Claws: Living in the Lapis of Luxury

I know nails and nail polish isn't fashion per-say but if there's one thing that I'm obsessed about keeping well pampered, it's my nails. I love painting, filing, buffing, scrubbing, massaging my nails. It's all therapeutic to me. Anya, my mother, and I have collected quite a variety of nail polish and tools over the years. Anyway this is my absolute favorite nail color for this summer, Essie's Lapis of Luxury. I love the muted blue on my skin tone and its shiny finish. Essie is by far my top nail polish brand. You can by it here.

Eatin' Out: Pio, Pio, Pio's!

You know that one restaurant that you know no matter what time of day, mood your in, or how the weather is outside you'll always leave that place stuffed to the brim and satisfied beyond belief, well that restaurant for us is Pio Pio's in Manhattan. I can't recall the first time I've been, I can just remember the numerous times going and leaving happy every. single. time. The service is the fastest you'll ever see for such great quality of food and the menu, though mostly in Spanish is simple and to the point.

But don't get me wrong, fast service and simple menu doesn't equate to a run of the mill place. No, their decor is great a combination of rich yellow accents, exposed brick, and murals of young Peruvian native children. Oh did I mention it's a Peruvian restaurant? We always order the same thing with small variations here and there. The Matador Combo is one large chicken served with two sides and their divine avocado salad.

Mouth-watering Chicken!

Best rice and beans thus far.

Avocado Salad with red onions, tomatoes, and lettuce.

My final plating, YUMYUMYUM! With sweet plantains not shown.
What I think is the one thing that is really memorable and just adds that final kick to Pio Pio's is their secret green sauce. We've tried to recreate this sauce a million times and have never captured the right color, consistency, or spice that it has. I tend to think the meal would be nothing without this mysterious yet delectable green sauce.

So cheers to another great meal at our favorite spot in the city.

Signature Dish?: Pork Tenderloin

I know I have to keep a more consistent pace to the blog! I post two, then not post for a week, I know =/ I'm very sorry for that, hopefully we'll be picking up the pace. But I've just started a new job, so maybe you'll be hearing more from the second half of this cooking duo. On to the food!

Today was actually one of my first working days, so I came home starving searching the fridge for anything to eat. I had cooked Filipino Adobe Pork the night before but wasn't too proud of it (despite my mom's gushing), but just before I was about to give in and reluctantly eat that pork, I saw the other uncooked log of pork loin beaming in the back of the freezer like a sign from God. So I defrosted that bad boy and went to work!

I know I always say what we cook is so simple, but it's always so true! This pork was not complex at all! I didn't measure a thing, including anything for the sauce, I'll explain what I did, and here's some more in-depth instructions for your time making it: Pork Tenderloin with Burgundy Peppercorn Sauce.

Pork Loin: First preheat the oven to 425 degrees and pour a little olive oil in a medium saute pan on medium high heat. I patted the pork dry with a paper towel and lightly coated it with light olive oil. I used Kirkland Signature Tellicherry Black Pepper Grinder and Kirkland Signature Lemon & Tellicherry Pepper Grinder to crackle fresh pepper generously all over the log of pork loin. I also sprinkled it with some Lawry's Seasoned Pepper. Make sure the fire is pretty hot and place the pork loin in so it sizzles. Brown each side for about a minute or two. Cover a baking dish with foil and lightly grease it and place the pork in the oven for 15-17 minutes. No more! Cover the pork with foil and let it sit in the opened oven.

Burgundy Sauce: For the sauce saute sliced shallots and minced garlic in a saute pan on medium heat till cooked. Add about 2 cups of Sherry and bring to a boil on high heat. Stir the wine in, once it has deglazed there should be a small trail as you stir. Add 1/2 a cup of heavy cream, and bring to a boil as well (I added a couple splashes Worcestershire sauce for color). As it reaches a creamy consistency turn off the heat and crackle some fresh black pepper and garnish with freshly chopped parsley.

I served this, sliced thick, on-top of jasmine white rice, and let me tell you it was finger lickin' good, it left a nice spicy taste on my mouth that I wish could stay there forever. My mom asked me tonight out of all the things I make, what is my signature dish? And I think I'm bound to make this mine. I know, it's nerdy how excited I get over food. :)

I'll have to work on the presentation second time around, I was so hungry I just threw it on the plate!

Summer Essential: Wedges

I, along with my confidant of The Sweet Paprika, know that one thing we love most about summer aside from sleeping in, BBQ ribs, Beach days, and Mr. Softee, are the summer sandals we can don everyday till the outlines of our feet are imprinted on the soles. Gladiators, flip flops, slip-ons, you name it we have it.

This summer I've tried to step a little more into my feminine side by trying to wear heels a little more during the summer days. Now while I covet Christian Louboutin 5 inch heels just like the next gal, I know that I can barely stand 15 minutes in them. So the simple answer to my dilemma is: wedges. Insanely comfortable and just as cute, feminine, and smexy (yes I said smexy) as those 6 inch Givenchy platforms, here's a couple of my summer picks:

From left to right:
ASOS Leather Ankle Strap Wedges - $76.00
Michael Kors Braided Wedge - $240.00
Joe's Jeans Wedge Sandal - $179.95
Steve Madden Warrick Wooden Wedge - $169.00
DVF Opal Wedge Leather Sandals - $295.00
Gap Floral Bow Wedge - $110.00
Sigerson Morrison Double-Knot Flouresant Wedge - $475.00
Dolce Vita Pela Leather Wedge - $172.95
Jeffery Campbell Smith Wedge - $120.00

I actually just received the Dolce Vita Wedges that I had been coveting for a couple months, and I've got to say that I absolutely love 'em. They're crazy comfortable and grey's one of my favorite shades that I think it goes with just about everything (one thing though is that the construction of the shoe is a little faulty, their glue is started to wear down already ).

1, 2, 3: Fingerling Potaotes & Tomatoes

Quite possibly the simplest veggie side to add to any meal! The measurements are completely up to you and the steps are very simple. Fingerling potatoes could be donned the Queen Elizabeth of french fries. Here's my recipe:

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes & Tomatoes
Makes enough for 4-5 people

Bag of Fingerling Potatoes
Cherry Tomatoes
Olive Oil
Chopped fresh Parsley
Minced Garlic
Red Pepper Flakes
Italian Seasoning
Sea Salt
Seasoned Pepper
Crackled Black Pepper

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. First take four hand fulls of the fingerling potatoes and wash them vigorously. Also wash about 1 cup of the cherry tomatoes under cool water.

Cover a baking pan with foil and lightly drizzle olive oil to coat it.

Place the fingerling potatoes and cherry tomatoes in a medium sized bowl. Drizzle them with about 1/4 cup of olive oil so the seasoning adheres. Now season with the red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning, sea salt, pepper, and black pepper. Putting more or less of each ingredient to your liking. Sprinkle in the minced garlic. Stir to distribute the seasoning.

Pour the potatoes and tomatoes onto the foiled baking pan. Garnish with the fresh parsley and stick it in the oven for 50 minutes. Enjoy!

Cherry Popped: Creme Puffs

Today Anya and I tearfully said our goodbyes to our older sister who was visiting from Miami. After coming back from the airport in the dreary rain we needed something to lighten our spirits. Within three clicks we came upon inspiration on Foodgawker to make Chocolate Drizzled Cream Puffs.

So we popped our cream puff making cherries and it took no time! We stuffed them with homemade whipped cream and chocolate sauce. I even opted to put in blueberries with suggestion from my mom who had eaten raspberry creme-puffs last week at The Venetian in Las Vegas. The process was simple and the results were D-E-L-C-I-O-U-S! So light and sweet I easily could've eaten five (but the summer bikini in my closet was telling me, two was more than enough). I'll simplify the recipe here:

Creme Puffs
Makes 6 mini puffs

1/2 cup of milk
2 tbs of butter
1 tsp of sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup of flour
3 eggs

Heat first four ingredients (milk, butter, sugar, salt) in a small sauce pan on medium heat until liquid boils, stirring occasionally. Turn the fire on low once liquid boils and pour in the all the flour. Stir until even dough forms together. Keep on low fire, stirring so dough dries evenly.

Remove the dough from the sauce pan and place in a small mixing bowl and let cool. While cooling, grease a baking pan with butter and lightly sprinkle with flour. Preheat the oven to 375. Once the dough is cool prepare a mixer with blender blades and turn it on medium speed. Drop in one egg at a time making sure to completely blend it into the dough before proceeding with the next egg. With the first egg in, the dough may look a little curdled but by the time the second egg is completely blended, it should develop a good paste-y consistency; which will indicate it's ready.

Using a zip lock bag with a tip cut off, pile all the dough into the bag. Squeeze out about 1 1/2 inch circles with the dough onto the baking pan. Be very cautious and neat, because it can get very messy, very fast. Place them about a inch apart from each other. Beat the last egg with about a tablespoon of water to create the egg wash. Lightly brush the egg wash onto the dough puffs.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes to a half hour or until they have a flakey golden crust. Let sit in the oven with the door cracked open for an additional half hour to cool.

Optional: Slice creme puff in half and stuff with whipped cream and fruit (strawberry, raspberry, blueberry etc.). Cover and drizzle with chocolate sauce.


P.S: Here's a sneak peek at a little D.I.Y project I'm working on with a pair of my mom's old jeans, I'll be sure to post the final results.

Tip of the World: Seafood City

We took a trip to the tippy-top of New York. The Bronx, NY to be more exact, to go stuff our faces at Seafood City on City Island. We've been there many trips before and each time come back completely stuffed and satisfied. The menu is simple, just about any type of seafood you're craving: fried, steamed, or broiled.

We got the large Fried Seafood Sampler which was compacted of whiting, scallops, shrimp, calamari, and fries all fried crispy and buttery to perfection. My mom ordered the (5) Fried lobster tails which was a great deal for $26. Have you ever tried a fried lobster tail? No? Well you need to, ASAP! It's the best way to have 'em in my opinion.


For drinks, Mojitos and Virgin Pina Colada and Strawberry Daiquiri blends.

The beautiful view, can you believe this is NY?

I know we've plastered the word fashion all over the place with none to back it up, well here's a little (sorry we're new to this) of what we wore.




Necklace: Forever 21, Tulle Skirt: Aqua, Wedges: Dolce Vita, Oxfords: Boutique 9

Brunch In: Homemade Egg McMuffins

The first big issue of the day, every morning, is what to eat! Sometimes we don't find out the answer until the middle of the day which then leads to the issue of whether or not we want lunch or breakfast. Que in: BRUNCH! Which by far is the best invention of man, at least in the eyes of the Peters family.

Today of all days, Anya and I decided on homemade Egg McMuffins. Anya has a nact at making breakfast biscuits and we had all the ingredients for the rest of it so it was the perfect choice. She uses this recipe which produces scrumptious buttermilk biscuits every single time. I think the secret is the shortening. It's another simple recipe, all you have to do is sift, cut, and bake and you're done.

We also made some breakfast potatoes a new way using this recipe. You boil the potatoes before placing them in the frying pan. We improvised a bit by using our two key steps to making the perfect home fries: add butter and burn the bottom a bit to make a crunchy texture. All of it came out delicious and I can't wait to make it again!

For the Bold: Chocolate Grand Marnier Souffle

I'm not one for introductions so I'm just gonna dive right into the food (as I do every meal)! Today my little sister, Anya and I decided to deconstruct and rebuild a dessert we were so lucky to have tasted a couple nights before at Khun Thai in Summit, New Jersey. Ironically enough, I prompted the trip to this restaurant after reading a post on The Ivory Hut, reviewing it (which I found through Foodgawker by accident). The pics made my mouth water and the fact that it was so close I haddd to go. The food was beyond my expectations, but I'm not going to go into detail, I'll save that for another post.

Back to the Chocolate Grand Marnier Souffle. It was incredibly simple and fast to make, and I barely took the time to take a decent picture before I gobbled it up. I adapted the recipe from here. Anya handmade the whipped cream and chocolate drizzle which literally only required two ingredients each. It's probably not so good for my health that this dessert was so easy to make but I'm definitely going to be making this dessert more, so better pics will ensue.