Champagne Supernova

2.05.2011

2.04.2011

We are bringing back a tradition in the Fernandez House - Friday Night In Taco Night. We try to be home on Friday nights when we have Andreas, and to make them more special than the "other" nights, we used to do Taco Fridays. We slacked off for a while, mainly during our quest to lose weight for the wedding. Well, we're back on, and they are tasting better than ever!

I find tacos to be one of those things that everyone likes a slight different variation. Andreas likes soft tacos with just "taco meat" and cheese; Shawn likes "loaded" soft tacos, sans tomatoes; and I love "taco salads" which include:

"taco meat" aka ground turkey with seasoning
lettuce
lots of tomato
cheese
"re-fried" beans
black olives
sour cream
cilantro
green onion
avocado
salsa
chips

Have a great weekend!

Cheers!

No Such Thing as a Free Date

Free movie tickets, a gift card to Ruth Chris, and a night on the town... yes please! Shawn and I were so excited for our FREE night on the town! We had been given free tickets to the premier of The Adjustment Bureau (neither of us had heard of it, but it was FREE), and we had found an old Ruth Chris gift card for $49 (the have a GREAT Happy Hour) - we were set. We had yummy appetizers and wine at Ruth Chris - tab was $48.93, we left a $10 tip. After that we headed to the theatre, 2 waters and 2 candies - $18. Movie was entertaining and we had good seats. Leave the parking garage, $13.

So, this free night that we thought we were having actually was $43. So, we decided that nothing is free anymore. But, we did have a great time on our "Date Night" - on a WEEK night at that!!

Cheers!

2.03.2011

Loving....

In my quest to limit my diet coke intake, but still quench my never ending thirst, I have come up with the best solution.

Cheers!

2.02.2011

Chicken is Chicken

Chicken is boring, especially chicken breasts - but we still eat a lot of it in our house. It's easy to cook, and a lot heart-healthier than red meat. So, I'm always in search of new exciting chicken recipes. So, when I came across this recipe, I was thrilled!

It was EASY, CHEAP, and delicious!

Puerto-Rican Chicken and Potatoes
adapted from Rachael Ray

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breast
Salt and pepper
1 onion
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 bay leaf
1/2 pound small red potatoes, halved
One 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 Tbsp canned Jalapenos
Chopped cilantro, for sprinkling

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and add to the skillet. Cook, turning once, until golden, about 5 minutes; transfer to a plate. Reserve 2 tablespoons oil in the pan.
Using a food processor, puree the onion. Add to the reserved skillet along with the garlic, scraping up any browned bits. Puree the red pepper and add to the skillet along with the cumin, jalapeno and bay leaf. Increase the heat to medium-high and stir in the potatoes, tomato sauce and 1 cup water. Lower the heat, cover and simmer for 10 minutes.
Add the chicken, cover and simmer, stirring, until the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes. Discard the bay leaf. Top with the cilantro.

Cheers!

1.31.2011

Going for the Gold

It all stemmed from inspiration from a teeny knob. A knob that took countless hours to find online a little over a year ago when we decided to give our armoir a facelift:

and then we found these to compliment the small drawers:

So, this inspired me to go for the gold; however in order to keep our room from looking like a King's fortress we decided to use the gold sparingly....well, kind of. Once Shawn told me about a new metallic paint his company was stocking, I knew we had to have it. So, last weekend we embarked on painting our bedroom GOLD?!?

Before:

After:

And so, we are one step closer to completing at least one room in our house. We still need new lamps for the nightstand.

A comfy chair to curl up and read on in this corner: