Butternut Squash Mac n Cheese

Hi There!

As all of you (assuming) know, New York was hit very hard by Sandy. I hope all of you are safe and unharmed after the storm.

The night that the storm hit really hard, Monday, I was down at BF's place in the East Village. Very scary stuff. The power and water were knocked out. There were trees down everywhere and just a block or so away cars that were parked on the street were flooded. I feel terrible for the small businesses and residents that were hit badly... :(
Luckily, we were able to make our way to the Upper East Side to my place to find power + glorious hot water. My office has been closed this week as it is  down in SoHo where the damage is severe. The past few days BF and I have been attempting to work remotely, drinking wine and watching tv. Fun stuff.

In lighter news, I have been meaning to post this dish for a while. Mac n cheese is one of my favorite things in the whole wide world. Luckily, I found a lighter recipe that uses butternut squash to cut out the majority of  fatness. I copied it based on what I had and pure guess work - so no measurements will be listed below haha.

Here is what I used (sorry for the lack of measurements):

- Fresh Sage
- 1 butternut squash
- shell pasta
- vegetable broth
- garlic
- skim milk
- whole wheat crackers
- sharp Parmesan cheese

Step 1 – Cook the bag of pasta so it is al dente or with a bit of a bite to it. Set aside.

Step 2 - Peel & chop butternut squash. Maybe I have been doing this wrong all my life, but this is really, really hard. Any tips?

Step 3 – In a big pot, heat onion, garlic and butternut squash in olive oil over medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or until the onions are sort of clear. Add vegetable broth and sage sprigs. Cook for about 20 minutes, add milk.

Step 4 - Cook until squash is tender. Let the pot cool until you can put your hand in it & not burn yourself. Have fun testing it! I burnt myself at least twice.

Step 5 - Blend butternut squash mixture in your food processor and add to pasta in a large baking dish. 

Step 6 - Top with a handful of crush crackers + a bit of cheese. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes.

Step 6 - Eat.

Again, I hope all of you are safe and dry after the storm. Sandy turned out to be a huge bitch and will not be forgotten - my thoughts go out to all who are still dealing with the aftermath. So thankful to be okay

ttfn.

Flaws & First Love

I am a self admitted bad driver.

I get scared in the car when other people are driving (and always have).

That being said, when it became my turn to learn to drive, I was terrified. Not only did I get my license later than almost all of my friends but now that I'm living in New York I have no reason to EVER drive.

Even though I am a terrible, irresponsible and scary driver - I love to drive.

Since I got my license in very early 20s (in fact, I think I was 20 haha), I still get that rush of being free and getting to go wherever I want. Living in New York City doesn't allow me to keep a car - parking is way too expensive and I would crash into a taxi or a person or worse, a puppy.

In my last year of school, I was fortunate enough to be given a 1993 Mazda Miata from my aunt and uncle. They are very generous people and no longer needed the car but knew I needed one (and whats more, needed to learn how to properly drive).

I introduce to you, the best car ever....I named her Kelly Kapowski. I LOVE this car.

Driving around in this little 2 seater made me feel super cool.

The only problem when they gave me the car? I didn't know how to drive a standard car, let alone how to properly drive an automatic.

I feel like this car and I learned how to drive together!

We went on so many adventures (a lot of them irresponsible) and I just love this lady so much.

In fact, even though I moved to New York over 2 years ago and I have no use for this car at the time in my life, I REFUSE to sell it. It's a race car for girls! I love it too much.

Kelly Kapowski sits happily in my parents garage where it is taking up space. Is it a bit rude that I am taking up my parent's 1 car garage with my unused car? Yes, and I feel ultra guilty! BUT, I just can't bear the thought of someone else driving my car. It is mine and I want it waiting for me when I return to Canada / finished in New York which could be 1 year, 2 years even 3-4 years from now.

Well there you have it - my totally irrational and embarrassing obsession with my 1993 red car.

I hope I still know how to drive when I leave Manhattan!

After work tomorrow I am going to an event I bought tickets to on Gilt City. Here is the description:

General admission for one to Bliss Spa & Crunch Cel"AB"ration event with hosts Ashley Hebert & J.P. Rosenbaum from "The Bachelorette" on Wednesday August 15, 2012 from 7 - 10 PM at Crunch Gym• Five-day pass to Crunch• All drinks sponsored by Skinnygirl• Best Abs contest and Ab Brag photo booth• Mini treatments from Bliss Spa• Chats and tips from Crunch trainers• Pole-dancing and belly-dancing demonstrations• Dating tips from Wise Matchmaking

Should be fun - I am obsessed with The Bachelor / The Bachelorette!! I'll let you know how it goes!

Night.

It's all good

Hi There!! 

Happy Tuesday (if there is such a thing)... 

This week already seems very, very long - at 3pm both yesterday and today, the clock started to move at a glacial pace. You know how that thrills me. Extra points for you if you got that reference.

That being said, there is definitely good news this week:

• I did pilates yesterday and yoga today. I hope to focus on cardio and the below activities for the rest of the week.
• I discovered that I get 24 free channels by plugging a unnoticed cable in to my almost never used television. My life will be changed forever haha. 
• These newly discovered channels have allowed me to watch not only Bachelor Pad but the Olympics! There is such a HUGE difference between Olympic coverage here in the US compared to back home in Canada. Craziness! Observations:
•  I'm super into gymnastics right now! Teeny little people doing wild flips, spins, bounces and kicks = entertainment at its best. 
• Poor Michael Phelps has lost just a teensy bit of his mojo :( but he is still pretty rad
• My aunt & uncle were here this past weekend and they took my to Costco while they were here (yes, in Harlem). That means that my freezer is stocked with scallops, salmon, halibut and coffee. That means my fridge is full of very cool cheese. That means that I have enough bottles of wine to last me at least until Sunday ;)
• Thursday is my company's annual employee summer party. We are going to a country club in NJ. I've signed up for 2 activities: cooking class & wine tasting class. Should be a co-workertastic time.
• Friday, BF and I are going to go see Mike Tyson on Broadway. Seriously. I'll let you know how it goes.

Since I have been bad at taking pictures lately, here are a few things that have been going on in my kitchen:

street cherries - $2/lb . Loves it.

leftover chili + salad

I'm off to bed. Night Night!

Juice Cleanse: Day 4

I did it!

If you're just joining me:

Never say never... Juice Cleanse: Day 1.

Juice Cleanse: Day 2 
Juice Cleanse: Day 3 & SJP  

Day 4 flew by & was much easier than the days prior. At lunch I broke and had an orange, but I was glad that I did. Surprisingly, food was the last thing I wanted.

On Friday night I went to the rodeo at Madison Square Garden. Tickets were only $15 and I thought, why wouldn't I go see buckin broncos and angry bulls in the city?!  You can read all about the event in this press release http://www.pbr.com/en/news/press-releases/2011/12/the-worlds-best-bull-riders-return-to-new-york.aspx 

go Canada!

 I made a bad decision and ended up drinking after not eating anything for 4 days - great idea genius! At the end of the night I drunkingly ate a piece of pizza and got sick about 5 minutes after. Choices Caitlin, choices. One day I'll learn ;)

Energy Level – About a 8 out of 10.

Exercise – Only lifting the beer cup up to my mouth at the end of the day.

Sleep – Wonderful.

Feeling – Like "yay I did it" and "i really shouldn't have drank after". Now that I know that a cleanse is not impossible I think I will totally do another one perhaps at the end of the month before I go to Europe (woohoO!) Glad I still have a few bottles of Simplifast left over. I had one Saturday morning and actually enjoyed it.

Tomorrow I"ll write a bit about my struggles getting back to eating solid food. 

Holler-Dayz Reunions

Hi there!

Tomorrow I am lucky enough to have a Christmas party to attend.

At this party I will get to reunite with my best friends in the world and say HOLLAAA (in a gangster voice)!

Since university, we have all kind of gone our separate ways - me in New York, my best friend in Dubai, lots of pals in Toronto, and the rest scattered around Ontario. I haven't seen everyone together in months and months and months. That being said, I am over the moon excited to see everyone!

happier than this Santa cat

For the party I bought a pretty new dress. I haven't seen these people in a long time so I'm a bit worried about looking as fabulous as I would like to due to my lack of dedication to the gym and influx of work parties over the past few weeks. Here is the dress in pink, I bought it in a very pretty Christmas green:

You can get one too! Click here
Hopefully I look okay, I still need to figure out my shoe situation. Any recommendations?

Holiday parties with friends are so much more fun than any work related party ever could be. I am SO pumped to see all of my old pals and catch up. Although, I am definitely feeling some anxiety about this event. Le sigh. It should be fine after a glass of champagne!

Which of these drinks is lowest in calories?
A) White wine
B) Vodka and soda
C) Champagne

Answer: Champagne
They’re all fairly low in calories compared to real waistline busters like spiked eggnog or hot chocolate with whipped cream, but champagne wins the prize for the fewest with 95 in a 5-ounce glass. Vodka and soda has slightly more at about 100 and wine has about 120 calories in the same 5-ounce serving.
Here’s a good tip: If you want wine, replace 2 ounces of vino with some zero-calorie club soda to easily save 50 calories you could put toward a slice of pie — or another glass of wine. Source

I hope you all enjoy some champagne ASAP!

Do you have any Christmas party plans?

Tis that time of year again....

Love

I'm off to the NJ Devils vs Leafs game (Go Leafs Go!)


Later!

ps - 52 days until Christmas

C'est L'Halloween!

Happy Halloween!!

I have always been a huge fan of this spooky holiday. I love the costumes, candy and scary decorations – what is better than seeing your friends, coworkers and peers dressed up like fools? Nothing!

I couldn't believe the weather we got in the city on Saturday. Snow? Already? nooooo :(

This year I dressed up twice – once as Goldilocks for a house party, then re-purposed this for a creepier costume for my office Halloween party. It was fun!

At the party I went to, someone had taken some serious time to carve mini jack o lanterns out of clementines & filled them with jello shooters. Too cute! There was also some yummy mystery punch complete with gators!

Over the years, I have made some interesting costume choices.

I was once a bunny (note: I was in my 1^st year of university here and clearly had little sense to dress appropriately!)

Followed by a gold digger (Kanye not pictured here).

my friend was gum stuck to a shoe!

Shelly the mechanic? Sober much?

Another year I was Mittens & Having 9 Kittens. (what? Lol)

I was once a member of the Canadian Mounted Police. And then a scary janitor?

And this year – (unfortunately I didn’t get a Goldilocks pic)

can you guess who we are?

How was your Halloween?

Baked!

This weekend I did some boxed baking! (It still counts as baking, right?)

It was my friend’s 25^th birthday so he got a special surprise! We went to R Bar in the Lower East Side. A very cool bar with chandeliers and reasonably priced drinks. Check it out. http://www.rbarnyc.com/

Funfetti! Pairs well with vodka soda.

 They were really good, even though this ‘cream cheese’ icing was dairy free?! Ah well, I think I threw out any concerns about health after reading the name “Funfetti” :) 

Then last night, I decided I would continue my domestic streak by trying out a box of this stuff.

must stock up on this !

 In a word, incredible. This box was enough for 1 small and one medium sized loaf. I brought one loaf to work and kept the smaller one for my breakfast this week. Let’s see how long it lasts.

  I think I’ll be picking up some more of this magical mix on my next trip to Trader Joe’s.

I’m off to get my nails done & go to the gym.

Good night!!

A Walk in the Park

To savor the last bit of summer, I went to the Ramble in Central Park. It is my favorite spot - you literally feel like you stepped into another world. 

It even smells fresh. It is actually quiet.

the leaves are already starting to fall!

just before sunset

my apartment (jk!)

I have to run to a corporate party very shortly but I thought I would throw up some pictures since I didn't yesterday. Here is what I had for breaky today.

Breakfast: trader joes plain fat free greek yogurt with thawed frozed strawberries, a handful of Cinnamon Pecan Special K and some cashews. It was ridiculous.

Alright i'm off to schmooze and booze!

Nighty night!!

Fashion's Night Out + Back in the City

I'm back in the city! Going home felt really great. I missed my family. A lot. It was really nice to just go to my small town and hang around. I went to the barn a lot, went for walks with my mom, slept in, went in the 60 degree swimming pool (brisk!) and had a really great time. On my flight back, BF surprised me and had paid to get on the same flight as me as he was in Toronto for business. What a cutie.

Coming back to reality has been tough - I totally have post-vacation blues. Luckily, this Thursday my very best friend in the whole wide world is coming to New York. Can't wait!!!!

Living in New York has allowed me to experience a lot of interesting, entertaining and new events. Last Thursday night it was Ms. Wintour's FNO. Although I just toured SoHo for a little while, I was lucky enough to see some pretty cool things. 

First stop, Longchamp. 

Free champange? Whynot!

What lovely carry on bags!

 Next stop (really more of a walk by), Dash. This store had hundreds, maybe even thousands of people outside because Kim K was making an appearance. Not the biggest fan of this reality star. Also, Pauly D from the Jersey Shore was spinning tunes to celebrate the evening. There was way way way too many people so I didn't stick around. I mean, I love Pauly D and everything but just not thatttt much.

yikes!

Last stop, Bloomingdale's on Broadway. Billy Joel & Christy Brinkley's daughter Alexix was there & did some singing. She was relatively talented. Also, there was an artist who was doing portraits for free. It was pretty cool.

I stopped in a few other stores, nothing too noteworthy. Overall, a pretty cool night hosted by the city's retail stores.  I went to FNO last year & have to admit that this year was a bit disappointing. Last year the stores were not as busy.Word got out that there was free booze to be consumed! 

This morning I did not have time to make my lunch, so SeamlessWeb it was!

Lunch: 2 roll sushi combo with green salad & miso soup. I got an avocado cucumber roll & a sweet potato tempura roll. The cado-cuc roll was great but the sweet potato tempura roll was not. It wasn't a sweet potato, but a regular white potato, so weird! Not only that, the potato wasn't cooked & the tempura was soggy. Yuck!

 

 I have to be in a special mood to get salmon or anything adventurous, when I do I almost always enjoy it.  What kind of sushi do you like?

That's it for me tonight! I hope all of you are having a nice week :)

A f