Amazing Corn Chowder

I’ve had a bag of frozen corn in my tiny freezer for two months. This is unacceptable because the freezer is tiny and if it is full of corn, there isn’t any room for ice cream. I have my priorities.

I bought the corn when I made barley succotash and I’ve had the leftover bag ever since. When I need to add a vegetable for dinner, I often tell myself I’ll just heat up the corn, but I never do. I like corn on the cob, corn bread, and corn in things. But plain corn on the side isn’t very interesting to me and so the bag languished in the freezer. 

Tourist Tuesday: The Rubbish Collection

I recently visited the Science Museum just to walk around. Well, to be truthful, I went to the museum to do recon for a job interview I had the next day. You know, make sure I knew what I was talking about. So I only had my phone and I wasn’t looking for a Tourist Tuesday post, but then I went crazy for the Rubbish Exhibit. Therefore, please excuse the shoddy pictures.

The exhibit was awesome and I have to tell you about it even though it is no longer on display. (Also, fyi, I got the job and as long as all my paperwork and visa and what have you go through, then I start in October! WOOT!)

Boden’s Birthday Cake

Today’s post is special because it is one cake recipe done two ways. The first way is a traditional Victoria Sandwich cake and the second way is a checkerboard cake with chocolate frosting that I made to celebrate the birth of my nephew. That’s right, I have a nephew!

On Saturday night Aaron and Katy (Ryan’s twin brother and his wife) emailed they were going to the hospital. I was jumping up and down in the street with excitement. Then Sunday Ryan and I woke up with an email and a photo of their son Boden! It’s their first kid, and our first nephew. We are an uncle and aunt for the first time!

Tourist Tuesday: Hardy Tree

I greatly enjoy browsing on Pinterest. It gives me all kinds of ideas for cooking, for holiday decorations, for hair styles, and also for Tourist Tuesday activities. When I saw a picture of the Hardy Tree on Pinterest, I knew I had to go check it out with my own eyes.

The Hardy Tree is located in the churchyard of Saint Pancras Old Church. Located  just a short walk from the King’s Cross St. Pancras Tube Station, you can walk over there after you have your visit to Platfrom 9 3/4. The church is a small and charming little building sandwiched between a large road and a medium sized church yard.

Hazelnut Apricot Whole Wheat Bread

I’m really in to braids right now. Yep, braids. I haven’t had a haircut in about 7 months and my hair is getting long and unruly. I’m reluctant/too lazy/afraid to find a new hair salon so I’m rocking a braid. I’ve even been watching YouTube tutorials to discover new styles and then I take pictures and send them to my friend Anna in the US. I’m super cool, I know.

But my most impressive braid is this bread!! I am so absolutely proud of it and I’m excited to share it with you. I got this recipe from The Great British Bake Off: How to Bake. I might have mentioned it before, but I’ve become a big fan of the TV show The Great British Bake Off. After every episode I always want to get in the kitchen and make something. So recently I went to the library and checked out the book and went on a baking spree trying out all kinds of things – and the more
complicated the better. 

Tourist Tuesday: Rome

I don’t know how to start this post other than to gush. I love Rome. Being there makes me so happy. Yesterday was Ryan and my two-year wedding anniversary and we celebrated with a long weekend in Rome. It was wonderful. Yes, the traditional gift for this anniversary is cotton (in Rome he got a sweatshirt and I got a tea towel), but I think maybe the second year anniversary gift should be pizza and gelato instead.

Part of the reason I love Rome is that I studied abroad there seven years ago during my junior year. Living in Rome was the first time I was away from home for so long and the first time I lived in a city. I ate so much pizza, pasta, and gelato. My roommates and I also cooked dinner together almost every night and befriended the local shop owners. We’d buy the fresh pesto and the guys in the store would give us free chocolate. My roommate Inga became one of my best friends, and with our upstairs neighbors Charlie and Michelle, we tore up the city.

Tourist Tuesday: Kensington Palace

Photo from Wikipedia

I went to Kensington Palace awhile ago and I feel bad it has taken me this long to post pictures! Kensington Palace is the home of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (that’s William and Kate). It also has a number of pretty lovely exhibits. I went with my friend Marylin and it was a very enjoyable day. I loved it because it was a mix of historic, trendy, beautiful, and whimsical. I like that the curators and designers don’t take themselves so seriously. Look at this sign for the bathroom!

Plum Fruit Leather

I’ve gotten into a show called Sweets Made Simple on BBC Two. It’s a show where a quirky married couple makes candy. I want to make everything on that show. Boozy chocolates, rose flavored turkish delight, salted caramel! They recently made fruit leather and I was so excited. I love fruit leather.

Fruit leather also makes me feel a little nostalgic for back to school and my colleagues at Live It Learn It who are back in the US. My coworker Erica and I were a little crazy for fruit leather at the end of last school year. It was our snack of choice during the many meetings we were having. She’d have a big stash in her backpack and I’d peak through and pull out my favorite flavors. Snacks are always a nice way to pep up the workday. 

Tourist Tuesday: BBC Good Food Festival

This weekend was a lovely long weekend filled with food! Ryan had a half day on Friday and he came home and we made lunch together. I was in the mood for a delicious sandwich so we went to the grocery store to get ingredients for steak sandwiches. Ryan was the executive chef and I was the sous chef. He made all the decisions and did most of the cooking. I did the prep and washed the dishes. Our steak was topped with cheddar cheese, onions, and mushrooms on a baguette and served along side fries. It was so good and I ate so much, I didn’t even eat dinner!

Coronation Chicken

There is something wonderful about lazy rainy days. Today is one of those days. It’s a Bank Holiday which means Ryan has the day off. We spent most of the weekend out and about. Today, we get to stay in. It’s rainy and we are cozy on the couch watching episodes of Rome on Netflix. We are snacking on candy and leftovers and it is glorious. I love rainy days for lazy reasons but I also love them because it gives me the chance to cook things that are a little more complex and time consuming. On rainy days I can take my time, fix things on the wish-list that are unfamiliar, make a big mess, and not worry about the time.