Sunday Morning Sugar

Be good

2012-02-12T11:01:00.000-08:00

"The best portion of a good man's life - his little, nameless, unremembered acts of kindness and love" -William Wordsworth

xoxo
Mal

Pan Fried Tofu with Mushrooms and Sesame Dipping Sauce

2012-02-11T16:07:00.000-08:00

I've been getting a little creative in the kitchen recently because I'm trying to use up some spare ingredients before I move. I have a TON of sesame oil (which is weird because I had never used it before this recipe) so I searched for some ways to use it. I found this recipe and altered the recipe a bit to fit the ingredients I already had on hand. The result? Pure, fried, mushroomy bliss.

Pan Fried Tofu w/ Mushrooms and Sesame Dipping Sauce, adapted from Girl Cooks World

Ingredients:
-Soy Sesame Dipping Sauce
-1 pound of prepared tofu (make sure it's drained and ready to rock)
-4 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
-4 cremini mushrooms, sliced
-1 clove of minced garlic
-3 tbsp peanut oil

How to make the magic happen:

1) Whip up some of the Soy Sesame Dipping Sauce. It's really easy and I actually had all of the ingredients on hand!

2) Prepare your tofu by slicing it once width-wise then once so that you cut the bulk by half. See the picture for help deciphering this step!

3) put 2 tbsp. of your oil in the pan then add the mushrooms & garlic. You can also add salt and pepper to taste! Saute until the mushrooms are brown and smell like heaven--you'll know :).

4) When your mushrooms are finished cooking set them to the side. Throw your remaining oil in the pan and add your tofu. Fry for 2-3 minutes on each side then you're good to go.

5) I prefer having warm sauce so I threw mine in the microwave for about 25 seconds. You're going to want to smother your fried tofu with the mushrooms then you can pour the sauce over your dish and enjoy.

It's delicious!! I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. I made half at a time and ate it for dinner two nights in a row. The cool thing is that the Shiitake mushrooms have a really meaty texture/flavor to them. I don't eat much meat at home so I liked pretending like I had gone to the trouble of preparing something like that without actually putting in the effort!

xoxo
Mal

Infused Vodka

2012-02-09T12:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I found this recipe for bloody marys that pretty much screamed my name. I've always LOVED tomato juice so it's not surprising that a bloody mary is right up my alley. One of the ingredients for this lovely beverage was basil-infused vodka.

I immediately snagged some leaves off of my basil plant and started infusing my vodka. Isn't it gorgeous!?

All you do is pour vodka over fresh basil leaves then seal it up in an airtight container and store it in a cool/dark place for a few days.

I'll let you know how it turns out next week when it's all infused :).

The Summer Set and The Cab

2012-02-09T06:10:00.000-08:00

In high school I used to frequent Arizona's local music venues. I loved the smaller bands that toured these underground venues and always felt so cool being one of the people who listened to them (or KNEW them). I had a TON of friends in bands (still do) so many shows my friends opened for ended up introducing me to new amazing music. My senior year of high school my friend Matt's band was playing at The Summer Set's first CD release show. For about $5 I scored their EP and got to see some great bands.

Almost four years later and The Summer Set is one of my favorite bands. Not only do they give me those warm, fuzzy feelings of nostalgia but their music is so upbeat that I can't help but do a little dance to it as a smile creeps across my face. Honestly, they're just FUN.

I went to one of their shows in Chicago last year and spent the whole night telling anyone who would listen that they were from my hometown. When my brother told me they were going to be in town with The Cab I was thrilled! I ended up having a blast at the show. There's something to be said for live music and somewhat obnoxious dancing in a bar with sticky floors and too many underage kids with crazy colors in their hair (and their parents monitoring them from the back of the crowd).

Going to this concert was part of my commitment to say "yes" to positive social outings. Normally I wouldn't have gone because of money or class the next morning or just sheer laziness, but I decided to set all of my excuses aside and just GO! Absolutely worth stepping out of my comfort zone, if you ask me :).

Wardrobe Essentials: The Basics

2012-02-07T05:46:00.000-08:00

When I posted about my commitment to quality a lot of you had GREAT feedback for me. I was so excited to see your enthusiasm and was inspired to write up a whole slew of posts based on the questions you asked me. I'm going to kick things off with a post inspired by J. Mill. She has a hilarious blog so I recommend you check it out when you have a moment. Anyways, she asked me what items of clothing I was going to invest in and if there were any designers I was going to go for this year. I LOVED her question so here's my answer.

Depending on where you live, your wardrobe essentials are going to be different. I grew up in Phoenix, Arizona and three years ago if you had asked me what was essential in my closet I would have told you a sundress and pretty open-toed shoes. Right now this Chicago weather has me leaning towards a pair of boots, skinny jeans, a cute top, and a scarf. High school Malori would laugh at cold college Malori. Anyways, I gave it some thought and realized there are some pieces a lady should have in her closet no matter where she lives!! That's this list :).

1) A quality tank top in every color of the rainbow

I've been slowly collecting mine from United Colors of Benetton but I've heard J. Crew does tank tops right as well. These are INDISPENSABLE in my closet. I wear one pretty much every day. Whether it's as an undershirt so I don't die in my wool sweater or a simple addition to a pair of denim shorts the tank top is one of the most versatile and necessary things you'll own. Go out and immediately invest in some. You won't regret it!

2) A simple pair of black pumps

Why, you might ask, is this the number two most important item in my closet? Because you can never go wrong with a sexy pair of black pumps. Perfect for everything from job interviews to a night on the town, your basic black pumps will never let you down. My favorite pair from high school broke and I was distraught until I found their replacement a few months later. I'm lusting after Louboutin's but any classic black pump will do :).

3) Cardigans

This is another basic that you really shouldn't overlook. I like to have cardigans in various colors, lengths, and textures because they can really put the cherry on top of an already cute outfit (or lend intrigue to a sort of boring outfit). A good time to stock up on cardigans in towards the end of the fall/winter season (aka RIGHT NOW). I think we all know that sale cardigans are better than their full-priced friends. I think you should own one of these in every color of the rainbow as well... just so you're prepared. If you think that's excessive you can probably get away with a black, white, and nude cardigan.

4) Scarves

I wear scarves year-round. In the summer I have lightweight linen or cotton scarves draped around my neck and in the winter I snuggle under layers of hand-knit scarves. If you aren't a fashionista, this is the perfect accessory for you. Wearing a brightly patterned scarf over a simple tank top, cardigan, and skinny jeans make you look like you're up on all the latest fashions. Something about a scarf feels so Hollywood-glam. Look for scarves with fun patterns and in various fabrics. You won't regret it.

5) A pair of skinny jeans

I wear my skinnys 3-5 times per week depending on how lazy I am. Some girly girls don't like to wear jeans but I think they're a great piece to have on hand. On chilly days you can tuck them into your boots with ease. On warm days they look fabulous with a pair of stilettos and a fun top. If you're wanting to look professional but laid back you can pair your jeans with a crisp, white oxford and a pair of pretty flats. Jeans are a classic piece of Americana and you ladies should wear yours with pride.

6) booty shorts and appropriate underpants

Yes. These are a necessity. Whenever I wear skirts or dresses I like to wear a pair of shorty-shorts for safety and comfort's sake. You never know when a gust of wind is going to blow your skirt up so the whole world can get a great ass-shot of you. This is probably impractical but I have a pair in black, highlighter pink, and lime green. The colored ones are fun and because I generally wear black you can't see them through my clothes. Plus, if I ever go to a rave I'll be set ;). I also think it's really important to have a variety of underwear that is appropriate for different occasions. You probably don't want to be rocking your stripper thong underneath your suit at work. Buy some classier underwear for occasions that call for class. Also, every girl needs some full-butt underwear. For the love of God, don't wear thongs under skirts and dresses. That is all.

7) A fitted coat

Ladies let's stop wearing hoodies. I think you get to a certain point in your life when it's time to say goodbye to shapeless sweatshirts and to say hello to a nicely structured coat. Nothing bothers me more than seeing someone walking down the street wearing a hoodie underneath a zip-up sweatshirt and shivering to death. Maybe this is just a personal issue but I think hoodies belong in the gym, around a campfire, or over your pajamas while you're cooking dinner and rocking out to Adele.

8) A little black dress

I own about 12 LBD's and I love every single one of them. They're perfect for most occasions, are flattering, and are probably my biggest weaknesses. If you don't own one, you should. I especially love them because it's basically giving yourself a blank canvas for accessories.

9) A pair of real sunglasses

When I graduated from high school I bought myself two things: A pair of Beats By Dre noise cancelling headphones, and a pair of RayBan Wayfarers. All of my friends told me I was stupid to spend so much money on a pair of "trendy" sunglasses and warned me that I would get sick of them/lose them/break them and would feel dumb for spending so much money on something so frivolous. Three years later and I have NO regrets. In fact, they're one of the most informed and useful purchases I've ever made. They're still in one piece, I've never lost them (knock on wood), and I am still smitten with the style. I suggest investing in a good pair of sunglasses because they truly are worth the investment.

10) Some "just for fun" pieces

Every closet needs fun pieces to give it personality. Maybe it's that hot pink pencil skirt that makes your legs look fabulous or your polka dot dress that makes you smile every time you put it on. Once you've given yourself some basics (jeans, layering tanks, etc.) it's time to have FUN with your wardrobe. Experiment with accessories, color, texture, shape, and various styles. If you feel comfortable in something then wear the shit out of it because that's what makes you, YOU.

Some of my fashion icons are Emily of Cupcakes and Cashmere, Liz at Late Afternoon, and Bri at Design Love Fest.

So ladies, I ask...

What are YOUR wardrobe essentials? Did I miss anything major? When I asked my readers on facebook I got some great responses.

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
All images came from my fashion pinterest board.

January Goals (And Looking Ahead to February)

2012-02-06T13:01:00.000-08:00

In January my goal was to create more. My three main goals were to create a painting, finish a knitting project, and create something to give away. I'm really proud of myself for finishing ALL THREE!!

I have a whole post dedicated to my blanket as soon as I have the chance to photograph it, but here's a sneak peek. I'm so so so in love with it.

I painted this abstract little fella for my bathroom. The wall was so empty and the poster I had originally hung there was getting ruined by the steamy showers I like to take. I love it because it matches with my shower curtain.

I'm in a letterpress class right now and we have to create prints for the whole class when we do projects. I don't know if this is cheating on my goal but I am pretty proud of the prints I've made so far and I'm happy to share with my classmates so I'd say it definitely counts as my third goal :)!!

February is dedicated to my relationships. I want to spend time with my wonderful friends and experience some new things. My specific goals are listed below and I'm excited to say I've already gotten a jump-start on two of these goals!! I think I might try to letterpress a birthday calendar. Hopefully I'll have the time!!!

-create a birthday calendar for friends/family (or buy one!)
-make quality time a priority (aka schedule "work days" and "social days")
-say "yes" to positive social outings

You might also remember that I made a commitment to quality this year. I'm working on some posts that go along with that goal and I cannot wait to share them with all of you.

Have you set any goals for this year? How are they coming along? Have you been blogging about them? I'd love to read about what you're all up to!!

xoxo
Mal

A cliche for a reason

2012-02-05T10:08:00.000-08:00

"This too shall pass"

xoxo
Mal

Just Life

2012-02-03T07:48:00.000-08:00

I feel like it's been a LONG time since I just updated you on my day-to-day life. I'm not sure if you've missed these kinds of posts but I definitely do so I'm going to try and write them more often.

School started for me three weeks ago and has been absolutely wonderful. I am taking a lot of classes that push me to be creative and to solve abstract business problems. Surprisingly, my favorite classes have been my electives. I signed up for a tap class, a letterpress class, and an introduction to horticulture class all to fill various excess credits.

My tap class is like this incredible built-in workout that gets me way out of my comfort zone and relieves all kinds of stress. If you aren't all that fond of working out I would highly suggest finding an adult dance class in your area. It's a great workout, a fun way to push yourself, and dancing is just awesome all around.

My letterpress class is my absolute favorite part of the week. I've always had a love for somewhat tedious crafts (like knitting!). Something about working a very specific process is ridiculously soothing. I also love typography and letterpress so I'm like a kid in a candy shop each week during class. Below are a few prints I've done so far.

My horticulture class fulfills one of my gen-ed credits as a Science with a Lab. Each week we meet in the Garfield Park Conservatory and learn all about various plants and the environments in which they grow best. I love this class because the Conservatory is absolutely breathtaking. I've taken about a zillion cell-phone pictures of it and one week I plan to go to class early so I can take some real photos. In the dead of winter in Chicago there is something to be said about being surrounded by lush green plans. Definitely a good cure for seasonal depression!

My other four classes are all marketing classes. We haven't really gotten into the meat of things yet but I'm really enjoying all of them. I feel so lucky to be in a major that doesn't actually feel like work. I love just about everything we're learning about so the projects tend to feel exciting.

Outside of school I've been extraordinarily busy seeing friends. I'm only going to be in Chicago for four more months so I've made it a priority to soak up as much quality time as possible. I also want to try tons of new restaurants and do all of the cheesy touristy things I haven't gotten to do yet!

I guess the moral of the story is that I'm really, really happy. My life is filled with quality people. I live in a gorgeous city. I'm about to graduate from college. I've been cooking all kinds of delicious food. In four short months I'll embark on a brand new adventure but until then I'm just living in the moment :).

Reading, Reading, Reading

2012-02-01T11:32:00.000-08:00

When I was still on break from school I read a LOT. I ended up finishing four books and getting halfway through a fifth and sixth (I'll post about those soon!). In the meantime, I wanted to share my little review of the books I finished. One of the books I read was Water for Elephants and I'm pretty sure I've reviewed it before so I'll skip that one :).

The Secret Life of Bees

I read this in high school but I kind of forgot what happened so I wanted to pick it up again. This is such a wonderfully written novel and the story really stays with you when you finish it. I hate giving away too much of a story so I'll give a really vague synopsis for those of you who haven't read it before.
A young girl in a bad home situation high tails it out of town when some serious shit goes down. She winds up staying with three women in a bright pink house who completely change her life. It's a story of love, self-discovery, and tolerance. I love it!

Mental

I bought this a long time ago and was looking for something light to read so I finally picked it up. This book is a series of essays from stand-up comedian Eddie Sarfaty and is a really easy read. While I found myself laughing out loud during some of the essays, one or two of them seemed to drag on a bit. If you're looking for a quick read that will make you chuckle, this is the book for you. Nothing extraordinary, though.

Nineteen Minutes

This book is INCREDIBLE. I read it in three days and loved every minute of it. If you're looking for a book that you cannot put down, this is the book for you. It tells the story of a school shooting through many different perspectives and throughout the lives of key characters. The book is full of nerve-wracking twists and turns. Jodi Picoult is such a wonderful storyteller. I can't wait to pick up another one of her books!

Right now I'm working my way through The Gift of Fear, Eating the Dinosaur, and Brandwashed. How about you!?

xoxo
Mal

Raviloi with Mushroom and Swiss Chard

2012-01-31T09:58:00.000-08:00

Sometimes when I'm cooking I think some pretty absurd things. For example, when I was chopping up my swiss chard the other night, I somehow convinced myself that the stalk was poisonous. Obviously it's not. That would be weird and kind of crazy. But just to be safe I made sure I didn't use any of it in my dish. Just the leafy part :).

For those of you who aren't sure what swiss chard is (that was me before christmas), note the picture below. It's gorgeous! I would love to frame one of these leaves...like a crazy person. But seriously, I'm obsessed.

Back to this ravioli. As you've probably noticed by now, I love mushrooms. They're just so delicious and versatile. Seriously I put them in just about everything I make. So when I found this recipe at Real Simple I knew I'd love it. The best part is that it's super easy to make and tastes AWESOME as leftovers. So if you want to do what I did, make the whole recipe but don't share it so you have some good lunch the next day.

Plus, look how pretty it is!! I'll definitely be making this dish again :).

xoxo
Mal

Worry

2012-01-29T18:31:00.000-08:00

“Night does not remove our worries; it brings them to the surface” -Seneca

xoxo
Mal

Meal-Planning

2012-01-28T09:28:00.000-08:00

I've been seeing tons of meal-planning posts pop up in the blog world recently. I've been meal-planning ever since I started buying my own groceries--what else do you expect from a perpetual list-maker? Also, how do you know what to buy if you don't know what you're planning to make!!

(I've had this saved on my computer forever -- a little meal planner printable! I'm not sure of the source anymore so if someone knows I'd love to link it.)

I thought it might be fun to post my weekly menu (generally I just tweet it) so that you can follow along if you'd like. I usually pick out three meals for the week and eat something simple or leftovers for the other meals. Here we go!

Quinoa and Cheese
Hominy and Black Bean Chili
Spicy Roasted Broccolini Quinoa Salad

For lunch I'm stocking up on veggies to make my kick-ass winter salad. I'm sure there will be TONS of leftovers from my chili so that will last me most of the week :).

Do any of you meal-plan? How do you lay out your week? I like to have the freedom to change things up so I never really specify a day for certain meals. I also like to save bigger dinners for nights when I'm feeding friends -- it just seems like the nice thing to do!

Have a wonderful Saturday!!

xoxo
Mal

Meyer Lemon and Goat Cheese Pizza

2012-01-26T20:55:00.000-08:00

I adore pizza. It's one of a few foods that acts as a catch-all for whatever ingredients happen to tickle your fancy (a sandwich is another one of those foods, for those who are curious). I make homemade pizza ALL the time and I've actually become a bit of a pizza snob as a result. I love fresh crust and light ingredients so when I came across this recipe I knew I had to give it a try.

I am SMITTEN with this pizza. The combination of the creamy goat cheese mixed with the citrus from the lemon and the salty olives is a serious win. If you don't want to take my word for it, you can listen to my roommate who said it "looked really gross and weird" then tried a piece and changed her opinion because she "couldn't decided which part was her favorite".

Do you all get crazy with homemade pizza? What's your favorite topping combo? Do you make your own crust or buy it from the store? I'm always looking for the next best pizza!

Back in the day...

2012-01-25T10:57:00.000-08:00

I've mentioned in the past that I have kept a blog in some form or another since I was in middle school. Recently I've been reading back through old posts and I found one that I wrote my freshman year of high school. For some reason, it really resonated with me so I thought I'd share it with all of you. Maybe I have some younger readers that can still take advantage of the advice I gave myself back in the day...

(a picture of me from around the time I wrote this post!)

"September 20th 2005

First things first...high school
Everyone I talk to hates it. I read people's livejournals or talk to them and they don't like it at all. I remember how in middle school I felt like I was really immature. But I've just recently realized why I felt that way. Everyone around me in middle school acted really grown up. They hung out with high-schoolers and they thought they were the shit. I always felt really left out at [middle school] and I had some really hard times because I never really had any true friends. I remember middle school as a time of cliques and first boyfriends/kisses and other stuff like that. I was never a part of a clique and I can't remember a time when I wanted to be. I never had a boyfriend and I've still never been kissed, but it doesn't matter to me.

I feel like everyone around me rushed through life, going as far as they could as soon as possible. Drugs, drinking, partying, going way too far with their boyfriends/girlfriends. I can honestly say I never felt the pull to do anything like that. When peple get old they look back at their childhood and think "God...I really wish I wouldn't have taken my life for granted". I just try my hardest every day to be immature, silly, laugh at stupid things, be random, etc. because I know someday I'll look back and I want to be able to say, "Oh my god I'm so lucky to have cherished my childhood."

I think the reason everyone hates high school so much is because they were there too early. They wanted so badly to be the person they pretended to be but once they got their wish it wasn't as exciting as they thought it would be."

I'm happy to say that even though my childhood isn't very far behind me that I really do feel lucky to have had this attitude about growing up. I think the younger generation is trying too hard to grow up when really life is all about the journey. The older I get, the more I realize that adulthood isn't so much a final destination. Rather, you encounter new challenges and continue growing as you age. Whenever I feel like I'm trying to rush through a stage of my life I want to be able to slow down, breathe, and enjoy the ride. How about you?

Raspberry and Peanut Butter Sandwich

2012-01-24T12:05:00.000-08:00

I am a busy, busy girl. This is my last semester of college and I'm taking 7 classes while working a part-time job. With my crazy schedule, I'm rarely home during the day for lunch. I really don't like peanut butter & jelly sandwiches. Generally I prefer to eat a hot lunch or something fresh and full of fruits and veggies. Unfortunately, it's tough to do those things when you only have 15 minutes to eat something and no access to a refrigerator or microwave during the day. Thus, I've had to get a little bit creative.

Last week I packed a lunch that not only hit the spot but left me craving more. How often can you really say that about a packed lunch!?

All you need is peanut butter, fresh raspberries, honey, and two slices of sourdough bread. The sweetness of the berries paired with the slight punch from the bread is perfection. Combine that with the saltiness of the peanut butter and the delicious honey and you've got yourself a ridiculously good sandwich.

For a side I packed a blood orange and for dessert I ate a couple malted milk balls!

Do any of you have to pack your lunches? What's your favorite packed lunch?

Mercy

2012-01-22T16:53:00.000-08:00

“I will have nothing to do with a God who cares only occasionally. I need a God who is with us always, everywhere, in the deepest depths as well as the highest heights. It is when things go wrong, when good things do not happen, when our prayers seem to have been lost, that God is most present. We do not need the sheltering wings when things go smoothly. We are closest to God in the darkness, stumbling along blindly.”
― Madeleine L’Engle

Religion Envy

2012-01-20T19:03:00.000-08:00

Recently I've been feeling jealous of people with strong religions. Over time I've started following quite a few blogs written by ladies of faith and I'm always amazed at their belief system and the role it plays in their lives.

I suppose I should start this post by backing up a bit on my religious past. I grew up in a Catholic household and when I was in middle school I started attending a very liberal christian church. Through middle school and high school I went on many missions trips and attended a few conferences with my church. I volunteered a lot and have many journal pages filled with my musings about my relationship with God. Later in high school my church went through a lot of changes and I was very turned off by some of the new leadership actions that were taken in my church. I went from feeling like a very strong woman of God to avoiding all ties with the religion. I took a few years off of church while I attempted to find answers on my own. It wasn't until late last year that I found a new church and started sporadically attending. This semester I'm determined to get more involved because I'm finding myself longing for the days when I felt I had a strong faith.

Back to the present day. I've been struggling recently and feeling rather lost. I'm not sure where my future is headed and to be honest I feel as though my life is a bit out of control. I'm hopelessly lonely but feeling depressed so I rarely go out. Since being back in Chicago I've found myself watching too much TV and not doing enough of the things I love to do. I think back to the times I was highly involved in my church and reminisce about the quality friendships I gained through those activities. Almost all of my closest friends are those I met at church and bonded with while volunteering or at bible study groups. While I feel skeptical about the existence and role of a greater power, I cannot deny that my life was better when I was more faithful.

I'm still hesitant about church. I originally stepped back from Christianity because I feel that far too often people use it as an excuse to further their own hateful agendas. Condemning people who have other beliefs is not my thing. I don't like to be associated with Christians who stand on a street corner handing out bibles and telling strangers that they are sinners who will burn in hell. I know every religion has their extremists and it's not necessarily a reason to steer clear. It's definitely something to consider though.

Anyways, that was quite a bit of thinking out loud. Are you ladies (and gents) religious? I'm always curious about this. If you aren't, do you ever have any religious envy like me? People with strong faith seem so certain. I wonder if that certainty comes from a relationship with a God of your choosing.

I made pop tarts!

2012-01-20T10:16:00.000-08:00

A while ago I pinned a recipe for apple pop tarts over on A Beautiful Mess. I finally had a chance to make them and I've gotta say, it's officially one of my new favorite sweets!

My brown sugar looks adorable thanks to some cute measuring spoons I got as a birthday gift from my sweet friend Alex.

I have some heart-shaped cookie cutters so my pop tarts ended up looking exactly like the picture. I just love when that happens.

Pork and Roasted Beet Tacos

2012-01-19T12:18:00.000-08:00

When I was visiting my family in Arizona we ate a lot of pork. I'm not sure why but ever since I've been back in Chicago I've been craving pork and south-western inspired food. Thus, these tacos were born!

What you'll need:
-roasted golden beets
-sliced avocado
-corn salsa
-pork (I used two pork chops. Use as many as you need)
-KC's Butt Spice
-sour cream
-shredded cheddar cheese
-mini white corn tortillas

This is pretty easy and can be prepared for as many or as few people as you'd like. I was just feeding myself and I set things up in a taco bar style.

To prepare just coat a saute pan with olive oil and throw in your pork. I cut mine into strips before it was cooked then cubed it after it was finished. Season the pork with the butt spice using as much or as little as your heart pleases.

While the pork cooks cut up your avocado and set up your taco bar. Heat up your tortillas and spread a bit of sour cream on them. Sprinkle your cheddar on top then add your salsa, pork, avocado, and roasted beets. Fold that bad boy in half and enjoy!!!

As always, I'm going to leave you with some suggestions to take it up a notch. I think this would kick ass served over some quinoa or rice. It would also be delicious if you added some beans to it (black beans are my fave). What would you add to make these tacos suit your tastes?

Perfect Fits

2012-01-15T17:20:00.000-08:00

“She stood up carefully, because that is how it’s best to move in a world where you no longer fit” -Nineteen Minutes

xoxo
Mal

Kick-Ass Winter Salad

2012-01-13T12:54:00.000-08:00

I don't really like salad. My whole life my mom has eaten some form of salad almost every day for lunch and some of my favorite childhood memories involve stealing pieces of veggies out of her salad as she was preparing it. Unfortunately, I didn't exactly adopt her habit into my own life. But when I was home over winter break I saw my mom making her usual salad for lunch every day and it suddenly seemed really appealing.

If you aren't a salad lover but you want to be, I'm here to change your life ;).

What you'll need:
-spinach
-red beets
-dill pickles
-a tomato
-an avocado
-salt
-pepper
-dressing of your choice (I used balsamic vinegar)

How do to it:
1) Boil your beets. This takes about an hour. You'll know when they are finished because you'll be able to insert a fork easily. I prefer my beets to be cold so you can do this step the evening before or even a few days before you prepare your salad. When they're boiled just store them in the fridge!

2) Roughly chop your veggies and tear your spinach into small pieces. Mix everything together.

3) Drizzle the salad with your dressing and top with a pinch of salt & pepper!

Today was the first day I tried to make my own version of my mom's salad but this week I'm going to keep adding ingredients for the best flavor. I have a few oranges in my refrigerator that might spice this up. I also have some fennel and onions. Maybe they'd make a delicious contribution to my lunch?!

My mom can be so proud me today. I've taken the first step towards being a salad girl.

Pizzeria Bianco

2012-01-10T16:31:00.000-08:00

Last night I dragged my family out to dinner at Pizzeria Bianco. I've been reading rave reviews for quite some time and was really excited to try it out.

Pizzeria Bianco is a quaint pizza place in downtown Phoenix. One of my favorite things about the whole dinner was the aesthetic of the restaurant. The cute brick exterior, the huge windows, and the cozy feel of the interior all make dining there a great experience.

The menu is limited so if you have picky eaters I'd steer clear. I thought the pizza options sounded wonderful so I was a pretty happy camper. My family ended up ordering three different pizzas: the Wise Guy which was a white pizza topped with smoked mozzarella, onions, and sausage, a classic margarita pizza with some wood roasted mushrooms on top, and the Biancoverde which was also a white pizza topped with arugula, parmigiano reggiano, ricotta, and mozzarella.

My favorite was the Biancoverde with the Margarita coming in as a close second. The Wise Guy was yummy but a little too cheesy for my taste!

The pizza was yummy, the atmosphere was adorable, and the wine/beer list was up to snuff but the best part of the whole dinner was the crust. Ohhhhhh the crust. Just typing about it is making my mouth water. I prefer thinner crusts on pizza and this was PERFECT. The part you hold on to was crisp and delicious while the portion holding the toppings managed to be soft enough to give the toppings the spotlight. Would it be really out of line if I lurked in the back of the restaurant snacking on the crust that other customers threw to the wayside? Yes? Okay...

All in all, I had a good night. The pizza wasn't as breathtaking as I had hoped but the crust more than made up for it. My family and I got there early because Pizzeria Bianco is notorious for having excruciating wait times. We ended up being seated as soon as we arrived but I imagine having to wait an extraordinary amount of time to be seated might have put a cloud over the whole dinner. So my advice is to go early, order the Biancoverde, and savor every bite of the crust.

Commitment to Quality

2012-01-09T09:58:00.000-08:00

One resolution I didn't mention in my post the other day is something that's been on my mind for a while. In the next year my life is going to go through some dramatic changes. I'll be moving across the country, graduating from college, becoming financially independent, etc. etc. In this next stage in my life I have decided I want to make a commitment to quality.

This commitment stems from a few different issues that I've come across in my life. I'm tired of owning cheap clothes that pill/tear/fray after only a few washes. I am sick of going out to eat and coming home feeling lethargic from the excessive portions and questionable ingredients. I've grown weary of spending money on trinkets that are supposed to make my life happier when they only create clutter and stress. It makes me sad to think about all of the things in my life that are poorly constructed. In a way, it makes me feel unstable.

So to combat this, I've decided to make a commitment to quality in my life. When I buy clothes I want to shop brands that take care to choose good fabric and construct my garments in a way that makes them timeless. I don't want to own trendy pieces that I will tire of by the time the next season rolls around. I want my shoes and clothes to be classic pieces that I can wear time and time again. I've finally found my style so I feel comfortable buying higher-end pieces that will last years instead of weeks in my closet.

When food shopping I want to steer clear of canned and over-processed foods. When possible, I want to buy local and sustainable products. I want to buy LESS food. Less per-packaged goods like canned beans, pre-chopped vegetables, and instant rice. I want the food I eat to be whole and healthy.

When I move and furnish my new apartment or home, I want to buy quality furniture. Even if that means I can only afford one piece a month, I would rather be surrounded by a strong foundation than broken drawers and chipped particleboard. I'm tired of living in a page from an Ikea catalog.

I also want to commit to quality in my social life. I want to surround myself with people who bring me up. I want my friends to love me whether I dress up or down, wear glasses or contacts, am sad or happy, etc. Life is too short to be surrounded by anything less than unconditional love.

On that note, I want to watch my mouth. I don't want to participate in gossip or negativity. This will be difficult but the reward will be so great. I want to tone down my sarcastic comments and practice being more genuine. I want to speak up when I'm feeling overlooked. I want to find the balance of honesty and humility. When I apologize, I want it to come from my heart.

Over the next year, I will be revisiting this post frequently. There are minor and major projects I want to complete that will help contribute to the overall quality in my life. I would love it if you joined me in my commitment to quality. I'm considering making some blog buttons that can serve as little reminders of this commitment. If I made some, would you take the pledge?

xoxo
Mal

My New Years Goals

2012-01-06T18:51:00.000-08:00

Over the summer I read a truly inspirational book called The Happiness Project. After I was finished with the book I did a series of posts about actions I was taking in my own life that were geared towards making me happier. You can see my book review here and all of my happiness posts here.

Anyways, after summer ended and my life picked up pace I lost sight of my happiness project goals. To be honest, I don't really remember any of them off the top of my head anymore. That's alright because I have completely revamped my project and used the framework from the book to create my own year-long project.

I've been thinking a lot about what principles are the most important to my life and my long-term happiness and how I could translate that into quantitative goals. All of that has led me to the following 12 months of learning, growing, and happiness. Feel free to follow along with the goals I have set for myself or make your own goals and just share the experience with me!

January: Create

-paint a picture to hang in my new home
-create something to give away
-complete one knitting project

February: Build Relationships

-create a birthday calendar for friends/family (or buy one!)
-make quality time a priority (aka schedule "work days" and "social days")
-say "yes" to positive social outings

March: Simplify

-purge
-organize

April: Exercise

-Find an exercise regime that suits me
-Try a new form of exercise (or two!)
-Try to incorporate stretching or yoga into my routine at least once a week

May: Eat

-learn a new food preparation technique
-eat out at a new restaurant
-host a dinner party for good friends

June: Experience

-take a class that teaches a skill or enhances a skill
-take a trip somewhere new
-do one thing that terrifies you

July: Indulge

-enjoy a spa day (or create my own spa day)
-take off one day a week and do whatever you want to do..guilt free!

August: Finances

-Create a budget based on my current income
-Organize bill paying
-Set up a "tax station"

September: Connect

-volunteer at a kick-ass organization
-join a group (book group? knitting group? culinary group? bible study?)

October: Be Present

-do one thing at a time
-create a concrete "work space" in my home

November: Learn

-learn a new skill (rope tying? furniture building? crochet?)
-brush up on my French
-watch two classic movies a week
-read at least two books

December: Plan for the future

-develop a better way to keep track of my bucket list
-set goals for next year

Of course, there are a few overreaching goals I'd like to accomplish this year.

One project I want to do throughout my year is a little something I saw over on Bri's blog. Each night before I go to bed I'm going to write down my favorite part of the day. I think it's going to be a really wonderful memory for me someday and a great reminder to focus on the positive in life.

As usual, I want to set a reading challenge for myself. I'm going to try to read 30 books before my birthday. I have a pretty good start so I'm confident that I can do it!

I know I'll end up adding more goals to this list and elaborating on the meaning behind some of them but I wanted to get a preliminary list up so you all can follow along. I'm also sure that this plan will evolve as my year progresses but I'm happy to have the basic blueprint set up and ready to go.

xoxo
Mal

2011 in review: July - December

2012-01-05T14:22:00.000-08:00

I missed a day yesterday so I'm going to double up and recap my last 6 months of 2011 in this post :). Let's kick things off with July!

July

(there is a great story behind this picture. I'll have to give that its own post!)

I was still on my mini-vacation with my mom in Ohio at the beginning of the month. We celebrated 4th of July there with some fireworks and way too much food. When I got back to Chicago, I painted my apartment (with a little bit of help from my roommate) and moved into my new bedroom. I spent most of this month renovating my apartment and I had a BLAST doing so. I still need to post the pictures of my apartment tour :).

August

This month was really fun. I spent a fair amount of time exploring Chicago which is SUCH a great place to be. I visited the Graceland cemetery, took pictures of the Marilyn Monroe statue, and stopped by the Vietnam memorial. I spent lots of time outside soaking up the weather before school started.

September

Looking back at my pictures from September I notice that I spent the whole month cooking! I also got a new job at United Colors of Benetton and started my last year of college. As usual, I went to the Renegade craft fair and came home with a really great letterpress poster.

October

I TURNED 21!!! I had a really busy birthday month but a good one nonetheless. To celebrate my birthday I had a pancake party and went to a few bars. I didn't go out for Halloween this year because I was so exhausted from the past two months of work, school, and my internship.

November

The only thing that stands out to me from November was coming home for Thanksgiving. It was the first time I'd been home since May and it was the most relaxing week I'd had in a while.

December

My last month of 2011 was busy with finals, Christmas shopping, and work. I came home for Christmas and enjoyed the last few days of my year with my family.

I regret that the last few months of 2011 got so busy. October, November, and December I almost felt as though I was drowning beneath all of the work I had to get done. I stopped seeing friends and posting regularly on the blog. I spent almost all of my time alone and I'm sad that I let my schedule get the better of me. Tomorrow I'll be posting about my goals/resolutions for 2012 but I'll say right now that I'm going to do my best to keep my chin up and relax a little. Sometime I take life too seriously.

On a positive note, I had a fabulous year in 2011. I spent my summer living in Chicago which was an experience I wouldn't trade for the world. I had two different internships, built some forever-friendships, and even met a few blog friends! I feel like I grew up a lot this year and learned even more about myself.

Thanks for sticking around with me this year. I absolutely love this blog and the creative outlet it provides for me. I can't wait to spend this next year with all of you :)!!

xoxo
Mal

2011 in review: April - June

2012-01-03T16:57:00.000-08:00

Moving right along in my review of 2011, we have....

April

I started cooking a lot more and as the frigid Chicago weather held on. I celebrated Easter with my brother and his girlfriend and left my job at this cute boutique near my apartment. I started looking for a summer internship and was hired at FanFueled!

May

I went home for the first time in five months and enjoyed some downtime with my family. I celebrated the end of my second year in college and went to my first farmer's market in Chicago. I also sewed a cute skirt that I ended up wearing all summer!

June

I dyed my hair blonde again and went on a mini-vacation with my mom. I experienced a bit of Chicago's summer events (A Taste of Chicago and The Blues Festival) and ate at The Chicago Diner (YUM!).

I'll be back tomorrow with July - September :).

xoxo
Mal

2011 in review: January - March

2012-01-02T17:09:00.000-08:00

This week is dedicated to a celebration of the new year. Today through Thursday I'll be doing a recap of 2011 and on Friday I have a post about my goals for this coming year. If you left me a link to your survey from yesterday I checked out your posts. I loved all of your sweet comments and got irrationally excited that most of you watch the same TV shows and read the same books as me. You guys are the best.

So without further adieu, let's look back at the first three months of last year!!

January

I had a really relaxed start to my year last year. While I was still on vacation I made some tamales at a family friend's home and celebrated my little brother's 15th birthday. I headed back to Chicago to work for a bit before school started and even worked up the energy to go out with my friends a bit.

February

On the blog in February I hosted a month of love. I had a great time and had some wonderful guest posts to help me celebrate. In my real life, I spent time in Lake Forest with my brother (grilling before the Superbowl), got some yummmmy burgers for Valentines day, and explored the Field Museum. I also got the chance to visit two of my best friends in Indiana.

March

In March I celebrated St. Patrick's day with the rest of the green crowd in Chicago. I got to see lots of people because my friend Katie visited me, then my mom was in town, and I got a chance to watch one of my brother's Rugby games in Lake Forest. March was a really eventful month for me!

Tomorrow I'll be back with April, May, and June :). I hope you all have a wonderful evening!

xoxo
Mal

2011 Recap

2012-01-01T16:06:00.000-08:00

Ahhhh 2011. This past year has been pretty crazy for me. The past two years I've filled out the same end of year survey so I thought I'd fill it out again. Maybe someday I can look back at a whole bunch of them and see how much I've changed (or stayed the same!).

1. What is your name and what's your blog name, if you have one?

Malori, Sunday Morning Sugar

2. Where do you live? City, State? If you could live anywhere where would it be?

Right now I live in Chicago, Illinois. I am moving in five months so I actually have the choice to live anywhere I want. I'd love to live in California either in San Diego, San Francisco, or Los Angeles. Guess we'll see where I end up!!

3. Where do you work? What's your job title? Do you love your job?
I work for United Colors of Benetton and my official title is "sales associate". I wouldn't say I LOVE my job but I work with some wonderful people so I definitely enjoy it (most days).

4. If you could work anywhere or do anything what would it be?
This is another question I'm having to answer right now with graduation fast-approaching. If I could find a job in marketing doing strategic planning I would be a pretty happy girl!

5. What are you reading right now?
Right now I'm reading a few books. I just started Jodi Picoult's Nineteen Minutes and I'm also working my way through One Flew Over the Cukoo's Nest.

6. What are you listening to?
I really haven't been listening to much music recently. Jason Derulo's "It Girl" is stuck in my head but so is Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song!

7. Guilty Pleasure?
Hmm.... I've been pretty smitten with Endangered Species' Raspberry Dark Chocolate this year.

8. Name your TV shows:
Recently I've been watching Burn Notice, Dexter, Two Broke Girls, Modern Family, and Friends.

9. What is one thing you do every day?
Eat a yummy breakfast!

10. Name the best movie(s) of the year:
Yikes!! I really didn't see too many movies this year. I saw The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo last night and thought it was FABULOUS. I also recently saw The Fighter so I'll throw that on this list as well.

11. What do you like to do for fun?

I love to cook! I can spend hours in my kitchen making a dinner. I've also been enjoying grabbing a drink with friends since I turned 21. Ah, I'm getting old.

12. Do you have Twitter?
Right here!

13. What was your favorite gift that you gave or received this year?
I got a kick-ass present for my friend Ben this year so I'd say that's my favorite gift that I gave. The best gift I received was time in the Arizona sunshine with my family. If we're talking material gifts then I'm pretty pumped up about my new ice cream maker!

14. What's on your bedside table?
A few books, an ipod speaker, my cell phone, chapstick, a dish for my jewelry, and a fun lamp I found at a thrift store.

If you'd like to read last year's survey, click here. You can see my survey from two years ago by clicking here.

If any of you grab this survey to fill out I'd love to see it so link up :). If you don't blog, feel free to fill out the survey and leave it in the comments. It's so fun to get to know my readers.'

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!

Christmas Eve Fashion

2011-12-26T17:23:00.000-08:00

I love being home because I can force my family to take fashion post pictures for me. On Christmas eve we always go to an afternoon service at church and then get dinner as a family. This year we went to PF Changs for dinner and I had my little brother snap some photos of my outfit. I also took a few pictures of him because he was looking pretty fresh. Consider this a joint fashion post!

On me:
sunglasses: Ray Ban
dress: United Colors of Benetton
shoes: Steve Madden

I just realized you can see my bra through that dress. Check me out...keepin' it classy on the eve of Jesus's birthday.

On Sean:
Not really sure! But how good does he look!?

Do you have any traditions for Christmas eve or Christmas? Did you enjoy your holiday? I know that I did!!

xoxo
Mal

Merry Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T09:41:00.000-08:00

It is tradition in my family to make and decorate sugar cookies for Christmas every year. We have a kick-ass recipe passed down to us from a good friend of my grandpa and we usually just use store-bought icing (is that cheating?). Anyways, this year we got a little ambitious and decided to bake a LOT more than just our regular sugar cookies. In the end, we rolled up a batch of buckeyes (also tradition), tons of sugar cookies, some peanut butter and Hershey kiss cookies, and some of this bark.

One of my oldest and best best friends Kristina came over to chat while we cooked and she helped my older brother decorate the sugar cookies. It's so fun to bake with friends!

(my mom made the peanut butter kiss cookies and they turned out soo well!!)

(whiskey bacon bark)

Today is going to be filled with church, yummy dinner, some fancy clothes, and lots of family. Happy Christmas Eve everyone!!!!!!!

xoxo
Mal

Christmas in the City

2011-12-21T13:53:00.000-08:00

Chicago is a really fun city around the holidays. From the Macy's window displays to the lights strung on the trees lining the sidewalks there are countless ways to enjoy the holiday spirit. I thought it might be fun to share some peeks into my day-to-day life now that it's peppered with holiday fun!

my Christmas tree making my living room sparkle

the first snowfall

wrapping presents with fabric scrap bows and kraft paper

lights on the sidewalks that play Christmas music all day and night

the Christmas tree in front of the John Hancock Tower

But today I'll be saying goodbye to all of Chicago's Christmas festivities. I'm on my way home to Arizona to spend time in the sunshine with my family and old friends. I'm so excited to finish my Christmas shopping, knit up a storm, read for hours on end, and take a break from work/school/life.

Are any of you traveling for the holidays? I'd love to hear about your plans!

xoxo
Mal

WINTER BREAKKKK

2011-12-15T08:40:00.000-08:00

Who's done with finals?! THIS GIRL. My god has this semester been a trying time for me. Like I vaguely mentioned in my last post, I've had some events in my personal life that have been tough on me. I also worked at an internship, had a full 18-credit-hour schedule of classes, and worked part time at United Colors of Benetton. I had a few breakdowns. You know, the ones where you can't find a paper clip and start crying hysterically? But most of that is over now--FOR A WHOLE MONTH! I'll be in Chicago for another week(ish) working then I'm heading home for a while to spend time with my family and the sunshine in Arizona.

(that's a picture of me being done with finals)

Let's just say that I desperately need a break.

In order to really take advantage of my break time, I thought I'd set up a few fun challenges for myself now that school is out. I know a lot of you might not get a winter break (and this is probably my last one) so feel free to play along even if life isn't slowing down for you right now.

Winter Break Goals:

1) Read for pleasure. I already pulled four books off of my shelf to take home with me. I love nothing more than snuggling down in front of a fire and getting my read on. Let's see if I can finish all of the books I'm taking home!

2) Have (at least) two sleepovers with childhood friends (Kristina and Mattie, I'm looking at you!) When I was little I was all about the sleepover. They're just so much fun. Now that I'm a sort-of-grown-up my sleepovers can involve booze and well-made food. Obviously this is something that should make a comeback.

3) Cross some restaurants off of my list. Since I left Arizona they've been doing some awesome things in the foodie world. I've started making a list of the places I need to try while I'm home and there's really no excuse to not.

4) Photograph something cool with my dad. Vague? Yes. But still something I want to do. My dad and I are both learning how to use our cameras the right way (he's learning much faster than me) and I love taking pictures with him when I have the chance. There's so much beauty in Arizona. Maybe we can capture some of it!

5) Take a day trip to Prescott. Why? It's just pretty cute up there. Danielle of Sometimes Sweet lives there so if you follow her blog I'm sure you've seen little peeks of her cute little town.

6) Take a day trip to Sedona. I love Sedona. It's a pretty quick drive to get there and the red rocks are gorgeous. I think it would be a lot of fun to walk around for the day and take some neat pictures.

7) Cook meals for my family. When I'm at school I cook a lot (as I'm sure you've noticed. Especially if you follow me on twitter) but when I go home I almost never cook. Part of the reason is my mom and brothers are EXTREMELY picky when it comes to their food but the other reason is simply that I wasn't confident enough to cook for a crowd. This year I'm going to try and plan some meals and overcome that fear!

8) Get a little shitty with old friends. I know a lot of bloggers don't drink but I do. I don't drink often and I rarely get drunk but I think the holidays and having a designated driver at your service is the perfect time to do that. It's going to be a little classy and a little trashy and a lot of fun.

9) Update my resume and make some post-graduation decisions. I've been putting this off for a while but it's time to get the ball rolling on my future. I don't have much time to figure things out!

10) Knit something fun. I have not knit in so long. It's about time. I think I might try to make this scarf I saw on Rae over at Eclectic Heap. We met up for some tea a couple weeks ago and she told me how to make it so I'm pretty excited about it :)!

I'm sure I'll come up with more goals because even in my down time I don't like to be lazy. How about all of you? Any big plans for the holiday season?

xoxo
Mal

Feeling Blue

2011-12-12T11:06:00.000-08:00

With the recent change in weather, some changes in my personal life, and lots of stress courtesy of school and work I've been feeling hopelessly sad. If you've been reading for a while you may have heard me mention my struggles with sadness in the past. Sometimes things seem rather overwhelming and right now I'm feeling a bit trapped. I've been struggling with a serious lack of motivation to meet deadlines or show up for friends. When I'm home I watch hours of TV or surf the internet instead of being creative or active. My sadness pours me into this scary cycle where I have no motivation to improve my mood so I keep feeling lower and lower.

Luckily (or unluckily?), I've been through this many times before and I've learned some quick ways to pull myself out of a funk. I know I'm not the only one who struggles with this so I figured I'd share my home remedies to the blues.

1) Exercise. It's SO difficult to convince myself to go downstairs to my building's work out room but after I work out I always feel SO much better. It may sound dramatic but even as little as 20 minutes on the bike can give me an entirely new outlook on life. Plus, it's just so good for you to be active. I've been in a dancing mood recently so when I feel blue I'm going to start turning on some music and dancing a bit.

2) Write it down. I have always found great relief in putting my thoughts down on paper. I have kept a journal for nearly 10 years now and whenever I'm feeling like this I give myself time to write about it. Sometimes just the process of letting those sad thoughts out is enough to give me a bit of a boost.

3) Surround yourself with good friends. When I'm feeling depressed the absolute last thing I want to do is see or talk to anyone. But when I cut myself off from the people who love me the most I just feel worse. No matter how badly I want to stay in and wallow in my sadness, I try to make it a point to go out and see the people who put a smile on my face. It also helps to talk to someone. Don't keep your emotions bottled up!

4) Dress to impress. Another sign of my depression is when I contemplate wearing sweatpants outside. I've always found a direct correlation to the time and care I put into my appearance and the way I feel about myself. It's just really hard to be sad when you're wearing sequins and pretty heels. This may be totally superficial but it works.

5) Breathe. When things get really tough for me I notice that I am holding my breath, literally. I also notice that I grind my teeth like crazy. When I catch myself holding my breath I do a little breathing exercise that I learned in high school. Wanna learn? Take a slow breath in for ten seconds, hold it for ten seconds, then exhale for ten seconds. Do this three times. I have no idea what sort of sort of black magic happens when you do this but it always leaves me feeling about a thousand times more relaxed. Give it a try!

As for me, I'm going to do my best to get out of this funk. The holiday season should be a happy and exciting season--not one for the blues! What do you do when you find yourself feeling sad? I'd love to hear any suggestions you have.

xoxo
Mal

2011-12-11T08:28:00.000-08:00

“Love is a temporary disease” (the French opinion on the idea of "love") -The Culture Code

A Touch of Evil

2011-12-08T08:30:00.000-08:00

Today is a day off for me. Of course I have lots of things to do such as pick up groceries, make a target run, and finish some of my final projects. But I am going to give myself a real day off by putting my cell phone on silent and enjoying some quality Malori time.

Before I tune off for the day, I thought I'd leave you with a really cool set of videos that will help you kill some time. The NY Times filmed a series of creepy shorts with some of this year's best talent. Check them out here.

My favorites are Viola Davis, Mara Rooney, and Mia Wasikowska, though they are are really creepy.

Do I live under a pop culture rock for not knowing most of the actors in these clips? Yikes! Looks like I need to get myself to a movie theater.

In the meantime, enjoy!

Gift Guide: Foodie Edition

2011-12-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

I've never really posted gift guides before but this year I decided to take the plunge. After all, I'd like to think I have pretty good taste (don't we all like to think that about ourselves?) and maybe I can give one of you an idea of a great gift for someone special in your life. The first installment of this series is a gift guide for the foodie in your life!

Affordable ($25 or less):

1. Moo Cow Timer ($7)
2. The Mozza Cookbook ($25)
3. Set of 6 Lotus Bowls ($25)

Mid-Range ($100 or less):

1.Manni Extra Virgin Olive Oil Set ($80)
2. Johnathon Adler Mr. & Mrs. Salt and Pepper Shakers ($48) I have these and LOVE them!!
3. Whiskey Stones & Gift Set ($58)

Luxe (the sky is the limit!):

1. A Kitchenaid stand mixer. Anyone who loves to cook has this on their wishlist (if they don't already own it) ($300)
2. Schmidt Brothers 15 piece downtown block ($200)
3. Billion Dollar Popcorn (made with flecks of GOLD) ($200/gallon)

xoxo
Mal

Acorn Squash Pizza

2011-12-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite celeb chefs is Giada DeLaurentiis. I love her show, Everyday Italian, and can't even count how many of her wonderful recipes I've whipped up since I started cooking. Italian food is one of my all-time favorite foods so it's not a surprise that I love her so much!

The other day I was watching Giada while I was working out and she made this delicious-looking pizza. On my way home from work the next day I picked up the ingredients and tried to make the pizza for myself. The verdict? IT WAS DELICIOUS.

First, look how cute acorn squash is. The scalloped shape on the edges gives the cut squash a flower-like look that I love. I would eat it just for that!

Secondly, the fresh arugula on top looks heavenly and tastes just as good.

Finally, the combination of cheese gives this pizza the most unique flavor. I ended up eating wayy too much of it and falling into a bit of a food coma for the rest of the night... Be warned!

Before moving to Chicago I don't think I've ever really eaten squash. Now it's one of my favorite things. Acorn, butternut, spaghetti, or just plain yellow squash--whichever way you spin it, I'm a fan! Do you have any great squash recipes I should try!?

It is cold here

2011-12-05T13:07:00.000-08:00

Well it looks like the real cold is starting to settle in here in Chicago.

Weather like this makes me crave warm drinks, fuzzy blankets, silly socks, and classic movies. Tonight I'm going to (hopefully) meet up with Miss. Rae and I am so excited.

Right now I'm killing time between classes sipping on a peppermint mocha at Starbucks. The most delicious zillion calories I'll consume all day, if you ask me :). I hope you're staying warm wherever you are!

xoxo
Mal

Photoshoots with friends

2011-12-03T08:50:00.000-08:00

Happy December everyone! I'm having trouble believing that in two more weeks my second to last semester of college will be over. Where does the time go - honestly? This semester has been so so busy for me but I have managed to find some time to do fun things. One of those things was a photoshoot with my darling friend, Emiley Smith. You may remember back in this post I noted that I have some really talented friends. Emiley and I have been friends since 6th grade and we both ended up at Columbia College together. She's actually the reason I knew Columbia existed!

Anyways, her model for a lighting project dropped out last minute and she asked me fill in. I get really shy when people are taking my picture but it ended up being such a fun night. After all, how many 21-year-olds get to play dress-up and not feel crazy about doing so? I hope I get the chance to work with Em again in the future, she's fabulous!

xoxo
Mal

Double Chocolate Pomegranate Cookies

2011-11-30T09:17:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I saw the recipe for these double chocolate pomegranate cookies on Dana's blog. I immediately knew that I NEEDED to try them out. So I went out and bought the stuff and got started...

Before this I had never bought and de-seeded a real pomegranate before. I used to think it was so intimidating and time-consuming but I'm here to say that I was wrong! It's really easy and only took about 5 minutes. Totally worth the money saved!

All I have to say is that you need to make these immediately. They are so so ridiculously wonderful--words can't even describe.

This recipe is officially one of my all-time favorites for cookies. They are SO incredibly moist and the little bursts of pomegranate in every bite make my heart happy. The only change I made was to the amount of chocolate chips. If you want to make these Malori-style use 1 1/2 cups of chocolate chips and use half semi-sweet and half dark chocolate chips.

Enjoy!

Pomegranate

2011-11-29T06:42:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite parts about traveling is eating in new places (or old favorites!). Every time I'm in Phoenix I make it a point to hit a few key restaurants and one of those is Pomegranate. It's an organic, vegetarian place with great branding, an adorable atmosphere, and some really unique desserts.

The dish I always used to order is no longer on the menu (heartbreak!!!) so I branched out a tried something a little different. I was not disappointed.

My dish was called The Dragon Bowl and was full of a wide array of fresh, stir-fried veggies and tofu. Does anyone know what those greens on top were? They were awesome! Underneath those were veggies like yellow squash, zucchini, bright and colorful bell peppers, slivers of perfectly cooked onion, and quinoa (which isn't a veggie but is definitely worth a mention). It's also worth noting that their tofu always has a wonderful texture to it.

If you're in Phoenix I would really recommend this spot for a cute breakfast or lunch. They also have awesome iced tea (I always get the pomegranate green tea) and killer "cowgirl" cookies. I'm not sure what they put in those cookies but one of the ingredients is probably crack/cocaine because I am addicted...

Do you have any restaurants that you love to visit when you go home? (Assuming you live away from home!)

Thanksgiving

2011-11-28T04:12:00.000-08:00

This year my family's Thanksgiving was really low-key. It has recently become a tradition for my dad and I to prepare dinner while my older brother lounges around, my mama runs in a turkey trot 10k race, and my little brother sleeps in. It's one of my favorite things to do with my dad. Everything from building the menu to grocery shopping to executing the meal on the big day makes me so happy!

(our table)

Since there are only five people in my family, we kept the menu pretty small. We made the classics like mashed potatoes, candied yams, stuffing, and green bean casserole. We also made some unusual recipes like a wild rice dish with mushrooms and cranberries. It was a really delicious dinner. I didn't take any pictures of the food but I did manage to grab one of the Turkey (thanks dad!).

For dessert I decided to go the less traditional route and make a Pear Crumble with Pomegranate Sauce. Kelsey Nixon is one of my absolute favorite celeb chefs and this recipe from her did not let me down. It was delicious! The best part is that it was light enough that even after eating far too much at dinner I enjoyed having that sweet bite of crumble :).

For my American readers, how did you spend your Thanksgiving? I hope it was a wonderful day!

xoxo
Mal

Facts about Women

2011-11-27T09:47:00.000-08:00

“Fifteen to eighteen percent of girls under twelve now wear mascara, eyeliner and lipstick regularly; eating disorders are up and self-esteem is down; and twenty-five percent of young American women would rather win America’s Next Top Model than the Nobel Peace Prize. Even bright, successful college women say they’d rather be hot than smart. A Miami mom just died from cosmetic surgery, leaving behind two teenagers. This keeps happening, and it breaks my heart. Teaching girls that their appearance is the first thing you notice tells them that looks are more important than anything. It sets them up for dieting at age 5 and foundation at age 11 and boob jobs at 17 and Botox at 23. As our cultural imperative for girls to be hot 24/7 has become the new normal, American women have become increasingly unhappy. What’s missing? A life of meaning, a life of ideas and reading books and being valued for our thoughts and accomplishments.” — “How To Talk To Little Girls” by Lisa Bloom.
(Via Renee Yohe)

I took a little bit of a different direction for the quote this Sunday. I found this quote earlier in the week and haven't stopped thinking about it since. I used an image of a friend of mine who is beautiful from the inside out. She is so confident and truly lives a life of meaning. I think it's comforting to know that some girls know what's up. Something to think about this Sunday!

xo
Mal

Let the festivities begin!!

2011-11-25T07:48:00.000-08:00

I had a wonderful Thanksgiving, but now that it's over I can get REALLY excited about CHRISTMAS!

YAAAAY CHRISTMAS!

xoxo
Mal

Flying!

2011-11-23T16:44:00.000-08:00

I wore this on Monday for my flight home to Phoenix. It is the sweetest sweater dress and was so comfy for the plane! It was also really fun because it felt very old-school flight attendant glam.

What do you wear when you fly?

xoxo
Mal

Thank you

2011-11-21T09:29:00.000-08:00

First I want to thank all of your for your sweet words and advice on my post about my traveling heart. I'm going to try to post a bit more often about "real" topics because I think it makes me a better blogger (and a better person!).

This week is all about saying "thank you". I'm unbelievably excited about Thanksgiving and I wanted to take this opportunity to say thanks to all of you for being so wonderful and active here on Sunday Morning Sugar. I can't even tell you how excited I am when I see your comments and when I'm reading your blogs and I see a reference to something I've written. You are all so supportive and wonderful so I want to give something back!

Over the weekend Shabby Apple asked if I would like to give one of their gorgeous dresses to one of my lucky readers. Obviously I jumped at the chance. I love love love Shabby Apple and if I had they funds I would own the vast majority of their line.

The dress I chose to give to one of you lucky ducks is this beauty....

(More images of the dress can be found here)

How do you win?! Easy as pie, my friends.

1) "Like" Shabby Apple on Facebook
2) Leave me a comment below telling me that you liked them! That's it. Be sure to include your email address in the comment so I have a way to contact you if you win.

The giveaway is open until Friday, Nov. 25!

Good Luck!

Strength

2011-11-20T07:49:00.000-08:00

"Strong people don't need strong leaders" -Ella Baker

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
I loveee Rosie the Riveter, don't you!?

Traveling Dreams

2011-11-18T18:36:00.000-08:00

Recently I've found myself feeling desperate for travel. The idea of moving to a foreign place and indulging in new food, new friends, and a new culture is fabulously appealing to me. I've found myself daydreaming about packing a single suitcase with some vintage scarfs and pretty dresses and hopping on a plane to a new adventure. Part of me wonders if this is a reptilian reaction--a way of running from my problems or escaping the reality of life after school. I've never had much interest in being a tourist but I've realized that I am extremely interesting in living in new places. The fear and excitement bundled with the rush of being surrounded by so much "new" is absolutely exhilarating. I liken the feeling to something like jumping off the high dive. You know you'll be safe and have a blast but you're frightened nonetheless; the height seems insurmountable until you just make the leap and realize it wasn't so bad after all.

I've found that the bigger my blog has become, the less personal it is. Sometimes it's difficult to share your secrets with so many strangers--whether or not it is through a computer screen. I'm struggling with my future plans and I can honestly say that I have too many options right now. As a senior in college, everyone seems to have advice for me. Some of this advice is good while some is overbearing and unnecessary. I'm at a point in my life where I need to listen to myself rather than follow the plan set forth for me by my friends, parents, and well-meaning strangers. As odd as it may seem, by forging my own path I often feel as though I'm disappointing the people around me. It is not often that you find someone so determined to listen to their heart. I'm afraid of making the wrong decision and somehow finding myself "stuck. Stuck in a meaningless job or relationship. Stuck in my hometown or a strange city. Stuck with personality flaws.

So my remedy to these fears? Apparently my heart wants to solve all of my problems by dreaming of foreign places--Effiel towers, sandy beaches, crowded markets, and old brick buildings. I dream of cobblestone streets, historic monuments, and classic art. I dream of a place where I don't know anyone and cannot speak the language. I dream of fine food with names that I cannot pronounce and I dream of the adventure that is generally accompanied by a bit of loneliness. I never used to be a dreamer. My whole life I have been proud of the fact that I am a realist. But now that life is becoming a bit too "real" for me, my dreams are pushing their way back to the surface. If I let them win, I'd be on a plane tomorrow with my single suitcase in hand.

A Walk Home in Cell Phone Pictures

2011-11-18T10:59:00.000-08:00

A few days ago the weather was beauiful so I decided to walk home from work. I thought it might be fun to document pretty pieces of that walk and share it with you.

I love this city of mine.

xoxo
Mal

How to act as a tourist in a city

2011-11-17T07:35:00.000-08:00

I think that I've lived in a city long enough now to do a post like this. For those who don't know, I live right in the heart of Chicago.

This has many benefits like instant access to amazing food, tons of fabulous shopping, and less than 5 minutes walk to all of the different L lines. In the summer I can watch parades and protests from my living room window and in less than 10 minutes I can walk to the park where countless free concerts and other events are held.

However, this prime location also has a downside. Tons of noise, constant construction (this summer they resurfaced the street outside my apartment. They did this between the hours of 11:00 pm and 5:00 am so as not to hold up traffic during the day), and tourists. The worst part is the tourist. Although tourist season is almost over, I thought I would do a post on tourist etiquette. This is my second etiquette post; you can see the first here on retail etiquette. I feel it necessary to note that these are just my opinions that I assume are shared by many individuals who live in a city. But hey, maybe I'm just a grumpy gal. Either way, read ahead for advice on how to act like a local in a city.

1) Walk Quickly: For most city dwellers, the main form of transportation is their feet. I walk or take public transit 99% of the places I go. Just as you might be frustrated driving behind a car going 10 in a 50, I am frustrated trying to edge around a person who is sauntering down the sidewalk when I'm trying to get to a meeting/work/school. Studies have shown that people who live in cities tend to walk much faster than people who live other places so do all of us a favor and step it up a notch when you're in an urban area. If you don't want to walk faster, at least check your surroundings. Often the sidewalk space is limited and if you are in a group that is sauntering and you hear someone loudly exhaling behind you they probably want to get through. Keep an eye out and be respectful of people who have places to be.

2) If you want to take pictures, move to the side of the sidewalk: As if the slow walking isn't frustrating enough, tourists LOVE to STOP WALKING suddenly and take a million photos. And you know what? I want you to take your pictures too, but follow these guidelines next time you see a great photo-op.

Step One: Move to the side of the walkway/path/road/etc. Do not just stop moving and completely block the flow of traffic. I have slammed into too many people to count because they simply stopped moving. It's awkward and makes me look like an ass. Pay attention!

Step Two: If you're taking a group picture, make sure your group isn't blocking the entire walkway. This is just as bad as stopping unexpectedly.

That's it! Just make sure there is room for people to get past you. It might not seem like a big deal but it gets really frustrating after a while having to dodge large groups of tourists organizing themselves into cheesy poses while they wear matching T-shirts (WE LOVE CHI-TOWN 2011!!).

3) Mind your business on the train/bus: Nova Rella has done a few posts about this (here and here) that make me stand up at my desk and scream, SING IT SISTUH, but I'm going to touch on it anyways. For people who rely on public transportation as their main form of transit, few things are more frustrating than having their personal space invaded.

First things first, don't start small talk with people. The last thing I want to do on the train is talk about your cat and how great your Chicago vacation has been. In some situations, it even makes me nervous when strangers approach me on the train.

Another thing to avoid is excessive eye contact or touching. I get that it is a cramped space and touching is unavoidable, but when I get off the train and some handsy guy thinks its fun to grab my ass it becomes a situation. Excessive eye contact is also awkward. Keep your eyes on the ads, the map, your book/knitting/phone/friend/etc. and off of me.

Avoid PDA, it's disgusting. The weird thing about this is generally it's older people who have an issue keeping their hands and tongues to themselves. I don't want to sound like a brat but I have NO interest in watching two middle-aged people go at it on the train. It grosses me out just as much as seeing two twelve-year old kids shoving their tongues down each others throats. If you want to grope your loved one, take a cab and don't make me watch it. Perhaps I'm just bitter about this because I'm single, who knows? Either way, knock it off.

4) Ask for directions: If you're lost, please don't stand in the middle of the sidewalk with a giant map looking concerned. In Chicago, most people are REALLY friendly and will give you directions if you ask. I've heard that New Yorkers aren't so quick to help but here in Chicago we'll do our best to point you in the right direction. I'm usually really flattered when people ask me because to me that means I look like I live here--which I do!

That's it. The four tips you should know when you're visiting my city. I suppose the cool thing to do would be to put together a real tourist guide for Chicago with my favorite restaurants, stores, and tourists spots. Perhaps I'll do that next :).

xoxo
Mal

Stuffed Peppers

2011-11-16T07:26:00.000-08:00

One of my absolute favorite things to eat is a stuffed pepper. I recently found a recipe for "grain and garbanzo stuffed peppers" over on Fresh365 (which is one of the best food blogs out there). Let me just emphasize how ridiculously delicious these were. I just made a few changes to my recipe from Erin's so read on to make some really wonderful dinner for yourself.

Stuffed Bell Peppers
slightly adapted from Fresh 365

What you need:
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup uncooked white rice
3 large bell peppers (I used red)
2 tsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 small squash, chopped
2 tsp thyme leaves
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, quartered
3 T tomato paste
15.5-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 c crumbled feta cheese

I followed the directions for preparation over on Fresh365 so head over there for the end of the recipe :)!

I found that the recipe makes a lot more filling than will fit in the peppers but that's okay because it's delicious all by itself! I've considered making another round of filling just to eat as a snack :)!

If you like stuffed peppers, this is for you.

xoxo
Mal

I got a facelift

2011-11-15T08:56:00.000-08:00

Hey hey hey!

Notice anything different around here? I sure do! Sunday Morning Sugar got a little facelift over the weekend :). I'm still working on ironing out the kinks (like putting my "follow" buttons back up) but I'm thrilled with the new design.

As you may or may not know, I'm really code-challenged so, of course, there's no way I could have done this on my own. The fabulous Steven Andrew dealt with all of my crazy requests and turned my vision (which was vague, to say the least) into this lovely new design for my blog. He made this based of of my request for "simple, red, and I like stripes" along with a couple pintrest images of ice cream and a wedding. Needless to say, he did a fantastic job translating my insanity into a great design :).

He is the sweetest thing, works quickly, and makes it easy for you to make adjustments to the design as he works through it. I cannot recommend his services enough. He's working on building a portfolio right now so he's designing blogs FOR FREE.

So the moral of the story is that you should all check out Steven's blog ASAP and if you need design work, he's your guy!

In case you missed the other links, you can find him RIGHT HERE!

xoxoo
Mal

Old Goals, New Accomplishments

2011-11-14T08:52:00.000-08:00

My birthday passed a while ago but I never got the chance to do a post about my goals from last year. I also haven't had a chance to post about my birthday cake so we'll see when I get around to making that post! Anywayss....

(makin' wishes for the future!)

What's funny about these goals is that I really didn't complete too many of them. Not too far after my birthday I realized that I could graduate a year early if I put in the time/work so my schedule and goals drastically changed leaving less time for things like quilting and keeping up with my etsy store.

1) Read 25 Books
2) Sell 20 Handmade Items (4)
3) knit or crochet a blanket
4) Do one DIY from my bookmarks every month (aka 12 DIYs) (1), 2, 3, 4
5) write down one prayer a day
6) Participate in 12 activities that are out of my comfort zone
7) Spin a skein of my own yarn
8) Finish two embroidery projects
9) fill a sketchbook
10) sew something cute and fabulous in my spare time
11) Food Journal for One Month
12) Find a cute way to keep track of the completion of these goals
13) reach 250 blog followers
14) Save $1000
15) Come up with 5 original recipes and share them on the blog
16) Paint 5 pictures
17) Make a Quilt
18) Host two giveaways on blog
19) Start offering sponsorships on blog
20) Take two cooking classes
21) crochet something from a pattern

Bonus Goals
1) Advertise Sunday Morning Sugar on a high traffic blog.
2) Start making a bucket list

I don't want to do a whole rundown so I'll just say that I'm really proud of the things I did accomplish! The skirt I made over the summer qualifies as both "cute" and "fabulous", all of the books I read were great, and I'm shocked I was actually able to save some money even though I didn't have a job all summer. I'm so proud of meeting my blog goals such as advertising on a high traffic blog, reaching 250 followers, offering sponsorships, and posting original recipes. In addition to those goals I completed some great things that were not on my list. I had my first internship at an amazing company and a SECOND internship with another great company. I worked out consistently over the summer and got a retail job that makes me pretty happy. I learned how to cook many new things and experimented with my personal style. I made some true friends in my new city and started building professional relationships that will help me after I graduate.

So, I might not have found the time to make a quilt, but the things that did fill my days were just as enriching as any quilt could ever be.

Do any of you make yearly or monthly goals for yourself? I always like to see how other approach this or if it's just me being the crazy planner that I am.

I'll be back later with details about next year's goals. I'm changing up my format a big from previous years but I think it is going to yield much more successful results.

xoxo
Mal

Literary Infatuation

2011-11-13T06:31:00.000-08:00

“When he spoke himself, it was in complete paragraphs. If you listened closely it was possible to hear the dashes and commas in his speech, even the colons and semicolons.” -Middlesex

(weheartit)

xoxo
Mal

Turkey, Apple, Bacon Grilled Cheese

2011-11-10T05:53:00.000-08:00

I'm still on that grilled cheese kick. It has been going strong for...about a year now. So when I stumbled across a recipe for this turkey, apple, bacon grilled cheese on Gojee the other day I knew I had to make it immediately.

I had all of the ingredients on hand (don't you just love when that happens?) so not only was this sandwich delicious and filling, it was also FREE!

Want to make your own? Head on over here for the full recipe. Again, I can promise you that you will not be disappointed!

xoxo
Mal

Wreaths, I hate them

2011-11-09T08:28:00.000-08:00

Fun fact: I hate wreaths. I'm not sure what it is about them but I usually just feel like they're tacky... Tell me I'm not the only one who feels this way? Anyways, imagine my surprise when I saw this collection of wreaths from Sur La Table and fell in LOVE. My favorite is the rosemary and bay wreath (its edible!) but all of these are just gorgeous. If I was allowed to hang things on my door I'd pick one of these up ASAP.

These kind of have me in a holiday mood. I'll admit that I'm dying to set up my Christmas decorations but I'm holding out until after Thanksgiving...or at least trying to!!

You can see the rest of the wreaths here.

xoxo
Mal

Saturday Stripes

2011-11-08T17:33:00.000-08:00

Over the weekend I had some fun with one of the trends from this season -- over the knee socks. I found this pair of socks in my drawer and realized that I had never actually worn them out. Generally I pair these bad boys with some old gym shorts and a T-shirt. If that's not style I don't know what is ;).

glasses: SEE
scarf: Urban Outfitters
top: Forever 21
cardigan: Gap
skirt: Nordstrom
socks: Target
shoes: Steve Madden

I can tell that this trend is going to be a favorite of mine. I want to buy a few more pairs in varying lengths and colors so I can play with them.

Have any of you rocked the over-knee socks? How do you feel about them?

xoxo
Mal

The Water

2011-11-06T17:11:00.000-08:00

“They say that people who live next to waterfalls don’t hear the water” -Everything is Illuminated

Source: tumblr.com via M on Pinterest

xoxo
Mal

Egg in a hole grilled cheese

2011-11-05T07:15:00.000-07:00

Today I am in Lake Forest with my whole family. It's been such a long time since we were all together - living across the country will do that to you. Today is the last home game is my brother's college football career and is also parent weekend. I'm excited to watch the game with my little brother who will be making inappropriate comments while stringing together explanations of the game with profanities. The kid is a little crazy.

I know I've been absent this week but school has gotten pretty crazy. I'm working on two pretty substantial projects that are due Monday and Wednesday of this coming week so hopefully after that I'll be back to full force here :).

Before I head out to the game, I thought I would leave you with a recipe to a perfect fall lunch - Egg in a hole grilled cheese.

The process is pretty easy; cut a hole out of each side of your bread and fry eggs into it then make your grilled cheese like normal. I added some prosciutto to mine because I loveeee prosciutto and because the recipe calls for it but if you don't eat meat you could definitely leave that part out.

Want to make your own? Head over here for the recipe. They're addicting. Don't say I didn't warn you.

xoxo
Mal

That's so Fashion

2011-11-02T07:22:00.000-07:00

I have always wanted to find a way to bring you more fashion posts so I'm doing my best to harass friends and family into snapping some photos for me.

This is the outfit I wore to run around to thrift stores on my birthday. It was comfortable but dressy enough to make me feel special on my big day! When we went out to dinner that evening I swapped my boots for some sassy heels. Such an easy transition between day and night.

glasses: SEE
dress: Top Shop
tights: Nordstrom Rack
boots: Steve Madden

xoxo
Mal

Zucchini Chips

2011-11-01T18:37:00.000-07:00

I love zucchini. That's something you might not know about me. I think it's pretty great and I usually can't resist a recipe where the headlining ingredient is one of these little guys. So, its no surprise that when I came across zucchini chips I immediately knew I needed to try it.

Again, I made this meal on an evening where I was running low on food and trying to use up leftover things in my cabinet! I'm telling you guys, sometimes the yummiest things come from leftovers.

So here's how you make this magic in your own kitchen:
(original recipe found here)

ingredients:

1/4 cup dry breadcrumbs
1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated fresh Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons fat-free milk
2 1/2 cups (1/4-inch-thick) slices zucchini (about 2 small)
Cooking spray

the method behind the madness:

Preheat oven to 425°.

Combine first 5 ingredients in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Place milk in a shallow bowl. Dip zucchini slices in milk, and dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Place coated slices on an ovenproof wire rack coated with cooking spray; place rack on a baking sheet. Bake at 425° for 30 minutes or until browned and crisp. Serve immediately.

I didn't have an oven rack so I just cooked them on a regular pan and flipped them a few times during their cooking. I imagine they would have been a bit crisper if I had the right tools but I'm not made of money (and I'm out of space in my tiny kitchen). All in all I'd say these bad boys were very tasty!

Let me know if you give them a try.

xoxo
Mal

Giveaway WInners and Shop my Closet

2011-10-31T07:41:00.000-07:00

This post is a littttle bit scattered so...

First things first..

Source: google.com via Lori on Pinterest

HAPPY HALLOWEEEEEN!
Did you go out over the weekend or do you have plans tonight? Do you look forward to this day all year or did you avoid people in costumes like the plague? I'd love to hear about your adventures and costumes!!

winners!
At the beginning of October I posted a giveaway and I never had the chance to announce the winners--yikes! So I'll kick off this post with that announcement :).

The Much Love, Illy Prize goes to...
Jasmin

The Studs and Pearls prize goes to...
Sharmaine Ruth

The Kate's Irrelevant prize goes to...
Brlacincwgrl

And the winner of my garland is...
Grey Sky Saturday

If you ladies contact me we'll sort out the details of shipping and all that fun stuff. Thanks so much to everyone who entered :)!!

Moving right along...

shop my closet

I've been trying to clean and de-clutter my life and I finally found the time to go through my closet a seriously purge. I ended up getting rid of some of my favorite pieces because even though I love them they truly don't fit anymore. That's sad news for me, but great news for you because I also found the time to post a "Shop the Sugar" site where you can buy my clothes! Shipping is only $5 per pop and if you purchase more than one item I'd be happy to combine them and only charge you once for shipping. Prices are firm but fair (everything is less than $25) and the $5 shipping only applies to the U.S.

Happy Shopping!!

xoxo
Mal

Recovery

2011-10-30T10:12:00.000-07:00

“All art is a series of recoveries from the first line. The hardest thing to do is to put down the first line. But you must” -A Whack on the Side of the Head

(source)

xoxo
Mal

I'm too busy

2011-10-28T20:16:00.000-07:00

The other day an article titled "13 Signs You’re Too Busy" popped up in my inbox. After reading the 13 signs and realizing that all 13 of them were a problem in my life I started to think that it might be time to reevaluate how I'm living.

Source: 27.media.tumblr.com via Maria on Pinterest

For those who are new around here, I'll get you up to speed on my schedule. I work two days a week at an internship, am enrolled in 18 credit hours at school (all but one are major-specific classes), and I work part time for United Colors of Benetton. I frequently work/go to school 7 days a week and occasionally I have days when I work at both my internship and at Benetton.

I'm sure some of you are rolling your eyes and saying something like "just wait till you have kids/a real job" but I'm feeling pretty overwhelmed right now and I'm finding that the overall quality in my life is going down. When I spend time with friends I don't have a good time because I feel guilty not getting my work done. When I stay in on a Friday to do homework I am distracted because I'm very aware that this is my last year of college and I should try to be more social. At Benetton I'm often so stressed about homework that I have a tough time being a good salesperson and when I'm at my internship I'm constantly making to-do lists of tasks that must be done ASAP. Being this busy is just making me care less about the important things in life.

I wanted to sum this up by saying something like "I have a great plan to fix all of my problems and life is full of rainbows and butterflies" but I'm not really sure on this one! So I'm turning to all of you :). When you get TOO busy, how do you solve them problem? Generally my solution is to schedule everything so that I don't feel guilty going out even though I have homework. But sometimes scheduling every minute of your life can just make downtime feel even more stressful!

Help! How do you all take it easy in the midst of a busy busy busy life?

xoxo
Mal

A Music Post - Shaggwell... Shagg-very-well!

2011-10-26T07:13:00.000-07:00

When you go to an art school you end up meeting some really talented people. For example, I have a friend named Shelby that I met in one of my fashion classes that makes some of the most amazing garments I've ever seen. Sistuh is going places. Another friend of mine is a really talented photographer and I've been lucky enough to know her since high school (Hey Emiley!). Even though those ladies are wonderful, this post is not for them. This post is about Shaggwell...

(image via facebook taken by Aimee Reatherford)

One of my favorite friends here in Chicago formed a band with some guys he met in his classes last semester. What started out as a few talented students getting together to play great music turned into these same guys recording their first EP and now playing gigs around my wonderful city.

I had the pleasure of going to their first live show over the weekend and was blown away by their incredible sound. After the band finished their set a girl at the bar asked if they could come back and play for her birthday. Another audience member took a quiet moment between songs to shout out "Shagg-VERY-well" which was definitely my favorite quote of the evening. And the best part? They just released their EP and you can download it right here!!

I'm certain my friend will make fun of me for saying this but their tunes are great for those nights I'm home alone and need something to sing along with while I dance around my apartment.

Do yourself and your ears a favor...download Sex, Love & Progress EP.

xoxo
Mal

Birthday Brunch

2011-10-25T06:30:00.000-07:00

This post is going to be extremely image heavy--but in my opinion those are the best kinds of posts so enjoy :).

As you all know, I turned 21 about a week ago. Ever since I came across this blog post on Cakies I KNEW what I had to do for my birthday party. As I mentioned, I went thrifting on my actual day of birth in preparation for my little soiree. I picked up some pretty dishes and containers for my birthday brunch along with some ingredients for my pancakes.

I ended up baking a gorgeous cake which deserves its own post and feeding all of my friends piles of pancakes. It was the perfect celebration for my birthday--low key and full of people who love me.

Because I like to give credit where it is due I'll note the following people who helped make this day happen. My friend Clinten did my hair and makeup and made me feel like an absolute princess. My roommate Megan helped me buy all the groceries and played along like a champ when I forced her to make everyone's pancakes.

Are you all ready for the pictures now!? Good, me too :).

My friend Jake has been in my life since high school. He goes to school in Illinois as well and came over to help me celebrate!

My friend Eric is really sassy.

I get a little shy when people sing happy birthday to me.

That's why I'm blushing like crazy in these pictures.

My friend Delaney eating a yummy pancake!

My older brother and his girlfriend also came out to help me celebrate :)!

My friend Cody--we met in math class my freshman year of college and bonded over the crazy kids in our class.

The back of my dress was the best part :).

Kiss the cook?

The man behind my hair. Speaking of which, if you live in Chicago and want someone wonderful to do your hair, I highly recommend Clinten. If you're interested let me know and I'll give you his salon's info :).

Sorry about the excessive amount of pictures. If you want to see a lot more you can visit my flickr set from the party.

One more fun fact--the whole party people kept trying to get in each other pictures so they could be on the blog. It totally cracked me up. I kept hearing "I BETTER SEE THIS ON YOUR BLOG!" from my crazy friends. Hopefully everyone is content with the coverage ;).

xoxo
Mal

First things First...I'm 21

2011-10-24T15:35:00.000-07:00

So my birthday was last Monday... My 21st birthday, in fact. Here's how the magical day went (oh yeah, I just called it magical).

I woke up to this lovely display from my roomie...

Seriously, how cute is that cookie jar? I'm obsessed/can not wait to fill it up with fresh baked goodies!
She also made me a yummy breakfast pizza so I snagged a few pieces of that while I read blogs and listened to some music.

I had to run a few errands but when I got home my roommate and I suited up and headed off to a few thrift stores to grab supplies for my party (post on that tomorrow).

We found some great stuff, had lunch at our favorite sandwich shop (Bourgeois Pig) and got home in the early evening. We both crashed for a little nap then got all dressed up for dinner. Originally I had wanted to go to The Purple Pig but after over an hour of waiting and an extremely rude hostess we decided to try a different place--Volare. We were seated right away, I had my first glass of legal wine and we stuffed our faces with a Sausage, Pea, & Mushroom Risotto and a homemade tortellini with spicy tomato sauce. I highly recommend it! Great service, delicious food, and a great wine list.

(a sweet gift from my wonderful friend Alex. A cookbook and the cutest little measuring spoons. Sistuh knows me well :)!!)

I finished off my night with some more wine and a heart-to-heart with my roomie. It was such a nice and relaxing day which, for me, was perfect.

I believe most of my readers are older than me so I'd like to ask... How did you spend your 21st birthday? These stories are always so fun :). Leave it in the comments!

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
Thanks so much for your patience with me last week. Some time off was JUST what I needed. I also appreciate all of your birthday wishes--you all are so sweet!

Tomorrow is my birthday

2011-10-16T17:02:00.000-07:00

I've been a bit absent from the blog this week because life picked up and I simply haven't had the time to sit down and write anything worthwhile. Just wanted to pop in to tell you a few things...

(a picture from my birthday last year)

1) I'm still alive

2) It's my birthday tomorrow. I'm excited :).

3) I've been so busy recently that I kind of had a overwhelmed/exhaustion-riddled cry-fest today...at work...in front of customers... Which leads me to number four...

4) Due to my already crunched schedule and week full of birthday festivities, I don't think I'll be around here until next Sunday. My apologies in advance. The good news is that I will have so many wonderful things to share with you when I come back that you won't even remember that I was gone at all.

I hope you all have a fabulous week. I'll miss you a lot but I think for a little bit of time it'll be fun to go our own ways ;).

xoxo
Mal

The A-Z of my Blog Roll

2011-10-12T05:59:00.000-07:00

One blog that I read consistently, Four-Eyes Rella, took a different spin on the whole "A-Z" craze going on right now. If you've never stopped by her blog you should definitely do so because she is hilarious and I laugh out loud almost every time she posts something new. Anyways, I was inspired by her take on the A-Z so I decided I'd do it myself :). So here we go kids, the A-Z of my blog roll...

A: An Eclectic Heap. I've only been following her blog for a few days but this girl has some serious style. She's young but so pulled together and eloquent. She's going far in life and she's doing it dressed like a 10.

B: Bleubird Vintage posts the best "What we wore" images. They're so playful! And everyone in Miss. James's family is so well-dressed. Lovee it

C: RubyEllen from Cakies is the best mom ever. If you read her blog I think you'll agree. She threw an awesome breakfast birthday party for her 1-year-old earlier this year and inspired me to throw my own breakfast party for my 21st in a few weeks. I love just about everything she does.

D: D is for Design Love Fest and Bre's awesome outfit posts.

E: This isn't a blog but I didn't have an "E" so I'll send you over to Emerson Made. Their little black dress has my heart.

F: Fancy Grilled Cheese. I've bookmarked a ton of fancy grilled cheese recipes recently and my desire to fancify my grilled cheese doesn't appear to be waning anytime in the near future. You can try this recipe, or maybe one of these are more to your liking?

G: Grosgrain is a great blog. She posts all kinds of fabulous DIY's, sewing patterns, and fun facts that are useful in day-to-day life. Also, if you officially follow her you get all kinds of exclusive content. I feel like a VIP over there.

H: Hey Miss. At always makes me giggle. Miss. At is a teacher and likes to post the silly things her students say. My mom is a teacher and a good friend of mine is also a teacher so I like to imagine that their days are full of these sorts of shenanigans.

I: I Will Not Eat Oysters is such a great foodie blog. I reallly want to make this kimchi fried rice.

J: Food in Jars is one of my favorite blogs, and I don't even know why. I do not can anything...ever... and I'm really not all that fond of jams and marmalades. However, this blog is photographed beautifully and I have tons of her recipes bookmarked for that day I learn how to can things. Maybe I'll start with this?

K: Keiko Lynn has some fierce style and makes me want to try harder with my hair and makeup. How fierce is this lady's lipstick? I'm obsessed.

L: Little girl in the kitchen is a food blog of a little girl...in the kitchen. I saw her on a feature on the cooking channel and was instantly obsessed. Her recipes look fantastic and she's just the cutest little thing. Right now she's spending a year in France studying cooking. How cool is that!?

M: Dana Made it. Do you like to sew? Do you like to pretend like you sew (this is the category I fall into because I have no time)? Dana posts the greatest tutorials for home sewers and she also posts some wonderful recipes. I love her blog!

N: No blog here, check out "O"!

O: So Organized. Soup Organized, to be exact. If you've never heard of Things Organized Neatly you're missing out (and probably live under a rock because it's really trendy right now).

P: We all want to learn how to be better photographers, right? Well... I do at least. Jake is an awesome photographer and he's dropping some serious knowledge (after I wrote that I realized he tags these posts with "dropping knowledge. Ha!! Glad we're on the same page there). Go and learn things.

Q: Quite a pickle I'm in--trying to find a "Q" blog...

R: Reagan's Blob. I have mentioned her blog soo many times but I couldn't leave it out of my alphabet. I freaking love her. She is a hairstylist (and has another cool blog where she teaches you how to do a little bit of what she does), a great mama, an optimist, and a hilarious woman.

S: Spoon. Fork. Bacon. Just found this blog a few days ago but I'm obsessed. Visually the site is fabulous and the recipes all keep saying "Hey Mal, I want you to make me so I can make your belly happy". Who am I to say no?

T: Triumphs and Blunders of a Kooky Gal is another one of my favorite blogs. Chelsea doesn't post all that often but when she does it's always something great and inspirational.

U: Under Peach Trees is the blog of one of my lovely sponsors. She is musically inclined, loves photography, and has a cute little blog. Definitely check her out!

V: Verameat. Not a blog but some seriously cool jewelry. My favorites are the rings.

W: Wit and Whistle is a lovely read. From the clean aesthetic to the fresh recipes to the great fashion posts to her sweet shop full of cards and journals everything that goes on over there brings a smile to my face.

X: I couldn't come up with anything for the letter X. Any suggestions?!

Y: You Will, Won't You? is the blog of fellow Columbia College Alum Courtney. She was one of my very first readers and hers is one of the first blogs I followed. I love her makeup posts, her photography, her great crochet skills, and her honesty. She is very blunt and I LOVE it. It's refreshing to see such honesty in the blog world.

Z: I'm at a loss for a "Z" as well. Hope you enjoyed my alphabet!!!

xoxo
Mal

Stuffed Mushrooms

2011-10-11T06:47:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I had leftovers from various recipes that needed to be cooked otherwise they would go bad so I decided to make a franken-meal. I googled the names of the ingredients I had on hand and decided to make some stuffed mushrooms.

And guess what? They're delicious. And somewhat good for you... Whaaat!? Mushrooms are healthy :)!

Hot Stuffed Cremini Mushrooms (found over here)

What you need:

8 ounces cremini mushrooms, washed & stemmed
1 large jalapeno, minced
1 small onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded (reserve 1/4 cup)
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 cup Italian breadcrumbs
1/2 cup butter or 1/2 cup margarine
salt and pepper, to season caps

How to do it:

1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2) Mix jalapeno, onion, garlic, and 1/4 cup parmesan into butter.
3) Place caps on a bake sheet and season to taste w salt/pepper.
4) Fill caps with butter mixture.
5) Sprinkle remaining 1/4 parmesan over all the caps.
6) Sprinkle 1/4 of bread crumbs over the parmesan coated caps.
7) Bake for 15 minutes or until mushrooms give up juices.
8) Broil to crisp up topping if not to satisfaction.

xoxo
Mal

Birthday Wishlist

2011-10-10T18:24:00.000-07:00

My birthday is in one week. I am so excited and cannot wait to share the details of my celebration with all of you. Until then, I thought it would be fun to post my birthday wishlist. Let's call this my "if everyone in my life was rich and generous" wishlist :). In reality, I'd be pretty content with hugs. So here we go...

Kitchenaid Ice Cream Maker Attachment

Gift Certificate to Amazon so I can buy books :)

Modern Family on DVD. I freaking love that show and I need more of it in my life.

Gift Certificate to American Apparel (so I can buy this skirt!) (source)

This pan from Le Creuset

This bullet ring that's been on my wishlist forever.

Annnd a remote control timer for my camera (for more fashion posts!)

Ahhh birthdays. A time for dreaming :)

xoxo
Mal

Read a Book

2011-10-09T08:12:00.000-07:00

(source)

“There is no remedy so easy as books, which if they do not give cheerfulness, at least restore quiet to the most troubled mind.”
— Mary Wortley Montagu

xoxo
Mal

Real Simple Ravioli

2011-10-06T12:42:00.000-07:00

I'm a big fan of doing a little and getting a lot. That makes me sound a bit lazy, so I'll elaborate. If I can make a wonderfully flavorful dinner in 30 minutes as opposed to an hour or two, that leaves more time for me to do other things (like whip up some awesome dessert...) In my opinion, Real Simple reigns supreme when it comes to these types of recipes. I'm rarely disappointed when I make something that I find in that lovely publication. These ravioli dishes are no exception.

(Ravioli with White Wine and Grape Tomatoes)

You can find the first recipe on Real Simple's site over here and the second recipe is right here. They are inexpensive, really simple to prepare, quick (as I mentioned above), and delicious beyond all reason.

(Ravioli with Peas and Bacon)

Do yourself a favor and make this right now. Or make it when I include it in another food for $40 menu :)!

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
Be sure to enter my giveaway!

250 Follower Giveaway

2011-10-05T07:07:00.000-07:00

So one of my goals this past year was to hit 250 blog followers. That was an increase of 150 readers and I hoped that all of those added readers would be people who truly loved coming to Sunday Morning Sugar for the things I had to say and the DIY's I had to offer and the cooking I shared with all of you. I have to say that I'm so excited that I finally hit 250 and in order to share my excitement with you, I'm hosting a HUGE giveaway with multiple winners.

Since my readers are my favorite people, I thought that my giveaway should be my favorite things. I reached out to various ladies in the blog world who great things and they generously offered to help me with my giveaway! Here's the swag:

1) YOUR CHOICE of any item from the Much Love, Illy shop.

Ilene is one of the sweetest blogging ladies I know. Actually, she's one of the sweetest people I know, period. I absolutely LOVE her shop and her blog. The winner of this prize gets to choose any item from her shop for their prize. If I was the winner, I'd choose the crushing on you headband...but that's just me :).

2) A lovely jersey vest from Kirsten from Studs and Pearls

"This is Kirsten from Studs & Pearls, and I'm excited to offer a past diy as part of Malori's 250 follower giveaway. I made this Marker & Dye Jersey Vest back in July, using RIT Dye and Sharpie's new fabric markers. I have so much jersey left over from this project, I can easily make 5 more for myself - but I'd like to send this one off to a good home.

International entries are more than welcome!

3) A THREE MONTH Large Sponsor spot on Kate's Irrelevant

4) A strand of homemade felt garland from me!! Every circle was hand cut and sewn together by me with so much love

(there will be two winners of garland. I made two strands for you crazy kids. The garland in the picture is a different garland than the one I'm giving away. Same style, different colors! Because I'm poor and shipping is pricy, this prize is only open to U.S. residents.)

How to enter:
1) Visit at least one of these lovely ladies pages and say hello. Leave a comment on something you love!
2) Be a follower of "Sunday Morning Sugar"
3) Comment and tell me which prize you would most like to win!

At the end of the giveaway, I will choose FOUR different winners. The prizes will be given out first come, first served so be sure to specify your preference in your comment.

Giveaway closes next Tuesday!

I'm just excited to give back where I can. Be sure to stop by the pages of all of my amazing giveaway hosts because they are all doing some fabulous things. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart!! Here's to another amazing year and more fabulous readers at Sunday Morning Sugar.

xoxo
Mal

Good Reads

2011-10-04T06:48:00.000-07:00

Even though school started recently I'm still finding the time to read books for fun. Probably because I'm not really reading many textbooks for class... Either way, I'm glad I've been able to read for enjoyment recently and I wanted to share some of the books that I've finished in the past few weeks.

Buy-Ology: Truth and Lies About Why We Buy

Ah, the marketing nerd in me is working full force right now. Even if you aren't into marketing you might find this book to be extremely fascinating. It is written about studies that were done in neuro-marketing. Also known as what happens in your brain that makes you want to buy something. This book was really well-written and such a fun read!

Middlesex

This book was awesome. Jeffrey Eugenides is one of my favorite authors (he wrote The Virgin Suicides which is one of my all-time favorite books) and if you've ever read one of his books you'll probably agree with me. He has the ability to tell a wildly captivating story. While I was reading this novel I would find myself thinking about it a lot. Even now that I'm finished I'm still pondering a lot of the themes in the novel. I think a book that sticks with you like that is definitely a winner. In the interest of being honest I feel like I should tell you that the subject matter of this book is somewhat disturbing. As the title suggests, this book explores many sexual taboos and is narrated by a hermaphrodite. It is an extremely eloquent book and when I got to the end I was really sad that I was finished. I'll definitely be reading this again in the future and you should give it a try too!

What have you been reading recently? Also, are any of you on GoodReads? I am, and I love it. Join on and be my friend so we can share book recommendations!

Weekend Update

2011-10-03T07:40:00.000-07:00

This weekend's update is full of exciting news.

(lazy weekend full of jeans and scarves!)

First, I signed up to take part in Blogtoberfest. I thought it might be a fun way to meet some new bloggin' ladies. I already post pretty much every day so not a lot will change there. You guys should go and join in!

Now, onto my update:

Friday:
I HAD THE DAY OFF! That's my first day off in two weeks and it.was.awesome. I slept in a little bit then grabbed lunch with my dad because he was in town. We grabbed some Epic Burgers which were just as delicious as I remember them being. He hopped on a train to go see my brother then I ran about a million errands. I went to Target and got some fun stuff (like a new lasagna pan!!) and looked at all of the lovely target things. I dropped some shoes off at the shoe hospital and bought a skirt at work. I finished off my evening with some Grey's anatomy and decorating/cleaning in my apartment. I'm still finding homes for all of my art and whenever I hang something up I feel so accomplished till I see the rest of the pile... All in all it was a good day!

Saturday:
I worked Saturday morning at a different location than I normally work at. It's always fun to change things up a bit andddd the Benetton I worked at is in a realllly cute area so when I was finished with my shift I got to wander through some seriously adorable stores. Have any of you been in a paper source? I am in love with everything in that place... On Saturday evening my dad came back downtown to hang out with me. We snagged some groceries and he caught me up on all the family gossip. You miss so much when you live far away ;).

Sunday:
I SLEPT IN! I never sleep in and it felt wonderful. I think that a solid night of sleep can work wonders. I also think that days off make me a much nicer person. When I'm stressed out I get kind of...feisty... I'm feeling much more balanced now after my two days off this week. I spent five hours making a crazy lasagna that ended up being pretty yummy. I finished off my evening with a movie on TV and some ice cream. That's the best way to end a weekend...

This is a brand new month AND it's my birthday month so that is just really really exciting. I'm going to post my birthday wishlist later this week and I also have a ton of recipes lined up for you. I have been cooking like crazy.

Last, I think you should check out my lovely sponsors. They're both sweet ladies and awesome readers so stop by their pages and give them a hello :).

xoxo
Mal

Extraordinary

2011-10-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

(source)

Unless it is mad, passionate, extraordinary love...it is a waste of time. There are too many mediocre things in life. Love should not be one of them. - Unknown

xoxo
Mal

Mal's Meals

2011-10-01T16:12:00.000-07:00

This week food for $40 is trying out a new name. I'm still working out the kinks so the name thought it wanted to try something a little different as well :). I liked the format of last week's menu so I decided to stick with that again. Any suggestions are welcome as I'd like to make it easy for you all to eat well on a budget!

Dinners:

Crispy Potato Roast
(perfect for this chilly weather and will stock you up with TONS of leftovers!!)

Peppers with Onion and Sausage*
(one of my favorites! Serves two with leftovers for another night's dinner)

Salt and Pepper Spaghetti
(So simple yet so so so delicious)

Pasta with leftover peppers/onion/sausage
(easy enough. Cook up some pasta and pour your heated leftovers on top of it. Yum!)

Breakfast:

Get creative with your eggs, people! You will most likely have some leftover potatoes from your potato roast so use them in your breakfast!!

As always, use your leftovers to craft some lunches. If you're just cooking for yourself, this should be easy!!

Tip of the week:
Make large portions of your dinners then use the leftovers for lunch at the office (or school) the next day. Eating out for lunch five days a week really adds up. You can save almost $60 a week by eating leftovers for lunch!!

Grocery List:
-3 bell peppers in varying colors (I usually grab red and yellow)
-2 french rolls
-1 pkg. sweet italian sausage
-1 onion
-4 lbs. russet potatoes
-4 shallots
-8 sprigs thyme
-4 oz. Pecorino Romano cheese

note: always check your cabinets for ALL ingredients before going grocery shopping. I did not include pantry staples (such as butter, olive oil, dry pasta, and spices) in the grocery list because I am working under the assumption that most people have these things on hand.

Enjoy your food this week!

xoxo
Mal

*I don't think I've ever shared this recipe so I'll explain it really quickly. Dice all of your ingredients (the three peppers and the onion) and cut your sausage links into 1/2in. slices. Throw them all onto the stove over medium heat and cook until the peppers are tender--stirring occasionally. When they peppers are tender, scoop a bit of it onto a french roll and you've got yourself an awesome sandwich.

Just a quick advertising update!

2011-09-29T13:13:00.001-07:00

I'm bringing it back people! FREE SPONSORSHIPS ON SUNDAY MORNING SUGAR! Read on for details :).

Each month I'm going to have a group of bloggers or shops promoted on my sidebar. I am not going to charge for the spaces. Instead, if you would like to be featured on Sunday Morning Sugar for a month, fill out the following questions and submit them to me SundayMorningSugar@yahoo.com.

1) Your name, your blog/shop's name, and your links

2) Why you think you should be (or why you want to be) featured on Sunday Morning Sugar?

3) *OPTIONAL* Something interesting/exciting that sets you apart from other applicants :). I like to learn a little bit about my sponsors so this is just a fun question!

As far as the statistics for Sunday Morning Sugar go...

-In the past month I have received 3,500 page views. This number is raising quickly!
-I have 225 followers on google reader and a handfull of followers using other "readers" like Blog Lovin'.
-Most of my readers are in the U.S. but I have visitors from all over the world including Canada, the U.K., Australia, Germany, France, Italy, Russia, and Mexico.
-I generally post once a day and I try to take the day off on Friday but...it doesn't always work that way. I post an average of 7 times a week :).
(last updated on September 29th)

I can't wait to hear from you :). I've gotten great feedback from past sponsors.

I am now accepting applications for October. Only FIVE spots are open this month so if you're interested, email me quickly!! Please e-mail me with the questionnaire to be considered for sponsorship!

Whole Foods Mediterranian Burger

2011-09-29T06:25:00.000-07:00

On my way home from work the other day I stopped by Whole Foods to pick up a little something for dinner. They always have a really delicious looking meat case (is that how you phrase that..?) but that night it was exceptionally awesome!

They had all of these fancy hamburgers (and turkey burgers) prepared and ready for the grill. I picked up the Mediterranean Burger with feta, arugula, and red onion in it. I also bought some spinach and swiss to add to my finished burger.

It ended up being pretty dern delicious. I also picked up a swiss and portobello burger which was equally tasty.

When you all stop by the store for a quick dinner, what type of food do you gravitate towards? I know the normal inclination is for freezer food but even when I'm feeling lazy I still like to eat fresh!

I'm also curious if any of you have a go-to burger recipe. I grew up on pretty straight-forward burgers and never even thought of mixing ingredients into them to fancy them up. How do you do your burgers?

Ten Ways to Routinely Break Your Routines

2011-09-28T08:05:00.000-07:00

This semester I'm taking a class called Creativity in Marketing. It's only been three weeks but I'm really loving it so far. Basically the class challenges me to think outside the box or to approach situations in such a way that creativity will come naturally to the solution. This week we were taking notes and my professor had a slide with ten ways to routinely break your routines. Immediately I knew I wanted to share these tips here on the blog. It's so easy to get stuck in a routine or in an uncreative rut (yup...I just said uncreative).

(me getting out a creative rut when I was a youngster)

Here are some ways for you to spark a bit of creativity in your life.

1) Hold a conversation with a new person everyday

There are some crazies out there, but also? There are some phenomenal people who can tell you things you only dreamed of hearing. Branch out, meet new people, and experience new situations. Obviously avoid people who are ax-wielding murderers but other than that you should be pretty safe doing this.

2) Avoid wasting time

This is good for those of us who like to procrastinate. If this is you, try to schedule your activities for a week (and include things that you wouldn't normally do). Maybe you'll find that by wasting less time you do something extraordinary!

3) Waste time

This is good for people like me. I plan every waking moment of my life and feel horribly guilty when I am "wasting time". It might do me some good to take a step back and roll with the punches!

4) Use lunch time

Whether or not I eat lunch is always a gamble. However, I always use breakfast time. While I eat my breakfast, I make it a point to read a book or read some blogs. I think its the perfect start to my day.

5) Read easy, fast books.

I know that a lot of people get caught up in reading difficult books because it sounds more chic to say "I just finished A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" than it is to say "The only books I've ever finished are the Twilight Books". However, sometimes just the act of reading something fun and refreshing is enough to spark a creative idea within you. I am not advocating reading Twilight (I'm not a fan...) but I am advocating a little less pretension when choosing reading material :).

6) Play with building blocks

My professor asked us all if we still had building blocks and we laughed at him. Then he said that he still has a set of blocks from when he was a child and frequently uses them when he's at a loss for ideas. I added "Buy legos" to my to-do list this week. Who knows, maybe going back to the basic will help my creativity?

7) Create art

I feel like most of my readers have this down. Creating any sort of art can work wonders in getting you out of a rut. Paint, draw, sculpt, color, paper mache, knit, etc. When you don't know what else to do, just make anything at all. It is so therapeutic!

8) Experience wider variety of music

There is a ton of music out there and 99% of creative professionals will tell you they have certain playlists for various collections/times of year/moods/etc. Music works wonders in helping creativity.

9) Change your schedule

This just keeps things lively. I try to do this as frequently as possible (even changing little things like waking up 30 minutes earlier so I can take a longer route to school). I'd recommend it

10) Ask questions then question the answers

I see this step as just soaking up as much knowledge as possible. There are so many wonderful things to learn about and you never know when that knowledge will come in handy. Always question the world around you--never stop growing.

xoxo
Mal

Fancy Fried Eggs

2011-09-27T07:19:00.000-07:00

I don't share many breakfast recipes here because generally, I'm an egg gal and that's nothing special enough to share. But a few weeks ago, I discovered this majestic combination of ingredients that turned my eggs into something eggcelent (yay cheesy egg jokes!)

As a way to save money, I always try to use all of the food I purchase. I frequently pick up lots of ingredients for a certain recipe that only calls for a little bit. That leaves me wondering what to do with the leftover ingredients? Frequently, the end up in my breakfast.

Fancy Fried Eggs

My recipe yields one serving so feel free to make as much or as little as you want!

ingredients:

1 or 2 slices of prosciutto
fresh basil leaves
2 slices of toast (I've used sourdough, whole wheat, and white bread)
2 eggs
**OPTIONAL** hollandaise sauce

How to make the magic happen:

1) Put your toast in the toaster
2) While your toast is toasting, start frying your eggs (I can't explain how to do this so if you're unsure...google it!)
3) When your toast is ready, put down one layer of prosciutto followed by a layer of basil leaves. At this point your eggs should be finished cooking so lay one egg on top of each piece of toast. I like to leave my yolks really runny because it adds a whole other layer of delicious to this recipe. Garnish with a bit of basil and you're good to go!
4) If you opted to use hollandaise sauce (I usually do, though it is not pictured), just drizzle that delicious sauce over the top of your whole breakfast before you dig in!

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
You might notice a new header? Bare with me these next few weeks while I change my header about a hundred times until I find something I like. I think we'll call this one "When Hairy Met Malzie". Have a lovely day friends :)

Weekend Update

2011-09-26T08:00:00.000-07:00

Hellllo hello! It's time for another weekend update which blows my mind because I have no idea where my weeks are going. Anywayssss, I had a pretty calm weekend but I figured I'd still share it with all of you :).

Friday:
I had the morning off of work so I took my homework to one of my favorite cafes, Milk and Honey, and crossed a few assignments off of my to-do list. I also ate like a queen. I ordered a lemon and lavendar doughnut, a caprese salad sandwich, and the best chai tea latte a girl could dream of. Sometimes its really nice to just get out of the apartment and get some real work done! Friday night I worked and came home and hopped in bed. I finished a fantastic book before I fell asleep so I'll share about that later this week!

Saturday:
I had to work all day Saturday so there really isn't anything too exciting to share here. I was exhausted when I got home so I watched some TV with a friend and fell asleep after about an hour. Saturday night babbyyyyyyy!!!

Sunday:
Again, I worked pretty much all day. When I was done at work I came home and watched a few episodes of The Glades on Netflix. Not only do I seriously love crime shows, but I also love the gorgeous lead actor (who I think is Australian?) AND the rampant sarcasm laced throughout this show. If you're into crime shows and sarcasm and gorgeous crime-solving detectives I'd suggest you give The Glades a look :).

Today is Monday which means I'm back to the grind... I didn't actually have a day off though so I suppose a more accurate thing to say is that I'm still on the grind. Either way, I've got class today but later I hope to whip up some crackers and make my grocery list for next week :)!

How did all of you spend your weekends?

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
I am FOUR followers away from 250! Once I hit 250 I have a little "thanks for being great" giveaway lined up and some of my favorite bloggin' ladies have offered to contribute to the celebration. Exciting, yeah? So follow, follow, follow!!

Discover it!

2011-09-25T18:12:00.000-07:00

"Discovery consists of looking at the same thing as everyone else and thinking something different." -Albert Szent-Gyorgyi

(source)

xoxo
Mal

Food For Forty!

2011-09-24T08:22:00.000-07:00

Alright everyone, its week two of food for forty here. I'm going to try a little bit of a different format this week and include a grocery list for you. Hopefully that will make it a bit easier for you to stock up on what you need! This week there is tons of Italian food which, in my opinion, is some of the best food around.

Dinners
Ravioli with Grape Tomatoes and Wine
(Cut the recipe for the sauce in half and only cook about a cup of ravioli. I also cut out the parsley but you can definitely add it back in if you'd like!)

Shaved Asparagus Pizza
(Make the whole pizza and eat the leftovers for lunch the next day!)

Ravioli with Bacon and Peas
(Again, cut the recipe in half and only use a cup of ravioli)

Grilled Cheese with Tomato and Bacon
(Use your leftover tomatoes and bacon to make this classic food with a twist. Seriously, who can go wrong with grilled cheese? No one, that's who. This recipe makes four sandwiches but you really just need to make one. Use two strips of bacon, two slices of cheese, and a slice or two of tomato and you'll be golden. Enjoy!)

Breakfasts
Bacon and Eggs (Simple enough, make your favorite kind of eggs and fry up some of that leftover bacon!)

Get creative with your breakfast. I find that mixing leftover veggies with eggs is the best way to use up ingredients and make a healthy/delicious breakfast!

My grocery tip this week is to buy exact amounts of ingredients whenever possible. If you have a whole foods, they do a great job of this. They have many specialty ingredients in bulk so you can buy exactly what you need for your recipe. That way, you spend less money and nothing goes to waste!

Grocery List
- 1 bag of dry mini ravioli
- 1 pint of grape tomatoes
- white cooking wine
- 1 shallot
- Bacon
- 1 package of frozen peas
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil (always keep this on hand!)
- loaf of bread
- A few slices of American Cheese
- eggs (if you eat them every day, get a dozen, otherwise, just go for 6)

note: I did not include any of the pantry items in the grocery list as these are things most people generally have on hand. Be sure to check your cabinet/fridge for all ingredients before you go grab your groceries just in case! I am also working under the assumption that lots of you are cooking for one, so in many cases I cut recipes in half or use leftovers as lunches so if you're cooking for others your food might not get you as far. That's okay though because cooking for friends and loved ones is great :).

Have a great week!
xoxo
Mal

My New Favorite Skirt

2011-09-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

My new job is a little bit dangerous. I love to shop and working in a retail clothing store can be extremely tempting. I have limited myself to less than $100 on clothing for every paycheck and have been keeping to that! Anyways, my store got in these GORGEOUS skirts that felt very vintage to me and I immediately knew I had to have one. I love this one so much I'm considering buying another color/pattern of it because its such a classic, gorgeous piece.

shoes: Steve Madden
skirt: United Colors of Benetton
top: Nanette Lapore (thrifted)
glasses: SEE

Can you see why I'm so in love with it?

xoxo
Mal

Renegade Swag

2011-09-21T12:19:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I quickly stopped by the Renegade Craft Fair. This is my third time hitting up Renegade Chicago and every year I've found something awesome. I didn't have much money this year and wasn't planning on buying anything at all (it's just as fun to look as it is to make purchases) but when I stopped by the Yee Haw Industries booth my plans changed immediately.

A quick side story... My friend Kristina once told me she didn't want to visit my house when I get older because I have really creepy taste. I think that sentiment perfectly sums up my affection for this AWESOME print I bought...

You can get your own on Yee Haw's etsy site, here.

I can't even begin to describe all of the reasons I love this. I don't even like steak so it's not because of that. I just think it's hilarious. I love the typography and, it's freaking letterpress. Are you kidding me? My obsession with letterpress is undying. As soon as I saw it I turned to my friend and said, "I'm buying that. Let's go find an ATM". Poor guy, he had to listen to me talk about it the rest of the day. Oh well, I'm sure he loved it just as much as me ;).

Have any of you ever been to one of the Renegade Craft Fairs? I know they have them all over. If so, did you pick up any sweet stuff at them!? Renegade is the best!!

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
I already found a home for my print. You'll see it in all of its glory when I start posting images from my apartment tour!!

Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus with Hollandaise Sauce

2011-09-20T09:37:00.000-07:00

I have been on a huge prosciutto kick recently. You're about to see a lot of prosciutto-y goodness pop up here on the blog but I promise you'll enjoy it. You might try to tell me that its expensive but it's really not that bad. I think I paid $4 for per-packaged prosciutto and it lasted me two weeks and through about 7 different recipes which I'd say is pretty damn economical. That's enough of my prosciutto rant... Onto the recipe!

This concoction is a hybrid between a few recipes I have on reserve. One, I believe, is from a really old issue of Martha Stewart or Real Simple (not sure which...) and the other I saw on Kelsey's Essentials. Note that the hollandaise is optional. I pour that delicious sauce onto a LOT of foods where I'm sure it really doesn't belong so if it's not your cup of tea, feel free to avoid it :).

ingredients:
-asparagus
-prosciutto
-olive oil
-salt & pepper
-hollandaise sauce** optional!

how to make the magic happen:

1) Preheat your oven to 400.
2) Snap the ends off of your asparagus and put them into groups of three.
3) Using one strip of prosciutto for each asparagus bundle, wrap your asparagus together. Try to be firm when wrapping them but not too forceful because your prosciutto will tear.
4) Drizzle the ends of your asparagus bundles with olive oil and throw some salt and pepper over everything.
5) Bake your asparagus for 10 minutes. When they come out of the oven, you can drizzle them with some hollandaise sauce or leave them plain. They're delicious both ways :).

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
I'm feeling a bit under the weather today so I'll be in bed doing homework and watching the cooking channel. Sucks for me, great for you. I'm sure I'll have about 100 new recipes saved by the end of the day :).

Weekend Update

2011-09-19T10:58:00.000-07:00

Hello Hello!!

It's Monday again and you know what that means....
Time for another weekend update!

(instead of giving you a picture, I thought I'd share this video from Hairdresser on Fire. I'm determined to do this to my hair at some point this week.)

Friday:
I had a day off (YAY) so I took advantage of all my free time. I had purchased a Groupon for glasses earlier in the week so I went to pick out a new pair of frames. Of course, I wanted to $400 pair but luckily I was able to find a pair that was much cheaper and in my price range. Why are cute glasses so expensive? Anyways, I grabbed some lunch with my dad because he was in town and I bought some clothes from work since it was payday :). Friday night I did something special.

Over the summer I had the pleasure of working for FanFueled, an online ticketing company. One of my bosses was in a training program with The Second City while I was working there and his show went up this month. Since I had the day off, I snagged a ticket and dragged my friend Cody to the show with me. It was hilarious and such a great way to spend my Friday. I can also cross "Go to a Second City show" off of my Chicago Bucket List. (Speaking of which, I feel like maybe I should post that here so you all can follow along. Opinions?)

Saturday:
I woke up bright and early and headed to work. I lead such an exciting life... After work I headed home and organized my room a bit more (almost finished!) My dad had a really early flight on Sunday morning so he stayed with me on Saturday night because I live pretty close to the airport. We got some groceries, edited some pictures (sports photography for him, food for me), and called it a night pretty early. I slept a luxurious 10 hours and felt like GOLD when I woke up the next day.

Sunday:
Made some breakfast and headed in to work for a while. When I got home from work, I cleaned most of the apartment (we had some people staying with us this weekend) and cooked an awesome dinner. I spent the rest of the night working on new blog features and finishing my bedroom (hanging cabinets, jewelry, and posters). There are some big changes coming to Sunday Morning Sugar and I could not be more excited about the new direction I'm taking things.

So how was your weekend?

xoxo
Mal

Footprints

2011-09-18T16:10:00.000-07:00

“Quite deliberately, I’d arranged my life in such a way that I almost never had to set foot in a motorized vehicle of any kind, buses included. These boots were made for walking, walking, walking—leaving size-five footprints all over town—and I’d rather spend the gas money on really beautiful ones: hand-crafted, high-heeled, and made in the mountains of Italy.” -Love Walked In

Food for Forty!

2011-09-17T06:29:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the first official week of Food for Forty. I hope you all stocked up on the pantry staples I suggested last week! We're already going to make use of some of them for this week's menu.

Monday:

Pesto Garlic Chicken Pizza

Tuesday:

Grilled Cheese with Tomato and Avocado

No recipe for this one. Pick up a tomato, an avocado, cheese and some bread. Butter both sides of your bread, stack it up with the good stuff, and cook over LOW heat until both sides of the sandwich are crisp and the cheese is melty and wonderful.

Wednesday:

Pasta with Pesto and Sausage

For this recipe, you'll be reusing the leftover sausage from night one!

Thursday:

Shaved asparagus pizza

Simple, affordable, delicious.

Friday:

Chicken and red wine risotto

Cook your chicken however your heart desires and use it to top off this delicious red wine risotto. I usually nix the peas and parsley, but that's just me.

Saturday:

Asparagus Breakfast Wraps

I'm still working out the kinks on this feature so let me ask, would you guys want me to build you a grocery list for each week in addition to the recipes? I planned them with a lot of crossover of ingredients so depending on where you live you should absolutely be able to get your food for $40 or less this week!!

Let me know! And good luck :).

xoxo
Mal

Nectarine Raspberry Cobbler

2011-09-15T07:26:00.000-07:00

I am about to bring you a seriously delicious treat that came from an accident. But first? Some facts.

Fact: I like peaches
Fact: I don't think I've ever eaten a Nectarine
Fact: Trader Joe is a sneaky sneaky man

Alright, now that we have all of our facts straight, I can share a story. My dad and I were grocery shopping a few weeks ago and I saw a whole bunch of peaches in these cute baskets. I was SO excited both for the basket and also for the fragrant peaches inside of them. I snagged one off the pile but when I got home I realized I had made a horrible mistake... I bought nectarines.

At first, I was heartbroken. I wanted peaches, not these crazy nectarines. My sadness quickly turned into anger. I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THIS CRAZY PEACH-LIKE FRUIT IS! Then I decided to blame Trader Joe for putting such similar looking fruits in the same freaking place. How easy to make a mistake. Joe, you're a jerk....

Rather than wallowing in my sadness, I decided to make lemonade (ya know, when life gives you lemons..blahblahblah). Actually, I started to google recipes for nectarines and one of the first ones that showed up was nectarine cobbler. I was sold. I decided to tweak it a little bit and I'm so glad I did. This cobbler is delicious and the raspberries add just enough of a bite to keep my tongue happy :).

Nectarine, Raspberry Cobbler
adapted from the Food Network

Ingredients
Filling:

3 cups sliced nectarines
1 1/2 cups raspberries
1/2 cup cold water
1/3 cup unpacked light brown sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Topping:

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup milk
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened

Garnish:

Cinnamon sugar for sprinkling

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

To prepare the topping: In a medium-size bowl, stir together the flour, the sugar, and the baking powder. Add the milk and the butter and beat until smooth.

To prepare the filling: In a large saucepan, combine all the ingredients. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture is thickened and bubbly, about 5-10 minutes. Pour into an ungreased 13x9-inch glass baking dish. Spoon the topping over the filling and spread carefully and evenly with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake 30-40 minutes or until topping is lightly golden and a cake tester inserted into the center of topping comes out clean.

That's it!! It was delicious and got my friend Ben's stamp of approval. Make it while there is still some fresh fruit out there!! Or you can bookmark it for next summer :).

Enjoy, my friends!

xoxo
Mal

Retail Etiquette from a Sales Associate

2011-09-14T08:07:00.000-07:00

I've worked in various retail settings for almost 4 years now. I've worked in three drastically different retail environments. The first was a consignment store. We kept things real classy, but I still think this falls into the category of bargain shopping. The next store I worked in was a high-end boutique (think dresses for $500) that sold unique clothing and shoes. And now I work in a mid-range, corporate store within a mall. As a sales associate and retail worker, I think I need to share some etiquette tips for shoppers. Some people can be extremely disrespectful and if you've never worked in retail, you might not even realize you're doing things that makes sales associates want to cry. So here we go!

ALWAYS respond when someone greets you:
Any store I've ever worked in has trained me to greet every customer that walks through the door. Nothing is more frustrating and disheartening than when people COMPLETELY IGNORE YOU. It's such a huge slap in the face. If someone says hello to you, it is common courtesy to acknowledge that greeting. I understand that maybe the music is loud and you don't hear occasionally, but usually people avoid saying hello or making eye contact because they think that gives me the okay to start forcefully selling things to them. That's not the case. Be polite!

Ask for help when trying to find your size
There are a few reasons for this. First, the sales associate generally knows exactly what sizes are available and where to find them. Second, when you are rooting through a perfectly folded stack of shirts or pants trying to find your size, you are making a HUGE mess. We have to refold every shirt/pair of pants after you're done looking and that takes a lot of time. You can save yourself some time and save the sales associate a lot of folding by asking for some help. We'll love you for it. Which leads me to...

Don't put your go-backs away by yourself
In every store I've ever worked in, there is a very specific system to putting clothing back after they have been tried on. A lot of customers think they're helping us by putting their clothes away after they tried things on, but this actually isn't the case. If you put things back in the wrong spot or don't put them back on the hanger in the right way, we have to do it again anyways. Plus, we're there to work, which includes putting your unwanted items back on the floor. I think it's a nice gesture when people try to do this for me, but I usually just have to re-do it when they leave the store which is silly. So don't worry about putting your clothes away again, that's why I'm here!

ALWAYS clean up after yourself in the dressing room
I said earlier that nothing is more disheartening than when people are blatantly rude to you. I might have lied. NOTHING is more disheartening than walking into a dressing room to see a giant pile of discarded clothing on the floor. I'm not even sure why it's so daunting, but for some reason, walking into a dressing room that looks like the floor of an indecisive teenager's bedroom fills me with dread. When you're trying on clothes, do your best to at least throw them on the hanger again when you're finished. We REALLY appreciate it.

Don't talk on your phone while you're paying
This is just really awkward and kind of a personal pet peeve (though I'm guilty of it occasionally). I'm always uncomfortable trying to ring a customer up when they're on the phone because I feel rude interrupting their conversation to tell them their total/process payment/explain any necessary policies. If you're on the phone, just hang up for a couple minutes till you get out of the store.

Don't keep your headphones in while shopping
I've had people ask me questions with headphones in and make no attempt to listen to the reply. At least take one headphone out so you can hear what's going on around you. Again, this is more of a personal pet peeve than anything.

Give credit where credit is due--COMMISSION
I don't currently work on commission, but I used to so I feel the need to throw this in. If you spend a lot of time with a sales associate who helps you find the right style/size/color/etc., be sure to give them credit. Lots of sales people work on commission. In sales environments that are commission based, sometimes employees are competitive and steal sales from each other (sad but true and soo frustrating) so if you are working with one associate, when you check out do your best to give them the credit for your purchase. In many stores, associates don't work on commission but are still evaluated based on their sales. If you are checking out and the cashier asks who was helping you, give credit to your sales associate!!

End rant. Next time you're shopping, try to keep these tips in mind. If you've ever worked retail before, I'm sure that agree with most--if not all--of the things on this list. Have anything to add? Let me know in the comments!!

xoxo
Mal

Baked Sausage and Pepper Dinner

2011-09-13T06:36:00.000-07:00

The weather broke last week and it was cold as hell for a few days. As much as I dread the COLD weather, I do love cooking in it. I decided to take advantage of those cold days by whipping up a sort of baked sausage and potato dinner. It was awesome and I am so excited to share it with you. As a bonus, I'm going to share a few remixes of the recipe--you all know I can never just stick with the basic recipe.

I forgot to note where I found this recipe so let me be clear when I say I did not make this up. If you know the source, let me know so I can give credit where it is due

Baked Sausage & Pepper Dinner

Active time: 15 minutes
Total time: 60 minutes
Serves: 4
Cost: $9.75, or under $2.50 per person

Ingredients:
1 eggplant, cut into 1-inch slices
1 ½ tsp salt
½ onion, sliced thin
2 red peppers, seeded and sliced thin
1 jalapeño, minced
5 garlic cloves, chopped
6 fingerling potatoes, sliced thin
1 pound Italian sweet and hot sausage, skinned and sliced into ½ inch disks
8 oz chopped tomatoes and their juices, or pureed tomatoes
4 oz chicken stock
¾ Tbsp oregano
Hot pepper flakes
Salt and pepper

Salt eggplant and let sit while prepping the rest of the vegetables. Then, blot firmly with paper towels; it should take a couple of towels to “dry out” the eggplant. Cube eggplant. Toss all ingredients together and bake, covered, in a 400 F oven until potatoes are tender, about 40 minutes.

I really enjoyed this recipe and have been eating the leftovers since I cooked it up last week. I frequently prepare large batches of food then find creative ways to enjoy the leftovers so that I'm not eating the same exact thing over and over again. So, while you can eat this right out of the oven, you can also do a few things to mix it up! The images I included are from a night when I mixed it with rice (YUM). I took it to work and mixed it with pasta for another variation. I also think it would be AWESOME on a french roll as a sort of sandwich.

This recipe is so full of flavor. It really just makes you feel all cozy and wonderful. That, my friends, is a very good thing.

xoxo
Mal

Weekend Update

2011-09-12T08:38:00.000-07:00

YAY I have a weekend update for you that says more than "went to work". Exciting, riiiight!? Here we go!

(mustached van at renegade)

Friday:
Went to work... Just kidding :). But really, Friday started off with meeting a blog friend in real life. Mel was on vacation in Chicago for the weekend so we met up and went to the art institute. It was so much fun to meet her and I had a great time hanging out with her. I was only able to spend a few hours with her because I actually did have to work the rest of the day but that's okay. I can't wait to see the photos that she took. The ones that I'm in will be delightfully awkward (I'm superrr uncomfortable when others are taking my pictures so I tend to make really goofy faces). At work I was having a really rough day and spent the first few hours of my shift trying not to cry. Sounds a little dramatic but I hadn't really slept all week and was worrying about the piles of homework waiting for me at home. I think my boss could tell I was having a really rough day so she was really accommodating to my fragile self. She's great :).

Saturday:
I woke up bright and early (I'm SUCH a morning person) and hopped on a train to Lake Forest to watch my big bro play football and hang out with my dad. I love that my brother is close enough to me that I can spend some time with him. I know my college experience would have been COMPLETELY different had we gone to school in different states. The football game was awesome, the tailgate party afterwards was great, and dinner with my dad and bro was a ton of fun too. Saturday night my dad and I spent time together in the city then called it a night because we both had to be up REALLY early the next morning.

Sunday:
I woke up at 6:30 on Sunday to go to a work meeting (and ended up almost being late because the brown line is so unreliable...) I worked through my morning and afternoon but when I got off, I raced to the Renegade Craft Fair with a friend of mine. I should have gone to church but this is my last year to go to Renegade in Chicago and I'm doing my best to take advantage of Chicago opportunities while I still can! I'm glad I went because I had a GREAT time. We browsed the booths and in the end I got this AWESOME letterpress print that definitely deserves its own post. For now, suffice it to say that this print is one of the best things I own. After the fair, I came home, did some laundry, and cooked a bit. Tonight I'm going to try to make some nectarine cobbler so I'm excited to see how that turns out.

How did you all spend your weekend?

xoxo
Mal

Where the hell have I been!?

2011-09-10T08:02:00.000-07:00

(this photo is from last week before the madness started. Let's all pretend I still look this put-together, okay? Okay!)

That's a great question. If you follow me on twitter, you've been getting some updates on my life. If not, you probably just think I died. Good news, I'm still kickin'. Bad news? My life just got exponentially busier! Yikes. Let me walk you through it :).

Right now I have two jobs (one paid, one an unpaid internship) and I'm taking 18 credit hours (5 classes) at school. For some reference, 12-15 hours is considered a full-time schedule for a student. Needless to say, I'm ridiculously busy. On Thursday I worked 12 hours and when I got home I literally felt like I was going to die. Luckily, I'm surrounded by some pretty great people.

For those who don't know, I work at United Colors of Benetton here in Chicago and my co-workers are pretty fab. I feel extremely blessed to work with such supportive/understanding people and when I come in wanting to cry having an awful day they generally have the ability to cheer me up. My store manager is also really understanding about my schedule which, again, is a blessing. I really am not fond of working retail, but I think I have the absolute best situation at Benetton so I do my best to keep my chin up even when I haven't really slept all week and customers are being rude to me (speaking of which, stay tuned for a post on retail etiquette from a sales associate). I'm glad that I work with great people. Also, we sell some seriously cute clothes at Benetton which is great too. Or dangerous, depending on how you look at it...

As for school, I just started on Wednesday. My first two classes were African American History and Creativity in Marketing. I generally have three classes on Wednesdays but one of them was canceled due to an emergency for the professor (yikes!). My African American History teacher is wonderful. She has so much enthusiasm for the course and is extremely knowledgeable. She seemed so genuinely excited to share the material with us that it got me pretty excited for the class as well. I can already tell that I'm going to enjoy that class even though I'm certain its going to be a ton of work. My Creativity in Marketing class is going to be a BLAST. I'm such a marketing nerd and I can't say I'll ever stop taking classes in marketing because there is so much to learn and I love it all. This class is one of my electives and the purpose is basically to teach us to think outside of the box. I already love it. The rest of my classes are on Monday so I'll share about them when the time comes :).

Finally, I have my internship. Right now I'm working for a company called Tip Top Branding. It's a bigger company than my last internship (which I already miss so much!) but still a little bit on the smaller side. I haven't really gotten started on any projects there yet but I think it's going to be a valuable experience for me. All of the people there are really friendly and encouraging as well so that's fabulous. I only have 12 weeks left with them so I'm doing everything I can to soak up some knowledge and enjoy myself.

So, that's where I've been. Running around like a crazy person trying to fulfill a million commitments. I absolutely adore my blog, but my real life commitments are always going to be number one. I know that once I start to adjust to my new schedule that everything will go back to normal. It's always tough getting back into the groove of things.

How are things in your lives? I've been doing my best to keep up with reading blogs but I've been slacking there too so share with me in the comments :).

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
I know today is supposed to be the first day of Food for $40 but I'm on a train right now and I FORGOT MY MENU so I'll do my best to post it later tonight. If I can't make that happen, I'll wait until next week to kick things off. My apologies for being so scattered.

Blog Sponsorship--What's your stance?

2011-09-07T08:42:00.000-07:00

If you've been reading for a while, you're probably rolling your eyes at the title of this post. I'm not new to the blog sponsorship game--I've had sponsors in the past--but I've had a lot of trouble finding a system that works best for me.

I'm going to warn you right now that I voice some strong and sassy opinions in this post. Please, don't be offended. This is just my view on sponsors and I'd love to start a dialogue so that I can hear your feelings as well!

I've offered both paid and free sponsorships, sponsor spots that kind of sat there and sponsors who guest blogged and gave things away. When I gave my sponsors the opportunity to be extremely active (guest posts and giveaways galore) I felt like I was sacrificing the integrity of my blog content in order to offer a cool sponsorship program. But I realized that there are few things I dislike more than seeing a blog I really enjoy totally deteriorate when they have sponsors. I love free stuff as much as the next girl, but when a quality blog turns into giveaway-a-palooza I stop reading because the content is gone. I also don't like to host a bunch of giveaways because I feel like the people who follow you just to win a giveaway aren't going to stick around. Fake traffic, as I like to call it.

Anyways, this rant isn't just for funzies. You see, I really would like to offer sponsorships. I think it's a great opportunity to support growing blogs/businesses/bands and it's also a wonderful way to network and experience blogs or businesses you may have never known about otherwise. I think sponsorships have the potential to be extremely valuable for both sponsor and host and I want to be a part of that. Unfortunately, adding sponsors adds stress. It can be extremely difficult to coordinate sponsorships and at the very least it's a bit time-consuming. So, my question to all of you is this...

If I offer sponsor spots for small rates ($5 for a small spot, $10 for a large spot monthly), would there be an interest? Or are you happy with a sponsor-free world here on the Sugar? If I do start up a sponsorship program again, I won't post a million giveaways (no more than I post now) and the content of my blog will stay the same (though the recipes might be a bit more sophisticated!) I would love to hear any and all opinions on the topic--whether they are positive or negative. Just be nice :).

Can't wait to hear what you all have to say on this!

Salt and Pepper Tofu

2011-09-06T06:02:00.000-07:00

I know I've mentioned Gojee before, but I definitely need to bring it up again. This site has a collection of some of the most amazing recipes ever. This recipe, for salt and pepper tofu, is such a winner. I've prepared tofu many different ways and this might be my favorite.

It cooks up really quickly and I wasn't sure where I had left my camera so you're stuck with cell phone images, unfortunately. The recipe page has MUCH better images than I do, so look at it for a better representation of this dish :).

Next time I make this I'm going to SERIOUSLY cut down on the amount of salt. The flavor was amazing but the salt was overpowering so I would definitely recommend using less of it. Unless you're some sort of salt fiend. If that's the case, salt it up my friends.

Today is my first day at my new internship! I'll be packing up a lunch and learning all about the great big world of branding. Wish me luck!!

xoxo
Mal

A day in my life...in pictures

2011-09-05T09:20:00.000-07:00

Today is my last day of summer and my last day off for at least the next two weeks (realistically I'd say the next semester). I've been seeing tons of "bits and pieces" or "day in photos" posts around so I figured I would honor my last day of summer with some images in the life of a city girl. I'm skipping the weekend update because all I did was work and that's just not exciting enough to fill a post, right!? Right :).

gooooood morning Chicago...

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Do any of you do posts like this? I'd love to see :). I think it's so fun getting little peeks into someone's daily life. It seems kind of romantic when seen in little snaps rather than as a whole day.

xoxo
Mal

P.S.
Happy Labor Day!!

Hunting

2011-09-04T06:43:00.000-07:00

"She thought about that word “capture,” how it put a writer on par with a fur trapper or big-game hunter, and how it implied that stories were whole and roaming around loose in the world, and a writer’s job was to catch them. Except of course that a writer didn’t kill what she caught, didn’t stuff it and hang it on a wall; the point was to keep the stories alive." -Love Walked In

xoxo