2011 Mixtape

As I mentioned back in September, for the last 4 or 5 years I've done an end of the year playlist. I'm now going to quote myself here, because I can't really say it any better than this: "It catalogues all the notable songs I listened to for whatever reason. It's like an audio scrapbook of bands I discovered, songs I couldn't stop listening to, or the soundtrack to memorable moments. If a picture is worth a thousand words, a song can be worth a thousand more."

Good stuff.  Here's some tracks from this year's edition:

I started the year out living in Boston and ended it in Connecticut. This is a "Boston song"...which probably says a lot about why I moved.

I love me some quirky British songstresses. If you haven't listened to Ms. Harvey's second Mercury Prize album Let England Shake, go change that. Now.

I grew up listening to The Cars and got to see them live at the House of Blues this year (along with another childhood favorite, Paul Simon).

I will someday have a Pop Tart kitty!

If you haven't heard of Lana Del Rey yet, that will probably change very soon since she's the Next Big Thing apparently. Still, great song. Great voice.

Pandora gave me this song. Thank you, Pandora.

Not only does this cover make me swoon, but it got me listening to Bonnie Raitt again.

And here's the original, because everyone should listen to it.

I slacked on listening to new music for a few months, but recently heard these guys. You know it's a good album when halfway through you can already tell that you're going to hit 'repeat'. 

Same with Cults. The chorus to this song is so good. I can't take it. Almost.

So, what were some of the songs you couldn't stop listening to in 2011?

Post-Christmas Rundown

How was your holiday? Mine was exhausting. But fun! But exhausting. By the time my holiday party rolled around on Monday, I was a baking zombie. Luckily, the cookies were a hit, so it was allll worth it. Also worth it? This yummy cocktail recipe called Rudolph's Tipsy Spritzer. Ok, the name is stupid, but it's delish, I swear. My cousin Katie recommends adding a cherry as a garnish to simulate Rudolph's nose.  Like the picture at the link, I served it in an old glass bottle. One could also make this sans vodka, if you're into that sort of thing....

As for Christmas loot, 2011 was the year of tea and tea-related accessories. I was gifted with the lovely Le Creuset tea kettle mentioned in my earlier post as well as a lifetime supply of tea from various friends.

I also received a loose-leaf teapot from Teavana along with a tin of Youthberry Wild Orange Blossom tea that is nearly impossible to open. 

However, it's well worth the effort as it both tastes and smells delicious.

Now I'm back to the grind, albeit with a freezer full of desserts and a kitchen's worth of new gadgets to test. This afternoon I'm making white bean and green chard soup using my new immersion blender (thanks Mom) and my new dutch oven (thanks Dad). 

That's Not A Tea Kettle...

Now this, this is a kettle!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Attack Zone

T-minus two days til Christmas.

Presents: Bought and wrapped. 

Tree: Decorated.

Baking: Almost done. 

Since I'll be spending Christmas Eve and day helping out my aunt and uncle with their kiddies in NYC, James and I are celebrating the holiday on the 26th. We're having some friends over as well, so I've commenced holiday baking ahead of time.

I'd just like to take a moment to extol the virtues of Kerrygold butter. If you're a baker and have never used this stuff, remedy that immediately. The Irish are good at a number of things: whiskey, fiddling, being overly dramatic. I can now add butter to that list.

For my cookie-baking this year I tried out a couple of new recipes I found on Pinterest:

 Peppermint Pinwheels

A word to the wise: the recipe at the link failed to mention that one must chill the dough before rolling it out, hence my oval-shaped cookies (tsk tsk). They still taste good though!

White-Chocolate Cherry Shortbread

As is typical while baking/cooking in my kitchen, I failed to notice beforehand that I needed a pastry cutter so I had to Macguyver it. Not bad. I like that these can also double for Valentine's Day.

Now into the freezer they go until Monday's festivities!

Also on the menu: Red Velvet Cream Cheese cookies (It's a red and white theme this year apparently).

Merry Christmas!

Things I Hope To Do This Weekend

1.) Get through this slo-o-o-wly dwindling stack of student papers.

2.) Make that Godforsaken persimmon custard (I think they're finally ripe)

3.) See Young Adult (a film which, hopefully, won't eerily mirror my own life in 8 to 10 years)

4.) Sleep in. A lot.

5.) Finish Christmas shopping (hahahayeahright)

6.) Oh, and sign up for health insurance 

That is all. 

Things I "Like"

  Picked up these limited edition lovelies at Trader Joe's todaaaaay:

Totally makes up for this...

I better get grading!

Lost and Found

I've been moving a lot of my old kid stuff out of my mom's house and found this in a journal. I think I'll name my first daughter Jeweliza.

The Christmas Spirit and Chocolate Chess Pie

It's officially December, our tiny tree is up, my Christmas mix is playing, and it's pouring rain out. Way to totally ruin the mood, Mother Nature...

                                                Charlie Brown's got nothing on our tree

I'm still waiting for those darn persimmons to ripen. Based on what I've been reading, the biggest mistake one can make in life is to eat an unripened hachiya persimmon, so I'm trying to be patient and wait just a little bit longer. 

                                                   Hurry up and mottle!

In the meantime, I made this chocolate chess pie via Jennifer Perillo's lovely blog In Jennie's Kitchen. 

I've always been intrigued by the more traditional lemon chess pie, mostly because of the name. A quick internet search suggests that this has nothing to do with the board game, but may have been a shortening of 'chest' pie because it held up so well. Considering that it's mainly sugar, I can see why. The top of the pie forms a sugary crust, while the middle stays nice and gooey, which unfortunately doesn't make for a very photogenic pie:

It's quite easy to put together though and James liked it since it's so darn sweet.

Things I "Like"

I cannot stop watching this clip and listening to this song: