Snow Brunch

 

The snowstorm we're getting up and down the east coast is making me a little nostalgic for Nemo. Nobody had to work, and you weren't allowed to drive anywhere, so the logical thing to do (after making chicken and waffles, of course) was to have people over for Saturday brunch.

Liz and Chris hiked up to my house. Betsy snowshoed over. Mary and I walked from our respective bedrooms to the kitchen. 

There were sourdough waffles (I. am. obsessed.), and hot chocolate with as many mix-ins as I could find. I may or may not have licked whipped cream from the whisk.

And then we went sledding.

Chicken and Waffles

Last Thursday, it became clear that we were going to get an epic snowstorm. It became clear to me that I needed to engage in an epic cooking project, so on Friday before they shut down the T, Elizabeth and Sara adventured over to my house to make chicken and waffles.

I had never deep-fried anything before, and honestly, Elizabeth did most of the work. There were a lot of steps involved, but none of them were that complicated, and the chicken was some of the best I'd ever had.

(I absolutely gave them a hard time about the Ivy League sweatshirts. Actually, they gave themselves a hard time.)

I have the BEST waffle recipe, so of course it made sense to have waffles with our fried chicken. I'm not sure why they're such a perfect combination, but they really are, especially when the world outside is quickly turning into a winter wonderland.

We felt extra cozy indoors.

Weekend

I spent this weekend sitting at home, wearing cozy socks and eating peanut butter.

It was pretty clear early on that Irene was going to mostly pass us by, so there was also beer and dinners out and trips to go buy wine,

but mostly it was a whole lot of staying indoors, a lot of cooking,

and hanging with some of my favorite people.

Which is really the best kind of weekend, no?

Happy Monday!

It's freezing outside right now (it's 65 degrees-I do recognize that that won't feel so freezing come winter!), so I kind of forgot how hot it was this weekend. But man, that was a scorcher.

It was so hot, really the only thing I could do was go to the happy place and jump in the lake immediately. I had a dear friend from college in town, plus Emma was around, so of course we needed ring pops. Also, lemon slush. (Is that a uniquely New England summer treat? I am kind of getting the impression that it is.)

As it turns out, homemade granola is an excellent snack after a late night of dancing with your sister and her friends. (I'm still looking for the perfect recipe though- anyone have any suggestions?)

Once it cooled down, I got to have an Arnold Palmer, read my book, and write some letters at Hi-Rise. A weekend where I spend time at two of my happy places is a good weekend, indeed.

Happy Monday, Friends!

Hello again

Why, hello there.

How are you? It's been a while, I know.



I got a new job, you see, and all of a sudden, I had to work during working hours.

That's a little strange. It took some getting used to. (In my old job, they didn't really have very much for me to do.)



I think I'm figuring it out, though. Which is good, because spring is upon us. Last weekend, in addition to celebrating roommates old and new with birthday cake, biscuits, and bourbon, I wore flip flops and drank a lot of iced coffee.



Today, it is going to be fifty-six degrees outside. This girl is going to take a lunch break and go for a walk and enjoy the sunshine.

I love spring.

Happy Friday, friends!

It feels like spring today, and it is glorious. Last night I went for a run in shorts!

It was pretty fantastic. Spring, hurry along, won't you?

Snow Day!

When I was in college, it once snowed so hard on Valentine's day that they canceled classes for the first time since 1978, when all of New England was hit with a blizzard that was so bad everyone's parents still talk about it more than thirty years later.

The best part about the 2007 Valentines' snow storm was that none of the kids from California had ever had a snow day before. They didn't know what to do with themselves!

Should you ever find yourself in that position, wondering what to do with an unexpected day off and a foot and a half of snow on the ground, I have some suggestions:

First, you must put on your tromping outfit. Preferably something very warm. Snow boots are a must. In a pinch, rain boots with warm socks will work. Don't forget your mittens!


{You can't tell, but Emma is wearing four shirts in this picture}

Next, you must find a large patch of snow. Preferably untouched, but in a pinch, pre-tromped snow will do the trick. Then you tromp away.





Sometimes it helps to have a purpose to your tromping. Emma and I tromped out words in the snow. Figure 8's are also always fun.

After you are done with your tromping, you will be cold. Hot chocolate is just the ticket to warm you back up.



Once you're done with your hot chocolate, you will be in search of some indoor entertainment. Movies are always a good choice. Because it is a snow day, nobody will mind if you take your boots off in the theater and let your socks watch the movie, too.



And that is how to spend a snow day.

I Love Pudding

I am waiting for it to start snowing.

We are supposed to get a huge blizzard tonight, so as soon as I was done with work and errands, I came home and got all cozy in my house. I put on my pj's, and then, because mushy food is the coziest food* in my book, I made some pudding.



I combined two recipes (this one and this one), and what I got was so cozy and chocolatey and delicious, I think I might have to make it again tomorrow. (Oh yes. Maybe there isn't any left. There's nothing wrong with eating pudding instead of dinner, is there?) Because it's been a while since I shared a recipe, and because apparently the whole eastern seaboard is about to get a whole lot of snow, and so I thought you might want some cozy food, too, here's what I did:

Chocolate Pudding

1/4 c cocoa powder
2 1/2 T corn starch
1/4 c brown sugar (packed, of course!)
1/4 c white sugar
1/4 t cinnamon
1/8 t salt
2 1/2 c milk
1 t vanilla
2 T butter

Combine all the dry ingredients in a heavy soup pot. Whisk them together really well- try to break up the brown sugar if you can.

Add the milk, and bring to a boil, whisking continuously, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. I found it helpful to scrape the bottom of the pot with a rubber spatula sometimes, too, but if you are a more conscientious whisker than I, that shouldn't be necessary.

When the pudding is thick, remove from heat and stir in butter and vanilla, then divide into little tiny bowls. Chill, if you are more patient than I am. Otherwise, eat it warm. I have it on authority that both ways are pretty delicious.



Curling up on the couch with pudding, a glass of wine, and a good book is the perfect way to wait for the snow to come, I think.



*I love mushy food so much that Cait and I are having a casserole-themed dinner party in a couple of weeks. I am so excited I can barely contain myself.

I always forget how restorative a beach vacation can be until I'm on one.

Lately I've been working working working, and I've been exhausted all the time. But one of the grad students in the lab got married in Cape May yesterday, so my boss (who happens to be Emily's mom), and Emily and I took a three day weekend to attend.

The wedding was beautiful, even though it was 96 degrees. It was in the teeny tiniest little chapel right on the ocean, and then the reception was in the lounge of the ferry terminal, and it had the most gorgeous views of the bay and of ships coming and going.

Our hotel is also right on the ocean in downtown Cape May, and it's perfect. We can walk across the beach to jump in the waves for a little while, and then when we're ready, we just grab our towels and walk right back for a dip in the pool. Right now, we're sitting on the patio, waiting out a thunderstorm and watching the massive waves crash on the beach. It's pretty much perfect. I hope all your summers are going just as well.

(Almost) all better.

Thanks, friends, for indulging my whines. (And the emails! Man, I got some of the nicest emails of my life after that awful post.)

I'm feeling better now. Long runs, perfect weather, and roommate dinners helped. So did roasted rhubarb with greek yogurt for breakfast, and plenty of t.v. on Hulu.

How about you? What do you do when you're in a funk? How do you get yourself out of it? I feel like this is a situation where collective knowledge from the internet could be useful.

Spring has burst into Boston.

Today after lunch I sat in the park by my office for twenty minutes, drinking a latte and marveling at all the pretty that surrounded me.

I foresee a lot of outdoor lunch breaks in the coming weeks.

In which I ask for book recommendations, yet again.

Happy Friday, everyone!

It is disgusting here today. Yesterday it was in the sixties, and today it is snowing. Snowing!

I do not want to go to work today. I just want to stay at home and bake and drink tea and read all day.

Unfortunately, I don't think my boss would really like that plan, so instead I'll read my book on the bus ride into work. Right now I'm reading the Poisonwood Bible. I like it a lot.

How about you? Reading anything good this weekend?

{Image borrowed from Amazon}

A couple of weekends ago, my mom and I spent a Saturday afternoon walking from Cambridge into Boston, and then we walked around BU and the Back Bay.

Although it's pouring as I type this, and the wind is blowing so hard I'm a little worried I'll wake up in Oz, looking at pictures from that walk give me hope that Spring really is coming. I can't wait.

A petite blizzard!

Every so often, you get exactly what you asked for.

Don't you love it when that happens?

On Blizzards.

You guys.

Am I the only one who is terribly disappointed in the blizzard that wasn't?

I know the mid-Atlantic is sick of snow by this point, but we haven't had a single real storm all winter, and I'm feeling a little let down.

See, snow is magical. That feeling you get when you wake up and look outside to see the whole world covered in white, or bonding with your neighbors over the hassle of shoveling the sidewalk, or going inside once you're all done and curling up with hot chocolate and a book: that stuff can only happen when we have a blizzard, and that didn't quite happen around these parts today.

Oh well. Winter's not over for another month, right? We still have time.

Just one little blizzard, please? Come one, Mother Nature. I'll be good, I promise!

Happy New Year, friends!

I woke up on Saturday morning to tons and tons of snow- it's a veritable winter wonderland outside of my house, even all these days later.

Winter is so pretty around these parts. I'm so so glad I moved back to New England.

I am in love with the weather in Boston this week.

Today, we had lunch outside.

Tomorrow, our boss offered to take us on a picnic.

Come January and February, we'll be up to our eyeballs in snow, and that will be magical, but right now? I'm just enjoying this little bit of spring that we're getting in November.

Outdoor running and picnics all week long! Hooray!

Gemma came for a visit this afternoon!

I love it when San Francisco friends come to visit me in Boston.

I miss my San Francisco friends.

Anyway, Gemma and I braved the wintry mix of rain and snow and cold cold wind to go to Bella Vita on Charles street to have some chili. It was pretty good. Then we needed to meet up with my mom for some manicures.

After all that strenuous work, of course we needed to have some hot cider. It's the best thing about fall. (Besides foliage and caramel apples and apple picking.) (And hiking.)

Now I really must go to sleep so I can wake up in four hours to take Gemma to South Station sp she can get to the airport on time.

Thanks for coming, Gemma!

(sorry I had my computer open during hot cider time.)

Happy (almost) Weekend!

Fall is coming! Fall is coming!

It is freezing outside, and for some reason, I couldn't be happier.

Right now it's pouring outside my window, but I'm all curled up in my cozy bed and it is perfect.

(It seems that two down comforters is the way to go if you want a cozy bed.)

This weekend is looking like a good one: on Friday night, I'm going to a concert with my country-music-obsessed friend (I'm a little nervous- I've never been to a country concert before! What if I hate it?), and then on Saturday, I'm getting together with a couple of people to make pasta!

What are your exciting plans for this cold and stormy weekend?

Red Sox!

Guess where my feet and I went last night?

Fenway Park, of course!

I hadn't been to a Red Sox game yet this year, so when Sara texted me on Sunday night to see if I wanted to go, I immediately said yes. We had lots of fun watching the team, drinking Sam Adams Oktoberfest, and eating pretzels. . .

{I'm unemployed and I'd already eaten, so I just had a bite of Emily's pretzel. It was pretty tasty.}

Then it started to rain! While the rain itself was sad, we did get to see the guys put out the cover-thingy. I love watching them do that. I like how they work together to get the field covered quickly.

The other thing I love about going to Red Sox games is how everybody at them really loves the Red Sox. I don't even like baseball that much, but the Red Sox are just awesome, and so Bostonish and being surrounded by people who feel the same way is so much fun.

Thanks for taking us, Sara!