from raleighwood to hollywood

HAPPY DECEMBER!

and happy first night of hanukkah! bring on the potato latkes.

1. only in hollywood

...is it COMPLETELY normal to see people being followed around by a camera crew.

2. deck the halls...with pad thai leftovers

i think we all know that the best part of thai food, chinese food, spaghetti, or pizza.....is the leftovers.

speaking of things that i've eaten recently...

my first visit to robeks! i've been craving something smoothie-like recently and although hawaii is the best place to find an authentic acai bowl, i did some research and found that robeks juice apparently makes a pretty decent version. i had to find out for myself.

if you don't know what acai is, here's a quick lesson: a small, dark purple berry that grows in brazil. it's known as a "superfood" because it's full of anti-oxidants, amino acids, and all kinds of other crap that's good for you. in a standard acai bowl, this berry is made into a frozen puree (often by being mixed with other fruits or frozen yogurt) and then topped with granola and sliced bananas. it's hard to describe the flavor, it's almost like a mixture between a blueberry and a pomegranate (this description has been brought to you by sara mclamb). once blended with other fruits, you have a creamy, fruity, frozen mixture.

the review:

as for robeks acai bowl, i'd give it a B based simply on the fact that they used rice krispies in their granola and that is AWESOME. the acai itself was a little chalky and not as sweet as i would have liked. for those of you on the east coast, if you want a REALLY good acai bowl, find your nearest smoothie king. and if you're in hawaii, you can basically find a life-changing acai bowl at any small side-of-the-road fruit stand.

i believe that mexican takeout could solve all of the world's problems.

FINALLY!

3. speaking of things that go with popcorn...

SO excited to see this.

speaking of movies...

julie and julia was one of the awesome reduced price movies i picked up at target while accidentally walking through their doors during the big "2 day sale". best mistake i ever made. the blind side for $3.99...really? last night i brought home my mexican takeout and snuggled up on the couch with my enchiladas and my holiday candles to this movie. julie and julia is special to me for a lot of reasons. one, not only did i read the book way before it was made into a movie, but as i read it, i followed along in my dad's copy of mastering the art of french cooking. i love cooking so it was fun to parallel the two and actually see the recipes right in front of me. although the book is always better than the movie, this movie holds a very special place in my heart. in august of 2009, my parents, my sister, and i went to new jersey to visit my dad's side of the family. a day or two before we left, we all went to see this movie in the theatre. it's always special to go to an actual movie theatre with your family if it's something you rarely get to do. not only did i get to be with my sister who lives far from home, but my grandparents were the ones who treated us all to the movie. i can't even remember the last time i had been in a movie theatre with them. a few days after we got home from new jersey, my grandfather passed away. we were so incredibly blessed to have been with him at exactly the right moment in time, and we made so many special memories on that trip--one of them being this movie.

i would have loved julie and julia regardless, but hearing meryl streep shout bon appetit! means much more to me for this very special reason.