Flashback Flan-O-Ween

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! 

I hope all of you are enjoying a great Halloween so far! and the SF GIANTS Parade if you're in San Francisco.

As a special treat for today, we're posting our DIY costumes.  ENJOY!!

Roe

Halloween is a holiday that I want to love so much, but I never really get into it.  I always want to think of a clever costume, but it's never what I imagined.  This year, I totally dropped the ball on it, but last year was my first DIY costume.  I only made the cape, but I liked how it turned out. 

Little Red Riding Hood & Bubble Gum Crayon (yoo hoo, anhie boo)

D

Last year (and this year... shhh!) I was a mummy. This was one of the most fun costumes to put on, but a little tricky at the end of the night. Not sure exactly how I wound myself up, but while a little squiggly at the end of the night, didn't think of just cutting myself out of the costume haha.

 If you scroll down you will see one of my favorite pics from 2010. It's nice to have talented friends! c did my make up and hair RIGHT before heading out to watch the giants play. You know, right before we won the world series, the first time :)

C

In accordance with the blazer theme, I had to post last year's Willy Wonka costume. Making that tiny hat was the best part. This is still my favorite, though: Dia de Los Muertos sugar skull makeup that I did for D a couple years ago. I think the skeleton dinosaur makes it ;)

Phu

I was never really into Halloween until after college and when I started dressing up, it was all store bought. But one of the best costumes I've ever had was my first homemade costume. I was a loofah with two of my girlfriends and we had a blast. ;)

<3, F.L.A.N.

East Coast American Pie

It's true; fall is better on the East Coast. This weekend was filled with a lot of firsts, including but not limited to:

Apple Picking

Apple Throwing

Apple Baking

Apple Bread

(Recipe courtesy of Danielle)

1. Mix together

• 3 cups flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp baking soda

2. Separately, mix together

• 1 cup oil
• 3 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

3. Combine two mixtures and add

• 3 cups diced apples
• 1 cup walnuts (I used granola since I didn't have nuts. Would have been better with nuts.)

Bake for 40 minutes at 300 degrees

YUM!

<3 C

phu's blazer and pumpkin remix

My favorite blazer is this blazer I bought from American Eagle a long long long time ago. For this remix, I wore this blazer over a dress with tights and boots and kept it simple with the accessories. I've also worn this blazer to work over a white-tee which made me feel more "professional." :)

dress: forever21, blazer: american eagle

necklace: forever21

Crockpot Pumpkin Chili 

Growing up, pumpkin wasn't really part of my food consumption until I was a lot older so this remix was a bit of a challenge but I found this recipe and wanted to try it since I love my crockpot. Cooking with a crockpot is so easy - just throw everything in, turn it on and walk away until it's done.

1 lb ground beef (or turkey)

1 yellow onion, diced

1 bell pepper, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1, 14.5 oz fire-roasted tomatoes

1, 15 oz can pumpkin

2, 4 oz cans diced green chiles 

1 cup chicken stock

1 tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp chili powder

salt and pepper to taste 

Throw all ingredients into crockpot and stir well. Set crockpot on low setting and cook for 7 hours or until meat is cooked through. 

I baked some sweet potatoes wrapped in foil at 450 degrees for an hour and ate the chili over them. Overall, this meal reminds me of Thanksgiving and pumpkin pie. :)

Thanks for joining me today! 

<3, phu

Sleepy Sunday

Like D, I found my blazer at a vintage store. That rare moment when you walk in, see something you like, and it fits just right! It's blue velvet and made in Japan (maybe that's why the proportions work on me?) Anyways, this 'fit isn't something I'd normally wear, but that's the whole point of the blog, right?  Perfect for a sleepy Sunday with the ladies.

Don't tell my mama I let my bra show. Visible lingerie; style do or style don't?

Lately, I've been craving biscuits like crazy. They make a perfect snack with the Wildflower Honey the Mushroom Lady and Honey Man shared with me at the farmer's market. Why not make them pumpkin?

Pumpkin Biscuits

• 2 cups flour
• 2 tbs sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon (maybe a little nutmeg too if you've got it)
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 cup chilled butter (cut into small pieces)
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin
• 3/4 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
2. Mix all the dry ingredients and cut in (with pastry blender or 2 knives) butter
3. Mix wet ingredients then add to flour and butter mixture
4. Stir just until everything is moist. Don't over work it!
5. Place dough on lightly floured surface and knead gently a few times. Don't over work it!
6. Cut biscuits or separate into equal blobs on greased cookie sheet
7. Bake until golden brown, approximately 11 mins

Enjoy!

<3 C

P.S. I'm hella feeling this song. Check out her pumpkin colored blazer ;) full circle, bam!

Losing You - Solange

Chasing the Sun

The weather here in Chicago has changed drastically where it went from 80 degrees one day to 50 degrees the next. I keep hoping and praying that a heat wave is going to come out of nowhere so that summer can stay around just a little longer. After one of my runs to the lake, I took a step back and reflected my past year living in Chicago. This past year has been filled with many adventures, visitors, and lessons. Before Fall arrived, some friends and I went glamping (glamorous camping) in Wisconson and some of the FLAN girls and friends came to visit me. I've learned that no matter what, you have to accept the fact that things change and people change; just like the change in seasons. Here in Chicago, you definitely experience all four seasons. I feel blessed to have this opportunity to be living here and appreciate being able to see and feel the change in season in this beautiful city.





instagram: phuphubear

Even though I keep "chasing the sun" to get my vitamin D fix, I'm excited to bust out my Fall fashion essentials: boots, scarves, and lots of layers. :)

What's your Fall fashion essentials?

<3, phu

Pumpkin Dip-pity Do Daah...

I've been super busy lately, feels like an understatement to me.  My days have been filled with my 8-5pm FT job, then right after my evenings are filled with my 2 side hustles.  Weekends are filled with side hustling.  And if I'm not hustling, I'm attending baby showers, birthdays, and weddings.

I haven't had much me time, and haven't had much time to cook.  My meals these days consist of me reaching for something pre-made, left over, or chips and dip.  So what better way to remix my pumpkin, then with a little Pumpkin Hummus Dip.

This is probably the EASIEST thing I have ever made, which is nice when I don't even have time to brush my hair.

Pumpkin Hummus [makes about 1/2 cup]

• 1/2 cup of Pumpkin Puree
• 2 TBSP of Garlic Hummus (I use Safeway's, Eating Right, garlic hummus)
• dash of Cayenne pepper for a kick

Pumpkin Puree (if you want to puree your own, instead of buying the canned version)

• 1 small firm sugar pumpkin

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cut the pumpkin in half
3. Place pumpkin halves, flesh side down, on a baking sheet and bake for about 45 mins - 1hr, or until flesh is soft.  This will vary depending on the size of your pumpkin
4. When it is cool enough to handle, scoop out the flesh and place in your food processor.
5. Puree until smooth

1. Mix together the pumpkin puree and the hummus, and a couple of dashes of cayenne to taste.
2. Grab your favorite chip to dip. Mine are Pretzel Crisps.
3. Dip and eat!

Thanks for joining me for my pumpkin remix! I hope you enjoy this little snack as much as I did.

<3 roe

Equestrian Obsessed

For the longest time I had been obsessed with finding the perfect black riding boots, and it never occurred to me why, until my sister saw me wearing them one day and said "very equestrian-like".

I realized, I had to have the perfect riding booths, so I could be like one of those equestrian riders (Jockeys? or is it different if you're not racing?).  I don't know where my obsession with horses came from, but I do recall growing up, if someone asked me what I liked to do, I would that I loved to ride horses! Even though I've never saddled one that wasn't hooked up to a metal pole or one that wasn't guided by a metal wheel.  To do this day, I always say I want to go horse riding, but I never have.  I think that needs to go on a list.

Fun fact: I debated returning this blazer about a dozen times.  I constantly threw it in and took it out of the return bag.  It even made it to the J.Crew Factory store, when I couldn't bare to let it go and tossed it back into my car.

This was a perfect outfit to wear to chow-down on some In&Out with some friends that just flew back home from a short trip.  No frills here.  Just jewelry-free eating, nothing to get in my way.

{Outfit}

Sweater, Blazer, & Belt: J. Crew Factory

Pants: H&M

Boots: Ann Taylor

Earrings: Anthropologie

Thanks for joining me today! Stay tuned for my pumpkin remix!! 

<3 roe

Nesting Phase

Something about fall makes me want to nest. It's probably the brisk weather and approaching winter. Can't wait to hibernate! I've been experimenting at home (I'll post pictures soon) AND at work. Why not make your office just as lovely as your home? You might even spend more time in there than home anyways. I've recently switched offices, trading in my green walls for a window. (I suppose that's fair.) So I'm still in the beginning stages of settling in. Here are some pics. It's a work in progress...

^

Check out the pink frosted donut with googly eyes courtesy of my coworker, a portrait of sorts.

 Happy Nesting!

<3 C

Pumpkin Pasta

So I'm not a huge pumpkin fan, unless it's in something sweet. So this challenge was a bit difficult for me because I didn't want to bake and be tempted to eat extra desserts. This pasta had a nice mix of pumpkin and tomato, with a little sweetness, tart from the diced tomato, and creaminess from the ricotta. I served this up for some of the girls tonight.

You will need:

• your favorite pasta
• 1 TBSP butter
• 3/4 cup milk
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1/2 tsp thyme or sage
• 12 oz pumpin puree
• 1/2 cup tomato soup
• 1/2 cup ricotta
• one can diced tomatoes

What to do:

•  melt butter. 
• add milk and sage or thyme. 
• stir for 2-3 minutes, until milk is hot.

• add pumpkin and ricotta, stir until creamy
• add tomato soup, and cook until hot. 



• add diced tomatoes. 
• stir with pasta. 
• serve. 

 Now, I'm going to keep digesting with the girls and some wine. Good night!

<3 d

Vintage Blazer Remixed

It's always such a satisfying feeling to actually find something you like when you go to a vintage or used clothes store. This blazer was one of my favorite finds a few months ago, so I decided to remix it. It's pretty long, so I usually wear it over a long shirt and some jeans. Since the weather has been so nice, I wore it with a short skirt and threw on some high top sneakers to dress it down a bit.

Tonight the west coast FLAN remix girls are coming over for dinner, so I"ll be posting my food remix a little late tonight.Check back later for the first pumpkin recipe. :)

<3 d