Sunday Food and Fun

Chris and I went to Empire Garden Restaurant in Chinatown yesterday. That's where my family usually go when we're in Boston on Sunday during lunchtime.

Pot stickers (beef), Har Gow (shrimp), and Siu Mai (pork).

After dim sum we usually stop by the local C-Mart next door to pick up groceries. Today we just used the store as a detour to get to the other side of the block. Next, we pick up boba from Juice Bar. I used to love Thai Iced Tea with boba, now I go for the Taro with boba. At this store they call the boba "pearl".

Taro with pearl (boba).

Chris reading the Chinese newspaper in Juice Bar.

After our trip to Chinatown, we stopped by the HomeGoods store in Allston. We were looking for vases for the tables at our wedding reception, but no luck. I stumbled across my perfect armchair (if I had a house). It's so pretty and the colors are so fun! Alas, with a price tag of $299, it was not meant to be... right now.

I want this armchair! Totally loving it.

After a long day of gallavanting around Boston, I came home and played on my new phone for ages. Then I decided I wanted to crochet a cute dish cloth. I turned to Hulu Plus for my entertainment needs - I settled on a marathon of MTV's Real World San Diego. It was filmed over the summer of 2011. I was actually in San Diego last July. I didn't run into them, but it's fun to think they're running around in the same town as me. It's also sad to realize that they are all younger than me with the oldest cast member being 24 years old and the youngest is 19. I remember a time when they were all real old... remember Real World: LA, San Fran, or the older San Diego seasons? Crazy.

Just saw that I messed up on the dish cloth. Pattern by Lily.

Well, that's it for now. Hope everyone had a great Sunday!

1st Place Winner!

Good news! I won the Bake-off at work with my entry, Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars! I'm so happy. The prize was a $25 Premiere Choice Award. I can redeem it for any gift card I want. So exciting!

I'm part of my company's Fun Team and we organize little events like this every month. We're going to be putting together a recipe book from all our bake-off/cook-off events. Coming up in August is the Dip-off. We'll have people make dips and the Fun Team will probably supply the chips and veggies. We'll be having a Chili Cook-off in November. Can't wait!

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars

I entered the Cookie Bake-off Contest at work, but I didn't know what to make. While browsing the internet yesterday I can across this recipe for Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars at the Southern Living website. I love chocolate chips and cheesecake. Put them together and wham! The perfect dessert.

I made a test batch for Chris's D&D group today. It's currently cooling on the wire rack. Before it goes into the fridge for 4 hours I'm going to drizzle more chocolate on the top. Here's a picture of it as of 9 am.

Oh noes! There are cracks in my cheesecake layer.

Looks like the top cracked from over baking. That happened to the cheesecake I made last weekend. I can't seem to get the hang of our gas oven.

This is what the end results should look like.
Picture from Southern Living's website.

The Nerve of Some People's Children

"The nerve of some people's children" is my favorite saying when I see people doing things that peeves me. I actually got that saying from one of my favorite math teachers from middle school. Mrs. Horvath, man, I miss that lady. She was so genteel and always wanted her students to behave in an exemplary manner. But when we got out of line, she'll always say that phrase and it always brings a smile to my face.

Monster Mix

What is a Monster Mix? It is a trail mix that you can buy from Target's Archer Farms brand. Sean and Ty picked it up in California and Sean had it in his car. It's amazing. I decided to make my version of it. Here's what's in it:

• Chocolate Chips
• Peanut Butter Chips
• Raisins
• Unsalted Peanuts
• M&Ms (I went with the dark chocolate)

You mix it up in a bowl, in a bag, it doesn't matter. The proportions however does. I bought a bag of Tollhouse Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chips, a large bag of M&Ms, a jar of peanuts, and a pound of raisins. Note that each item was less than a pound in weight, but close to it.

When I made it I used 1/2 a bag of Tollhouse chips and 1/2 a bag of M&Ms, 1/3 of the peanuts, and about 1/2 pound of raisins (maybe a little less - it's up to you). I also like my raisins plump and juicy and not totally dried up.

Anyways, experiment with it and happy eating!

First Day of Class

Today is my first day of class in my last semester!!! I'm excited. Very EXCITED!!! I'm working in the school's bookstore from 10-2 and then my first class is at 2:50 pm followed by another class until 5:40 pm. Then I have a Tau Beta Pi meeting at 6 pm. After that's done I'm going grocery shopping - round two - with Sean. We also have to pick up miscellaneous items at Target and Home Depot. Fun!!! Pictures will be posted up later when I have time.

Stash Much?

I spent the morning organizing my yarn stash on Ravelry. Oh geez. I have 100 types of yarns stashed at the moment. There might be more since I haven't updated in a while. Now I'm going to go and be productive. Sitting here eating Chicken Chow Fun is nice, but I'm way behind on my crochet work. Michaels might be in the mix too. Oh yes!

Happy New Year!!!

It's finally 2009. Oh wow! It's a brand new year and a chance to start fresh again. New Year's Eve brought snow in the morning and festivities in the evening.

Last night I attended a party with my boyfriend. It was a party hosted by his brother's friend, John. His house was huge and pretty. I think it's kinda interesting in a weird way that my boyfriend's ex-girlfriend happened to show up with her latest boyfriend. Fun stuff. I can't stand the girl and it's the first and last time we'll ever see each other in person. It's almost symbolic that I ended 2008 with her there and started 2009 oblivious to her presence. I hope it's the last time I ever see her face. She caused a lot of drama the entire time I've been with my boyfriend. It's about time she grew up and get her own life instead of interfering with mine via Sean.

Anyways, on to something else. We're going to Sean's grandparent's house for some New Year's Fondue. I'm excited! I made the guys bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches this morning. Sean and I made the Baked Macaroni and Cheese for his grandparent's and it smells heavenly. =)

The McD's Baked Macaroni and Cheese

Serving Size: 6-8 people (maybe more)
Preheat oven to 350 deg F

Ingredients:

• 1 lb Macaroni (we prefer elbows)
• 1 tsp salt
• 5 tbs butter
• 5 tbs flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 3 cups milk (we use fat free)
• 4 cups cheese (we use 2 cups White Cheddar and 2 cups Monterrey Jack)

To Cook Macaroni:

1. Follow instructions on the package.
2. Drain then rinse in cold water.
   

To Make Sauce While Macaroni Cooks:

1. Melt butter.
2. In a large sauce pan combine flour, salt, pepper, and melted butter. Stir.
3. Add milk slowly and continue to stir until sauce thickens.
4. Add shredded cheese to sauce and stir constantly until cheese has melted.

To Combine Macaroni and Sauce:

1. Place cooked, drained macaroni in casserole dish.
2. Pour cheese sauce over macaroni. Stir to combine.
3. Optional: Dot with butter.
4. Bake in 350 degree F oven for 30 minutes.
   

A Week in Connecticut

I arrived safely in Connecticut on Saturday, December 27. My boyfriend picked me up from Bridgeport, CT. We went to his mom's boyfriend's brother's house in Somers. They have this amazing recreational room in the finished attic. All hardwood paneling with leather chairs spread out in different nooks. There's a bar-like area with a beer/alcohol fridge. The fireplace was huge and gorgeous. In the middle was the pool table. I wish I took pictures, but I think one of Sean's relatives might have some.

Sunday was spent hanging out and shopping. We went to Canton and had lunch at Five Guys. It is the most amazing burger place ever. EVER. I went to Barnes and Noble and got the Interweave Crochet Winter '08 magazine and a crochet book: Beyond the Squares Crochet Motif by Edie Eckman. Then we went grocery shopping at Shaw's. We always stock up his mom's kitchen when we visit. The total was $180. Oh jeez.

I'm also crocheting my aunt's new hat. Pictures to come when I get back to Boston. I forgot to bring the cord with me. =( Well, I've been distracted by my new Nintendo DS game - Pokemon Ranger: Shadows of Almia. Okay, I know what you're thinking at this point... Is she seriously playing a little kid game? Yes, I am. It's so addicting. I got it on Saturday and as of Sunday night I already played 6 hours of it. Ahh. Well, I'm probably going to go play another hour and then finish the hat or vice versa. I think the hat is easier to finish and I need to get that out ASAP.

Until next time!

Christmas Eve!!!

Okay, so I woke up this morning and read for a hour or so. Then I started crocheting my mom's hat. I love the green color; it's called Olive. (Pictures to come.) Plans for the day: CVS to buy a last minute card, bake an apple pie, wash my dog, and clean up my room.

I've been to Michaels Arts and Craft on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday. Crazy. I bought probably $80 worth of yarn and accessories. I'm going to have to tally up all my stuff and organize it. Wait until you see a picture of my yarn stash. I'm going to have a fun time cataloging them online at Ravelry.

I went to Borders yesterday and bought a new book - Stitch 'N Bitch Crochet: The Happy Hooker by Debbie Stoller. I'm a fan of her knitting and crochet books. I can't wait to try patterns out of it. I also bought a book about making potholders and dishclothes. It's called Kitchen Basics in Cotton by Carolyn Christmas. I'm making my boyfriend's grandparents - what else? - some potholders and dishclothes. I can't find most of the colors for the cotton yarn in stores so I'm going to have to order it online soon. No rush.

Okay, off to run my errands and get things done. =)

Pictures from Friday's

Yankee Swap at Friday's on December 18, 2008:

Deciding what to eat...
Matt and Randy

... the menu can be challenging when there's a lot of options.
Steve M.

Anthony (in the white) why do you look so down?

Clearly I wasn't sneaky.
David

John, Rick, and Karen

Joe Q.

View down the table, part 1.

View down the table, part 2.
Oh look, Dan's in a picture!!! (Green stripes)

Clearly the best gift of the night. Her boobs jiggle.
My supervisor, Ken

Checking out the gift.
Ricardo, Steve D., and Ken

Some funny faces with Matt and Randy.