Events | Left Coast Contessa

Yesterday was such a treat! I got to take a nice, much needed study break to socialize with other blogger at a cookie exchange. I definitely ODed but it was totally worth it!

Why, yes. There were 6 people but we managed to produce 9 types of cookies. It’s how blogger roll. Also notice the lone cheese plate and veggie plate. You need something to chase the cookies with, right? I already know Kaitlin and Andy & Amanda. I also met Kaitlin’s roommate Mark and Melissa from Trying to Heal.

And the cookies? Amazing!

My peanut butter cookies from the Flour Cookbook

From left to right: Dough balls by Kaitlin, orange chocolate cookies by Mark, smore cookies by Kaitlin, behind that you can see brie (!), and in the corner the cutest mini chocolate chip oatmeal cookies ever by Amanda & Andy.

There was also peppermint bark by Melissa! All the cookies were amazing this might have been my favorite of the afternoon.

The last batch!

Lemon and strawberry wippersnappers by Melissa, and finally almond Cinnamon cookies by Kaitlin. Whew.

We ate cookies and chatted for three hours! Time flies when you’re having fun. It was great chatting with some awesome blogger (I guess now we’re friends) and eating!

Group pic! Thanks to Kaitlin for hosting and for letting me steal this photo!

Kaitlin’s house is totally decked out for the holidays and she has a real tree, named Douglass because he is a Douglass Fir obvi. This inspired me to get my tree out tonight! I had a 6 hour long final and after I was exhausted but I managed to find the energy to decorate.

I told Izzy that if she wore the Santa hat she could have a treat but she wasn’t interested so just stuck to setting up the tree.

Why yes, my tree is silver and mini and fake. It doesn’t have a name yet but I am open to suggestions!

My favorite part of the tree are the ornaments. Every year growing up my Mom would give my brother and I an ornament as a gift that reflected what happened in our lives that year. Last year was my first year in my own apartment and my Mom sent me some. Last year I got surfing Santa.

So cute! My other favs are my Frango Mint ornament (you understand that if you’re from Chicago), Raggedy Ann ornament, Starbucks cup ornament, martini glass ornament, Clara from the Nutcracker, skating ornament, and my ornament with my Senior quote from high school on it. “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams”, in case you were curious.

I also hung a wreath and Christmasfied my dining table:

Don’t you just love the holidays?

And now an announcement!

As readers know, I recently ran the Malibu Half Marathon and loved it! Running is definitely a long term hobby for me and I have been thinking about what race I want to run next. Well, I am ready to announce, my next race will be the Rock n Roll Half Marathon in San Diego! The race is in early June and several other bloggers are planning on running. It should be a pretty fun time. Since Malibu I have averaged between 10 and 17 miles a week. I am very glad I don’t have training pressure during finals but I am excited to run in another race! After the holidays I will post a training plan. Since this will be my second half I will probably complete more long runs. I am very excited, and I hope you are too!

Finals Day 6

Cookies consumed: Countless (+1)

Bagels consumed: 3

YouTube videos watched: 7

Finals taken: 1 (but it was the longest one! Wahoo!)

**It’s not too late to vote for my champagne luxe on a PBR budget in round 3 of Project Food Blog. You can vote here. Thanks for your vote!**

Tonight was such a treat! I was invited to the Nasoya Tofu U Pledge Party hosted at Palihouse in West Hollywood. I was excited to attend this great event.

If your a reader you probably are thinking, “tofu?! I’ve never seen her eat tofu!” You would be right. But something that I have been discovering recently is that I really like a lot of foods I thought I didn’t like. Recent discoveries include Brussles sprouts, beets, and mushrooms. I had a sneaking suspicion that tofu would go the same way as beets and tonight confirmed my suspicions.

felt so official with my name tag!

First of all, the Palihouse in West Hollywood was a beautiful venue. I loved the decor, it reminded me of my apartment.

The event was to promote Nasoya’s new website, Nasoya Tofu U which give you the low down on tofu including tofu basics, several different recipes, how to videos featuring Sabrina of Rhody Girl Tests, and a pledge (you get coupons!). We sampled some of the Tofu U recipes at the event. Guys, I’ve officially changed my mind about tofu. Here are a few reasons why…

Tofu Spring Rolls

Was there even tofu in this? It was delicious. My biggest gripe with tofu and the reason it hasn’t been incorporated into my diet is the consistency. I could not tell that this dish had tofu in it and it was yummy.

But the star of the night was the Moroccan Tofu.

The seasoning in this dish were spot on. It almost tasted like pad thai because the dish had peanuts. The tofu, again was well prepared and the consistency didn’t both me. I ate several spoonfuls of Moroccan Tofu and it was delicious. I really want to recreate this at home.

I also got to meet Kim Barnouin, author of the Skinny Bitch Cookbooks! She was so nice and chatted with all the bloggers. We got a copy of her new cookbook “Skinny Bitch Ultimate Everyday Cooking”. Based on a perfunctory reading it looks like it will be a great addition to my kitchen. I love how she lists servings and calorie information after all of her recipes. You will be seeing it on the blog!