Love Aldo

Aldo is an AMAZING site for shoe hunting!  I snatched up these gorgeous Wizard of Ozish shoes at my local Aldo. The SKOCZEN shoes are much more sparkly in real life - picture does not do the brown sparkles justice. They have become my go to shoes with every outfit.  Maybe next time I will take a picture of them ON my feet!



Aldo
SKOCZEN



Slim Thin Mint Cookies

My two favorite foods: mint and chocolate! So I found a great Thin Mint Cookie recipe on Chow.com (an amazing Foodie site) written by Amy Wisniewski . A very long process but the cookies turned out well. Note: I was not able to find "Couverture" chocolate so I substituted baking chocolate, which may have changed the taste just a bit. Still chocolate and mint - can't go wrong with that!




Ingredients


For the cookies:

1 large egg yolk

1/2 teaspoon peppermint oil

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

1/4 teaspoon fine salt

2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces



For the coating:

Ice

2 pounds semisweet chocolate couverture, separated into 1 (24-ounce) portion and 1 (8-ounce) portion



INSTRUCTIONS

For the cookies:

Place egg yolk, peppermint oil, and vanilla extract in a small bowl and whisk to break up the yolk.

Combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade attachment and pulse a few times to aerate and break up any lumps. Add butter and pulse until the mixture looks like sand, about 25 1-second pulses. Add yolk mixture and pulse just until the dough forms into a ball, about 15 1-second pulses.

Turn dough out onto a clean work surface and roll into 2 logs, each about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate until just firm but still pliable, about 1 hour. (The logs will flatten slightly while chilling. If you have a paper towel tube available, cut it in half lengthwise and nestle the cookie dough in there; this will help the dough keep its cylindrical shape while it chills.) Reshape the logs so they are perfectly round and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour more.

Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.

Remove a dough log from the refrigerator, remove the plastic wrap, and slice the dough into 1/8-inch coins. Place the cookies 1/2 inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. (About 30 cookies will fit on 1 sheet.) Rewrap the extra cookie dough in plastic and refrigerate until ready to bake the second batch. Bake the cookies until the edges are firm but the tops are still soft, about 9 to 11 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat with the remaining dough. (You can use the same piece of parchment paper.)



For the coating:

Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside.

Prepare an ice water bath by filling a large bowl with 2 inches of cold water and adding 3 to 4 ice cubes; set aside.

Bring a medium saucepan filled with 1 to 2 inches of water to a simmer over high heat; once simmering, turn off the heat. Place 24 ounces of the chocolate couverture in a dry, heatproof bowl. Set the bowl over the saucepan and stir until the chocolate is completely melted and has reached 118°F. (Make sure the chocolate does not come in contact with water or exceed 120°F. If either happens, start over, as the chocolate will no longer be usable.)

Remove the bowl from the saucepan. Add the remaining 8 ounces chocolate and stir until all the chocolate has melted and the temperature has cooled to 80°F. To speed up the cooling process—but only after all of the chocolate has melted—place the bowl over the reserved ice water bath.

Once cooled, return the bowl of chocolate to the saucepan and stir until the chocolate reaches 88°F; immediately remove from heat. Do not remove the thermometer from the bowl; check the temperature periodically to make sure it stays between 87°F and 89°F. (The chocolate must remain in this temperature range while dipping the cookies or it will not set properly.) Keep the saucepan of water over low heat and, when needed, set the bowl of chocolate over it to reheat.

To test if the chocolate is properly tempered, spread a thin layer on parchment paper and place it in the refrigerator for 3 minutes to set. If the chocolate hardens smooth and without streaks, it is properly tempered. (If it is not properly tempered, let the melted chocolate harden and start the tempering process over again: Bring the chocolate up to 118°F, then down to 80°F, then up again to 88°F.)

Using a dinner fork, dip the cooled cookies one at a time into the chocolate until covered. Lift each cookie out of the chocolate and tap the fork several times on the edge of the bowl. Scrape the bottom of the fork against the edge of the bowl to remove any excess chocolate.

Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets by tilting the fork so that the edge of each cookie touches the parchment-lined pan, then pull the fork out. Repeat until all the cookies have been dipped. Let sit at room temperature until completely set, about 20 minutes.

Recipe written by Amy Wisniewski.

Rachel Roy Pakistan Tote

Unfortunately, they are so many horrible things happening in the world.  That is why I love that Rachel Roy developed a tote specifically to help raise funds for 10 million children affected by the recent floods in Pakistan.  The "Pakistan Tote" is a cute canvas tote (45% Linen and 55% Cotton) with "Kindness Is Always Fashionable" and celebrity signatures on the reverse side.  The totes are currently unavailable but can be preordered for early January.  Rachel Roy will be donating $20 to UNICEF's disaster relief for each tote sold.  I just put in my order!

Cute Kitty candles

Etsy is an amazing site! Kittybblove (Kitty Baby Love) is a new discovery.  Sara makes this adorable Kitty shaped Beeswax candles! I think it’s wonderful that she is helping her family and her local community while making beautiful home pieces.  Such a beautiful, unique gift for a homeowner or any cat lover. Kitty Egg Beeswax Candles set of 3 for $24.




Kitty Egg Beeswax Candles - Set of 3



Just B, Kipling and Polyvore Giveaway

Kipling outfit by Iris Saleh featuring kipling handbags

Julien Macdonald / Cable Sweater
$918 - lagarconne.com
Crewneck sweater »

Tibi Lace and silk shorts
$285 - net-a-porter.com
Lace shorts »

Miu Miu Taper Toe Pump
$560 - barneys.com
Miu miu pumps »

Kipling - Handbags: Clutch / Wristlet: Lesa Wristlet
$88 - kipling-usa.com
Kipling handbags »

Alberta Ferretti Bead-embellished tulle necklace
$780 - net-a-porter.com
Alberta Ferretti necklaces »

Forever21.com - Beauty - Makeup - 1080550061
$3.80 - forever21.com

Chanel Le Vernis Nail Colour
beautyencounter.com

Kipling - Wallets & Accessories: Vintage Furry Monkey Keyring Boxed...
$34 - kipling-usa.com

Really expensive sweatpants

Found an interesting article on Dailycandy about "stylish sweatpants."  I am all about trying to sneak comfort into dressing up but a few designs went to far.  Here is an example:


3.1 Phillip Lim
Wool Flannel Lounge Pant
$395

These pants are the most beautiful and comfortable sweatpants.  I love love love everything to do with Phillip Lim.  His style is amazing and classic.  One day I might be able to afford something at a 3.1 Phillip Lim sample sale - eyeing everything in his Fall 2010 collection. 

Just a thought.