Food Friday: Chocolate Eclair Squares

Happy New Year guys! How did you spend your New Year's Eve? I was up making some desserts for us, a little bit of experimenting, if you will. This is a quick and easy recipe that anyone can do. It's very delicious, too!

Ingredients
2 cups cold milk
2 pkg. (3.4 oz each) Jell-O Vanilla Instant Pudding
1 tub (8 0z) Whipped Topping, thawed
64 Nilla Wafers
2 squares semi-sweet chocolate

Directions
Beat milk and pudding mixes with whisk for 2 minutes. Stir in whipped topping.
Arrange 16 wafers at the bottom of an 8-inch square dish; cover with one-third of the pudding mixture. Repeat layers twice.
op with remaining wafers.
Refrigerate for 4 hours.
Melt chocolate squares. Drizzle over dessert.
Enjoy!

Makes 16 servings, one square each.

Trips: The Getty Villa

“The best things in life are free.”

I know that saying always seems too good to be true, but sometimes it really is. For just 10 bucks for parking, you can experience the wonders of ancient Greece, Rome, and Etruria. Who said going to Malibu was going to be expensive? It was last Sunday that we visited The Getty Villa in Malibu, California for the second time.

The second time, you ask. Well, we had to go back and try out Ashton here, who hasn’t gone out much since his acquisition. But honestly, I just had to go back because the first shots I took of the Villa weren’t as good as I hoped it would be (I set the ISO to 1600 by accident and the photos didn’t really turn out as well as I hoped).

Moving on; The Getty Villa houses 44,000 Greek, Roman, and Etruscan antiquities, of which over 1,200 are currently on view as their permanent collection. They also have a wide variety of changing exhibits which ca be viewed in their six galleries. Currently on display are the first contemporary art project of the Villa; Jim Dine: Poet Singing (The Flowering Sheets), and a trio of exhibitions that “explore issues surrounding the conservation and interpretation of ancient art;” Reconstructing Identity: A Statue of a God from Dresden, Fragment to Vase: Approaches to Ceramic Restoration, and The Getty Commodus: Roman Portraits and Modern Copies. Unfortunately, the Villa doesn’t allow photography on their changing exhibits but they do allow photography on their permanent collections.

Being in the Villa feels like you are in another era and being quite interested in this area myself; I loved it! The Villa is actually modeled after a first-century Roman country house, called the Villa dei Papiri in Herculaneum, Italy. The Villa dei Papiri was buried by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79, much of which remains unexcavated. I remember recalling a show in The History Channel about said eruption and how the people under the shadow of Mt. Vesuvius where “preserved” by the ashes when it erupted; with many of the people frozen in mid-action. As I recall, much has not been excavated but they did say that many of the artifacts that they found there where well-preserved.

The Outer Peristyle of the Villa, is perhaps the most dramatic place to behold. It showcases a few busts placed strategically all over the place with two statues in the pool (the one pointing up one of my favorites as is Hermes, the messenger and the god of war). The columns lining the Outer Peristyle are what I imagined it would be back in the day.

Beside the Villa, there is also a garden that showcases various herbs and shrubs found in that era. A lot of water fountains and statues can also be found in the garden.

To see more photos click here.


Info: Getty.edu
Photos: betterthanezraH

Food Friday: Crab Rangoon

The first time I tasted Crab Rangoon I was blown away! It was sooo delicious! I mean, anything with crab in it is bound to be delish right?

For those who haven't tried this yet, this is just like pinsik.

Ingredients
1 lb sea legs or any chunk artificial crab meat
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
4 oz seafood spread (optional)
1 bunch scallions, chopped
pinch of salt
1 tsp sugar
1 package wonton skins
1/4 tsp onion powder
oil for deep frying

Directions

Place crab meat, cream cheese, seafood spread, scallions, salt, onion powder and sugar into food processor and mix into a lumpy paste. If food processor isn't available, chop crab and onions very fine and mix with softened cream cheese, salt and sugar. Place a teaspoonful of mixture in the middle of a wonton skin. Moisten edges and draw up opposite corners to meet and form a package. Make sure all edges are sealed. Deep fry until golden brown.

Trips: L.A. Live

L.A. Live, located in Downtown Los Angeles is a one of a kind entertainment campus adjacent to the Staples Center. L.A. Live features the Nokia Plaza, Nokia Theatre, the Grammy Museum, the ESPN Network, and a variety of shops and restaurants.

I rate my experience a three out of five stars. The light show wasn't that good either. There was an NBA game that night, too. Although I didn't see any players, not that I would recognize one! hehehehe

More photos here.

Food Friday: Thanksgiving Ham

Last week was Thanksgiving and we had Ham. We decided to skip the traditional Turkey feast and had Ham. This is not the same as the Pinoy hamon de bola but the hind leg of the pork that is cured. Slowly simmered in a pool of pineapple juice then baked for an hour, this ham was delish!

Trips: The Getty Center

The Getty Center in Los Angeles, California, is the current home of part of the J. Paul Getty Museum; The Getty Villa is in Malibu. The museum's permanent collection includes "pre-20th-century European paintings, drawings, illuminated manuscripts, sculpture, and decorative arts; and 19th- and 20th-century American and European photographs" The Center opened on December 16, 1997, with Richard Meier as the architect.

The 134,000-square-foot (12,400 m2) Central Garden at the Getty Center is the work of artist Robert Irwin[18]. Planning for the garden began in 1992, construction started in 1996, and the garden was completed in December 1997.

I was at the Getty Center last Saturday because we had to meet there for my photography class. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to visit the other collections of J. Paul Getty (he has Vincent Van Gogh's painting Irises). I did see the photography exhibit of the renowned photographer Carleton Watkins in the first floor gallery, with photos from the late 1800s to the early 1900s. The Center has a permanent exhibit and a Changing Exhibit of the different collections.

Most of our time was spent at the Central Garden where we where "let lose" to take photographs to show on our class in Tuesday. I had many opportunities for macro shots but I could only do as much since I didn't have a macro lens yet but hopefully, I will (crossing my fingers).

Entrance to The Getty Center is free but parking is $10 per car. Of course, you can always opt to go via the Metro Rapid Line 761, which stops at the main gate on Sepulveda Boulevard.

I give my abbreviated trip four stars. I will definitely visit the Center again!

For more photos visit my Flickr collection HERE.

Location
The Getty Center
1200 Getty Center Drive in Los Angeles, California
Hours
Tuesday–Friday 10:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Saturday 10:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m.
Sunday 10:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m.

Info: Wikipedia.org, Getty.edu

Food Friday: Chocolate Chip Muffins

This entry is special to me because I actually baked these muffins! Check out the recipe HERE.

Trips: Raspberry Picking at Riley's Farm

As luck would have it, my mom and I finally went apple picking. Of course, she badgered me to go cherry picking but at that time, I just couldn't say yes. I finally caved and dragged along my camera in hopes of getting really good practice shots. Because the cherry season came and went, we had no choice but to go apple picking instead.

Saturday was a fine day to go picking whatever fruits were in season. It was sunny but not too hot, although I still had to wear a light jacket because I'm not quite used to this weather yet. We [read my mother] had our hearts set on picking apples but in reality, we picked raspberries! It's quite different when you pick the fruit off the plant and eat it right then and there and I couldn't help but be excited. Seriously though, I didn't quite love the taste of raspberries.

Raspberries

Granny Smith Apples

Strawberries
Yes, they're out of season

The farm that we went to, Riley's Farm, in Oak Glen, California, is a family run farm that offers a wide variety of activities set in the Pilgrim times. Of course, the highlight of their farm is the picking of certain fruits that are in season, like apples, raspberries, strawberries, and pears. It was a bit too late in the season for the others but we managed to get the last of the raspberries before they went off season.

The fruit pickings aren't free though, but all you need to do is purchase a container and the prices depend on their size and then you are free to pick the fruit. Certain rules come with the picking of the fruit though; to safeguard the trees and plants.

What hit me was the little cottage where you can make your own apple cider by hand. Simply place the apples and turn the crank on your own to get your very own fresh cider. Of course if you didn't want to go to all that trouble, you can buy them at the General Store.

Naturally, I took a few shots of the insects that I found hanging around the farm (I seriously need a macro lens!). I did have a hard time photographing them because I was just using an 18-55mm lens that came with my D40 kit but I think the photos turned out great, considering my limited equipment (note: I did have to go really, really close to the insects to get them this big). Oh, and I'd like to think that the horses loved me and posed for the camera!

Did he just stick his tongue out at me?

I give my experience 3.5 stars.

Location
Riley's Farm
Oak Glen, California
Entrance to the farm is free but you have to purchase Riley Farm containers to pick the fruit

SkyWatch Friday: Fly My Little Pretties! Fly! Fly!

Fly my little pretties! Fly! Fly!

-Wicked Witch of the West, The Wizard of Oz

So said the Wicked Witch of the West and off the birds flew as if posing for a spectacular shot! I went on a little trip yesterday with my friend Geraldine and explored the Santa Monica Pier. It was one of those days where both of us had nothing else to do and so we decided to go on this trip.

Our first stop was to check out the Carousel. Aw, we didn't get on it though. I know, I would feel faint if I get on one. I guess I've already passed the stage were I enjoy going around in circles!

Like two little girls (and we still are!), we went on the Ferris Wheel! Hahaha for $3 a pop, the ride was worth it! We explored the area a little bit, had a bite to eat and by sunset, went down the boardwalk and stepped into the beach.

I absolutely loved the sunset! It was an early sunset, though but it was perfect for us because we still had to take the bus home.






Location
Santa Monica Pier
Santa Monica, California