Reblogging: Strawberry Pie!

I made a strawberry pie for Father’s Day. I blogged about it on my food blog.

Yum. Pie!

Dear Pioneer Woman,

Glazed vanilla scones. Mmmmm.

I made your vanilla scones. I know you’re all BUTTER and HEAVY CREAM! But even when I “healthified” these scones, I almost died when I sampled the results.

I love you. I’m pretty serious about that. Scones = love.

“Healthified” means I used half butter, half coconut oil and replaced the heavy cream with skim milk. Oh, I also replaced the two vanilla beans with a tablespoon of pure vanilla extract (because my kitchen is the kitchen of a bank teller — I have no fancy things besides my King Arthur White Wheat Flour).

I also “only” used three cups of powdered sugar in the glaze. Only. And it was still super sugary, sweet-as-hell goodness.

I also had to add a bit more flour. Maybe it’s my substitutions, but the dough was super wet. it was still pretty darn moist when I added the extra 2/3 cup of flour, but I decided to soldier on. It worked out just fine.

But still, you are the best. Now I have a solid scone recipe for my sister’s bridal shower. You have no idea how happy that makes me. Now I just have to find time to whip up the sweet roll dough you use in your cinnamon rolls. I have plans. Cinnamon ones. And chocolate ones.

With Love,
Christina

The Diet — It Died.

I had, last week, decided I needed to start eating like a normal girl. You know, less than 24 zillion calories a day.

And I was doing alright… until suppers. And then the weekend happened.

Well, forget it. Yesterday I did my first #hbgbyob and ate at Smoke in Harrisburg.

I got a Boss Dawg sandwich, which consisted of pulled pork, bacon, slaw and pickles (with a side of mac and cheese, of course). It was freakin’ huge… and delicious. Oddly enough, the taste of the pickles stuck with me. They must have been some very tasty pickles to get lodged in my brain. I also tried animal style fries, bacon wrapped dates and pork belly; each were very good.

Dawn and Mike ordered and shared the ’68 Comeback Special for dessert. Peanut butter, bananas, bacon, honey and whipped cream.

I could eat that for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I love peanut butter. And bacon.

Then, today, I had to do some test baking with puff pastry, which is unreasonably terrible for you. Obviously I had to eat the food to see if it was any good. I’m not sure I’m actually a fan, so I might end up going back to the drawing board there.

Tonight was also the Wing Up. (I’m a weirdo and order boneless… less mess!) So, obviously, I ate a dozen wings AND potato boats (more bacon) at Champions in Highspire. The wings were good and really quite cheap. (They cost just slightly more than my appetizer.) I’d probably go back if I were in the area.

All this eating has made me feel a little guilty about skipping my workout today. I’ll have to try and get a good hour long workout in tomorrow morning. Hopefully I can find some living room friendly cardio that doesn’t make my downstairs neighbor hate me as much as I dislike them.

5.19.13 (A weekend roundup)

This weekend I:

Ate sushi and learned that salmon rolls are freaking delicious and preferable to tuna rolls. (Though a tuna roll is better than no roll at all.)

Saw Star Trek Into Darkness and remembered that Zachary Quinto is an amazing Spock. (Also, Spock is my favorite forever — his logic is probably the total opposite of my mode of living and therefore seems very desirable. The yin to my yang.)

Helped my friend(s) move. I got Chipotle out of it. And then I bought my own beer because we ended up at Taphouse and I drank more beer today than I have in the past two weeks, probably. I also (finally) had their fries and, oh my god, they’re made in duck fat and then I got they covered in braised short ribs and mozzarella. Again, oh my god. (I drank a Creme Brûlée, Banana Bread and a Hoptimus Prime. Also delicious.)

Then I came home, did some grocery shopping (but forgot bread), watched Hemlock Grove and now I’m watching a TED talk on spirituality.

On my to do list:

Plan a few recipes to try out for a brunchy bridal shower.

Pick a weekend and plan invites for said bridal shower.

Eat at Smoke.

It’s been a good weekend. I’m sad to see it end. Mondays always bum me out a little and they always come too soon.

Mid May Day.

Good evening, folks.

Since my last real update, I’ve run my first 5K and also buggered up my left leg now. Running and I don’t get along. I love moving and being outside and getting that time to myself, but my shins/ankles/knees don’t like the pounding of pavement. They need to get with it, because running is like yoga but more violent feeling.

I also tried the PiYo class. I’m not sold on it. I might give it a shot again next week or so before I totally write it off, but I don’t see us being long term partners. It requires too much quick movements into balance.

Pilates, however, is awesome and I love it. I’ve yet to try my local class. Maybe this Monday I’ll do it. The class doesn’t start until 7:15, so it’s a bit inconvenient in my neck of the woods, but the drive is much shorter. Always a trade off.

I’m also not sold on RIPPED, but I feel no need to try that one again.

My sister clued me in on the arc trainer. Holy hell, that burn calories SO WELL. I’ve never sweat so much in 30 minutes in my life. And it looks so easy! I don’t even have the intensity up halfway and sometimes I feel like I might die — but in a good way.

I tried a 20 minute HIIT routine in my living room. I’ve no idea how anyone could possibly survive an hour long class. Also, my downstairs neighbor probably hates me now, but I say that just makes us even.

This weekend, the new Star Trek movie comes out. My dad and I have a sushi and a movie date for Saturday afternoon. I’m pretty excited. The movie looks good and, well, Chris Pine. (Yum.)

And that’s my quick update. I’m pretty tired. I barely slept last night. (I think one of my customer’s is jinxing me! It seems that whenever he asks how my sleep is, I don’t sleep that night. Maybe when I say it’s going well, he pulls out a Christina-shaped voodoo doll and puts pins in all the insomnia places.) So I think it’s time for Harry Potter and bed.

Sounds like a plan.
Happy hump day.
(Pray for me, for tomorrow is a “long” day.)

5.15.13

Reblogged from dustinisenberg:

5.15.13

Check out the new song: WHO WE ARE 

A new song has been released to all of you wonderful people! I'm so glad (through all the hard work I've been doing over the last year and a half) you can finally hear some of the new tunes. The new single is "Who We Are" and it is probably the most proud I've ever been of a song.

Read more… 181 more words

My dear friend Dustin makes music. He just released a new single. You should go listen... and while you're in the music listening stage, check out his other songs here: http://www.reverbnation.com/dustinisenberg Ok, go now. <3

Quick bullet list update!

Since my last post or so:

It was my sister’s birthday. Because of this, we’re going to Lancaster tomorrow to hit up Sephora!

I’ve taken a Pilates class and a R.I.P.P.E.D. class. The Pilates, I liked. The R(etc), not so much. I do much better and am much happier with slow, controlled movements to work my muscles. This muscle confusion stuff doesn’t work out well for me.

I’ve decided that, since I liked Pilates and I know I like Yoga, I’m going to try a PiYo class Monday night at the East Shore YMCA. They have a fantastic class schedule, so I’m sure I’ll be traveling to Harrisburg quite a few times.

I made my first Pinterest failure. PB cookies. They taste like… blandness. From now on I will not trust PB cookie recipes with less than a cup of PB. Even if there is cream cheese also. (I thought, how can one go wrong with a stick of butter and cream cheese? Turns out, one can easily go wrong.)

I’m “running” my first 5K tomorrow morning! Tomorrow’s going to be a busy day. I’m running with Dustin tomorrow, shopping after with Allison, and then hanging with Dustin again that evening! Super excited about all of it.

Actually, this weekend’s gonna be busy. I’m even doing a Cinco de Mayo thing Sunday. This is me being a social butterfly rather than a social pariah.

I’ll try and actually update again before May’s over!

Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

You guys may or may not know this about me, but I love bread and cheese.
(And pasta, but that doesn’t really apply to this story.)

When I’m hungry and I don’t have a lot of time to spare (or when I’m hangry and if I don’t eat something soon I will explode into rage), I will make myself a grilled cheese sandwich.

I don’t care how fancy you are, a good grilled cheese sandwich should make you so happy inside you could burst into rainbows. (Well, unless you are lactose intolerance or allergic to dairy or wheat.) My trick is: always use more than one kind of cheese. Shredded melts better, but sliced will do.

Putting a lid on the pan will speed the melting process, or you can nuke it in the microwave for a few seconds to get it gooey. Whatever you do, DO NOT BURN THE BREAD!

You have to be careful. I’ve burned a few sandwiches. They are not rainbow bursters. No no no. You have to get the bread that it’s just perfectly toasty brown. This is why the heat should be at medium and why you need to have some patience sometimes. Eat a few pickles while you wait so you don’t die of hunger.

So yes, the rules are:

1. Always use more than one kind of cheese.
2. Shredded is best, but not compulsory.
3. DON’T BURN THE BREAD!!!
4. Use real butter. Not margarine.
5. Have pickles handy.

Anywho, that’s for your basic, delicious, no frills grilled cheese.

If you want to get fancy, and sometimes I do, you can add delicious things like dijon or spicy mustard to the inside of your bread. Roasted red peppers are delicious and easy. I’ve heard you can replace your butter with mayo, but I’ve never tried that. I plan on doing it soon, though. You can add meats like ham (Ham and cheese, duh.) or pepperoni (Mmmm. Dip it in sauce!) or whatever you like. I usually do something along those lines. Turkey (unless it’s super flavored) is sort of bland, so I don’t recommend that.

Oh, you could use pesto, mozzarella, provolone and tomato! Or Salami! Tapenade and cheese! I don’t know how it would work out, but I’m sure you could incorporate pickles into it somehow. Pickles are delicious.

Banana peppers! Sauteed mushrooms! Grilled onions! The possibilities are endless!

My most recent creation was this delicious piece of yum:

Red pepper and dijon grilled cheese

It was just two slices of oatmeal bread buttered on one side and dijoned on the other. You lay the buttered side down in a hot (medium heat) skillet and top one side with jarred red peppers and provolone and the other side with sharp cheddar. Put a lid on the pan (or a large plate) and let the cheese get all melty, checking periodically that the bread is not burning. Once the bread is toasted and the cheese is melty, flip one side on top of the other, press down and transfer to a plate.

I swear by cutting your sandwich diagonally (I want to type Diagon Alley because I’m reading Harry Potter at the moment). I think it makes it more delicious and easier to eat, but you may do whatever you please.

Now, you! Go make me a sandwich!

I’ve Been Busy… Neglecting My Blog

Hi everyone,

It’s been two months. I need to be better at this. Posting would be a lot easier if I had wifi at work and could use my iPad, but that’s a lousy excuse.

Truth is, I’ve been busy. I spent three recent Sundays in a row watching Monthy Python at The Elks Theater. (It was Pythonfest and featured: Search for the Holy Grail, Life of Brian (my favorite) and Meaning of Life.)

I’ve also been going out and trying new beers. (I’m christinaheart on the Untappd app if you’d like to stalk my beer drinking.)

I’ve also attended some tea parties. I made my first real tea purchase this weekend. I must remember to make some of the good stuff tomorrow for work. I need a pick me up at work and if Valentine’s Day isn’t a good enough reason to make delicious tea, I don’t know what is.

I’ve also been at the gym as many times as possible. I usually stick to the elliptical, but last night I tried spinning (the cycling kind, not the yarn kind) for the first time. I feel like I’ve been punched in the vagina, but it was fun otherwise.

I need to start training for the two 5Ks I’m planning to sign up for. (The Jersey Mike Memorial Rock + Run 5K in Harrisburg and the Color Me Rad 5K in Bethlehem are tucked nicely in spring. I don’t think I could run any distance in the summer.) I really don’t like running, guys. There’s too much gravity involved. But the Jersey Mike run is for a good cause and the Color Me Rad is so, well, colorful! I just have to do it, you guys.

That’s what I’ve been up to.
How’s it been in your world?

So it’s 12^3… I guess I’ll do a quick update.

So, a few quick things. The past couple months have been tumultuous. I don’t often post about my personal-personal life here, but I’m going to share a few things.

I’ve been struggling with insomnia from hell since the beginning of October. Of course, this has exasperated my anxiety and so I’ve been caught up in a whirlwind of emotions. I’ve even gone to see a psychiatrist, which… well, I don’t know. At least I’m not crawling out of my skin due to inadvertent Xanax withdrawal anymore. But the more I think about things, the more upset I get that I was ever started on a benzo. (I don’t even know how to spell the full name of the suckers.)

My advice? Don’t take them unless you know it’s not going to be every day. Take them only when you cannot stand the anxiety anymore. The insomnia I had then was at least naturally occurring. I think sleeping less than 2 hours was incredibly odd a year ago. If only I knew then what I know now.

Don’t get me wrong. It was good to get put on a longer acting benzo. It has calmed my anxiety down. But, really, the only nights I sleep are nights that my mind is at peace and no amount of medicine can do that. That’s going to be me talking things out and being proactive about what’s on my mind or happening in my life. (Or at least really trying to be.) Last night was a sucker punch to the gut because I came home feeling unheard and misunderstood by the doctor playing with my brain chemicals, so of course I didn’t sleep. Sometimes I don’t sleep because I feel excited about things. That’s a real bummer, though, because the excitement wears thinner and thinner as the hours tick by without any dreaming in between.

It seems my anxiety is cyclical. It kicks up a little bit in the summer (to managable levels) and then again in the fall (to not so manageable seeming levels). Come spring, I tend to feel better.

Of course, now I’m facing the prospect of an antidepressant to help stabilize my anxiety. I hate this idea for a few reasons: (1) My anxiety is not ALWAYS through the roof, (2) my anxiety sort of makes me who I am, in a way — over-analytical and a bit of a perfectionist, (3) my anxiety has me asking myself tough questions which, I hope, will pay off in the long run and (4) both attempts at SSRIs have made me a pukey or gaggy mess. The last one made me feel jittery and gave me moments of depersonalization.

Do you know how weird it is to feel like you’re not real and nothing around you is real all the while KNOWING it is real? It’s really weird. Anxiety itself is really weird, so I didn’t need any medicinal help getting weird.

I’ve been trying to get to the gym on a semi-regular basis. I tend to sleep better on days I go, so maybe I have to start going first thing in the morning since, even on good nights, I’m only sleeping until 4:30/5:30. I keep thinking if I can just wear myself out, maybe I can sleep and I can avoid the ADs. I’ve started taking Omega-3 just a few days ago. I’m hoping that will help too.

All I really want is to get off the benzos and see if I can learn to work with my anxiety rather than hating it so much. I’ve always had it and I think it’s kept me out of trouble a few times.

Oh, wait, no. What I really want is a time machine so I could warn myself about things to come and give myself a few pointers.

But listen, it’s not all bad. Good things are happening too and I just keep pushing forward the best I can. It’s all I can do, right? Just keep swimming!

Anyway, that’s why the regular posts stopped. I’ve been trying to get myself “fixed.” I’m not sure I’m definitely on the right track, but hell, life doesn’t come with a map. It’s unfortunate, but true. I think a map would be really handy.

“For a new adventure, travel back this small path — nothing will eat you at the other end. I promise fun will be had.” or “Beware, there are mythical soul-eating dogs down this path — DO NOT GO TO THERE!”

Anyway, I’m off to CVS to do some question asking and whatnot. That’s my little update. I promise I’m not crazy, I just feel/seem that way sometimes.