Farmers Market!

On Friday's there's a Farmers Market near my house. And you all know I how love a farmers market! I have a whole post dedicated to the ones on Central Coast of California. So here's one dedicated to my lastest find. My mother went to this one once and has been dying for it two weeks after she left. And she has two of her own farmers markets!

This is a nice, small farmers market with three rows of vendors. There's bakeries, lots of fruit and veg (all organic), salmon fillets, kombucha, fresh pasta, the list goes on. I buy some of my produce here. But in all actually, this market is not only pricey, it's kinda over-priced. I still don't quite know why a fresh salmon fillet is 21 bucks a lb. If it's fresh and was caught on Wednesday  at the bay shouldn't it be cheaper than what I get from the supermarket that imported from the East Coast? Doesn't help that I don't have a job....yet!

But enough of that. I bought broccoli, potatoes, and tomatoes. I'm going to make a Broccoli, Potato, and Cheese soup. It's still a little warm here (around  the early 80's). But I want some soup!!

I'll keep you posted!

Drunk Cupcakes Round 3:

Yes, I might have a cupcake pattern. But this was the most recent thing I've made and I wanna keep with recipes. A few weeks ago I had a going-away party and Tuck and I made our infamous Margarita cupcakes. And we added these to the mix! A lot of money was spent on booze for this party. And we drank the left over liquor. Happy being an ex-college kid! I don't have any pictures, sorry folk!


Chocolate Kahlua Mudslide Cupcakes
Adapted from Worth the Whisk

3 large eggs, separated
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup strong coffee, at room temperature
3/4 cup Kahlua

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 cupcake pans (24 cupcakes) with paper liners. (You may get a couple extras out of this - I did.)

Sift together flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt and set aside. In a clean mixing bowl, beat egg whites until frothy with whisk attachment. Slowly add in sugar, beating until stiff peaks form. Set aside. Cream together butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, about two minutes. Add egg yolks one at a time, beating after each addition. Measure coffee, vanilla and Kahlua and stir together in measuring cup. Add 1/3 of the flour mixture to the batter and mix on low speed until just incorporated. Add 1/2 the Kahlua mixture, mix until incorporated and repeat alternating flour and Kahlua, ending with flour mixture. Gently fold in egg whites.

Fill cupcake liners 2/3 of the way full and bake approximately 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool about 10 minutes and transfer to wire racks to cool completely before frosting.

Bailey's Irish Cream Buttercream

1 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup Bailey's Irish Cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 lbs powdered sugar

Beat butter on medium speed until smooth. Add Bailey's and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add powdered sugar, 2 cups at a time, mixing on low speed until frosting is the desired consistency. Pipe onto cupcakes as desired. I piped these with a large star tip.

Enjoy!

I'm Trying Not to Jinx It.

So I was going to write about the job interviews I've done and the jobs I hope I'll get. But I'm afraid I'll jinx it. Just know that I have 2 serious prospects that could work with each other and my theatre schedule. Not all will be in vain! So other than that there's only a few things to put down:

I’ve also had 3 auditions. Of those auditions, I’ve gotten 2 call-backs and.. drumroll…I got cast! The show is an original work called Bean: The Musical Fruit. The people I auditioned for were incredibly nice, the music was adorable (I had to sing a snippet) and the rehearsal times actually might work for my hopefully up-coming work schedule.

So tomorrow is the two week mark of being here. And trust me, it’s been hard. Tuesday, when I only had interviews lined up and some good auditions in my belt, I woke up with few worries and felt awful. There’s something horrible about waking up at 7 a.m. because I have to pee, and coming back to a cold, lonely bed. That’s the worst for me. Not falling asleep, not actually waking up and getting out of bed. But those 20 minutes after I go to the bathroom and I’m completely alone.

The good news is the best friend who I miss so much (let's call him Tuck) is still a best friend. We've talked in some capacity everyday. I'm sure he doesn't even read this blog because I tell him everything that's already on it. He calls me sometimes, or I'll call him. And we've been doing well. That Tuesday I was so upset, I had him call me before one of my interviews. And I felt much better for having done it. Yes, I cried on the phone, for no reason in particular but that I was still sad for having left New Mexico. But it's September 1, I've been here almost 2 weeks and I hope by this time next week to have a job, a show, and be ready for a new life!

Dinner: Katsu-don.
Dinner last night (I forgot!): Shoyu Ramen at a legit Japanese restaurant!

Guess What!

So actually quite a bit has gone down the past fews days. Remember how I did two auditions on Saturday? Well, I got a call-back for one of those auditions! Success! No, seriously-success. Because as an actor, call-backs are the best way to map out your success rate, not casting (if you want more info, please ask. But just trust me).

I also did another audition today for a cute new original show about vegetables. Not kidding, but it’s really cute. Hopefully I’ll get called back to Spring Awakening because that’s what I really want!

Hmm…I did a job interview today for a boutique, whoop-dee-doo. And I’m still watching excessive amounts of How I Met Your Mother. Right, so maybe I’m still a tiny bit lazy. But I have sooooooo much free time. All I do is cook, apply, interview, prepare for auditions, then audition. On days I’m not doing that, yes, I am walking around this nice new city. But some days I wake up, have a meeting at 1 and decide I’m going to watch How I Met Your Mother.

What else is going on? Not much, just trying to figure out a routine for now til I get a job, waiting for the rest of my stuff to get here (thanks extremely expensive and filled to the brim moving van. See you in a week and a half), and looking for things I might need after the moving truck gets here. But I’m not buying anything until it’s here and I know what I have/what I need/have the money to do it. All I have right now is grocery money.

I guess this is why people don’t leave their home towns. Or their home states. Getting a new job, finding new places to shop and eat and hang out. Extreme heartbreak (yes I’m still sad, but I’ve been better the past few days). So go me for taking a chance, being brave, hopeful and perhaps a little stupid. Oh well, that’s what life-changing decisions are meant to be!

Someone Hire Me!

So remember how yesterday I was kinda down in the dumps. Well, today, from 10:00 til right now (4:36) I have been doing nothing but applying for jobs. And now I have two more interviews. Along with the interview I already did (more on that later) and the two I already had planned, my life seems to be back on track! Granted I did spent that whole time applying also finishing up the first season of How I Met Your Mother.

But about yesterday. Even though it was a sad post, it was actually a rather productive day. Let’s start at the beginning.

8:30 a.m.- I did a hands-on interview to be a professional house-keeper. I’m sure anyone who knows me is shocked. My parents know me to be pretty messy. Or cluttered. My friends will agree that while I’m not a slob, I’m also not a neat freak. And some other people probably do assume that I am in fact a slob. Boo on those people.

Anyway, I cleaned a bathroom for a half hour, got critiqued and even after inspecting my mediocre work, the interviewer still seemed mildly interested in me. Now what’s sad is that half-way through the cleaning I realized that I really really really don’t want this job. I don’t. Cleaning professionally is freaking hard and the chemicals aren’t good for my voice. This is what probably brought down my mood for the day. I am smart, educated, well-read, funny, cute and have so much to offer. And there I was, scrubbing the bathtub of some bro.

The worst part is that I am so desperate that if she offers it to me and I have nothing else going on, I will probably take that job. Just til something better comes around. But it’s part-time, pays 11 dollars an hour and I’m guaranteed to get out before 4:30. And most auditions are from 5-10 at night. So maybe I could suck it up for a little bit. Or maybe I’m deluding myself...

1:09 p.m.- I’m auditioning for Spring Awakening. Yes the big Broadway musical that jump-started the career of the horrible Lea Michelle. Yeah, I’m not afraid to say I think she’s horrible! Right, Maude? Even if Maude doesn’t read this, trust me she agrees.

The audition went well. I sang “Oh Darling” by the Beatles and I feel like I might actually have a shot. The auditors seemed ok with me and to be honest, I think I sang better than some of the other girls who auditioned around me. But you kinda have to have that attitude to get into this business. I played my flute and all was well.

1:30: I spontaneously auditioned for another theatre! It was for their season, and required a rock-esque song and a monologue. So I sang “Oh Darling” again and did a monologue. The auditors seemed to really enjoy both pieces. It’s nice to audition for people who actually want to see people do well. Know what I mean?

And after waking up early, and doing two auditions back to back, I still managed to fill out an application to a spice store downtown. Go me! I was exhausted when I got back home at 3, which would explain why I was so down and cranky (sleepy).

And though I sat at my kitchen table all day applying for jobs, I feel pretty good about the day. It’s late afternoon. I’ve had lunch (posted below) and I’m going to organize my house! This place is a mess! Also our toilet might be broken…..oh deary me, that’ll be an interesting post for tomorrow…jk

My lunch today:
A Goat Cheese- Sun-dried Tomato Sandwich on Pullman Bread. Yesterday I ate the same thing, but with Edamame Hummus. Also, a ton of cherries. Getting some fruit in!

Return of the Travelling Blog....kinda

So as you can see, I haven't written in a very long time. You know, basically all summer. I've been very on and off with the recipes. But my summer was all sorts of sporadic changes, with moving into a new apartment, moving out a week later into my boyfriend's place, moving back in, and taking a week off to go to Washington and Houston. Not much cooking to be done...

But this will be a new blog. I'm taking the advice of my teacher Jon Jory. I will write for 15 minutes every day. I consider most things I write to be non-fiction anyway, so keeping up with this blog with service both my non-fiction writing, letting my mom (and anyone else who may read this blog) know how my life is going and filling my time.

Let's start at the beginning. I moved to Washington last Friday, which means last Wednesday I left my home in New Mexico. And it was sad. And I cried a lot. In fact, I still cry a lot. I've uprooted my life once before. I left my childhood home and all my childhood friends in Oklahoma 4 years ago. And I cried, but proceeded to have great adventures. I left some friends and a boyfriend for a slightly unknown future in London. And I cried a lot more, but proceeded to have even better adventures.

So here I am, in Washington, having left a home, friends, and a boyfriend, crying a lot and waiting for the adventures to come. So far, it's been pretty bland....

The real world is not only hard, it's boring. I need to find a job, have auditions, rehearse, make a life for myself, oh and wait for my moving van to come! Hurrah!

It's kinda lonely here. Sure I'm living with two of my best friends (all we need is our Connecticut counterpart to come visit and the Quad will be a force once more!) But who I really miss is my best guy friend, someone I shared most of my days with for a year. Sure we still talk and text everyday. But it's only been a week. He'll start school soon and I'll hopefully have a job and rehearsals soon and we won't talk everyday. Maybe we won't take every week or every month. But for now, while I'm trying to make my way, I'm still sad and missing him.

I guess that's all I wanted to say today. This feeling has been living in a knot in my chest for the past week, so maybe writing it down, on the Internet, might make me feel a tiny bit better.

In honor of him, here's a link to how to create a watermelon keg. Which is exactly what he did two Sundays ago for my going away party.

Crack Brownies

I made these for a Tony party I had at my yet-to-be-finished house. I thought, oh they'll be great! Every one will eat probably 2 pieces and then they'll be all gone. Nope, everyone ate one, said "That is so good, but so sweet!" Then I proceeded to chomp down on all of them cos it's sugar crack. Chocolatey-sugar-crack!

Brownie Bars
from noshwithme.com

Ingredients
Brownies (9×13 pan, homemade or from a mix)
Vanilla frosting (homemade or from a can)
3 cups crisp rice cereal
1 cup cup Peanut Butter
12 ounces chocolate chips

Directions:
1. Bake brownies and let cool completely. Frost brownies and refrigerate.
2. In a saucepan over low heat, melt peanut butter and chocolate, stirring constantly. Add chocolate mixture to cereal.
3. Spread mixture over frosted brownies. Refrigerate for one hour until set. Cut into bars.

Recipe adapted from Hoosier Homemade.

Notes:
- I used Marshmellow Fluff, not icing.
- Make sure to keep it refridgerated.

Enjoy!