Adopt a Pup

Just Some of the Lil Sweethearts Looking to be Adopted from the BCSPCA

Photos courtesy of The Dog & Hydrant, an amazing local company that donates professional dog photography to the Vancouver Animal Shelter

If you have the commitment, dedication, and love to provide a forever home to a dog in need, consider saving a life by adopting this Christmas. Your new best friend promises companionship, unconditional love and affection, and many positive health benefits!

Bringing a dog into your family is a big responsibility that should not be taken on lightly, but if your up for it, it's the best thing in the world! For more information about adoption, visit the BCSPCA or Humane Society.

The Matador

Spring 2011: Miu Miu, Alexander McQueen, Haider Ackermann, Zac Posen, Celine, Hermes

The matador look popped up everywhere in the Spring collections at Paris Fashion Week. Crisp high waisted pants and embellished boleros were the name of the game. And red, lots and lots of red! Red's the new black btw!


So, get Spain Inspired with a little Hemingway and take the bull by the horns next season! I for one will be taking my style cues from Madeline's paramour and sometime torero Pepito, the Spanish Ambassador's son!

For more Spring trends, consult the Coulter Curated guide to Spring 2011 Runway Trends! And follow Coulter Curated on Facebook and Twitter!

Shakuhachi Cruise 2010/11

After reading about Garance Dore's gorgeous photo producer Tamiko and coveting her effortlessly chic army green utility mesh silk shirt dress, I had to do some sleuthing. What I discovered is Jessie White's amazing Australian label Shakuhachi. I have fallen hard-- I am completely enamored with her feminine aesthetic and beautifully tailored designs. P.S. How adorable is model of the moment, Bambi Northwood-Blyth?!

Exciting news! Now you can follow Coulter Curated on Facebook and Twitter!

Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #10

Old Fashioned Stocking Stuffers!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #9

Gifts for the haute hostess!

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Linzer Cookies

This holiday season I'm feeling inspired by the Christmases of yesteryear! I'm talking Dickens and plump gooses, Hans Brinker ice skates and Citizen Kane sleds, handmade ornaments and old fashioned tree trimming parties, and old world delicacies like chocolate covered candied citrus peels, mulled wine, and Linzer cookies!

Linzer Cookie Recipe:
(From Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:

• Ground Hazelnuts, 1 cup
  
• Unsalted Butter, 1 cup
  
• Granulated Sugar, 1/2 cup
  
• Egg, 1 large
  
• Vanilla, 1 teaspoon
  
• All-Purpose Flour, 2 cups + 2 tablespoons
  
• Baking Powder, 1 teaspoon
  
• Cinnamon, 1 teaspoon
  
• Nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon
  
• Salt, 1/4 teaspoon
• Linzer Cookie Cutters
  
• Confectioners' Sugar, enough for dusting
  
• Cherry Preserves, 2/3 cup

Linzer Cookies:

• Toast hazelnuts on a baking sheet at 375 degrees for 10 minutes.
• In an electric mixer, beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy (2 minutes).
• Beat in egg until smooth (3 minutes).
• Beat in vanilla.
• In a large bowl, whisk together hazelnuts, sieved flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
• Add flour mixture to butter mixture and beat until combined (2 minutes).
• Gather dough into 2 equal balls and flatten into disks.
• Wrap dough in plastic and chill for at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 350.
• Roll out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness on a lightly floured work surface.
• Using cookie cutters, cut out the cookies and transfer them to parchment lined baking sheets.
• Using the smaller cookie cutter, take the centers out of half the cookies.
• Bake until golden brown, about 14 minutes.
• Let cool on a wire rack.
• Sift confectioners' sugar over cookie tops.
• Spread jam on cookie bottoms.
• Sandwich the tops and bottoms.
  

Old Fashioned Christmas Tree Trimming

In Truman Capote's A Christmas Memory, Buddy and Sook festooned their tree with a shoebox of ermine tails...coils of frazzled tinsel gone gold with age...a brief rope of dilapidated, undoubtedly dangerous candy-like light bulbs...a few winged angels devised from saved-up sheets of Hershey bar tin foil... and as a final touch, they sprinkle the branches with shredded cotton (picked in August for this purpose).

I love simple, old fashioned Christmas trees! This year we're decorating ours with colorful paper chains and cutout snowflakes, lacquered popcorn strands and cranberry garlands, ribbon candy and shiny sliced oranges, cinnamon stick bundles and gingerbread men, tin foil angels and handmade clothespin dolls. It looks good enough to eat!

For an old fashioned Christmas treat, try my Mulled Wine and Chocolate Covered Candied Citrus Peels!

And you can read A Christmas Memory here or buy a copy on my aStore.

Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #8

Gifts for your beautiful and inspiring mom who loves an adventure and is working on her first film about Beirut!

For more gift ideas, please click here.

Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #7

Gifts for your elegant stepmother who can whip up a gourmet meal in a flash and gives the best sartorial advice!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #6

Gifts for your modelesque big sister who is continuously adding beauty to this world and is poised to become the next Georgie O'Keeffe!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #5

Gifts for your free-spirited little sister who rocks dreadlocks and is going native in South America!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #4

Gifts for your outdoorsy dad who takes you to baseball games and loves to set off into the mountains in his RV!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #3

Gifts for your charismatic and adventurous big brother who runs ultra marathons, jumps out of planes, and laughs in his sleep!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #2

Gifts for your handsome Irish husband who makes you happy every single day and still takes your breath away when he looks at you with those gray eyes!

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Coulter Curated Holiday Gift Guide 2010 Part #1

Gifts for your adoring best friend who watches you put on your makeup and is ready to go out at the drop of a hat!

For more gift ideas, please click here.

Challah for Hanukkah

Happy Hanukkah! Mozel tov!

Bubbie Hirsch's Challah Recipe:
(From Neiman Marcus Taste: Timeless American Recipes)

Ingredients:

• Active Dry Yeast, 1 1/2 packets
  
• Sugar, 5 tablespoons
  
• Warm Water, 1 1/4 cups
  
• All Purpose Flour, 4 1/2 cups
  
• Salt, 1/2 tablespoon
  
• Vegetable Oil, 1/4 cup
  
• Eggs, 3 large
  
• Poppy Seeds, 1 tablespoon

Dough:

• In an electric mixer, mix yeast 1 tablespoon sugar, water, 1 1/4 cups water, salt, and vegetable oil for 1 minute.
• Mix in remaining 4 tablespoons sugar, 2 eggs, and 1 5/8 cups flour until combined.
• Add remaining 1 5/8 cups flour and mix for 4 minutes.
• Place dough in a large, oiled bowl and cover with a damp towel.
• Let dough rise in a warm place for 2 1/2 hours.

Challah:

• Preheat oven to 350.
• On a lightly floured surface, separate dough into 3 pieces and roll them out into strips.
• Braid the dough and pinch the ends together.
• Place challah on a parchment lined baking sheet and let rise for another 10 minutes.
• Whisk remaining egg in a cup and brush challah with egg wash.
• Sprinkle with poppy seeds.
• Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown.