Today is a busy day! I woke up this morning thinking that my boyfriend and Food Editor of Kitten Lounge, Paul, will be attending a foodie event which will find its way on next Monday's post! Of course I will attend this afternoon after going to a few meetings myself which will include info for Island Fashion Week, my clothing line and the lines of others. Of course, all of this will end with us hanging out at a bar to watch Paul's beloved Jets (and I will enjoy watching Brett as well). So this morning is definitely key as we tie up a lot of loose ends and start projecting the rest of this year (how crazy is it that we are close to the beginning of a new year??). We will be confirming a future weekend trip which will make its way on this site and so much more.

So when it comes to a busy day where I will be running around, I definitely like to have something enjoying - I will start with my flavored Green Tea and maybe have a nibble of Madeleines! I love this soft cookie and I will make these this holiday season. Of course, I had to go online to check out some great recipes and Milk and Cookies Blog has a nice orange infused taste, Yumsugar had the classic and Taste of Home has a nice hazelnut one as well. What a great way to create some great variations off of the classic recipe! I knew these were amazing when I gave some to Paul one afternoon and he declared it his favorite (I couldn't believe he had never had one). Anywho - I can't wait to share a lot of the goodies that are going on on the site and as soon as I can I will let you know. Until then, treat yourself to a Madeleine!

All the planning and tests of endurance and witihin a few days, it's all over! Well the good news is there will be some recapping on Fashion Week next week but we will start to go back to our normal structure. There were a lot of outfits and coverage that made it onto other media outlets which I can't wait to share with you and my lovely sponsors but I don't have the footage and like you, will have to wait for it. When I receive it, I will let you guys know! With that being said I am recovering from Fashion Week and definitely had some parting thoughts and I have a new Fashion Week that I will let you know about shortly that I will be covering which takes place right before the holidays and it's International as well! We are getting the last bolts tied down but I can't wait to share with you.

Fashion Week - I have been to shows before but never seriously covered it in the way that I did this year! It definitely take a lot of planning and there are events that happen prior to, during and after! My big thing was feeling amazing each day and it wouldn't have been possible without starting off the day with my beauty regimine which consisted of Mistral Soap (I used a different one everyday and always smelled amazing - they are a must for any day), Nars Cosmetics (I need to know that I will look amazing and not have to retouch as I was running around all over the place) and Model Co (which kept me fresh with the misting sprays). These were my basic tools that I relied on!

Comfortable but amazing clothing was a must as well - Lauren Conrad's Collection made everyone smile as I went from the tents, suites and off site locations! I can't thank their staff enough and it actually made it live on air in Sacramento since Fox News was at the tents on Friday and a few Japanese magazines (once again, when I get the footage and magazines, I will let you know). Linea Pelle had amazing belts and on the first day and with my outfit from Inhabit, I included it within my look which was amazing. It just goes to show you that you can put your flair in there and still look amazing.

Every now and then I had to take a breather and constantly rework my schedule as I had plans to see one event but would recieve an invitation to another. When covering the shows flexibility is the key! Most important, being able to hang out with people in the industry and to remember that this is an amazing series of days is also key. I have to thank Sam Dark PR and Dashing Diva for not only keeping me amazing in manis and pedis but letting us go back stage to Erin Fetherston and Tony Cohen to see what they do and what it takes to put on such a show. I love you guys and it added so much to this coverage.

Finally, when it was over, yesterday was my birthday and with Lauren Conrad on my back I felt amazing covering the show and then heading out to dinner at Nam with my boyfriend and later to Mocca Lounge. There is nothing like hanging out in Tribeca with the rain, a few friends and your boyfriend. Today, I'm heading out to the beach and working on covering the super secret Fashion Week but it was all worth it and I can't wait to do it all over again in a new location! I have included two images: one is me on the red carpet of the Total Beauty party which kicked off Fashion Week. They had a daily sponsored suite at the Bryant Park Hotel with Chanel, Ted Gibson, Aveda and more. It was nice to meet fellow bloggers and to get away from the madness. You guys throw a great event. The next is last night at Mocca Lounge after a few drinks with Paul our Food Editor and also my boyfriend. Speaking of Food Editor, he was linked on Food Channel so you can learn a bit more about him there!

So, its Labor Day weekend and you realize that the summer is coming to an end. You start to feel the evening chill in the air and you try to get your last minute natural tan, before emptying out your wallet for spray-on-tans and UV lights.  Aside from the excitement of approaching sweater-weather, the next best thing about fall is of course the abundance of farmer’s markets. These are full of grandmas and delicious organic produce brought to you straight from the farm by the people who are truly dedicated to the cause of the “all-natural” and like most of us are discouraged by the plethora of steroids and pesticides in our mainstream food products.

What’s another name for pirate’s treasure? Well, in this case it’s the avocado squash (warning: do not search on Wikipedia – its not there). I discovered these little guys during my weekly trip to Wednesday’s farmers market on 47^th and 2^nd. Until, that magical day, I’ve never heard of heard of the avocado squash, but I was quickly convinced by the enticing sign above this freshly picked produce. The sign stated that it has the nutty flavor of an avocado, but is still by definition a squash. My co-chef (this blog’s editor-in-chief) and I took the plunge into the wonderful world of the avocado squash and sautéed them with a little butter, olive oil and organic soy sauce that very same night. The dish was simple and in a word, delicious.

Now, that you are properly introduced to my new best friend, the avocado squash, I’m going to bring to you an original recipe utilizing the scrumptious qualities of this delectable little treat.

Ingredients:

5 avocado squash (cut the avocado squash in half and spoon out the middle)

1.5lbs to 1.75lbs fresh ground meat (beef, pork and veal)

½ cup basmati rice

14oz can organic diced tomatoes

2 tomatoes

10 cloves of garlic

Celery leaves

2 parsley roots and parsley leaves

1 onion

Fresh dill

Fresh Thai basil

2 teaspoons brown sugar

To make the sauce, sauté on medium to high heat for ten minutes: olive oil, seven garlic cloves, 2 chopped fresh tomatoes, and celery leaves. Continue to sauté and add 14oz can of organic tomatoes and 14oz of hot water. Bring the mixture to a boil then turn the heat down to simmer.  Continue to cook on simmer for about fifteen to twenty minutes, while adding Thai basil leaves, finely chopped squash insides, salt, pepper and two teaspoons of brown sugar. Add water and hot red pepper flakes as needed.

To make the stuffing, mix: one finely chopped onion, three garlic cloves, two grated parsley roots, parsley leaves, finely chopped dill, one egg, one half cup of basmati rice, ground meat and salt & pepper. Add a little bit of the sauce to the mixture to bring to stuffing to the desired consistency.

Load the squash with the stuffing and allow half of the stuffing ball to be exposed above the hollowed out squash. Pour the sauce into a deep aluminum pan. Place the stuffed squash into the pan. Spoon some of the sauce over the stuffed squash. Cover with aluminum foil and cook for one hour at 400 degrees. Uncover, spoon some of the sauce over the squash again and cook for 15 minutes at 450 degrees. When finished cooking allow the squash to rest and then welcome the upcoming autumn season with this delicious meal. Enjoy!