christmas wrap up

Wow, Christmastime has come and gone....

Rob and I spent the holiday with our family in Northern California. It felt like Christmas there...because we were with family and because it was cold like Christmas usually is...not so much in Hollywood.

Where to even begin with our holiday week?

It was great, for many reasons. We were thankful to be with loved ones. We were glad to celebrate the season. I'll post about different highlights, show some pictures, offer book suggestions for the new year, movies, music, recipes....yadda yadda....

We're home now. Hard to believe tomorrow is New Year's day....

santa pic

Lindsey and I took a themed picture with Santa two of the three years we were college roommates....we had alot of fun together.
This shot was from 2003, taken at the Valencia Town Center.
Look at Santa...that's funny.

no steffens christmas cookies

My mom's Christmas cookies are probably the best ever...I remember helping her make them every year...Rob and I made them together to bring home to our family's the last couple of years....here's last year's blog post about them. Juliet would also make a batch. We would combine them together and note how each were decorated with our personal styles...some (most) wild and crazy, some traditional, some not even frosted...
We weren't able to make any this year. It's been a bit busy these days...to say the least. I thought maybe, just maybe, we could make them and bring them home to the family...then I thought about rolling dough out on the six millimeters of free kitchen space we have and decorating them on the floor because we do not have a kitchen table anymore...I thought of all the bazillions of sprinkles I would be sweepings for months and and I realized...no, no cookies this year.
Hopefully Juliet made some.
So we're headed up north to be with family for Christmas. We're especially excited since we were far away for Thanksgiving. I'll be posting still...hoping to get shots of family and friends and I'll share them with you.

vintage family, christmas dad

Here is my Dad some Christmas ago...not sure what year, I think and I'm pretty sure 1983, before my time.

My Mom still sets up the nativity scene found here...the ornaments on the tree are still around, too.

slide, NYC

admissions fun

We take alot of pictures in Admissions...here is one I have meant to post...this was from September.

From the top: Erin, Shannon, Megan, John Spring, Hollie, us, Chris, me, John Melcon

poll, favorite christmas film

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babycakes nyc

So Megan and I participated in a race together and for registering online we had the option to receive "free" magazine subscriptions. They really weren't free. The first issue is free, then your bank account is charged for the full subscription price. Bummer. Anyway, one magazine that I received for the next year was Food & Wine. It's nice. I really don't drink (much) wine, but I eat food so it worked out in the end.

Each month Food & Wine has an article about people who have their own business and stand out for something special. Sometime during summer 2006 the stand out business person was Erin McKenna, founder and owner of Babycakes NYC. You can read the article here. Basically, Babycakes NYC is a bakery in New York that does all of its baking without sugar, dairy, nuts, wheat, soy, eggs...all things people tend to use when baking. Instead of traditional baking ingredients, Babycakes NYC uses flours such as spelt or chickpea...agave nectar instead of sugar or honey, carob instead of chocolate, etc. Her motivation is for people who cannot stomach these foods, including herself.

Anyway, I have since become a big fan of alternative baking methods...I do not have any known food allergies, but I usually like the alternatives. I have also become a fan of Babycakes NYC and thought if I ever made it to New York I needed to give it a try.

Well, I did make it to NY with Rob for Thanksgiving (see many previous posts for more trip details) and we did make it to Babycakes NYC.

We loved it. The shop is adorable. Check out the website to get a feel for the actual bakery. Very cute.

I tried a cinnamon toastie...delicious...very sweet. Actually, I could really just do half (I don't do alot of sweets) and saved the other half for another time. Rob tried a traditional cupcake, what Babycakes NYC is really known for. Mark my words, he said it was the best cupcake he has ever had.

This was before and after we tried the famous Magnolia Bakery. Pretty impressive, that Babycakes.

I was sure to meet Erin McKenna while we were there and told her I'm a fan....word is a Babycakes is opening in West Hollywood sometime early 2008. Very cool. I'm sure we'll visit it from time to time, though the NY shop will probably be my fave.

college shots, 5

A fond memory of Christmas in Sweazy Dorm, 2003.

rob's short film

Rob is working on a short film these days. He's been taking screenwriting and directing classes this semester. Wow, he's really good at it...though, this isn't the most outrageous thing to find out...it's Rob...he's a natural at many things, especially this. Alot of creativity, networking, physical and emotional labor and alot of time has gone into his film...word is it will be finished very soon. I'm excited to see it. I promised to be quiet (because I'm usually out of control loud?) while they were shooting a few weeks back...couldn't help but sneak a few pics.

roasted spiced sweet potatoes & apples

Since we have been back from NY I have made this a few times and really like it...for breakfast, lunch or dinner:

Roasted Spiced Sweet Potatoes & Apples

Recipe by Sarah Ikegami

1 Sweet Potato

1 Apple

Olive Oil, Salt, Pepper

Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Ground Cloves

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Wash and chop potato and apple, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and spices. Roast for 30 minutes, stir at 15. I like this fall veggie/fruit combo with toast, topped on oatmeal or mixed in Greek yogurt. It's nice with chopped walnuts and honey.

christmas time with the judds

My Mother in Law is sweet.

She sent me this in the mail, I got it last night.

I'm such a huge fan...I love it.

ginger molasses spice bread

During another "let's bake something to get this place warm..." time at home, I baked this ginger spice molasses bread to bring to work.

A few tips to add a little good health in a quick bread like this one:

Use whole grain flour...even if it calls for regular, all purpose flour. This adds more fiber. It doesn't mean it's fat free or sugar free but it does add more fiber, which is good.

Use unsulfured blackstrap molasses instead of traditional molasses. Blackstrap has alot of iron.

Use either real unsalted butter or swap for apple sauce...most "diet" butters have alot of weird unpronounceable ingredients in them...just stick with the real stuff you can actually say out loud and enjoy it.

Baking this bread did make it warmer. It was also a treat to share with friends.

Ginger Molasses Spice Bread

recipe adapted from the Bob Red Mills Baking book

3/4 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cup kamut flour (or whole wheat flour or another whole grain, whatever you have)

1 ts. baking soda

1/2 ts. salt, allspice, ginger

1/2 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1/3 cup molasses

3 Tb. honey

1/2 cup apple cider

6 Tb. butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dry ingredients, then wet and then all together. Bake in a round 8x8 cake dish for about 30 minutes.

I sprinkled raw oats on top....you could also frost to turn this bread into a cake.

Enjoy with friends!

jen

Happy Birthday, Jen!

elf reunion, 2007

Saturday night was the 5th annual Elf Reunion and it was sweet...literally, emotionally, spiritually...I love Elf Reunion. I'm so thankful to spend time and catch up with these special friends...this year with a special guest, Jacob Brock. Wow, it's great to see and know God's faithfulness in our lives and His kindness and grace to keep us near to Him. The theme of the evening was, of course, Buddy the Elf and waffle dinner treated to us by Sarah Jane...click on this pic to see the most colorful candy waffle ever, recipe brilliantly created by Sam.

From left to right: Sam, (Buddy) Sarah Dyer, (extreme candy waffle) Carly, Saja, Jacob, Me

Teany's coconut tea

We went through two pots of Teany's coconut tea on Saturday. Our place began to warm up with all the brewing and baking, it was nice.

reba mcentire, merry christmas to you

This is a part of my Christmas music collection:

Reba McEntire, Merry Christmas to You

I think there is a special place in my heart for Reba because I went to one of her concerts back in '97 with my Grandpa. He's a huge fan...I guess I am, too.

poll, white christmas

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peanut butter oat bran muffins

It's freezing at our place. We are so cold all the time, but it's ok, at least we have a place and each other....and alot of clothes to layer.

Until our gas pilot is lit (next week) it will just be cold, I guess.

Anyway, baking/cooking is somewhat of a bear at times in our little kitchen exploding with gadgets, but it was so cold last night that I decided to bake in an attempt to create whatever heat possible.

Rob picked out a recipe from this famous book on our shelf...he helped make them, too. That was cool.

These peanut butter oat bran muffins actually called for teff flour, but I didn't have any and used oat bran instead. They are egg, dairy, soy and sugar free...not nut/wheat/gluten free though, if that matters to anyone.

They're a great snack for anytime of the day, really. I enjoyed one with a glass of soynog, Rob, milk. Just our preferences....

Our place warmed up some for a few hours. Of course, it helped that I was wearing 2 pairs of socks, flannel pants, 2 sweatshirts and had a blanket...very becoming...

Recipe, adapted from Bob Red Mills Baking Book:

1/2 cup oat bran

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 Tb. baking powder

1/2 ts. salt

1/4 cup natural peanut butter, we used crunch, salted

2 Tb. vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups water

4 Tb. honey, molasses or pure maple syrup, we went with the syrup

Mix together and bake at 350 for 14 minutes.

These are dense muffins. Try them with a glass of milk, jam, mashed banana, honey....or all the above, if you want...

admissions christmas party

We celebrated the merry season with our office staff on Saturday. It was a time to thank our hard working interns and to enjoy each other's company. Everyone came in PJs for a waffle breakfast at Hollie's place. It was a great time. I'm so thankful for each person the Lord has placed in my life...He is so kind and loving!

From left to right, beginning at the top:

Vanessa, Rob, Hugh, John, Chris, Hampton, Megan, Bre, John, Erika, Meghan, Ally, Danae, Megan, Erin, Me, Hollie, Shannon & Lindsey

Teany's

I have mentioned Teany's before...I feel like it has made its way on this blog often enough to make me a fan, at least...maybe others?

So I finally made it to the Lower East Side tea shop I have raved about all year long....

Loved it.

The cafe was cozy, dim and bright (does that make sense)...it felt warm and sunny and casual, low key. We sat for tea and chili (recipe in the cookbook). Rob had the coconut (which we now brew at home, it was so good) and I had the chai...served with soy and agave...does it get better than that? I even introduced myself to the owner and ridiculously told her how big of fan I am. I think she thought I was weird.

Teany's was one of few places we went to twice. We really liked it and I loved it.

macy's day parade, nyc, 2007

Our earliest morning in NYC was Thanksgiving day, at the Macy's Parade. We hopped on the subway and headed straight to Times Square hoping to get a decent standing view of the enormous floats...along with what seemed like thirteen thousand others...cool. We chatted with a lady who worked at Macy's on 34th the night before the holiday tradition. She told us what to expect and suggested a good time to arrive to "claim our territory" (which means nothing at all to parents who woke their family's at 2am for front row views) and hoped us the best. She was sweet.

The parade was nice. The floats are gigantic and it takes dozens of people to steer them. Alot of celebrities we have never heard of were in the parade and we knew when they were approaching because every teen girl went wild...funny. We recognized a few of them. Hands down Wynonna Judd was my favorite...but I'm a huge fan, so that's a given.

We saw Peanuts and Snoopy, Santa and Kermit...no Garfield, to my regret. I'm glad we watched the parade, live. We'll probably never do it again, not because it wasn't worth it, but because for us it was one of those, let's just do it just this once and every other time we can notice it's on the TV in the background kinda thing while we sip coffee and chat with the fam. We sorta like listening to the parade hosts, too.

All in all it was totally cool...not top on the list of NYC highlights, but fun and actually kinda chill despite the crowds and worth it...especially when you are in good company.

nyc subway

If only all public transportation was modeled after NYC...wouldn't that be nice?

poll, real or fake christmas tree

Opinion Polls & Market Research

juliet & dustin in hollywood

When Juliet and Dustin came to visit us in Hollywood a few weeks back, we had some fun taking pictures around the city. Didn't mean to cause offense with Juliet's ring-finger-flip-off. I couldn't resist requesting a close up of the diamond(s).

We had fun with J and D and we're glad to be their family and friends as they prepare for marriage...next August 23, 2008.

it's a wonderful life

Just saw for the first time last night:

It's a Wonderful Life

liberty island

This is what we did at Liberty Island.

zabar's coffee

When a friend from the Hollywood Church found out we were going to New York she immediately asked if we were going to Zabar's.

"Za-wha?", was our response.

"Zabar's!", was hers and explained it was a coffee shop and specialty market in the upper west side of the city. She went on to describe what made Zabar's great...by the end of the conversation we decided to give it a try since our friend is a brilliant foodie and it was in our travel book of coffee shops to try in NY.

We figured we were destined to like it.

We loved it.

Zabar's coffee is delicious. Their cafeteria style table made us feel a part of the upper west side community. We liked the market next door, too. It's a gourmet food lover's delight. We picked up some of Zabar's house blend beans to enjoy at home, a coffee mug (it was a dollar, you can't beat that....or you could, just don't buy it, I guess) and Rob grabbed some chocolate rougalah when I wasn't looking...I got my lunch to go from their prepared foods section, too.

So, we are huge Zabar fans...so huge we went again a few days later for our morning coffee. We're glad we tried it and we are thankful for our friend, Suelynn, who insisted we block a spot on our trip for Zabar's.

2 and a 1/2 years ago

A pic from two and a half years ago today!

jed

Happy Birthday, Jed!

clementines

I usually buy enough fruit for a few days when out grocery shopping. There is this weird thing about me where I really enjoy buying produce and schedule to do a few times a week. I was out and about over the weekend and couldn't resist a box full of clementines, most likely to last more than a just few days.

Now that I think of it, I don't think I have ever purchased clementines until this weekend, so it's funny I decided to buy about a million of them at once.

I don't know very much about clementines. They're small, sort of like an orange or tangerine and are best around Christmas time...I've resorted to this website for lack of better resources at the moment, and found it helpful to learn more about the cute fruit I'll be eating plenty of, the next week or so.

christmas bird postcard

I have a thing for birds. I like looking at them, as pictures, mostly...not really one for having a bird as a pet.

Megan surprised me with beautiful Christmas bird postcards (she's sweet)...six different pictures...this is one.