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Wednesday, March 20, 2013

Elevator Speeches

As I waited for the elevator in my apartment this afternoon, a little boy (probably around 4 years old) and his mom came up. This conversation was too good not to share...

Boy: Why are we going upstairs, too?
Mom: Because that's where Nick lives
Boy: I knew that
Mom: Then why did you ask?
The little boy then proceeds to explain how when there's a fire it's better to take the stairs than the elevator. Smart kid.

Then once we're in the elevator...

Boy: Brrr, I'm cold!
Mom: Well, I told you to put your sweater on.
Boy: No, it's warm in here.

Then as I got off the elevator...

Boy: Is she leaving?
Mom: Does she look like she's leaving?
Repeat the last conversation in various versions as I walk down the hall. Too. Funny.

Kids just say the darndest things! What made this even better? He was wearing a fedora!!! And for those of you that may somehow magically remember this, this was a different little kid than the 4-year-old, fedora-wearing cutie that I saw when I first moved in. So many little people in fedoras saying hilarious things! OMG I can't handle the cuteness!!!

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

This St. Patrick's Day I decided to host a few friends and take on some pretty awesome culinary adventures. Here's how it all turned out...

Mission one: Irish Carbomb Cupcakes (because I saw another blogger do this, I feel the need to say that I have nothing to do with the name of the drink these tasty little treats are named after). I made these for the first time with a friend last year and they are absolutely INCREDIBLE. Georgetown Cupcake has nothing on these babies. Made with Guinness baked into the chocolate cake, filled with a Jameson chocolate ganache, and topped with a Bailey's butter cream frosting, these cupcakes are probably the best ones I've ever made (and eaten). I once again got to enjoy baking them with a friend/roommate (because we all know baking with friends is the most fun anyone could have) and they once again turned out perfectly. Feast your eyes on the deliciousness:

 (Maybe next time I should take some more artsy close-ups. Oh well...)


If you'd like the full recipe just let me know (or you can be really fancy and check out my Pinterest. Self-marketing, woo!). Everything's from scratch so it's a bit of work, but SO WORTH IT. 

After the cupcakes were done I may or may not have sat in the middle of the kitchen floor, completely wiped. Fighting off the last bits of a cold + not enough sleep + likely dehydration and low blood sugar = cooking exhaustion. But I was not to be defeated! There was more to be done. 

After some lunch, a shower break, and some Gatorade, it was time for......

Mission two: Corned beef and cabbage. I'd never actually made this traditional dish before, but it was about time I gave it a shot. I had to make a double batch, so I ended up doing one with a point cut brisket and the other with a flat cut brisket. You can make the meal with either, but I had heard so many different opinions on which was better that I just decided to try both. I figured the whole meal would go one of two ways. It would either

1. Go above and beyond in scrumptious deliciousness 

OR

2. Turn out to be a Bridget Jones-style disaster and somehow turn blue. 

Luckily, it turned out to be the former. It even got rave reviews from all my guests. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised by just how delectable it turned out. The flat cut was awesome, but I think general consensus was that the cheaper point cut was even better (more fat = more flavor). I also took some advice from one of my friends and flipped each brisket part of the way through cooking for better flavor, and I'm guessing that made a big difference in the positive results. I didn't get a picture of the point cut, but here's a sample of the tasty flat cut: 

(Yes I promise there was cabbage as well, it was just in a different dish)

Take all that combined with a few drinks, Boondock Saints, and most importantly some great friends, and you've got a really great St. Patrick's Day :)


Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Cooking is My Anti-Drug

I always get really annoyed when people post things on the internet to draw negative attention to themselves. The typical "Woe is me" Facebook status, the vague "This is the worst day ever" tweet...and just to throw in a high school flashback, the paragraph-long away messages on AIM ranting on about how terrible life is and how we're so emo (we all did it. It's OK, we can just admit it and move on). I tell you this so that you don't take the following paragraphs the wrong way. I am not an internet ranter, but I have to tell you a bit about my sudden bad mood this afternoon so that you can have a better appreciation for the happy ending to my story.

I've been in a pretty good mood lately; my typical perky and bubbly self, successfully annoying my friend and coworker with my peppiness. But we all have our moments, and for whatever reason, as I was walking from the metro back to my apartment after work today, a little thought popped into my head that made me feel a bit out of sorts. That of course lead to another thought, and then another, and another, until a swirl of negative emotion had engulfed me like a venus fly trap and I had to keep myself from collapsing in a ball of tears on the side of Rockville Pike. I won't torture you all with what the thoughts were because 1. I hate internet rants 2. I PROMISE it's nothing serious 3. it's actually all very silly and 4. this swirl of emotion was most likely fueled in large part by PMS.



Still, fast-forwarding about an hour and a half to when I had finished my errands, I found myself back in my apartment, curled up on my bed, wallowing in self-pity. I still hadn't eaten dinner, had more to get done, and I wondered how I would ever get out of this funk or feel happiness again. I figured I would just lie there, soaking up my misery, and forget about dinner for the night.....

......wait a second. Pause and rewind. I hadn't eaten dinner. Suddenly the light of truth washed over me and a glimmer of hope had returned! When I don't have food in my system, any bad mood gets exponentially worsened to the point where it probably makes my future husband quiver in fear already, and we haven't even met yet (maybe he gets an innate feeling of dread/terror that he can't trace the source of but knows he should be afraid). So I figured it would probably be a good idea to get up and get some food. I would just heat up some Stouffer's mac 'n' cheese, chill for a few moments, then casually go back to trying to figure out my life.

But then suddenly, another idea: Don't be silly, Heather. You should actually cook something. Cooking makes you happy! That's right...cooking DOES make me happy! Not only can it be oddly calming, but it would also give me something else to focus on and think about. I decided to go for it. I didn't have many bare ingredients to work with, but I had just the right ones to make a quick and easy meal. I even got to toss vegetables in the frying pan (I'm practicing a new skill)! Sure enough, I was already feeling a little better as I started to make my veggie and egg scramble, then felt much better as I sat down to eat it (while watching an episode of Band of Brothers). It was a very simple meal to make, but it was just what I needed.


(Cooking makes me almost as happy as Spongebob flipping Krabby Patties. Almost.)

So the moral of the story is - cooking is my anti-drug. I don't know why I didn't realize this sooner, especially given the fact that yesterday I excitedly accepted the challenge to prep and bake cookies in just over an hour (a challenge that I thoroughly enjoyed AND successfully completed. I know, I'm a baller). I know that some nights I'll just be too tired to cook and will let myself curl up with an insta-dinner and a glass of wine, but I think I should really try to take my stress out in the kitchen more often. I love cooking, and it turns out it's one of the many things that helps keep me sane. And all my loved ones should love it, too, since they 1. occasionally get to reap the benefits in the form of free food and 2. get a break from having to deal with my insanity. I think that means it's time to have more cooking adventures...Bon apetit!


(I just couldn't resist putting this one in here)



Ron Burgundy pic from http://losingweightinthecity.com/2012/05/serious-reach-the-beach-withdrawal/
Spongebob pic from http://awordsmithsbrainworks.com/2012/01/22/an-undefined-number-of-reasons-in-no-particular-order-about-why-i-envy-spongebob-squarepants/
Cooking with wine pic from http://www.someecards.com/usercards/viewcard/MjAxMi04M2MyZjY1ZmY0NzQ1MTBk