SOFRESH Blessing // Chocolate Chip Cookies

This last Saturday, the sophomore class of AIV invited the freshmen to an afternoon of studying and bonding at Palmer Commons.  There were snacks, a sandwich bar, games, shenanigans, and lots of fun!

Most of the food. It was consumed quickly.

The freshmen, stick-figured. =)

In the throes of laughter and the middle of playing Mafia. Grace is laughing in the striped tank on the right.

Studying hard... or hardly studying? Jason is one of the three guys in this picture. Guess a). what these guys are playing, and b). which ones Jason!

Multi-tasking... studying AND Catan.

I wasn’t the only one taking pictures!  Here are some pictures of other friends taking pictures:

Maggie, to the right, and Rocky, on the left, snapping pictures.

My friend Kelli, and future neighbor in #4.

Christina, another future #4 resident, with Rockys camera.

And finally… the cookies.  My friend James dropped off a lot of the groceries at #8 the night before, to facilitate easier transportation to Palmer Commons than where he lives near North Campus, and the morning of, I decided to make chocolate chip cookies for everyone.  They also did double-duty as Jason’s breakfast.

Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from AllRecpies

Ingredients
1 cup (preferably dark) brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup butter
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon  salt
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cream butter and sugar together in a bowl, then add the eggs and vanilla until smooth.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, and baking soda.

Fold the wet ingredients slowly into the dry, then fold in the chocolate chips.

Drop by tablespoons onto baking sheets, and then bake 9-11 minutes.

Makes… lots. ;)

Food PSA // Modern Family & Cannibalism

So this category’s normally called ‘Food Porn,’ but that would be really creepy in today’s case, as the subject of our viewing is a child and pedophilia is gross and vile. Lily is the adopted Vietnamese baby girl to Cameron and Mitchell on ABC‘s Modern Family, and one day, she develops this new habit of… well, biting.

And just in case the above clip wasn’t clear, there was also a public service announcement released:

Out Tonight // Cafe Zola

Well… technically out last night.  My best friend and future #8er Albert and I decided to gastronomically indulge for dinner yesterday evening, but our laziness towards calling in reservations meant we stopped by three restaurants before getting a table!  It was all so yummy, though, so in the end, perhaps it was for the better. :D

Apologies for the bad picture quality; Cafe Zola‘s lighting doesn’t make for the best pictures in the evening. This was half a roasted chicken, of which I could only finish a third; the rest of the plate was made up of mashed potatoes, and roasted veggies (cherry tomatoes, leeks, and asparagus).  Mmmmm…!

Albert got the Ahi Tuna, with sugar snap peas and coconut-cilantro basmati rice!  I tried a bite of the fish–my first time eating tuna ever–and it was… well, fishy.  I’m allergic to a lot of seafood (shrimp, lobster, crab), so most things out of the ocean aren’t really appetizing for me, but if I were a fish person, I think this would be very yummy.

What is your favorite meal to go out for?  I don’t usually indulge in a dinner out, but weekend brunch is almost a regular thing!

Food Porn // Kitchen Odyssey

Quite possibly the most epic butter commercial ever beyond walking butter commercial Paula Deen herself, from the Danish company Lurpak.

(Also… making up for a week of not posting by doing the required 3+ postings all today; I’ve been sick. =( Apologies for the spamming of your RSS feed!)

Like Mrs. Dalloway // Asparagus Tart

On February 12, the guys of AIVcf 2013  (Asian InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Class of 2013) threw us gals a Valentine’s Day appreciation dinner; one month later, March 12, we girls did the same for White Day (an Asian holiday of reciprocation).  As my roommate Grace and I are the only sophomore girls who live outside of the dorms, we hosted the party at #8.

This photo's by my roommate Lily, who does some sweet landscape photography in her free time. The ugly photo down below is mine. =P

It took ages for me to decide what to make, but finally, remembering this old Martha Stewart recipe and being in the mood to play with puff pastry, I decided to make an asparagus tart.  It’s awesome that it’s super easy, but super pretty. :D

The original version involves Gruyere, which I couldn’t find in my rush at Meijer, so I grabbed Fontinella instead–Gruyere is nuttier and slightly harder, while Fontinella is softer, a little creamier, kinda like fancy cream cheese. I also like prosciutto (Italian dry-cured ham), and sun-dried tomatoes, so I added those.  The natural oils and saltiness of the prosciutto also act as additional seasoning, so I’ve taken out the olive oil, salt, and pepper from the original.

Asparagus Tart

Ingredients
1 pound asparagus
1 sheet puff pastry
1 1/2 cups fontinella cheese, grated/sliced
4 sun-dried tomatoes, thinly sliced
4 slices prosciutto
flour, for rolling surface

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Roll out the puff pastry on your floured surface into a 10 x 17″ rectangle; transfer to baking sheet. Using a knife, score a rectangular 1″ border, then score the dough inside your rectangle every 1/2″ or so. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden.

Remove the puff pastry from the oven, then spread out the cheese in an even layer within the rectangle you previously scored.  Trim the asparagus to fit within the square, and then begin layering the stalks atop the cheese, alternating tips and ends.

Spread out the four slices of prosciutto atop the asparagus and sprinkle with the sliced sun-dried tomatoes. (If you still want the taste of sun-dried tomatoes but don’t want them to get burnt, sprinkle atop the cheese before you layer the asparagus).

Bake for another 20-25 minutes, then enjoy!

Food Porn // Morning Routine

The title sequence to Showtime‘s Dexter is probably the most sinister-looking food video I have ever watched.  It’s awesome, as is the show.

Spring Cleaning // Roasted Carrots

Coming back to #8 from a week back home for Spring Break was, to say the least, disgusting.  Living in a bi-level apartment means there are two floors of space, but also two floors to clean up, which we most certainly neglected to do in the weeks leading up to the mid-semester vacation; returning to papers strewn everywhere and dust in every corner and some very moldy, green bread on the shelves was the consequence of our laziness.

The boys, ever terrified of doing real housework beyond throwing out the trash, escaped; Rocky walked his girlfriend back to her dormitory and went to study, and Jason ran off to play volleyball for a few hours.  In the girls’ room, Grace, Lily and I stared at each other, thought about the mess of the floor below, and decided–we would each tackle an area and clean, else we go mad (MAD!).

I, of course, lay siege to the kitchen, where the shelves became ordered, various plastic food containers stacked, the counters scrubbed, etc. Post-cleanse, I felt the urge to, well… eat.  Something easy to throw together, something with a little kick, and something with carrots, because I love carrots. :D

For me, there are so many goodies that can come out of the oven; I’m really more of a baker than a cooker, so any meal I can pull out from under the stove versus throw together above makes me gleeful.  The wonderful thing about baking a meal is that you can just pop it in and then in half an hour, an hour, a day, you have something yummy and fantastic.

With roasted vegetables, and especially roasted roots, it’s very easy to put together something to bake–just wash, peel, cut, and toss with whatever spices and seasonings you have on hand and deign to throw in.  These roasted carrots are on the sweet and savory side, with some crushed red pepper for a little, barely perceptible kick of fun.

Roasted Carrots

Ingredients
1 pound carrots
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 teaspoons parsley flakes
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/8 teaspoon cumin
1/8 teaspoon, paprika
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Peel and cut the carrots, and then toss with the olive oil, honey, and spices.  Spread on a baking sheet.

Bake for 40 minutes.

Nom!