Things have been extremely busy and I have been a slacker with posting, as well as I am having issues with my internet and just need a faster connection since it has become a real pain to upload pictures. Today, however I wanted to share something that I though could speak my sentiments better than I could. When I was in college I went to NYC and hear His Holiness the Dalai Lama speak in Central Park. After waiting almost all day, we finally heard his words of peace and kindness, something we could use more of in this world. He has an amazingly calming presence and really does smile a lot. So here are his words of peace as we remember on the 10th anniversary of September 11th.
"Today, as we mark the tenth anniversary of the September 11th 2001 attacks on New York and Washington DC, let us remember all the innocent lives lost and ponder the continuing impact of that tragic day. September 11th reminds us of the horror we human beings can unleash on ourselves when we allow our human intelligence and powerful technology to be overtaken by hatred.
We need to learn from our painful memories of September 11th and become more aware of the destructive consequences that arise when we give in to feelings of hatred. This tragedy in particular has reinforced my belief that fostering a spirit of peaceful co-existence and mutual understanding among the world’s peoples and faith traditions is an urgent matter of importance to us all. We must therefore make every effort to ensure that our various faith traditions contribute to build a more caring, peaceful world."
The Dalai Lama
September 9, 2011
Originally published in the Washington Post on September 10, 2011.
Online Link
Showing posts with label had to share. Show all posts
Showing posts with label had to share. Show all posts
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Mini Caprese Salad
Berry Trifle with Orange Cream, Mini Caprese Salads and Chocolate Covered Strawberries (all chocolate dipping was done by a co-worker and so I unfortunately can't take credit for the beautiful platter on the end pic!)
I recently hosted a happy hour for my department for two fabulous women who are retiring. I enjoy hosting as it gives me an excuse to beak out my nice dishes and really give my house a good cleaning. As I was racking my brain for something light and healthy, but also a finger food (two things that don't always go together) when I came across a great idea from Barbara Bakes. She put the mini salad on an entire skewer, but I was looking for something a bit more compact than that. So I decided why not use a toothpick. I bought a container of the mini mozzarella balls, cherry tomatoes and fresh basil. I stacked a tomato, piece of basil leaf and then a motz ball. They ended up fitting perfectly. I finished with just a sprinkle of salt and pepper. They were a huge hit!
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Addressing the Cake Pop Trend Part 2
So now that I have provided the ingredients for my Cake Pops, here is the process for making them.
I made chocolate cake (from a box) and used 2/3 of a can of chocolate frosting to make chocolate pops then coated them with a white or "vanilla" candy melt coating and red drizzles.
I started out by taking the cold cake and using my hands, broke it up until it was entirely in crumbs. You could use a food processor for this part, but hands were less to clean up. Be sure that there are no large clumps of cake or the balls won't form evenly (immature laugh).
Then add half the can of icing and use a spoon to mix it all together. It will start to stick together and depending on how moist your cake is, you may want to add more. You do not, however want it to become too sticky by adding too much icing because then it will be hard to work with.
Mine was almost forming a ball and was no longer in a crumbly form.
I then used a cookie scoop (1 1/2 Tbs) to measure out even sized balls, which I then split in half to that they were not too large for the pop sticks.
After they were split in half, I then used my hands to form the balls (about the size for two bites) and placed them back in the 13x9 pan that I baked the cake in. They almost all fit back in there (about four had to be stacked on top).
I placed them back in the fridge over night because I did not have time to make them at that time, however you would still need to chill them after handling because if they get too soft they are hard to dip.
The next step was to melt the candy following the directions on the package. The most helpful tip I have learned is to be sure not to over heat the candy or chocolate. If you do it will be too thick to dip anything. The trick is to heat it on low (I used the microwave, you could use a double broiler) for 30 seconds at a time. Once they start to melt, do not keep re-heating, just stir until they are all dissolved using the residual heat from the other chips. This will keep the chocolate from seizing.
So that the sticks would stay better, I dipped the end of each stick in the candy before placing it in the ball of cake. You can see my set-up below. I set a small crock pot to warm and heated the candy melts in the pot, then after they were melted I put them in the pot so it would maintain the right consistency.
These immediately went back to the fridge. I took out two or three at a time so that they were not too soft to dip and they wouldn't fall off the stick. I almost lost one, but was able to save it before it completely broke up in the candy melt, ruining it! Also, be sure to cover all of the cake or the oil from the cake will separate and leak out of the uncovered areas (not pretty).
Each stick was then set into a piece of Styrofoam so that they were upright. After the block was filled, they went into the fridge to harden.
I then drizzled red candy melt over the top. You can also dip in sprinkles or decorate with more elaborate designs.
The last piece of advice is that as you dip the cake, bits will come off and as you get to the end of the candy melt, it will become more "pure" (that may also be because I used white melt and chocolate cake). I only made it through half of the balls before I ran out of candy melt.
The girls on my team thought they were great and wanted to know where I got them... haha!
Let me know how it goes if you decide to give it a try!
I made chocolate cake (from a box) and used 2/3 of a can of chocolate frosting to make chocolate pops then coated them with a white or "vanilla" candy melt coating and red drizzles.
I started out by taking the cold cake and using my hands, broke it up until it was entirely in crumbs. You could use a food processor for this part, but hands were less to clean up. Be sure that there are no large clumps of cake or the balls won't form evenly (immature laugh).
Then add half the can of icing and use a spoon to mix it all together. It will start to stick together and depending on how moist your cake is, you may want to add more. You do not, however want it to become too sticky by adding too much icing because then it will be hard to work with.
Mine was almost forming a ball and was no longer in a crumbly form.
I then used a cookie scoop (1 1/2 Tbs) to measure out even sized balls, which I then split in half to that they were not too large for the pop sticks.
After they were split in half, I then used my hands to form the balls (about the size for two bites) and placed them back in the 13x9 pan that I baked the cake in. They almost all fit back in there (about four had to be stacked on top).
I placed them back in the fridge over night because I did not have time to make them at that time, however you would still need to chill them after handling because if they get too soft they are hard to dip.
The next step was to melt the candy following the directions on the package. The most helpful tip I have learned is to be sure not to over heat the candy or chocolate. If you do it will be too thick to dip anything. The trick is to heat it on low (I used the microwave, you could use a double broiler) for 30 seconds at a time. Once they start to melt, do not keep re-heating, just stir until they are all dissolved using the residual heat from the other chips. This will keep the chocolate from seizing.
So that the sticks would stay better, I dipped the end of each stick in the candy before placing it in the ball of cake. You can see my set-up below. I set a small crock pot to warm and heated the candy melts in the pot, then after they were melted I put them in the pot so it would maintain the right consistency.
These immediately went back to the fridge. I took out two or three at a time so that they were not too soft to dip and they wouldn't fall off the stick. I almost lost one, but was able to save it before it completely broke up in the candy melt, ruining it! Also, be sure to cover all of the cake or the oil from the cake will separate and leak out of the uncovered areas (not pretty).
Each stick was then set into a piece of Styrofoam so that they were upright. After the block was filled, they went into the fridge to harden.
I then drizzled red candy melt over the top. You can also dip in sprinkles or decorate with more elaborate designs.
The last piece of advice is that as you dip the cake, bits will come off and as you get to the end of the candy melt, it will become more "pure" (that may also be because I used white melt and chocolate cake). I only made it through half of the balls before I ran out of candy melt.
The girls on my team thought they were great and wanted to know where I got them... haha!
Let me know how it goes if you decide to give it a try!
Monday, May 23, 2011
Consumer Testing for McCormick
Super excited about a new opportunity to possibly be selected as a consumer tester for McCormick!
My friend Dana was telling me about a girl she works with that does consumer testing for the spice company and since it is fairly close to home, I thought I would sign myself up. You are only able to participate every three months, however you are compensated for your time. They can send you things to prepare, surveys or even invite you to the testing site to test stuff there! I hope I get picked to do something like that!
If that is something that you might be interested in here is the site: Consumer Testing for McCormick
My friend Dana was telling me about a girl she works with that does consumer testing for the spice company and since it is fairly close to home, I thought I would sign myself up. You are only able to participate every three months, however you are compensated for your time. They can send you things to prepare, surveys or even invite you to the testing site to test stuff there! I hope I get picked to do something like that!
If that is something that you might be interested in here is the site: Consumer Testing for McCormick
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
A Word from Carrie Bradshaw
I came across this clip on a friends Facebook wall and thought... how appropriate, I have to share!
Samantha had it right... no man who still lives at home is worth your time... no matter what he is saving his money up for.
As for Carrie's comment...I guess I am no longer allowed to shop for clothes at American Eagle. So all you little 13 year old bishes need to keep away from Forever 21 cause I plan on being 21 forever!
Samantha had it right... no man who still lives at home is worth your time... no matter what he is saving his money up for.
As for Carrie's comment...I guess I am no longer allowed to shop for clothes at American Eagle. So all you little 13 year old bishes need to keep away from Forever 21 cause I plan on being 21 forever!
Monday, April 25, 2011
#Sing It - MCR
I have always been a fan of My Chemical Romance and even more so now with they work they are doing to raise money for the Red Cross with their song #Sing It. Check out the site where you can donate or purchase the song on iTunes with all proceeds going to the American Red Cross. While it is weeks after the tragedy in Japan, they are still in need of support, so better late than never.
#SING It for Japan
Here is the video that they put together, such sad but beautiful images.
#SING It for Japan
Here is the video that they put together, such sad but beautiful images.
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Beautiful Spring Images
I saw this and had to share. lemmemakeit is a fab blog by a Martha Stewart employee. Her images of the tulips in Holland are beautiful. I cannot fathom the size of the fields and how lucky one could be to stand in the middle of them!
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