Ever since we got back from our Caribbean cruise (yes, we’re still thinking about it months later), my husband couldn’t stop talking about the Jerk Chicken we had in Barbados.  It was so flavorful, juicy, sweet and spicy all packed up into a few strips of chicken.  My first taste of Jerk Chicken was actually back in 2003, on a Spring Break trip to Jamaica that I went on with a few friends.  Want to see some pictures of me from 8 years ago?  I know you do, but not making fun, mmm k??

Haha you probably can’t tell which one is me but here’s a hint, I’m wearing a blue bathing suit in one photo and a pink bathing suit in another.  Oh Spring Break, the good ole days.

So anyways, back to reality, after all the Jerk Chicken talk in our house lately, I couldn’t take it anymore and just HAD to make it!  I had a heck of a time searching online for the perfect recipe for us as I found many variations.  And if you know me, I’m pretty dang indecisive so instead of just sticking to one recipe, I combined a couple and made my own jerk seasoning mix.  I was a bit nervous that it would end up being too salty or sweet because I generally like sticking to a recipe spot on the first time I try it and then varying it the second time and on, are you the same way?  But lucky for us, it turned out pretty well and sure did satisfy our craving!

I’m linking this photo to Sweet Shot Tuesday, nom nom!

Jerk Seasoning Ingredients (adapted from Allrecipes and Epicurean)

• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons dried minced onion
• 2 1/2 teaspoons dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper
• 2 teaspoons ground allspice
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions

1. Mix together all jerk seasoning ingredients in a plastic bag.
2. Marinate meat (you can use chicken, shrimp, pork tenderloin) in the bag with seasonings overnight.
3. Grill meats over low fire until done.

Have you had Jerk Chicken (or another meat) before?  Are you a fan?

Blouse: Express, Cardigan: Gap, Skirt: H&M, Tights: Forever 21, Shoes: Payless, Necklace: Forever 21

Well, I’m off to California this week!  I have to say, I was fully expecting it to be 70s/80s, but looks like it will only be 50s/60s… but who am I to complain, it sure beats 20s/30s and all that snow you see there!  So anyways, you see this hot pink blouse?  Well, how can you miss it?  I probably bought it about 7 years ago (that’s like senior year of college, dang have I really been working that long?!?) from Express, and that’s probably the last time I wore it too.  Good thing I have outfit posts on my blog so I can be held accountable for making sure I remix what I have in my closet and bring out those oldies but goodies.  And thank goodness it still fits!  You see, I have a plan to wear at least 1 new item each week, and by new, I mean an item that hasn’t been worn in the last 6 months (I’m kind of a hoarder and have trouble getting rid of clothes).  It’s fun, you should try it.  It’s another way of remixing your closet since I’m not brave enough to do Kendi’s 30 for 30 yet! 

What’s the oldest thing you own in your closet?

Psssst… have you entered the For The Love Of Joy and Slieberry Designs giveaways going on right now?  You have until Tuesday!

***

Hey friends!  Yayyy it’s almost the weekend, aren’t you excited?  I sure am!  I’m always counting down days haha.  This week has been an interesting one, I’m still fighting a minor rash that I got after my cold/fever last week and the doctor doesn’t exactly know what’s wrong with me, so hopefully time can heal this one.  He says he doesn’t think it’s too serious, so I am hoping he is right on this one!  Besides that, I’ve made a few new pretties for my etsy shop this week but am still waiting on some new supplies to come in so I can make even more!  And of course, the snow has decided to come back and grace us with its presence once again, grrr.  Luckily, I’ll be heading back out to beautiful, sunny California again next week, so exciting!!   I’ll be working part of the week and the other part I’ll be playing with family (so excited to see my nephew again) and friends, hoping to visit some more of those food trucks I blogged about before!

For this week’s Flavors To Follow (I haven’t done one in a few weeks and I miss it), I have a collection of beautiful Statement Necklaces for y’all!  I’ve pretty much been obsessed with them lately and I’ve seen them on all sorts of fashion blogs!  A statement necklace is well, kinda obvious if you ask me, it makes a “statement” to your outfit.  You could wear a simple black dress or  a white tee and jeans, and once you dress it up with a statement necklace, voila, your outfit is complete.  It speaks for itself, really.  Here’s a few that I love… and thanks to all those twitter friends who sent me links as well! 

1 add a few pops of color to your outfit with miss lyndsi by sunshine and carousels
2 wear this beautiful gold tinley road necklace with that little black dress and you’ll be nominated for ms. glamorous!
3 store your lipstick or coins in this risshun mini purse necklace, spotted by ms. megan
4 little girl in the big world is celebrating 100 followers by giving away this stella and dot medina necklace
5 be my twin by ordering this plum ruffle necklace from pretty things by meg!
6 win a necklace of your choice from simply me art in lola b’s giveaway!
7 if you’re a fan of bunting like i am (just look at my header), then this is the perfect leather bunting necklace for you, thanks krystal!
8 dress like royalty in this spoil me fashion queen of hearts necklace spotted by statements in fashion!
9 made by allora handmade, i own this rosette statement necklace in this very mustard color and love it!  wanna be twinsies?
10 it’s from anthropologie’s new wedding line, bhldn, enough said.
11 sweeten up your wardrobe with this jelly bean statement necklace from craftee mcgee (i know reviving remnant’s has been eyeing it)!
12 add a pearl or many to your wardrobe for a super affordable forever 21 price (thanks stories at my fingertips)!

Hope you all have a beautiful weekend, lovelies!!

Are you a fan of statement necklaces?

I’d love for you to include links of ones you’re crushing on!

Before we get started on this post, I just wanted to announce the lucky winners of the FOUR GIVEAWAYS from last week!!

The winner of the rosette headband and button earrings set by Oh, Sweet Joy is Anna of Be Healthy, Be Well, Be Inspired!

The winner of $25 credit to The Rusted Chain is Amylou of Amylouwho!

The winner of $30 credit to Ashley Carter Designs is Kelly of Just The Two Of Us!

The winner of the Autumn Breeze headband by Lindsay Harmony is Lola of The Life of Lola!

WINNERS: Congrats! Please email me at sandyalamode@gmail.com with your mailing address so I can send it on to my sponsors!

***

One of my favorite types of blogs posts to read AND write are food posts (or “The Dish” as I like to call it over here).  Because everyone pretty much has a love for food, am I right?  There aren’t many more things that bring me joy in life than when one of my friends says, “Hey, tried a recipe from your blog and everyone loved it”!  OK, well there are other things that bring me joy in life but this one is pretty high up there on the list.  Not only do I love sharing my own recipes, my parent’s recipes, as well as recipes I find online, from cookbooks and magazines that I’ve tried (and loved)… but more recently, I turn to other blogs for recipes as well!  Because if another blogger has tried it and found the time to blog about it, it must be worth it, yea?!    (All the pictures in this post were taken by me.)

First let’s start off with some Brie and Chive Biscuits from Food Wine and Mod Podge.  These savory bites are like a more sophisticated version of Red Lobster’s cheddar biscuits.  They crunch and flake in your mouth and the little bits of brie with make your stomach thank you!

As your appetite gets going, I’d like to bring out another cheese appetizer, the amazing Favorite Cheese Ball by Cooking for Seven, with step-by-step instructions on Pioneer Woman’s Tasty Kitchen site!  This chunk of cheese is super amped up with multiple cheeses, onion, garlic powder, cranberries and more, then rolled in crushed pecans.  Serve on your favorite cracker and you’ll have people popping until they can’t stop!  Trust me, that happened with one of my friends!!

Then we move on to Asian- Style Turkey Meatballs by Ruffles and Truffles!  It’s a combination of Asian and Italian, sweet, salty, and spicy all mixed up into a ball!  Not to mention, it uses turkey which makes it leaner than pork/beef (for the most part)!  Serve it with a side of rice and there’s an entree for you!

And lastly, to top off your meals, why not serve some Salted Caramel Dark Chocolate Truffles to your guests, or keep them all to yourself, either way (I’m not judging you).  Thanks to Honeysuckle Chic for the recipe!  These are a mix of sweet, salty, chocolatey, and soft!  They sure do hit the spot when you’re looking for a perfect dessert to finish off your meal!  And they are pretty simple to make, can’t beat that! 

Psssst… don’t forget to enter the For The Love Of Joy and Slieberry Designs giveaways going on right here, right now!

What are some of your favorite food/recipes blogs?

(besides mine, kidding!)

Entries for this giveaway have been closed! Thanks!

{website} {etsy} {blog} {facebook} {twitter}

Today, I’d LOVE to introduce you to my college friend Leslie, who owns a beautiful stationery design business called Slieberry Designs!  Leslie specializes in wedding invitation suites (save the dates, invitations, programs, menus, escort cards, etc.) and works with individuals to get their perfect design made, in the color/font of their choice, at a reasonable price and with unlimited draft revisions!  She’s worked on a few of my friends and I know they’ve all definitely been happy with Leslie’s service.  But for those who are already married, she also offers super cute personalized note cards in her newly opened etsy shop (and has been constantly adding new designs since its’ inception a few weeks ago)!  I actually just ordered a set the other day and she was great to work with in terms of wording/color/font customizations and had super fast shipping!    And just for my readers, she is offering 15% off your order from her etsy shop with code “SANDYALAMODE” or 15% off her custom design services if you just mention my blog, cool huh?    Well, read below for a sweet interview to get to know her better.. and for the giveaway, of course!

P.S. It’s her BIRTHDAY today, so wish her a happy one!!

{MEET LESLIE}

1) Tell us a little bit about yourself and what inspired you to start your own design business?
Hi, my name is Leslie, and I’m a graphic designer living in New York City. By day, I work at a structural engineering firm, and I run Slieberry Designs on the side.  I was encouraged to start my business after a few friends asked me to design their wedding invitations, and then I kept getting referrals.  I’m always working and really enjoy what I do, and Slieberry Designs gives me the opportunity to reach more people and businesses and do more ‘fun’ creative work!

2) How did you learn all about design?
Growing up, I loved being creative, and went on to be a graphic design major at the University of Michigan (Go Blue!).  I learn the most just by playing around on different programs, and also from working off the feedback I get from clients.  The great thing about design is it’s always a learning process and a lot of the best ‘tricks’ I’ve learned are by mistake!

3) What are some of your favorite fonts?
Way too many!… but when it comes down to it, I love clean, no-nonsense lettering like Gotham and Gill Sans.

4) If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
Paris, to see all the art and architecture (and I hear the food is amazing)!

5) What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough… but I’m more of a frozen yogurt (Pinkberry!) girl.

{GIVEAWAY}

Leslie is giving away three sets of 9 folded note cards with envelopes! Aren’t they so pretty? Yes. Oh yea, that’s THREE WINNERS, FOLKS!!

How to enter:

You must be a Google Friend Connect follower of Sandy a la Mode

1. Visit Slieberry Designs and leave a comment with your favorite item!

For additional entries, leave a separate comment for each action.
2. Be a Google Friend Connect follower of Slieberry Designs
3. Heart (add to favorites) Slieberry Designs on Etsy
4. Follow @sandyalamode and @slieberry on Twitter
5. Like Slieberry Designs on Facebook
6. Blog, facebook, or tweet about this giveaway (make sure to include @sandyalamode and @slieberry in your tweet) and include the link (one entry each)

Feel free to use this tweet:
Win a beautiful set of cards designed by @slieberry on @sandyalamode! THREE WINNERS! #GIVEAWAY http://bit.ly/dXw4cw

This giveaway is open INTERNATIONALLY and closes on Tuesday, March 1, 2011 at 12PM CST.  Good luck!

Don’t want to wait?  Use code “SANDYALAMODE” to take 15% off your order from her etsy shop or by mentioning my blog for any custom design order!  This offer is good through May 22, 2011!

Entries for this giveaway have been closed! Thanks!