Butter is Better

Yes, I still exist, and so do my wretched cooking skills.  Life has been hectic, but I want you all to know that the whole time I was not writing about my kitchen misfortunes, I was thinking of my readers.  Cross my heart.

You can all breathe a sigh of relief; not only am I back at blogging, but my wonderful mother bought me a cookbook. Yes, I, Audrey Jeanette, own (and stare longingly at) a cookbook.  I haven't made anything from the book yet (hence the staring) but I plan to!

This fall, I moved off campus into a quaint little apartment, with a real kitchen, which means that I have the ability to use a stove, oven AND microwave, so you can only imagine all of the "food" I will be creating! Whether people will actually want to eat that food... well... we'll find out.

My room mate has this orchid.  This story has a point, I promise.  As of this past spring, this orchid consisted of a single stalk and some dried up leaves.  I felt that all hope was lost as far as caring for and reviving this plant, but the plant's owner (Brooke Wheeler) disagreed.  I bet Brooke a tray of brownies that the plant was dead, and she bet me a tray of brownies that it was not.  This is what that plant looks like now:

Needless to say, I owe Brooke a pan of brownies....

Everything was going smoothly until I read the back of the box.  I had already mixed half the ingredients before I realized that I needed 2/3 cup of vegetable oil.  We didn't have any of that.  I read online that applesauce was sometimes a great alternative to oil in baking, but if we don't have vegetable oil, do you think we're going to have applesauce?

I put my creative mind to work and decided that melting 2/3 cup of butter was just as good.  I mean, it basically does the same thing, but tastes better.  Who doesn't like a nice, solid cup of margarine?

 After melting the butter, I added it to the mix.  It took a while to completely fold into the brownie batter, (did you like my lingo drop?) but I was patient.  I shortened the cooking time by about fifteen minutes because I was told by a very wise baker (my mother) that butter cooks faster than oil.  I'm not going to lie, I was worried about the outcome, but look at these beauties!

The moral of the story is: when in doubt, use butter.

Being A Better Betty Crocker

As I sit here slurping a freshly puréed mixture of blueberries and bananas (a recipe I am most definitely posting), I had the realization that I have been doing quite well with the process of domestication.  Then I had another realization; I've been doing so well because I spend my days knitting and making smoothies.  The only reason I have stepped foot into the kitchen in the past month is so that I can dump a couple of different fruits into a blender and press "on"...


I suddenly feel so defeated.  The thing is, does it look like I have a reason to cook for myself?

 That omelet is filled with mushrooms, prosciutto and cheese curds, for crying out loud.

Most kids gain weight when they're at school, but my problem is when I come home for the summer....

This is what I mean, though.  Both of my parents are chef-like and my older sister could have her own show on The Food Network.  I am determined to become a better cook.  From now on, I will try to do more in the kitchen; less snitching out of the frying pan and more learning.

Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all.
Harriet Van Horne  

Best Smoothie Yet

1 banana

1 1/2 cups of blueberries

1 vanilla yogurt

1 strawberry yogurt

1 tsp of cinnamon

While this is all in the blender, add a drop of coconut flavoring and another drop of almond flavoring. My blueberries were frozen so I didn't use ice.

Makes two... if you like to share...

Wish me luck.  I know you'll be reading.

Let's Get ORGANIZED

If I’m being honest, I need some help in the organization area.  But if I'm being COMPLETELY honest, organization and I go together like Grace Kelly and Marilyn Manson...eek.  Anyone who knows me knows this.  My tornado zone bedroom (as it is frequently referred to by my mother) is a great example, as is pretty much everything in my life; my purse, my closets and my iTunes library.  As much as I am able to find things in these messes, I would prefer to not have to dig through clothes and an assortment of other objects every time I need something.  Here’s to cleaning it all up.

Part of me (the lazy part) thinks that I should hold off on blogging about organization because I will be moving into a new apartment in less than three weeks… the other part is sick of wading through mounds of unidentifiable objects… and would like to be reminded of what color the carpet in my bedroom is.

The things I have the hardest time organizing are accessories.  A girl can only have so many earrings, bracelets and belts, scarves, rings and shoes.  Let’s just say, my bedazzled, multi-colored, five-inch cup overfloweth.   

I’ve tried under-the-bed organizers and over-the-door holders, boxes with compartments and individual bags.  Here is what I have finally come up with.  I used to have all my bracelets thrown together in one box, but that caused tangles worse than Rapunzel.  This is what they look like now:

 I came up with the idea to use empty bottles of my favorite soda.  I'm a big Izze fan, and the other bottles are Wild Bill's Wild Ginger; it's a spicy ginger ale, the kind that makes your eyes water and gives you a kick in the pants. Delicious.

Next I would love to organize my shoes, but let's face it, there's too many of them.  I need them to be easily accessible in a way that does not frighten people when they walk into my room, because right now, they look like this: 

That's only half of them.

I can't believe I just put that picture on here... at least now you know I'm not kidding...

Happy organizing!