SugarKitty Couture: August 2013

Aug 22, 2013

Miss Serenity Jones

The adorable Miss Serenity Jones, wearing a standard size Stella Underbust Corset, featuring novelty cotton, satin, and external bone casings.

Photographer: Jean-Joel Lawrence of Serenity Lawrence Studios
Model: Serenity Jones

Aug 20, 2013

2013 Halloween Deadlines

Orders must be submitted by 11:59 pm (est) on specified deadline day.
No payment plans accepted for Halloween orders; ALL ORDERS MUST BE PAID IN FULL AT TIME OF PURCHASE - NO EXCEPTIONS!
Orders must be finalized at time of purchase; no changes can be made once order is submitted.
Any order accepted after specified deadlines will be assessed a rush fee.
Any pre-made or ready-to-wear item can be purchased at any time up to and during the week of Halloween (applicable rush shipping charges may apply).

Full Costume = multi-piece outfit, including corset
Corset = purchased by itself, or with 1 coordinating item (i.e. tutu, pettiskirt, etc)
Misc. Costume Piece = any individual item made to order (i.e. bloomers, bustles, etc)

Aug 18, 2013

Slow Cooker Loaded Baked Potato Soup

Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup
(again, a recipe based on ones I found on Pinterest, plus my own experimentation)

5 lbs Russet potatoes, washed & diced into 1/2" cubes (unpeeled)
48-64 oz chicken broth or stock (depends on if you like a thinner soup, or thicker more stew-like soup)
3-4 tsp minced garlic
1 large onion, diced
16 oz of cream cheese, softened

Seasoning

(I never measure seasonings; just season to taste)

Seasoned Salt (I used Lawry's)
Pepper

Garnishes

shredded cheese
crumbled cooked bacon
scallions
cubed ham steak (optional)

Preparation

Add all ingredients except for cream cheese & garnishes to slow cooker
Cook on high for 6 hours or low for 9-10 hours
30-45 minutes before serving, add softened cream cheese; use an immersion blender until cream cheese is incorporated & soup is desired texture (I blended mine until almost completely smooth, but many recipes call for the soup to be blended halfway, so there are still nice chunks of potato).

Crockpot Chicken Tortilla Soup

Because I'm too busy to start a new blog, and too lazy to keep up with yet another social networking site, I'm gonna go a little crazy here and post a couple of recipes from time to time. Hopefully the non-corsety entries won't be too much of a distraction...

Slow Cooker Chicken Tortilla Soup
(based on a couple of recipes found on Pinterest, plus my own amalgamation)

1.5 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (can be frozen or fresh)
32 oz chicken broth or stock
10 oz can red enchilada sauce
1 can black beans
16 oz jar chunky salsa *
4 oz can whole chiles (minced)**
1 medium onion, diced
2 tsp minced garlic (I probably used twice as much as this, but I love garlic, so use your discretion based on your garlic preference)
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4-1/3 cup sour cream (optional)
10 oz package Spanish/Mexican rice (optional)

*All the recipes I found online called for canned stewed/crushed tomatoes. I didn't happen to have any on hand, so I used salsa instead. IMO, works just as well, and adds more flavor.

**You can use fresh peppers, or Ro-Tel. Again, I just used what I happened to have on hand.

Seasoning

(I never measure seasoning, so I'm just including a list of all that I used. Mix & match as desired.)

Salt & Pepper
Cumin
Paprika
Chili Pepper
Cayenne Powder

Garnishes

shredded cheese
cilantro
sour cream
scallions
corn or flour tortilla crispies

Preparation

Place chicken breasts in bottom of slow cooker. Add all ingredients to slow cooker, save for black beans sour cream, rice & garnishes
Cook on low for about 7 hours. Remove chicken breasts & shred with forks, place back in cooker, add black beans & cook for another hour.
(Optional) 30 minutes before serving, add sour cream to cooker. I prefer soups to be thicker/creamier, and the sour cream adds some creaminess without thickening it up too much (like a roux or corn starch would).
(Optional) Cook up a package of Mexican or Spanish flavored rice. I served the soup over top of the rice, and it was a huge hit with everyone.
To make the tortilla crispies - cut up a couple of small flour or corn tortillas into 1/4" strips, about 3" long. Heat up a couple of tablespoons of cooking oil, and fry the strips until crispy.