Anti-Anti Mall & Food Trucks

Over the weekend, T&I decided to check-out the OC Mart Mix, aka the "new" anti-mall, or the anti-anti-mall (can't make this stuff up, I think I read the phrase in a press release).



First stop, the Portola Coffee Lab.  They're debuting several unique brewing methods.  According to their website, "The future of coffee has arrived in Orange County.  The best fresh-roasted coffee in the world made with the most advanced brewing processes known to man."  The cool thing is that they will make your custom crafted drink right in front of you!  All their coffee is organic, and you can definitely taste the freshness! 



They also have a farmer's market on Saturday mornings from 9am-2pm.  Embarrassing moment: When I was grabbing a white peach to buy, I accidentally pulled out an "anchor" peach (you know, one of those pieces that are crucial to the integrity of the entire pile). And as a result, a bunch of peaches began to roll off the table and continued rolling all over the ground!  Oops!  I was running around chasing these runaways!  I was so embarrassed I ended up buying all the peaches that I dropped!

There were a bunch of food trucks present as well.  We chose to try the barcelona on the go food truck.  The sausage was delicious & the chimichurri sauce was amazing, but the bread was stale & the steak was too chewy.  Overall, the food was overpriced and the service was blah.  I don't think I'd ever go back to them...

spanish sausage sandwich, top sirloin steak & fries w/ chimichurri, & iced coffee from portola coffee lab

To top off a great day, we brought home a strawberry banana cream puff from the bakery truck, which we had for dessert in the evening.  YUM!

 

On a more serious note, I'm waiting to hear back from 2 job interviews I had this past week - keep your *fingers crossed for me!!!!  And, more importantly, to those on the East Coast recovering from Hurricane Irene - my prayers go out to you!!!

Tuesday morning

It's only Tuesday morning, but already the week is turning out CRAZY!

T was away on a 4-day weekend at Cancun for a close friend's bachelor party.  (Yes, doesn't it look GORGEOUS?  I have to admit, I was a bit envious when I saw this photo...)  So I had to spend the weekend alone livin' the single life.  Although the late night movie watchings, catching up with old friends, and not-having-to-cook-for-4-days straight are all great things, I'm glad to have him back.

Cancun, Mexico

Now we're off to a crazy start of the week!  This morning, T's car wouldn't start.  First, I thought the battery was dead and needed to be replaced, but that wasn't the problem.  After a few hrs of phone calls and coordinating, the car has finally been towed to our mechanic to figure it out (thank God for AAA!!!)  I have an interview later today, which I'm now finally able to sit down and prep for, and another interview tomorrow!  Although this week has started off hectic, I'm hopeful the week will end peacefully!

'Extreme Couponing' leads to arrest

I've been into couponing for about 2 yrs now.  But my fire for it has been re-ignited this past yr after watching the new tv show Extreme Couponing on TLC.  For those of you who haven't watched it, the show chronicles (obviously) extreme couponers, who can get $800 worth of groceries by paying only $27.  Yes!  Believe it!!!

The show always ends with the total retail worth of their shopping and how much was actually paid for it.  BUT, they never discuss HOW its done, the extreme couponers never reveal the secret to their success.  In fact, when this one lady was asked how she got all those stacks of coupon inserts, she said "God blessed her with them..."

I'm always left bewildered by this show - I'm always left wondering "How do they DO that?!  Where do they get ALL those coupon inserts?!" 

Well T forwarded me this article which might finally give some answers!  'Extreme Couponing' leads to arrest

Spicy Grilled Shrimp

Over the weekend, I tried this recipe for spicy grilled shrimp.  Normally, I don't like cooking seafood on my own because it's a lot of work, and I hate that "fishy" taste (which I can never seem to get rid of).  But this recipe is a winner!

Ingredients:
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
4 tsp seafood seasoning
2 tsp lemon pepper
1 tsp dried basil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 lb medium raw shrimp, peeled & deveined


Just 3 Easy Steps!

1. COMBINE all ingredients (except shrimp), whisking until thickened.  Add shrimp to marinade.  Cover & refrigerate 30 mins. 
2. HEAT grill to medium-high.  If you're using non-stick foil, make drainage holes.  Then, arrange shrimp on top.
3. GRILL 2-3 mins.  Turn shrimp and baste.  Grill another 2-3 mins or until shrimp are firm & pink.

I didn't have seafood seasoning, so I substituted it with cajun seasoning. It came out really good (sorry, was so hungry that I forgot to take an "after" pic).  I decided to pair the shrimp with some linguine tossed in Barilla's new Basilico tomato & basil pasta sauce (which is amazing!) & a side of garlic bread.

Hope you'll enjoy this recipe too!

Interview #1

Today I had my first job interview in YEARS.  I spent all day yesterday prepping for it.  I thought it went well, but now I just have to wait and see if they thought so too!

Keep your *fingers crossed for me!!!  :)

The First of many more to come...

This blog comes at an interesting point in my life.  After spending nearly 3 years in grad school, I am now back on the market looking for a job!

Also, the hubby (T) & I decided to rent a room in a friend's house to save enough money to buy our own house one day.  Did I mention?  Our friend's dad also lives here in the room across from ours...

So, this blog is to chronicle my day-to-day life of job hunting, being a newly wed, and living with an old man in the ghetto.