Whoops.

I just realized that I hadn’t* put up a post in a week.  I should feel bad about that, but I don’t really.  I had some things to deal with that I haven’t quite resolved.  However, just because I haven’t been posting doesn’t mean I don’t have posts lined up.  I have a ton to write up, but have been putting off because I wanted to do some research to make an informed opinion.

I know, I know.  Who does research for a personal blog? Apparently, I do.  I guess once you’re an academic, you’re always an academic.  I can’t help it.  I read an article likening food abuse to cocaine (ab)use, but I’m not sold that the site is a reputable source.  I want to find out if there has really been a study on this before I write about it.

*I think it is funny that I tell my students in my writing class to not use contractions, and my posts are full of them.  We have been writing letters to friends, so I said it was okay, but that once we start writing essays they can no longer use them.

Is One Girl Cookie Overrated?

Last night, I went to the One Girl Cookies book launch at Powerhouse.  I was late because of work, but the parts of the discussion I heard were good.  Of course, I took out my notebook to write some things down.  I’m pretty sure I was the only one writing things down, but I didn’t want to rely solely on memory. 

The duo behind One Girl Cookies is Dawn Casale and David Crafton.  Dawn started the company on her own, and brought David on later and eventually married him.  Hearing them talk about their bakery and interact with the audience, made me more interested in them and their baked goods.  David’s answers seemed authentic, especially when he answered the question: what does he hope to get out of this cook book? 

David: I’ll be happy if there are dog-eared copies in people’s kitchens and they’re baking.  Even if they forget who the One Girl Cookies duo is, I’ll just be happy that they’re cooking.  Not verbatim but pretty close to it.

That comment completely won me over and made me a fan.  I guess I’m a sap, but it was heart-warming to hear that his goal was for families to spend time together making delicious treats.  In a time where people don’t seem to sit down for meals together or even cook their meals, it’s great to hear someone make family cooking/baking a priority.

Now on to their infamous whoopie pies.  One girl in the audience raved about the baked goods and honestly she seemed a bit like a crazed fanatic, and after I tried the whoopie pies I think she just might be crazy. After the talk, I go over to try to the whoopie pies – one banana and one chocolate.  Wasn’t really a fan of either.  The cake/cookie part was dry, in their defense it was the end of the day but yeah, definitely didn’t sell them to me.  Even worse, the chocolate whoopie pie had a mint frosting sandwiched in between.  This is just a personal preference but the only chocolate-mint combo I like is in  Thin Mints.  The banana whoopie pie was much better and reminded me of banana bread.  The vanilla frosting in this pie was too sweet for me.  At least I could eat the entire banana whoopie pie, I had to throw the chocolate whoopie pie out (I waited until I left the event, so I wouldn’t be rude).

After this event, I don’t think I’ll make much of an effort to stop by the One Girl Cookies bakery.   I liked the couple, but wasn’t a fan of their desserts.  Perhaps, this is because I am extremely picky about the desserts I eat, and very rarely like desserts that aren’t made by family members or myself.  Either way, I wasn’t sold on their goods. It could just be that I don’t like whoopie pies and might like something else of theirs.  Will I ever know?

Uh-Oh SpaghettiOs!

The title randomly popped into my head this morning, when I realized I probably won’t be able to move out until April.  I was hoping March 1, but I’m not so sure this is possible.  Especially because I am buying lunch today, I need to get back to making my lunches the night before.  After I use up the money in my wallet, that’s it.  I really need to go on my spending freeze. 

Back to SpaghettiOs.  A coworker and I asked the students if they’ve heard of SpaghettiOs and Chef Boyardee.  None of them had.  I was shocked, but I guess this is all for the best.  I recently tried a Chef Boyardee and it was awful, I have no idea how I stomached it as a kid. I wonder how healthy these canned pastas are, regardless if there’s a full serving of vegetables in the can.  As I’m particularly concerned with the betterment of children’s nutrition, things like this interest me.   Could it be that because these kids recently came to America they have no idea what these things are? Or is that SpaghettiOs and Chef Boyardee have no cache with the children of the 2000s?

Quest for the Perfect Cheese Danish

Costco has a cherry and cheese Danish ring that is delicious. A flaky, tender dough, not too sweet frosting, and just the right amount of cheese.  Unfortunately, the ring has only 2 cheese danishes and  the rest are cherry.  Why do they always put the least amount of the best flavor?  The last time my grandfather bought this ring, I didn’t get the cheese danish, my grandma called dibs before I could eat it in the morning.

This has got me wondering whether I can find a cheese danish that is just as delicious.  I looked up the best cheese danishes in Queens bakeries.  I hope to find the perfect spot – affordable and either near my house or my job.  Ha, I know my last post was about how I am supposed to start eating healthier. Also, I’m supposed to be stacking for an apartment.  However, if this is my only splurge things should be alright.

Let the quest begin!

Finally Caught Up!

I finally caught up with the Ultimate Blog Challenge! It’s the sixteenth day and I am on my 16^th post.  I wanted to write this post earlier but I was worn out from a long day at work.  Here’s to me keeping on schedule from now on.  Getting behind is such a pain.

I don’t have anything to write about food or photography today.  Just that I have been eating pretty unhealthy the past couple days and my body doesn’t like it.  I need to get back on track.  I must start sticking to my whole grains, whole fruit, and whole vegetables mantra.  This brings me back to my days at EATWISE where we tried to instill in the teens to increase their consumption of those three things.  Working there was a good time.

It’s funny how quickly the body can get used to healthy eating.  I didn’t even realize how well I had been eating until now when my body seems to be rejecting my huge consumption of fat.  Before this weekend, I had been feeling good and even noticed that one of jeans were a bit loose.   Now, I just feel bloated and gross.  I need to do better.  I think part of it is that I used to walk an hour a day, but now I have an unlimited because it is way too cold to walk.  Ha, did I just consider the positive effect exercising had on my life? 

I guess I did have something to say about food after all.

Turkish Delight: Churches

At first the only words in this post when I hit publish were: Here are some more of my pictures from Turkey.  I believe these are from our second class trip.  Then, I remembered for it to count as a post in the Ultimate Blog Challenge, the post had to at least have 100 words.  This is my attempt to reach that minimum.

I have many pictures from my time abroad in Turkey.  The photographs I took paired with my journal entries, serve as a document away.  If I forget where the photographs take place, I can look at my journal and remind myself of the location.  The same works in reverse.  If I forget what a place looks like after reading my journal, I can look at my photographs and remember where my fond memories took place.  So glad I did both. 

These photographs of churches will just be the first installment of my church collection.  I originally chose these three because they meshed well together, it wasn't until I took a closer look that I realized they were just  different views of the same church.  Ha, they should look cohesive, if not I should be worried.  

The Great Grano Trattoria

It’s a beautiful thing making friends through friends.  After dinner at Grano Trattoria and a night out dancing, I can consider this girl a friend.  Nothing better than talking with friends over good food and drink.  When I walked in the side entrance, the aroma from the kitchen hit me immediately.  Too bad, I had a steak dinner (bacon-wrapped filet mignon and a baked potato) before coming. While everyone ordered their entrees, I ordered dessert.  The idea was to order two desserts, one while they ate their pasta and the other while they ate dessert. 

Originally, I had ordered the panna cotta and the tiramisu.  I started with the panna cotta and am glad I did.  I never had it before and all I knew about it was from the Food Network.  It was so rich and creamy, and the strawberry coulis was very fresh and not too sweet.  After eating the panna cotta and drinking a glass of Riesling, I was stuffed.  I was so full that I had to cancel the tiramisu. However, not so full as to not eat some chocolate hazelnut tart after my friend was done.  It was extremely rich, and the filling reminded me of a bittersweet ganache.

At dinner, we decided that this restaurant would be a nice place to go on a date because of the cozy atmosphere, the attentive waiters, and the good food.  The others ordered linguine with clams, pasta with sausage and tomato sauce, and a pizza.  All three dishes got rave reviews.  This will definitely be a place to return to, I can’t wait.

Anti-Portraiture?

I’ve never been a fan of portrait photography.  There is just something about a face taking an entire frame that I find off-putting.  Sure, a person can be either pretty or ugly but that’s it.  Typical portraits fail to move or intrigue me.

It wasn’t until my “Photography in Context” class that I was introduced to other forms of portrait photography.  Photographer Louanne Watley visited our class and showed us her portraits of nuns from Southern convents.  Her portraits were of their feet and told more than a shot of their faces ever could.  Although she was a bit all over the place and couldn’t describe her driving force, her collection spoke volumes that she could not. 

My time at the Steven Kasher gallery reminded of her work when I saw some portraits by Vivian Maier.  The ones that I was drawn to were shadow self-portraits, I believe.  I assume they were photographs of Maier because there was only one shadow.  I liked this different take on self-portraiture.  Also, there is just something intriguing about shadows.  An air of mystery.  Who is the person in the shadow?  Can I tell the time of day? So many questions to figure out.

It is Hot, Hot, Hot

Last week, my co-workers and I ordered pad thai from Spicy Shallot, a Thai restaurant in Woodside.  It was good, but the furthest thing from spicy.  The only hot sauce in the office was Sriracha, an Asian hot sauce that I had seen before but stayed away from.  My friends who have used it like super spicy food, so I figured it was not the move for me.  I’ve never been a fan of heat, I find that it takes away from the flavor and all I can taste is hot.  However, that day I decided to be adventurous.  Before I added it to my dish, I tasted the Sriracha solo.  Bad move.  My eyes started watering, my nose started running, and I started choking.  Even after all that, I added some to my pad thai.  It was a shock at first, but as I ate, I got used to the heat and started to enjoy it.  A few days later, I ordered it again.  The conference room we ate in was freezing, and the Sriracha warmed me right up.  Good move.

Spicy, but good in small quantities.

On Saturday, my boss ordered lunch for the office.  I can’t say what I ate exactly but it was delicious, until… Until, I almost died.  I just started my class, and came to the break room after everyone had already begun.  I passed my plate down the table and asked them to put some of everything on it.  As I was eating, I noticed something spicy.  It was a little hotter than I liked, but it was edible .  Then, I bit into something that set my mouth on fire.  I was choking, tearing, everything.  The boss laughed and said that’s what happens when you let people pick food for you.  Seeing that I was dying, another teacher cautioned me that one dish had burnt chili peppers and that I should avoid them.  It was almost a little too late, but at least I knew what to avoid on my plate.

Death! Avoid, avoid, avoid.

After my spice adventures of the past week, I will be staying away from all things spicy for some time to come.

Weegee: Naked City

Thursday night, I went to the opening reception of the Weegee: Naked City exhibition at the Steven Kasher gallery.  I was first introduced to Weegee in one of the photography classes that I took at Duke.  His gritty crime scene photos intrigued me.  I couldn’t believe his relationship with the NYPD – a photojournalist with a permit for a police-band radio.  Of course, there were the photographs of men in drag, dead bodies, and those arrested.  His manipulation of mug shots are cool, for lack of a better word, they resemble kaleidoscopic images.  I should figure out how to do that in the darkroom.

I had seen most of the crime and jailhouse photographs before but there were some collections I hadn’t seen, such as photos taken at a circus.  My favorite picture from the entire exhibit is of the back of an elephant.  It’s just butt, tail, and hind legs but I really liked it.  The texture of the elephant skin, the tonality, the jet-black background that made the elephant stand out.  There was such a quiet elegance to this photograph, which you wouldn’t assume for the backside of an animal. 

It was nice to walk around the gallery solo.  I didn’t have anyone slowing me down, and I was able to be in and out.  At times, I felt a little awkward typing into my cell phone, as if I wasn’t enjoying being there.  That wasn’t the case, I was just writing notes about the exhibit so that I had some information for my blog posts.  Seeing others talk about the photographs with their friends, made me miss critiquing photos with my photography class.  All the comments that I had about the use of lighting and shadows, and other photographic techniques I had to keep to myself.  Perhaps, I should think about inviting people out to my photographic excursions…

B-B-B-Bacon

A couple hours after telling my grandmother that I never felt more energized, I am completely exhausted.  It’s probably because I woke up earlier than the sun, but I like to think it’s a bacon induced coma.  I almost forgot how awesome bacon could be.  Tonight, I was on my own for dinner, which was fine with me because I wasn’t hungry.  I had no clue what to eat until I opened the freezer and saw the box of bacon.  Bingo!  Didn’t have much of a plan, all I knew was that if I ate anything tonight, it would be bacon.

I ended up making a broccoli, cheddar, and potato bowl that I topped with crispy bacon.  Potatoes fried in bacon grease = yum.  Add cheese and broccoli, even better.  My dinner bowl was a combination of my favorite foods.  I want to say this was a quick and easy meal but it took me a long time to make.  I needed to make sure the potato was cooked all the way through, nothing worse than a great tasting dish with undercooked potatoes.  All in all, the meal wasn’t too unhealthy.  I made sure that I had two servings of broccoli, and I kept the skin on the potatoes.  Honestly, there is no reason to try and rationalize this.  I ate what I wanted and enjoyed it, enough said.

Since I underestimated how much bacon grease the bacon would  produce, I had to drain the potatoes before I added the broccoli and cheese.  Now, I have almost a quarter cup of bacon fat chilling in my fridge.  I’m already planning what I can add it to – vegetables, eggs, meat, the possibilities are endless.  I did look up the health risks of using too much bacon fat, but it’s not as if I eat like this every day.  Also, I think it’s best to indulge a craving now to prevent over-indulgence in the future.

A 10 Year Love Affair with Crumbs

I’m officially obsessed with Crumbs cupcakes.  Yes, I know I’m late on the cupcake bandwagon.  There’s probably some other new trendy cupcake place now.  But, my love affair with

Crumbs started a long time ago.  I remember being in the seventh grade and a girl brought in cupcakes for her birthday.  They were vanilla cupcakes with colored vanilla frosting that was piped on in swirls.  At the time, I had no clue where these cupcakes came from; all I knew was that they were delicious.  It wasn’t until now that I pieced together that they were from Crumbs.

Ten years later, I had my second Crumbs cupcake.  I decided to buy some cupcakes for the office last week as an after the holidays treat.  Of course, they were a big hit.  I’m pretty sure I earned some brownie points. (Pun definitely intended).  My cupcake of choice was Avalanche, a vanilla cupcake filled and frosted with vanilla frosting and covered in white chocolate shavings.  I very rarely like store-bought cakes but these I really enjoy. The cupcake was so huge that it took me 2 days to finish eating it.  I cannot wait to treat myself to Crumbs again.  I know which flavor I will be getting.  Hopefully, ten years won’t lapse between my next visit.

        



The Avalanche



Bittersweet Kinder-photos

Yesterday, I found out that I would no longer be teaching kindergarten.  I had been feeling pushed out of my classroom and the boss made it official yesterday.  It’s not that I’m a bad teacher or the children don’t like me, it’s that the 1^st grade teacher is going on maternity leave soon and someone needs to cover her class.  I was hoping the new teacher would take it over, but not.  Ugh.  I definitely teared up a bit, and was grateful that I had the time to walk outside.  I didn’t want to breakdown in front of the kids, so that was good.  Who knew I’d care so much about these kids? I sure didn’t.  I don’t even really like kids; at least I don’t think I do.

Anyway, this post is supposed to be about photography.  I finally brought my Holga to the school.  I took a group photo of the students who cooperated, candids, and portraits of the kids who wanted their own photos.  They were so excited to see a camera and had so many questions about what I was doing.  Why was I looking into the camera?  What did I see?  I was able to show the curious students the different parts of the camera, and  how to take a picture.  I didn’t think to show them how to advance the film or how to use the rudimentary zoom functions.  I’d say they could learn next time, but there won’t be a next time. 

The funniest part of this sad moment was when I let the students use the camera.  They wanted to take self-portraits.  I do not know how these pictures will turn out.  I don’t even think they took a picture of their entire face.  I can’t wait to have the film developed and show the students the photos that they took.  Basically, I’m using any excuse to visit my former class.  Oh , the hazards of leaving teachers.

Comforting Cauli

My grandmother used to make a roasted cauliflower dish that we all loved, but only got to have as a treat.  She would take a whole head of cauliflower, lightly steam it then smother it with ‘dijonaise’ and cheddar cheese, then roast it in the oven.  The smell was ridiculous.

I was thinking about this cauliflower since Sunday.  I finally made a quick after-work version of it.  I used frozen cauliflower and made it in the microwave.  It wasn’t quite the same, but it hit the spot.  Not the most healthful thing, but I did manage to put away a whole box of cauliflower. That’s 3.5 servings of vegetables I wouldn’t have had otherwise.  It was the perfect ending to a cold day.

Here’s the quick and easy recipe:

•          10 oz frozen cauliflower
•          2 heaping tbsp mayo
•          1 tbsp mustard
•          2 oz cheddar cheese

1. Combine mayo and mustard in bowl.

2. Add cauliflower and microwave for 3 minutes.

3. Stir and add cheddar cheese.  Microwave for 2-3 more minutes.

4. Enjoy.

Turkish Delight: Urgup Evi

Going to the Cave Hotel was the first Duke in Istanbul trip we took as a class.  I have so many fond memories of our stay there.  Breakfast and dinner were phenomenal. Our teacher bought wine for us. I tried raki, not a fan of its strong anise flavor.  I don't know how people drink it.  At the bottom of the mountain was a wine bar where we danced with the locals.  All in all, a great colorful time. Here are some early morning photographs:

Smoky Pea Soup

No photo of this soup.  I made this soup in the weekend after Thanksgiving and did not think about taking a picture to blog about it.  I was in the mood for split pea soup, but didn’t have any and was too broke to buy some.  Yep, I could not afford split peas. Thank goodness I am no longer in that place.  Anyway, the only peas in my apartment were frozen.  After some online research, gotta love Google, I found out that I could make a soup with frozen peas.  The following recipe is something I came up with on my own after being inspired by others’ recipes.

•          2 boxes of frozen sweet peas
•          ¼ cup onion, chopped
•          2 slices bacon, chopped
•          1 tbsp Better than Bullion* chicken
•          5 cups of water
•          Season salt and pepper to taste
•          1 medium baked potato, flesh only
•          1 pinch of fenugreek

1.  Sautee the bacon and onion together in a medium pot.  

2.  Put the peas, water, Better than Bullion, potato, and spices into the pot and bring to a boil. 

3.  Once boiling, reduce the flame until soup simmers.  Let simmer until the peas are cooked through.

4.  Cool slightly, and pour soup into a blender.  Blend until the soup is completely smooth.

5.  Pour back into pot and let simmer if soup is too thin.  Cook until desired thickness.

6. Enjoy!

*I have been using Better than Bullion in all my soups because it adds great flavor and is easier than making chicken stock. By all means use chicken stock if readily available.

The fenugreek gave the soup tremendous depth and a delicious aroma.  The flavor paired well with the smokiness of the bacon.  I got the fenugreek from a spice seminar at the Queens Public Library. Unfortunately, someone threw away my spice.  *cough* Grandma *cough*

Photos of My Babies

Tomorrow should be a good day for my kindergarten class.  I decided it would be picture day.   I am finally settling in and want to make the classroom my own. What better way than to have pictures of the students up?

Originally, I was going to take the pictures myself.  Then, I thought it would be cool to get the kids involved.  I will have the students take the photos.  I am not sure if the children have used a film camera before, so this will be exciting for them.  They should love being in charge of their class photos.  I cannot wait to see how they take the lead and if they will make funny faces and poses.

Good thing I have all this color film to use up.   I did not know what to do with it, especially because I am not a fan of color photographs.  I am not sure if I want to finish my roll of film and start a fresh roll with the students or not.  I do not know if I have enough exposures left.  I guess I’ll see tomorrow.  I could just check now, but knowing me, I’ll wait until I’m heading out the door in the morning to grab my Holga.

Yes, I know the title of my post is misleading because there are no pictures.  Did you really think I’d exploit my babies and put a picture of them on the internet?  Not gonna happen.  However, it is about taking pictures of my students.  So, not exactly misleading.

I wonder if I can file an expense report for film processing…

Turkey and Dumpling* Soup

Unfortunately, when I made the soup I did not take a picture so there’s no record of how awesome it looked. Not to toot my own horn, toot toot, but when I heated the soup at work my coworkers said it smelled delicious.  And trust, it tasted delicious too.

Also, this is going to be one of those recipe posts that food bloggers tell you not to write.  When I cook for my family or myself, I do not measure anything.  I eyeball measurements and taste as I go along.  Especially, when I’m making soup from leftovers.  This may not be the ‘right’ way to cook, but it works for me.   Then again, there is no right or wrong way to cook.  I am just happy to be in the kitchen. 

•          5 oz of mixed frozen vegetables
•          Turkey: 1 back, 2 wings, 1 leg. Meat pulled off the bone
•          1 heaping tea spoon of Better than Bullion chicken base
•          Season salt, salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste
•          ½ cup Complete pancake mix
•          1 tbsp butter, melted
•          ¼ cup milk

1.  Dump the first four ingredients into a soup pot and fill with water until the turkey back is fully submerged.  Bring to a boil. The soup will look a bit pale and watery, but don’t worry.  It will adopt a creamy color and consistency once the dumplings have been added.

2. Combine the pancake mix, butter, and milk.  Drop by spoonfuls into the soup, once the soup tastes as desired.

3. Enjoy!

* The dumplings disappear when the soup is reheated.  The soup still tastes great, but if you want to eat a dumpling eat the soup the first day you make it.

Please No Photos

Two days ago, I was talking with a good friend about the lack of photos we have of New Years Eve.   Going out this year was big for us because it was the first time either of us did not have to ring in the New Year with family.  You would think we would take pictures to commemorate this occasion, but that would make too much sense.  I took more photos at the party I threw for my parents NYE 2011. 

This made me think about the digital vs. film debate and color vs. B&W.  Most people use digital cameras so I guess digital vs. film has become an irrelevant debate.  I miss the tactile nature of film photography, although when I get my film processed I get a CD made instead of prints.  Then, there’s the color vs. B&W debate.   Winter is made for B&W photography because of the starkness and the lack the vibrant colors.  However, there’s the past holiday season.  Everyone goes out dressed to the nines.  Color photography would capture all the glitz and the glam with their subtle or not so subtle nuances better than B&W.  Also, B&W photos of people partying seem a bit too trendy and phony, as if the photographer is trying too hard to class up the event.  Clearly, this does not apply to all pictures but the ones by amateurs on social networking sites. 

Perhaps by the end of this challenge I will a definitive answer to the debates and figure out why I do not have many photos.  Until then.

Procrastination

I haven’t written a blog post in what feels like months.  I kept putting it off waiting for the perfect time or the perfect event.  I read about an Ultimate Blog Challenge and decided that it would be the kick in the pants that I needed.  The goal is to write 31 blog posts in 31 days – a post a day for the month of January.  Clearly, I haven’t been following the rules as we’re 8 days into January and this is my first post.  I plan on being right on track by tomorrow, so yes that means writing 8 posts today.  That’s right, for someone who’s been averaging 1-2 posts a month, I plan on writing 8 posts in a day.  No biggie.  That’s what I get for being a procrastinator. 

The reason why I chose to blog was not to be a writer or a ‘blogger’ per se, but to make sure that I do the things that I love.  I can’t remember the last time I cooked for fun or took out my Holga and SLR to take pictures.   All I do is work and sleep.  I am hoping that this challenge will get me used to taking the time to enjoy myself.