In honor of Davy Jones...

since I only knew him from the Brady Bumch...

Oscar Fashion!

I watched mainly for the red carpet fashions...and I was rooting for the ladies of The Help and George Clooney because I really really loved the movie The Descendants.

Here were my misses of the evening....

Melissa McCarthy...a lot of fashion blogs are crazy over how great she looked...this reminded me of a grandmother of the bride dress..I'm not a fan of the rouching around her chest..I think the flowy sleeves also make her look wider than she is..

I think she should have taken a couple notes from Octavia Spencer's stylist...although she might not be toothpick thin like Angelina Jolie..she looked fabulous playing to her strengths and accentuating the right areas

I'm a huge fan of J-Lo's but didn't love this dress..everyone else went for this old Hollywood glamour and I thought she stuck out a little with the plunging necklace. I also feel like she wears her hair like this to every award show.

I didn't love Meryl Streep either...it just seemed like a lot of gold material..

.

especially when there was one other golden girl on the red carpet to compare to Meryl...and she hit it out of the park...Here's Stacy Keibler..talk about a good looking couple!

Other favorites....

RI's own Viola Davis...loved the color and loved how she showed off those killer arms and shoulders!

Michelle Williams...another standout...love the color, the style and the texture...

Emma Stone..I loved this look!

I also loved Gwenyth Paltrow's simple look in white...

While most will probably put Angelina Jolie on the best dressed list...I wasn't a fan...this girl needs to eat a meal or two...I think she's just too skinny...it's nice to rock a high slit like that but I'm all set seeing her bony leg.

My other miss of the evening...Billy Crystal...I think his ship has sailed with hosting the Oscars...I just didn't find him to be that funny or entertaining and thought there were more awkward pauses than laughs!

Pork and Carrot Curry

I'm not really a huge curry fan...not that I hate it, but it's not something I really go out of my way to make or eat either. I'm also a habitual new recipe maker. My poor husband probably wishes I made more repeat recipes of the things we really really enjoy instead of being my constant kitchen guinea pig. The poor guy eats anything...doesn't matter how big of a kitchen disaster it is. This simple thing encourages me to try a million different things.

So, on one experimental feeling weekend, I was flipping through the latest issue of Clean Eating Magazine (http://www.cleaneatingmag.com/) and saw this recipe for a Pork and Carrot Curry. I had most of the ingredients on hand and gave a shot.

This recipe surprised me...it was really good. I thought the top ingredient would be curry powder, but the recipe uses different spices to make the flavor. I served it over brown rice and it might make it into the category of a repeat recipe in the Allan household. It was pretty easy to make, didn't take all that long, and we both liked it!

My poor beat up issue of Clean Eating..this bad boy has so many food smears on it..one thing I'm not is a tidy cook. The picture featured on the cover is the Pork and Carrot Curry

The Pork and Carrot Curry. Don't let my picture fool you into thinking it's not good. I take most of my blog pictures with my handy cell phone. I also realize I'm not the best photographer...usually my phone shadow is included in that picture and the recess lighting in my kitchen doesn't help! So, just trust me...it was pretty good!

Pork and Carrot Curry
(from Clean Eating Magazine)

Ingredients:
1/2 cup non-fat Greek yogurt
3 T minced fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic
1 t ground coriander
1 t ground cumin
1 t paprika (I used smoked paprika)
1/2 t ground turmeric
1/2 t sea salt
1/4 t cayenne pepper
1 lb. pork tenderloin, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 T olive oil 
1 yellow onion, halved and cut into thin wedges
1 can diced tomatoes, in their juices
10 oz. small fingerling potatoes, halved in length
3 carrots, trimmed, peeled, and cut into diagonal 1/4-inch thick slices
2 T coarsely chopped fresh cilantro leaves for garnish

Directions
1. In a medium bowl mix together the Greek yogurt and all the spices. Add the pork and toss to coat. Let sit at room temperature until you are ready to cook it, otherwise cover and marinade until you want to cook the pork or overnight if desired.

2. In a medium saute pan with a tight-fitting lid, heat the oil on low. Add the onion and cook, stirring constantly for about a minute. Then cover the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.

3. Add the pork and marinade to pan. Stir in the tomatoes, potatoes, and carrots, plus 1/2 cup water.

4. Increase heat to medium, cover and simmer until pork is cooked through and the potatoes and carrots are fork-tender (~15-18 minutes).

5. Ladle into serving bowls and garnish with cilantro

I served this over brown rice. I didn't think ahead enough to marinade the pork overnight. I mixed the marinade and the pork sat in it as I prepared the veggies and other ingredients. I also went a little heavy on the carrots..maybe used 4 or 5.

Enjoy!

Because these are too cute not to share...

I used to make cookies, cupcakes and bake all the time. I've cut back on it a little bit, mostly because of my tendency to want to sample and eat what I've created! So, I was excited to get back into the swing of things and make some cookies for a co-worker's baby shower. It was a little tricky since we don't know if Baby S is a boy or girl! This little onesie cookie is one of my favorites to make and decorate...probably because it's hard not to do a big awwwww over them.

A fun weekend away with my sisters and mom...there's something about visiting the coastal areas of New England in the off season that I love. The weekend was full of shopping trips..

and lots of quality time making jokes and laughing with the ladies I wish I could see everyday. While there was also lots of fun, there was also some debauchery to be had as well. Who would've thought we'd be on the other side of the law at a traffic stop with my Mom in the front seat :)

And who knew Peeps are 1) already out and 2) now come in Chocolate Mousse Bunnies... 

What I'm Loving Wednesday!

I've been a little delinquent on my What I'm Loving Wednesday posts...so here's to hopping back on this blog hop with http://www.littledaisymay.blogspot.com/!

So..what am I loving this Wednesday?

I used to be a huge coffee drinker and have scaled back. I've replaced my morning cup of coffee with some tea instead. Since I'm not buying Dunkin Donuts coffee in bulk anymore, I decided to splurge at Whole Foods and try a new kind for Mr. Allan. I opted for Allegro's Breakfast Blend...bold but not over the top Starbucks strong and not that overly Dunkin Donuts taste either. It's a hit and I enjoyed a cup with the Mr. as a little treat!

My husband travels a lot. That leaves me plenty of time to muck up our Netflix list with lots of chick flicks. One movie I randomly added to my queue was The Other Woman with Natalie Portman. I don't think I had any clue what it was even about and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed not only the entire movie but Natalie Portman as well..who I'm not really a huge fan of!

image from http://www.fanpop.com/

A couple years ago, I think I subscribed to something crazy like 15 magazines. I started to scale back and now only have a few select ones I read faithfully...guess I just outgrew Cosmo! One that's definitely going on the subscription list is Clean Eating Magazine. I've been retreating to these old issues that I've bought more and more for great recipes.

I'm also excited for a girls weekend in Maine! excited to get away and leave Mr. Allan alone to do the taxes and hopefully I won't do too much damage shopping with my sisters and Mom!

Happy Wednesday! Enjoy your week!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Here's the best Valentine's Day card I've ever received! (kudos to my big sis for finding it!) Personally, I like Valentine's Day...it's probably because I have someone who always manages to do a little something special for me..it doesn't matter how big or small, but it always makes me enjoy this day!

My kind of snow storm

where the trees and yard look pretty and it doesn't stick to the roads. Can't complain at all about this mild winter in New England...

More from Sedona...

After the holidays settled down, it became quite apparent that we needed to get away..for a night, a weekend..anything. We usually do a big vacation in February to get out of the cold New England weather. While we talked and talked about heading to Puerto Rico, I just never planned anything and before we knew it, it seemed too late to go. Then, I finally the bullet. As we moved further and further into January, I thought..screw it..we're going somewhere. I logged into Mr. Allan's frequent flyer accounts with all the different airlines he flies on a weekly basis and randomly picked Arizona as a nice place to go. Why? Because Delta would get us there for free and I've been to Vegas and loved that dry heat, so I'm sure I'd love Arizona as well.

Approximately 3 weeks before we left, we planned this trip. Tickets were booked and it moved onto a place to stay...Sedona seemed like a talked about breath taking beautiful place, so Sedona it was....

I can't say I disagree...coming from the East Coast, the terrain was just so different from where we live and I loved it!

The trip was filled mostly with long days of hiking. One thing I loved about Arizona, it was filled with people who spent most of their time doing activities outside. People that were health conscious and there was such a big focus on taking care of yourself.

Once we hiked Brins Mesa we decided to leave a little note that we were there

 One thing I loved about the trip..being outdoors, exercising, and enjoying the beautiful scenery around us.

I also ate the best turkey sandwich in the whole world...turkey, lettuce, cream cheese, sprouts, sunflower seeds, avocado and a dash of cranberry sauce on whole wheat bread @ Sedona Memories

There was also some touristy things to do...we hopped on the Pink Jeep Tour...I didn't realize a Jeep could climb some of the mountains we did!

Mr. Allan and the ducks at the hotel....every morning at 8am, the hotel had a duck feeding along the creek. We grabbed coffee, wandered outside and fed the ducks. Might sound a little silly, but I really enjoyed watching how much my husband loved these stupid ducks.

As usual, the trip was too short, but we made the most of it. We flew across the country and back in 4 short days. We set out to hike the trails we chose and even fit in some decent hot tub time with Mr. Allan's smuggled in bottle of Wild Turkey and the way overpriced $18 glass of pinot grigio. While it may have been somewhat of a whirlwind trip...it was just what the Allans needed!

It was just what we needed.
A little get away to make us forget about the daily grind.
A place where the weather wasn't so cold and the city wasn't so busy.
A place that looks like a little slice of heaven that was so very different from our home.
It was a chance to recharge our batteries and enjoy the nature around us.
But, most importantly, some time to reconnect with my best friend and remember each and every reason  why he's the perfect match for me.

more from Sedona, AZ coming soon!