If there’s one thing that Nicolita loves this season, it has got to be bows! This perfect detail for your shoes, clothes, and hair accessories will make your outfit ready for your sweet spring look.
Source: the-fashionfactory.tumblr.com via Nicolita on Pinterest
Nicolita Swimwear Club Nautico Collection 2012 is looking like 1949 with its high-wasited bikinis, shirred details, and romantic halter tops. Below you will see the beautiful reminiscent bikinis that will put you in that pin-up mood; all you need to do is slip on that swimsuit!
Nicolita Swimwear Club Nautico Collection 2012 is looking like 1949 with its high-wasited bikinis, shirred details, and romantic halter tops. What’s more awesome than a high-waisted swim suit bottom? It includes an adjustable rollover bottom depending on the amount of tummy and hips you want to show! Purchase your Club Nautico HERE!
Nicolita Swimwear Club Nautico Collection 2012 is looking like 1949 with its high-wasited bikinis, shirred details, and romantic halter tops. Below you will see the beautiful reminiscent bikinis that will put you in that pin-up mood; all you need to do is slip on that swimsuit!
Nicolita Swimwear Club Nautico Collection 2012 is looking like 1949 with its high-wasited bikinis, shirred details, and romantic halter tops. What’s more awesome than a high-waisted swim suit bottom? It includes an adjustable rollover bottom depending on the amount of tummy and hips you want to show! Purchase your Club Nautico bikini here!
Purchase your Senorita Solids Here!
Mariquitas – Plantain Chips
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total time: 20 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
Some of the best plantain chips are prepared fresh and served hot at walk-up windows and cafes. Make them fresh at home for a real treat!
INGREDIENTS
2 large green plantains, peeled and sliced very thin
2 cups vegetable oil, for frying (approx.)
1/4 teaspoon salt (to taste)
Directions:
Heat oil in a deep fat fryer or a frying pan.
With a sharp knife, plantain slicer, or a mandolin: cut plantain into thin circles. (The thinner the better.)
You can also slice plantains diagonally for a long strip. (The best way, actually — and worth the trouble!)
Soak the chips or strips in ice water for about 20 to 30 minutes. Drain the chips and dry them with a paper towel.
Immediately fry plantain chips in small batches until crisp and golden brown.
Drain on paper towels; keep warm in oven until you can serve them.
Mariquita Salsa
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 5 minutes
Total time: 10 minutes
Yield: 1 dozen
No chip is complete without this garlicky sauce.
INGREDIENTS:
8 cloves garlic
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro leaves
juice of one lime
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
Salt and black pepper to taste
Directions:
Place the garlic, cilantro leaves, lime juice, and white vinegar in a food processor and puree until thoroughly chopped.
Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan until hot, but not smoking. Remove pan from heat. Pour the pureed garlic and cilantro leaf mixture into the hot oil, whisking constantly for a minute or two.
Serve warm. The sauce should have an intense garlic/sour flavor. Use a fresh, hot mariquita to test!
Recipe from icuban.com
Prep time: 20 minutes
Cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 50 minutes
Yield: 8 servings
Cuban-style black beans cooked with rice.
INGREDIENTS:
1 & 1/2 cups black beans, dried
1/4 cup olive oil for sautéing
2 & 1/2 cups onion, diced
2 & 1/2 cups green pepper, seeded and diced
4 cloves garlic, crushed and chopped
3 teaspoons cumin, ground
1 teaspoon oregano
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons white vinegar
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
4 &1/2 cups chicken stock
3 cups long grain white rice
Directions:
Cover the dry beans with about four cups water in a two-quart saucepan. DON’T add any salt yet! Bring to a boil, and boil for three minutes. Remove from the heat and let it stand, covered for one hour.
Drain and rinse the beans. Add enough water to cover once again and bring to a boil; reduce heat to low, cover and cook until tender, about 40 to 50 minutes. Drain.
Rinse the rice with cold water until the water runs clear.
Use a large, eight-quart covered stockpot. Sauté the onion and green pepper in the olive oil until tender. Add the garlic, and sauté another minute or two. Add the tomato paste, black beans, oregano, cumin, bay leaf, and vinegar. Cook for about five minutes, stirring gently.
Add the chicken stock and the rinsed rice. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and cook for about 20-30 minutes – until the rice is fully cooked.
Finally, adjust the seasonings by adding salt and pepper to taste. Remove the bay leaf. Serve Hot.
For an added treat: Drizzle some olive oil (don’t be stingy!) over the rice in the pot, and fluff cooked rice gently with a fork.
If plating the rice as a side dish, drizzle a little olive oil over individual servings and garnish with some parsley or cilantro.
Who knew bikinis could be edible? These are perfect for parties and look so cute, you might not want to eat them!
Source: Uploaded by user via Nicolita on Pinterest
The diverse tropical style of Cuba was the inspiration for the the 2012 Nicolita Collection. The vibrant colored buildings in the streets of Habana Vieja, the amazing teal colored ocean off the shores of Cienfuegos, and the rich history of Trinidad set the stage for this year’s 2012 Collection.
This season we are offering all new Tropical Solids Collections, five new No-Pinch Fit bottom styles, and five new Tropical Solids Colors: Mango Orange, Sol Yellow, Palm Kelly Green, Mar Teal, and Orchid Violet. Nicolita brings the tropical flavor and vintage style of Cuba so everyone can feel El Sabor Tropical!
This year Nicolita’s top 3 trends have been presented on the runway from Miami to LA.
Summer Swimwear Pick Knotty Nicolita One Piece Swimwear
The Stunning Post just posted their SUMMER PICK for 2012 and Nicolita’s Knotty One Piece made the list! This One Piece swimwear is one of our top sellers because of it’s retro glam style, underwire bra cups and gorgeous open back. Wear it as a tube top, or add the removable neck spaghetti for more support. Check out what else made their picks for 2012 here!
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Here are some great looks from Nicolita’s 2012 Collection Fashion Show at the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in Miami. You’ll see shots of your favorite swim suits from the Rumba Ruffles, Senorita Solids, Cuban Sunset, and Club Nautico Collections.
This is a great look for night time! A beautiful gray contoured eye looks good on everyone.
Source: beautylish.com via Nicolita on Pinterest
Purchase your Club Nautico Two-Piece HERE!
Purchase your Cuban Sunset HERE!
You may wonder what will fit you best from the new Señorita Solids Collection, but no fear! The Booty Experts are here! We will help you choose the best swim suit from the collection for your body type.
Show the LOVE and shake your hips with Nicolita’s RED Rumba Ruffles bikini for VDAY.
I’m sure your Valentine would love this VDAY surprise. It’s sexy in ALL the right places. Click here to check out the Rumba Ruffles Triangle bikini top and Spaghetti bikini bottom set.
Cake:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
2 cups of sugar
1 cup butter, softened
2 eggs
1 tbsp cocoa powder
1 1/2 tbsp liquid red food coloring
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp cider vinegar
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and lightly flour 2 or 3 round 9″ cake pans.
Sift flour and salt together, set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the butter and sugar. Mix until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time. Mix well after each addition. Add the flour mixture to the bowl alternately with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Blend in vanilla.
In a small bowl, mix the 1 1/2 tbsp red food coloring and 1 tbsp cocoa powder until a paste forms. Add to the sugar and butter mixture. Mix well. In a small bowl or condiment cup, stir together the baking soda and cider vinegar. This will foam and should be put into the batter immediately after well mixed. After adding the foam mixture, blend on medium-high speed until batter is consistent.
Spoon batter evenly into pans – batter will be very thick! Level top of batter with an offset spatula. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cake springs back when pressed in the center. Turn out on wire racks and cool completely.
Cream cheese frosting:
2 – 8oz packages of cream cheese, softened
1 cup butter, softened
2 tsp vanilla extract
4-5 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. With the mixer on low, gradually pour in the confectioners’ sugar. Increase the speed to high and beat until light and fluffy. If mixture is too thick, add a little milk to loosen it. If it is too thin, add additional powdered sugar or put in the refrigerator to firm up.
*If carving cake and coating with crumbs, be sure to put the crumbs on when the icing is fresh and still sticky.
*When making red velvet, I always mix the cocoa powder and liquid red food coloring together to form a paste. Doing this seems to evenly disperse the red color when it gets mixed into the batter. If your cocoa is lumpy, mash it into the food coloring with a fork.
* For the heart template, trace the bottom of a cake pan on wax paper, cut out the 9″ circle. Fold it in half and cut into a heart shape. Lay the paper heart on the cake and trim it down if it doesn’t comfortably fit inside the cake’s circumference.
Recipe from simplebakes.com
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Strawberry Shortcake Sushi
Strawberry Shortcake Sushi
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light + technique from Sprinkle Bakes
Ingredients:
cake -
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs + 2 more egg whites
1 t vanilla
2 T powdered sugar, for the towel when wrapping the cake
filling* -
2 cups whipping cream
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 t vanilla or 1/2 a vanilla bean
1 cup diced strawberries + more for topping
* I had a little less than half left over, so feel free to cut the filling recipe in half and you should be fine.
Directions:
1.Preheat the oven to 400º. Coat a 15 x 10-inch jelly roll cookie sheet with cooking spray; line the bottom with parchment paper, and coat with cooking spray. Set aside.
2.In a small bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. In a medium bowl using an electric mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer beat together the eggs and sugar at high speed until pale and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Stir in vanilla.
3.Add the flour mixture half at a time mixing on low until each portion is mixed in completely.
4.Pour batter into prepared pan; spread evenly. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cake springs back when touched.
5.While the cake is baking sprinkle a clean dish towel with powdered sugar.
6.Remove the cake from the oven. Cut the cake in half long ways so that you have 2 long rectangles. 7.Invert onto the powdered sugared towel. Peel off the parchment and on each side of the towel roll the cakes from the long side toward the center. Flip the towel wrapped cakes over seem-side down on the counter for 30 minutes to an hour to cool.
8.Make filling. Beat together the whipping cream, powdered sugar and vanilla until fluffy and thick. Stir in the strawberries.
9.Unroll the cakes from the towel and either pipe or spread the filling into the center. Roll up so the ends touch and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for a couple hours or over night.
10.Slice, using a serrated knife into sushi-sized pieces. I ended up with about 18 pieces. Top with a strawberry slice and serve with strawberry coulis (recipe below).
Strawberry Coulis
Recipe from Smitten Kitchen
Ingredients:
2 cups quartered and hulled strawberries, mashed
1/4 cup water
3 T granulated sugar
1 T lemon juice
Directions:
Combine strawberries, water, sugar and lemon juice in a blender. Blend until very smooth. Press through a fine mesh strainer to remove seeds. Cover and refrigerate until cool. Place in a small dish for sushi dipping!
Recipe from takeamegabite.com
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Total time: 50 minutes
Yield: 4 servings
A sweet, guava-glazed chicken recipe for the grill.
INGREDIENTS:
juice of 2 medium limes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
4 cloves garlic, mashed
1 (3-pound) chicken, cut-up
salt, pepper, and cumin for seasoning, to taste
Glaze:
1/4 cup guava jelly
1/4 cup apple juice
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup brown sugar
Directions:
Mix lime juice, olive oil, cumin, salt, pepper, and garlic together. Pour over chicken in a shallow baking dish. A Ziploc® freezer bag works great, too, and allows you to force out the air and coat the chicken with marinade. Cover the chicken and refrigerate for at least 3 hours, preferably overnight.
Discard marinade. Pat chicken dry with a paper towel. Season the chicken with additional salt, pepper, and a little cumin.
Fire up the burners on that gas grill or light those charcoal briquettes to preheat the grilling surface. Grill the chicken over medium heat. (Try to use the indirect heating method if you have a Weber grill or equivalent. This will avoid those oh-so-nasty flare-ups.) Cook for approximately 30 minutes, turning occasionally until chicken begins to brown.
For the glaze, mix guava jelly, apple juice, lemon juice, and brown sugar in a 1-quart saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, uncovered, stirring frequently until glaze thickens and reduces somewhat, about 5 to 10 minutes; remove from heat.
Brush chicken with glaze mixture frequently during the last 15 minutes of cooking. Once glazed, keep a close eye on the chicken because sugar burns easily and tastes terrible. (Just take our word for it on this one!) Chicken is done when the juices run clear or just clandestinely slice into one of the larger pieces to make sure there are no traces of pink. A meat thermometer is also a handy accessory for the faint of heart!
Recipe from http://icuban.com/food/pollo_guava.html
Nicolita is LOVING the jeweled swimsuit and curled hair!
Source: stevie1derful.tumblr.com via Nicolita on Pinterest
What is an Apple Shaped figure?
You have a broader shoulders compared to your narrow hips. Your legs and thighs tend to be more narrow while your abdomen and chest are wider. Apple shaped women look for swim suits that will reduce the waistline and create a slimming effect.
Here are some tips that can help you choose the right swim suit for next spring break!
Ombre hasn’t left the spot light yet, it just started! If you are not familiar with the word ‘Ombre’, it simply means a gradient color; light to dark or dark to light. You will see it in weddings, interior designs, nails, and hair. Many people have been doing the ombre nails, quite popular and extremely cute! Here is another DIY video from Birchbox so that you can do an ombre manicure at home!
