Holiday Party Wear

So yes I know I haven't done this in a while and I hope I am not too rusty, but I wanted everyone to know about a great option for your upcoming holiday parties. I have been using a website for all dresses for about 6 months now. Yes I said a website and no I am not crazy. My cousin told me about a site when she was in DC and rented a dress for a gala she had to attend and who really needs to purchase another gala dress. :)

The website is called Rent the Runway or www.renttherunway.com. It is truly a receptacle for designer dresses at rental prices. They have all kinds of dresses from something to wear to a Sunday brunch wedding shower to your holiday party to a full on black-tie affair. You select your size, price range, dress length, color if you want and when you want to rent the dress and hundreds of options come pouring onto your screen. If you have a favorite designer, which I do now that I have been on this site (check out Trina Turk), you can even select that way. When you order a dress for the price you get the dress you order, plus the same dress in a second size. THEN for $25 extra you can purchase a second dress in one size just as a back-up option. For these prices you cannot own dresses that are as stylish and you don't run the risk of wearing the same dress twice!

The coolest part of this site is once you select a dress you want to look at you can check the Size & Fit tab and see how the dress fits. This is very helpful for the second size option because I never know to go up or down with my second size.

If you scroll down below where the dress details are, you get to see REAL people, just like you and me who have worn the dress and tell their experience with the dress. Well look who has their review on top, that would be little ol' me. :) This has been the single most helpful section of the website, there are a bunch of dresses I wanted to rent then I saw people like me (my size at least) and they didn't look how I wanted to look in the dress.

So to wrap it all up, dress rentals are for 4 days so I usually select two days before the event in case it doesn't work. They send them anywhere UPS for you, I've had them deliver it to the office, my hotel, Jake's office (because the guys at the shop loved to see that), the house, you name it. They come with a postage paid UPS envelope to send all the dresses back on the day after your event.

You can also rent accessories but I have no experience with that, so you are on your own there! Here are a few pictures of some of the dresses I have rented from them. Like I said I am a Trina Turk fan, the dresses just fit someone with a little more up top and some curves better than some of the other designers.

Lilly Pulitzer - Derby Girl Dress worn to my friend Rachel's
wedding in San Fran. Rented $60, retail $250.

Carmen Marc Valvo - Lifetime Love Dress
worn to the EY Gala. Rental $135, retail $745.

Trina Turk - Kelly To My Green Dress worn to
my cousin's rehearsal dinner. Rental $65, retail $328.

Trina Turk - Tender Love Care Dress worn
to the SFP 15th Anniversary Party. Rental $75, retail $388.
Notice I am missing my best accessory in this and the next photo.

Trina Turk - Stacking Circles Dress worn to
Agricultural Media Summit Banquet. Rental $65, retail $378.

You can use this personal invitation from me to check out the site. You will receive a coupon off your first rental for being referred: http://www.renttherunway.com/referral/macklin

Happy holiday renting!

Pork and Green Chili Stew

So I realize it is spring and almost summer, but I have neglected to share a recipe that has become a favorite of our household. I found this in Food and Wine Magazine's September 2012 issue. Yes I subscribe to food and wine, please don't judge my attempts to be slightly refined. The Pork-and-Green-Chili-Stew was a little scary to me because well I don't like hot things but I love green chilies that are mild so I thought it was worth a try. I did modify the recipe slightly because I was scare of the heat but next time I think I'll follow the ingredient list to a T but I'm still going to cook it my way.

Pork-and-Green-Chili-Stew
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 pounds trimmed boneless pork shoulder cut into cubes
1 large sweet onion thinly sliced
1 pound mild green chilies (I used Anaheims and poblanos) cored and thinly sliced
3 serrano chilies, seeded and thinly sliced (at this point I used jalapenos, but will try serranos next time)
6 garlic cloves thinly sliced
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (I omitted, I love it but someone else doesn't so I used flakes)
Lime, warm corn tortillas and rice for serving

Directions from the Food and Wine Website link for the recipe:

1. In a large enameled cast-iron casserole, heat the olive oil until almost smoking. Season the pork cubes with salt and black pepper and add them to the casserole. Cook the pork over high heat, stirring once or twice, until lightly browned in spots, about 5 minutes. Add the onion, green chilies, serrano chilies and garlic. Cover and cook over high heat, stirring once or twice, until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Cover partially and simmer the stew over moderately low heat until the pork is just tender and the broth is reduced by about half, about 20 minutes.
2. Stir in the 1/4 cup of cilantro and season with salt and black pepper. Garnish the stew with cilantro and serve with lime wedges, corn tortillas and rice.

The stew can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, but we have found that it is much better reheated after being frozen. I use Ziplock freezer bags and use a measuring cup for portion control (you will need it on this stew) and freeze the bags flat so they store easier. You can reheat it in the microwave or on the stove.

I actually cooked mine for 1.5 hours the first night then for another 45 minutes the second night just to make sure the pork was good and tender.

We have also enjoyed ours with cornbread as well so the sky is the limit.