FabSugar

Behind the Seams: FabSugar and Macy's Shoe Diva Shopping Event

FabSugar — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 03:00:22 PDT

One of my favorite kinds of parties is a party amongst clothes. Get me in a clothing store with a glass of champagne and all is Fab in the world. What's even better? A party in a shoe department. Such a dangerous party occurred for yours truly and her Sugar friends, thanks to Macy's and their annual Shoe Diva event.
We partnered with Macy's to host a VIP party and have a special part in the runway shoe fashion show. I got to pick five Fall shoe favorites that were on display at the party and flaunted on the runway. My picks were super saucy Stuart Weitzman boots with a zipper swirl running up them, gray Calvin Klein ruched detail boots, Betsey Johnson tiger print party pumps, flirty purple Michael Michael Kors sandals and a gorgeous pair of Art Deco Casadei satin and patent pumps. The best part was that Macy's gave away a pair of my shoes to a lucky partygoer - congrats again Katie (she chose the zippered Stuart Weitzman boots)! With Fab and Macy's as hostesses, and Sugar girls and local TeamSugar members, we all had a ball. And yes, many shoes were bought!

For more from our fun Sugar shoe party, including a fun video montage,

Glee-ful Highlights From Episode "Heart"

Lizzie Fuhr — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 23:00:21 PST

It's Valentine's Day at McKinley, and everyone gets in on the action in this week's episode of Glee. For the lesson, Mr. Schuester wants everyone to choose a great love song to perform, which means a lot of the action takes place in the relationship department. Finn and Rachel try to get everyone excited about their upcoming nuptials; Brittany and Santana deal with scrutiny of the nature of their relationship, and Mercedes and Sam may love each other, but they just can't seem to get it together.

At first, I was pretty excited that "Heart" was going to be an episode full of musical numbers, but it feels a little plot driven for my taste. Regardless, there's a lot happened this week, so get in on all details after the jump.

Like Reading LilSugar? Then Follow Us on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram!

LilSugar — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 09:56:49 PST

We know moms are busy and the last thing you need is another site to add to your daily Internet surfing routine, but reading LilSugar is only one way to get the latest baby and parenting news, tips, and trends. We love sharing our latest finds, funny tidbits, cool photos, and sneak peeks - things that often don't make it onto LilSugar - on our Twitter and Facebook pages. We're also pinning up a storm over on Pinterest, where we're sharing all the pretty things - from beautiful nurseries to out-of-this-world birthday parties - we can find around the web. And if that's not enough, you can follow us @lilsugar1 over on Instagram for behind-the-scenes looks at the items that are piquing our interest each day.

Get the Conversation Started With Sugar Cookies

Lauren Hendrickson — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:51:31 PST

Sweetheart candies are an essential on Valentine's Day, and recently Williams-Sonoma took the same idea to cookies with Message in a Cookie, a kit that comes with three different cookie-cutter shapes: a heart, a star, and a scalloped square. Each cookie cutter features slots for text, where you can use the accompanying letter stamps to make your own talking sugar cookies.
I whipped up a quick batch of Alton Brown's delicious sugar cookie dough and stamped sweet sayings into my heart-shaped cookies. I can't wait to use the scalloped square to create edible place settings at my next dinner party. Of course, you can achieve a similar idea by using a traditional cookie cutter and carefully etching out your text with a paring knife, but these handy cookie cutters just make it easier. Stop by your local Williams-Sonoma to pick up your own conversation cookie cutters, and keep reading for the sugar cookie recipe.

Video: Angelina and Brad Step Out as Angie's Dad Speaks About More Grandchildren!

Karli Bulnes — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:33:07 PST

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt made several parents-only outings over the weekend, but the Jolie-Pitt kids were a popular topic of conversation with Angie's dad. We caught up with Jon Voight at Clive Davis's pre-Grammy party on Saturday, where he shared his thoughts on becoming a grandpa again - hear what he had to say and find out where Angelina and Brad popped up in PopSugar Rush.

Sisters of DC Cupcakes Share Valentine's Day Baking Tips and Chocolate Ganache Recipe

Rebecca M Gruber — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:16:28 PST

What's sugar and spice and everything nice? Cupcakes! And no one knows more about our obsession with the lil confections than Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis, co-owners of Georgetown Cupcake and stars of TLC's DC Cupcakes. The sisters, who learned their kitchen skills from their grandmother ("We followed her around the kitchen and always begged to help"), have been known to bake up to 10,000 lil cakes a day, much to the delight of the patrons who line the block of their Washington DC store. The duo - who just opened their first outpost in New York City - gave me a few minutes of their time to discuss their tasty desserts.

LilSugar: Cupcakes have moved from kiddie birthday party staple to a favorite of adults and kids alike. But kids aren't always willing to try new flavors. Which are most popular with kids?
Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis: Our Vanilla Birthday (vanilla cupcake with vanilla buttercream and rainbow bobbles), Chocolate Birthday (chocolate cupcake with vanilla buttercream and rainbow bobbles), and Milk Chocolate Birthday (vanilla cupcake with milk chocolate buttercream and rainbow bobbles) are the most popular with kids. We think it's the color rainbow bobbles!

LS: Moms are busy; what shortcuts can you recommend to making delicious, beautiful cupcakes without spending the whole day baking and decorating them?
SL and KK: Try to keep a stash of baking staples - butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, milk, all purpose flour, baking soda/powder, salt, and cocoa powder/chocolate on hand in your kitchen at all times and you can make almost any flavor! Our recipes are very simple - we don’t use cake flour or pastry flour - just all purpose - we find that works best. Also, we're big fans of chocolate ganache icing. It's so easy - just two ingredients - chocolate chips and heavy cream. You just melt them down (two cups of chips to one cup of cream), and dip your cupcakes in and you've got a super fast and unbelievably delicious frosting.

LS: Do you ever make "healthy" cupcakes for those who want to skip some of the sugar? If so, what goes into it?
SL and KK: We have a carrot cake cupcake, which has fresh carrots and fresh apples grated in it. We skip the walnuts, to save on calories, and it's a light and delicious cupcake!

The new season of DC Cupcakes begins on Feb. 25, but if you're looking to create their Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes for Valentine's Day,

Georgetown Cupcake's Chocolate Ganache Cupcakes
From Sophie LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis, co-owners of Georgetown Cupcake

Ingredients

For the cupcakes 1 1/4 cups flour, sifted 1/2 teaspoon baking soda, sifted 1/4 teaspoon salt 8 tablespoons (4 ounces) European-style unsalted butter, such as Plugra brand, at room temperature 1 1/4 cups sugar 2 large eggs, at room temperature 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract, preferably Madagascar bourbon 1 cup whole milk, at room temperature 1/2 cup Valrhona cocoa powder, sifted (or another good-quality cocoa powder) For the ganache frosting 1/2 cup heavy cream 1 cup Callebaut semisweet chocolate chips (6.4 ounces; or other good-quality semisweet chocolate chips)

Directions
For the cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a standard cupcake pan with 12 baking cups, and a second pan with 6 baking cups. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt on a sheet of wax paper or parchment paper. Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer or hand-held electric mixer. Beat on medium speed until fluffy. Stop to add the sugar; beat on medium speed until well incorporated. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing slowly after each addition. Combine the vanilla extract and milk in a large liquid measuring cup. Reduce the speed to low. Add one-third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, then gradually add one-third of the milk mixture, beating until well incorporated. Add another one-third of the flour mixture, followed by one-third of the milk mixture. Stop to scrape down the bowl as needed. Add the remaining flour mixture, followed by the remaining milk mixture, and beat just until combined. Add the cocoa powder, beating (on low speed) just until incorporated. Use a standard-size ice cream scoop to fill each cupcake paper with batter, so that the wells are two-thirds full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes (start checking at 15 minutes) or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely. For the ganache frosting: Lay a large piece of wax paper on the work surface. Combine the heavy cream and chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Fill a medium saucepan with an inch or two of water and place over medium-low heat. Place the bowl over the saucepan and let the mixture melt, stirring until it is shiny and smooth. Remove the bowl of chocolate ganache from the saucepan; let it cool slightly, for 2 to 3 minutes. Working with 1 cupcake at a time, carefully dip each cupcake top in the warm ganache, twisting your wrist as needed to make sure the cupcake top gets completely coated. To prevent drips, quickly turn the cupcake right side up and place on the wax paper. Allow the ganache to set for 5 minutes before serving. (If the cupcakes are dipped once, you'll have about 1/2 cup of ganache left over.)

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The Five Best Races For Women

espnW — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 04:09:19 PST

We are excited to share one of our fave stories from espnW here on FitSugar!

By Dimity McDowell and Sarah Bowen Shea

Sage Steele, SportsCenter anchor, is preparing to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon at Walt Disney World on Feb. 26 and hoping to fall in love with running in the process. Follow Sage’s journey on espnW.com

Women's races offer a decidedly different vibe than their coed cousins': more camaraderie, a sole sister atmosphere that welcomes all runners and walkers, and lots more running skirts. Here are five of the top women's races and series in the country. Sign up then train like Sage.

Disney Tinker Bell and Princess half marathons
Sage picked a winner. Let your inner child run free through the Magic Kingdom at these festival race weekends. Tinker Bell is in Disneyland, while Princess is in Disney World, but both allow thousands of runners to mix and mingle with Disney characters on courses that wind through each park. Racers put almost as much effort into costumes - Snow White, Belle, or Minnie, anyone? - as training. Bonus: your kids will be especially psyched to cheer you on.

Sage Steele gets some training advice from Disney runMom Lori Lovell

Nike Women's Marathon
Yeah, it's tough to snag an entry, but if you can, this race is so worth it. (Psst: Go through Team in Training.) This 26.2-mile race, and its half-marathon companion, traverses San Francisco with sweeping vistas of the Golden Gate Bridge and Pacific Ocean to take your mind off the killer hills in the first 10 miles of the race. Tuxedo-clad firefighters bestow each finisher with a Tiffany & Co. pendant.

Run fast by fueling up smart

Three more great races after the break.

Create a Colorful Candy Buffet!

Susannah Chen — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 09:38:47 PST

Want to wow guests at your next fabulous fête? To end the night on a sweet note that they won't forget, fashion your own candy bar. From colorful decorations to tantalizing treats, here's how to pull together a buffet that looks as delicious as it tastes. Watch the video now to see how easily it all comes together.

The Week's Fun and Funny Celebrity Twitter Pictures

Brittney Stephens — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:43:26 PST

Celebrities shared photos on Twitter of their fun this week, whether in Indianapolis for fun Super Bowl festivities, on set, or even on the highway. Jessica Simpson took her baby bump to the big game, Nina Dobrev and Snoop Dogg partied with DirecTV, and Reese Witherspoon went for a drive with Chelsea Handler. Click through to see this week's best pics and don't forget to follow PopSugar on Twitter for exciting news and photos!

Linguine With Sea Urchin and Caviar

OnSugar Blog — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 06:01:25 PST

Sea urchin is often a polarizing ingredient. Yoo Eatz encourages us to muster some courage and embrace this culinary adventure in the form of pasta.

What's so gross about sea urchin? Even some of the most adventurous eaters I know will make the most horrific faces when the topic comes up.

I asked my husband about this - he generally recoils when I suggest that we share a pair of nigiri at the sushi bar - and he offered that it's a textural thing. Some people say it resembles phlegm (or worse), and I heard one person characterize the briny bits as "little orange tongues" (although, let's face it: the truth of what uni is may actually be harder to stomach!). But a lot of these same people will tell me that the flavor doesn't bother them; in fact, they find it quite pleasant.

For more, plus a recipe, keep reading!