The Old Standby

When I first moved to DC my sister Rachel and I shared the cutest apartment in a fantastic neighborhood called Fairlington.  Every weekend without fail we had a routine of bran muffins with fruit on one day and cinnamon rolls with fruit on the other.  We also threw in the occasional Dunkin Donuts. The first time my sister said she was making these muffins I was not all that excited.  It's bran for crying out loud!  Aren't those for people, you know, our grandparents' age? But all it took was one time and I was hooked.

Nick and I have kept a somewhat similar rotation but now we've also added in Panera and Starbucks which are both just a quick walk down the street from our house.  Yes, it gets us in trouble.  And it's expensive.  This morning I went to my kickboxing class and Nick went for a 24 mile bike ride so we both worked up a nice appetite.  Since we've both been traveling quite a bit we decided to go for our old standby bran muffins and fruit.

The recipe used to be on the box of Kellogg's Bran Cereal but since it isn't there anymore, I thought I'd share.  Don't let the bran name fool you. Trust me, these things are awesome....and addictive.  I've made these so many times I don't even need the recipe anymore. Enjoy!

Ingredients: 
1 1/4 cups All Purpose Flour
1/2 cup Sugar
1 tablespoon Baking Powder
1/4 teaspoon Salt
2 cups Kellogs All Bran Cereal
1 1/4 cups Skim Milk
1 Egg
1/4 cup Vegetable Oil

Directions:
Mix together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine All Bran cereal and milk.  Let stand for about 2 minutes (this softens the cereal).
 

Add egg and oil.  Beat well.

Add flour mixture stirring only until combined.

Portion evenly into 12 muffin cups that have been coated with cooking spray.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve warm....with butter :-).

Cantaloupe Conundrum

For as long as I can remember I’ve hated cantaloupe.  I hated the smell, the taste, the scratchy outside rind and I especially hated when it tainted the rest of the delicious items in my fruit salad.  That is, until last summer. 

As you probably know, Nick and I ran the Marine Corps Marathon last October.  That meant months of training, including the entire summer which was the hottest on record.  Somewhere in the midst I read cantaloupe was a great post-run refuel snack.  I whined and griped but bought one anyway.  I was getting sick of our normal routine of fruit snacks, bananas and Gatorade.  The best way to describe the first round would be ‘ok’.

Over Labor Day weekend Nick and I finally took a vacation and headed out to the west coast.  We spent time with family in San Francisco and toured the area.  While vacationing we had an 18 mile run scheduled.  We got up before dawn, put on layers (it’s cold in California in the morning!) and headed out.  Fast forward about three hours when we drug ourselves through the front door.  As we stretched my aunt cut up a cantaloupe, brewed me a fantastic cup of tea and started making us banana pancakes from scratch.  I got up to the counter and as soon as I saw the fruit, I dug in.  The pancakes were amazing too. But that’s a given.

To this day I have no idea why but something inside me craved it and I still can’t get enough of that odd orange fruit I once hated.  We now keep, or at least attempt to, a large Tupperware container full of cut up pieces waiting for me to arrive.  I can easily eat half a melon in one sitting and yet still want more.  Nick thinks it’s humorous to watch me sit on our counters devouring a big bowl while we’re cooking dinner.

So until I decide I no longer enjoy this fruit, I’ll keep on eating it.  And until that day comes, a common statement in our house is “I don’t know why I’m eating this stuff.  I used to hate it!  Oh hey, I finished this one off.  Do we have any more?”

Avery's Bucket List

Every now and then you hear a story or see a picture that you just can't get out of your head.  That happened to me about two weeks ago when I heard about little Avery and I just can't stop thinking about her.  My friend Kate wrote a blog post about her friend from Texas whose five month old daughter, Avery, was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, or SMA.  It's an incurable disease that attacks the muscles and will inevitably be the cause of her death.  And we're not talking years.  We're talking months.

The night I read about Avery I was sitting on our couch waiting for Nick to get home from a late call.  I read Kate's blog post and immediately went to Avery's.  I made it through maybe half of the first post before the water works started.  I cry at pretty much everything and this only made it worse.  I was crying for Avery, for her parents and for the situation.  I sat there and thought "why them?" and "why this perfect little girl?".  Then I thought about our two sweet, perfect nephews and how life just isn't fair.

I've been trying to put myself in her parents' shoes and think about how I would react to the situation.  Avery's parents took the path less traveled and instead of just waiting around for the worst to happen, they're making sure their little girl has the best life she can have.  So, I introduce you to Avery's Bucket List.  The blog is written from Avery's perspective and with a  little humor, explains SMA and what she wants to accomplish.  Some of the items on her Bucket List have already been crossed off but there are still many more to come.

I still feel completely helpless which is something that I hate.  But here is one item that everyone can help with. One of the items on Avery's Bucket List is to raise awareness of SMA and that's where this blog post comes in.  I realize there are maybe three people that read this blog but if you can, share her story and information about SMA.  It's a tragic story but hopefully something good will come out of it.

Oh DEER!

This morning my alarm went off at 7:45. Yes it's early for someone who doesn't have kids on a Saturday but my kickboxing class is at 8:30 and I rarely miss it. I got up, washed my face, looked outside and saw two deer sauntering around the wooded area behind our house. I did a double take and then called to Nick to make sure he saw them too. He did. I even took a picture to prove it.

For those of you who have never been to our house, we live in a little cul de sac of about 40 town homes in the heart of Alexandria. We're talking inside the DC beltway and no where close to where deer should be wandering around. That being said, I feel like I'm in the country half the time with this apparent wildlife habitat we live in. In the two years we've lived in our house (and that alone is scary!) we've seen two deer, a buck, hawks, an owl, two foxes, countless birds, stupid squirrels, and a chipmunk that enjoys our back patio more than we do. Our community also just put bat houses up so we can add that to the list too. That may not seem like a lot to our friends back home but that's some serious variety for Northern Virginia!

Right now I'm sitting in our kitchen with the windows open sipping tea and listening to the birds. This is why we love our house. Even though I have to deal with traffic and plenty of people five days a week, the weekends get to be spent in our quiet neighborhood. I love that we have trees behind our house. I love the fact that so many people comment on how quiet it is here. And I love the fact that even though we live so close to DC we found a place that we can have a little escape.

We definitely won't live here forever but right now, we sure are enjoying the view.

Crockpot Mac n' Cheese

Our lives have been a bit on the hectic side lately and I have completely fallen behind on blog updates so there will be several posted over the next few days. I’ve been on a cooking craze lately (as I’m sure you’ve noticed from my posts) but I haven’t been sharing all my recipes. So, here is just one of the new ones I tried last week. Definitely one to add to the recipe book!

Last week my office had a “Welcome to the New Building” Potluck. Since it seemed as though everyone else was making some sort of dessert, I figured I would make a side. Not many people that know me realize making and thinking of a side dish gives me anxiety. I’m sure you think I’m embellishing but sadly, I’m not. Give me a dessert any day but sides make me stressed. Yes I know I’m weird.

As soon as the words “Sign me up for a delicious side” spilled out of my mouth I instantly regretted it. Luckily, I have two sisters who are also great cooks so I called up one of them and asked for her Crockpot Mac n’ Cheese Recipe. I am slightly embarrassed to share this because it was so incredibly easy to make but we can keep that little secret between us. Everyone raved about it and I decided to let them think it took me a long time. ☺

My Recipe Rating: A

What you’ll need:
3 ½ - 5 quart crockpot
1 medium saucepan
1 bowl- for melting the butter
1 mixing spoon

Ingredients:
1 (16 oz.) pkg. macaroni- I used Safeway brand
1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
1 can evaporated milk
1 ½ cups milk- I used skim because that’s what we drink in our house
1 Teaspoon salt
4 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
½ cup melted butter

Preparation:
Cook macaroni following package directions. Drain well. Grease bottom and sides of crockpot. Toss hot macaroni in slow cooker with the vegetable oil then add all remaining ingredients. Stir gently to combine then cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally.

And there you have it folks! As I said, it’s pretty darn easy. I would highly recommend for the next time you need a quick side that will feed a hungry crowd.

If you haven’t noticed, Mother Nature, it’s January…not April.

I drove home last night and the thermometer in my car said 57 degrees. Wow, that’s warm for January. My daffodils are a good three inches out of the ground and I actually saw some in full bloom on my way to work this morning. This entire winter has been odd. For someone who has spent most of their life bundled up in multiple layers from end of October-April, I’m quite confused to be fine without a coat.

But, since Mother Nature is giving us a break, we decided to take advantage of it. Last night we laced up our sneakers and ran outside for the first time in about two months. The air was chilly and I did have to stop to warm up my ears a few times, but it felt amazing to be breathing fresh air. There is just no comparison to running on a treadmill and pounding the pavement. Even though we’ve done the same route nearly a hundred times at this point, last night it felt new again. It takes a good four minutes for me running on the treadmill to be mentally done but last night I felt great.

Right now I’m not training for anything and it’s an odd feeling. Nick is running the National Marathon in March but I decided to sit this one out thinking training outside in the freezing cold weather would be miserable. Little did I know we would have this for weather. It will be interesting to see if this holds or if we actually get a dose of some winter temperatures. Until then, I plan to take full advantage of the great outdoors for my workouts and enjoy every minute I get to spend off the treadmill.

Nick's Birthday Cupcakes

Nick and I celebrated his birthday yesterday but I made cupcakes for his fire station tonight. His two favorite things are peanut butter and chocolate so I created a chocolate cake with peanut butter buttercream frosting. I finished off the top with a crushed up Reese’s peanut butter cup.

Nick just finished sampling the finished product and said they are pretty good...or at least I think that is what he said through a mouthful. Hope you enjoy!

For the cake you will need:

1 cup all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder (I use Hershey’s)
¼ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter at room temp.
¾ cup sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup buttermilk
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled

Whisk together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.


Working with a paddle attachment for a stand mixer, or a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter at medium speed until soft and creamy. Add the sugar and beat about 2 minutes, until it is bended into the butter.


Add the egg, then the yolk, beating for I minute after each addition and scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl with rubber spatula as needed.


Beat in the vanilla, then reduce the mixer speed to low and add half the dry ingredients, mixing only until they disappear.


Scrape down the bowl and add the buttermilk, mixing until incorporated, then mix in remaining dry ingredients.


Coarsely chop the chocolate and melt it using a double boiler.

Note: If you do not own a double boiler, you can create one by boiling water in a medium sauce pan and placing a glass bowl on top. The heat from the steam will melt the chocolate without burning it. The glass bowl will also become hot so use an oven glove or mit.





Scrape down the bowl, add the melted chocolate and mix with the rubber spatula.


Divide the batter evenly among 12 lined muffin pans.



Bake at 350 degrees for 20-24 minutes, or until the tops of the cakes are dry and springy to the touch and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Transfer pan to cooking rack and let cakes cool 5 minutes before taking them out of pan.

Note: To transfer cupcakes out of pan (or muffins for other recipes) I use an Oxo Pie Server. Trust me, you will never again break into a cupcake or scratch your pans.


Cool to room temperature before icing.

For the Peanut Butter Buttercream Frosting you will need:

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter- not natural (I used Peter Pan)
1 ½ cups powdered sugar
2 pinches salt
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons heavy cream

In a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the butter and peanut butter at medium-high speed until smooth.


Add powered sugar and salt, beat medium-low until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds. Scrape down the bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined.


Scrape down bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, beat at medium speed until incorporated.


Increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes.




To frost and decorate:

Chop the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. I use the Pampered Chef Hand Chopper. Bonus: It doubles as a stress reliever after a long day. :-)


Next,fill pastry bag with buttercream. I use a round tip and start from the outside and work in. Feel free to be generous. You will have plenty of buttercream.


Sprinkle chopped Reese's on top.


And Voila!