Vegan Recipe: Tame Tepache

 

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Tepache Recipe

 

For those of you who don't know what traditional tepache is, let me break it down for you. Tepache is essentially a type of Mexican "agua fresca" ...which is basically a juice beverage. I compare the taste of tepache to a pineapple version of apple cider. It is a very sweet, very spicy (as in spices, not spicy like hot peppers), very fruity drink. A traditional tepache recipe usually calls for fermentation of the beverage, causing it to become slightly alcoholic. It is then usually served iced and sometimes mixed with beer. My version is a bit different. Instead of fermenting it and serving it with ice, I prefer mine made more like a cider. It's served hot, in a mug, and non-fermented.

 

The recipe itself is very simple, assuming you have the ingredients available to you.

 

My recipe calls for:

 

.1 ripe, whole pineapple

.2 cones of piloncillo

.whole cinnamon sticks

.whole star anise

.whole allspice

.whole cloves

.water

.1 or 2 limes

 

Fill a big pot with water, about 3/4 of the way full. Add in all the spices and piloncillo. Cut the limes in half and squeeze the juice into the pot, then add the limes in as well. Wash the outside of the pineapple very well. Cut the leafy part off, discarding it. Now cut the rind of the pineapple from the flesh. Put the flesh aside for eating later... you won't be using it in the recipe! Add all of the pineapple rinds into the pot. Give the pot a good stir if you'd like. Set the stove to high, and cover the pot with a lid. Allow the brew to boil. Once the brew is boiling, turn the stove down to low/medium. Allow the brew to cook like this for at least two hours. The longer the brew cooks, the stronger the flavors. Make sure you taste test the brew as you go. Once the flavor is to your liking, pull it off the heat, strain it, and serve it hot like apple cider!

 

 

 

RECIPE SUBSTITUTIONS/ALTERATIONS:

 

.If you don't have piloncillo or can't find it, regular dark brown sugar will work just as well. Piloncillo is basically just a Mexican version of dark brown sugar. You can find piloncillo at Vallarta or any other Mexican grocery store.

 

.There are a few extra things I like to add to my tepache to change the taste slightly. You can also add cut up apples, apple sauce, and apple juice to sweeten the brew. I find that the extra sweetness goes great with the pineapples and spices.

 

.Whole spices really are a must in this recipe because you have to be able to strain them easily. I would not recommend using ground spices. I found mine at Vallarta, and they'd be easily found at any other Mexican grocery store. You can sometimes find whole spices in regular grocery stores too if you look hard enough/ask someone. Not every regular grocery store will carry whole spices.

 

 

 

 Thanks for reading!!!

 

BKL

 

Fall Hues Makeup

 

I created this look with mostly warm neutral tones, keeping the season in mind. The look is slightly avant garde, with an eyeshadow scheme that I wouldn't usually do and an ombre lip.

 

The eyeshadow is a soft smokey eye with taupes and a little bit of metallic shimmer. From that smokey eye, I put an orange brown transition up from the inner corner of my eyes all the way up to my eyebrows. I actually really like how it came out.

 

For my lips, I outlined them with a burgundy lip liner and then filled them in with a bright orange lipstick. I then blended with my finger.

 

products used:

.Urban Decay Naked 2 palette

.Anastasia dip brow pomade in "Chocolate"

.other shadows

.Benefit Cosmetics "They're Real!" mascara

.NYX lip liner

.Kat Von D lipstick

.Bobbi Brown foundation

 

Kisses,

         BKL

 

 

  

Places to Check Out: Hollywood Farmer's Market and Dia de los Muertos

vegan cheese stand at the market

  Today I spent my morning and midday at the Hollywood farmer's market at Sunset and Vine and Dia de los Muertos at Olvera Street! There was a woman at the farmer's market that was giving out samples of vegan cheese. Of course, I had to try it! The "cheese" was absolutely fantastic! I tried both the chia cheddar and herb cream cheese. I couldn't leave without some. I can't wait to try it out. 

The herb cream cheese has a really light herb/creamy taste. I'll definitely be buying from this brand when I go fully vegan! (The brand is Nary Dairy fyi)

vegan cheese from the market!

 I also had some tofu pad thai while I was there. Yeah, it was 8:30 in the morning, but I'm not a huge breakfast foods person and I couldn't think of a better thing to eat than Thai food. Thai food always wins.

Vegetarian tofu pad thai from the market.

All in all the farmer's market was just the place I like to be. They had fall flowers and gourds everywhere! ...not to mention the amazing food.

Amoeba Music was right across from the market

After the farmer's market I headed to Olvera Street in DTLA where they were celebrating their annual Dia de Los Muertos...

Even though I am not Mexican or Hispanic in any way, I am Californian, and Mexican culture is very dear to my heart. In fact, every culture fascinates me. Just because I'm not a member of a certain culture doesn't mean I can't celebrate and appreciate the diversity in my country. That's one thing I love about America. There is so much diversity in cultures. I love being surrounded by it. 

Tamarindo holds my heart.

 

The traditional Dia de los Muertos dancers were so beautiful!

 

Pan de Muerto, sugar skull, and tamarindo and chile apple

By the time I was ready to leave Olvera Street, I had accumulated quite the array of Mexican dulces.

I picked up some pan de muerto, a sugar skull, and a tamarindo apple. All of these are traditional Mexican sweets, especially for the day of the dead.

The apple is my favorite. It's a green apple covered in tamarindo candy and then rolled in red chile. It doesn't sound like it would be that good .....but trust me, it is!

I hope you all had an amazing Halloween!

             Warmest wishes,

                               BKL

Halloween Glam

Finally Halloween is here! Today I wanted to post about the makeup I did. It's not for a costume per se, but it's great either way. Definitely a bit dark and glamorous.

I paired a smokey people eye with a matte lip, which if not done carefully, can be too heavy. Usually you'll want to stick with heavy colors only on either eyes OR lips, but in this case, it's Halloween! Halloween is the day to break rules. (Especially the rules of what society deems acceptable or not. ) **DISCLAIMER: I said rules not laws.

Alrighty then. Let's get into makeup.

My face is a mixture of Becca foundation and Bobbi Brown, mostly because the shade I have in Becca is too light for me. I used the Bobbi to warm it up a little. I set my foundation with Laura Mercier translucent powder. I then added Sephora Collection blush in a nice berry color (perfect for fall) and contoured my face with a bronzer. The next step is one of my favorites because I'm a makeup nerd. I used my Becca pressed highlighter in Opal to highlight the tops of my cheekbones, bridge of my nose, anywhere I wanted to gleam... which in this case was a lot of places.

I used Anastasia dip brow in chocolate for my brows.

Eyes: The eyeshadow I used comes from all sorts of brands etc. I have a purple and mauve color on my lids, blending out to a smokey gray. I lined my eyes with black pencil eyeliner and applied falsies and UD mascara.

My lips are Nars matte lip pencil in Cruella, my favorite. 

I hope this was helpful! Please feel free to always ask any questions you may have.

Spooky blessings,

BKL

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice

Fall brings me so much happiness. The weather...the colors...the smells...tastes... all of the senses are used to their extent during fall. Vivid colors and angry clouds are seen, baking pie and rain are smelled, cold wind and pumpkin guts are felt, hot chocolate is tasted, and laughing children (or screams from a haunted house) are heard.

Fall is truly a time for me to unwind and let my senses take me wherever they please to go.

When I created this set on polyvore, these images of fall were on my mind. 

The striped trousers immediately made me think of Beetlejuice, which of course is a Halloween classic. The heels are great. They reminded me of a much more chic version of witch shoes...and of course, the accessories were picked with the colors and leaves of fall in mind. I just love the look of a deep red with bright orange and yellow colors. The necklace reminded me of a sunflower, which is another fall staple in my mind. I also really enjoy the contrast between the green in the center of the necklace and the reds.

Check out my polyvore for more details on this look.

brittanykayebeauty.polyvore.com

Lookbook

I'm on lookbook! In case you didn't know, lookbook is a website where people post their outfits and where they found the items they're wearing. I thought it would be a good idea for me to start one since I love fashion so much and I want to branch out into the fashion world eventually. Feel free to check out my looks at:

http://lookbook.nu/kayekaye

Much love,

BKL

http://lookbook.nu/kayekaye