Try to imagine the sound of a hundred little lady-bugs on a marching line playing snare drums, slightly out of sync.  That’s what the rain sounds like when it hits the awning outside my window.  I wait for that sound because when I hear it, that means it’s time to get cozy.  I woke up to the lady-bugs drumming this morning and thought I would love to have some soup to accompany the musical rain.  The problem is that I just don’t have the time today to put hours into making one.  I was a little bummed but then I remembered I had a few packs of Bertolli’s soup in my freezer.  Thats right, I said soup in the freezer…. and they’re yummy.  

• Two Tasting Certificates for Bertolli Premium Meal Soup for Two
• Stainless steel soup ladle
• Woven oval bread basket
• Bertolli reusable freezer bag

2.)  Leave a comment on your thoughts of frozen soup.

Make sure to leave a comment below for each of your actions.  This will give you the opportunity to have two entries instead of one. 🙂

 I’ve been celebrating Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) since I was a young girl.  As I get older, the holiday grows in importance.  Over the years I have lost many who are near and dear to me.  Death is such a sad, wild reality, but one we must all face.  I have spent many days mourning the death of loved ones lost and find Dia de los Muertos is a happy medium.  Its a day to honor and remember a departed loved one’s spirit by offering their favorite food or beverage.  Many people build private alters in their homes (we did), and some build them at events for remembrance and festivity.  This weekend we went to the 12th annual Dia De Los Muertos Celebration at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.  In my opinion it is one of the BEST events that takes place here in Los Angeles.  I go every year and wouldn’t think of missing it!  You can expect everything from Aztec dancers, Mayan rituals, paper mache skeleton procession, costume contest, ballet dancing, performance art, craft and art vendors, yummy mexican food, micheladas, and some of the best altars you’ve ever seen!  Here is a nice collection of photos from the event.  If you don’t live in Los Angeles, Google a Dia de los Muertos event in your city.  The actual holiday takes place Nov. 2nd.

All photos taken by: Mando Lopez and Nicole Presley

Pan de muerto is traditionally offered to the spirits in the upcoming days leading to Dia de los muertos (Day of the Dead), which is celebrated Nov. 2nd.  You can leave it at the gravesite of your loved one along with their favorite food or at a homemade altar.  Here is a simple recipe for you to make your own.  BTW….. it’s not just for the departed, the living find it tasty too!

Ingredients for pan de muerto: 

1/4 – cup milk

4 – tablespoons butter

1/3 – cup sugar

1/2 – teaspoon salt

1 – package active dry yeast

1/4 – cup warm/hot water

2 – eggs (beaten)

3 – cups all-purpose flour

1/2 – teaspoon anise seed

1/4 – cup orange juice

1/4 –  teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 – cups sugar plus 2 tablespoons

In a sauce pan over a low medium flame melt butter and stir in milk. Bring to slight boil and remove from heat.  Add in 1/3 cup sugar and salt, and mix well to combine. Set to the side.

In a very large bowl, mix yeast and warm/hot water together and stir until yeast is dissolved. Let it rest for 15 minutes to cool down then add the milk mixture.

In a medium bowl mix flour and anise seed together . Then add flour and anise seed mixture to yeast/milk mix, and gradually work in the beaten eggs. Mix until dough forms into a ball.

Flour your work surface well and place dough in the middle. Knead for 5 minutes or until dough is nice and soft. Place it back into the large bowl and cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap. Let dough rise in a warm place (inside your oven when it’s off) for an hour and a half to two hours. Meanwhile, grease a baking sheet and set to the side.

Then remove dough from large bowl and punch it down and shape it into one large loaf or several small loaves. Reserve a small portion of dough to make a knob on top of loaf or braids around the loaf, or little strips to represent bones. Form your loaf then place on greased baking sheet and cover loosely with plastic wrap or kitchen towel for another hour (in a warm place) or until it’s doubled in size.

Then preheat oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit, and bake for 35 to 45 minutes. If you make small loaves then 35 minutes…. if you make one big one 45 minutes. About 5 minutes before the pan de muerto is done baking….. make the glaze.

In a small saucepan over a medium flame add orange juice, cinnamon, and 1/4 cup sugar. Bring to a boil and remove from flame. Set to the side. Next remove pan de muerto from oven and let cool slightly, then brush with glaze. Then sprinkle glazed bread with remaining 2 tablespoons sugar! Celebrate Dia de los muertos by offering your loved one a pan de muerto this year!

Con mucho amor!

Last year my Mom , my Auntie Rosie, and I made candy wreaths for Christmas and we used Lindt chocolates to give our wreaths a red accent.  I love spending time with two of the most important ladies in my life, but the truth is we had to go out and buy more Lindt because we couldn’t stop eating the chocolate.  Yes we love to eat and pass our Sunday afternoon in project mode.  I thought to myself how am I going to recreate that feeling of closeness again this year?  What could we do?  We wouldn’t want to make the same wreaths.  That’s when I found out about this super fun contest Lindt is having.  I know a ton of my readers LOVE CHOCOLATE, and I know a bunch of you enjoy baking too….. Naturally I want to share this tidbit of info with you.

Lindt is giving chocolate lovers a chance to submit an original recipe to their Fall Recipe Contest from now to Nov 7th, 2011.  The only rule is you must use Lindt chocolate in your recipe…  Want me to tell you what the prizes are?

– A year’s supply of Lindt Chocolate

– A brand new KitchenAid 7-quart bowl-lift residential stand mixer

– Lindt gift cards ($100 & $50)

– Lindt chocolate passion recipe book

This lady will not only tell you about the contest she’ll show you the prizes too.

Want to enter? Click HERE to submit your recipe!

Once your all done with that…. you might want to look at the rules. You can click HERE for the regulations.

So back to what us girls will be doing this holiday season….  I think my Mom, my Aunt and I will make chocolate tamales.  I don’t know if we will end up submitting them to the recipe contest or not.  We are such tragonas (big eaters), the chocolate will probably never make it into the recipe. 🙂  Good Luck Friends!

It was last Tuesday early afternoon, and my fiance says he needs my help scouting out a dive bar for a movie he is working on.  He tells me…  “It can’t be a recognizable dive bar, it has to be a bar no one will find common place.”  I grab the Cannon, put on my best walking shoes, and jump in the car.  We drive around the city, but hardly any bars are open.  “What goes on in this town?”  I ask.  “What time do bars open? It’s already 1:30p.m.”  We continue driving and as the afternoon ripens we come across three or four bars, but nothing dive-y enough.  Each time I get off the car, walk into the watering hole and spill the same mumbo jumbo about scouting for a film and wanting to snap a few pictures to see if the director would be interested, if so someone will return with a contract and go over pricing.  Most people are not phased by this info, others act as if a golden egg has just hatched before their eyes.  Then we find a little bar on a main street on the cusp of East Los Angeles and Montebello.  I walk in and there is NO ONE to be found.  No one sitting in the dive nor standing behind the bar tending to it.  I say out loud in the nicest voice I can find inside my throat “Hello.”  No response.  I then say “Hi.” Nothing.  I keep looking around.  All the chairs are dressed in plastic.  There are black and white framed photos of Ricky Ricardo, and Vicente Fernandez adorning the walls along with a huge gold fake Rolex watch that serves as a clock.  There are pink artificial flowers in vases that have not been dusted in years.  It looks like a grandma’s tacky living room that has been frozen in time from the 50’s or 60’s.  In my mind I’m doing somersaults thinking this could work.  Then at the back of the room I notice a long rectangular window with a little puff of white floating across it.  I walk towards the window to get a better look.  Standing on my tippy toes with my neck reaching to the ceiling, I peak in.  What I see I can’t believe.  I observe a tiny, fragile, little OLD lady barley able to move.  In my head I calculate she is in her late 80’s maybe early 90’s.  My heart breaks, thinking who ever left this lady here to man the bar is a for sure CREEP!  I now start giving my greetings in Spanish, thinking maybe she didn’t understand my arrival announcement in English, or worse yet she can’t hear.  I start thinking how am I going to explain to this lady that I am scouting for a film.  As I’m dreading the conversation….. she starts to make her way from the back.  Moving at a pace slower then any snail, she thinks about the next position of her footing as she holds on to the wall and all along never makes eye contact with me.  I say hello again…. she doesn’t acknowledge I’m there.  I figured she was blind and deaf.  Then she starts to pass where I’m standing and turns around in a swift motion and just SLUGS me with all her might right in the chest!  I never saw it coming.  I got so sad and upset at the same time.  Nothing like this had ever happened to me.

A.) I can’t hit her back she is a tiny little lady.

B.) She’s crazy or drunk or both.

C.) I did nothing to provoke getting punched.

I immediately start yelling in a high half crying pitch “Why are you hitting me?”  As I’m waving my arms trying to block the next swing.  She has me trapped and is relentless. Then by the grace of my youth I see a little window of opportunity to make a run for the door.  I zoom out of there only to hear her footsteps following on my trail.  I look back and she is running after me and she’s not slow anymore.  She stops at the door of the bar and is screaming all sorts of obscenities to me in Spanish that are the equivalent to “get the f@^* out of here you good for nothing broad.”  I dive into the car (no pun intended) and am horrified.  Wow!  What the hell just happened?  It took a minute or two to register as I replayed the whole thing in my mind again and as it was sinking in all I could do was shake my head thinking “Pinche vieja loca.”  I told the guy I live with I was not happy and I was not going to scout anymore, even if it was the middle of the afternoon.

As we arrive home I’m still shaken up from the hell I had just been through when lo and behold a box of wine is sitting  there on my door step waiting for me.  It was a sign from the wine gods that it would be best if I opened that box and enjoyed a glass right then and there.  Entwine was the name on the bottle.  I popped it open and poured a cup of merlot. As I sat on my porch staring at the vessel I noticed it had a list of food pairings on the back.  Perfect.  Another way for me to shut off my brain and  just let the bottle do all the work.  Thank you Food Network and Wente Vineyards for joining forces to make life easy with your new wine.  It surely saved my afternoon last Tuesday.

No compensation was received for this post. I was provided with a sample of  Entwine’s merlot for my review. The story and opinions are my own.

 I’ve always read about Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch.  I’m sure you have seen the pictures of all the celebrity moms taking their little ones to the patch….. and now I know why.  My family and I went there for the grand opening this past Saturday and I was pleased to discover all the great activities (face painting, petting zoo, pony rides, skeleton slide, pumpkin jumper) they have for children and the hard to find fall home decor.  No wonder Yoplait has teamed up with Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch.  For every pumpkin sold Yoplait will donate $1.00 to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.  How cool.  Right?  So pack up the kiddies and head over to Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch.  They’ll have a blast, and you’ll feel good knowing you are helping another family stay California Strong!

All photos taken by: Mando Lopez and Nicole Presley

Mr. Bones Pumpkin Patch is open now through October 31st.  

Milk and dairy products help make up a healthy balanced diet filled with calcium.  I supply my fridge with all things dairy from Milk to Cheese to BUTTER to Yogurt, just to ensure there are yummy alternatives for my family to choose from.  Being the number ONE dairy state in the nation… it is never hard for me to find the “Real California Milk/Cheese” seal at the market.  By buying this seal I know I’m supporting 1,620 dairy families and NOW California schools too!  You ask how are we supporting California schools?

Let me tell you how!  From Oct. 1st, 2011 to Dec. 31st, 20011 there is a new program EVERYONE should know about.  Especially if you have young school aged children who live in California.  The wonderful California Dairy Families have put together this exciting program for Southern California* elementary classrooms.  They are awarding Southern California elementary classrooms, schools, and students with up to $2 million in cash, books, and other prizes!  There are thousands of chances to win, just for collecting Real California Milk seals from the milk and dairy products you buy.  So get “moo-ving” and get your children’s teachers involved, neighbors, friends, and family to start collecting Real California Milk seals today.  Good luck!

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS: PRIZES INCLUDE:

1. COLLECT:  Collect Real California Milk seals.  Look for this seal on milk and other dairy products.

2. ENTER:  Give the Real California Milk seals you’ve collected to your child’s teacher. Each seal counts as an entry.

3. WIN!  Teacher sends seals in to win.  Up to $2 million in cash and prizes will be awarded!

Up to $20,000 in cash prizes for schools.  Scholastic books for nearly every class that enters.  Interactive fitness games for students in winning classrooms!

To find out more about how you can join the “Real Seal Appeal” and help our teachers help our kids, visit scholastic.com/sealappeal

*Participating elementary schools in Imperial, Kern, Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            I participated in this campaign as a member of One2One Network and am eligible for a prize drawing.  All opinions stated in the post are my own.

Mole.  What a delectable dish.  Certainly not the easiest thing to make.  One of the many gifts of living in Los Angeles is all the different styles and tastes of prepared mole that one can buy.  Whether it be from a vendor or restaurant.  Recently I was invited to a private mole tasting at Dona Socorro’s (founding member of ‘La Feria de los Moles’) home.  It was the perfect demonstration of two of the most traditional mole styles, Puebla and Oaxaca.  I had both.  I can’t say there was a winner amongst the two moles…. the lucky winner was me the taster who got to enjoy two plates of sublime mole.  I was shocked to discover how many laborious hours go into making mole.  Making mole for a small amount of people will easily run you 5 hours.  Try a crowd of 25…. your looking at 10 hours.  Want enough mole to feed a big party…. it’ll take about 3 days! DAYS!  Wow, no wonder I’ve never made homemade mole.  I’m positive it’s something I’ll try doing in the near future since Dona Socorro inspired me.  In the meantime if you would like to get your hands on some delicious mole…. Then make it your business to attend the            “4th Annual La Feria de los Moles: Puebla vs. Oaxaca!”  Yes, Dona Socorro will be at the event making her famous mole! Enjoy! 

Date: October 9th, 2011

Time: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Place: Olvera Street

This family friendly event will have FREE admittance and food will be available for purchase.

Here’s a few pictures from the pre-tasting: 

All photos taken by: Mando Lopez

Don’t miss out on the fun!