A Delight of a Night: A Taste of Ethiopia and Sweden

April 30, 2010 By Leave a Comment


Last night’s cooking demo, tasting and book signing with Marcus Samuelsson did not disappoint! I thoroughly enjoyed myself at the event.  Delicious Ethiopian food was served by the owners of the well-known D.C. establishment, Etete (oh the lamb!), and I met several local food bloggers: State Dinner; DC Loves Food; DC Fud; and Mrs. Wheelbarrow.

Chef Samuelsson was resplendent. Not only did he teach as he was giving the demonstrations (we learned how to prepare gravlax, tips for buying fresh fish, and the secret to cooking the perfect fried chicken), but he told us a few of the captivating stories from his Swedish and Ethiopian upbringing that have influenced his cooking.  His sense of humor and worldly perspective were the real treat of the evening.  We were given tastings of his gravlax on cornmeal pancakes, lump crab cakes with corn salsa, and fried chicken and greens. The icing on the cake was him signing his cookbook for me.

Thanks to Macy’s for inviting me, sending me a copy of The New American Table and especially to Chef Samuelsson for sharing his talents.

Filed Under: Chefspotting, Events, food, from the paparazzi files, somethin's cookin', wannabe foodie, yo that's dope

Special Event: Chef Marcus Samuelsson at Macy’s

April 28, 2010 By 1 Comment

Back in the summer of 2001 I was a summer associate in New York City working for a big-time law firm. Those 4 months were a young professional’s dream: shows, events, nightlife and…the food. Oh the FOOD. I think I ate at every hot restaurant in Manhattan. In fact, I still have the extra 15lbs that I gained that summer to prove it.  One of those “hot” restaurants was Aquavit. I think I still have the matches from the place (I collected them from all the notable establishments that I visited). The decor was breathtaking but the meal was an experience. The chef? A talented 25-year-old by the name of Marcus Samuelsson.

Fast forward nine years and many accolades later (for him, that is!) to this week when Justice Ny and I were invited to meet the man himself tomorrow night at a cooking demonstration and tasting hosted by Chef Samuelsson, one of Macy’s Culinary Council chefs. I was ecstatic and the thought immediately conjured up those happy memories of my dinner in NYC.

I’m looking forward to it, and I’ll be there with his beautiful cookbook, The New American Table in tow. Oh and the extra 15lbs too.

Follow #culinarycouncil on Twitter tomorrow evening for updates on the event!

Filed Under: Chefspotting, Events, food, somethin's cookin'

Saturday Night, Evernote, and Me

April 24, 2010 By 1 Comment


Last year I signed up for an Evernote account as part of my Social Media Maniac kick.  I used it that day and…never again. Why? I couldn’t figure out how the heck to use it effectively.  I chalked it up to one of those apps that was just gonna be over my head and called it a day.

Fast forward some months to yesterday when I was talking to my “social media mentor,” James, on the phone.  He mentioned in passing how awesome! Evernote was. He insisted that I give it another shot and so here I am, watching tutorials and really digging my feet into this web tool.  So far I’ve managed to install the app for my Mac as well as add the Web Clipper to my toolbar. I’ve set up 2 separate notebooks – one for my blog persona and one for my personal one – and added a couple clippings to each. It actually is easy. I’m looking forward to de-cluttering my screen from having multiple browser windows always open (to “remind” myself of things and to come back to others later).

Next up? Installing Evernote for Android on my phone. Stay tuned.

Filed Under: Apps, Evernote, Nancy, imaginary assistant

Happy Earth Day: For the Techie

April 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Technology enthusiasts can get in on the Earth Day charge too:

Filed Under: green

Happy Earth Day: For the Foodie

April 22, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Image credit: SheKnows.com

Hopefully you’ll be doing something today (and always) to show you’re appreciation and respect for our planet.  Food consumption is an enormous part of that.  Here are some suggestions of ways to become more eco-conscious with your food choices:

  • Shop local. Select your fruits and veggies from the “Farmer-Grown” section of your grocery store. You can also frequent your local farmer’s market – love those – or have fresh produce, dairy and meats delivered to you straight from the farm. Eating out? Try checking out a restaurant that sources from local farmers.
  • Choose organic.  I agree that the organic choices are often pricier than the others, but in the long run, the extra pennies are worth it. The effects of non-organic foods on the environment and our health far outweigh the few cents that those organic products might cost.
  • Plant your own! Although you probably won’t be able to feed yourself from your window-box garden, you will connect with nature and experience the satisfaction of growing your own herbs or small vegetable.  For the past two summers we’ve grown cherry tomatoes and basil. In addition to us having fresh additions to our meals, growing our own plants has been a great learning experience for my kids.
  • Do your homework.  Last night hubby and I watched Food, Inc. on PBS. It was eye-opening to see behind the wall of where our food comes from in the U.S.  Try to catch a re-run of it if you can; I guarantee you’ll never look at food the same way again.

Filed Under: food, green

Get Your Steaz On

April 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

A couple of weeks ago I was invited to an event at Whole Foods by Tech Savvy Mama, to meet the founder of Steaz and to learn more about their products. I had heard of Steaz before from TSM and my other bloggy friend Kim Moldofsky, but I hadn’t actually tasted them before or have any idea about the backstory.

In a nutshell, meeting Eric, one of the founders, was inspiring. He explained how he and his partner had a vision to make healthy, organic alternatives to sodas available to everyone. They developed the idea and the product and started by selling the teas out of their car trunks on the weekend. After a lot of hard work, Whole Foods decided to stock their teas since they believed in the company’s philosophy and products. Now, aside from the story behind the teas, the actual beverages themselves are great.  I’m not a huge fan of cold teas – they generally have an aftertaste or weird texture to me.  But these I can say are smooth, light and tasty.  My favorite is the zero-calorie Sparkling Green Tea.  They even have a root beer flavored one!  They also offer Steaz Energy drinks that are made of all natural ingredients and are much better for you than some of those other energy drinks that are advertised all over the place.

In this photo: Jill at Musings from Me; Jean at Stimeyland; Janine at TwoferMom; Leticia at Tech Savvy Mama; Justice Ny (and Princess) at Mamalaw; Jodi at Jodifur; and Amy at Teachmama.

I brought some home and my kids were immediately excited to see “soda” in the fridge (because we rarely have any) and for the first time I didn’t mind having them drink it.  Hubby is also a fan of those energy drinks since he is always playing sports; I hope to convert him to the Steaz Energy drinks soon.

Kudos to Eric and his partner for realizing their passion! And thanks to Steaz for goody bag and to Whole Foods for catering our fun dinner. It was great catching up with my DC blogger crew too.

Filed Under: an apple a day, food, green, somethin's cookin', yo that's dope

Join the Food Revolution

April 20, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Now that Chatterbox is in Kindergarten, I know firsthand what parents have been complaining about when it comes to school lunches. The menu options are limited (chicken nuggets, pizza, veggie burgers) and the nutritional content medicore.  [My favorite meal on her menu is "Chips Ole." How healthy could that be?] Oh and the “breakfast” of a honeybun and milk.  So hearing about Jamie Oliver’s new show on ABC called Food Revolution hit home with me.  His mission is to promote healthy foods and teach cooking skills for children.  He’s even started a petition that he plans to send to the White House.

I’ve taken to making her lunch everyday.  But really, the schools should be offering better choices for our kids. So sign the petition if you would and help send a message to the powers that be. Then we can all really say “Ole!”


Filed Under: an apple a day, food, keepin' it treal, shedding the dead weight, somethin's cookin'

“As Seen on Twitter!”

April 14, 2010 By Leave a Comment


Image Credit: Mashable.com

By now you’ve heard about Twitter’s roll out of their advertising platform (finally!) that will display sponsored tweets in search results (the plan is for the sponsored tweets to later show up on Twitter.com and 3rd party Twitter app streams).  Although I’ve been hearing some chatter about users reacting negatively to it, I’m not all that bothered by it. Advertising is what drives the web. It’s why we have access to a treasure trove of free content. As long as it’s labeled accordingly and/or is discernible to the average user as advertising, then bring it on. It’s just a fact of life in the new millennium.  Heaven forbid we have to pay for Twitter!

I also like that Twitter will be paying attention to how much reach and impact individual sponsored tweets have, based on favorites, retweets, and views. This should force advertisers to make their messages relevant and provide some sort of value.  Gone are the days of annoying pop up ads or static banners that we’ve come to ignore. As the web and its users evolve, so must advertising. So why not on Twitter? As long as the user experience is not compromised, that is.

The upside? Unlike the 20-minute infomercials for those fancy brownie pans, or the pre-roll ads on your favorite news website, these ads will have to be 140 characters or less. Short. Integrated.To the point. What more could we ask for?

Filed Under: advertising, Apps, social media

A Word About Foursquare

April 13, 2010 By Leave a Comment

It took me a long time to finally start using Foursquare. In fact, I had the app downloaded onto my Droid for weeks before signing up. There was (is) just something very “Big Brother” about it. But then I witnessed first-hand a couple of times the power of Foursquare, and I was intrigued.

Now, I can’t stop checking in. I have to stop myself sometimes and say: “Girlfriend, do you really think people want to know that you’re on the Metro? WHO CARES?” But it really is addictive. And fun. I’m still figuring it out though. For example, when I uncheck “Tell Twitter” and “Tell My Friends” when I check in somewhere, it still ends up being published to those places. So I don’t know how to fix that. But all in all, I’m enjoying it.

Justice Jonesie told me about a newsstory where a woman posted on Facebook that she was at a concert and one of her “friends” robbed her house since they knew that she wasn’t at home. Being an tech attorney, I am aware of the dangers of social media and the Internet as a whole. So why (oh why?) am I on Facebook, Twitter, Blogs and now using apps like Foursquare? I tell myself (and others) that it’s because I believe that “Big Brother” knows where you are anyway. There is GPS in our cell phones, our cars. Google knows (and keeps) our search terms, houses our email messages and contacts, manages our docs and hosts our blogs.  Our banks and hospitals leak our private information daily (albeit unwittingly). So no one is safe! Unless you live under a rock, you’re at risk.

So why not rack up a couple of points and unlock a badge while you’re at it?

Filed Under: Apps, Foursquare, social media

Drumroll Please…

April 5, 2010 By Leave a Comment

I finally made it to WordPress! Thanks ever so much to Shannon at Blog Icing for helping me make the move and bring my idea to life. So here it is. My revamped blog dedicated to my passions for food and for social media. An odd combination to be sure, but it’s me.  I hope you’ll bear with me as I work out the kinks and get in my groove.

Filed Under: Uncategorized