Snowpocalypse

No, there is still no snow in Boulder, but the mountains are getting hammered. 2.5 feet in Crested Butte. In one day. How is that possible? We were up for an epic weekend at Vail and ABasin. Previous trips to Vail have been pretty frumpy, but we paid to park in the garage to avoid waiting and hour for the stupid bus, and were glad that we did. The back bowls were big, epic, and very fluffy. I think a day like that on my birthday excuses us from not having snow this Christmas. Matt and I both forgot our alpines at home, so we got a serious thigh workout (on my new fat teles!) Looks to be a good season ahead.


Even though the weather hasn't been festive down here, we're been having a lovely time making ornaments, baking cookies, and being with friends. I had a group of ladies over for a cookie baking party, and was pretty impressed with our output. Cornflake wreaths were the most photogenic, though the mint-frosted red velvets were lovely too. We've recently become enamored of a four-person board game called Blokus, which consistently challenges our spatial skills and our friendships. Somehow, we got the hairbrained idea that we should try to fit all the pieces on the board following the game rules. The boys were enthralled for about an hour until we got this final result:

Pooped from exertion

I'll admit, I'm not really into Christmas. I love spending time with family, but the materialism really gets to me, and the religious appeal blows right by me. It does usually mean empty slopes. We've been trying our hardest to get people to NOT get us presents because our 700 sq. ft. apartment has about reached is carrying capacity. Our tree (which lives in a box of rocks because we don't have a tree stand) adds to the festivity, but it will be alone for Christmas. Off to Australia tonight! We're hitting Tasmania for some backpacking, Cairns for some diving, and Sydney for city culture. And food. Packing camping equipment into two small backpacks has eluded us, so we'll be taking the huge ones. We're bringing 10 pounds of dried foods (hooray for the bulk aisle), as we'll be arriving on Christmas and are not confident that we'll find fuel before we hit the trail.

I've been sending family delicious things in lieu of more formal gifts this year. I've always thought fruitcake was kind of gross, but my sister and dad think its heavenly, so I made a batch to send Amanda for finals week. Even though I'm not usually a fan, I found this recipe pretty delicious (maybe because I accidentally doubled the sugar. . .). Have a lovely holiday.


Fruitcake

• 1 (8 oz) tub candied cherries
• 1 (8 oz) tub candied citron
• 1 cup raisins
• 1/2 cup delicious booze of your choice (brandy, rum, etc.)
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup almond meal (or grind your own almonds)
  
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ginger
  
• 4 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1/2 cup molasses
  
• 5 cups pecans

1. Preheat oven to 275F
2. Grease two 9x5 loaf pans and line with parchment paper. Grease the paper too.
   
3. Soaks fruits in your booze and let sit overnight or longer.
4. Mix together flour, almond meal, powder, salt, and spices. Pour onto fruit and mix in until coated.
5. Beat eggs until frothy and beat in the sugar and molasses. Add to the dry mixture and stir until incorporated.
   
6. Stir in the pecans.
7. Spoon into the prepared pans and bake for 1.5 hours.
   

Finally the season for our plates,
though we use them all year round.

Dreaming of a White Christmas

The snow has been a little disappointing down here this year. We've only had snow on the ground for a couple of days so far, and this week has been pushing 60 degrees. Unfazed, we took a trip into the woods this weekend to search for the perfect Christmas tree. Matt and I hadn't planned on getting one, but once we got there, all the trees were so charming, we couldn't resist. And thankfully, there was snow. Getting our picture taken with Smokey was a highlight. Amelia is in Uganda, so we had to add her in later.

Our tree is little.

It is a little odd having only two classes, as everyone else is scrambling to get things done and I'm lazing around as usual. We're looking forward to 2 weeks in Australia over Christmas and New Years. Which means no White Christmas again this year. We had a good time at home over Thanksgiving, and visited a lot of family. Amanda is living on the same dorm floor that I lived on my freshman year, so we paid her a visit and enjoyed nostalgic Middlebrook cuisine.

My parents vacationed in Istanbul last month and brought me back some saffron. I haven't used saffron much, but it's pretty and smells good, so I figured I'd better find something to use it in.


I'm not big into raw vegetables. Maybe it's my Chinese side coming out. Unless it's a very well-made salad, I avoid raw vegetables as often as possible. I like my veggies soggy, salty, and warm. So in honor of that sentiment, I made this dish. I served mine with sauteed spinach and a little mushroom sauce. Mmmmm, comfort food.


Creamy Saffron Polenta
adapted from Bon Appetit

• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced onion
  
• 2 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 tsp saffron threads
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup dry polenta (or cornmeal)
  
• 1/2 cup frozen corn, thawed

1. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan. Saute the onions until golden.
2. Add the broth, saffron, and salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and stir in polenta and whisk constantly until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Simmer for 10 minutes (5 if using cornmeal), whisking occasionally.
   
4. Meanwhile, process the corn in a food processor until chunky. Stir into polenta after 5 minutes. Serve warm.
   

Thermos envy

Matt has had this thermos for years. It's the perfect size to bring a hot beverage to work in, and it keeps your drink warm all day. I have to admit, I've been a little jealous. Until one of my early weekend morning garage sale runs this fall, when I found an epic thermos for $3. This baby holds over a quart of warm deliciousness and probably will keep it warm until the apocalypse. The weather forcast for my Ultimate games last weekend was not too favorable, so I decided it was time to bring the big guy into service.

I've always had a sort of love/hate affair with hot chocolate. As a non-coffee drinker and only occasional tea drinker (because I feel like its good for me), hot chocolate has always been my drink of choice. I grew up drinking Swiss Miss out of the huge carton, and frequently ordered hot chocolate when my family went out to dinner. But unfortunately, there is a wide range of qualities. There's the gas station hot chocolate that tastes awesome for the first half, until you get to the cloying, grainy bits. There's the chalet hot chocolate that tastes good because you're freezing. And there's the hot chocolate at home from a mix that you stir into hot water. I didn't realize just how chocolate-confused I was until I lived with some French girls in Beijing, who were appalled that I made hot chocolate from water and a mix. My friend from Brittany then proceded to make me hot chocolate with whole milk. Epiphany! Milk from dried milk powder is nasty. Thus, hot chocolate made with milk powder (i.e. those from a mix to stir into water) will be nasty as well. My second epiphany occured in a Swiss grocery store, where the only hot chocolate mixes instruct the user to mix them into milk. So mix + milk is ok.

On another note, I think it's a scam that food companies can sell some things in boxes when it is so easy to make them yourself. Salad dressings, brownie mix, spaghetti sauce. Same for hot chocolate mix. So I set out to make my own hot chocolate mix to be mixed into milk for steamy cups of deliciousness. I made this recipe this weekend for my Ultimate tournaments, and it's a winner.


Homemade Hot Chocolate Mix

• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• dash cinnamon and/or cayenne

1. Muddle it all up in a bowl or bag and store
2. To serve, mix 2 Tbsp into 1 cup warm milk.

A change in seasons

We had our first snow of the year this week. I love the snow. It's peaceful, silent, and it reminds me of home. We went up to the mountains and took one run at the resort last weekend. Four of us up from Boulder on our teles. Bunch of hippies. I'm looking forward to ski season this year with the hopes that the snow doesn't suck like it did last year.

Matt started a new job this week, and is happy to be working with better people in a more positive environment. And in a field that people actually give a damn about. I guest taught two lectures to a roomful of young engineers, which was quite rewarding and entertaining.

I will be home for a whole week over Thanksgiving. As I get three different food magazines and religiously peruse food blogs, I've come up with a lot of new-fangled holiday recipes to test out on our 30 or so relatives who pop in. I love this hobby.

I've been baking every week for seminar (it beats buying the crap from the supermarket) and have the enviable task every Tuesday to bake anything I want for 30-40 people. It's been great for my stress levels. We had some stout leftover because no one actually likes stout. It turns out that stout and chocolate are a delicious combo. And as an added bonus, we got a new camera in the mail, so I don't have to turn it off and on between every photo. Score! I got an awesome new camera and was so excited to put up pics from it, but the SD card was bunked. So here's a lovely pic from my building to make you jealous that you don't live in Boulder.

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes
adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Makes 20-24 cupcakes

• 1 cup stout
• 1 cup butter
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 cups flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp salt
  
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup sour cream

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour cupcake tin.
   
2. Bring the stout and butter to a simmer over medium hear. Whisk in cocoa powder. Set aside to cool slightly.
3. Mix together dry ingredients in a small bowl.
4. Whisk together eggs and sour cream in a large bowl until thoroughly mixed. Whisk the chocolate stout mixture into the eggs and cream. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet and mix until combined.
   
5. Spoon into greased pan (3/4 full) and bake for about 18 minutes.
6. Let cool completely before frosting.
   

Fun with fondant

I've been neglectful. And my excuses are lame. I went up to my friend Jen's house last night and learned to make arepas (Venuzuelan corn cake/sandwich things) while she photographed and blogged it. So here I am, inspired.

Life has been a little rough, as I try to get my PhD project started while not really having a good reason to do one in the first place. Whatever. I'm here, I'm having fun and learning. What else do I need? Sometimes, all I need is an attitude adjustment. Or baking therapy. In the meantime, I've been playing video games, sightseeing Denver, elk bugling listening in Rocky Mountain National Park, and running with a group of lovely ladies.

My awesome running pals, post-half

I made some fondant in August, and it's been sitting in my freezer pondering its fate for the last two months. The original plan was to make a "wedding cake" for our first anniversary of Colorado life, a la common-law marriage, but that didn't happen. AP is having a birthday potluck tomorrow, so I figured the time is now. For fondant, that is, not weddings.

I asked AP what kind of cake she was into, and she said "all kinds." So I consulted my ridiculous baking book by Marcy Goldman which has absurdly decadent recipes. Perfect for sharing with a house-full of party-minded people. Flipping through, I was entranced by her Italian Cream Wedding Cake. Maybe it was the long name with the pleasant associations. Italy. Wedding. Cream. Maybe it was the pastry cream, which I am particularly partial too. Actually, this is a fake-out. My co-baker and I decided that the fluffy, divine creamy layers wouldn't stand up to the abuse of fondant, so we changed to chocolate layer cake. You can make this with just frosting, or top it with fondant afterwards.
Chocolate Layer Cake
adapted from A Passion for Baking

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 3/4 cups sugar
• 3 large eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 3/4 cup sour cream

1. Preheat to 350F. Grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans.
   
2. Cream butter and sugar. Stir in eggs and vanilla. Whisk together dry ingredients in separate bowl and add alternately with buttermilk and sour cream. Blend together until incorporated. Pour into pans
3. Bake 35-40 minutes. Cool in pan
4. When cool, frost decorate

Cream Cheese Frosting

• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• milk as needed for consistency

1. Mix everything together, and adjust consistency with milk and powdered sugar.
2. Frost middle, sides, and tops of layer cake.
   

if looked really nasty before the fondant went on. eiw.
but better after, if a little baby-showerish.

Just Peachy

My family came to visit me last weekend, so I showed them the joys of Boulder before we went up to the mountains. He hiked Chautauqua, ate at Brasserie TenTen, went to the library book store, and explored vintage clothing stores. I think they like it here.

We were planning to spend the weekend in Summit County, but as the timing worked out, I suggested we take a day to go to Palisade for their peach festival. Palisade is on the Western Slope of the Rockies, and might have the best peaches anywhere (take that, Gerogia!). It was a beautiful drive out there. I did somehow expect the Western slope to be green and lush, and it turned out to be just as arid as the East. There's something about the wind coming down the canyon that makes for mild weather in Palisade and ed the proliferation of so many orchards and vineyards. We visited an orchard with beautiful tasty peaches and took a tour on their horse-drawn carriage. Buff horses. And they had peach ice cream for us as we finished.

The festival in town was also a delight. They had a fair with booths and hot dogs (they seem necessary for a fair atmosphere) and various peach products. There was a recipe contest in which contestants submitted a peach food item that was judged. And the best part: they sold sample tickets so that bystanders could taste the goodies. We definitely got five each. Amanda went for the cakey items, so her plate looks gorgeous and appetizing.

I, however, went for the gooey, cobbler-like treats, so my plate looks a little vomitous, but was amazingly delicious.

We got a half-bushel (25 pounds) of peaches on our way out of town and are still eating our way through them. I've been meaning to bake with them, but haven't gotten around to it/haven't figured out who is going to eat it. But I'll make something peachy soon.

Hobbies and hole hweat

I've come to the conclusion that I need a hobby, as Matt spends most of his free time playing with making mobile games. Knitting came up as a likely candidate. I've knit in the past, but usually find myself to restless to take pleasure in it. So last night I decided to knit a cabled hat, and throughout 5 hours of BBC Pride and Prejudice, I started and finished it. (pattern here) Pretty good, eh? Other candidates for hobby include guitar and painting. We'll see what I actually get to.


A friend had us up to her house in the mountains the weekend to watch the meteor shower. I thought I'd bake something to share for breakfast, but in my laziness refused to run out to replenish our supply of white flour. So the only option was whole wheat. Or flourless chocolate cake (why didn't I think of that at the time?) Marcy Goldman's "A Passion for Baking" has become my go to book when I need to make something ridiculously delicious for a crowd who isn't watching their calories (there's a brownie recipe with marshmallows, raisins, dates, oreos, chocolate chunks, pecans, crisp rice and almost as much butter as flour). There's also a section in the back with recipes that may or may not be actually healthy, but they usually lack something considered unhealthy or include something considered healthy. This is one such. She definitely goes for the kitchen sink approach, but these guys definitely garnered some compliments.

Breakfast Scones
from A Passion for Baking

• zest of one orange
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup oil or butter
• 1/4 cup honey
• 2 Tbsp maple syrup
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
  
• 1 cup granola
• 1/3 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup cornmeal
• 1/4 cup sesame or sunflower seeds
• 1/4 cup chopped almonds
  
• 1/2 cup raisins
• 3/4 cup frozen berries or chopped apple
  

1. Heat oven to 400. Line a cookie sheer/baking pan with parchment paper or grease it.
   
2. Blend zest, bp, bs, salt, cinnamon, brown sugar, and flour in a bowl. Drizzle in oil or cut in butter.
3. Add honey, syrup, eggs, and 3/4 cup yogurt or buttermilk. Mix halfway, then fold in granola, oats, cornmeal, seeds, nuts, and fruit. Stir and add more dairy if it does not hold together.
   
4. Pat half the dough into a 3/4 inch thick round and cut into six scones. Repeat with other half. Arrange scones on baking pan and bake them for 17022 minutes. You can brush with milk or beaten egg to make them more shiny if you like.