Thanksgiving Delight

As soon as I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen, one of my favorite food blogs, I knew I had to make it. Sweet Potatoes and Goat Cheese are two of my favorite things so I knew this recipe would be the bomb. Trust me it did not disappoint. This is one of the most delicious things I have cooked in a long time. It would be perfect for Thanksgiving. Not only does it look gorgeous with all the fall colors but it will literally melt in your mouth. The combo of roasted sweet potatoes, goat cheese, and dried cranberry/celery relish is divine! The picture at the top is from Smitten Kitchen, I had to include a great picture at the top, but the 4 below represent my cooking skills:) I am still dreaming about this dish and I ate it for dinner last night and lunch today, it's that good!





SWEET POTATOES WITH GOAT CHEESE AND CELERY
1 1/2 pounds sweet potato, scrubbed, unpeeled, in 3/4- to 1-inch coins
4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1/4 cup toasted and cooled pecan halves
2 tiny or 1 small shallot
2 stalks celery
2 tablespoons flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon dried cranberries or cherries (optional)
2 ounces firmish goat cheese
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon smooth Dijon mustard

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Coat a large baking sheet generously with olive oil, about 1 to 2 tablespoons. Lay sweet potatoes in one layer on the oiled sheet. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Roast, without disturbing, for 15 to 20 minutes. Carefully flip each piece: the undersides should be blistery, dark and a bit puffy and should release from the pan with no effort. If they’re not, let it cook longer. Sprinkle them with additional salt and freshly ground black pepper and return the pan to the oven for another 10 minutes or so, until the undersides match the tops.

Meanwhile, prepare your salad. Chop your pecans well, mince your shallot, chop your celery and parsley, mince cranberries if using them. Crumble your goat cheese. If you, like me, got too soft of a goat cheese for mixing, set it aside and sprinkle it on top. If it’s firmer, stir it into the mixture. In a small dish, whisk together 2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar and 1/2 teaspoon dijon. Pour half over salad.

When the potatoes are done, lay them on a serving platter. Scoop a spoonful of the salsa over each round. Pour remaining salad dressing over top, to taste. Eat immediately.

Check out Smitten Kitchen for a full run down on this recipe and some gorgeous pictures. Way better than the crappy ones my camera takes!

I Love Her

Is there anything this woman can't do?? Dance, sing, act, cook, dress incredibly and raise two sweet kids. I have loved Gwyneth for a long time. Anyone remember a little movie called, Sliding Doors? Yep, that's how loyal I am. Loved her in that movie, loved her with her short pixie haircut while she dated Brad Pitt and I love her even more now. She and Olivia Palermo are my two girl crushes.

Gwyneth was amazing on Glee tonight. Hilarious and her voice was great. I thought she was spot on acting and on top of all that she looked gorgeous. I am so jealous of her svelte figure. Her dance moves were ridiculous, proof I guess that those Tracey Anderson videos do work. I loved every number she sang. Between this and the episode with Britney Spears, Glee has been killing it this year!
Anyone else watch Glee and love Gwyneth as much as I do?

photos: google

9 Months

Today my sweet baby boy is 9 months old! I can't believe in 3 short months he will be turning a 1 year old! Where have the past nine months gone? They have literally flown by, but have been filled with so much joy. I feel so lucky to have such a sweet, beautiful, healthy baby boy.

A few things our 9 month old baby boy is doing now:
- Trying to crawl, more like moving like an inch worm, pretty hilarious
- Loving to eat, just like his daddy. Put some puffs or Baby Mum Mums in front of him and he is pretty darn happy
- Talking, well not really saying anything we can understand but he loves to babble. Especially when I am on the phone or we are in the car.
- Discovering his privates. Yes, much to my dismay he tries to grab his man parts everytime I change his diaper. This poses a real problem when its a number 2 diaper.
- Squirming everywhere! As soon as he is on the changing table he flips over! Its hard to get a diaper on this guy!

- Teething- he has six teeth, 3 on top and 3 on the bottom, with 2 more poking thru his gums. His outfits are constantly covered in drool.
- Cuddling, he loves giving hugs and resting his head on my shoulder- nothing sweeter!
- Trying to walk. He loves to hold your hands and have you walk around with him. He also stiffens his legs whenever I try to sit him down, this baby wants to stand up all the time!
- Loving Bath Time. He loves splashing in the water and playing with all his toys.

- Learning to pull himself up in his crib, already had to lower it once, looks like we might need to lower it again.

Sterling is such a blessing. Being a mother is by far the best thing I have ever done. With all this crawling, squirming and pulling up you can see things are just starting to get crazy in the Mason household.
Happy 9 month birthday Sterling, I love you so much!

Closet Space

Matt said the dreaded words to me this week, "I need more closet space." He continued to tell me that his dry cleaned shirts and suits were staying wrinkled because they were crammed into the hall closet. Yes that is right, I gave my husband the smallest closet in the house, the one in the hall while I occupied the other 2 (used to be 3 before Sterling came along and I had to consolidate). This made me feel pretty bad that he had no space and I was hogging it. I will be the first to admit, I have a shopping problem and own way too many clothes, shoes and purses. Problem is, I love them all and have a hard time getting rid of them. So for 3 days I diligently worked and rearranged and cleaned out all three of our closets. I took 5bags of stuff to goodwill and it felt liberating. Matt ended up with a bigger closet, although I still snuck a few of my coats in there:)

Below are a few pictures of my closets, my camera really doesn't do them justice they look so much better in person. Santa if you are reading I really want that Nikon for Christmas! And yes, I am sure you are thinking our closests are small and they are, we live in an old house with tiny, tiny closets!

The small hall closet now houses my dresses, clutches and boots. All of my favorite things! I switched out all my hangers to the velvet ones awhile ago and it made such a big difference. I was going to organize my closet by color, but decided to organize by occasion and material. Like all silk dresses together, all long sleeve dresses together, all dressy dresses etc.



My happy place, my purse shelf.

I stacked all the boots at the bottom and stuffed them with magazines rolled up so they would stand straight. I have a few pairs still under my bed but for the most part these are the boots I wear the most.

I had to use an over the door shoe rack because there was no other way or space to store my shoes. Definitely not my first choice but it works.

The closet in our bedroom consists of my shirts, sweaters, jeans, jackets and maxi dresses.


I bought these cute bins at Target to store my bikinis, scarfs, hats and gloves. I bought 4 and stacked them on the shelf in the closet. I love the fresh look of the ivory.

One day I am going to have a closet like Megan's at Honey Were Home. It is my dream closet, she did an amazing job with it (and her whole house too)! It is truly gorgeous and kind of makes my closets look sad, but you gotta work with what you got!

How do you organize your closets? Any tips for organizing in small spaces?

Eat This- Shrimp Tacos

I kept meaning to post this recipe Thursday and then Friday but life set in! I had a million errands to run and a teething baby. Better late than never right? My hubby would eat red meat every night if he could. This was my attempt to make something we both love, mexican food, but healthy minus the ground beef. Matt and I just kind of improvised with this recipe, but its good, real good. Per our food mentor Bobby Flay, we cook and marinate our meats simply and add flavor with the toppings. BTW I met Bobby Flay when I was in NYC, another story for another time but I will say he was short, way shorter than he looks on TV! Oh and the black stuff on the plate beside the tacos that looks funky is refried black beans, a delicious side for the tacos. This recipe is super easy, healthy and tasty!

THE MASON'S SHRIMP TACOS
-1 or 1.5 pounds shrimp peeled and deveined (buy local if you can)
-Canola Oil
-Shredded Cabbage
-Red Onion thinly sliced
-Sour Cream
-Taco Seasoning Packet
-Monterrey Jack cheese, Shredded
-Fresh diced Jalapenos
-Avocado mashed with lemon juice, salt & pepper or guacamole
-Corn Tortilla Shells

Marinate the shrimp for about 15 minutes in Canola Oil, salt and pepper. Add about 1-2 TBlS Canola Oil to a large skillet pan to heat and add shrimp. Saute about 3-5 minutes until pink. Meanwhile mix Sour Cream with taco seasoning packet- add as little or as much seasoning as you like. Layer Shrimp, cabbage, red onion, sour cream and avocado on warm corn shells. Top with shredded cheese and jalapenos. Add hot sauce and Enjoy.

Gorgeous

Did anyone watch the Country Music awards last night? Sadly, my hubby only let me watch half of it and then I had to turn it off, but I dvred the rest. The main reason I wanted to watch was to see my other girl crush Gwyneth Paltrow. She looked gorgeous as always. She is such a style inspiration for me. As a mommy of two, she always looks fit and fabulous! I still want to order the Tracy Anderson workout videos after seeing how dedicated she was to them! Has anyone used the videos? Just curious how they really work. I thought her dress last night was incredible, I love the one shoulder and ombre colors. Her performance on the otherhand made me a little uncomfortable. She has a good voice but just seemed very nervous, but I give her props for getting out of her comfort zone and singing in front of all those people! What did you think? Any favorites?

I also thought Carrie Underwood looked great. I really liked all the dresses she wore while hosting. I did notice she looked particularly skinny, but I guess that is the entertainment business. Either way she looked fab!

photos: people.com

Holiday Sparkle

I love, love, love the holidays. I can't get enough of the decorations, music, food and there is nothing I love more than a holiday party. I love getting dressed up. I feel the holidays are the time you can all out with your outfit. This year I am thinking sequins. My parents have a big party every year with another couple and I always love getting dressed up for it! Hopefully we will have a few other holiday party invites too. Here are few of my lust worthy dresses for all these holiday parties! In case you can't tell I love a long sleeved short dress, its one of my favorite styles! What are you wearing this holiday season?

HAUTE HIPPIE EMBELLISHED V-NECK DRESS. Love the nude color and embellishment down the front.

AKA NEW YORK DIAMOND CUFF DRESS. I think this is my favorite because I would get so much wear out of this little black dress. The diamonds around the cuff are insane!

JOIE PORTIA DRESS. Perfect for the holidays. Love the sequins.

TIBI ONE SHOULDER DRESS. I am digging the one shoulder sequin combo.

TIBI ECLIPSE SEQUINED DRESS. I really love the color of this dress, but at $1200 its way out of my price range, but a girl can dream right??

HAUTE HIPPIE BEADED OFF SHOULDER TUNIC. Adore the Nude color and sparkle!

All dresses are from my favorite shopping site SHOPBOP.COM