De Baking Psychopath

Welp, I'm back! The defense was March 6, and this past Thursday I finally turned in all my final documents and fees, so I am officially getting my PhD!! Woo! I did some baking in the last few weeks, recipes to follow shortly. Thank you for all your support and encouragement, and I am looking forward to my next phase of training and the resuming of baking/blogging here! Onward to doctor #2!

This past Wednesday, I met again with my committee. This was my fifth committee meeting, and my mission in this meeting was the holy grail of all PhD candidates: seeking permission to write the thesis dissertation. In some ways, I was very blase about the meeting. I figured the more I stressed out about it, I was just going to give myself more pressure, so low expectations were in order to keep myself sane. Plus I had found myself responsible for two transient students in the lab, back-to-back leading up to and immediately after my meeting, eating up a lot of time trying to keep them organized and moving forward on their projects during their short time (why I am always in charge of students in the lab is a rant for another time). Lastly, I also have spent the better part of the last month writing a review article and JUST got it submitted, finally, so I frankly haven't had the time to focus on the presentation for my meeting.  I didn't make very much for the committee th...

Another year has passed, and another roommate weekend was warranted, this time in Philadelphia! We had a whirlwind of a weekend, filled with food, random shopping, and catching up! Not pictured-- Friday night we went to Monk's Cafe , where we had yummy beers, buffalo-style fried frogs legs, steamed mussels, hamburger with truffled cheese and mushrooms, and duck confit. It was a hearty and delicious start to our weekend (although very dark and hence not photo-friendly). On the way back, we picked up frozen yogurt from Yogorino , which we brought back to the apartment to sprinkle on some crazy-awesome granola I had brought with me (recipe soon!). Bright and early Saturday morning, we took a stroll to the nearby Metropolitan Bakery and raided their day-old bin as well as bought several fresh treats. Eaten for breakfast: coffee/tea, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting, chocolate croissant, nut and seed roll, lemon vs raspberry bar taste test. Not eaten but saved for late...

These were "to die for," as one of my co-workers said. They were made for a going away potluck lunch/snack ensemble to go with one last coffee run with the person who was leaving.  The seven layers are: graham cracker crust, walnuts, semi-sweet chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, condensed milk, and coconut.  You basically sprinkle everything on sequentially and bake! The condensed milk oozes and bubbles and melds everything together beautifully. I sprinkled a bit of salt on top before baking for good measure, but that's not in the recipe. They're chewy, gooey, sweet, and addictive! You can find the recipe I used here .

These soft, tasty rolls were part of a dinner party we threw ages ago, and sadly they got lost in the mix of holiday baking. But they deserve their own spotlight as they were exceedingly delicious. These are the epitome of how plush and fragrant dinner rolls can be! I added a couple tablespoons of dried herbs (mostly parsley I think) and when I shaped the rolls, I made them into knots, which is easily done by rolling the pre-portioned balls of dough into long strips and making a simple knot. You can do whatever fancy knot you know how to do. I got the recipe for these rolls from the excellent blog My Kitchen Addiction, and since they are a family recipe, I think it is best to link back to her post so you can get the full story and wonderful recipe . Make them this week to go with your pot of soul-warming soup!

Remember my quest to recreate the walnut rolls of my youth ? These came very, very close to the right texture and sweetness! I think I would just need to omit the cranberries, substitute in a little bit of whole wheat flour, and knot up the rolls, and I'd be dang close to the original.  But enough about my nostalgic quest, these rolls were awesome in their own right. The walnuts and cranberries are always a great flavor combo, and the softness and stretchiness of the bread made these some of the best rolls to come out of my oven. They made a really welcome and enjoyable addition to Thanksgiving dinner and next-day breakfast, both by themselves or slathered with butter. Walnut Cranberry Rolls (adapted from Brown Eyed Baker , original source Bon Appetit magazine) Ingredients : 3 & 1/2 cups bread flour (more may be needed later) 1 tablespoon light brown sugar 1 & 1/2 teaspoons dry active yeast  1 & 1/2 teaspoons salt 1 & 1/2...

I am FINALLY back after a full month of traveling all over the world for both professional and personal reasons. Not that I will be home the entire summer--there are three weekend trips I already know I am making--but at least life will return back to its normal routines again. The last trip I made was to meet up with my good college friends in NY, where one of them is stationed as she finishes her PhD. We had a fun weekend filled with good food, running, poop jokes, lots and lots of cupcakes, a trip to the Tulip Festival for some pretty flowers and awesome BBQ sandwiches, and a trip up to Saratoga Springs for pastries and used book store shopping! Here are some highlights in photos: Gorgeous loaves from Mrs. London's in Saratoga BBQ sandwiches! Gigantic tub of strawberry lemonade Lavash at a Turkish restaurant Various appetizers at the Turkish restaurant, including one unfortunately named "cemen" My kofta dinner. Delicious. ...

A few weeks ago, I officially entered the realm of "late twenties" and promptly heard my biological clock ticking like a time bomb. To herald the next decade of worrying about when to have kids before my risk of having mutant babies becomes too significant for safety, I decided to throw a scrumptious brunch and declare, "To heck with my slowing metabolism and biological clock! I am going to STUFF MY FACE." And I invited my friends to join me. I've been trying very hard to keep the sweet stuff to a healthy minimum. So here are these gorgeous roasted Hasselback potatoes stuffed with lovely slivers of garlic. And this yummy onion, mushroom and cheese frittata that I threw together on a whim and prayed would turn out okay! (It did!) And a loaf of sundried tomato and Parmesan cheese bread, made with the no-knead dough of the week! Soooo good. Moist, flavorful, savory! But of course it wouldn't be a PARTY unless there were some sweets! Front and center ...

We tend to put more emphasis on our dating anniversary. To me, it's a better landmark of when our lives and destinies became bound together and seems somewhat more significant than the day we signed a piece of paper to make legal what was by then already a reality. Of course it's also that we've grown accustomed to celebrating this day, and to not do so would seem almost a denial of how significant this day is in our relationship. We're almost to double digits here (next year will be the big 10), and we went all out at home with the food to celebrate. Two gigantic ribeye steaks, a healthy portion of buttery boiled potatoes, and our favorite salad (inspired by one of our favorite local restaurants, Girasole ). The cooking can largely be attributed to Michael. The steaks were a beautiful medium-rare to medium, tender, juicy, and well-seasoned. The salad is composed of baby greens, chickpeas (canned), cherry tomatoes, sunflower seeds, Gorgonzola crumbles (not enough t...