i've moved.

i started working on a new blog for a class that i'm TA'ing, and i've thus moved my blog so that i can manage both more easily.

go here! http://jenntwentyten.wordpress.com

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on achieving.

my academic schedule for the past 19.75 years (i went to "moms and tots" when i was two, for crying out loud) has been grueling. even in pre-school, my teacher was my mom's best friend so i was already the favorite. my mom dropped me at kindergarten on her way to work (across the parking lot at the pre-school), so i was 30 minutes early every day. (i remember sitting on the floor with my teacher, playing with the cash register -- the coveted toy that i got all to myself -- learning how to count money... ironic that i now work for an accounting firm?) since day 1 of elementary school, my mom put me in gifted classes where i carved mayan heiroglyphs and invented a new spoon to eat spaghetti (it had a little bag in the bottom... it was ridiculous) while the other kids read books, one chapter at a time, and did word searches. in middle school, i took advanced art (i still have my collage in my bedroom at home) and a music composition class. in high school, i suffered through all honors/AP classes and one year even took two math classes at once because moving put me behind. it was insane. i was insane (i still might be). needless to say, the past 7 semesters here have been jam-packed with 16-19 credits, summer internships, volunteer positions, and enough leadership roles to fill an entire page on a resume.

this post wasn't meant to brag. i want to shout my joy and celebrate my new take on "achieving." i don't consider myself "underachieving" because that implies doing less than is necessary to just succeed. i define "overachieving" is doing way more than necessary for the task at hand. for college, the goal is graduating and getting a job. to graduate, you need 1 major, to do fairly well in that 1 major, and to have a bit of experience (an internship and a leadership role). i feel that i've gone beyond the minimum for quite some time (1 major, 2 minors, 3 internships... you get it), and now, because of all of that hard work, i can finally just "achieve."

i need 1 law class, 1 political science class, and 2 science classes to graduate (and to keep my job). this semester, i am taking 1 law class, 2 science classes, and dropped my 400-level political science class down to an intro-level course. hey, i just need 3 credits, there was no level requirement here.

being an achiever feels really good. i'm going to make some soup. =)

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welcome, twenty-ten, only a few days late

i'm not even going to try to apologize for not posting in so many days. nor am i going to try to explain what i did. because that's long.

buttttttttttt. happy new year!

i do not like to make year-long resolutions. i am resolving one thing each day.

today's resolution was to make croissants. but my mom wanted me to make split pea soup out of the ham bone from last night's dinner, so i decided to make crusty rolls instead (i got a bread book for christmas). they're hot and steamy under a towel right now, waiting for another hour for us to eat them.

i also got some other cookbooks christmas that i'm dying to try out. i know how to cook and julia's kitchen wisdom should keep me busy while i'm not having class (oooh, yeah second semester senior!) on mondays, wednesdays, and fridays. and i <3 macarons will be a fun adventure in perfect little desserts.

on the non-food front, santa surprised me with a gorgeous kate spade purse, a new burberry scarf, and the most fabulous strand of tiffany's pearls. i didn't expect any of that. thank you, santa and mrs. claus... i will miss christmas at home.

it was my last christmas at home, per se, and decidedly my last winter break. the latter depresses me. i want to grow up and be an adult in the real world, but i do NOT want to give up my vacations. i'll have to make the most of my 25 days off.  shh. i know that's 5 weeks. shh. let me wallow.

i am tired from all the baking/cooking (though soup and bread are two of the least involved and demanding things you can make). i think it's time for my daily nap.

photos from christmas/toronto up soon.

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day 8: snow day?

thanks to pennstatelive, i am brought back to my childhood (or highschool) memories of sitting 6 inches in front of the tv, which was way too bright for dialated eyes, squinting, because i forgot to put on my glasses, to see if my school would scroll across the screen:

"The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm watch for several counties across Pennsylvania from this evening (Dec. 8) through early Wednesday. The storm that currently is over the southern plains will move northeast, crossing the Great Lakes region to bring a wintry mix of precipitation to the region. According to the advisory, significant snow and ice accumulation are possible tonight through early Wednesday. Forecasts are calling for between 2 and 4 inches of snow to accumulate before the changeover, with the potential for a significant coating of ice accumulating on top of the snow before the precipitation changes to rain later Wednesday morning.

Penn State officials are tracking the storm and preparing crews to respond. No determination has been made at this time regarding the potential delay or cancellation of classes; that decision will be made very early Wednesday morning, based upon current conditions and the ability of work crews to clear snow and ice from campus roads, sidewalks and parking lots."

http://live.psu.edu/story/43374

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day 7: making up for yesterday

yesterday was intense. i had the NRHH banquet and then a migraine that sidelined me for much of the evening. standing up caused nauseating flashbacks to the magic kingdom teacups on my 14th birthday, less the laughter.

but, before i fell ill, there was a pretty cute picture snapped:



i was going to make today's post about how much i love my friends, and christmas, and celebrating christmas with my friends... but this most recent ichat conversation tops it all:

me: YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND.
kayla: BUT HE'S SO FARRRR AWAYYYYYY
me: BUT HE'S SO HOT
kayla: hell yes he is

zing.

(lyss and i are also ichatting each other from separate rooms in the same apartment. you just wish you had best friends like mine.)

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day 6: I wish

wouldn't it be great if we could bottle the christmas spirit to unleash in.. oh.. the dead of february? i think so =)

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day 4: good morning

while brushing my teeth this morning, i heard the famous folgers jingle coming from my tv. i have to agree, the best part of waking up IS coffee. while it isn’t folgers in my cup, i don’t appreciate coffee nearly as much during the rest of the day as i do in those first 30 minutes of being awake.

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twenty-five (plus 6) days of sparkle and shine

amanda over at slow like honey has a great idea to slow down and savor the happy days of december. she's going to take the time each day to post a picture or a thought, just a little something to stop the frantic mess that this time of year usually brings. for me, it'll be a great way to get back into my blog and keep a sane, level head while winding down the semester, studying for finals, finally finishing my thesis, and getting ready to celebrate with my family.

i took this photo when i walked back into my room after making dinner and saw my candle on my desk. i really wish i could keep all of christmas in a little jar on my desk and preserve the feeling of it for the rest of the year.

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and nearly a semester has gone by..

the proof is in the date stamps that i've been quite remiss in updating this project. i'd like to say it's because i've been off gallivanting and doing all sorts of exciting things, but, sadly, i've been babysitting, cheering loudly at football games, getting my hopes of a big 10 win out crushed, making a lot of pumpkin pie, taking 4 classes (i decided for the sake of my sanity and the lives of everyone around me to drop astro), finishing my thesis, and having way too many extra-curricular things to do.

i also haven't been cooking nearly as much as i'd like. the most advanced thing i've made (besides the pies, and those weren't hard) in the past month was probably chicken stir-fry, and that was only difficult because i had to remember to thaw the chicken when i woke up. chicken stir-fry is not exotic. it's not remotely asian. it's been my favorite meal since i was a baby, and something my mom made me all the time even though she hated loathed it. i consider it proof that she loves me a lot (i love you, mommy!). literally, you cube up a chicken tenderloin or breast, saute it in some oil in a pan, and douse the hell out of it with Season All (which is, in fact, a spice mix). since we always, always, always, had it with canned peas and uncle ben's chicken-flavored rice, i cooked a small helping of brown rice and finished it off with a handful of frozen peas. it was childhood on a plate, and it was awesome.

and because i don't feel like recapping my entire life since the last post, i will only discuss the most recent of adventures: Thanksgiving 2009, the epic. Yes, it was epic, in every sense of the word. My mother bought a 20 pound fresh jaindl (yep, the same farm as the Presidents' turkeys!) beast, which adam stuffed with traditional onion/celery/bread cubes stuffing, served alongside a more gourmet cranberry-walnut stuffing, steamed green beans, sauted carrots, riced mashed potatoes, sweet potato rolls, val's fancy-schmancy cran-raspberry sauce, complete-with-the-ridges canned (NOT whole-berry) cranberry sauce, and wine. despite our "foodie" appearance, we don't mess with tradition on thanksgiving. i want my slice of jelled cranberry-like substance, damnit. we had hors d'vour of humboldt fog and blue cheese with honey and walnuts, goat cheese stuffed dates wrapped in proscuitto, and another bottle of wine. oh yeah, and there were 2 picture-perfect pumpkin pies, complete with cute little leaf and acorn cut-outs. and this was for a family of 5, none of whom belong to a football team or the lumberjack union.

i also have to mention that after a round of cocktails and dinner at grille 3501 on wednesday night, my mother questioned the validity of a light-up horse in a lights display (the more troubling aspect of this was not the horse, but the fact that this house probably could rival the lights of beaver stadium, and it was BEFORE thanksgiving), to which val and i both immediately responded by bursting into, simultaneously without prompting, i may add, a rousing round of "jingle bells," taking extra care at the "ONE HORSE open sleigh." my mom also expressed her desire to wear panettone on her feet as "slippertone." you WISH you were shoved in the back of the subaru for this one, i know.

i don't have any pictures of the feast, but i do have some lovelies of the finale of the epic: the christmas card picture. since i was merely 6 months old (born in june), we have sent a wonderous picture of my sister and i (sometimes with mom and dad, recently with adam) to 100 of our friends. and every year, the picture fails to capture the HELL that was the process. all that the public sees are the pristine angels, smiling, sometimes in matching outfits, backgdropped by christmas splendor. they don't see the screaming, laughing, tickling, injuring, fighting, yawning, eye-rolling, dad farting, more screaming, hair-fixing, plastic-smile-slapping reject pictures.

you're a lucky bunch, really. this year, i have possession of the outtakes, and i think it's time for the world to see just what a truly fabulous family i have =).

"this hurts and i'm mad at you, but because you're squeezing my stomach, you think i'm laughing and enjoy it. you are wrong. also, thank you, parents, for not reprimanding your daughter."

 "okay, everyone else looks normal. i appear to be blissful. i really want to cry."

2 seconds after this, i collapsed into a heap on the floor.

my dad thought it'd be entertaining to put "terrible" over my mom's head. good call, popsicle.

the truth: my dad is crazy, my mother has a really good evil-eye, my sister takes things seriously, and i don't pay attention and have constant, persistent issues with my jeans.

and adam finally makes it in.

merry early christmas from the "you'd never believe this wasn't the first take, and mom likes it that way" family!

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we don't have much room to live.

it seems that this jack's mannequin concert just caused my life to collapse upon itself. it's funny how small of a world it is. we really don't have much room to live.

while the concert was good, it wasn't something corporate.
i miss this.

and that cd will be on repeat while i stay up all night studying for econ and astro.

ciao,

j

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welcome to the real world

as dc prepares for the arrival of mtv's the real world, i myself have been experiencing the arrival of the real real world. it barged right in and emptied it's giant bag of crap all over the place, taking up all of my living space with its 40+ hour work weeks, less than 6 hours of sleep a night, blistered feet from too-tight (but oh-so-cute heels), reading case documents on the metro, conference calls, understanding why people drink heavily after work, and SUPER HUGE PAYCHECKS.

=) that last point is awesome. this is my first paid internship, and getting rewarded for putting in long hours and intense brain power feels fantastic. not to mention that it'll make funding that IV drip of caffeine i've installed in my cube a little bit easier.

i'm in the process of trying out new photo software, so you'll have to wait for pictures of last week's adventures: a trip to the ultra-indie, ultra-hip artomatic, a hike through calvert cliffs, and a trip to eastern market. i promise good things.

i finally got my haircut yesterday, after a very long run of steelers AND penguins playoffs. (by the way, PENS WIN CUP. v and i are holding our breath for the pirates to win out. we're believers. don't hate.) i managed to make my way back to my favorite salon in dupont circle that i found my first summer here. it's full of fantastically gay (and talented) stylists. the boy who shampooed my hair was wearing cut-off jean bermuda shorts with knee-high black wellies. gotta love it. he also gave a killer scalp massage.

and since i trekked ALL THE WAY out to dupont circle, we just had to go to lauriol plaza for dinner. i also had to order white wine sangria. i went for my old stand by of ceviche, but decided to try a tamale, too. i've been dying to have one, and i figured lauriol was the closest to authentic mexico i'm getting for awhile (swine flu, anyone?). it was stellar. once the weekends away die down (NYC this weekend to visit my favorite love, atlantic city to hang with jim the next), i'm going to buy me some corn husks and whip up some of my own. alton brown did a show on them, so obvi i have to try.

v and a went back to dupont tonight to the brickskeller to say hello to their friend's little bro who's in the army and going back to hawaii soon. i decided to opt out and save my liver for my company dinner at the city club on thursday and a weekend of debauchery with my lyss.

and i just heard the really ridiculously strange beeping noise indicating that the dryer has decided my clothes are done. this means i have to go turn it back on for another 45 minutes.

ciao,

j

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epic failure of posting, but lots of pictures

my apologies. it seems that i've fallen a bit behind in the blogging, but by no means in the cooking or adventuring.

since moving down to silver spring, md a little over a week ago, my non-food adventures have included:

1. turning 21 and ordering 2 drinks without getting carded
2. going to the beach
3. starting my first real internship and working 2 hours of overtime in the first week
4. drinking my first legal pint of guinness and doing a lemon-drop shooter at murphy's (again, not carded)
5. meeting 9 incredibly awesome kids i'll be working with all summer
6. buying 2 cases of beer from the shadiest liquor store ever in college park
7. going to my first happy hour with 6 of the 9 above mentioned cool kids and ordering my favorite glass of wine (got carded this time)
8. celebrating the end of my 21st birthday week with a party that merged my high school, college, and summer program friends plus two new acquaintances
9. watching the pens try to take the stanley cup (game 6 currently in progress)
10. going on a SEGWAY TOUR of DC (and getting paid for doing so) with other summer consultants
11. lost my phone to an epic technological failure and had to argue with the at&t store as they tried to give me a $100 refund that i couldn't accept without the original credit card and ended up buying a $100 blue-tooth headset to be shipped home and returned by my mother (oye)
12. out-driving a torrential downpour/thunderstorm this afternoon with a plastic bag stuck to the grill of v's car

as you can see, i have plenty of excuses for not blogging. the excessive alcohol content of my adventures was due completely to the fact that i turned 21. i do not take my milestones lightly. in addition to celebrating with drinks, i also have gotten to do a lot of fun cooking:

1. before moving down here, i made black-pepper brown-sugar salmon with grilled pineapple for my parents
   
   
   
   
   
2. i made my own birthday cake: a pink-lemonade double-layer cake with raspberry filling and almond buttercream icing (topped with sprinkles and candles, and enjoyed with a toast of 1+2=3 cava)
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   



3. i used a's antique kitchen-aid to mix up a batch of margarita cupcakes (a vctotw recipe) with a tequila-lime glaze (adapted from the vctotw green tea glaze)

i served the cupcakes at my first ever dinner party (point 8 on adventure list), along with grilled shrimp tacos, a spicy slaw, tomato gazpacho, and mojitos with mint fresh from the garden. it was a huge success.

and i have been staring at the computer (with a break for the segway tour, the ride home, and dinner) since 8:10am. i am tired, my eyes are sore, and i need to watch the pens keep the series alive (go black & gold)!

this week is a barefoot week, so another post is coming. it promises to be yummy, and i promise to update more.

happy june!

ciao,

j

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i'm still alive!

in case you have been concerned... no, i did not die. i moved down to dc on saturday and started my internship (and turned 21!!) on monday, so life has been very hectic since thursday's post. but don't worry, i'll have a fantastic post or two all about my birthday week (yes, a full week) coming soon! hold tight!

ciao,

j

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barefoot thursday and memorial goodies

i'm only slightly embarrassed to admit that i was scared of ina's outrageous brownies. i give props to eva of i'm boring for choosing it as this month's barefoot bloggers second recipe. she's far more ambitious than i am. this fear leads me to my confession: i was going to lie this month. we hosted a birthday party for my neighbor last weekend, and i made brownies for the kids. my mom is known around the neighborhood (and the neighborhoods in naperville and pittsburgh, too) for her brownies, and i couldn't disappoint the kids. i thought it was a perfect out. i'd just whip up my mom's recipe and pretend they were ina's. a box of pillsbury brownie mix with a few tweaks, a tub of frosting, and my new icing tips would save me!

while the results were pretty fantastic, i felt dishonest and gross (maybe because i basically licked the entire bowl of batter and ate all of the crumbs stuck to the pan after doling out the leftovers).

so after the gnawing guilt i was feeling, yesterday i mustered up some courage, cracked open the cookbook, and trucked through. obviously, i cannot consume any part of this recipe, especially after my changes. i halved the recipe, which still required 2 sticks of butter and almost a pound of chocolate (i used semi-sweet chocolate chips and a 3oz hersheys extra dark with almonds bar). i'm bringing them to a cookout tomorrow as dessert for a 3 and 5 year old, so i omitted the coffee (my mom is making ina's lemon yogurt cake again for us big kids).

we didn't have a good rectangular pan for the halved recipe, so i went for a 9-inch cake pan. bad, bad choice. these aren't supposed to be massively thick, and thus they didn't cook in the center well before i thought the edges were starting to burn. my mom was okay with this, as my cutting them out of the pan produced a lot of chunks and breaks for her to sample. i sneaked a tiny taste (i'm sorry, intestines!). fantabulously undercooked and gloriously chocolatey. i think i'll probably just stick to my mom's brownies from now on, as they caused a lot less gastrointestinal distress (both in making and in my consuming), but these were fun to try.

i spent my memorial day weekend, fittingly, at my sister's house in dc. we're finally almost finished with the re-building of my bathroom and the laundry room, and we celebrated our hard work with a great cookout, best shown through photographs because (1) outdoor photos turn out well and (2) i need to go for a run soon.

grill master v

mmm sangria

tiny little weber

grilled chicken with spicy apricot glaze

smashed baby red potatoes with homegrown chives

the family that eats together stays together

we celebrated the hanging of really ridiculous split-frame doors with a bonfire, more sangria, and mm mm s'mores. i was rather bored last week and decided to make homemade marshmallows. my roommate (whose NYC internship started two weeks ago) now thinks i am officially crazy. she's busy working. i'm busy making things that no one ever really makes. or so you'd think. there's a gazillion recipes out there for homemade marshmallows, but i went with david leibowitz. he used 3 packets of gelatin, while all the others called for only 2 with the same quantities of other ingredients. i don't know what difference it makes, but he didn't let me down. the process wasn't hard at all, just sticky. my mom came into the kitchen to find me with my head in the mixing bowl, face covered in little marshmallow strings like a cobwebbed three year old. it was yummy. and homemade marshmallows make the best s'mores. plus the recipe made like 500 billion, so i think we're stocked for at least another week =). i highly recommend making yourself some. it'll impress all of your friends, and it offers the perfect excuse to eat melty chocolate and crunchy graham crackers.

we're officially on the countdown to my last weekend of underage. we're not commenting on the fact that i got carded buying a powerball ticket yesterday at wegmans. i will be 21 on monday, and i will celebrate.

time to go run. hope you all enjoyed your memorial day weekends and are looking forward to june!

ciao,

j

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hello, my name is jenny.

in high school, i spent two and a half hours every friday morning scanning, sorting, cleaning, and reshelving books at the parkland community library. the library is actually an old ranch-style house in which all of the front rooms have been converted into a big open space, the rest used for offices for the librarians and a kitchen area. i overexaggerated my duties. on a good day, twelve people will come into the library. seven of those twelve people will be under the age of six and illiterate for all intents and purposes, completely undermining the reason for going to check out books. as such, i actually spent most of my time sorting out dried-up markers and deformed paper clips from the "summer reading club" desk drawer, occasionally pausing to stamp a little kid's reading log and hand him a coupon for a free kid-sized rita's, which i took two of as payment at the end of each shift.

one of my favorite ways to pass the time, especially when it rained, was to "spot check." i'd wind my way through all of the shelves, checking to see that the books were in the right location (by subject and type) and then all in alphabetical or dewey-decimal order. you would have thought i'd have gotten really stellar at the dd system and, obviously by the age of sixteen i should know my alphabet, but every four seconds i'd repeat the alphabet song in my head or look down at the dd cheat-sheet i'd printed off one of the ancient computers in the backroom. these pauses allowed me ample time to study the titles and covers, two things you are NOT supposed to use in judging books. my dad will open a book to a random middle page and start reading. after a few pages, he'll either keep it for check out or move on. this baffles me. not only do i think that a few pages hardly does the book justice, i also can't fathom ruining a potential winner by reading the middle before it's time. it's like biting into a tootsie pop. you can't do that. you can't get to the chocolate center without at least making an effort at the outside. if i just wanted the middle, i'd have saved the trouble and opened a tootsie roll. i want all of it.

so while the old adage exists, i don't see how you can judge a book any other way than its cover or title without reading the entire thing, which can only be done if the title or cover is particularly interesting. and that is how i came to discover the never-ending world of editorial non-fiction and memoirs. during one rather boring morning at the library, i had made my way to the biography section of the library and stumbled upon a title out of place: another bullshit night in suck city by nicholas flynn, who i later found out is a poet or writer or something like that. excuse me? a library is a quiet place for contemplation and education, not expletives and anger. as this was before the first of two very painful high school break-ups (the same kid teice, i may add), i had not yet developed my angry vocabulary and was still mocked for saying things like "darn it" and "what the heck?" this book stood out, and with no prior notions of anything between its artfully titled, dark green with yellow printed covers, i checked it out (myself, a perk of being a volunteer) and headed home.

and thus my obsession was born. i had a brief haitus with some dan-brown-esque fiction involving hidden codes in books and whatnot (read the rule of four and the secret of the rose) followed by a stint in economic-based nonfiction, but i've always returned to the memoir, biography, or autobiography. i'm a sucker for nostalgia, and reading about other peoples' memories, struggles, and far more interesting experiences fuels that need. i also find it's much easier to get connected to the characters and the story when i know they're mostly real (yes, harry potter does exist, so clearly my obsession with the boy wizard series is not an exception to this rule).

in the past year, i've devoured all of michael ruhlman's books, become very close with barbara walters and alan greenspan (who dated, btw), sat down at molly wizenberg's table, and am currently embarking on a journey into the world of julia child with julie powell. david leibowitz is on deck, probably to be started tomorrow because i can't put julie and julia down.

all of these stories have started to stir the ambitious journalist/writer lion that i've been habitually pelting with tranquilizers since middle school. he's yawning, stretching his legs, and itching to get out. my blog, thus far, hasn't really been a good outlet for him. it's not very editorial, mostly because i've been lazy and unwilling to let it all out. it's been a slow trickle up until now. but i've gotten hung up on a line on page 96 of J&J: "What I think is that Sam Pepys wrote down all of the details of his life for nine years because the very act of writing them down made them important, or at least singular." it mysteriously echos a line from amy tan's saving fish from drowning (side note: i keep a small journal in my nightstand that is filled with lines from books that i can't get past. sometimes all it takes is one sentence to get me hooked. i read this journal when i need to be inspired), something i've taken to heart recently.

now after that very lengthy, verbose, and seemingly unrelated anecdote about the library and all that jazz, i introduce my new chapter. chapter one. it will still be peanut butter & jenny, meaning that food will inevitably be a large part (the peanut butter) because it is a large part of my life, but i'll be adding in much larger quantities of jenny. i keep it jenny, not only because it fits better in place of "jelly," but also because that's my essence. i've only been "jenn" since i got an attitude in high school and felt the need to "grow up" my name. but my family, neighbors, and childhood friends still know me as "jenny," and i'd like for everyone else to know her, too.

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youthful wishes...

i've been reading house: a memoir by michael ruhlman. i loved his books about the CIA, eric ripert, michael symon, and even digested some of his newest, ratio, while down at my sister's last weekend. memoirs are my favorite genre, so i figured i couldn't go wrong with this one.

the book is basically about the adventure he and his wife take on with the purchase and restoration of a turn-of-the-century house in cleveland, ohio. it's filled with stories about all the horrors of a reconstruction project, from contractor mistakes and long-passed deadlines to unexpected projects and hidden problems. it's also sprinkled with the history of suburbia, the modern american neighborhood, and the development of cleveland as a city. ruhlman weaves this expository line into the personal story of his struggles, carefully adding in emotion and personaility where appropriate.

one of the things i really like about the book is how he incorporates social philosophy and anthropology when he talks about his personal connections. there's a whole section on nostalgia, started by the question "can you ever grow up if you never leave your house?" (paraphrased, the book is upstairs). i loved that idea.

i've moved houses three times, live at college now, and am about to spend my third summer away from home. we've lived here for seven years now, but i've been at school for three, so i really only consider it four years here for me physically. other than that, i suppose i technically lived in bethel park the longest, but the first six years of my life are largely lost in my memory. i think i "grew up" most in chicago, as first to fifth grade are the years you're shaped most by your surroundings. i loved everything about naperville, and i someday hope to return, possibly to raise my own family.

one thing i remember vividly from my childhood are the fieldtrips we took to naper settlement, the historic village in the downtown section set to look like it did at different periods throughout naperville's long life. there was a one-room school house and a log cabin where we learned what pre-revoluationary life was like. we churned butter and used homemade chalk to do math problems. there was a farmhouse with cows (even at the young age of seven i knew better than to grab on to an udder, as they tried to make us do) and chickens, and a horse stable with a blacksmith.

my favorite place was the victorian-era house with an afternoon tea service. the house was white with light purple shudders, intricate molding, and a big, wide wrap-around veranda with wrought-iron furniture. every window had sheer curtains and a window-box teeming with gorgeous flowers. the rooms were full of poufs and settees with ornate feet and beautiful rugs. i'm not particularly prissy or girly, but anything pink, lacey, and european gets me all excited. i chose the victorian american girl doll, had three tea sets, and still dream of traveling to france. so while my classmates liked the rope braiding or cow milking (again, gross), i reveled in sitting with my hands folded and my ankles crossed, listening to someone teach me manners.

before the tea service, we learned how to make finger sandwiches with cucumber and herbed cream cheese. it's something i still love today, and it always brings back memories of that lacey afternoon in the tea house. it's quite simple. mix some herbs-de-provence into a few tablespoons of softened cream cheese. spread this on lightly toasted bread (crusts optional), and top with cucumber slices. i like to eat mine now open-faced with fresh tomato slices, but they're perfect sans tomato as sandwiches, too. i also love loose-leaf tea, and any time we pass a specialty store i have to buy some. capital teas in annapolis, maryland, is super cute and quaint. i bought chocolate creme (above) and apple strudel. sadly, i finished the apple last night. looks like a return trip is in order.

now that it's getting springy outside, these sandwiches are perfect for an afternoon snack with a glass of iced tea or lemonade outside on the veranda... i mean back patio. i long for a veranda.

=)

ciao,

j

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barefoot thursday: tuna salad

i'm SO GLAD to be done with school for the year. the end of the semester and finals pretty much took over my life for the past month. i did manage to eat well, though:

individual edamame packets (spongebob for some humor), a veggie-laden brown rice risotto, dark chocolate pudding made with green & black's organic dark chocolate with cherries, and pesto eggs in a blanket with mango and blueberries provided just enough fuel to keep my brain charged. i'm happy to report that i ended up with a's in everything (YES! EVEN STRATEGY -- which is the mess sprawled out under my eggs up there) and an a- in mass comm law, leaving me with a whopping 3.98 cumulative for the past 3 years. i'm proud. very very proud.

and now no more school for 3 months. yay. and what a better way to celebrate than with a lovely barefoot thursday!

i was totally stoked that kate of warm olives and cool cocktails chose ina's tuna salad for the first may recipe. i didn't use the whole tuna steaks that the recipe calls for, going for the more economical air-packaged kind. i like ahi tuna, but regular tuna steaks don't do it for me. my version was thus considerably cheaper and less work (not that the original was really all that taxing). i used only 1 teaspoon of oil to make the dressing with all the other ingredients listed, and then mixed it in with the tuna, red onion, and scallions. i chilled it in the fridge for an hour to let it "develop," and then served it over a bed of a butter lettuce with the diced avocado (a bonus MUFA for my mom's "flat belly diet") and grape tomatoes. my mom loves that i'm in this blogger group. ina is her favorite, and she gets a great dinner without doing any work =). i like getting to share it with her, too. with my dad traveling a lot, it's nice to spend time with my mommy.

yesterday was a pretty taxing day. i had my spring appointment with dr. parkman, and it really didn't go very well. i haven't gained (or lost, i'd like to point out) any weight since december, and that really worried him and vanessa, the other doctor on my "case." she mentioned the words "j-tube," which sent me into an emotional whirlwind. i basically burst into tears. the thought of something in my stomach totally and completely freaks me out beyond words. my dad, who is the biggest wimp when it comes to his girls, couldn't handle it either and got really upset at the sight of my breakdown. it was an emotional visit.

after that episode, vanessa pretty much forced dr. parkman to do SOMETHING for me, since he really hasn't treated my symptoms and just runs a lot of tests. he upped the dosage of my enzyme pills, added nexium to "maximize" the enzymes (we don't know what this means, since he doesn't explain what he's doing), and prescribed an antibiotic to treat the intestinal bacterial overgrowth that he found A YEAR AGO with the lactulose test. ridiculous that i was never treated for that before.

it's incredibly irritating to sit there and say over and over again how much i actually eat. my plates are as full as my moms' are; i eat 3 regular meals and 2 or 3 large snacks everyday; i obviously don't throw up or take diuretics. i only exercise 20 minutes 3 times a week, and even that is just light elliptical or a slow, easy "run" (people can walk faster, for real). he doesn't ever come out and say that he thinks i have a problem, but i know it's in the back of everyone's mind. so now i have to drink these strange "enlive" protein drinks, eat a clif bar everyday, and document what i consume to prove to him that i'm trying to gain weight. 5 pounds would make a world of difference, and i'm now on a mission.

and the first step in my mission was a HUGE plate of onion strings, warm crusty bread, and angel hair with marinara at maggiano's immediately following my appointment. i also went home with 3/4 of my pasta and a large vat of sauce, thanks to a very generous waiter. king of prussia shopping is really the only good thing about going down to the hospital. to prove even further that i'm not starving myself, we made some ridiculously good crab cakes for dinner.

the recipe was straight off the tin of old bay seasoning: 2 slices of bread, cubed and moistened with a little milk. mix in 1 egg, 1 tablespoon each of mayonnaise, worcester sauce, and dried parsley, 1 teaspoon of old bay, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 pound of crab meat. i added in a few dashes of hot sauce and a little lemon juice, mixed it all up with my hands, and made 8 hearty-sized patties. we grilled them on the stove-top pan with no oil. my mom and i were a bit concerned that they would stick, but the trick is to let them cook until they're completely seared on one side before flipping. once that brown crust forms completely, they don't stick at all. it's like a built-in timer. i made a mayo-dijon-horseradish dressing for mine and spread some mushed-up avocado on the other side of the bun. they tasted just like summer, especially with the corn on the cob as a side. we're definitely having the leftovers tonight.

the one thing i can count on when i'm home is that my mom will buy bananas and they will go bad. it never fails. we buy them every week, and then we never eat them. obviously, this presents the perfect opportunity for banana bread, and since the over-ripening happens often, we've tried a lot of recipes. this low-fat version i mushed together is so moist and full of nuts and raisins that you'll never know the difference. next time i make it, which will seriously be like next week when the bananas go bad again, i'd like to try a mix of whole-wheat and white flour and sub in brown sugar for some of the white. but for now, go out and buy some bananas RIGHT NOW and let them ripen. you definitely need to try this out:

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
¾ cups sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup walnuts, toasted and chopped
½ cup golden raisins
2-3 very ripe bananas
6 ounces vanilla yogurt*

2 large eggs, beaten lightly
1-2 tablespoons milk
cinnamon and sugar for dusting

*if you can't find vanilla yogurt, use plain and add 1 teaspoon of vanilla to the wet ingredients

Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a 9" loaf pan with parchment and grease the sides uncovered in parchment.

Toast the walnuts over medium heat in a skillet until brown and fragrant. Once cooled, chop the walnuts and whisk with the flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl; set aside.

In a medium bowl, mash the bananas. Add in the yogurt and eggs, and stir in the raisins with a wooden spoon. Lightly fold the banana mixture into the dry ingredients with a rubber spatula until just combined and the batter looks thick and chunky. I only had 2 bananas, so my batter was a little bit on the thick side. If it looks too thick, add in 1-2 tablespoons of milk. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle the top with cinnamon and sugar

Bake until the loaf is golden brown and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 55 minutes. Cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. The bread can be wrapped with plastic wrap and stored at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen for 3 months.

that little fox tester has been a kitchen staple for as long as i can remember. i have no idea where it came from or why we have it, but it's been stuck in every pan of magic brownies, every white birthday cake before the chocolate frosting, and every quick-bread. i'm convinced that it makes all baked goods better. it's never let me down.

i added a bunch of photos to my flickr pools; check it: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pbjenny/

now i have to go through the daunting pile of crap that has accumulated from 3 trips home from college. part of me just wants to throw it all away, but i doubt that would be a good idea. sigh. fun looms ahead, i'm sure.

ciao,

j

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mother's day is every day

the latest issue of bust magazine (my newest addiction) had a great article about how mother's day came to be. contrary to popular belief, it was started by woman who wasn't even a mother! she just wanted a day for everyone to celebrate mom's greatness, and the commercial companies took off with it. she was incredibly upset by the consumerism and the men who tried to make the holiday about greeting cards and candy, insisting that these things don't show appreciation.

we always buy my mom something for mother's day, but she's getting increasingly more difficult to shop for. val got her a couple of books, and she already had one of them (see!). i splurged on these cute little bud vases from red envelope, another tschotsky for our house... she liked them, but i see where this consumerism-backlash comes from. neither vases nor books seem enough.

since we were down in dc working on the bathroom renovation (by we i mean my dad; my mom and i did a lot of sitting. and we went grocery shopping), we got to celebrate as a family. instead of spending the money on an expensive dinner or something, we made a really good red-pepper pesto chicken with grilled corn and baby potatoes. but brunch took the cake. we whipped out the big guns and tried the smoked-salmon and goat cheese quiche recently posted on simply recipes, paired with peppered turkey bacon and fresh fruit from whole foods (the whole thing, with the dinner the night before, ended up setting us back like $100, which was still less than one meal in dc -- victory). oh yeah. and belinis with peach nectar and bebe prosecco. i also probably ate an entire watermelon, which left me feeling like a very happy oompa-loompa.

but all of that aside, i wanted to post a little tribute to my mommy. she's put up with me for 21 years, and she deserves all the praise in the world for that. i can be exhausting; i would know -- i live with me everyday. i've also had my share of problems that my mom's had to deal with... i tried to be born like 2 months early; i sustained a few injuries as a child; i cried and protested school for an entire year; i chose an expensive hobby (dancing); i picked an expensive college with expensive internships; and i got this crazy illness that's been the biggest headache for the past 2 years. and that's just me. i also have a dad and a sister and a whole, crazy extended family that have made my momma's life harder than necessary.

i also like to think we've made it better, too. but this isn't about us. it's about mommy. mommy who sees my name on the caller id for the fifteenth time in one day and answers anyway. mommy who sorts through the mountain of socks and always knows which ones are mine (and always finds the matches). mommy who pays my credit card bill (this is big). mommy who has EVERYTHING in her purse (seriously: i needed q-tips, splenda packets, bandaids, and something else this weekend and she had ALL of it)... i think the card i bought her from afavorite on etsy really summed it up:

this was epic. i couldn't pass it up.

i'd like to end with a little montage of my favorite mommy moments:

hershey park chocolate world. no, this ride doesn't really move. we just like to put up our hands and scream.

those are the same egg cups we've been using since we were little. and even though we're 20 and 26, my mom still gets them out, boils 2-dozen eggs, and lets us dye them. she won't hide them anymore, but i still get to be offensive and make my "yay jesus" egg, much to her dismay. i might be going to hell. it's okay.

sharing the tradition of baking the non-dairy pumpkin pie. i got to cut out the crust decorations;

mom divulged her technique for the perfect crust:

and the day that mom gained a son. a rare moment of perfection in our usually hectic lives.

thank you, mommy. though you don't read blogs and the internet beyond google freaks you out, this is out there. and it's for you :).

go. love your mommy.

ciao,

j

(oh yeah, i'll be posting more later. i just got home late friday, was in dc all weekend, and had to unpack all of my clothes yesterday. that nearly killed me. look for some goodies -- and a barefoot thursday!! -- soon!)

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my week in review

these past few days have been eventful, in both good and bad ways. on tuesday, after meetings, phone calls, future life considerations, and various levels of tearful bursts, i decided not to turn in my thesis (well, it was more or less decided for me, but i'm claiming responsibility to give myself some shred of personal credit) in may and continue working on it at bw this summer. it was a strange decision involving, as mentioned, a lot of opinions, a few of my tears, some encouraging words from my mom, and a good epilepsy joke from my dad. ultimately, i think this is what i want and it will be much better for me career-wise. i guess that's the goal, right?

because i had such a horrendous day, thursday night required some comfort-food. i've been meaning to try out some of the vegan "cheese" recipes highlighted in so many blogs, and i even found some nutritional yeast at a little co-op last time i visited my sister in dc. i mustered (pun) up my courage and decided to tackle a cheesy baked potato mash with broccoli. i combined a bunch of different recipes because i didn't want any gooey sauce, just the seasoning to mix into the potatoes before mushing them up. some tumeric, nutritional yeast, oregano, seafood seasoning (my addition), salt, pepper, garlic, and onion salt all went into a bowl, and then got sprinkled on top of my potato mash with a few dabs of dijon mustard. the result was a strange color, and after i poured on my green-grey steamed frozen broccoli, the whole thing looked utterly unappetizing and weird:

fortunately, i don't let appearance affect my taste-buds. it wasn't the cheesy goodness i really wanted (like what i used to get at the mall food court from the potato patch), but spice mix was really good and paired excellently with the potato and broccoli. i think i'll try the goo-sauce next time and make some mac and cheese... i think the liquid of the pasta water and such will make it better.

so after thursday's school-related headache, a serious lack of sleep, an exam, and babysitting, i finally got to relax on friday with my future roommates and 2 best friends. lyss, allyson, maha, amy, and i went to the green bowl for dinner and then down to 2000* to paint some pottery. the green bowl is one of those awesome stir-fry restaurants where you fill your (green) bowl with a cornucopia of veggies and other goodies, add some stellar sauces to make a really great combo (i'm a hoisin, plum, peanut, and pinapple curry kind of girl), and then wait for them to grill it all up on a the giant flat-top hibachi and bring it piping hot to your table with a cute little cup of brown rice. it's all you can eat, and i usually go for 2 small bowls. but friday night, i splurged on the first one and couldn't stuff down a second. it was so good.

lyss and i had gone to 2000* last year and painted really cute little cupcake-shaped boxes. we've been meaning to go back all year, but never got around to it. a fun girly-night was the perfect excuse. i'll have pictures once we get back what we painted after it's fired -- no hints until then!

yesterday was supposed to be a thesis marathon (that got pushed back to today), but ended up being a smorgasboard of unrelated events and impromptu actions. i went to the gym, helped with the big concert on the hub lawn, met up with my cousin who was up to visit the MBA school, took a trip to wegmans and michaels, and.. oh yeah... made the MOST AMAZING MACAROONS EVER!!

that's a little preview. i'll update with more tantalizing photos and a recipe (plus my dinner tonight) later.

stop drooling.

ciao!

J

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