Worst weekend ever!

So it's been a couple of days since I blogged; a lot of crap has happened since. My blog got hacked into; who does that seriously???Don't you have a life, hacker?? Uhh, pardon me. I was so pissed because they{whoever they is} started to change everything about my blog after all the hard work I've put into it. My mother's words are ringing up in my ears as we speak. "Learn to save; you might never know when you might lose something". Thanks Mama!!!! I had previously saved some of the posts I loved writing, the ones that were near and dear to me so I just put them all back up today so no, if you're wondering, I didn't have enough energy to write up 26 posts in one day. I would' ve had carpal tunnel by now. So I created this new blog; I think I might just prefer this one because I put twice as much hard work than the previous one. I am not web savvy but when it's been broken down, I think I can handle HTML language and how to go about it.

Other than little drama, I had a mellow weekend. Friday, I catched up on all my fave shows online such as OTH, Gossip Girl, 90210, The Hills and all that jazz. Since I have been living in France, Internet has become my lover and my friend. It's the only way I can keep up with my fave shows; I mean right now, I'm watching season 3 of Gossip Girl online and one of France's network just started playing season 2. It is a good reminder of what previously happened but I cannot stand hearing Queen B's voice in French; it sends shivers down my spine and not the good kind. I believe that shows or movies that were made in English should stay in English and vice versa; if you don't understand English, then try subtitles. I love subtitles; I watch my shows online with french subtitles; I don't need to but I love just being able to read and watch at the same time. It's like my brain is getting off or something when I do both. I remember ever since I was young, setting my tv to the hearing impaired setting so that subtitles would come up for everything, even commercials. I drove everyone crazy. That is why I love foreign films or shows. I love Bollywood for the subtitles; I love korean dramas for the subtitles.


Then the weekend, I got in a pretty huge fight with someone I know; it was pretty bad and I'm usually one to apologize even if I'm not the one who's wrong, but this time it just escalated to another level and I feel like I didn't deserve any of it at all. I am such a nice person but when you treat me with respect; if I feel like I'm being talked down to or I see that the other party is not even taking my feelings into consideration even after I said that such and such things might hurt me, I feel like that they don't earn my respect. For me, respect is a two-way street. I'm a firm believer in leaving the room if you're gonna say hurtful things to people; take a walk, focus on your breathing, do your grocery list in your head, have a rundown of the last episode of the Hills , I don't know but figure out something to do other than to say something spiteful. Just because you're angry or upset doesn't give you the right to go ahead and say whatever you want to say and after you've said such things, expect people to be nice to you and to joke around with you. It ain't happening, got it???


Sorry, I just had to vent because I know that person is most likely to see this and just in case my live message didn't come across as clear, I'm hoping this will. Okay, back to my weekend. So after that little debacle happened, I watched Julie and Julia for the 15th time; I didn't even know who Julia Child was until I saw this movie and I fell in luuuuuuuuurv with the movie; it's not even the story, it's the food. Poached eggs, artichokes with hollandaise sauce, boeuf bourguignon, oh my! My heart just pitter-pattered at the thought of all that delicious food, which brought me to this peculiar train of thoughts. I mean, I am currently living in Eastern France; it's not exactly Paris but it'll do for now. I have been so focusing in keeping my north american food traditions and trying so hard to figure out what could be yummy subtitutes for bagels, cream cheese, tex-mex cheese, nachos, enchiladas, lebanese shawarmas, you know things that remind me of home. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love the french pattisserie such as almond croissants and pain au chocolats {with Carrie Bradshaw's voice please, anybody else loves it when she speaks French?} so I am thinking about mastering the art of French Cuisine; I've even added it to my bucket list. I feel like buying my first french cookbook and after seeing Julie and Julia, I am certain it has to be Julia's book. I don't have what I could call a kitchen since I currently live in a 9m² room but I am planning on moving by the summer and hopefully getting a much bigger place with hopefully a small kitchen but an actual kitchen nonetheless. I will then start what will surely become my epic journey to learn how to cook like Julia Child. I don't want to be like Julie Powell; she had a deep profound love for Julia; I honestly don't. Plus she set it to be her goal to cook all of her recipes in a year; not my style, sorry Julie! I just feeling like learning how to cook french cuisine since I have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to live in this country and learn from the best, a.k.a french people. Is anybody listening? Am I just rambling on for myself?


If you are out there, have an amazing tuesday!! Tuesdays are easier to deal with than Mondays.


Song of the day: You can't always get you want-Rolling Stones.
Feeling: Exhausted. Been up since last night; the bed is calling me.
Loving: my nails; I made it my 2010 Resolution to stop biting my nails and now I have nails. Granted it took way too long to grow, but I feel so proud.


Carrie Bradshaw speaking French enjoy the beauty of it all.

Cooking Dangerously: Webisode 1

If anyone knows me, they know that I simply love cooking. After a stressful day or a crappy one, I like to relax by just going into my kitchen and letting myself completely loose. There's nothing better than smelling sweet aromas shifting throughout your home to lift up your spirits. So with all that being said, I am starting a brand new tradition called "Cooking Dangerously"; I know, not very original but hey, we cannot be clever all the time now, can we? What are going to be "Cooking Dangerously Episodes", you ask? Well, sometimes I will post one of my favorite recipes, whether it is entrées or dessert.

To kickoff one of the many "Cooking Dangerously Episodes" to come, today I will talk about Restaurant-style orange chicken. This recipe is from crepesofwrath.net and it is the most delicious orange chicken I have ever tasted in my whole entire life. I simply adore asian food and this is my go-to dish whenever I eat out; but you never know exactly what ingredients they put in their recipe, and since it's better to eat healthy and cook at home rather than to eat out, I searched high and low for the ultimate recipe, and I must admit I was not disappointed. At first I must admit that I was very anxious to make this dish; I've never made fried food and I didn't want to risk burning my whole house down but I took my courage into both hands and I made this last night. Mainly because I was missing going to chinese restaurants with my mum; it was our tradition whenever there was cause to celebrate, we went to this little chinese restaurant near our home. Let's just say I was in a nostalgic mood yesterday so to bring my mood back up, I decided to make this dish; granted it took me nearly two hours but two hours is nothing compared to the 20-minute bliss I experienced afterwards. I look very forward to making this dish time and time again; here's to not spending my very few last bills on overpriced restaurant bills and the thrill of knowing you can easily recreate this. Hope you enjoy making it as much as I did.

Here's the full recipe: Restaurant style Orange Chicken

2 pounds chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
oil for frying, enough to fill a pot or wok with 1 inch of oil

1 tablespoon ginger, minced (or 1 teaspoon ground ginger)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper (1 1/2 teaspoon if you like it 1extra spicy)
1/4 cup green onion, sliced (about 3 or 4 green onions)
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1/4 cup water mixed with 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Sauce
5 tablespoons soy sauce
5 tablespoons granulated sugar
5 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
zest of 1 orange
juice of 2 oranges

1. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Combine with the egg, salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon of oil. Add in the cornstarch and flour (I found it easiest to mix this together with [clean] hands).

2. In a wok or a pot, heat enough canola or vegetable oil for frying (about an inch deep in the pot/wok) over high heat for 5 minutes, then turn the heat down to medium-high. Add the chicken to the oil in batches, cooking each batch for about 8-10 minutes until cooked through (take one piece out and slice it open to check that it’s cooked). Remove the chicken from the oil with a slotted spoon and allow to drain on a plate covered lined with paper towels. Set aside until ready to toss in the sauce. It’s okay if the chicken cools a bit; it’ll get heated up again.

3. In a separate pot, add in the ginger, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, green onions, 1 tablespoon of rice wine vinegar, and 1/2 teaspoon of sesame oil. Stir fry for about five minutes, until fragrant. Combine the sauce ingredients and add them to the onion mixture. Bring everything to a light boil, then add in the 1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 1/4 cup of water. Heat everything until is starts to thicken a bit, about 3-4 minutes, then add in the fried chicken pieces. Toss to coat, and cook for another 3 or 4 minutes until the sauce is as thick as you’d like it to be. Serve with rice and/or vegetables.