Food Truck Pop Up in town

I’ve always liked food trucks, I don’t know why, guess it’s because they carry food! Obviously. When I read on Facebook that there would be a Food Truck Pop Up in Esch, 100 meters next to my house, I grabbed my Olympus Pen to take some snaps.

The weather was good, but I think a Tuesday afternoon isn’t the best to host such thing in the center of Esch, there were a few people. Maybe a Saturday would attract more hungry tummies. Even the famous “Jeitze Mich” missed the trucks. If you don’t know Jeitze Mich (Screaming Mich) you don’t miss anything unless you like the company of yelling, grumpy old men. Then again I would recommend you to visit Esch-sur-Alzette on market day.

Dog squad goals

Last week I quit my job! The circumstances of such a big decision as to change your employer put you under pressure so the little weekend trip to Breskens in the Droomparken Schoneveld in Breskens, Netherlands was luckily timed perfectly.  We had a 4 person cube apartment with a little garden and located very close to the beach which was lovely and our friends stayed in a luxe 4 person cube, with a larger living room and kitchen. But for a short stay I recommend the small chalet. Some of these apartments accept animals and we took the opportunity to bring all our dogs.

Equipped with our Kubb game, a traditional swedish wooden lawn game, and cool beers, we headed to the beach with the dog squad and had a great afternoon. No need for Cesar Milan, these dogs where exemplary.

Pulpo a la gallega

Hey guys, today we are cooking octopus. If you think octopus is disgusting and repulsive, I can understand you, because I didn’t eat it for 27 years. So stop reading this and switch to my sweet and cute cupcake recipe.

But if like me since 5 years, you already tried pulpo a la gallega, you know that it tastes so good that you even see beauty in those squishy tentacles. Look at them!

The best carrot cupcakes recipe

As far as a recipe can be a sentimental thing, this one means a lot to me and I was not sure if I should share it through the internet. But since I love my readers and to be honest not many people will find it because Google won’t position me on top of the search results, I thought why wouldn’t I write a post about my friends most desired dessert made by me.

This recipe is not only one of my favorite recipe because everybody loves it, no, it also made me earn money when I had no job, and was still living at my mother’s house. So this cupcake money helped me make ends meet when I had to watch every cent. Thinking about the past it gave me the idea, now that the difficult period is bridged, to make a giveaway of these mini carrot cupcakes. I will announce the details on Facebook.

Meanwhile if you want to bake these babies, follow the recipe adapted from the Hummingbird Bakery:

What you need for 50 mini cupcakes

for the sponge

• 225g grated carrots
• 40 ml buttermilk
• 2 eggs
• 175 ml vegetable oil
• 210g caster sugar
• 250g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/1 tsp ground ginger
• 40g pecans

for the frosting

• 40g butter
• 180g icing sugar
• 75g Philadelphia cheese

 

How to bake the mini cupcakes

1. Preheat the oven to 170 °C
2. Mix together the carrots, buttermilk, eggs, vegetable oil and sugar until the ingredients are well combines.
3. sift together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, salt and spices, then slowly beat these into the egg and carrot mixture. Stir in the chopped pecans and mix the cake batter until it is smooth and even.
4. Spoon the batter into the cupcake cases filling them two thirds full. And bake in the oven for about 12 minutes (18 minutes for normal cupcakes). Allow to cool for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack.
5. To make the cheese frosting whisk the butter until fluffy and add the icing sugar in three batches. Add the cheese and mix until smooth and even.
6. Fill the frosting into a piping bag and decorate the cooled cupcakes.

Make sure to send me your pictures and tag me with #lariviererose if you bake these delicious mini cupcakes. And don’t forget to participate to the giveaway on Facebook.

My favourite snapchatters

I remember when I first downloaded the Snapchat app, I tried it for a few minutes and I deleted it right after. I’m too old for that shit was what I was thinking. It seemed so complicated and really not user friendly to me. But when a friend showed me how to use it I kind of understood the features. And now it looks like Snapchat is taking over social media, I catch myself checking it way more often than Facebook. I sit on the train doing silly faces with the built in filters and spam my friends. I love it! It’s kind of weird how comfortable I feel sending spoken messages sitting in the bathroom. But it’s fun! So I decided to share with you the snapchatters I enjoy the most besides my close friends.

   girlwithnojob GirlWithNoJob.com

Claudia Oshry started Girl With a Job when she was a PR intern, but when her coworkers noticed that she was making fun of them on her blog, she got fired and started Girl With No Job. Her snaps are hilarious especially when her alter ego “Claudette” comes out.

   beckermanblog /  BeckermanBlog.com

The Canadian Beckerman twins Cailli and Sam are fashion bloggers who travel a lot because they are the queens of collaboration. In their snaps you can see fashion shows, their dogs, crazy outfits and a lot of cheerfulness.

  chelseahandler

Famous comedian Chelsea Handler takes over Snapchat and is now learning the Spanish language. Mucho funny!

   holycamille /  HolyCamille.com

Camille is a French blogger based in Paris, charismatic, funny, answers every comment I ever wrote her and she is kind of different, but in a very positive way. She is honest and would never promote anything she doesn’t like to get a collaboration. In her snaps you see her being silly, sometimes angry, singing in her car and talking to her followers.

   emiliehigle / MyLittleFashionDiary.net

I met Emilie Higle in a blogger class which she hosted in Luxembourg. She is an online influencer who has a lot of projects in Luxembourg, Paris and New York, mostly connected to fashion and she snaps in English with a cute French accent.

   yayavanchique / YayaVanChique.com

Yannick is a good friend of mine, I can’t exactly remember when I met him, I think it must be around 12 years ago. He lives in Luxembourg and snaps a lot in his car, at home and in the club. Yaya, you party animal!

   novalanalove / NovaLanaLove.com

I just discovered her Snapchat yesterday and I’m addicted to it. She is so pretty, it’s crazy how beautiful she is! She lives in Cologne and snaps about clothes, hair, cosmetics, all the girly things.

   mrkate / MrKate.com

Kate has built a YouTube / blog / DIY empire over the years. She lives in Los Angeles and if you like her snaps and DIY projects, you will have to read her book A Hot Glue Gun Mess it’s full of cute but also sometimes weird and psycho stories, and so is her Snapchat.

   marianna_hewitt / LifeWithMe.com

Marianna is a very sweet and chic woman in her snaps. She hangs out with famous people of L.A. whether working with them or spending quality time with them. Her Snapchat is like her blog, a clean layout, good quality pictures and very enjoyable to watch.

   makeupbytessy / MakeUpByTessy

Tessy is  THE makeup artist of Luxembourg, I think she is probably the best one. When you look at her recent YouTube video you almost don’t notice that she is not from LA. She has got the looks, the kindness and charisma of a California girl. Follow her rise to Hollywood on Snapchat and if you can’t visit her event Señorita XO at the Melusina on March 12th you have to book an appointment for a special occasion.

Who are you following on Snapchat? Send me your snaps to tell me @lariviererose

Thanks for reading & buenos nachos!

 

 

18 Epic Party Themes

  

 

Today is my birthday. I love birthdays, especially my own one. By the way, I have to congratulate and thank my mother for being three days in labour and bringing me into the world. Mom you did a great job! For this occasion I want to write about themed parties. I like to dress up and to organise a whole event focusing on one theme. Here are some less common theme ideas you may want to recreate.

1. Grandpas and grandmas

Choose your favourite elderly person and try to find clothes like her. You may find these in your grandparents closet or in a thrift shop. (I know you are thinking about Macklemore right now!) It’s a cheap costume if you are inventive. My very good friend who prefers to stay anonymous, let’s call him Adi, short form of Adelaide, not Adolf, is really good at dressing up! Like the Dalai Lama stands for peace, like Britney stands for slutty videos and David Hasselhoff for eating burgers gracefully, Adi stands for choosing  the perfect costume. He is the king of disguise. See the picture below, this is a 30 year young man who likes to dress to impress…

  

2. Pyjama party

This is the theme I will have this year. You cannot imagine how many people don’t have nightwear. It’s a kind of risky theme, because I don’t know how many people will show up naked. I really hope the ugly ones will wear at least sweat pants.

3. Africa

When my friend, Adi, the king of disguise went to Africa for his job, we threw an african themed party where we dressed up as wild animals, trees, big mamas, slutty ladies and religion fanatics. I told you not to expect political correctness!

4. Come as your favourite pop song.

Again for this one, the title is pretty clear. Listen to song lyrics and be inspired. You can dress as “walk like an Egyptian”, “like a virgin”, “breakfast at Tiffany’s”. There are so many possibilities. 

5. Welcome to Russia

There is probably a fur hat from 2007 in the back of your closet, go grab it and wear it with sweatpants and a white t-shirt infused with vodka stains, or reuse the sequin slutty dress you bought for new years eve end never wore again. Perfect, your costume is ready, but please don’t forget your accent and use a kitchen knife as an accessory like I did. 

  

6. Hustlers and whores

Finally you can enter a sex shop without any kind of shame. Not that you should be ashamed if you are a regular customer, but for this theme you will clearly find the best accessories in an adult shop.

7. Toga party

I was once at a toga party in Germany and it was the most lucrative party ever! Nobody has pockets in their costume and you will find plenty of money on the floor.

8. Schlager / Chanson / Euro Trash

Dress up as Rick Astley, Modern Talking, Dalida or Edith Piaf, the playlist should match your outfits.

9. Cleaning staff

If you do not want to clean up the party mess the day after the event invite your guests to dress up as cleaning staff. Maybe they get into cleaning mood. You can be a sexy french maid or a not so sexy Portuguese cleaning lady.

10. Le détail qui tue / the devil is in the detail

Dress up for clubbing but wear an accessory which kills the look.

11. Après Ski

Good theme for an outdoor party. You can wear winter clothes and sing to your favourite après-ski songs.

12. Personality switch

You know “secret santa” which consists in putting every party guests’ name in a jar and picking one guest to buy him a christmas present. For this theme you do exactly the same and you have to dress up as the person you fished out of the jar. This is also a great opportunity for gender switching. As pictured here, you can see the king of disguise dressed up as me and he pretty rocked the party!

 

13. Masquerade

Masks can be a chic accessory if you don’t want to wear a costume but if you still want a themed party.

14. Gay icons

There are so many great gay icons like Lady Gaga, Elton John, Kylie (the one and only Kylie, the great one, not the botoxed duck face princess), Madonna, Britney, Freddie Mercury, Andy Warhol, Cher. Choose your favourite one.

15. Kid’s party

If you don’t have kids (I’ve been told that dogs do not count as children) but you feel the need to buy all the Frozen supplies at your grocery store, then you have to organise a children’s birthday party.

16. Eurovison

I am not a gay man over 40 but I do love Eurovision. 12 points go to the eurovison themed party.

17. Under construction

For this party you will find the decoration on the street. I do not incite you to steel any street sign. You can borrow it for one night, use it as the perfect decoration and bring it back the day after where you found it. Nobody will notice it. Hardware stores sell cheap overalls to wear as a costume and to reuse for your DIY projects.

18. Marine party

Again a great theme to dress up slutty! You can also be a captain, a sailor, a fisherman or if you have good legs you can be Cher in her best video ever “If I could turn back time”, epic!

If you have a theme suggestion make sure to send it via twitter or snapchat @lariviererose or tag me in your instagram pictures.

Happy birthday to me, where is my Sephora gift? I didn’t get any bithday mail this year!

Bretzelsonndeg – a tradition in Luxembourg

Dear male readers from Luxembourg did you get your pretzel today? If you are a lucky man with a caring partner who places value on traditions, you probabely got one today. A girl who follows the tradition gives on Mid-Lent Sunday a sweet pretzel to the boy she likes. If he likes her as well he will give her an egg made of chocolate on Easter Sunday. In leap years it is reversed, the girl buys the pretzel and the boy the egg. Married couples follow the tradition too.

Since I forgot to go to the bakery, my husband bought one this morning  (from Fischer) when he went out to walk the dogs. Finally this year I had the occasion to buy the pretzel, which by the way is much cheaper than a fancy egg filled with chocolates and of course I messed up!  What about you, did you eat a pretzel today?

Will the bear take the oscar home?

Are you watching the oscars tonight? Since in Luxembourg it will be very late or very early depending on how you see it. I will be lying in my bed during the show.  To be honest I haven’t seen any of the nominated movies yet since they are not on Netflix. I will probabely see them in two or three years. What I’m really looking forward is reading the Dlisted blog and all the mean articles dedicates to the stars on the red carpet and to spam my friends on messenger with funny Gifs. What will be the worst dress? Will there be a big faux pas? Will Jennifer Lawrence fall again and Leo commit suicide after losing the oscar to his co star the bear? Or will he quit acting because Lady Gaga wins it? All these irrelevant questions will soon be answered. Have a nice sunday!

9 tips for the perfect party night

This title might sound stupid because partying seems to be automatically connected to fun however as a faithful member of party generation since more than 15 years, I can tell you that the theory is quite different in practice. Of course there are those unforgettable nights like the one where your friends peed on the front door of your ex’ house because at that moment it seemed to be the only reasonable and fair act of revenge. Or like the night you quit in secret the party you were actually invited to, to have tequila shots at the bar downstairs.
What I want to say is that often the anticipation seems to bring more satisfaction than the actual evening. And here are my tips to avoid disappointment after a night out.

1. The shoes

High heels are sexy, patent shoes are chic and long distance walks are a pain in the ass. Think about buying a pair of foldable flats like butterfly twists. You can easily carry them in your bag.

2. The drive home

Let the one that is the least drunk drive home might sound as a good plan at 4 am but it’s not! Always keep some cash in an extra pocket of your bag for a cab.

3. The expectations

Try not to have expectations for the evening or you will possibly be disappointed. If single, stop thinking that tonight is the night you will meet your future husband. Because it’s probably not. What you can expect is a hangover the day after. Hangovers are trusty! And so are the many visits to the bathroom and they can be on the runny side. I start talking about expectations and end up with poop stories. Well everybody likes poop stories, don’t you?

4. The outfit

What looks good in the changing room is not necessary the best for the club. A bodycon dress might channel your inner Beyoncé and look good on a selfie but it definitely rides up when you shake it up on the dance floor. Choose something that makes you feel confident and comfortable.

5. The bag

Carry a crossbody bag if you are like me and tend to forget your bag somewhere under a table while dancing and ordering more beer. Things that I lost / someone from stole me when I was tipsy:

2 cameras / 1 phone / a whole weekends budget / my dignity

6. The free drinks

This one often worked for me. Sit at a bar with your friends, order some shots and sing happy birthday. The shots will be for free if the bartender is nice. Change bar. Repeat.

7. The emergency kit

Pack your bag and leave tonight, would say George Michael. You don’t need your whole make up for a night out, I hate the girls in bathrooms who carry enough stuff to film a whole make up tutorial. They never leave the mirror. What you need is powder, your lipstick and perfume. Ask for samples of your perfume at Sephora, they are for free.

8. The theme party

If you go to a themed party dress up for that theme even if you know that nobody will dress up. Who cares what the other people think? You and your friends will have fun and get in touch with a lot of new people, which means flirting or free drinks or both.

9. The phone

Leave that phone in your pocket! Your friends are all at the same party as you are but if you feel the need to check your facebook feed for the seventh time in ten minutes, hey, just do it! You might miss a cute cat video.

Now after all these tips you can add me on snapchat “lariviererose” and send me drunk party videos. You might get one back.

Let them eat cake!

If you’re looking to bake something quick and easy that satisfies children’s taste try this simple yoghurt cake. It may look tricky to realise because of the decoration but it’s only melted chocolate with nuts, almonds and giltter. Hello!? Glitter is important and it makes the cakes look so pretty! These are two smaller cakes because smaller is cuter and it doesn’t try out if you eat it quicker.

What you need for one cake:

• 1 pot unflavoured yoghurt (125g), use pot as measure
• 2 pots of sugar
• 3 pots of flour
• 1/2 pot of oil (colza)
• 2 eggs, 3 if they are very small
• 1/2 sachet of baking powder

Mix first the sandy ingredients and then add the liquids. Place in a baking tray and put it in the oven for 35 to 40 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius.

That’s it! Decorate it however you fancy by using melted chocolate as glue.