Brief Summer Recap
September 8th, 2012 | Rachel
Oh… hello.
I tried to warn you about my busy summer. Were it not for all of the photos on my phone, I wouldn’t believe the past two months actually happened. Here’s a brief recap of what I’ve been up to, and then we can get back to business.
I saw my mom graduate with a PhD in Computer Science (yay mom!).
I studied for the California bar exam. Not fun at all.
I celebrated my mom’s 60th birthday with family and friends in Alabama — she’s had an eventful summer too.
I took the California bar exam… and wore the same dress I bought for the New York exam for the third and last day. I feel pretty good about the exam, but the results don’t come out until November.
I embarked on a celebratory road trip.
I partied in Vegas.
I visited L.A. for the first time… and liked it more than I thought I would.
I went to Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival in San Francisco (here I am at Explosions in the Sky!!!).
I celebrated my three-year anniversary with Steve in Napa (thank you Valerie for this awesome shot!).
And I went to Burning Man.
Yeah… Burning Man.
Anyway, that’s that. The Summer of ’12 has been one for the history books. Now it is time for business. Stay tuned.
Martha Stewart, The Prelude
June 18th, 2012 | Rachel
While I was living in New York, I twice had the privilege of sitting in the studio audience for the taping of The Martha Stewart Show. The inaugural visit was thanks to my friend Harmony, who was one of the few people I knew who actually took advantage of the many cool (and free!) talk shows filmed in the city. Although I did sit on the front row for a filming of the Colbert Report and got to give Stephen Colbert a high five (twice!), I regret never witnessing a filming of The Daily Show or Saturday Night Live.
The special guest that first visit to The Martha Stewart Show was, disappointingly, Rachael Ray. There was a time in my life when I watched more than a few episodes of 30 Minute Meals, but after Rachael Ray ran out of ideas and started recycling her old recipes with added cheese, cut-up hot dogs and/or cans of chili, I lost interest. Rachael Ray’s appearance on The Martha Stewart Show felt a little forced and not once did she look up and acknowledge the audience cheering for her (the announcer, after her segment: “Alright everyone, give it up for Rachael Ray! …there she goes! …Rachael R–and she’s gone” as she made a beeline for the door).
Martha Stewart, on the other hand, was very gracious both times I attended. She welcomed everyone herself and then stayed afterward to answer questions from the audience. At one point, the producers pulled her away to film some blurbs, and she turned back to the audience and said, “I would prefer to stay out here and keep talking to you all about your gardening questions, but my producers need me to record some [whatever the official word was]. Thank you for coming.”
Maybe it was just a well-executed act, but it felt sincere to me.
That’s Harmony on the lower right corner, with me beside her
As a result of that first visit, I was added to the email list, and a few months later I received an email looking for audience members for a future episode. As a part of the ticket request, you have to write about the person you would like to take with you. This is how I ended up going with Harmony the first time (thank you Harmony!). For my special guest, I wrote about another lawyer-turned-baker friend of mine. It was accepted, and Melissa and I got on the list.
For my second experience at The Martha Stewart Show, I was determined to sit as closer or closer than I did when I was with Harmony. The key is to wear solid bright colors, which they love for the cameras, and to arrive early.
I agonized over how early to arrive. The email said to arrive by 12:30pm for the 2pm show. I didn’t want to take any chances, so I arrived at 9am. Even then I was worried I was going to be beat by hoards of Martha Stewart devotees. When I arrived outside the studio, I had to triple-check that I was in the right location because there wasn’t a soul in sight. In fact, I awkwardly waited outside the studio by myself for over two hours before the next person showed up.
The awkwardness paid off, and Melissa and I were the first ones in the door!
First ticket of the day!
We were seated front and center, five feet from Martha Stewart.
Martha Stewart answering audience questions after the filming of her show
The special guest that day was Tori Spelling, who was very cute despite her six-inch heels and looking extremely nervous when the cameras weren’t rolling. As one of our audience gifts, we received Tori Spelling’s ridiculous children’s book about a little girl who was so rich she couldn’t get along with any of her not-rich classmates and was ultimately saved by an also-rich little boy.
At the end of the show, as expected, the time came for Martha to answer some audience questions. My hand was in the air as soon as she had the microphone in her hand. Martha (!!!) asked for my question. Since the episode that day was all about apples, I asked her why the caramel on my caramel apples always sank to the bottom and how could I get it to coat evenly. Martha (!!!) said it all depended on my caramel recipe and asked which one I was using. I shamefully admitted that I had only made caramel apples with store-bought caramel candies. Martha clucked her tongue and shook her finger. “You can’t cheat,” she said, and recommended trying the recipe in her food magazine that month.
So, now you all know. I’ve been called out by Martha Stewart herself for cutting corners on my caramel apples.
I have been trying to determine exactly when my appreciation for Martha Stewart began. The customer service person at Martha Stewart Living says my oldest order dates back to 2007, but I have a faint memory of moving a box of MSL magazines out of my last college apartment, which would have been at least 2004 or 2005. I’ve kept every issue, so as soon as I track down that first box, this mystery can be solved.
My appreciation for Martha Stewart extends much broader than just her as a person. I respect and admire her for creating the modern domestic entertaining market. I am in awe of the empire she has built on her very consistent philosophy that homemaking is beautiful and worthwhile. While researching Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc., I came across this statement:
We are leaders, not followers. We are teachers, not preachers. We innovate and invent, we don’t copy or repeat. We strive to surprise, delight and inspire.
I’ll save my full Ode To Martha for another entry, so I’ll conclude by saying I find a lot of inspiration for my own entrepreneurial pursuits in those of Martha Stewart. Before she became the Ultimate Domestic Goddess, she was a model, a real estate agent, a stock broker, and caterer. It makes me feel pretty good about already being on my second career. It also makes me very excited about the possibilities to come.
An Update For The Sake Of Updates
June 13th, 2012 | Rachel
I hate the idea of going more than two weeks without posting, but the truth of the matter is my June and July are looking to be a little lackluster… and rightfully so, because I am taking the California bar exam July 24-26 and should be using the next month and a half to study. As many of you already know, I have already taken and passed the New York bar exam, so this experience isn’t as daunting as it was the first time around. Preparing for this exam involves learning a lot of information about 17 specific areas of law, and it is not very exciting… so that is all I am going to say about that.
Much easier with a cappuccino
In other news, I’m officially a Californian resident with a Californian license plate and driver’s license! Having the West Virginia plate (a remnant from when it belonged to my dad) made for an easy conversation starter (“Did you really drive that van all the way from West Virgina??”), but I’m pretty sure the other drivers on the road assumed I was a bumpkin who couldn’t drive.
Officially a California girl
Also newsworthy is Steve’s new apartment in Las Vegas. He bought it as an investment, but we get to have a sweet party pad for the rest of the year.
We started off one particularly great night at Spiegelworld‘s Absinthe, which was highly entertaining and almost as mesmerizing as the past Spiegelword shows I saw when the tent came to South Street Seaport in New York City. Absinthe has the human feats of Cirque du Soleil mixed with the sensuality of burlesque, all on an circular stage surrounded a pretty intimate audience (the Las Vegas tent is bigger than the tent used in New York and Miami). Leading the show are two very funny but very lewd hosts, so if you are easily offended this show is not for you.
Waiting in line to pick up our tickets for Absinthe
Even in Las Vegas people would rather be in France.
Upon the recommendation of our concierge, we went to the Tuesday industry night at Chateau Nightclub (Paris), which is on the roof of the casino under the Eiffel Tower. Brilliantly fun night.
A nightclub with cotton candy? Yes, please.
I am looking forward to many more fun nights in that city this year.
While I am on the subject of the pseudo-French, I tried out some macarons at Kelly’s French Bakery here in Santa Cruz. Working at the Three Green Ducks took my bakery snobbery to almost impossible heights, and, so far, most bakeries in this area have been nothing short of disappointing. [I’ll save my rant about Gayle’s Bakery in Capitola for another day.] Kelly’s “French” Bakery is no exception, and in addition to bad service and bagels (why??), my first experience there involved a terrible cherry pie that was made too many days prior and was served straight out of the refrigerator (cold and gelatinous… awful). Although Kelly’s has managed to make macarons that look right (which I admit is a difficult task), the taste and texture was abysmal, and it hurts my heart to think of all the people whose only experience with French macarons are from Kelly’s (and judging from the gushing reviews it gets, there are many).
Coffee break at Kelly’s French Bakery [sic] in Santa Cruz
The three good things I can say about this bakery are 1. the location is lovely, with a huge court yard and in close proximity to a number of wineries and other shops; 2. I love the font of the sign; and 3. the sandwiches, while overpriced and not very French, are pretty good.
I don’t want to end this post on a cranky, negative note, so check out the gorgeous flowers on Steve’s cactus in the backyard. Gardening is one of my study breaks, and now that the afternoons are a consistent 72 degrees, the backyard is one of my favorite places to be.
Cactus flower
Well, back to studying.
Errr…. Hello?
May 31st, 2012 | Rachel
According to Google Analytics, this page about my Hanging Window Herb Garden is blowing up today. Did it get posted somewhere?
Whoever you are, welcome! If you are wondering what this blog is all about, check out the What’s This All About? page (my links are at the bottom of this page).
Also, if you want to keep up with the adventure, please subscribe by scrolling down to the bottom of this page and giving me your email address. I promise I won’t spam you.
Let me know how your herb gardens turn out!
The Sour Taste Of Failure
May 28th, 2012 | Rachel
Last night, I declared an end to my infant baking career.
I probably didn’t mean it, but the frustration and failure behind the proclamation was utterly deflating. Let us rewind 24 hours.
Meyer Lemons!
Last weekend, Steve and I made a trip to a nearby farmer’s market and came home with eggs, carrots, strawberries, blood oranges, and homemade jam. I also picked up four pounds of Meyer lemons to make a cake I saw in a recent issue of Martha Stewart Living… or at least I thought it was MSL. I couldn’t remember exactly where I saw the recipe and was unable to locate it in any of the recent issues. Even the search results for googling “Meyer lemon cake” was a little underwhelming. I eventually settled on a lemon cake with lemon curd filling and honey lavender whipped cream from epicurious.com.
Lavender for the Honey Lavender Whipped Cream
The plan was to make the cake yesterday morning to take to a pool party in the afternoon. My Memorial Day weekend plans had been thrown off by a last minute scheduling of the dinner shift yesterday evening. I had been planning on going to the pool party hosted by some church friends and then another party hosted by a co-worker at the office. Even with the unexpected work shift, it was possible for me to spend a couple of hours by the pool, go to work, and then end the evening eating ribs at my co-workers house.
I ran into the first snafu early in the baking process when I realized I only have whole wheat cake flour. Although I love the idea of using whole wheat, the fact remains that it is overwhelmingly “wheaty” in flavor and gritty in texture. As one of the chefs reiterated during dinner last night, whole wheat flour just doesn’t have a place in baking desserts. Sorry, whole wheat flour lovers out there.
I should have paused for a moment and run to the store for proper flour, but I was a woman on a mission — and a tight schedule — and I went ahead with what I had. Everything after that went really well: squeezing and zesting my four pounds of lemons, separating the eggs and folding in the beaten egg whites, making the lemon curd. By the time the first two components of the recipe were completed, I was feeling pretty good. And I was only running a half hour behind schedule.
Whole Wheat Lemon Chiffon Cake With Meyer Lemon Curd
One day I should probably switch to proper measuring cups, but baking with these makes me feel like I am adding a little extra love to the mix
I did have to make a trip to the grocery store at this point to buy cream for the honey lavender whipped cream. Upon my return, I followed the directions exactly:
Bring cream, honey, and lavender blossoms just to a boil in a small saucepan, then remove from heat and let steep, covered, 30 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, discarding solids, and chill lavender cream, covered, until cold.
If you are a seasoned chef, you might already spot the error in these instructions.
While my lavender cream was steeping, I jumped in the shower and got dressed for my full day of events. When I was ready to go, I cut the cake into three layers, filled them with the lemon curd, and then took my strained and thoroughly chilled cream from the fridge for whipping. Not wanting to get my huge 6-quart mixer bowl dirty, I left the cream in its small (and cold) stainless steel bowl and put the whisk attachment on my hand held mixer. Ten minutes later, my cream was only slightly thicker than before and far from whipped. Perhaps the bowl was too small, I thought, and I got out another bowl and divided the cream in half. Ten minutes later, the only change in the cream were the splatters all over the stove, wall and my dress.
By this point I was slightly annoyed. The only thing that was going to save my potentially grainy whole wheat cake was this delicious whipped cream. I needed it! Maybe I just needed to use one large bowl, I thought, as I pulled another stainless steel bowl from the cabinet. Ten minutes later, no change. This was ridiculous! Perhaps my little handheld mixer wasn’t enough for whipped cream (even though it whipped the egg whites perfectly two hours earlier). I turned to the stand mixer. Ten minutes of high-speed mixing later, the cream was still runny and a little waxy. I was bewildered.
As a last ditch effort, I poured out two thirds of the lavender cream and added the leftover half of a cup of plain cream from the fridge. Ten minutes later, nothing. Failure.
I was afraid to look at the clock, but I knew I was running late. I yelled obscenities at the mixer, dumped the runny cream into the sink with disgust and stacked up the dirty bowls. Then I stood in the middle of the kitchen and looked up at the ceiling, waiting for the tears to come. Alas, I was too frustrated to cry.
I gathered my things — and the whipped cream-less cake — and jumped in the car. It was 3:45pm. The pool party was 20 minutes out of town and I had to be at work at 5pm. And I had to stop at the grocery store to pick up a can of gross spray whipped cream because I knew the whole wheat cake needed the added lubrication. In case you don’t want to do the math, that left me exactly 20 minutes to spend at the party. If I wasn’t so stubborn I would have just stayed home at this point and use the hour to calm down and mentally prepare myself for work. But, I am, so I didn’t.
The tears of failure of frustration finally came as I exited the store with a can of Reddi Whip.
At work that night, I told one of the chefs about my unwhippable cream and asked for an explanation. He immediately recognized that my error was in boiling the cream. Once you heat cream, it changes the proteins and makes it unwhippable. Looking back at the recipe, I am perplexed because some of the comments express a positive outcome for the cream. I am wondering if they didn’t heat their cream as hot, although I brought mine barely to a boil. After doing some internet research on the matter, I am also wondering if my problem was a result of using ultra-pasteurized cream. I read several accounts of people having trouble whipping cream that has been ultra-pasteurized (which means it was heated to a higher temperature for longer shelf life).
[On a side note: I’ve noticed that a disappointing number of organic dairy products are ultra-pasteurized these days. The only organic milk I can find that isn’t ultra-pasteurized comes from a local dairy.]
The Culprit
For next time, and for any of you who want to try your own hand at lavender whipped cream, the chef told me I don’t need to heat the cream to infuse it. I can just add the lavender to the cold cream and stick it back in the fridge over night.
The cake went over well enough, I suppose. It was a crowd that seemed to appreciate the earthiness of the whole wheat.
Whole Wheat Lemon Cake With Lemon Curd Filling
Now it is time to wash the pile of dirty bowls and put this experience behind me. I can’t end my baking career on a failure.
