Making homemade dumplings is a great way to catch up with your girlfriends.

Earlier this week, Steve and I traveled back to California, where we celebrated the beginning of a new lunar year with his family. For those who aren’t familiar with the history behind these Eastern version “Hot Pockets”, dumplings are traditionally made during lunar new year because they symbolize wealth.

My girlfriends and I decided to spend some Sunday quality time by getting our nails done and making dumplings. If you have any reluctance about making them, let me reassure you that homemade dumplings are much easier than you might think, and quite inexpensive, too!

Here’s a little secret about making dumplings. Having good quality wraps can make all the difference. Make them at home, or find your nearest Asian market for pre-made wraps specifically made for dumpling texture.

Ingredients are very basic. Chop green onions, garlic, and ginger, then throw them into a large bowl.

Mix in meat(s) and add soy sauce (also known as “shoyu”) and sesame oil for flavor. Fill separate small bowls with water – you’ll need them as “glue” later.

Place a small dollop of meat onto each wrapper. No more than a tablespoon at most. Having too much meat will make it difficult to close (and may rip later), but having too little meat will create air pockets that will eventually become “vacuum sealed” when the dumplings are boiled.

Using fingers, wet the edges with water like a glue stick. Fold wrapper in half and stick edges together.

Once the dumpling is enclosed and shape takes place, fold the edges in and pinch around the top to create a wave-like pattern.

Drink wine, be merry, and gossip (Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux broke up? WTF, she’s pregnant?!). On a side note, never underestimate the importance of girlfriends. Thanks Caroline for taking the pic!

Place them onto a tray with wax paper sprinkled with flour. This prevents the pretty little dumps from sticking to the pan.

Boil dumplings in medium heat for 7-10 minutes. You don’t want the water to be too hot, because they will overcook them too quickly and rip. If you’re in the mood for crispy goodness, you can also pan fry them in sesame or olive oil on each side until brown.

All done! Not too bad, right? Feel free to enjoy them a la carte, or pair them with other dishes. Since we worked so hard for our homemade dumplings, we decided it was okay to cheat on other items (pre-marinated Korean kal-bi, Chinese chive pancakes from frozen package, store bought kimchi, and sauteed veggies).

After how much I pigged out today, I’m hopeful for a prosperous new year (of the Dragon). After all, the Dragon is considered to be “an extremely auspicious sign” (by Huffington Post).

Dropping Dumplings
Serves 8-10

+ 3 packages, gyoza wraps
+ 2 lbs. ground pork
+ 1 lb. ground beef
+ 2 bulbs or 15-20 cloves of garlic, chopped
+ 2 stacks of green onions, chopped
+ 1 nug of ginger
+  3/4 cup, soy sauce
+ 1/4 cup, sesame oil

A somber view of Kerry Park in Queen Anne, Seattle, WA. Taken with my Nikon D90 with 10.5mm f/2.8G ED AF DX Fisheye Nikkor Lens, no edits. View more photos on Flickr and instagram.

See how you can use your photography to add accents to your walls.

Using Canvas On Demand, you can order your prints on various canvas sizes. My first creation below is 36″ x 48″, hung above my little library at home.

The cutest love birds you can carry around. Available on Etsy.com

It’s a lazy Saturday. Travel channel is on, and I need a break from watching people fry everything in sight. Fried oreos, fried alligator, and fried mac and cheese sounded good until they started introducing fried butter. Disgusting… it’s time for a distraction.  And online shopping never fails to deliver.

This DIY clutch is the ultimate quirky accessory.  My obsession for yellow continues to grow.

See more things I want on Pinterest.

Miss Carolyn of the hsu closet always rockin’ the goods.

A couple of years ago, I broke my ankle while hiking.  In July.  It sucked.

To make things even worse, it pains me to wear stilettos to this day. The shorty in me grieves every time I see girls walk in their super cute heels, while I console myself in the comfort of my Frye boots. But I stumbled upon these Lanvin wedges on one of my favorite fashion blogs, and I have to weep no more. Wedges = comfort.

See more OMG shoes on Pinterest.

Screenshot of my Pinterest board. Also, social // potato chips recipes are now on Pinterest!

The weathermen of Seattle have a tough job.  No matter how much science is taken into consideration for weather forecasting, the OCD nature of this Emerald City does not go unaccounted for.  Who can forget the predicted snow storm that turned up as just rain, or the unforeseen “Snowmaggedon” leading to an unplanned city bumper car session?

Well folks, the weathermen of Seattle are celebrating somewhere today because today’s expected snow propelled their credibility to a new level.  Which means, I am enjoying the mesmerizing fall of huge snowflakes from indoors, folding seven loads of laundry (smh) and ready to spend endless hours on Pinterest.  What is Pinterest, you ask?

After all, I am a five year old at heart so let me explain through the eyes of analogies.

If Tumblr and Instagram had a baby, they would deliver you Pinterest.

Now, let’s make things a little more complicated, as life tends to be.

What really happened, is that Instagram had an affair with Twitter.

And Twitter’s been going steady with Facebook.

Pinterest is the latest social networking site to hit critical mass by storm.  Like Instagram, it encourages photo sharing, or “pinning“, with your followers and view photos or “pins” from people you follow.  Like Tumblr, these photos represent a collection of your right brain activities in blog-like format, or also known as your “board”.  Like Twitter, you have the ability to re-tweet or “repin” images from others that pinterest you.  Like Facebook, you don’t have to commit to repinning things to your board, because you can simply “like” images you… like.

Are you still with me?

I’m mostly impressed with Pinterest because of their ability to pro-create websites that have been historically monogamous, but also win the hearts of social media fiends who, like me, may have grown numb to content overkill in the past several months.  I tried my hardest to resist joining yet another social network, until I gave Pinterest for a quick spin and the rest is history.

Pinterest is targeting a myriad of audiences who happen to be the perfect user base.

1. Left-Brainers:  It didn’t take very long for my parents to realize I was left-handed.  I’d naturally pick up crayons and feed myself using my left hand.  Lefties aren’t easily accepted in Eastern cultures, particularly Asian, and they tried very hard to force me to switch and use my right hand.  Even after accustoming to using my right hand after having a car accident related cast on my left hand for a couple of months, I easily reverted back to my natural habits.  There are people in this world who are meant to read.  And, there are people in this world who are meant to visualize.  With Pinterest, the visual board is your oyster.

2. Females:  Despite what feminists have to say, it doesn’t change the fact that many females were raised to be caretakers (and for those who had parents to allow yourself to be whatever you wanted to be, they did well).  We were given Barbie dolls to make their hair and dress pretty, dollhouses to tidy with furnishings, and let’s not forget, to dream of growing up one day to marry Prince Charming.  The good intentions of our parents lead us to want or “need” things we can’t always afford, set expectations or definitions of the “perfect” man that is impossible to exist, and believe that a wedding is what every girl should attain to achieve in their adult life.  Whether you agree or disagree with this, I think, is a personal choice.  But it also doesn’t change the fact that building our fairy tale in the form of an online scrapbook is harmless fun, reliving an old pastime while bonding friendships with other pinteresting females in solidarity.  With Pinterest, you can plan for your planned or unplanned wedding, fill your non-existing house with furniture, and collect as many clothes and shoes you wish.

3. Foodies:  It’s rare to find a good cookbook without images.  Food is meant to target two main human senses: dishes that look delicious, and dishes that taste delicious.  Reading recipes hardly warrant hunger.  With Pinterest, cookbooks have another competition.

4. Fashionistas:  I generally hate the term fashionistas.  Because according to Urban Dictionary, a fashionista is considered as “A person devoted to fashion clothing, particularily unique or high fashion.  A person not to be called a fashionista would be someone who obsessively follows trends.”  Tell me, what is unique about fashion?  There are a handful of conglomerate fashion designers with an impeccable and creative eye who set the bar for rest of the fashion industry.  Each person’s style is still unique and devoted to fashion, but may or may not be considered as high fashion, because fashion itself is a subjective state of being.  With Pinterest, trends are created, and ideas are lead to inspirations that inevitably become adopted.  Imitation is a highest form of flattery, and I don’t see it as a bad thing.

5. Wedding Planners:  The wedding planners of the world are also celebrating somewhere because their credibility rose to a new level.  With Pinterest, it is virtually impossible to misinterpret your client’s dream wedding.

6. Photographers:  Photographers know that you can spend all day taking and viewing thousands of photos, and if you’re lucky, you might end up with one worth publishing. With Pinterest, you can now overdose yourself with inspiration on steroids.  Then, travel around the world like @kiendlam.

7. Martha Stewart Worshippers:  DIY (do-it-yourself) and craft ideas are exploding again like hipsters making a comeback from the 80s.  With Pinterest, Jo-Ann, Michaels, and Ben Frankin may last for an unforeseen amount of time.

8. Moms:  I am continually impressed the rise of online mom communities and their engagement in social networks.  With Pinterest, moms have another channel to show off their kids and collect creative ideas for playtime.

9. Brands:  Mashable recently published 5 Ways Brands Can Use Pinterest to Boose Consumer Engagement.  Facebook and Twitter have definitely paved the channel for creating online consumer engagement, while some brands continue to experiment with Instagram.  With Pinterest, brands have a gold-rush opportunity to lead engagement in the newest and hottest online space, before other brands jump on the bandwagon and create noise.  Kudos to Whole Foods, Nordstrom, and other top brands on Pinterest.

10. Men:  After all, women are not unique to the world of right brains.  @davidhuang writes Why Dudes Should Use Pinterest, because with Pinterest, walls of 16-year old teenage boys aren’t the only places filled with pictures of hot women.  It’s clear that women and men aren’t so different after all, as you build your fairy tale in the form of an online scrapbook in harmless fun, reliving an old pastime in our adulthood.

As I finish this post, the snow has stopped in Seattle (see picture here).  But, baby it’s still cold outside, so I’ll stay home and pin things on my Pinterest board.  And to dear Pinterest, I thank you.

Mason Jar, Amazon.com. Ribbon and über cute holiday gift tags, Target.

Happy, happiest new year!  I’ve been quite MIA for the past couple of months, but I’m happy to report that I’ve survived my first holiday season at Amazon. We brought you the Penny-Pincher Sale (thank you, Huffington Post!), Hotspot Holidays, and most recently, the opportunity to win a new cell phone and $2,000 from AmazonWireless through our New Year, New Phone Sweepstakes.   It’s been a super fun ride thus far, and the challenge has been rewarding.

However, I hate that I’ve neglected you.  I’ve been a terrible internet friend.  So, as a tribute to my Catholic upbringing, I will do my penance to repent my sin with… TWO DESSERT RECIPES!!  That’s right, kiddos.  I’m giving you a two for one offer you can’t refuse

Christmas is one of my favorite holidays of the year.  This (past) holiday, I whipped up these tasty treats with help of General Mills and my best friend’s aunt.  You will not regret them.

Muddy Buddies (pictured above)
Makes ~12 one quart mason jars

+ 9 cups Chex cereal (honey, cinnamon, rice, corn, chocolate)
+ 4 tbsp. butter, softened
+ 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
+ 1/2 cup peanut butter
1 tsp. vanilla
+ 1 1/2 powered sugar

Melt butter, chocolate chips, peanut butter, and vanilla into a microwavable bowl for one minute, or until ingredients are melted.

Pour mixture and cereal into a gallon size ziploc bag.  Shake, shake your booty.  Once you feel confident the mixture has covered every bit, add powered sugar.

Shake, shake your booty until your muddies are buddied.  Once cooled, pour them into one quart mason jars.  Then, make pretty with a bow and/or cute holiday gift tag.  Share with your friends and family, place them on your colleague’s desk, or like Steve, eat them while your girlfriend (or boyfriend) is still making them.  Because nothing is better than a gift made with love.

Now, onto one of the easiest and TASTIEST desserts of all time.

Pecan Pie Bars
Serves 6 happy sweet tooth

+ 1/2 cup butter, softened
+ 1/2 cup sugar
+  1 1/4 cup flour
+ 1 cup  brown sugar
+ 2 cups pecans
+ 2 eggs, beaten
+ 1/4 cup flour
+ 1/4 tsp baking powder
+ 1 tbsp. maple syrup

Preheat oven to 350.  Blend flour, sugar, butter, then press evenly into a bottom of 9×13 pan.  Bake your crust for 15 minutes and start your filling.  Mix all remaining ingredients and pour onto crust.  Spread evenly and bake another 20-25 minutes.  Let the pecan pie bars cool in pan before cutting into bars.  I can’t promise they will help your new years resolutions, or will they??  Ten days into the new year, and I’m breaking the rules already.  Such is life!

Forgive me?

Any holiday that requires you to eat 10x more food than you normally eat… I’m a fan.

I love everything about Thanksgiving. The turkey. The stuffing. The casseroles. The football. The drinks. The desserts. The leftovers. You name it, I love it.

Turkey with Chicken Sausage, Herb, and Veggie Stuffing
Truffle Mac & Cheese
Rosemary Mashed Potatoes
Brussel Sprouts & Bacon Casserole
Crispy Green Bean Casserole
Ghirardelli Peppermint Patties

The smart thing would have been to post a recipe every day until Thanksgiving (which means, it’ll eventually be posted).  For now, I’m thankful for life, and you!

Taken with my iPhone, edited with Adobe Photoshop Express.  View more photos on Flickr and instagram.

Seattle Interactive Conference will be held on November 2-3, 2011 in Seattle, Washington

Wanting to attend #SIC next week, but can’t afford $350?  Sponsor AdReady has limited $100 full-access tickets available, available while they last!  For more details on these tickets, contact marketing@adready.com.

Watch the trailer here.  Hope to see you there, and thank you AdReady!

Who would have known a bachelor staple could turn into a full blown recipe?

Meet Steve, my boyfriend.  He is a lazy cook (rather, he’s not a cook at all), but he sure knows where to find the easiest ingredients without sacrificing cost, time, nor quality.  During his bachelor days, Steve was often and regularly found at your nearest Subway or sandwich shop.  But in the rare event he did grocery shop, he found the good ones.  Now, if I must introduce the secret ingredient that makes a simple chicken wrap and salad all sorts of interesting…

Cilantro salad dressing.  I kid you not (and it’s reduced fat).

First, select your favorite flatbread of choice.  Normally, I opt for all things whole grain or wheat, but the original Middle Eastern Flatbread by Trader Joe’s wins my vote.  I’d stay far away from the whole grain version unless you enjoy eating something distasteful.

Add hummus for flavor, not to mention a healthy source of protein for my vegan friends.  This round, I used Trader Joe’s Edamame Hummus, but the White Bean and Traditional flavors are common staples in our household.

Don’t forget your veggies, folks (arugula or spinach, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes & avocados – not shown).  And chicken breast strips for those who prefer extra protein.  Just Chicken by Trader Joe’s is perfect when you come home after a long day of work and the last thing you want to do is wait an awful long time to cook a piece of meat that is impossible to cook perfect.

Healthy, easy, and cost-friendly.  Three essential qualities that run through my mind after a long day of work, when I’m ravenous (which means I’m cranky as hell).

Also, if you know me well enough, this isn’t going to hold me down for the night.  Feel free to add some chips, or a toss a bag of Trader Joe’s Butter Lettuce Mix with your remaining Cilantro Salad Dressing and black pepper.  Sooooooo delish.

As I wrap up this post, he quotes “I came up with this recipe! I must be a good cook.”

I’ll let you decide.

Secret Chicken Wraps + Butter Lettuce Salad
Serves 2

+ 2 Middle Eastern Flatbreads
+ 4 tbsp. Edamame Hummus
+ 1/2 cup chicken breast (optional)
+ 1/8 onion, thinly sliced
+ 3/4 cup, cherry tomatoes, cut in half
+ 1/2 cucumber
+ 1/2 cup arugula or spinach
+ 1 avocado
+ 2 tbsp Trader Joe’s Cilantro Salad Dressing
+ 1 bag butter lettuce
+ pepper to taste