Jenelle Sewell

First trip to America

Jenelle — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 05:10:25 +0000

About a month ago, Jeenal contacted me and asked me to do a shoot of her and her family. She said this was going to be an extremely special occasion because it will be the first time her parents have left India to visit America. Of course I agreed to capture this precious time that she had with her parents. What an honor it was to see the love that exists so strongly, even beyond land and sea. We had the shoot in Hoboken at Pier Park. It was a stunning evening as the sun set. Her parents were a delight to photograph as well as Jeenal’s beautiful personality. I wish them the best and I hope they make it back to visit soon.

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Rainy Day Key Lime Pie

Jenelle — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 02:21:00 +0000

There is nothing better to do on a rainy day than to pretend you’re somewhere in the tropics laying under the delicious sun. Tip #1 to get you half way there: Close your eyes and eat something refreshing and sweet. In the words of the one and only Caribbean cowboy, Kenny Chesney:

Ocean Breeze, tire swing

Coconut fall if you shake that thing

And my, my, my – my key lime pie.

On this rainy Sunday, it was key lime pie that was going to take me to my happy place. And one more detail to add to the choosing of this tasty treat, it’s Ben’s one and only favorite pie. I found this recipe by Emeril Lagasse and I knew it had to be a recipe that goes in my book. It was an easy recipe to tackle and it turned out delectable.

1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs

1 cup sugar for crust

Mix graham cracker crumbs, 4 tbsp butter, sugar and press firmly in pie plate

6-8 limes

Juiced limes should equal 1 cup

2 cans of condensed milk

Pour filling in your freshly baked pie crust

Place pie in fridge for no less than 2 hours

Powdered sugar and sour cream for creamy topping

Garnish with lime zest

Put on some Kenny Chesney, close your eyes and enjoy this mouthwatering delight

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Say Cheese

Jenelle — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 15:41:00 +0000

One more mouthwatering, buttery delight marked off the list of recipes to conquer. Ben mentioned to me the idea of making cream cheese danishes. He said he used to have them as a child from bulk stores. So, I took him up on his offer and decided to make him a cream cheese danish from scratch. I knew the Barefoot Contessa would not let me down on my quest for this recipe. In her At Home edition, she has a recipe for Easy Cheese Danish. I found the recipe here. This was fun to make, and fun to eat. Mmmmm.

Two room temperature yolks

Lemon zest

1/3 C sugar

2 TBSP ricotta cheese

My homemade recipe book from my Mom.

8 oz. cream cheese

Mix ingredients in mixer to create a smooth cream

Slice rolled pastry sheets into quarters

Brush corners of danish with egg wash

Fold opposite corners in over dolloped cheese mixture

Fresh out of the oven puff pastries

Delicious and warm with a citrus zing

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Welcome to the Bronx Zoo

Jenelle — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 19:44:01 +0000

Ever since Ben and I moved to the New York area, we have been wanting to visit the Bronx Zoo. When we saw the forecast for this weekend, 82 and sunny, we knew Saturday was the perfect day to go.

I knew this would be a fantastic opportunity to get some great shots of the cute and cuddly as well as the vicious and scary creatures that roam the earth. I took a lot of shots, so prepare yourself.

P.S. Keep in mind I was shooting behind 3 in. glass for half of these.

I don't know how anybody could find that comfortable

Black Leopard

Sleeping high

Looks almost artificial

Iggie

He was singing for us

Grazing antelope

Breathtaking colors of the peacock

Keeping his head above ground

Magnificent creatures

Ben read that their spots are unique like fingerprints

King of the Jungle

I get to take this monkey home with me

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Joe Mangrum Adorns Union Square

Jenelle — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 15:12:07 +0000

Last weekend, when Ben and I took our lighthearted stroll through the city (see here), we started in Union Square. I was sure to find the farmer’s market in full swing with endless opportunity to get some colorful shots of the locally grown fruit and vegetables. But much to my dismay, Sunday is one of their days off.

Needless to say, all hope was restored when we came across a local artist surrounded by dozens of onlookers. As we curiously sashayed our way through the crowd, our jaws dropped with astonishment. This man was on his hands and knees meticulously designing a piece of artwork with sand cascading through his tight fisted hand. Shell-shocked by his perfection? Absolutely! I wormed my camera through the crowd and snapped a few shots of this precision at work. As more people began to gather around, he took a break and spoke to the crowd to introduce himself and his art. Good thing I had my walking computer with me, because as soon as he introduced himself, Ben googled his name, which was Joe Mangrum. His website is full of stunning, breathtaking art that will capture anybody’s attention. The detail that he puts into his work is phenomenal.

Please click on the links below to see how Joe creatively decorates the city with his art.

Joe Mangrum

The painting we saw him working on was a quarter of the way finished. Here is the finished product off his website.

Here are a few shots taken of Joe at work.

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CPK’s Chipotle Chicken Pizza

Jenelle — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:23:08 +0000

To any of you who have had the extreme pleasure of enjoying a California Pizza Kitchen warm and toasty fire oven pizza, you will know the unforeseen craving that sweeps over you at any point in time. This is exactly what happened to me this past Monday. I had baked a few chicken breasts, not knowing what I was going to use them for. Then suddenly, a revelation hit home. I was destined to use those chicken breasts for my favorite CPK pizza, Chipotle Chicken Pizza. I found the recipe here. I also wanted to take a gamble at making homemade whole wheat and honey pizza crust. I found the recipe here. It was a fun recipe to make, but lots of prep.

Ben said this one will be hard to top!

Whole wheat flour

Rising dough

Put your risen dough on a floured surface

Roll out to a 16 in. diameter

Jalapenos and anaheim peppers for roasting

Roast peppers on an open flame

2 TBSP lime juice for Lime Cilantro Sauce

Layer your pizza accordingly

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A Colorful City

Jenelle — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 03:20:59 +0000

No matter where you are or what you might be doing, your eyes are never without a vibrant atmosphere here in New York City. It’s amazing what you can find beauty in, even if it’s something you pass by everyday and never take notice. But the one time you do happen to stop and look around, you’re needless to say, speechless. So, that’s what Ben and I did today. We took a trip into the city and followed wherever our feet took us. We started at Union Square and trailed south into Alphabet City, Soho and Greenwich Village. The weather was a phenomenal 78 degrees with a crisp breeze which made the afternoon extremely pleasant. I absolutely relish in days like these where I’m not rushed to be somewhere – Just take your time and walk.

Ben surprised me the other day with cupcakes from Butter Lane

I want a Vespa just like this

Oysters for a $1, yes please. One bike wheel, no thank you.

There is always a building that pops out from the rest. Same with vegetables.

Wall art decorates almost every corner

These two shots go hand'n hand

What's this about unicorns? I wish I knew.

Safety first

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Good Morning, Manhattan

Jenelle — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 14:41:21 +0000

This morning I got up at 5:30AM and rode my bike down to the Hudson River to take some shots of the rising sun. During the week, Ben and I go running along the river and I always wish I had my camera to capture the magnificent landscape of Manhattan as day breaks upon it. So, this morning I decided to do the shoot that I’ve been wanting to do since I moved to Hoboken. Here are a few fun shots from my early morning on the river.

Waking seagulls

Catching the first bite

Lackawanna Train Station clock tower in Hoboken

Boardwalk benches

A new day

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Kabobs Over Couscous

Jenelle — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 15:57:33 +0000

A couple of weeks ago, I was flipping through the lovely Barefoot Contessa At Home trying to find a recipe where I could use something from our freezer. I came across Lamb Kabobs with Couscous. We didn’t have lamb in the freezer but we had cubed round steak which was perfect for kabobs. So that day, we had one of our weekend shopping trips where I collected all the necessary ingredients to whip up this potentially delectable meal. A week passed and I still hadn’t prepared the marinade for the steak (which has to marinate for up to two days). I was definitely procrastinating because I knew preparing this meal required a high amount of attention and after a long day of work the last thing I want to do is stand for three hours in the kitchen. But, I knew it had to be done.

So, this past Sunday after we rode our bikes down to the local cinemas and saw Toy Story 3 in 3D, I prepared the marinade for the steak. I marinated the steak for about a day and a half, which turned out to be a perfect length of time for a rich rosemary and red wine flavor. The couscous came out flawless, so light and fluffy and full of mouthwatering flavor. You really must try this recipe, it truly is an extravagant restaurant entrance only to be eaten in your own home.

P.S. I highly recommend Toy Story 3 in 3D. There is nothing like feeling like a child again.

fresh rosemary and garlic for the marinade

dry red wine along with red wine vinegar for the base

delicious smelling marinade

my mom taught me to soak the wooden skewers so they do not burn

wash your tomatoes

chop your onion in quarters for the skewers

I love my lemon/lime juicer

side sauce: lemon juice, EVOO, chicken stock & P&S

uncooked couscous

chopped shallots for couscous

pine nuts for couscous

couscous recipe

currants mixed in the couscous

kabobs on the George Foreman

bon appetit!

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Something Old Made New

Jenelle — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 22:02:56 +0000

As things are starting to come together in our apartment and the need for decorating is coming to a halt, I find myself slightly disappointed. I know Ben can’t rejoice enough. But for me, having small creative projects to do energizes my mind. In a lot of ways, it’s an outlet for my mind to “breathe” per se. I may appear to be working, but really, I am calm and content. For example, before we got hitched, I was scouring all the local discount stores and thrift stores for furniture for our new home. Although uncovering a great deal was satisfying in itself, I found more joy from the fact that I got to go home sand, prime and paint it. During that time, I enjoyed country jams along with my thoughts about my new life with Ben.

So, as you can tell, I enjoy small DIY projects. I was beside myself when I realized I could reuse those old coat hooks I replaced on the hat rack a couple of weeks ago. Since we repainted the living room a couple months ago, we took down our old key hanger. I had been wanting to find a salvaged antique one, but never got around to going out and looking. So, tired of throwing our keys in the fruit bowl, I decided it was time to take action. In addition to the key hooks, I wanted to update our mail keeper. Ben got this mail keeper from his grandmother and he wanted to hang on to it. I decided to update it and paint it white.

Here are few shots from my DIY project.

One coat of gray primer over the tarnished brass hooks

I applied two coats of candy apple red for a pop of color

The mail keeper: before

One coat of primer

Mail keeper: after

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