TGIF + New Blog Re-Design

Hey y’all!!!

Ugh, has it been that long since I blogged??? These days I swear go by way too fast especially since its towards the end of the school year. My boys are getting ready for summer as they face their last 2 weeks of school. Ah yeah!!! Summer!!

Anyways, you may have seen my updates on FB and Twitter about the arrival of my new and improved bloggity blog! YES!!! I love it and am extremely grateful for Becca Bonneville of Tickled Pink Studio who worked her magic. She took my previously boring blog and made it into something wonderful. I wanted it more streamlined and clean, with the flexibility for me to customize it. Also, since I wanted to incorporate a portfolio gallery, video tutorials, and later in the future, an online shop — WordPress, was the best solution for me. So I’m sorry Blogger, you were definitely great these past several years, but it was time for a change!

Woot, woot!!!

A lot of changes indeed have taken place these last several months, but there are still some things that have not changed thank goodness… Like my love for art, photography, and food I’m contemplating whether I should add a link at the top to my food adventures, cooking extravaganzas, and my overall quest to try new recipes on this blog. Hmmm…. Decisions, decisions.

Well, that is all for today and I shall return with hopefully, some fresh and inspiring creative art that I have been working on after such a long hiatus….

Be back soon…

xo,

Getting Down To Business w/Jeanne Oliver

Mother’s Day — Part I

[SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT] Makita Studio Is Moving

MY FAVE RECIPE NO.1 | SUSHI BAKE

A few weeks ago, I happened to make this for dinner after hearing from my sister + cousin how easy and delicious it is. I already love sushi, so I knew that it would be such a great recipe to add to my collection if I ever craved for sushi at home. Many have asked me for the recipe, so I’m happy to finally post this and would love for you to leave a comment if you do make it and let me know how it turned out!

Now, it’s not your typical sushi where you roll it up and cut into pieces, but I’m sure you could if you felt like being creative and inspired to do so. As for me, this layered dish really gives the flexibility and allows for more creative possibilities beyond imitation crab or shrimp which this recipe calls for. You could definitely add your own twist to it, like shredded cooked tuna or salmon, avocado, etc. and mix and match to come up with your own. But for right now, I am posting the basic recipe which still rocks in my opinion. I actually had to make a separate batch that didn’t include shrimp because my poor hubby is allergic to shellfish, but I must say that I personally love it with shrimp because it does add so much more flavor to it.:)

Just a side note, I did google Sushi Bake recipes on the web and only found a few good ones like here and here. However, I did improvise on measurements and eye balled some of the ingredients to my judgement and took note of it. Also added Siracha Hot Chili Sauce per my cousin’s suggestion. Surprisingly, it didn’t make this too spicy unless you really want it to be, but remember, a little goes a long way. Either way, I’m not sure if you could go wrong with the amount of each ingredient you use, except when making sushi rice which does require exact measurements, otherwise it will end up too mushy or too acidic.

Speaking of making sushi rice, I thought it would be difficult, but actually it isn’t so hard. Just remember that it DOES make a difference with the type of rice you use. I was going to use long-grain jasmine since that was what I already had on hand, but found that it is best to not substitute the rice for anything else but Sushi grade rice–short, medium, or variety, which is what I used. You will be so glad you did because it makes up for a great foundation for the whole dish, giving it a really nice texture and flavor as it absorbs the flavors of the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt solution. YUM!

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Left to Right: Short/Med/Variety Calrose Rice, Rice Vinegar, Sour Cream, Mayonnaise, Shrimp, Imitation Crab, Siracha Hot Chili Sauce, Furikake Rice Seasoning, Roasted Seaweed

YUMMY SUSHI BAKE

3 cups sushi rice (See instructions below)
1 pkg imitation crab, chopped
1 pkg cooked frozen shrimp, chopped
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
3-4 dashes of Siracha (hot chili sauce)
2 jars Furikake Seasoning
2-3 pkgs Sushi Nori (roasted seaweed)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook sushi rice and set aside. In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients except Furikake Seasoning and seaweed, until thoroughly combined. You may add more mayo + sour cream if you like it a little more creamier and if you don’t mind the extra calories. Then in a 13×9 dish, spread the sushi rice evenly over the bottom of the baking dish. Layer the mixture over the rice evenly as well. Sprinkle the Furikake seasoning generously over the entire top layer. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes until nice and hot. Cut up the roasted seaweed into squares. Serve by scooping the sushi bake onto the individual roasted seaweed and enjoy!

SUSHI RICE

3 cups of cooked rice
1/3 cup of rice vinegar
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Cook rice in rice cooker or pot according to the package directions. In the meantime, heat up rice vinegar, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan until it all dissolves, just a few minutes. Turn off heat. Now this next step is very important because it is really critical to making great sushi rice. You will need a wooden bowl and must not use a metal bowl or the vinegar will react with the metal. Scoop 3 cups of rice into the wooden bowl and drizzle the vinegar solution over the rice. Mix and fold rice to combine it all together and if you have an extra hand, have someone fan the rice while you’re mixing it to give it a nice shiny appearance. Continue to mix until all the vinegar has been absorbed.

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There you go!! I am now getting hungry and drooling while typing this. Hopefully, yours will turn out just as yummy as it did for me and my family. This would also be a great potluck dish and will definitely please a crowd which obviously did for my household because it was gone within minutes!

I hope to bring you more of my family favorite recipes on my blog throughout this year, so be sure to sign up for my newsletter (still in the works), join me on facebook, or follow me on twitter.

Happy eating!

Sweet + Simple Album Templates Vol.1 for only $1 + upcoming sales!

I’m dropping in really quick to announce that I put up Sweet + Simple Album templates for $1 for our $1 Wednesday deal at Little Dreamer Designs, so if you had your eye on it for some time, now is the chance to grab it for a sweet discount of 88% off!

Sweet + Simple Album

One of the reasons why I haven’t been able to post anything lately, is because I’ve been busy getting my home studio in order and creating a space of my own where I can finally play + work + create in an environment that inspires and motivates me. No more sharing rooms with my kids or my hubby:) This time I can honestly say, “This is MY office.” LOL!

It’s not quite there yet as I am hoping to add some art pieces or personal touches to the walls over time. I’m still trying to decide if I want to keep these wall colors which were already painted a dark chocolate + retro green, before I moved into this room. Ironically, these colors are part of the same color scheme as Makita Studio. So, we’ll see if I get tired of the green and maybe I’ll consider changing it a lovely muted blue.  

The other magnificent reason why I’ve been hiding is because I’ve been totally consumed with my new computer—an iMAC! Oh my goodness… It is my dream come true and thanks to hubby who was sweet enough to get one for me BEFORE Mother’s Day as an early present. I’m so blessed… Now I can really work and let my creativity flow to new levels.

Among other things, I am also really excited for a lot of things to come at Little Dreamer Designs. The Apprentice Program is still in progress and if you haven’t seen the amazing freebies created by all the wonderful contestants, you should definitely check them out!

Every week they are given a specific tutorial from Michelle Coleman, owner and designer of Little Dreamer Designs, and then they are required to complete the challenge by applying what they’ve learned and creating a freebie. Once the freebies are posted in the Apprentice Gallery, all our welcome to download and use them for personal use only. Based on the total comments and downloads I believe, is how candidates are selected to move on to the next round. Eventually, it will only come down to just a few who will have the exclusive opportunity to become a Dream Girl designer and open up a shop with us at Little Dreamer Designs! I’m so proud of how hard all these ladies have worked and the inspiration that they give as they work towards each challenge. To follow along, visit the Little Dreamer Apprentice Gallery every week to be updated on new freebies and also the yummy inspiration from the layouts that are being created.:)

This weekend is interNational Scrapbook Day so of course, we are having a storewide sale! Then, in just a few weeks… Little Dreamer Designs is turning 3 years old so we’ve got a birthday celebration in the works with another sale plus games, prizes, giveaways, and more. 

I hope to see you there!

Lots of love and kisses,

Dahlia

Daisy + Adrian’s Engagement Photoshoot by PACO + BETTY PHOTOGRAPHY

Hello!!
Back in November, I raved about this really awesome couple, who are friends of mine, and their photography business: Paco+Betty Photography. Today, I have the honor and privilege to share their latest photo session of this gorgeous couple, my sister Daisy and fiance (future brother-in-law, yay!) Adrian.

So, it’s been a few weeks since the day they took these photos and I’ve been anticipating for the moment to finally see them. I knew they were going to be stunning and all, but I didn’t expect it to deeply move me and get all teary eyed. Yes, maybe because this is in fact, my sister that I’m so freakin’ happy for her and love her to pieces, but also because I’m taken by the way these photos have a timeless appeal with a sense of nostalgia. It sorta feels like I’m looking at story from the past, but of a love story brought back to life. My sister and Adrian, definitely had a unique vision to recreate a harlem-inspired photo shoot, but it could not have existed without the gift and talents of  Paco+Betty!

 

 

 

 

You can see more of their recent work on their blog. 

Have a good day!!