blueberry cake

I stole this from Boston.com awhile ago and made it for Orlando for his birthday. It's a blueberry coffeecake and its DELICIOUS! and super easy. I think this was one of the first times I've ever really baked anything.

Blueberry Coffeecake (with a delicious topping!)

Topping:
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) cold butter, cut up

In a bowl, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and butter.

Work the mixture with your fingertips until well blended and refrigerate.

Cake:
Butter or kitchen spray (for the pan)
1 pint fresh blueberries
2 cups flour (+ some extra for the pan)
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature

Set the oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8 inch square baking pan and then dust with flour, tapping out the excess.

Toss blueberries with 1 tablespoon of flour in a bowl.

In another bowl, whisk the remaining flour, baking powder, and salt to blend them.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until soft and light. Beat in the egg and vanilla until also soft and light. With the mixer set to the lowest speed, blend in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with flour.

Remove the bowl from the mixer stand. With a rubber spatula, fold in blueberries. Transfer the batter to the pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the topping over the cake.

Bake the cake for 40-45 minutes or until the top is brown.

And...we have our first photo!

sauvignon blanc por favor

Our schedule at Northeastern is a bit strange. After our first year we go on a quarter system and rotate between classes and doing a "coop" which is an internship. This quarter, I've decided to do my coop at the SF Public Defenders. I am staying with my parents in the south bay and seeing as my car is in Boston, I will be taking the caltrain everyday. I also get dropped off at the caltrain station in Mountain View by my parents...you know, like a middle schooler. Anyways, today I arrived at the crack of dawn aka 6:45am. It was surprisingly busy and there was a coffee cart that may or may not also sell hot dogs. I will investigate that tomorrow. Now the big surprise came after work...you can drink on the caltrain! wtf. The lady in front of me sits down, takes a small plastic bottle of wine out of a grocery bag, and then pours it in a plastic cup! She then proceeds to sip and enjoy her wine while doing something on her laptop. Really?? Now that I know this, I will probably mix a cocktail or two tomorrow morning.

one mile

Sooo, last week I let my friends Irene and Jim convince me to run the Philly half marathon. It is next November and I've decided to start training for it. Well, actually I said I would start training for it last Sunday and since then I have taken a lot of naps and eaten a lot of muffins and other types of miscellaneous junk food. Yesterday I actually went for a run. I am definitely not a runner and at this point I can only do 1 mile. I have a ways to go before I reach 13. So I guess I am going for another 1 mile run today. and everyday. until I get 2 miles. 

Today's run plan:

House to the Saratoga Starbucks: 0.9 miles

Also apparently I am supposed to post photos on this thing. So stay tuned for that.

first post + pumpkin mac and cheese

Hello Everyone,
Seeing as this is my first blog post, I am probably supposed to say something profound or what this blog is all about, but I am not really sure at this point (and I need to finish packing). So I will leave that and other introductions for later.

Here's what I do have: a SUPER delicious recipe for pumpkin mac and cheese.

Ingredients:
1/2 a box of pasta (I think it's 8 ounces)
1 pound brussel sprouts
6 (or more!) strips of bacon
1 apple
1 onion
1 can of pumpkin puree (16 ounces?)
1/3 cup of half and half (or milk)
3/4 cup of your favorite melty cheese. fontina? gruyere? whatever works.

Directions:
Drizzle brussel sprouts with oil and roast at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Boil water and cook the pasta.

In a frying pan (or a wok!), cook bacon until crispy, remove bacon from pan and chop into small pieces.

Pour off most of the bacon fat. Then saute diced apples and diced onions for 5 minutes. Add pumpkin puree, half and half, and half a cup of cheese. After a minute, add brussel sprouts, bacon, and pasta. Stir together.

Pour everything into a baking dish and top with the rest of the cheese. Bake for 10 minutes at 425.

Then eat it!