2.15.2010

Valentine's Day Cookies


I'm not really sure why some people hate Valentine's Day so much. I kinda like it. It reminds of those parties I used to have in elementary school where everyone would make a Valentine's Day box and get little valentines with catchy sayings on them.

"You're magical!"

"Will you be my valentine?"

"You rock my world!"

It always made feel special even though all of my classmates got exactly the same valentines. And I got TONS of candy which, of course, I devoured within 2 hours. In tenth grade, we do not have parties on a regular basis. Except, apparently, in French class. My insane French teacher made us make cards with a poem on the inside and romantic sayings on the outside. Of course, it was all in French so chances are no one would no what you were talking about anyway. My poem was about my dog. Very romantic, I know. Anyway, she had the German kids come in and we had to exchange cards. VERY AWKWARD.

Even if we do not have parties, the unmistakable air of romance lingers in the hallways. The student government (alliance) sells roses and notes that you can buy at lunch and send to your sweetheart. Hand holding and hugging (and sometimes more) can be observed down nearly every corridor. And then there's always Sweethearts aka the annual Sadie Hawkins Dance where the girls ask the boys to go to the ball with them.


This year, this was very anxiety-inducing. Last year, I didn't really have anyone in mind who I would like to ask, but this year was a different story. I went back and forth about asking him for close to two weeks before making up my mind. Or rather, my friends made up my mind for me. It shouldn't have been that stressful. I knew he would say yes because he asked me to Homecoming in September but I was still doubtful despite all the evidence to the contrary.


Some girls go all out for the big question. For instance, a girl I know wrote cheesy sayings on sticky notes and plastered them to her boyfriend's car. That was slightly (a lot) out of my comfort zone so I stuck to a balloon. It was red. And shiny. And heart-shaped. It said his name on one side and "Sweethearts?"  ad my name on the other. And it also seemed like a good idea at the time although I may have been very wrong about that.

Since we're both in musical, I decided to ask him during a Saturday rehearsal we had a few weeks ago. I planned to leave it in the theater room and just let it hang there until he figured out it was for him. Maybe that way I could avoid some awkwardness. not.


It seemed fairly straightforward, but, as always, it did not work out quite according to plan. Apparently the janitors in the building think 9 am is too early to unlock any of the classroom doors. Yes, when I got there the door was locked. shut tight. My heart started going into overdrive. Okay, scrap Plan A. Now I was outside the room with a very suggestive balloon in front of the entire cast and some of the crew. Never mind about that whole "avoiding any awkwardness" thing.

And then he came and I almost had a heart attack. My mouth wasn't capable of working so I just threw the balloon at him. He looked at it, then looked at me, smiling. I found my voice and asked, "Is that a yes?" He gave me a hug. Best. Day. EVER.

Here's a recipe for heart shaped cookies. Very romantic. Enjoy! from Martha Stewart

  • 4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  1. Sift flour, salt, and baking powder into a bowl.
  2. Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy. Mix in eggs and lemon juice. Reduce speed to low. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Divide dough in half; flatten each half into a disk. Wrap each in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight.
  3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Let one disk of dough stand at room temperature just until soft enough to roll, about 10 minutes. Roll out dough between two pieces of plastic wrap to 1/4-inch thick. Remove top layer of plastic wrap. Cut out cookies with a 6-inch fluted heart shaped cookie cutter. Transfer cookie dough on plastic wrap to a baking sheet. Transfer baking sheet to freezer, and freeze dough until very firm, about 15 minutes. Remove baking sheet from freezer and transfer shapes to baking sheets lined with nonstick baking mats. Roll out scraps, and repeat. Repeat with remaining disk of dough.
  4. Bake, switching positions of sheets and rotating halfway through, until edges turn golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks.

2.07.2010

Brownies


I really do not understand why the male portion of the human race, specifically located in the nation of the United States of America, is so freaking OBSESSED with football. I really don't. Shoes, on the other hand, are something completely natural to obsess over, but football? Really? It's just a game where big men run around tackling each other. Apparently, its exciting watching one person get crushed under five humongous giants. I will never know what makes that exciting. I'll just write it off as one of those mysteries about boys that I am never likely to solve.

The good thing about the Super Bowl is that it gives me an excuse to make things. Like brownies for instance. Football is an American pastime right? So, I figured, why not make something else that is comfortingly American. Brownies fit the bill perfectly. Also on the menu for tonight: turkey and bison sliders, guacamole, mango salsa, and homemade oven-baked fries (sweet potato and regular). What a little slice of America.

And so, tonight will culminate in me and my sister sitting in front of the T.V. cheering. But not for the game. For the commercials.

Brownies
I got this recipe from smittenkitchen.com. It makes very fudgy brownies, so much so that they are actually slightly difficult to get out of the pan whole. But they are pretty darn delicious.


10 tbsp. butter
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla
2 large eggs, cold
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 walnut or pecan halves (optional)

Position a rack on the lower third of the oven and reheat it to 325 degrees. Line an 8x8 square pan with parchment paper.

Combine butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt in a medium heatproof bowl and set it over a pan of barely simmering water. Heat until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.

Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs one at a time, stirring vigorously after each one. When the batter looks thick, shiny, and well-blended, add the flour and stir until it disappears. Beat vigorously for 40 strokes with the spoon. Stir in the nuts, if desired, and then spread evenly in the pan.

Bake until toothpick comes out slightly damp, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool completely, cut, and enjoy!

2.01.2010

Granola






I may not have blogged in over a week, but that sure doesn't mean I haven't been working at all. In the interest of making this site as awesome as it can possibly be, I decided to mess around and see whether or not I could improve the look. I was  gallivanting around the Blogger help page when I found the page about using templates from another site. What?? I thought to myself. You can use templates other than the generic ones they provide??? OOOOOHHHHH this could be interesting.


And so, I began working my way through blogskins.com. I found several that I liked a bunch, so i decided to try one on for size and see how it fit. I actually had trouble finding out how to download the template and when I successfully downloaded one, I could not for the life of me figure out how to actually put it on my site. I followed the instructions, but it all dealt with html coding and weird computery stuff that my poor 15-year-old brain can't focus on. Oh well, it was a nice try. I accepted the fact that I probably would just go on having a blog with a plain face.


The next day, however, I had another go at it just for kicks. This time, I looked up "blog templates" on google and clicked on the first link that appeared, btemplates.com. This time it worked. I thought my little blog looked so FREAKING AWESOME. There were little tabs and everything that you could click on. But no,it turns out the tabs were not clickable.  Dang it!! Just when I thought life was great, another problem crops up. I found a few instructions about how to insert material but I was done with the whole html thing. I found another template that is just as cute with no tabs. Maybe sometime when I'm feeling less drained from musical and school I'll spend the time to actually figure out what I'm doing. In the meantime, I like the present status of my blog.


Also, this weekend I made granola. Yup, that hippie grub that they all used to eat up in Boulder (or so my mom tells me). I think its pretty delicious however. You can pretty much do whatever you want to with it. Feel like cashews instead of almonds? Dried apricots instead of raisins? Go for it. I decided to go with almonds and craisins due to my house's lack of raisins and sunflower seeds. We had plenty of coconut left over from macaroons on passover but no honey, so I used light corn syrup instead and it turned out fine. Maybe, way WAY deep down I really am a hippie. I am vice president and cofounder of the Green Club at school after all. Enjoy!


Great Granola
from Jane Brody's Good Food Book


1/4 cup butter or margarine, or a combination
1/4 cup honey
3 cups rolled oats (regular or quick)
1 cup shredded or flaked coconut (optional)
1 cup sunflower seeds (untoasted)
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup wheat germ (optional)
2/3 cup raisins


1. In a large oven-proof skillet or 9x13-inch baking pan, melt the butter and stir in the honey.
2. Add the remaining ingredients except the wha=eat germ and raisins and bake the mixture at 350 oven for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in wheat germ, if desired, and bake another ten minutes or until the mixture is lightly browned.
3. Remove the granola, stir in the raisins and let cool completely before transferring to a storage container.