The Art of being Gwyneth Paltrow- A Poor Girl's Guide: Part 1

My girlfriends and I have always been mesmerized by the enigma that is Gwyneth Paltrow. How the hell does the woman juggle it all and still manage to look effortlessly chic? I mean, she even looks messy-ethereal gorgeous when snapped by the paparazzi having a wardrobe malfunction going through airport security- and ladies, we all know that airport security is about the most unflattering and unchic place on Earth - this, my friends, is a freak-of-nature situation that only Gwyneth could emerge from triumphant!

Evidence.

So, when I received Gwyneth's newest cookbook, "My Father's Daughter", for my birthday from one of my favorite people in the world, Christie, I knew it would be sheer and utter "Palfection" (Paltrow + perfection). I poured over each glossy page with my disastrously chipped and chewed on nails, hoping to uncover the secret ingredient for "Palfection." Much to my chagrin, I only found photos of perfectly flaxen haired beauty "sweating" (let's be real, Gwyneth doesn't sweat like us mere mortals, she glistens) over beautifully roasted rosemary chicken, buttered corn and duck ragu.

This is exactly what I wear in the kitchen...

I also look like this whilst sniffing fresh produce at the store.

While the rest of humanity can't be married to an English rockstar, star in academy award winning movies, record CD's, manage an incredible blog (Confession: I have been a GOOP devotee since its very beginning), work out every day (or once a month in my case), become a top notch chef & write a cookbook all while juggling motherhood and effortless chicness, we can pretend to for one night and parody ourselves in the company of best friends. 

Thus, I lay the groundwork for The Art of being Gwyneth Paltrow- A Poor (Working) Girl's Guide: Part 2, an evening in which my dearest friends, Mary and Stuart, and I will attempt to juggle it all and cook a Gwyneth meal from her new cookbook. But, we can't quite afford ingredients such as duck and duck bacon, so we will be adapting it to fit our "ramen noodle lifestyles." Tune in tomorrow to see how we transformed Gwyneth's Duck Ragu recipe into a wallet friendly and quick "working girl" concoction...all the while looking "painfully chic" after a long day's work. 

Can we pull it all off and achieve "Palfection?"... Tune in tomorrow to find out!

Photos courtesy of google images.