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Meet Me in Moscow: A Russian Food Primer

Lizzie Fuhr — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:45:20 PST

Whenever you're complaining about the ferocity of Winter, just remember things are much, much colder in other parts of the world. But while Russian Winters may be brutal, they've got plenty of amazing, comforting recipes with flavors designed to take that chill out of your bones. It's time to call up your babushka, put on your copy of Doctor Zhivago, and grab a tall glass of vodka, if you see fit! It's time to get reading about the delicious dishes Russian cuisine has to offer.

Dishes:

Solyanka: The base of the spicy and sour solyanka soup consists of pickled cucumbers with brine, cabbage, mushrooms, sour cream, and dill. It's either served with meat, fish, or mushrooms.
Pirozhki : Pirozhki are small buns that are stuffed typically with a savory filling and then baked or fried. Some typical fillings include meat, onion, eggs, mashed potatoes, or cabbage.
Stroganov: Beef stroganov, or stroganoff, is cooked up in many a cafeteria today, but this recipe originated in Russia. It's typically pieces of beef served up in a sour cream-based sauce on top of egg noodles.
Blini: These thin, crepelike pancakes are enjoyed with either a savory or sweet topping. As opposed to the French crepe, blinis are made from buckwheat and are part of traditional Russian cuisine.
Borscht: Soups are a staple of a traditional Russian diet. And borscht is the czar of these soups. While it's served up cold in many restaurants in the US, traditionally borscht, primarily made of beets, is served piping hot.
Vatrushka: This traditional Russian dessert is a big ring of flaky pastry dough with cottage cheese in the center. Similar to a delicious American-style Danish, it's typically topped off with raisins or bits of fruit.

Staples:

Smetana (sour cream): Blinis are topped off with it. Soups utilize its flavor. It's even used in dessert recipes! In short, expect to find fresh and delicious sour cream accompanying just about Russian ration you eat.
Black bread: The dark, crusty, hearty rye bread is served alongside many a Russian dish.
Ikra (caviar): Briny caviar is a definite splurge in the US, but in Russia, you can find caviar far more often on a table. It's often served with blinis or atop black bread.

Did I leave anything off? Any Russian foods you love to chow down on? Add your thoughts in the comments!

Source: Flickr User Istelleinad & geishaboy500

Rachel Zoe Adds Jewelry and Cozy Accessories to Her Growing Brand

Chi Diem Chau — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:37:49 PST

Rachel Zoe is a busy woman, juggling The Rachel Zoe Project (which has not yet been renewed for season five), her signature Rachel Zoe collection, a line for QVC, 10-month-old baby Skyler, and a new television production company called Rachel Zoe Productions - but that's not stopping her from doing more. Zoe has plans to launch two new categories to her signature line: costume jewelry and cold-weather accessories. Highlighting her love for vintage baubles, Zoe's jewelry line is art-deco inspired, highlighting tassel necklaces and earrings along with a "Love Me Knots” category, with knot-embellished hoop earrings, cuff bracelets, and necklaces priced between $195 and $695.

Zoe's cold-weather accessories are set to include real and faux fur hats, hoods, scarves, gloves, and statement-making stoles. "I have this obsession with what women wear in Russia," said Zoe. "The funny thing is that I don't know because I've never been there. But it's what I dream about." The jewelry collection will be exclusively available at Neiman Marcus and Bergdorf Goodman in stores and online; availability on the cold-weather accessories is still not determined. Check out the slideshow to see the collection, plus some of our favorite pieces from her latest Spring collection for QVC.

Keira Knightley Compares and Contrasts Costars Jude Law and Michael Fassbender

Allie Merriam — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 01:12:00 PST

Keira Knightley stars as patient-turned-psychiatrist Sabina Spielrein in David Cronenberg's A Dangerous Method, which expands into theaters across the country this week. The film came out in limited release last Fall, and quickly earned notoriety for the racy sex scenes Keira shares with her hot costar Michael Fassbender, who plays Carl Jung.

Yesterday, Keira spoke about working with both Michael and David. Keira shared excitement for the critical acclaim Michael's earned for another daring performance in Shame, a movie she liked quite a bit. She also spoke about her other upcoming projects, Seeking a Friend at the End of the World, the directorial debut from Lorene Scafaria featuring Steve Carell, and a remake of Anna Karenina. The later film sees Keira paired up with director Joe Wright for the third time, after Atonement and Pride & Prejudice, as well as leading man Jude Law. Keira said:

On having reservations about the spanking scenes in DM: "I was 95% going to say yes as soon as my agent said, 'Look, David Cronenberg is going to offer you a film.' . . . I did have reservations about the masochistic scenes. I actually spoke to him about it and said, 'I love the script, but I'm not sure I can do this because of these scenes. I'm not quite sure I want to go there.' And he said, 'If that stops you playing the part, that would be a tragedy so let's just take them out.' And I thought that was an amazing thing for him offer. We just talked and talked, and once he's made it clear he didn't want it to be voyeuristic and sexy, he wanted them to be kind of more clinical, I thought I might as well go for it."
On similarities between Jude and Michael: "No! No. Jude's a proper actor - he's wonderful to work with. He's a proper actor, I mean they all are . . . Michael works in a much more muscular way. Everything turns into muscle memory. He works a script, and works a script. Jude does a lot of theater so he comes from the preparation side - like a rehearsal room. He's really open to it, and he asks a lot of questions on that day. He's just phenomenal. So no there aren't any similarities, but they're all very good actors."
On first-time director Lorene: "She's just fab - she's great. She's completely the reason I think everybody signed up to do the movie. The script was wonderful. It was one of the best scripts I've ever read. The dialogue was brilliant, and the concept behind it was amazing. I haven't seen the finished article yet. I'm seeing it [today] so that's really exciting. She's an amazing woman, an amazing talent. On set, to think it was her first film - you'd never have guessed it. She was so cool, she knew exactly what she wanted, she was unbelievably fast, she was completely amazing. So hopefully it will work!"
On what she's excited to see succeed during award season: "I was really excited about Shame, because given the nature of it and the subject matter of it, quite often those ones get passed by. I think Meryl Streep in The Iron Lady. That performance was amazing. That was very good. I haven't seen The Artist yet, but I'm really looking forward to seeing that."

To read Keira's thoughts on Michael in Shame, working with the "lovely" Steve Carell, and wrapping Anna Karenina, just keep reading.

Britney Spears Denies Engagement Rumors but Rocks a Big Ring in London!

Allie Merriam — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 12:02:06 PDT

Britney Spears felt the love from fans this afternoon as she made her way into the Kiss FM studios in London. She's off in England prepping to film the new video for her "Criminal" single and gear up for a tour around Europe and Russia. There's also press to do for her upcoming B in the Mix: The Remixes Vol. 2, which is out next month. Britney was just home in LA for a bit last week, and her boyfriend, Jason Trawick, prompted engagement rumors when he was seen shopping for a ring at Hollywood's Pascal Mouawad jewelers. Her reps denied that Brit and Jason planned to wed, but she was nonetheless rocking a big ring today. The other men in Britney's life, her sons, Sean and Jayden, have just reached special milestones - both Jayden James and Sean Preston had birthdays this week!

Vogue Cover Girl Penelope Cruz Heats Up a Red-Hot Pirates Premiere

Katie Henry — Mon, 16 May 2011 13:59:59 PDT

Penelope Cruz greeted fans and press in a beautiful red gown at today's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides premiere in Munich. It's the latest stop on Penelope's round-the-world tour, which has so far taken her from the US to Russia, Britain, France, and now Germany. She's had the company of her good-looking costar Johnny Depp for the majority of the trip, though her husband, Javier Bardem, has yet to join her on any carpets. Penelope did, though, speak about Javier and their young son, Leo, in the upcoming June issue of Vogue. Penelope Cruz actually started crying during the Vogue interview, as she was overcome with emotion while talking about her love for baby Leo.

Belles of the Love Ball: Fashion Favorites Dress For a Good Cause

Noria Morales — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 12:50:30 PDT

The theme of this year's Love Ball was White Fairy Tale, setting the tone for an ethereal, incredibly beautiful evening on the grounds of Valentino Garavani's 17th century Chateau de Widewille. While they were there to raise money for Natalia Vodianova's Naked Heart Foundation, which builds playgrounds for impoverished neighborhoods in Russia, fashion played a huge role. Most of the attendees, including Anne Hathaway and Olivia Palermo, chose white and silver dresses in keeping with the dress code, but there were some bold exceptions. Natalia wore a striking Valentino red gown and veil, while Daphne Guinness made a statement in a rainbow hued gown. Click the slideshow to see the gorgeous looks from the Love Ball.

Last Night's Looks

Noria Morales — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 14:00:32 PDT

From an amfAR gala in Paris to the Transformers premier in Russia, there was glamour - serious amounts of it. Our love affair with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley came to a head when she appeared in a Gucci dress, but across the globe, stars like Diane Kruger, Selena Gomez, Fergie, and Eva Mendes absolutely wowed. Were stars feeling the pull of Old Hollywood? Visit our slideshow for a look at last night's incredibly glamorous looks.

Virginia Is For Lovers, but Athens Is For Flirts

Colleen Barrett — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 12:45:09 PST

Love may be among the ruins, but flirting is alive and well in the streets of Athens. Badoo.com, a site that encourages social networking through flirting, analyzed 12 million flirtations across 180 countries and named Athens the top come-hither city of its self-titled "World Flirtation League."

Is the site just very popular in Greece? Badoo is a Denmark-based company, so I suspect most of its 100 million users are logging in from Europe. But Greece is the birthplace of modernity and age-old orgies, so it's taking this moment to honor its roots.

"Athens is a seductive city, with a hedonistic lifestyle," said Victoria Kyriakopoulous, author of Lonely Planet Athens Encounter. "Old Athenians flirt. Married ones flirt. Now, young Athenians are simply using technology to do what Athenians have always done."

Of course, the rest of the world flirts, too. See what other cities - lots of surprises - rounded out the top 10 below.