Mish and I have been dying to try out recipes from Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the Worldby Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero for a very long time, and we finally did on Friday. Because neither of us had ever made vegan cupcakes before, and Mish has never made cupcakes from scratch, we decided to go with a simpler recipe: Simple Vanilla and Agave Nectar Cupcakes. For the frosting, we made a Chocolate Ganache using the recipe from the book and adding a little bit of our own invention. Here’s the result:
These were the most moist cupcakes I’ve ever had! I’m guessing that’s a result of using agave syrup in lieu of sugar and eggs/milk. I mean… wow. I’m not vegan {though I may be slowly heading that way, if it weren’t for bacon…}, but I have a feeling I’ll be making many more vegan cupcakes.
Psst: check out author Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s website, The Post Punk Kitchen, for more unbelievably delicious vegan recipes. :)
Last night, I dressed up in my Gryffindor costume and set out to join fellow fans to await the midnight release of the final movie in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Some of you might laugh and call us nerds, and that’s okay. I’ve accepted that the series is a part of me, even if others can’t quite understand it.
I was 11 — just like Harry — when Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone {the book} was released in the U.S. We read it in my 6th grade English class. My Nana — the most important person in my world — had just died. I was in so much pain, and I found comfort in Harry, who had also experienced great loss. I read each book as it was released, until Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix {book 5}, where I couldn’t get past the cleaning of No. 12 Grimmauld Place. Sorry, J.K. Rowling, but that was just super long.
I came back to the books in 2007, a few months before Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows {the book} was to be released. I was working at a major bookstore at the time and I knew I would be working during the midnight release party. I finished Order of the Phoenix and Half Blood Prince in a few weeks and attended the midnight premier of the Order of the Phoenix movie. The night of the Deathly Hallows book release, I dressed as Hermione. I finished Deathly Hallows in two days {I barely slept}.
That night, I remembered how much Harry Potter meant to me — how much the books helped me cope with the loss of my Nana. As much as I missed her, I was reminded again and again that she was always a part of me, always in my heart and mind. I threw myself back into Harry Potter fandom, saw the rest of the movies during midnight showings, and dressed up as Harry & Ginny with Stan for Halloween 2008.
Yesterday, Stan and I met Sarah, Kayla, and Jill for dinner before the movie. I love that Jill wore her tie as a belt. That gave me the idea of doing something nontraditional with my tie, so I wore it on my head like Seamus in the Prisoner of Azkaban movie. P.S. Have you seen Jill’s crazy awesome HP tattoo?
We were joined by Jill’s friend Andrea at the theater, and Sabrina came shortly after we got our seats. I had prepared a 133-question N.E.W.T. for everyone. One question {about horcruxes} was worth 28 points. The highest score on that one was Jill with 10.5. I was sorely disappointed. Haha, kidding! It was lots of fun though.
…Oh, the movie? I cried through most of it. I thought it went a bit fast, but it was still wonderful. I feel strange now that it’s all over, but it will always be in my heart, I think, like my Nana. And I’ll share it with my children, and my grandchildren.
While I could give you a very long list of the TEDTalks* that I’ve watched recently, that have inspired me, I’m going to point out just one (for now). Writer and Esquire editor A. J. Jacobs gave a talk in 2007 about his recently published book, The Year of Living Biblically. While I’m not religious (neither is Jacobs), I was intrigued by his mission to live by the laws of the Bible as strictly as possible for an entire year. During his talk, he discusses some of his amusing encounters, but also some of the heartfelt lessons he learned from the experience, even though he’s agnostic. This really hit home for me:
“Another lesson is that thou shalt give thanks. And this one was a big lesson because I was praying, giving these prayers of thanksgiving, which was odd for an agnostic. But I was saying thanks all the time, every day, and I started to change my perspective, and I started to realize the hundreds of little things that go right every day, that I didn’t even notice, that I took for granted — as opposed to focusing on the three or four that went wrong. So, this is actually a key to happiness for me, is to just remember when I came over here, the car didn’t flip over, and I didn’t trip coming up the stairs. It’s a remarkable thing.”
So, whether you’re religious or not, I recommend watching his TEDTalk (see below, or watch it here), and reading The Year of Living Biblically. I’m adding it to my “To Read” list.
*In case you’re unfamiliar, TED is a nonprofit that brings inspiring people to give a 15 minute talk about their lives, work, and what inspires them, in hopes that the videos will inspire others (their motto is: Ideas Worth Spreading). Notable speakers include Steve Jobs (CEO of Apple); J.K. Rowling (the genius behind Harry Potter); Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat, Pray, Love); and many, many others.
…It just occurred to me that I haven’t done a Friday Faves post in three months! Yikes! Today, I’m going to focus on literature. I’d say that summer is a time for me to read fun fictional novels {which is true}, but I also have this need to constantly be learning something new, so I always end up reading a few nonfiction books as well. Here are a few of the books I’ve been loving lately:
The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen — I’m not even a third of the way through this book, but I had to include it because it’s already becoming a favorite. I like the way Sarah Addison Allen writes sort of mysteriously, like she’s keeping things from the readers. I’m not always a fan of narrators that divulge everything about themselves within the first few pages. I also love that she blurs the lines between fantasy and reality. Another author that does this amazingly well is Francesca Lia Block {loooove her Weetzie Bat series}. Oh, and, in case you’re wondering about the “Advance Reading Copy” thing — we used to get these when I worked at Borders.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky — I read this in high school and just started re-reading it {I often read several books at a time, and read really great books several times}. I’ve been reading it to Stan because he’s too impatient to read a book himself, but I want him to experience Charlie like I did. You can’t help but immerse yourself in the pages of his fictional letters and want to give this naïve and intensely caring and generous boy lots of hugs. It’s really the best way I can describe the feeling I get from Stephen Chbosky’s book. I think there’s a little bit of Charlie in all of us. I’m slightly nervous about the upcoming movie though.
Green Beauty Recipes by Julie Gabriel — I love that Julie Gabriel, Founder of Petite Marie Organics, provides a resource for beginners who just want to make some simple one-ingredient beauty fixes and also tips for those of us who may ultimately sell our natural cosmetics. Unlike many of the other natural beauty recipe books out there, Gabriel discusses which ingredients to avoid and which preservatives are best for keeping cosmetics fresh without adding toxic chemicals to them. Overall, a really great DIY cosmetics book with lots of great recipes and information.
Hard Love by Ellen Wittlinger— Hard Love is one of my favorite books of all time. I have recommended this book to — and sometimes even bought it for — so many people. I’m re-reading this one again, too. I usually re-read this every summer. It’s fiction, but it’s one of the truest, most heartbreaking young love stories I’ve ever read. I don’t want to give anything away, so I won’t say more than that.
I’m totally gushing about the article Lauren Lalancette wrote about me for UConn Magazine, profiling me as a “sassy & savvy” UConn student, blogger, and entrepreneur. I know, I look like a total nerd in the photo. I love it!
You can browse the full Spring 2011 issue online here or download it here.
