I have.
Upcoming post: Thanksgiving Break
11.29.2010
11.22.2010
Creme Brulee - Round 1
I need to explain to you how easy it is to make a Creme Brulee because it is SO easy!
Ready?
1/3 c. White Sugar
4 egg yolks
2 c. Cream (Heavy Whipping Cream)
1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Scald the Cream & Vanilla on low heat (med-low if your stove is like mine). You just want the cream to warm and the vanilla to combine with the cream. No boiling, yeah? Mix the egg yolks and the sugar. While waiting on the cream boil water, or start that handy hot pot you've got laying around from when you weren't supposed to have cooking gadgets in the dorms... I mean... Yeah. When Vanilla Cream is warmed, add some to the egg mixture and stir to temper the eggs. This means that when you add the rest of the Cream it will not cook the eggs. Mix the rest of the cream in to the eggs and sugar, being careful to not add too much air. Portion out the cream in to your ramekins, filling each to about the top. Place in a shallow baking dish or on a cake pan. Fill pan halfway up the ramekins with boiling water - Do not get any in to the ramekins! Bake for 30-35 min at 325. Test by gently shaking one ramekin, it should look like pudding - slightly moving but not liquid. Take them out of the pan, allow to cool on a wire rack and when they are cool enough to move, cover with plastic wrap and put them in the fridge. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. When ready to serve, cover tops with sugar (I used Turbinado) and torch! White sugar may burn quicker but I really loved the Turbinado. Serve with Raspberry Sauce and fresh berries for instant Ooh's & Aah's from the boyfriends parents :)
See? Easy.
Scott and I taking turns burning the sugar.... Maybe one day we'll both end up in the same photo. Until then, this will have to do. Also, thats Megs in the background (Scotts Sister, My co-worker & friend, Basically 1/2 of the masterminds behind Scott & I)
Once served, they were gone in a matter of minutes. Its easy, pretty close to fool-proof once you get the hang of it, and looks like one of those "big deal" desserts that takes time, skill and money but no, you just need to find a boy to buy you fun kitchen gadgets :)
Ready?
1/3 c. White Sugar
4 egg yolks
2 c. Cream (Heavy Whipping Cream)
1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
Scald the Cream & Vanilla on low heat (med-low if your stove is like mine). You just want the cream to warm and the vanilla to combine with the cream. No boiling, yeah? Mix the egg yolks and the sugar. While waiting on the cream boil water, or start that handy hot pot you've got laying around from when you weren't supposed to have cooking gadgets in the dorms... I mean... Yeah. When Vanilla Cream is warmed, add some to the egg mixture and stir to temper the eggs. This means that when you add the rest of the Cream it will not cook the eggs. Mix the rest of the cream in to the eggs and sugar, being careful to not add too much air. Portion out the cream in to your ramekins, filling each to about the top. Place in a shallow baking dish or on a cake pan. Fill pan halfway up the ramekins with boiling water - Do not get any in to the ramekins! Bake for 30-35 min at 325. Test by gently shaking one ramekin, it should look like pudding - slightly moving but not liquid. Take them out of the pan, allow to cool on a wire rack and when they are cool enough to move, cover with plastic wrap and put them in the fridge. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. When ready to serve, cover tops with sugar (I used Turbinado) and torch! White sugar may burn quicker but I really loved the Turbinado. Serve with Raspberry Sauce and fresh berries for instant Ooh's & Aah's from the boyfriends parents :)
See? Easy.
Scott and I taking turns burning the sugar.... Maybe one day we'll both end up in the same photo. Until then, this will have to do. Also, thats Megs in the background (Scotts Sister, My co-worker & friend, Basically 1/2 of the masterminds behind Scott & I)
Once served, they were gone in a matter of minutes. Its easy, pretty close to fool-proof once you get the hang of it, and looks like one of those "big deal" desserts that takes time, skill and money but no, you just need to find a boy to buy you fun kitchen gadgets :)
11.21.2010
I woke up this morning feeling like P. Diddy
Okay maybe not P. Diddy but this morning has been super productive. Ive loved it because yesterday was far from productive, I basically just went to walmart and brought Scott a "get better" bag with lots of goodies in it since he was feeling sick. This morning, though, was great! I woke up and made some banana bread for starters. I bought bananas yesterday just for this but I thought I would have a few days since they were yellow, well this morning they were nice and brown so I made some yummy banana bread. I can say yummy because its a pretty fool proof recipe and I am eating some of it right now :)
After that I started on the creme brulee. Scott and I havent started our "no sugar" ...thing yet but we decided Sundays would for sure be our day off (since you cant go out and buy things, youd have to just deal with what you have in the house - scott's reasoning) and it is Sunday, and he bought me a creme brulee set so I am taking advantage. It smells like Banana Bread and Creme Brulee (very vanilla cream) in my house - Oh my, Good!
On top of the cooking I have vacuumed the apartment, folded laundry, taken out the trash and recycling, put on and taken off a face mask :), and done some general tidying up.
And now, I have Ward Conference, Home Teachers coming after church, and some other odds and ends I'd like to do. But, just as a re-cap, I knocked out half of my 10 point to-do list in 3 hours.
My Creme Brulee Set :-)
11.20.2010
This post brought to you by the Creepy Radio Shack Employee
I havent been able to find my cord for my camera and therefore have not uploaded photos since Halloween!! I was doing some shopping today and decided I needed to fix it and went to Radio Shack to see if they had a card reader. The guy handed one to me and then proceeded to mess up the check out process so bad, it took two employees and at least fifteen minutes to get me out of there. He kept asking me about school, where I was from, what my Thanksgiving plans were - I pulled the old CTR Ring Switch, moving it from my right to my left hand, and trying desperately to be overly obvious about the little band on my left ring finger. Yes, I really do that sometimes. Yes, it works.
BUT - Because of him I now have photos!! And I want to show them to you :-)
Halloween @ SVU - Senior Year :)
I need to boast just a tad. Mal and I have had some sweet costumes over the years. Freshman year we were two of five "Skittles" - purple (me) and green (mal). Sophomore year she was Ghetto Barbie while I was Soccer Barbie. Junior Year I was Donatello, and she was Leonardo (complete with sweet shells). This year I was set on being a Bumblebee (with a tu-tu. dont ask where I got the idea, I dont know, I just wanted to make a tu-tu). Mallory was a Muse (think Hercules) with one of her roomates. It was a fun night :)
Charlie Manuel visits SVU
Charlie Manuel, manager of the Phillies is a Buena Vista native and came back to visit and for a forum. I really didnt follow much of what he said because he was speaking buena vistian but it was a decent time. This is Mal with one of the signs they put on our chairs to wave when he came in to the arena.
This is Scott.
He's the boyfriend.
[ :-) ]
I made pulled pork a friday or two ago which happens to combine two of his favorite things - Meat & Sauce. This boy loves Sauce. I think these two pictures sum him up pretty well.
My birthday present from Sam. Kahlua Chocolates :-)
I told Mom about these and she insisted that they had
alcohol in them. I told her that I read the package at least
three times, and that I was certain they were okay. It was
very funny though, trying to convince her.
For Bones Night we made Peppermint Bark. Scott chopped the chocolate and broke the candy canes... I think the crew is watching Outsourced here.
Hopefully more fun pictures to come :)
BUT - Because of him I now have photos!! And I want to show them to you :-)
Halloween @ SVU - Senior Year :)I need to boast just a tad. Mal and I have had some sweet costumes over the years. Freshman year we were two of five "Skittles" - purple (me) and green (mal). Sophomore year she was Ghetto Barbie while I was Soccer Barbie. Junior Year I was Donatello, and she was Leonardo (complete with sweet shells). This year I was set on being a Bumblebee (with a tu-tu. dont ask where I got the idea, I dont know, I just wanted to make a tu-tu). Mallory was a Muse (think Hercules) with one of her roomates. It was a fun night :)
Charlie Manuel visits SVU
Charlie Manuel, manager of the Phillies is a Buena Vista native and came back to visit and for a forum. I really didnt follow much of what he said because he was speaking buena vistian but it was a decent time. This is Mal with one of the signs they put on our chairs to wave when he came in to the arena.
This is Scott.
He's the boyfriend.
[ :-) ]
I made pulled pork a friday or two ago which happens to combine two of his favorite things - Meat & Sauce. This boy loves Sauce. I think these two pictures sum him up pretty well.
My birthday present from Sam. Kahlua Chocolates :-)
I told Mom about these and she insisted that they had
alcohol in them. I told her that I read the package at least
three times, and that I was certain they were okay. It was
very funny though, trying to convince her.
For Bones Night we made Peppermint Bark. Scott chopped the chocolate and broke the candy canes... I think the crew is watching Outsourced here.
Hopefully more fun pictures to come :)
11.19.2010
Am I really that obvious?
I told my Grandma a month back that I needed to stop buying kitchen things for myself because if I didnt, I would have nothing left to put on my wedding registry (whenever that happens, no this is not a hint). Think I am kidding? Let us list what I have. 7qt Crock Pot, Paring Knives & Santoku knives, A set of dishes from mom, Baking Stone, French Rolling Pin, Cake plates & platters, Oxo Spatulas (BEST PANCAKE SPATULA EVER), Other spoons & cooking utensils, Cutting Board, Various baking dishes (square, round, big, small, etc.)
Basically - I have a lot.
But what did I get for my birthday?
From my sister:
A Kuhn Rikon Nonstick Utility Knife (red one)
Two - Island Bamboo Spatulas (colors are wrong. the bright red one is actually a darker red like the knife and the green one is the bright red color)
Two - Island Bamboo Spatulas (colors are wrong. the bright red one is actually a darker red like the knife and the green one is the bright red color)
I did not know that these gifts were on their way when I called Grandma to tell her about the present Scott got for me. While on the phone with her I said I needed to stop buying kitchen stuff and she laughed. I get it now.
11.17.2010
My day as The Birthday Girl
November Sixteenth.
Oh, it's a fun day. This 11/16 is my last at SVU. It is probably the last birthday I will celebrate in Buena Vista, VA. It was fun.
Monday night I needed to go to a local ice cream shoppe, Sweet Things, to get some more information on their company for a presentation we had Tuesday (Marketing - Supply Chain Management). I had a goal of finishing the Book of Mormon by my birthday and told Scott that we probably could not do anything Monday night because I wanted to try and finish. Love: He is an RM, and gets that and was happy to give me up for a night :). Well, I read, and read, and read, but I needed a break and I needed to go to Sweet Things so I called up the boy and asked if he wanted to come with, picked him up and we were off. It was raining, I hate rain, and when we got to Lexington we just sat in the car listening to WNRN for ...fifteen minutes or so before I decided to drive closer and see if there was closer parking. We get over there and they are closed! Well, I still needed time away from my apartment so we went to Wal-mart and picked up some Cheesecake and Strawberry Milk, and went to the gas station to visit our friend, Ryan. I wound up being distracted for a lot longer than I intended but eventually made it home to finish other projects. (I haven't finished my reading yet but I plan on doing that today. Next goal is to start again and finish by Christmas)
So that was the birthday eve.
The next morning I was walking to class and Amanda catches me by the library with a loud rendition of "happy birthday". Thank you. I go to class and Perkins says she wont embarrass me. Again, Thank you. I head home after Philosophy to pick up a bucket of Pumpkin Ice Cream for our Marketing presentation. I get back and Skylar makes a motion (we do parliamentary procedure in this class) to sing "Happy Birthday" to me. They do. Yup, Thank you. We dish out Ice cream and our presentation goes fairly well. I go home, change, go to Law and Jemma announces that it is my birthday. One more time, "Happy Birthday", and Thank you.
Scott asked if he could come pick me up around 4:00pm but gave me no other clues as to what plans were. For a planner and a worrier, like me, that was... interesting. I get out to the car and his mom is in the backseat with a box (yay). She said she wanted to see my face when I opened it haha. I open the box and it contains about 12 issues of one of her favorite cooking magazines, with a very nice card. I was so excited because two issues were all about soup and boy, do I want some soup now that its cold here. I loved it. We dropped her off at the house and left on our trip.
Scott said because it was my birthday, I got to pick the music. Well, I saw the Garden State Soundtrack and put it in. He seemed hesitant and said, "Oh, you're not going to look around?" (me) "No, I saw Garden State and we haven't listened to that yet... should I look?" (Scott) "Well.... you could..."
MIX CD - Just for Me :)
I quickly changed the disc and we listened to the mix the whole way to.... Harrisonburg! His original plan was to kidnap me to DC (Love it!) but he wasn't sure if he could get one of the parents cars for that, and it would have been crazy seeing as I get out of class at 3. We arrive in Harrisonburg and he is looking for this place, wont let me see the map so I can help, so we just drive until he finds it. This little Italian place (Sam, Ry, Laura, Mal - Think Salvatores... with a more classy interior and the food being a little more authentic but same vibe, small town Italian place) and woah, was it good. They had 'amatriciana which is what I ate a lot of in Italy so I ordered that and it was SO GOOD!
After we went to pick out a movie and get tickets. We had two hours until our movie so we went to Wal-Mart to shop for Gavin for his birthday. Gavin is Scott's, now 10 year old, brother whose birthday is also 16 November. We could not find the game that we were looking for so we walked around. He walked me straight to the kitchen section and kept asking if I had this, or that. I told him that I didn't want anything, nor need anything, and that my birthday date was enough. We went over to Bed, Bath and Beyond though because I wanted to see if they had a few things that I did want so I could get myself a present. After looking at many fun things Scott said "Hypothetically, if you were to get one of these four things we saw, which would you get? Hypothetically of course".
and I am now the proud owner of -
A Creme Brulee Set
We went to a few more stores, watched Morning Glory (not recommended) and drove home. I think Ive already said this but twenty was a fun year... I think twenty-one is going to full of more adventures and I am so excited.
Oh, it's a fun day. This 11/16 is my last at SVU. It is probably the last birthday I will celebrate in Buena Vista, VA. It was fun.
Monday night I needed to go to a local ice cream shoppe, Sweet Things, to get some more information on their company for a presentation we had Tuesday (Marketing - Supply Chain Management). I had a goal of finishing the Book of Mormon by my birthday and told Scott that we probably could not do anything Monday night because I wanted to try and finish. Love: He is an RM, and gets that and was happy to give me up for a night :). Well, I read, and read, and read, but I needed a break and I needed to go to Sweet Things so I called up the boy and asked if he wanted to come with, picked him up and we were off. It was raining, I hate rain, and when we got to Lexington we just sat in the car listening to WNRN for ...fifteen minutes or so before I decided to drive closer and see if there was closer parking. We get over there and they are closed! Well, I still needed time away from my apartment so we went to Wal-mart and picked up some Cheesecake and Strawberry Milk, and went to the gas station to visit our friend, Ryan. I wound up being distracted for a lot longer than I intended but eventually made it home to finish other projects. (I haven't finished my reading yet but I plan on doing that today. Next goal is to start again and finish by Christmas)
So that was the birthday eve.
The next morning I was walking to class and Amanda catches me by the library with a loud rendition of "happy birthday". Thank you. I go to class and Perkins says she wont embarrass me. Again, Thank you. I head home after Philosophy to pick up a bucket of Pumpkin Ice Cream for our Marketing presentation. I get back and Skylar makes a motion (we do parliamentary procedure in this class) to sing "Happy Birthday" to me. They do. Yup, Thank you. We dish out Ice cream and our presentation goes fairly well. I go home, change, go to Law and Jemma announces that it is my birthday. One more time, "Happy Birthday", and Thank you.
Scott asked if he could come pick me up around 4:00pm but gave me no other clues as to what plans were. For a planner and a worrier, like me, that was... interesting. I get out to the car and his mom is in the backseat with a box (yay). She said she wanted to see my face when I opened it haha. I open the box and it contains about 12 issues of one of her favorite cooking magazines, with a very nice card. I was so excited because two issues were all about soup and boy, do I want some soup now that its cold here. I loved it. We dropped her off at the house and left on our trip.
Scott said because it was my birthday, I got to pick the music. Well, I saw the Garden State Soundtrack and put it in. He seemed hesitant and said, "Oh, you're not going to look around?" (me) "No, I saw Garden State and we haven't listened to that yet... should I look?" (Scott) "Well.... you could..."
MIX CD - Just for Me :)
I quickly changed the disc and we listened to the mix the whole way to.... Harrisonburg! His original plan was to kidnap me to DC (Love it!) but he wasn't sure if he could get one of the parents cars for that, and it would have been crazy seeing as I get out of class at 3. We arrive in Harrisonburg and he is looking for this place, wont let me see the map so I can help, so we just drive until he finds it. This little Italian place (Sam, Ry, Laura, Mal - Think Salvatores... with a more classy interior and the food being a little more authentic but same vibe, small town Italian place) and woah, was it good. They had 'amatriciana which is what I ate a lot of in Italy so I ordered that and it was SO GOOD!
After we went to pick out a movie and get tickets. We had two hours until our movie so we went to Wal-Mart to shop for Gavin for his birthday. Gavin is Scott's, now 10 year old, brother whose birthday is also 16 November. We could not find the game that we were looking for so we walked around. He walked me straight to the kitchen section and kept asking if I had this, or that. I told him that I didn't want anything, nor need anything, and that my birthday date was enough. We went over to Bed, Bath and Beyond though because I wanted to see if they had a few things that I did want so I could get myself a present. After looking at many fun things Scott said "Hypothetically, if you were to get one of these four things we saw, which would you get? Hypothetically of course".
and I am now the proud owner of -
A Creme Brulee SetWe went to a few more stores, watched Morning Glory (not recommended) and drove home. I think Ive already said this but twenty was a fun year... I think twenty-one is going to full of more adventures and I am so excited.
11.16.2010
"Stealing Kisses, Wishing I was 21"
Oh - but I am. Twenty-one.
Twenty was fun but Twenty-one has a lot of promise. I am graduating at the end of this year. I will move back to Washington, D.C. and hopefully bum it with my DC2's again. Until then I will enjoy Buena Vista and the Shenandoah Valley to its fullest.
I can honestly say that right now, Life is Good. I am happy. Ive begun to understand what it takes for me to make myself happy, vs. relying on others for it and it feels great - empowering even. I am so excited for this next year though. I have a feeling many more learning experiences are heading my way and I say, "bring it on".
Twenty was fun but Twenty-one has a lot of promise. I am graduating at the end of this year. I will move back to Washington, D.C. and hopefully bum it with my DC2's again. Until then I will enjoy Buena Vista and the Shenandoah Valley to its fullest.
I can honestly say that right now, Life is Good. I am happy. Ive begun to understand what it takes for me to make myself happy, vs. relying on others for it and it feels great - empowering even. I am so excited for this next year though. I have a feeling many more learning experiences are heading my way and I say, "bring it on".
11.02.2010
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