint leaves, tea bags, honey and boiling water. Let steep for 5 minutes; remove tea bags. Refrigerate until chilled. Divide among 4 large ice-filled glasses. Add 1/2 cup sake to each glass. Garnish with a stalk of lemongrass. Non-alcoholic variation: Omit the sake.

 Blueberry Ginger Bellini

1/2 cup blueberries

1 tablespoon minced ginger

1 tablespoon sugar

Juice of 1/2 lemon

2 cups blueberry juice

1/2 cup sparkling wine, divided

• Mash blueberries with ginger, sugar and lemon juice. Add blueberry juice and let steep for at least 5 minutes. Strain; divide among 4 champagne flutes. Top each with 1/2 cup sparkling wine.

 Pomegranate Cosmos

2 1/4 cups pomegranate juice

2 1/4 cups vodka

1 cup lime juice

3/4 cup Cointreau, or Grand Marnier

1/4 cup ginger juice, (see Note)

2 tablespoons sugar, preferably superfine “bar sugar,” plus more for the rims

Strips of lime zest, for garnish

• Mix pomegranate juice, vodka, lime juice, Cointreau (or Grand Marnier), ginger juice and sugar in a large pitcher.

• For each drink, fill a cocktail shaker halfway with ice, add 1/2 cup Cosmo mix, and shake until the shaker turns frosty and cold. Dip the rim of a martini (or highball) glass into water and then in sugar (to “sugar the rim”). Strain the drink into the martini glass (or over fresh ice in the highball glass). Garnish with a twist of lime zest, if desired.

 Cherry Smash

1 cup pitted fresh or frozen (thawed) cherries

1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, plus 4 sprigs for garnish

8 teaspoons sugar

6 ounces (3/4 cup) dark rum

1/4 cup lime juice

3 cups cherry-flavored seltzer

Divide cherries, mint leaves and sugar among 4 glasses. Mash everything together with the back of a wooden spoon. Stir in rum and lime juice. Fill glasses with ice and top with seltzer. Garnish with mint sprigs.

 Cucumber Lemonade Chiller

3 large cucumbers

1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, plus 4 sprigs for garnish

1 cup water

6 ounces (3/4 cup) gin

1/2 cup lemon juice

3 tablespoons agave syrup

Cut 12 thin slices of cucumber for garnish.

Peel and chop the rest of the cucumber; transfer to a food processor, add rosemary and puree. Pour the puree through a fine-mesh strainer set over a medium bowl or large measuring cup. Press on the solids to extract all the juice. Add water, gin, lemon juice and agave syrup to the cucumber juice; stir until the agave is dissolved. Divide among 4 ice-filled glasses. Garnish with cucumber slices and rosemary sprigs.

Via Eating Well Magazine

The Situation Room

The Situation Room: Food For Thought

So last week in the situation room we asked what was your favorite concert experience? We’re still waiting on all you readers to get involved, throw your opinion out for unbridled ridicule by endless internet users cloaked in anonymity. No, but really, we hope you all take this opportunity to tell us what you think. Let us know what your response to the question is. Or if you don’t like the question, feel free to tell us that and offer some suggestions.

This week we’re going to try something new. Stray a little from the music side of things and ask for your thoughts on something other than music. The question for this week is What is your favorite meal? What meal brings you the most joy, the best memories, and of course leaves you full and completely satisfied. You can pick whatever you want, and the choices don’t have to mesh together. Just tell us what is that last meal you’d want to taste before you kicked the bucket.

My choice would be a combination of my two favorite dinner experiences: summer dinners at the beach with my family, and their winter counterpart. For the appetizer I’ll take fresh Rhode Island clams, straight from the salt pond to the grill, with a white wine and black pepper broth. For the entrée, I’ll take pork arista, roasted with rosemary and garlic, mashed potatoes, and an arugula salad with my mother’s white pepper vinaigrette. To top it all off, warm apple crisp with vanilla bean ice cream. My meal is certainly gluttonous, bet equally delectable and tantalizing. Add to all that your family and friends and you have a recipe for an amazing night.

Tell us what is your favorite meal by dropping a note in the comments below.

Looks I Love

Hi dolls! For anyone who knows me, they know I am a total creature of comfort. This goes for my clothes and shoes as well. If it looks good, wonderful; if it looks good AND feels good, perfection.  

I love these looks below. They all exude a certain level of comfort that makes the pieces that much more appealing. There is this fun little saying 'beauty is pain'...yes it can be, but it does not necessarily have to!

 

Images via pinterest

Oh the places you'll go...

...Destination is merely a byproduct of the journey.
Eric Hansen

The use of traveling is to regulate the imagination by reality, and instead of thinking how things may be, to see them as they are.

Samuel Johnson

Journey Across India from Mike Matas on Vimeo.

True inspiration, in my eyes, comes from traveling. But not just ordinary traveling; really exploring and observing how different cultures operate and go about their day-to-day lives. We can read and read and read about different countries, cultures, people, and lifestyles, but the best tool proven for learning is hands-on. 

My travel list keeps growing. I think it is not only important, but mandatory that a person travels throughout his or her life. There is so much beauty in the world that deserves to be noticed.

Above is a video I found that I think is an awesome idea for documenting memories. Mike Mates traveled around India and photographed his journey, he then turned it into a 3 minute video. Check it out :)

Images via pinterest

H is for Hippo

Water is the most essential thing a human needs to survive. Three days without it and the body starts shutting down, scary right? Well there is a huge problem with deprivation and contamination of water in the world and not much has been done to fix it. I did, however, find a few projects launched to aid in the transportation of water from rivers to villages, since it is usually a long haul and women and children are sent to do the task. As Americans, we are so lucky to have easily accessible clean water, and sometimes we forget that not everyone is as blessed as us.


The Hippo Water Roller Project is a tool designed to help women and children to transport more water more easily than traditional methods. 
It helps to:
-Empower women and children
-Save time and energy
-Reduce suffering

The practical and durable design of the Hippo enables more water to be transported more efficiently and is able to cope with tough rural conditions and terrain. 

The Hippo, with it's large drum capacity of 90 litres / 24 gallons, frees women and children from having to spend a large portion of every day dedicated to collecting water for their households

VS.

How to help:

To donate, visit the Hippo Water Roller Project website and fill out the form. Any amount will help!

And remember, getting messages out there is the only way to create change in the world. Don't be afraid to stick up for what you believe. 

Inspiration

Words to live by...

The Situation Room

So last week in the situation room we asked musically speaking, what is your guilty pleasure? This week’s question was inspired by a discussion I had with my friends Mike and Tracey while out for drinks last night. What is your favorite concert experience? This is not necessarily all about the music (it of course plays a huge role), but about the experience in its totality: the music, the people, the atmosphere, the energy, you get the point. This was such a difficult question for me to answer. There were so many I could have picked just based upon the music, Phish at Jones Beach in 2009, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers at Mohegan Sun when I was 12, The Roots at Toads place back in 2003, or the night I saw Dispatch play a warm up show at the tiny Webster Hall in NYC. While these were all in consideration, my answer eventually became pretty clear. String Cheese Incident at the Rothbury Festival in Michigan in the summer of 2009. It was all about the whole experience and atmosphere. I had just quit my job and was spending the next 3 months doing nothing until I started law school. I drove out to Michigan with 6 of my best friends and the String Cheese show on Saturday night was just the icing on the cake of a great weekend. Great friends, great memories, great music, and wow, what a great experience. Cheese pulled out all the stops: cirque de soleil fire dancers, dancers on stilts, fire breathers, dancers on curtains on stage and yes, hundreds of giant inflatable beach balls. Oh yeah, and the band was on fire that night too. I’ve provided some pictures and video below for you to look at, but to be honest, they do not do the whole experience justice. Just a fantastic time all around.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5EOdbNcVsQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y27k5GcW9uw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ho5WqMDhbA0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Anmq5SD-ia0&feature=related

Tell us what was your favorite concert experience by dropping a note in the comments below.

Dull Hair Got You Down?

As the winter months come to an anticipated end, lots must be accomplished in the beauty department. Harsh temperatures can have damaging effects on your hair, so quick-fixes are much needed. Here are a few solutions for dry life-less hair: 

Photo

Adding Volume

Solution: In a bowl, mix one egg yolk, a half cup of honey, two tablespoons of olive oil, and two small, ripe avocados. Apply the concoction to the entire head and leave on for one to two hours, until hard. Shampoo and condition as usual. This is a miracle cure according to Elle magazine's beauty department!

Boosting Shine

Solution: Dull, overstyled hair benefits from regular olive- or jojoba-oil masks. Starting at the roots, brush a quarter cup of jojoba oil through dry hair and leave it on for an hour. Blast the ends with a dryer for five minutes to help oil penetrate deeper. Skip the roots — the scalp emits enough warmth on its own, and applying extra heat could lead to greasy textures later.

Dry Scalp Solution

Problem: Dry, moisture-sapped skin surrounding hair follicles. 

Symptoms: Tight-feeling or itchy scalp when the humidity drops; small flakes of dry skin that land on the shoulders. 

Treatment: Mix 10 drops of a moisturizing pure essential oil such as lavender or sandalwood with 1 ounce of sweet almond or jojoba oil. For sensitive scalps, use straight jojoba oil. Massage for 5 minutes before showering. 

Thinning Hair Solution

Incorporate vitamins into your diet.

Protein Strengthens Hair: Iron-rich protein builds strong keratin, the outer layer of hair and scalp. Without it, hair grows more slowly and becomes weak and brittle. Eat lean meat, fish, low-fat cheese, egg whites, spinach, and soy. 

Vitamin C Builds Collagen: Collagen supports hair follicles and keeps blood vessels in the scalp healthy. Vitamin C also helps you absorb iron from plant proteins. Try soy yogurt with an orange; a cup of strawberries; or a cup of steamed spinach with chopped tomatoes. 

Silica Promotes Growth: Silica, a nutrient found in oats, rice, cucumbers, asparagus, cabbage, and sunflower seeds, supports growth of hair and nails. You can also take it as a homeopathic remedy, says naturopathic physician Lucille. 

Biotin Improves Texture: This essential B vitamin, found in salmon, carrots, egg yolks, and sardines, helps form keratin, the protein that strengthens hair, improves texture, and stimulates growth.

Regular Meals Fortify Follicles: Food energizes the body and boosts hair follicle activity; snacking on grains, fruits, and veggies between meals helps!

Jojoba Oil

Jojoba oil, as you can see, is the best kept secret for curing damaged hair.

It may be the most compatible natural oil for hair because of its similarity to the scalp's sebum and the ability to work for all hair types. 

Jojoba oil is a common ingredient in many hair care products for a reason. Jojoba has many therapeutic properties that can protect hair health and improve damaged hair. The natural oil improves hair by both preventing moisture loss and balancing the production of the scalp's natural oil, sebum, to a healthy level. This means that jojoba will help a scalp produce the right amount of sebum to prevent dry or oily hair. (For more info visit this site!) 

  

Try these quick-fixes and your wintery hair will turn into beautiful summery hair in no time!

Info via Elle Magazine and Natural Health Magazine

Weekend In Pictures

Off to Manhattan

The Hudson Hotel

Beautiful lobby

Terrace

The Library Bar: Extremely swanky & chic. Warning: $$$$ Drinks.

Basso 56: Authentic Italian food, and coming from a true Italian, this is the place to go. 

Soulive performing at Brooklyn Bowl: Met some of our friends for a night of fried chicken, bowling, and jamming. What's better than that?

Lunch on Saturday was at Bar Boulud, a French Bistro in the upper west side. It was chic yet oddly cozy inside, which I love. The weekend brunch menu consisted of traditional breakfast foods with a french twist, refreshing cocktails, and typical brasserie style dishes. Bar Boulud did us well...A+. 

Mike and I both ordered Croque Madame's. O u t s t a n d i n g. I cannot believe I have been missing out all these years.

 Shopping in SoHo before dinner.

We ate dinner at Cafetasia, our go-to gem for tasty and affordable Thai food in a lively atmosphere. Guaranteed happy& full tummy. 

Last but not least, we saw La Cage Aux Folles on broadway, thanks to Mike's wonderfully generous parents! In addition to our incredibly close seats, the actors were unbelievable and the show was hysterical! It was such a fun-filled experience. The costumes were stunning and the actors were effervescent, it was such a treat. 


The whole weekend was great, I love exploring all that NYC has to offer! More adventures to come...