Restaurant Remix – Black Cod in Shiso Broth

Nina

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It’s no secret that one of my favorite things to do is to go out to a amazing meal with my husband. We regularly forego exchanging gifts just so that we can indulge in whatever new restaurant is on our must try list. The perfect bite is just one of those things that takes me far away to such a happy warm place. As much as I enjoy each and every bite of food and sip of wine, it’s always so sad when our meal comes to an end. We’re always very satisfied but we often leave wanting just a little more, which is why one of my new favorite hobbies is to come home and try to recreate some of those delicious dishes myself. Sometimes I’m successful, and sometimes I’m definitely not. This was one of those times I think I fared on the better end of the scale.

A couple of birthdays ago, we went to Ame, which is located in the St. Regis hotel in San Francisco. Their cuisine is New American with little bits of Asian hints in there. Our absolute favorite dish of the night was their Broiled Sake Marinated Alaskan Black Cod and Shrimp Dumplings in Shiso Broth. The fish was so delicate and rich and the broth balanced it out so well. I skipped the shrimp dumplings because I wanted the black cod to be the focal point of the plate. It took a few tries but I think I’ve (almost) mastered this one.

(Recipe below)

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Black Cod in Shiso Broth

Serves 2, maybe 3

  • 1 pound of black cod, bones removed
  • 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons of sake
  • 2 tablespoons of mirin
  • 2 tablespoons of sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ginger, finely chopped or grated
  • 1/2 teaspoon of garlic, finely chopped or grated
  • 2 cups of  chicken stock
  • 1 tablespoon of soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons mirin
  • 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon of garlic, finely chopped or grated
  • 1/2 teaspoon of garlic, finely chopped or grated
  • 1/2 teaspoon of toasted sesame oil
  • 3-4 shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
  • 1 carrot, thinly sliced
  • green onions, julienned & finely diced for garnish

Combine the first 7 ingredients. Marinate and refrigerate the black cod for a minimum of 3 hours, but preferably overnight or up to 24hours. To cook the cod, preheat your oven on to 425. Take the fillets out of the marinade and place on a baking sheet. Place in oven and bake for 10-12 minutes. The cod will develop a deep caramel/mahogany color. Combine the second 8 ingredients in a pot. Bring to a boil and add the shiitake mushrooms, carrots and green onions. Reduce to a simmer for a few minutes.

To serve, gently place a cod fillet in the center of each bowl and then ladle the broth in. Garnish with green onions and enjoy.

*Just a disclaimer, I don’t accurately measure all ingredients. I generally eyeball the ingredients and adjust to taste. Also, my oven runs a little hot.

Craving Cold Weather

Nina

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Burberry coat (old), BR hat (sold out), Anine Bing sweater (sold out, similar), LV scarf, Anine Bing leather pants, H&M gloves, H&M booties, LV bag

I have a love hate relationship with California weather. As a born & raised Californian, or more specifically a Bay Area native, I am used to fairly moderate temperatures. Not too hot and not too cold for most of the year. Though that is what I’m used to, I definitely crave the extremes from time to time. It gives me the chance to break out my few summer dresses or in this case, my favorite coats that only get a few wears each year. Speaking of, what is up with our weather lately? 70 degrees in January? I’m still waiting for winter to hit so that I can get the chance to wear my winter coats. We took these photos back in November in Central Park on the most perfect Autumn afternoon. I still can’t get over the beautiful colors. It has snowed the night before, but wasn’t cold enough to stick, but it made this day very brisk and beautiful.

Onto to the outfit. This coat is so special to me. It was the first purchase I made with my first bonus from work. I wanted to spend the money on a classic piece that I knew I would have forever. Although it was my first bonus, it wasn’t too much, so I had to make the most of it. I went to the Burberry outlet and was lucky enough to find this coat that I have loved for years now and will love for years to come.

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#TheNewBR

Nina

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Since graduating college I’ve been a long time shopper at Banana Republic, but strictly just for my work wardrobe. They have always had good work-appropriate staples at budget friendly prices (if you caught them during one of their ever so frequent sales). Never would I ever be caught wearing any of my Banana pieces outside the office until now. This isn’t news to anyone anymore, but ever since Marissa Webb joined BR as their creative director there has been a major rehaul of Banana Republic’s aesthetic… and I couldn’t be more excited about it.

For both outfits, I opted for a more casual look since that is what I was so excited about when Marissa Webb joined BR. Everything is so versatile. You can take these pieces from work to the weekend and everything in between. Outfit details below.

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Outfit 1: BR blouse, BR hat (sold out, similar here), J Brand jeans, Stuart Weitzman 5050s, Target Sweater (borrowed, similar here), Louis Vuitton clutch (I got it from my mama, similar here)

Outfit 2: BR Sweater, BR hat (sold out, similar here), Express Jeans (on sale!), Jeffrey Campbell booties (color sold out, similar here), Louis Vuitton Neverfull

Black Friday

Nina

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It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Christmas music is in full swing on Pandora and I’m officially allowed to decorate for Christmas, YAY! But, let’s not forget that today is the official start of Black Friday sales. Yes, there were a few sales that officially started last night but in my book today is the real start to all the good sales. Here’s a few sites I’ll be checking out!

Anine Bing – So many amazing pieces on sale, including the leather pants I love from this post.

Theory – 40% off and spend $500 and get $100 off your next order

Vince –  Extra 25% off of sale items with promo code LAYERUP

Helmut Lang – 40% off

Zara – 30% off everything

Saks  – Up to 60% off

Neiman Marcus – Up to 50% off sale and $50 off qualifying purchase of $200

Shopbop – 15% off $250, 20% off $500 & 25% off $1,000

Banana Republic – 50% off one full-priced item & 40% off the rest of your purchase

Piperlime – 25% off site wide

Yoogi’s Closet – 10% off everything, perfect time to pick up a new handbag

HAPPY SHOPPING!!! I know I’ll be spending a few hours perusing the sales!

 

(image courtesy of Great Labels)

 

Birthday Cake

Nina

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A few months back my little girl turned a year old, or 7 in dog years, but who’s counting. So naturally, it was only right that we bake her a dog bone-shaped birthday cake. It’s crazy to think that we adopted her a little over a year ago from the SF SPCA. Her and her brother were found by SF Animal Care & Control in the Hunter’s Point (SF). I get real sad sometimes when I think of her rough beginnings but then again, I use that as an excuse to spoil the heck out of her. Onto the cake, I ordered this cake pan from Amazon and kind of winged it with the recipe. I read through several recipes I found online and ended up making her a peanut butter applesauce cake with a greek yogurt and peanut butter frosting. She wasn’t too thrilled with all the picture taking but she waited patiently since she knew she was in for a treat.

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Window Gardening

Nina

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I’ve never been known to have a green thumb. I think it stems more from my Laissez-faire attitude towards plants in general.  I’d water them when I remembered, which wasn’t too often, and I never paid attention to how much sunlight they got during the day. Ever since I got into cooking a few years back, I’ve wanted my own herb garden. This proved to be a challenge because the last couple of places I lived in either lacked outdoor space or windows with good natural light. I’d pass by the lush herb plants at Whole Foods, always tempted to grab them but I resisted knowing they wouldn’t survive. Luckily, my new kitchen has a great wall of windows with tons of natural sunlight so since we moved in I’ve been determined to plant my own little herb garden.

I opted for a planter with a removable drainage stopper so that I didn’t have to deal with drilling my own holes or the mess of having a separate tray underneath. This just seemed to be the best fool-proof solution for a green thumb challenged person like myself. Herbs I planted include: basil, parsley, oregano, chili peppers, chives, cilantro and thyme. Updates on whether I’ve been able to keep them alive and what I cook with them to come!

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Bargain Hunting

Nina

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Parker dress (sold out, similar here), All Saints leather jacket (similar here and here), Blonde Salad x Steve Madden heels, Louis Vuitton clutch (I got it from my mama, similar here)

This dress is one of my favorite Nordstroms Rack finds. I know I’ve mentioned this before, but I love a good deal. My husband (and maybe my credit card) can attest to the fact that I get way too giddy about a good sale. I actually am a self-proclaimed bargain hunter. Because I don’t have an endless budget and I love to shop, I’m always on the look out for a good sale where I can save a little on the pieces I want. Everything in this post, except for the clutch which was a hand me down from my mama, was purchased at a discounted price. Yay me!

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Updated Basics

Nina 1 Comment


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Gap denim jacket, Vince white tee (no longer available, similar here), Anine Bing leather pants, Christian Louboutin pumps (similar here and here), Louis Vuittion Bag (I got it from my mama) similar here

Denim jacket, white tee, black pants and black pumps. Items we’ve all got in our closet  and for me, a few basics that I always gravitate towards when I’m struggling with what to wear. Recently, I’ve been working on updating these basic staples with better quality pieces that I know I’ll love and wear over and over, and over again.

Maybe it’s the accountant in me, but before I buy a new piece of clothing I think about the cost per wear. Is it something I’ll wear once and then it’ll sit in my closet for months? For those items, which typically are the trendier pieces, I go for the less expensive option since I know the value isn’t there. Yes, don’t get me wrong, I have a tendency to splurge from time to time but I try to limit those. So, if I am debating on buying a $50 t-shirt, I ask myself if I am going to wear it more than 50 times? If the answer is yes, then I buy it. Sometimes the $700 pumps that you’ll wear hundreds of times are a better buy than the $50 pair that you wear a few times and toss since they kill your feet. This mindset has helped me shop smarter over the years.

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Anine Bing Sample Sale

Nina

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I follow the uber stylish Anine Bing on Instagram so when I saw her post about an upcoming sample sale, I knew I had to be sitting at my computer ready with my credit card to get my online shopping on. I love her line because it’s full of classic pieces with just enough detailing to make it standout. I only purchased three items; black leather pants, a grey oversized chunky sweater and olive green suede booties (no longer available, but love these). I have worn all three of these items so many times since I got them in the mail. That’s how I know I made a good purchase. I’m so excited to continue wearing all three of these pieces, together and separately, this fall.

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Salty and Sweet

Nina

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During our move, one of the first appliances my husband found a home for was the ice cream maker. Ever since, he’s been vaguely (or what he considers to be vaguely) hinting at me to make some. In the past, I’ve stuck to simple classic flavors like vanilla bean. Since I don’t have much of a sweet tooth myself, Bi-Rite Creamery in the Mission has my personal favorite flavor, salted caramel. The perfect mixture of salty and sweet.With all the warm weather we’ve been having, I finally gave in and decided to make some ice cream. Using this recipe here, I was able to recreate my favorite flavor and I was pleasantly surprised by the results. The texture was incredibly rich and creamy. The flavor was cloyingly sweet with the perfect hint of salt. Just what both of us were looking for in our ice cream craving.

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