Vegetarian Thai Peanut Pasta

As many of you know, there are few things that give me greater pleasure than cooking.  Nothing beats skipping around the kitchen, music blasting, and creating something new and tasty.  So today, in the spirit of my love for all things palate related, I would like share a delicious and easy recipe for Vegetarian Thai Peanut Pasta.  This is a recipe near and dear to my flavor loving heart.  I like it spicy, but you can certainly vary the ingredients to favor your taste buds. This can be prepared for a group of friends or for a party of one.  The recipe I am sharing serves five people.  You can double or halve if necessary.  Additionally, it can be tweaked to fit many diet restrictions.

What You Will Need:

1/3 cup chunky peanut butter (You can go with natural, reduced fat or full fat.  It is up to you!)

1/3 cup water

3 tbsp. brown sugar

3 tbsp. rice vinegar

3 tbsp. soy sauce (Use low sodium if you are going for the healthy!)

1 tsp. crushed red pepper (Reduce if you don't like it too spicy!)

8 ounces uncooked spaghetti (You can use white, wheat or gluten-free pasta!)

10 ounces fresh snow peas, trimmed 

1 large carrot, shredded

Directions:

Cook pasta according to directions.  Add snow peas to pasta the last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain and place cooked pasta in a large serving bowl.  While pasta is cooking,  combine the first six ingredients in a medium saucepan.  Cook over medium heat until mixture begins to boil, stirring the entire time.  Remove from heat and add sauce and carrots to pasta, tossing thoroughly to coat noodles.

I would serve this pasta dish with a light salad made of iceberg or romaine lettuce, mandarin orange slices, peeled cucumber, slivered almonds and a light sesame dressing!  Bon Appetit!!

  

Owen Plant and Four Brix

I was first introduced to the unique sounds of California musician Owen Plant last summer when I attended a "Concerts in the Cellar" event at Four Brix Winery in Ventura.  I didn't know what to expect, but I am always up for live music and discovering new talent.   Plus, there was wine.  Need I say more?  :)  While the wine was delicious and the setting lovely, exposing my ears to the sounds of Owen Plant's art was the true highlight of the evening.  From the moment this artist sang his first note, I was hooked.  It's amazing how just one man and his guitar can fill your senses.  Owen's music is reminiscent of James Taylor-esque folk blended with a subtle Jamaican sound.  His strong vocals are so rich and pleasant that I wanted to listen forever.  Every track seeped into my soul, some of my favorites including Sink or Swim and Sweet Girl.   While some folks may not include reggae at the top of their list of musical favorites, the reggae influence in Plant's music was illusive enough not to overwhelm.  I am convinced his sound will appeal to everyone.  Owen Plant put on a fantastic show at Four Brix Winery last summer, but to make sure I wasn't just intoxicated by the balmy summer evening and flowing wine, I recently caught another show, this time in the cold winter months.  The result was the same, my musical soul was still warmed by the sounds of this talented artist.  I look forward to following Owen Plant's path and catching more performances in the future. I hope you will add him to your list as a must-see local artist.  Join his mailing list to learn about upcoming gigs. Join Mailing List For my friends outside of California, you can preview and download his music here. Preview and Purchase Music

A little more about the winery.  Four Brix is a unique winery and tasting room, nestled in an industrial section of Ventura. Once you step inside the building, you will find a warm and inviting spot for wine lovers.  They have many wonderful wines to taste, my personal favorite being Zeductive, a beautiful blend of Zinfandel and Petite Sirah.  Other uniquely named wines include Smitten (a Viognier from Santa Ynez), Temptress (a Spanish Rioja style blend of Tempranillo, Mourvedre, and Grenache), and Rhondezvous (a blend of Grenache, Mourvedre, and Syrah). Sexy names for mouth watering wines.  What I especially like about Four Brix is that you get the genuine feeling that the owners love making wine, and even more so, love having you there to hang out and drink it with them!  Four Brix hosts various fun events throughout the year, pairing their love of wine with fantastic food and music. You can join the Four Brix mailing list to learn about exciting year round events. Four Brix Winery

Fearlessly Solo

For some people being single in their 30’s translates to being lonely.  Sometimes it means not having people to do things with.  From something as small as having a pal to grab dinner with or as big as finding a buddy to plan a trip to Europe with, it can be harder to find friends who are available.  Solo in your 30‘s often means having to make choices about venturing out alone or missing out.  This isn’t necessarily because you don’t have friends and family to do things with, but often their availability just isn’t what it used to be.  Totally normal.  Many of the friends I used to go out with are married with families now.  If we see each other twice a year I consider it a success.  Even the friends who are just as single as I am have a ton going on.  Careers, workout schedules, book clubs, family commitments and even just living proximity can affect our ability to connect.  It isn’t as easy to call someone on a whim and catch a last minute movie, grab an impromptu sushi roll or even hit the road for a spontaneous road trip.  However, whenever I’ve been in between relationships, I have always kept a promise to myself that being solo would never stop me from doing the things I want to do.  Work, money and other responsibilities may cause road blocks...but being single?  Never!  Let’s face it, we were put on this planet for seventy-five to eighty-five years (if we are extremely lucky) and time is going by whether we like it or not.  Someday I fully expect to settle down with a wonderful man and live that partnered life.  But for now I’m single, and I’m keeping this promise to myself.  While I am in the solo stages of my life, I will always make a genuine effort to live life to the fullest. I’m here to tell you, it’s not as scary as it may seem.

Case in point.  A few months ago, after spending a rainy Sunday watching Season One of HBO’s The Newsroom in its entirety, (great show...I highly recommend!) I started following one of the actors on Twitter.  (You may find I reference Twitter a lot in my blog.  It is a GREAT way to find out about things going on in the city.)  By following this actor on Twitter, I found out that he was performing in a small two man play at The Geffen Playhouse in Westwood.  Wow!  Here I’ve spent numerous hours watching this actor on T.V. and really admiring his work.  Now I have the opportunity to see him in an up close and personal setting only thirty miles from my house.  What a gift!  None of my friends were available to go, so I was faced with a choice.  Do I miss out on this opportunity or do I brave it alone?  My answer?  Brave it!  Obviously!  I called the box office to make sure they still had tickets, hopped in the car, and had a nice little afternoon at the theater with me, myself and I. The show was great and the theater was so intimate that I was literally a stones throw away from this actor that I had just been enjoying on HBO.  While waiting for the performance to start, I chatted with an older couple sitting next to me who have held season tickets to The Geffen for years.  They shared stories of other shows they had seen and big stars who have graced the stage.  They were lovely people.  The show was unique and like nothing I had ever seen before.  As I left the theater, the actor I had come to see was standing there in the lobby greeting theater goers! I had the opportunity to shake his hand and tell him how much I enjoyed the play, as well as his work on The Newsroom.  What a successful outing!  Had I not gone on that adventure I wouldn’t have had a lovely chat with the older couple sitting next to me, I wouldn’t have exposed myself to another art form and performance unlike any I had seen before, and I wouldn’t have had the chance to tell an actor that I admire that I enjoy his work IN PERSON!

It is true that we cannot always control the stages of life we are in.  Whether we are in the post breakup haze, the “single and loving it” phase, or even stuck in a partnership with someone who doesn’t share our adventurous spirit, what we CAN control is how we choose to spend our free time.  And we can do it with a fearless spirit.  Whether it means taking yourself to a movie, buying that single ticket to the Laker Game or booking a flight to Paris...I say DO IT.  Maybe it seems lonely or like these experiences would be better shared with a friend or partner.  But I am here to tell you, from experience, that when you are your own best friend, being solo in the suburbs is never a lonely journey.  

The Penthouse at The Huntley

Ok, so I'm not going to lie.  I'm slightly obsessed with a little A Capella group called Pentatonix.

This group won the Sing Off a season or so ago.  (Check out YouTube for a sample of their glorious voices.  I recommend their cover of "Somebody That I Used to Know,"). My friend Darin introduced me to their eargasm inducing sounds last summer (thank you Darin, love you forever!), and since then I've been floating around in A Capella heaven. I've been to one concert already, and I have another coming up in a couple of weeks.  I'll be sure to blog about it!  Anyway, being the hip trendy 34 year old that I am (insert sarcastic lol), I religiously follow the members of Pentatonix on the good ol' Twitter to stay apprised of their performance schedule, musical advice, and, of course, daily eating habits.  You can imagine my utter glee when I was out in Santa Monica with my friend last Friday night and saw on my Twitter feed that a few of the Pentatonix clan were around the corner having drinks at The Penthouse.  The Penthouse is a luxury restaurant and bar atop the Huntley Hotel in Santa Monica.  So, we decided to fangirl it up and hightail it over there to see if we could catch a glimpse of these adorable singers that house the most angelic voices in the world. I love spontaneity and adventures!

The Huntley Hotel is a tall tower on 2nd Street that offers chic accommodations and a top floor restaurant and bar with panoramic views of the city on the East, and gorgeous visions of the Pacific Ocean on the West.  Upon entering the hotel, you will take the elevator to the top floor.  The doors will slide open to a barrage of creamy white leather furniture, a gleaming white marble bar, picturesque chandeliers and candle light everywhere.  A D.J. is spinning tunes, and well dressed Angelinos sipping cocktails can be seen hobnobbing throughout the bar. 



The sad news about this night is that we never spotted the lovely members of Pentatonix.  By the time we arrived at The Penthouse and landed two highly sought after chairs at that heavenly white bar, the musicians with the angelic voices were already at another bar around the corner (according to the trusty Twitter feed).  Stalker mission failed...it's hard to keep up with twenty year olds.  The good news is that we had a lovely time sitting at that bar, sipping champagne, and people watching.  The Penthouse is definitely a place to see and be seen, while many a Westsider is heard guffawing over their latest script being sold.  But truthfully, it isn't so over the top that a single gal from the suburbs felt out of place. Just don't forget your leather collarless jacket.  It is Los Angeles after all.