Healthy Mexican Mince

This is by no means a recipe for a gourmet meal - but it's simple, quick, easy and healthy. The boy and I eat pretty healthily on the whole, but lately we've been trying to step it up a bit, and improve things we usually cook.

To make it I brown 250g of  lean organic mince, and then add a whole heap of chopped and grated vegetables. Tonight I added a large onion, diced, a clove of garlic, crushed, and a grated carrot and zuchinni (sometimes I add quite a few). The veges make the mince go further and of course, are good for you! To flavour the mince I add a can of organic crushed tomatoes and a tablespoon of home made taco seasoning that contains only spices and no salt or preservatives.

Then what to do with the mince is up to you! You can serve it wrapped in whole wheat tortillas, top it with mashed avocado and eat it with corn chips as nachos or do what I did tonight, and eat it straight from the bowl with a little low-fat melted cheese on top.

Yum!

I like this mince because it's low in fat, has no salt added to it and contains lots of veges - try it and see what you think!

An Eventful Afternoon!

I've been wanting to get rid of our dining room chairs for SO long. They were one of my old flatmate's grandmother's chairs, and we weren't too fond of the look of them to begin with, but we were poor uni students and any (free) furniture was welcome! Upon moving out they ended up with me, and although they've served us well, they just don't suit the style of our apartment at all.

I kind of wanted to get some lucite chairs to go with our table, however it can get quite expensive when you have to buy four of them, and I'm not sure I want to spend a lot of money on a trend that has been around for a while and might go out of fashion soon!

So last night I was scouring Gumtree for some bargains, and I came across these wooden chairs and asked if they were still available. Lucky for me they were and this afternoon after work, I picked them up! 

I had to include a picture of my car - my beloved little Honda Jazz (aka Jazzy Fay) fitted 6 chairs in the back of it!  The guy I got the chairs from luckily helped me tetris pack them! Why would I ever want another car?! Jazzy is a city runabout and ute in one. 

Jazzy Fay with 6 chairs in the back!

Then I had to unpack them at home and lug them up the stairs, and take the old chairs down - it took me about half an hour and I was pretty dead by the end!

The chairs aren't my favourite shape but I think they should look quite nice once I've sanded them back and painted them in glossy white to match the table. And if I end up hating them, or finding something better, they were only $13 a chair, so it's not too big of a deal lol.

I gave them a thorough wipe over with a damp cloth and some disinfectant. 

I'll post a picture of them when they're painted and looking significantly better!

France For Christmas!

You can see the Christmas markets in this photo and of course, the Strasbourg Cathedral (I've climbed the stairs to the top of the Cathedral btw, in tight jeans and a blazer no less - no easy feat!).

2012 will hopefully be the year I experience my first WHITE CHRISTMAS! The flights are booked and the boy and I are set to head back to France for the festive season. He's so excited to go back to Strasbourg to have Christmas with family and friends. I can't wait to walk around the Strasbourg Christmas markets, go to a Christmas church service at the Strasbourg Cathedral and hopefully wake up to snow on Christmas morning! I'm determined to try some mulled wine and authentic Bouche De Noel whilst I'm there too. Let's hope the rest of the year passes by quickly - I can't wait!

The Darnell Collection at Unique France

Last Friday I was lucky enough to attend a cocktail function at Unique France where they were show casing a selection of dresses from the Darnell Collection. The Darnell Collection is Australia's largest private collection of vintage clothing, curated by Charlotte Smith. Charlotte inherited the dresses from her American godmother and gave a short speech on the night about the history of the collection. It was a really enjoyable night in which we were able to browse the vintage couture gowns with a glass of French wine in hand and beautiful antique surrounds.

 

I wore a red lace Alannah Hill dress with a matching Alannah Hill belt, sheer black stockings and black velvet heels (scored at Myer for a bargain $8 a while ago! So pleased with that find haha). 

I left my hair down and just put a few soft waves in the front with my straightener and hairsprayed them in place. My make up was definitely inspired by Lisa Eldridge - I used her concealing method, plus wore a red lip that didn't wear off the whole night (even after drinking champagne and eating yummy canapes from Lady Lamington!) because of Lisa's amazing lipstick applying technique!

Face Of The Night: Chanel Matte Lumiere Foundation - Clair, MAC Studio Sculpt Concealer, Clinique Colour Surge Eyeshadow in Bewitched (to fill in eyebrows and on eyelids), Urban Decay Primer Potion, Yves Saint Laurent Rouge Personnel Multi-finish Lipstick in number 14, Nars 'Bloodwork' lipgloss, Cover Girl Lengthening Lash Blast mascara, MAC Studio Fix Powder N4, Bobbi Brown Bronzer in Medium, Revlon Skinlights, Nars Albatross.

Just a couple of happy snaps from the night!

A Weekend At Home!

For the Labour Day long weekend the boy and I, along with my sisters and brother in law headed home for my Grandma's 85th birthday and also to celebrate Mother's Day a week early.

It was great to catch up with family and enjoy some of Mum and Grandma's cooking. I love going home when it's cold, it's so cosy and comforting!

Popping the bubbly!

Champagne, cheese and presents for Mother's Day.

Getting a garden tour by Grandma.

A beautiful bloom from Grandma's garden.

A healthy breakfast at home - love it!

Stuck in a traffic jam in the middle of the highway!