Breaking Dawn Midnight Showing

Last night was the premiere of Breaking Dawn: Part I! Around 9 p.m., a few of us girls met up to head over to Cinebarre where they were having a pre-show party. They had tents set up with people serving food, handing out free glow-in-the-dark fangs, holding giveaways, and doing fortune readings! We got there pretty early to get a spot close to the front and center.

As soon as we got our fangs, we popped them in our mouths for photos. Sorry if these pictures disturb you – they disturb me too.

Amanda and me:

Mary and me:

It was so cold outside. Like in the 40s I think! Haha. We are not used to these arctic temps in the South.

Mary and I ventured over to the fortune teller. Mary said her reading was very accurate.

I thought my reading was just wacky. The only part that seemed true was when she said that I am typically aggressive and confrontational, haha. She then said that as I get older, I will become more feminine and less aggressive. WHAT?? I asked her if she was drinking a beer and she said no.

In case you haven’t seen it, here is the Breaking Dawn Trailer. It would give me chills every time I saw it on t.v.!

Once the movie came on, it was much easier to forget about how cold we were. I don’t want to give away any details, but  will say that I enjoyed the movie a lot! It was definitely my favorite of them all. There were a few comical parts, and only one very cheesy part. I actually got scared during the birthing and transformation scenes. Totally creepy…

Did you see Breaking Dawn Part: I last night? Or are you going this weekend? Let me know what you think!

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. I found my article in Mount Pleasant Magazine at my gym today!! The trainers loved it too.

2. I love this new beer that Eric introduced me to last week. Weihenstephan (which I can barely pronounce) is the oldest existing brewery in the world. I had the Hefe Weisssbier – a wheat beer with aromas of banana and clove and hints of citrus. Loved it.

Eric also introduced me to a social networking app for beer enthusiasts.

Untappd lets you keep track of which beers you’ve tried (and where), see which beers/bars are trending, and also find out what your friends have been sipping on. It offers recommendations based on what you’ve had, encouraging you to try new beers. I think this is a great app for social media lovers who are interesting in learning about beer. (ME)

3. This steal at Target: 7 Clif bars for 5 bucks!! Mary Legare and I stocked up on seasonal flavors! She loves the Gingerbread most, while I’m a fan of the Peppermint Stick.

4. This song. In the 11 years that it has been out, I  have never once gotten sick of this song. Anytime it comes on the radio, I pretty much have a dance-off with my car and almost rear end people. Look at his pants! Juvy is so gangster!

5. Trader Joe’s horseradish hummus. Where else, but Trader Joe’s, can you find such unique hummus flavors? 

Of course this is really good on carrots, but it’s even better on sautéed spinach! Trust me on that one.

6. Nichole from Live for the Run won my Betty Crocker brownie giveaway! She has been a reader for quite a while and I’m so glad she won! :)

7. Breaking Dawn!!! Amanda, Annabel, and I, along with a few other friends are going to the midnight showing at Cinebarre tomorrow. We’re flipping out about the movie mostly, but also about the pre-showing festivities:

Nerd alert! #notashamed

XO!

Pour Favor Wine Launch Party

On November 3rd, my friend Josh and I had a wine tasting party to promote Pour Favor Wines. Josh is the CEO and Founder of Spanish Vines, a distributor of wines from Spain. The company recently started a new line of affordable wines ($6-8 range) and are travelling the country promoting them.

We had the event at Michael Mitchell Art Gallery on King St. The gallery is absolutely gorgeous inside and full of some incredible artwork. There’s so much to look at! We also had the party catered by  Twenty Six Divine. There was quite the assortment of nibbles. Check it out!

We sampled three different wines: a white, a red, and a rosé. I prefer red wine, but out of the three, I enjoyed the rose the most! All of the men were very timid in asking for a sample of the rosé, and every single one of them later admitted to really liking it. But honestly, it makes sense. It’s a blend of red and white – the best of both worlds! All three wines are light, crisp, and very easy to drink. I highly recommend them!

We had a great turnout and I’m thankful for everyone who attended. I only took a few pictures of friends because I was too busy sipping and pouring…and sipping some more, obvi.

Be sure to check out Spanish Vine’s website and facebook page! Click here for a list of places you can get your hands (or mouths?) on some Pour Favor Wine.

What’s your favorite affordable wine?

Do you prefer white, red, or rosé?

Butcher & Bee and Breaking Dawn

For lunch on Friday, my coworker and I decided to stop in at Butcher & Bee, a new sandwich shop on Upper King. When I say Upper King, I mean Upper King. If you didn’t know what you were looking for, you’d probably miss it.

Their small, changing menu features inventive sandwiches and sides that feature local products. The inside of the restaurant only has one communal table, which was full when we arrived, so we opted to sit outside instead. It was surprisingly warm out for the middle of November.

To start, we shared the Shrimp with ginger, radish, soy, lettuce, and cucumber. It was very fresh and full of flavor.

I had the Pull Squash Sandwich – loaded with butternut squash, cabbage, and carrots in a slightly spicy barbecue sauce. I loved the flavors and it had just the right amount of heat. The pickles weren’t good though. Something was off.

My friend had the Wagyu Roast Beef and Cheddar on Brioche. I think he enjoyed it, but wasn’t super impressed. In general, I think the food was fine, but very overpriced. Both sandwiches, the shrimp app, and one drink cost over $25. Geez.  I do appreciate the fact that they make their bread in store and would not be opposed to coming back to try new items. I’ll just make sure I’m feeling rich.

Friday evening, I had a nerdy night in with some chicken noodle soup and wine. That doesn’t sound too nerdy, but how I spent the majority of the evening was. I recently discovered Comcast On Demand (I know, I’m slow) and found a whole section on the Twilight saga. You can watch trailers, clips from the movies, and interviews. Inspired by all of this (and my large goblet of wine), I made a silly purchase. TICKETS FOR THE MIDNIGHT SHOWING OF BREAKING DAWN!

I am so flipping excited. Amanda, along with a few other friends, is going too. The only thing I’m worried about is that it’s outside. Will we freeze? Will it be worth it? Yes and Yes.

Favorite unique sandwich combo?

Ever gone to a midnight (or outdoor) showing of a movie?

Keep the Betty Crocker giveaway entries coming!

Giveaway! Betty Crocker Milk Chocolate Brownies

Although cookies are my absolute favorite thing to bake, I won’t turn down an opportunity to make brownies. There’s nothing like a warm, fudgy brownie with a tall glass of cold milk to satisfy your late-night sweet tooth craving. Am I right or am I right? Ok, glad you agree.

MyBlogSpark offered to send me a box of Betty Crocker Milk Chocolate brownies, along with a brownie pan, spatula, and a bright red apron. I am not usually a fan of boxed baked goods of any kind, but I do understand that in a pinch, they are an okay alternative. I’ve also found that you can adapt the recipe so they aren’t as unhealthy.

The original recipe calls for 2 large eggs, 1/2 cup of oil, and 3 tablespoons of water to be added to the mix. I reduced the oil to 1/4 cup, added 1/4 cup of water, and used 1 egg + 2 egg whites. With these changes, each serving is reduced 32 calories and 3.67g of fat. Every bit helps!

I have made these brownies both ways, and they are just as delicious with the changes I mentioned above. I brought them into work to share with friends and everyone loved them! 

Want to win the same prize pack that I received, shown above? Here’s how:

• Leave me a comment telling me if you prefer fudge- or cake-like brownies.
• Follow me on twitter: @christinaorso
• Tweet about this giveaway

**Be sure to leave a comment for EACH entry. Giveaway ends Wednesday at 12pm. GOOD LUCK!

 

Disclosure: The product, information and prize pack have been provided by Betty Crocker through MyBlogSpark.

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. On Monday, my very first printed article hit the stands. Featured in the Going Out section of Mount Pleasant Magazine, you will find my article on wine tasting. I can look at my blog all day long on the computer, but to finally have something in print is so exciting!

My favorite part is my shameless single girl plug in the contributors section. You just never know who might get their hands on this.

Here is a link to the online edition: http://mountpleasantmagazine.com/winter2011/

*Locals can pick up a copy at the Mount Pleasant Harris Teeters, Piggly Wigglys, Whole Foods, Triangle Char & Bar, The Shoe Fairy, Mary Mojo Boutique, Village Library, Metto Coffee, Mount Pleasant Visitors’ Center, Salon Capelli, T-Mobile (1036 Johnnie Dodds Blvd.), Boulevard Diner, Great Clips on Coleman Boulevard, On The Run, and High Thyme Cuisine on Sullivan’s Island.

2. While at the library yesterday, I noticed this book. I was cracking up in the aisle by myself. I mean really, I feel like the library is so conservative, but clearly not.

In case you missed this hilarious post, I’ve previously posed with this gem. It was a joke…kind of…

If you’re my facebook friend (which you should be), you will appreciate my current profile picture, which is very similar to the one above. But better.

3. Ashley informed me that one of my favorite beverages, Vitamin Water in XXX zero flavor is actually an excellent hangover cure. It’s chock full of Vitamin C, B3, B5, B6, and B12, manganese and electrolytes. Electrolytes help replenish the fluids the alcohol stole from you and vitamins are just wonderful, obvi. Plus, the name XXX always makes me think of my nickname Xtina.

4. My friend Eric, a food critic for the Charleston City Paper, has dared me to do the cinnamon challenge. Although I told him I put cinnamon on everything, he doubts my ability to choke down a full tablespoon. I will vlog this. Get ready!

5. You should also get ready for a chocolatey giveaway tomorrow! Stay tuned…

Chocolate For Motivation?

Reasons some people go to the gym:

• to maintain a good physique
• to lower cholesterol/blood pressure
• to lose weight

Reasons I go to the gym:

• for my health
• to stare at men pumping iron
• to increase my baby muscles
• to eat more

Thank goodness I actually love working out, because I eat constantly. Not ashamed. It’s all about the balance and the idea behind my blog name.

I am a huge fan of candy, chocolate, cookies, cake – all things sweet. I find no problem with eating it right before the gym either. I have found that not only does it motivate me to work out harder, but the sugar gives me a little energy pump. Most of you are probably thinking I am an idiot for this, but I don’t care. It works for me, so any haters can shove it.

Last weekend I tweeted a picture of cookie dough to Sierra right before I left for the gym. Amy responded in agreement:

I mean, I am going to eat the junk anyway, I might as well use it as a motivator right??

When I got to the gym today, I noticed that J.D. (one of the personal trainers) had a huge chocolate bar.

I was psyched that he offered me a piece until I realized it was 100% cacao. EW NASTY EW.

I didn’t even finish that small piece. (Who am I?) Instead, I pranced into one of the rooms to do this killer workout.

Instead of completing this 5 times, I did it twice, doubling the reps, and once more the regular way. Doubling the reps gets your heart going much, much faster, and you are better able to concentrate on the quality of each move rather than rushing through a few reps at a time. Let me know if you try this out, and if you prefer doubling the reps or doing the workout as is.

What are your top reasons for working out?

Please tell me that one is so you can eat more…pretty please?

Do You Know The Doughnut Girl?

I do!

Last week I was presented with an awesome opportunity, but on one dreadful condition:  I had to wake up at 5:00 a.m. Say whaaaaaat? Yes. My friend Eric and I were invited to Glazed Doughnuts to learn about the doughnut-making process. There aren’t many reasons for which I’d wake up before dawn, but sugar is definitely one of them. That, and if Zac Efron was knocking at my door. Just saying.

It really was still dark out when Eric picked me up at 5:15. I couldn’t even believe there were other people on the road. Were these people on their way to learn how to make doughnuts too? I mean, why the heck else would you get up that early? Work or something? EWWWWW.
So anyway, back to doughnuts. Culinary Institute of Charleston graduate and aspiring chef Allison Smith and her boyfriend, Mark Remi, opened up Glazed less than a month ago, on October 12th. In just a short time, they have become quite popular, and often have lines waiting outside the door each morning. Allison, Mark, and Allison’s mother were generous to show us behind the scenes. The process is pretty darn cool.

The base for the dough is made and left to rise.

The dough is then put into a really cool machine that punches out doughnut shapes and drops them into the fryer.

The doughnuts are flipped several times to ensure they are evenly cooked, then removed to cool.

Then it’s time to decorate! Here are the Pumpkin Spice doughnuts in the works:

All finished. Don’t they look incredible?

Fun daily flavors at reasonable prices:

There’s also a cute sitting area:

More delicious doughnuts:

It was too early to sample other flavors, but I did try the Pumpkin Spice. Absolutely delicious, especially when warm!

I had also been in the week before and tried the Raspberry doughnut with Boding. We both loved it – very sweet!

Rachel and I also tried the The Purple Goat -- Berry goat cheese filling with lavender glaze. It was loaded with blueberries!

I’ll be back to try the rest of the flavors!

Why you should love Glazed Doughnuts:

• fun, unique flavor combinations
• natural ingredients
• dough is made in-house
• no preservatives, colorings, or other additives
• great, friendly staff

For more information, see their:

• website
• facebook
• twitter

 

Have you stopped by Glazed yet? Get there. Even Carly agrees in her review of Glazed.

What’s your favorite doughnut flavor? Cake or glazed preference?