Stripes & Oxblood ft. Kimmy Win

Photo Credit: Kimmy Win

Salut mes beautes intelligentes,

I've been loving warmer tones lately, and everything oxblood (especially nail polishes and lipsticks)! I think the Christmas season also has a lot to do with my gravitation towards this color, but really, where has it been all my life? I find that there are so many patterns and colors that work with this color, and so on one fine sunny Seattle morning, I paired my new favorite skirt with a striped sweater. 

I also got to meet and photograph (and was photographed by) another nerdly beautiful - the intelligent, vibrant and lovely Kimmy Win! It's always great connecting with someone you share similar passions with! (Plus, I adoreee her effortless style, check out her blog here). I've also always admired her photography skills, could barely hold my excitement during this shoot! :)

Photo Credit: Kimmy Win

I would need to steal that scarf sooner of later! Xx

Isn't she lovely? <3

Photo Credit - Kimmy Win

Striped Sweater - Forever 21

Oxblood Skirt - H & M

Necklace - Aldo

Black Envelope Clutch - Express

Black Flats - Just Fab

Mustard Coat - Zara

Scarf - H & M

More on Kimmy's outfit and blog here :)

Stay Smart; Stay Beautiful,

-Onivie

Peppermint Sugar Bites & Peppermint Kiss Sugar Cookies

"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful." - Norman Vincent Peale

Salut mes beautes intelligentes! 

I'm so excited about Christmas this year (as with every other year), it truly is my favorite time of the year! From the lit up streets, to baking holiday treats, hanging ornaments, going on Christmas shopping sprees, spending time with loved ones, listening to Christmas music and most importantly, celebrating the birth of Christ! I could go on and on about why I love this holiday so. However, I have to say I'm missing the snow this winter! There's something about having snow for Christmas, of course this didn't matter growing up in Nigeria, but I think New York spoiled me a little in that regard. What's your favorite Christmas/Holiday tradition?

So, a little back story on this recipe - My friend and I set out to bake a bunch of Peppermint Kiss Sugar Cookies and encountered some.. well.. difficulties but were able to save the day by inventing a brand new recipe - Peppermint Sugar Bites! (which is just as yummy!) When in doubt, use sprinkles! (PS you don't have to be a mint lover to enjoy these recipes). Because this recipe is a little tricky, I included different ways in which you could get a presentable outcome. These were all gotten from a series of unfortunate events, trust me! Now, on to the recipe.. :)

Level/Type: Medium/Holiday Treats

Yield: 36 cookies

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Decorating/Finishing Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hr 15 minutes

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar

1 1/4 cups of margarine (softened butter will do)

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1 large egg

3 1/3 cups of all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 cup of chopped candy cane flavored Hershey's kisses

Granulated sugar for rolling the cookie balls in

1 pound of unwrapped Candy Cane Hershey Kisses

Red Sprinkles

PROCEDURE

1.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F

2.

Chop the Hershey kisses. ( I did this using a table knife, but feel free to go with whatever works better for you)

3.

In a mixing bowl, mix the flour, baking powder and salt.

4. 

In a larger mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, butter, egg and vanilla extract and beat until the mix is creamy.

5.

Add the flour mixture, and keep mixing until it is properly blended. Stir in the chopped kisses. Below is what your mix should look like at this stage.

6.

Shape the dough into 3/4 inch balls, roll them in the granulated sugar and align them on your baking sheet.

****

If you're interested in making the Peppermint Sugar Bites, continue on to 7th step. If not, skip to Peppermint Kiss Sugar Cookies section. (If you want to make both of them like I did, save half of the cookie balls for the sugar bites, and second half for the sugar cookies :) )

****

7.

Bake the balls for 12 - 15 minutes, as they bake, unwrap 20 Hershey kisses, and place them in a baking pan (place foil paper in the baking pan before doing this). 

8.

Halfway through the cookies are being done baking (about 5 minutes in), put the pan with the Hershey kisses into the oven and allow the kisses melt (don't leave it in for too long, once the kisses start to melt, take the pan out).

9.

After the cookies are done baking, roll each ball in the pan of melted kisses (this name makes me giggle! Haha), until it is evenly coated, and then pour red sprinkles over the cookie balls. You want to do this step while the cookie balls are still warm, so work fast :D

Anddd you're done! (Place in fridge for 15 minutes before serving)

*****

Peppermint Kiss Sugar Cookies

*****

7.

Now that you have your cookie balls aligned on the baking sheet, slightly press down the middle of each ball. It should look like this. 

8.

Bake the cookies for 12 - 15 minutes. While it's baking, unwrap Hershey kisses (1 per cookie).

9.

As soon as the cookies are taken out, quickly press a candy cane kiss in the center and put in fridge(I left mine over night, and it was set in the morning). Don't panic if some of them melt in the center, it'll still look cuteee but will lose the kiss shape. 

Andd you're done!

Don't forget to leave a comment below letting me know how this turns out. :)

Bon Appetit,

-Onivie

Beef Sauce with Broccoli

Salut mes beautés intelligentes! 

Hope your weekend is off to a great start! The other night I made some beef broccoli with the help of my "assistant chef" (Monsieur Jean-Christophe, as seen in pictures below) for dinner, and it came out so well! (proud moment). Prior to this I had tried out other ways to get the right taste, and a few times failed miserably! However, I think I finally got the right ingredients down, at least for now, before I decide to throw in something new next time(I'll update this post if I do :D ). 

This time around I made the broccoli tender than usual, because I was going for a creamier sauce. :)

Level/Type: Easy/Entree

Yield: 2 Servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

2 teaspoons of soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon of corn starch

1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil

1/2 lb of thinly sliced beef sirloin tip steak

2 large cloves of garlic chopped (or to taste if you prefer more garlic)

1 tablespoon of chopped ginger

1 tablespoon of chopped onions

1 head of broccoli 

2 tablespoons of water

1/4 cup of chicken stock 

1 tablespoon of oyster sauce

1 teaspoon of corn starch

1/2 teaspoon of white pepper

2 tablespoons of coconut oil

PROCEDURE

1.

In a small bowl, marinate the beef with soy sauce, corn starch (1/2 teaspoon) and sesame oil. Stir properly to combine.

2.

While the meat is marinating, chop the garlic, onions and ginger, and place them in a separate bowl.

3. 

In another bowl, cut apart the florets of the broccoli into bite-sized pieces.

4.

In a separate bowl, mix the chicken stock, oyster sauce, corn starch (1 teaspoon) and white pepper, and combine properly.

5.

Heat up your sauce pan (or wok if you have one) and add the coconut oil.

6.

When the coconut oil is a little hot, add in your chopped garlic, ginger and onions.

7.

Add in the beef and stir fry until the beef is cooked enough (not completely soft), and then add in the broccoli. Add a little water and cover the sauce pan to allow the steam cook the sauce (cook for five minutes). Note: If you want do not want your broccoli tender, you would have to take out the beef after it has cooked, and steam the broccoli on its own. Once the broccoli is as tender as you want it(2 mins tops), throw in the beef and continue on to the next step. :)

8.

Take off the lid, and add the stock mixture (stir first) into the sauce.

9.

Stir fry until the sauce is slightly thick and and has coated everything evenly. 

I served this with a side of jasmine rice, yum! :)

Please leave a comment below if you try this recipe, orrr you have any suggestions!

Bon Appetit,

-Onivie