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  • WELCOME!

    Hi. We're Esther & Jacob. We are ATLiens who reside in Los Angeles. We take travel and lifestyle photos and make youtube videos by profession. Together, we love food, traveling, and cats! Since meeting in 2009, we've been trekking the globe - experiencing new cultures, eating all kinds of new food, exploring our hometowns, and of course, taking lots of photos.  Hope you enjoy following our adventures!

04.26.13

Balsamic Chicken Drumsticks | Easy Chicken Recipes

I’m always looking for new easy chicken recipes that are easy to cook for 2.  Balsamic Chicken Drumsticks was another recipe that my friend, Carol, tested out first. I got to be her guinea pig while I was in Atlanta. I loved it and decided to make this for my April recipe in my 13 in 2013.

Balsamic Chicken Drumsticks | Easy Chicken Recipes

Balsamic Chicken Drumsticks | Easy Chicken Recipes

Balsamic Chicken Drumsticks | Easy Chicken Recipes (adapted from everyday italian)

Ingredients

  • 6 chicken drumsticks
  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon dried rosemary or 3 sprigs of fresh rosemary
  • 3 garlic cloves, halved
  • 1 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
  • 2 tablespoons dried parsley or 1/8 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

Directions

  1. Combine the balsamic vinegar, honey, brown sugar, soy sauce, rosemary, and garlic cloves in a large, re-sealable plastic bag.
  2. Shake the contents of the bag until the honey and brown sugar is dissolved.
  3. Add the chicken drumsticks to the bag, and seal with as little air as possible. Place in the refrigerator and marinate for 2 hours.
  4. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
  5. Place the chicken drumsticks on a foil-lined baking sheet.
  6. Bake until the skin is caramelized and very dark in spots. About 30 to 35 minutes.
  7. Meanwhile, place the marinade in a small saucepan and bring to a boil to kill bacteria.
  8. Reduce the heat and simmer until marinade thickens.
  9. When the chicken is fully cooked, brush some of the cooked marinade on the chicken with a pastry brush.
  10. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds and the chopped parsley. Serve!

Notes

  • Apparently 1 teaspoon of dried equals 1 tablespoon of fresh herbs, but since I like my food extra flavorful, I just halved the measurements from fresh herbs to dried herbs.
  • I mixed the marinade in a large bowl and kept mixing the sauce into the chicken.  I don’t particularly like shaking and baking, so sometimes I can be stubborn about doing things the hard way.

What’s your favorite chicken recipe?  If you have any easy chicken recipes, please share! :)

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04.23.13

The London Eye | What to Do in London England

I just realized that I never got to finish off posting the rest of our Europe photos.  We ended our Eurotrip last year with 36 hours in London (the itinerary with food we ate will be the next post).  Since it was our first time in London and also because we had such a short amount of time there, we decided to do what most tourists do and go sightseeing! One of the attractions we visited was the London Eye:

the london eye | London Attraction | Photography in London | What to Do in London England

edf energy orange pod london eye | London Attraction | Photography London | What to Do in London England

the london eye | London Attraction | Photography of London | What to Do in London England

the london eye | London Attraction | London Pictures | What to Do in London England

We didn’t get a chance to take a ride in it, but I was more interested in walking around taking photos instead.  If we had planned ahead of time, it would have been really romantic to book our own private capsule and have champagne for a quick date overlooking the city. I say quick, because every thirty minutes booking a private capsule is £500. Private dinner would be even better!  Only in a world where money ain’t a thang.

Interesting fact: Why is one of the capsules of the London Eye red / orange?  I was asking around, and no one really knew the answer. I finally googled it.  Oh, what would I do without google.  Turns out the newest energy sponsor, EDF energy, decided to paint one of the capsules orange for branding purposes and apparently there was an entire debacle over it.

Have you visited London before?  Where are some of your must see places?

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May 7, 2013 - 6:49 am

What to Do in London | 36 Hours in London England - [...] 1. The London Eye (more photos from an earlier post here): [...]

04.19.13

Thai Basil Chicken With Cashews Recipe | Foodie Fridays

Thai Basil Chicken with Cashews recipe is from Martin Yan via Nellie.  She sent this recipe to me when I barely knew how to boil water and told me it was a really easy recipe and also a crowd pleaser.  Ever since, it’s one of my favorites and I’ve been making it all the time!

This thirty minute meal took over an hour. But I

Thai Basil Chicken with Cashews Recipe
serves 4

Ingredients for Marinade:

  • 2 tablespoons lager-style beer, like Tsingtao
  • 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (or black pepper)
  • 12 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

Ingredients for Sauce:

  • 1/4 cup chicken broth
  • 1 tablespoon lager-style beer, like Tsingtao
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce (or add an additional 1 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce)
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable, canola or peanut oil
  • 2 teaspoons chopped garlic
  • 4 ounces asparagus, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 1 teaspoon cornstarch, dissolved in 2 teaspoons water
  • 1 fresh jalapeno chili, thinly sliced into rings (optional)
  • 1/4 cup lightly packed Thai basil or sweet basil leaves.
  • 1/2 cup roasted cashews

Directions

  1. Combine the marinade ingredients in a bowl.
  2. Add the chicken and stir to coat. Let stand for 15 minutes.
  3. Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set aside.
  4. Place a wok or wide saute pan over high heat until hot. Add the oil, swirling to coat the sides.
  5. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 10 seconds.
  6. Add the chicken and asparagus and cook, stirring constantly until the chicken is no longer pink, about 2 minutes.
  7. Add the sauce and bring to boil.
  8. Add the cornstarch solution and cook, stirring, until sauce thickens, about 1 minute.
  9. Remove pan from heat and stir in jalapeño chili, basil leaves and cashews.

Notes:

  • If the sauce does not thicken within a couple minutes, I usually continue to add more & more cornstarch solution until it does thicken.
  • I personally like using yuengling, an amber lager, instead of tsingtao.
  • I also made the recipe with bell peppers instead of asparagus (pictured above)
  • Since I like my food spicy, I like to add two jalapeños peppers and stir it in the heat for 1 minute.
  • Photo is via instagram & you can follow my instagrams here.

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04.16.13

New Zealand Sweet As South Tour | 10 Day Guide to South Island

We had an amazing time and the Contiki New Zealand Sweet as South tour was a great way for us to get a taste of New Zealand.  They have definitely whet our appetite for more!  If you want to visit New Zealand but have a limited amount of time (1 week versus 1 month), I would highly recommend going on a contiki tour. After the tour, Jacob and I have already decided that we want to go back for a month and explore on our own!  Here’s a recap of our trip to New Zealand (you can click on the day or photo to see the full blog post with more photos & specific tips):

Day 1 Exploring Christchurch:

what to do in christchurch | how to spend 48 hours in christchurch, rebirth of christchurch

Day 2 in Christchurch Searching for kiwi birds at Willowbank Wildlife Reserve:

fallow deer willowbank wildlife reserve christchurch new zealand | travel photos

Day 1 of the official contiki tour. From Christchurch to Lake Ohau with stops at Cookie Time, Geraldine, Lake Tekapo, the Church of the Good Shepherd, & Lake Pukaki:

Enjoying the beer and the view at Lake Ohau Lodge New Zealand

Day 2 From Ohau to Dunedin with stops at Benmore Dam, Oamaru, Moeraki Boulders, & the steepest street in the world Baldwin Street:

Dunedin Railway Station

Day 3 From Dunedin to Queenstown with stops in Cromwell, Kawarau Bridge original bungy, & Arrowtown:

view of queenstown from skyline restaurant

Day 4 in Queenstown and the Ledge Bungy:

the ledge bungy queenstown new zealand

Day 5 in Queenstown with an all day trip out to Milford Sound:

Milford Sound Mountains New Zealand

Day 6 in Queenstown with an all day trip with Dart River Wilderness Safari:

Dart River Wilderness Safari & Jetboats | Day 6 New Zealand Sweet as South Contiki Tour | A Guide to South Island

Day 7 Queenstown to Franz Josef Glacier with stops in Wanaka’s Puzzling World, Blue Pools, & Thunder Creek Falls:

Wanaka’s Puzzling World

Day 8 in Franz Josef Glacier. We did the glacier hike at a neighboring glacier, the fox trot on Fox Glacier:

Glacier hiking on fox glacier new zealand

Day 9 From Franz Josef Glacier to Christchurch with stops in Hokitika, Castle Hill (Narnia), & Springfield:

Castle hill narnia

Day 10 We said our goodbyes and headed home. We made some great friends along the way in New Zealand, and we hope they will visit us soon & vice versa!

New Contiki Friends for Life! | Day 9 New Zealand Sweet as South Contiki Tour | Franz Josef Glacier to Christchurch | A Guide to South Island

New Contiki Friends for Life! | Day 9 New Zealand Sweet as South Contiki Tour | Franz Josef Glacier to Christchurch | A Guide to South Island

Farewell New Zealand, we will see you again soon!

General Tips (each individual post has specific tips for each day):

  • Ask for a hairdryer from the receptionist if not provided in your hotel rooms
  • If you ask for Lemonade = Sprite in New Zealand
  • Breakfast is always included. It’s sometimes continental or hot. Also a few dinners are included
  • Cash and credit are both accepted
  • Tipping is optional in NZ. If service is exceptional you can do 10-15%. On taxi drives you can just round up the total for exceptional service. When we first arrived we tipped like typical americans, so I’m sure we made a few people feel very happy or insulted.
  • Recommended amount for tipping the contiki tour driver and tour guide is NZD 3 per person per day (6 NZD per day for both).
  • 2 degrees simcard has a very good value for calling home
  • Bring a water bottle (wish I brought this collapsible one that I had)
  • Good souvenirs are pinot gris and sauvignon blancs, woodcarvings, and the native greenstone.

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May 3, 2013 - 8:03 am

Where to Eat in LA | Another Binge Eating Weekend - Esther & Jacob - [...] New Zealand [...]

04.12.13

Antico Pizza Napoletana | What to Eat in Atlanta

Since I was in Atlanta for the week last week, I decided to go down the list of my favorite food places and give them all a visit. Antico Pizza was one of then.  Before we moved to LA, we made sure we visited Antico a few times. It’s a bit of a drive for us, but the food always made it worth it. We love the pizza, but it’s also BYOB, so it was fun to grab some beer and hang out with a few friends there.  If you’re visiting Atlanta, I would recommend giving them a try!

All photos except the second one was taken by iphone.

Back at Anticos! Probably our last time here for a while... :(

Antico Pizza Napoletana | Atlanta Eats

Since I was staying with my friend, Carol, we decided to take her little boy there right before we went to the aquarium.  He’s going to be a food snob now!

Antico Pizza
1093 Hemphill Ave
Atlanta, Georgia 30318
(404)724-2333

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