Cream & Sugar Kitchen

Snack Break: Happy Holidays Edition

It's Christmas Eve, one of my favorite days of the year.  I love the calm before the storm (or the rush before the storm)...I always feel like the simpler, the more low-key Christmas Eve, the better.  This morning I watched Center Stage (for about the 250th time, no lie), ate some breakfast, and am now contemplating all of the baking I have to do today (bagels for Christmas morning, chocolate covered pretzels, and peanut butter blossoms).  I have to run to the post office and pick up a couple packages and then also wrap pretty much all of my presents.  It's quiet on my block, no kids outside playing in the dirty, leftover snow, no people shuffling to the subway and inevitably to their 9 to 5's.  It's really, really lovely. 

While today is shaping up to be, hopefully, a productive precursor to our holiday events this evening, tomorrow, and this weekend, I can't help thinking about my all-time favorite Christmas Eve ever.  1991 or '92, my family was living in White Plains, NY at the time.  I couldn't have been older than 11 or 12 which means my brother was about 2 or 3.  We played most of the day, fort maybe, or just silly kid games, while the most amazing kid-friendly block of movies played on t.v. in the background:  Beetle Juice, The Goonies, and I can't remember what else.  Damn near perfect day. 

Anyway, about that picture up there - damn near perfect cinnamon bun, my friends, courtesy of Northportfishington Cookie Factory.  I was lucky enough to snag an interview with Mike, owner and head baker, and he gave me a little tip on where and when I could find these little beauties.  First of all, the icing - it's more of a (vegan) cream cheese base, so all I had to do was pop the bun in the microwave for about 15 seconds, just long enough to get a bit melty, then used a knife to smear the icing all around.  The dough is just amazingly chewy and melt-in-your-mouth delicious.  Probably the best "real" cinnamon bun I've ever had (when I say "real", I mean non-Cinnabon or any other kind of mass-produced kind).  Check out my interview with him (I'll be posting it next week) to find out where you can snag all of Northportfishington's treats. 

Hi there.  You come here often?

And then there's this chocolate...bread AND chocolate.  Dark chocolate with little french bread "crumbs" inside.  I was really intrigued and excited when I brought this home, but a little underwhelmed after I cracked into it.

It's not that the chocolate itself isn't good, but I guess I just thought the bread part would be this revolutionary flavor enhancer.  Not sure why I thought that, but basically this Theo bar tastes like nothing more than a dark chocolate Krackel.  And I happen to despise Krackel.  Grrr.

So now I'm really in trouble, because He's Just Not That Into You just came on HBO.  I'm Just Not That Into This Movie all that much, but I have a problem:  I'll watch any movie that comes on cable.  And I mean ANY MOVIE.  Bride Wars (one of the worst movies ever made), Miss Congeniality, pretty much anything with Brendan Fraser (yes, really)...it's sort of my weakness.  I don't want to be watching these movies, I really don't! 

Enough of my digressions.  The whole point of this post was really just to say Happy Holidays!  I hope all of you have enjoyed and continue to enjoy the season's eatings and greetings and fa la la la la-good times.  I'm off from work for the next ten days or so, and I'm very very excited to post my entire backlog of field research interviews next week:  Whipped Bakeshop, Open Source Cupcakes, Handcrafted Cookie Company, and Northportfishington Cookie Factory.  So keep an eye out!

Merry merry! 

Dericious: Low Cal / Low Fat Double Chocolate Muffins

If you're like any average American, you need all the help you can get come holiday time to ensure that your pants still fit on January 1st.  Ah, my friends...no need to worry!  Aunt Jaime is here to help.

Okay, "Aunt Jaime" is a little creepy because I'm not an aunt in any way.  In fact, I'm the oldest child in my family by about nine years, which means I better not become an aunt any time soon or my 21 year old little bro will have some esplainin' to do.  I think I like the term "Aunt [insert name]" because of the "Aunt Emily" joke from When Harry Met Sally.  WHMS is an American treasure ya'all, so I will assume everyone has seen it, ergo leaving the reference unexplained.  And if you haven't seen the film in its entirety (ahem, Earle), shame on you.

Wow, I really got off topic here.

What I wanted to say was, very simply, I love chocolate.  Yeah, no transitions, just gonna put that out there.  I'm purely, utterly, devoted to the stuff.  And it just seems like November to January everyone else is as devoted - even Ann Taylor Loft had chocolates next to their registers last week when I ran in quickly with a friend.  It's just enough to drive me choco-bonkers.  So if you're trying to curb your intake and watch your girlish figure over the holidays, I highly suggest these oh-so-easy, oh-so-chocolatey low calorie, low fat muffins.  I'm tellin' ya, they're good and even Earle gave them two enthusiastic thumbs up.  Recipe under the cut.

In the Weeds

I've never really worked in a restaurant before, but I'm pretty sure "in the weeds" means being completely swamped with no chance of catching up.  And that's exactly how I'm feeling now with my day job - adrift, anxious, worried about how I'm going to get through the next eight days.  The department I work for at the University of Pennsylvania is hosting a major anniversary event next weekend, with over 200 alumni coming back to campus to celebrate.  I've had my hands in a number of other events in the past but nothing this size or magnitude, and I'm really just kind of at my wits end at this point.  We've been talking and planning and brainstorming and conference calling and blah blah blah for the past year and a half - I really am ready to get this event done and over with.

And with all of the pressure sitting on my shoulders lately, whenever I hit a stress wall the first thought that always pops in my head is chocolate.  I don't blame my body for this, I blame myself for years of conditioning both body and mind towards indulging in sweet stuff.  I wish that in times of immense duress I didn't reach for that extra cookie, or that third piece of candy...because all of those extras pile up, which only leads to more issues in the long run.

So while I've been clawing, grasping at anything "fun" to keep my mind off work in order to de-stress, I know I have a very tough week ahead of me, and probably won't be able to write much.  And I have so many things I want to post!  Unfortunately they will just have to wait.

There is one bright spot on the immediate horizon - a quick NYC jaunt this Saturday for Earle's birthday.  I'm really looking forward to the brisk weather, a change of scenery, and the energy of the city in general.  I know that last part sounds a bit douchey, but I really do love the vibe of New York!  Even as a little kid, going to work with my mom in the Garment District on holidays and school closings, I just knew there was something special about that city.  We're definitely doing a Shake Shack trip this time...so I'm super psyched for that.  Also next week I'll be attempting apple pie, unsupervised, for the first time ever.  For most, it's probably not that much of a challenge, but for me, well, I'm a little scared.  I know I shouldn't be...I should brave all and be gung-ho in the kitchen!  But apple pie is what Earle wants for his birthday instead of cake, so I really want the pie to be special and turn out deliciously.  (He really deserves so much more than just a pie.)

So for the next week I'll probably only write sporadically because I'll be knee-deep in UPenn folders and name badges and campus maps and catering menus and basically going totally crazers.  Say a prayer for me, would you?  I'll be saying one too, even if it's just for the willpower to stay away from chocolate.