Trust Art

Interesting concept. Great PR and fundraising strategy for artists while investors get a return for publicizing the art. But it is only a brilliant concept when the art is good. in my humble opinion, the art featured in this year's collection is not so appealing. i do not understand what the artists are trying to accomplish. listening to what the artists had to say didn't clarify much either. In order to instill trust in investors, the art must inspire. i was not so.

New Year's Resolutions

a little belated... I didn't have much inspiration or motivation to make them in the beginning of 09 but after an amazing weekend surrounded by wonderful people, the energy of the city I love, and meeting wonderful new people really gave me the courage to look forward with hope. Just a little schpeal on this blog to keep myself accountable.

I resolve to:

1. Choose to surround myself with good people
2. Maintain healthy communicative relationships with those closest to me
3. Exercise for good health-- mind, body, and spirit
4. Offer more words of praise, encouragement, and condolences to those who need it
5. Take better care of my eyes (aka... stop staring at the computer screen for extended periods of time)
6. Take Bailey for longer walks.
7. Spend as much time as possible outdoors
8. Start training again for races
9. Not linger on negative thoughts, people, experiences, conversations.
10. Be more focused and goal oriented w/ out all the distraction
11. Brush up on photography skills
12. Smile more often
13. Listen to more music
14. Dance more often
15. Not eat based on emotions
16. READ BOOKS

the list goes on... and it's all a work in progress always. but to have set goals to work on is an important thing. It shows you and only you how you have failed and what you have accomplished. It keeps you motivated and accountable. but always a work in progress....

mexican wedding cookies

Hold the Macarons!!! I didn't have much time today to experiment with the Macarons so I quickly whipped up a batch of Mexican Wedding Cookies (aka Russian Tea Cakes, Butterballs, Snowballs, Italian Butter Nuts, etc...). Every Christmas (9 years and counting...), one of Mom's customers bakes these sweet melt-in-your-mouth treats for us. They're soft and buttery like shortbread, with a pleasant nutty crunch.

During my trip to San Francisco in early December, Mike and I baked the Christmas version of Mexican Wedding cookies with pistachios and dried cherries (get it? green pistachios and red cherries=Christmas colors? haha! ). They were delicious thanks to Mike's excellent baking skills. The smooth nuttiness of the pistachio went really well with the tartness of the cherry. They were addictive but we made sure to have just one a day due to the 2 cups of butter that went into the whole batch... oh WHY must they be so unhealthy!? (as I bite into another one...)

Here is the recipe that I used for this batch (adapted from joyofbaking.com):

2/3 cup (65 grams) toasted nuts (almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts or pecans)

1 cup (227 grams) unsalted butter, room temperature

1/4 cup (30 grams) confectioners' (powdered or icing) sugar

1 teaspoon (2 grams) pure vanilla extract

2 cups (280 grams) all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

Topping:

1 cup (110 grams) powdered (icing or confectioners) sugar, sifted

Toast Nuts til golden. Cool completely. Grind in food processor or blender with 1-2 Tbsp of flour from your 2 Cups so that the nuts don't stick or become pasty.

In the bowl of your electric mixer (or with a hand mixer), cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Beat in the vanilla extract. Add the remaining flour and salt and beat until combined. Stir in the nuts. Cover and refrigerate the dough for about 1 hour or until firm.

Form the dough into 1 inch (2.54 cm) balls and place them 2 inches (5 cm) apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for about 12 - 15 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies start to brown. Remove and cool completely. Roll cookies in confectioners sugar.

Tip: Be careful not to touch the cookies while they're hot because they are delicate and crumble easily. Also make sure the cookies are cool before covering in powdered sugar because the sugar will melt.

i think i've had my share of cookies for today... (gotta hit the gym tonight!)
Bon appetite! :-)

new year's obsessions

much like new year's resolutions, i find that in the new year, i seek new things to be obsessed about. last year, it was electronics (which i couldn't afford). this year, recipes. and god, i hate recipes! clarification: i hate having to follow recipes... a tsp of this, 2 2/3 cupsof that... UGH. I do NOT have the patience to follow meticulous instructions. but for some reason, after i had decided that i was not very good at baking, i became obsessed with perfecting baked goods. so far, with success! at least with the limited baking that i have attempted... baking really is all about understanding the chemistry of how one ingredient interacts with another ingredient all under specific conditions-- hence, following recipes to a T. but scouring the 'net for recipes, i've come across some a m a z i n g food blogs with PICTURES. Glorious mouthwatering marvelous PICTURES! how could one resist trying to recreate such delectable goods? not i. so i have been quite busy in the kitchen these days, spending whatever spare time i have in my daily routine to cook or bake something new.

my new mission:
Macarons

Chocolate Macarons, Photo from www.davidlebovitz.com (one of my fav food blogs)


some of these food blogs that i've been reading through have been really helpful in getting ideas for my kitchen repertoir. i get really excited reading through recipes blogs... ( also happens when i read through cookbooks, which i do quite frequently). it makes me wonder... WHY DIDN'T I GO TO CULINARY SCHOOL?! FOOD makes me so happy! eh... actually, lemme clarify. the PROCESS of preparing food for others makes me super happy.

will update with macaron results!

snow falling on...

....BAILEY (aka Bubba)!

i cannot believe we had our very first major snowfall of the season this late! It was lovely to wake up to... the kind of snow that floats down to the ground in all its powdery glory. and then Bubba had to go pee and poop in it! HA!

from the kitchen

... mochiko muffins! i got the recipe from Mr. B, who baked these for my turkey dinner. i tried making them from scratch last weekend and they turned out awesome! [possibly better than Mr. B's... shhh....]


crisp on the outside. moist, chewy, and sweet on the inside. de-lish.

Happy Lunar New Year, ppls!

recap: the view

.... from within. it kinda sucked! haha... but it was pretty damn awesome to be surrounded by millions, eagerly anticipating the moment that President Obama was sworn in. you could feel the energy building despite the bitter cold.




at this point, i was so happy that i didn't even care that i was filming the sky most of the time. the crowd roared like no other... me included!

history in the making

an incredible day it was! witnessing such a historic moment in the midst of 2 million or so people from all over the country in 20 degree temps brought forth an emotional outpour. while all of us were jam packed into the Mall between the Capitol and the Washington Monument and beyond, there was an overwhelming sense of hope for the possibility of change and progression for this country and this world of ours. it wasn't just the US that held its breath upon the inauguration of Barack Obama, but also the world that awaited this change of power and politics.

my recap will come on another day. i'm exhausted from 10 hours of standing in below freezing temperatures w/ nothing in my stomach (my dog ate my breakfast) and a few txt msgs to fuel me throughout the day (thanks!), but here are a few photos...

holy cheeses!

http://www.cheesecupid.com

i've died and gone to heaven. well, not yet... maybe after i try some of these pairings.

If Gaza Falls...

http://www.lrb.co.uk/v31/n01/roy_01_.html

a good article written by Sara Roy, who teaches at the Harvard University Center for Middle Eastern Studies. it gives us a glimpse of the urgency of the situation within the confines of the Gaza strip.

when a territory and its people have absolutely no authority over its boarders, coastline, and airspace, how can it be autonomous? when Israel denies access into and out of Gaza, which includes denying humanitarian aid and food into the territory, how can Israel claim there is "no humanitarian crisis" ???? why is there even a debate? what ever happened to the role of the UN?