Sunday Supper Seasonal Fare: Spring Surf & Turf with Scallops

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend and Mother's day. We made a delicious play on a traditional surf & turf dish by using scallops and pancetta to celebrate all of the beautiful Mother's in our lives. We used almost all seasonal ingredients from the local farmer's market making it taste even better. It is simple and clean making it a great introduction to spring fare.

What You Need: 
large globe artichokes (1 per person)
scallops (6 per person) 
thick cut pancetta ( at least a finger width wide)
fresh English peas
shitake mushrooms
1 garlic clove per person
1 lemon
olive oil
mayonnaise
verjus (optional)
salt & pepper

For the Aioli 
Begin by making the aioli first. Whisk the following together in a small bowl. 
1T. olive oil
1 minced small garlic clove
juice from half of a lemon
1 t. of verjus
salt & pepper
1/4c. mayonnaise


What to Do
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large stock pot, begin boiling water to steam artichokes. You will need to fill the pot at least half full. Monitor the water levels throughout the cooking process to ensure that it doesn't evaporate. Rinse artichokes and trim the top by slicing off the top tips. Cut off the stem close to the base creating a flat surface. Mince a garlic clove over each artichoke sprinkle with salt and pepper then drizzle with olive oil and place in strainer over the boiling water. Cover and cook for 45 minutes. Cut pancetta into 1/2 inch cubes. Place on a baking sheet and bake in a low heat oven for 25 minutes. Wipe the caps of the shitakes and remove stems. Cut each cap in half and slice into pieces and set aside. Shell your peas and place in a bowl.

Prep scallops by removing knuckles and rinsing. Blot off excess water with a paper towel. Place on a cutting board and sprinkle with pepper. Lightly season with salt if you'd like keeping in mind that the pancetta is pretty salty. Over med-high heat in a large pan, add 2 T. of butter and allow for it to brown. Prepare a second smaller pan with a T. of olive oil over medium heat to saute your mushrooms and peas in. Add both to small pan stirring occasionally. Add pancetta to the pan to reheat and combine flavors.

Your scallops will only take 4 minutes to cook so it's important to make sure that everything else is almost ready to go before dropping your scallops. When large pan comes to temp, add the scallops and allow to cook for 1-2 minutes per side until they have a nice brown butter crust on them. Toss in the peas, shitakes and pancetta to the pan and serve immediately. Place an empty bowl on the table for your guests to discard their artichoke leaves. Serve with individual aioli dishes. We paired this with a delicious sauvignon blanc.

Color Me Happy: Kimberlee's Pick of The Week

As trendy as the colored denim craze seemed to be when I first noticed it beginning to grow in popularity in the wee months of 2011, the look has since grown on me and seems far more natural and stylish than it once did.  In fact, I actually find myself coveting several pair that have graced my shopping excursions, in a major way.  Skinny, straight or cigarette styles seem to look far more stylish and grown up than do flares or boot cut when crafted out of color rich denim, but definitely not painted on skinny…just fitted to flatter your shape. 

After a trial and error process that was thankfully not captured on film (my rear end would never live that one down), I was the happiest girl in denim land when I struck “gold” and came upon my favorite pair of colored denim in one of the last places I had expected to.  Delia’s, who gears their marketing toward a slightly younger demographic than I, offers some pieces that are perfectly adult friendly.  Case in point?  Morgan low-rise skinny jeans, in color.  Currently sitting in the CLEARANCE section of their online shopping site, the jeans are selling for $9.99 per pair, and are worth EVERY PENNY, and then some.  My purchase was in a color called Golden Rod, which turned out to be far more brownish yellow than pictured, but I still love them.  Next stop, lip gloss pink.

There is a 15” leg opening in the Morgan low-rise skinny jean, which is a far more generous space than most skinny styles I encounter, making for an extremely flattering fit.  The style sits more comparably to a straight or cigarette style than a true ankle strangulating skinny jean.  The spandex/cotton blend offers an amazing amount of stretch, without allowing any sagging or warping by the end of the day.  The color is vibrant, the rear pockets are placed with just a touch of embroidery for a great rear view, and they are available in a wide size/length selection. 

***Sugar Tip:  Do not dry these as they contain spandex, regardless of the laundering instructions.  Air dry them after machine washing, you’ll thank me later.

Color me happy, I LOVE these jeans!

Favorite Spring Accessories from Designer Rachel Roy

I woke up this morning to a beautiful shoe from Rachel Roy. I rubbed my eyes thinking that I may still be dreaming. The light colored leather was smooth and soft like well fitted glove. The tone is the perfect neutral for your spring wardrobe and it serves as the perfect slipper for any princess or queen. Like a maze, I continued to click and click and click through the vast number of beautiful neutrals in my inbox and of course found a few more to oggle over.

I have a long time love for Rachel Roy. Originally from Northern California, she has been an inspiration for me for over 6 years and I continue to follow her designs and aspire to become as successful as she has. Her designs are clean and simple yet supremely sexy. I read an article in Vouge in 2005 that inspired me to change my career course completely. She had just launched her RACHEL ROY line in department stores that spring and Vogue was there to cover it. I have always kept the image of her in her custom Maybach in front of her NYC apartment as a reminder to keep going, keep pushing and making steps towards success. One day, I too will be mingling with Andre Leon Talley.

Here are my favorite Rachel Ray Must haves:

I Wish I Was a Little Bit Taller: Tips To Make You Appear Taller

Are you under 5'5" tall and seeking a way to make yourself appear taller? This one is for you.

Stand up straight 
Be conscious of your posture and make a point to hold in your core and pull your shoulders back. The more you practice this, the easier it will become to do unconsciously.

Choose shoes and pants that are similar in color
When you choose a shoe that is similar in color to your pant, it automatically extends your legs making you appear longer and leaner.

Where high heels
This is obvious isn't it? Heels will always make your legs seem longer.

Choose skirts that are 2" above the knee
This will not work for all body types but it will help the majority of the population under 5'5" tall. Pair this with a nude tone shoe if wearing light nylons or black shoes if you have barely black nylons.

Sunday Supper: Guest Chef FK Savory Roasted Rabbit with Creamy Polenta and Garlic Cremini Mushrooms

That wascelly wabbit. Rabbit holds a special place in my heart and I find myself coming back to it over and over. The first time that I ever visited San Francisco was also the first time that I had tried rabbit. We went to dinner at a little place called Albona, an Istrian restaurant nestled in North Beach. It is small and quaint lending itself to a very personal experience. We met the owner, Bruno, who gave us a tour of the kitchen, a guide to his menu and stories of his childhood in the hillside town of Albona, over-looking the Istrian Peninsula and the Adriatic Sea. We ate and drank the night away before catching our plane to Cabo San Lucas in the morning.

I felt that I should share the pleasure of rabbit with you all today as it is very easy to make. We had the pleasure of having a guest chef in the house last night. Chef Dave, also known as FK, makes an intimidating dish very approachable. This is a simple dish to make and offers multiple flavor profiles that will wow you and your guests. If you make this dish, I want to hear from you! Email me the photos or your comments at sugarlipslifestyletips@gmail.com. You can find rabbit at your local butcher. You may want to call ahead as some only offer frozen.

What you need:
Rabbit (one rabbit will feed four)
fresh thyme sprigs
San Marzanos diced tomatoes
polenta
cream
whole milk
3 garlic cloves
chicken stock
Parmesan cheese
salt & pepper
Yellow onion or sweet onions
celery
carrots
truffle oil
olive oil
meyer lemon
fresh basil
cremini mushrooms
1 cinnamon stick
madeira
red wine

What to do

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Remove the innards from the rabbit and set aside. Make bed on roasting rack of mirepoix (yellow onions with skins on, celery and carrots) drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper. Place fresh thyme sprigs throughout the pan.

SUGAR TIP***The mireipoix bed will prevent your rabbit from burning while baking.


In a large pan, saute onion, diced carrots and celery in olive oil for 2-3 minutes. Add chicken stock and San Marzano tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Allow to cook down for about 15-20 minutes over medium heat.


 Meanwhile, salt and pepper the inside of the rabbit. Place rabbit over the mirepoix, coat with butter and drizzle with olive oil to prevent rabbit from drying out. Sprinkle with salt and pepper then place 1 T. of butter between each segment piece:head, legs, center. Pour tomatoes over rabbit and place in oven.

Roast for 1.5 hours basting the rabbit every 15 minutes for one hour. Squeeze meyer lemon over rabbit every 15 minutes throw hull in the mushroom pan. Adjust temp to 450 for last half hour to crisp skin.

Meanwhile begin making your polenta. A really good polenta takes about an hour to make. Combine 1/2 c. water with 1/4 c. cream (or whole milk), 1 sprig thyme, 2 T. butter and bring to a boil. Stir in 2/3 cup dried polenta and stir repeatedly. Reduce heat and allow to cook over a simmer for the next hour stirring often.

In a small sauce pan, add the rabbit livers and saute onion, shallot, garlic and butter. Add whole sticks of thyme, madeira and 1/2 c. itatiliano wine (or any other delicious red wine that you may have), reduce til au sec. Add a cinnamon stick in the last 15 minutes.

In a large pan,  over medium high heat, saute thyme sprigs in butter. Add sliced mushrooms and sprinkle with garlic powder and onion powder. Pour in madeira and allow to cook down over medium heat. Add the lemon hulls to this pan while cooking. Drizzle with truffle oil in the end.

Remove your rabbit from the oven and place your polenta in the center of each plate. Cut rabbit into quarter pieces and place on top of the polenta. Add mushrooms over the rabbit and finish with the madeira sauce. Serve with your favorite red wine such as a 2003 Chianti Classico Ripanera.

Enjoy!!