Etc. The best of Conan O'Brien.

Unless you were living under a rock, you might have heard that Conan O'Brien is leaving the Tonight Show with his head (hair?) held high. My absolute adoration for this man and his comedy goes beyond words, so here's a compilation of best of moments from Conan's Late Night days that doesn't do him any justice (I was going to compile a bunch of videos myself, but alas, NBC has strict video-posting rules):



The People of Earth love you, Conan.

What's a favorite Conan moment of yours?

-- Chau Tu

Etc. Godiva candles.

Two of my favorite things in one--chocolate and candles make a beautiful partnership with Godiva Candles. The home fragrance collection launched in Summer '09 from the 80-year-old chocolatier was created with the help of Laura Slatkin of Slatkin & Co. (you may have seen their candles and oils at Bath & Body Works).

The collection of five includes; Milk Chocolate Truffle, Black Almond Truffle, White Chocolate Magnolia, and Raspberry Ganache. The White Chocolate Magnolia is in my kitchen and smells beyond delicious. It would also be a decadent bath-side treat!

They're a steal at $22.50 each--a very reasonable price in the luxury candle market.

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: www.shoppingblog.com

Eat In. Mac and Cheese.

OK, believe it or not, homemade macaroni is one of the easiest things I've ever made. And the pay-off is ridiculous. The recipe below makes 6ish servings (it makes as much in the picture above), but you could probably half the ingredients or play around with it until it feeds as many as you'd like. Also, be aware that there is--in my rough estimation--7000 calories packed in here. But hey, that's comfort food for you.

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. elbow macaroni
• 3 tblsp. butter (plus a little extra to grease the baking pan)
• 3 tblsp. flour
• 2 cups cream
• 6 cups of cheese (we used cheddar and monterey jack)
• 6 slices of bacon*
• Salt, pepper, and whatever spices you like (we used a mix of cayenne, garlic powder, onion powder, and a bit of nutmeg)
• breadcrumbs for topping

Directions:

• Prepare the macaroni according to the package (or, you know, boil it in water with a little bit of salt and oil, duh).
• Cook the bacon in a skillet, crumble or slice it, and make sure to reserve the delicious, greasy fat.
• Melt the butter in a sauce pan.
• Once the butter is done foaming, add the flour and whisk until all the lumps are gone.
• Let the roux (aka the butter and flour) darken to a sandy blonde.
• Whisk in salt, pepper, and spices
• Add the cream slowly, whisking the whole time until it's smooth.
• Dump in the cheese and whisk until everything is melted and tasty.
• Mix the cheese sauce, bacon bites, and drained pasta in the pasta pot.
• Pour the yummy mixture into a greased glass baking pan ( 13x9, maybe?).
• Spoon a few tablespoons of the reserved bacon fat into the breadcrumbs and mix until crumbly.
• Top your casserole with extra cheese and breadcrumbs.
• Bake at 375ish for 20ish minutes-- basically until the breadcrumbs are toasty and the cheese is bubbly.

*This is totally optional. I'd imagine you could also use a veggie, like peas. However, if you do opt out of the bacon, have some melted butter on hand to toss the breadcrumbs in.

-- Heather Robertson

Check It. Catchy tunes & literary seduction.

Today marks the release of Vampire Weekend's second album, Contra. It includes the single Cousins, as well as the very catchy Horchata.

Also available today is a peek inside the life of the legendary Warren Beatty (Bonnie and Clyde, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Shampoo, Dick Tracy, Bugsy, Bulworth) -- Peter Biskind's new book, Star: How Warren Beatty Seduced America has caused a stir even before its release with Biskind's calculation that the handsome (now married & father of four) ladies' man slept with 12,775 women before settling down with Annette Bening. I say it's worth a read for some juicy old Hollywood stories involving the likes of Jane Fonda and Joan Collins (and I'm guessing Beatty pal Jack Nicholson.)

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: Vampire Weekend

Make It. Clothespin doormat.

It's time to get out the power tools and portable vice again. This project, making a doormat from doll's head clothespins and a small-gauge wire, is probably at the intermediate level of crafting, but definitely worth the trouble.

A nice doormat really sets the tone for your house. It can be welcoming, keep your floors slightly cleaner, and be a nice accessory. This doormat says "whoever lives here cared enough to get out the power drill just to make the floor nicer for you, visitor" -- at least, that's what I imagine it saying to my guests.

Eat In. French toast.

Breakfast? Best meal of the day. Don't even fight me on this. I will eat breakfast foods (there are so many options!) for days on end and will be completely happy. Actually, I almost do that anyway. I lead a simple life.

One of my favorite breakfast items? French toast. Sadly, this is a dish that takes planning from the night before and fancy ingredients like buttermilk (yes, buttermilk is considered fancy, and seriously, why would anyone have a gallon of it around?). Or is it?

Ah ha! There is, in fact, a quick and easy way around to getting a couple slices of French toast on your plate in just a few minutes, and it's actually quite delicious.

Eat Out. Zeyphr Vegetarian Cafe.

It's really hard to find good faux restaurants, even in a vegetarian-friendly area like Greater Los Angeles. Zeyphr Vegetarian Cafe may be one of my favorite faux-friendly, all-veggie places that is cheap and tasty.

The first time I visited Zeyphrs I got their BLT, skeptical that it might come with that funny, no-meat-in-this-meaty-dish taste, but it was excellent. Thicker than MorningStar bacon, this was actually more like bacon -- except flakier and less homogeneous.

Everything is served with a side of fresh salsa and blue corn chips, and the portions are generous.

I have a soft spot for places that have board games (because you actually feel like hanging around and spending some time there), and checkers, backgammon, and maybe Chinese checkers are there, along with plenty of magazines, giving it a stay-as-long-as-you-want feeling.

Zeyphr Vegetarian Cafe is located at 340 E. 4th Street in Long Beach.

-- Lauren Williams

Photo credit: Yelp!

Do It. Pee Wee's Playhouse.

He's baaaaaack! The man (?), the myth, the legend, raring to go in his trademark light grey suit and bright red bow-tie: Pee Wee Herman is taking to the Club Nokia stage to bring his loved Playhouse to live audiences.

What to expect: all the old characters--from Mailman Mike to Chairry; Pee Wee at his finest--he hopes to use this limited run to finance another movie.

What to hope for: Cyndi Lauper guest-appearance for the theme song?; Pee Wee keeping that Super Pee Wee in his dreams...


I know you are, but what am I?

Pee Wee's Playhouse begins tomorrow at Club Nokia and plays until Feb. 7.

-- Chau Tu

Eat & Drink It. Dean & Deluca.

Nothing screams coffee like a Monday morning ...

I first noticed Dean & Deluca in high school while watching my favorite TV show, Felicity. Prime-time's favorite curly-haired NYU student Felicity Porter (Keri Russell) worked there, and while I thought their simple black and white style was cool, I knew nothing of their expansive selection of gourmet goodies. The self-described "purveyors of fine food, wine & kitchenware" are on my mind a lot these days, and it's a damn shame L.A. doesn't have one (California has one, in St. Helena). Thank goodness for the world wide web.

As a Christmas gift, I received a bag of the Manhattan Blend coffee with a set of the super cute diner-style white Dean & Deluca mugs. I'm getting used to the additional step of grinding the whole beans (I'd been a pre-ground kinda gal), but it's all worth it in the end. Next I'm going to give their French Roast a try, as the online description includes the words "dark chocolate, nutmeg and caramel." Yum.

Other D&D favorites--tinned candy, chicken pot pie, and awesome red spatulas.

-- Leslie Anne Wiggins

Photo credit: www.seriesaddict.fr

Do It. East Village farmer's market.

Between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. today fresh, locally grown/made fruit, veggies, and hummus are available in Long Beach's East Village.

One of my favorite things about Long Beach is how easy it is to find fresh produce. Thursdays have the Bixby Knolls farmer's market. Fridays it's the Downtown Long Beach market. Saturdays it's the East Village farmers market. Sundays it's the one at Alamitos Bay Marina.

Really, there's no day you can't go out, forage, and find amazingly fresh food (the foraging, of course, is done by someone else).

I like the East Village one because it's the only one that's probably "walkable," but even that's a stretch. The Marina one is supposed to be the largest of the four.

So go out, soak up some sun (because, really, is it ever not sunny here?), and get some fresh food!

-- Lauren Williams

Photo credit: Everythinglongbeach.com