Category: Five Things

Five Things

SadieLeave a comment

I will miss about my grad school after I graduate.

5. The pleasant weather and quaint atmosphere of Williamsburg, VA.  While Williamsburg is certainly lacking some key things like a good mall, or any form of entertainment besides bars and bowling, I will miss it. The Winters are definitely more mild, and the Fall and Spring are filled with beautiful days. I’ll miss my Friday errands in town running around to the little businesses.

4. The Breaks. This is a no brainer because I’ll never get a month off for Winter break or a random week off in the Spring to just relax.  I hate planning out PTO days.

3. The Business Casual Dress Code. I actually complained about having to dress nicely for school (basically just no casual jeans or sweats), but I’ll probably have to dress even nicer for my real life job. So I’m going to miss my colorful business casual outfits when I’m stuck with dress pants and heels…

2. The Daily School Schedule. I definitely had my fill of busy weeks with lots of meetings, but the level of freedom that comes with only about three hours of class everyday is nice.  But I won’t miss the homework, that’s for sure.

1. The People.  Duh. I will miss all the great friends I’ve made over the course of two years.  I’m really going to do my best to keep in touch!

Five Things

Sadie1 Comment

I haven’t mastered in the kitchen:

1. Challah Bread. I am still trying to develop a good working relationship with yeast.  I’ve heard that making challah bread is difficult, but I don’t think my dough rose enough before I baked it.

2. Caramel.  I either under cook it so the sugar isn’t really melted all the way, or I burn it. Maybe I should get a candy thermometer.

3. White Mountain (or seven minute) Frosting.  Sometimes I pour the hot mixture into the egg whites too quickly and the frosting falls flat, and sometimes I pick a bad recipe that seems doomed from the start.  I will get this one eventually.

4. Rice. This one seems simple but I can’t do it. I’ve only tried a handful of times and I always feel like it’s under done or over done.  i think the problem is that I don’t eat or make a lot of rice, and I’ve never put much research into the proper method.  On the plus side, I’m not really picky about the done-ness of rice so it doesn’t keep me up at night.

5. Pie Crust.  This is for two reasons: 1. it intimidates me, and 2. it’s not my job in my family.  My mother spent years perfecting her pie crust (psst- she uses actual lard), so I don’t try to steal her thunder. In our family we tend to divide and conquer.  I don’t try to make apple pies because that’s my Mom’s jurisdiction, and she doesn’t make pancakes or granola.

What are you still having trouble with in the kitchen?

Five Things

Sadie2 Comments

I would consider my “Signature” or most requested dishes.

5. Vegetarian Black Bean Soup. I just blogged about this a few weeks ago, but I’ve been making this for a few years now.  It’s a great and easy riff on traditional tortilla soup, and it turns out great every time!  Definitely a crowd pleaser.

4. Green Beans with Caramelized Onions and almonds.  I’ve seen a few Food Network personalities make versions of this dish, so one Thanksgiving I decided to combine a few recipes and give it a try.  It quickly became a staple at my family’s Thanksgiving table.

3. Rice Krispie treats.  This one is so easy, but so good.  Whenever I make a version of rice krispie treats to bring to a party, they get raves. I love them too, but I feel like people don’t realize that all I did was melt butter and marshmallows and add cereal. I usually make them because I need to pull something together at the last minute, and quickly realize that I could have made a soufflé and gotten fewer compliments.

2. Granola.  I saw a recipe for granola about three years ago and decided to give it a try. At the time, I didn’t even realize you could bake granola at home.  Three years later, my mother requires me to make a big batch to leave with her every time I visit her house.

1. Buttermilk Pancakes.  My grandmother trained me to make these with my great grandmother’s recipe at a very early age.  By the way, this is my great grandmother Sarah Church, aka Sadie.  This is my number one requested dish by friends and family hands down.  They are simple, light, and fluffy every time!

What is your best dish?