Loving life (and chocolate cupcakes) during Lent

Every year for Lent I give up a bad habit of some sort. Typically, this results in spending more energy on finding and using a replacement behavior than on actually giving up the bad habit. This year I gave up feeling sorry for myself and I have to say, this is the first year that the first week of Lent has actually required a lot of energy to stop the negative behavior and to think of a positive replacement behavior. I'm not proud to say that feeling sorry for myself and bitter about some of the changes that have occured in my life during the last two years has become a very comfortable and familiar feeling. 

One of the benefits of my career is that I am allowed the opportunity to hear about the struggles (large and small) that five to seven different people are facing on a daily basis. Some days, this does not feel like a blessing and I (like many therapists) leave the office feeling drained, tired, and generally hardened to the horrific realities of the world we live in. Then, there are days that remind me why I do what I do. Those days I am privy to witnessing small miracles; a child overcoming a debilitating fear, a teenager focused on getting into college or graduate school despite the extensive adversity they have faced, a couple finally feeling heard or accepted by each other. One of those days was responsible for this Lenten resolution and because hearing the stories of other peoples challenges and successes was responsible for my committment to this positive change, it seemed only fair that I then share this journey with you.

Dwelling on the reasons I have been feeling sorry for myself would mean that I spend an additional five minutes sitting in the space I have resolved to move out of so I will skip the background story and focus on replacement behaviors. This week I discovered three amazing replacement behaviors: yoga, baking (a little chocolate never hurt anyone, right?), and this podcast. One of my favorite yoga teachers often talks about the concept of "showing up". Not necessarily physically showing up to class (although that is a good place to start), but really showing up in anything and everything we have agreed to do. In our relationships, our practice, our jobs, convesations, even with ourselves, what does it really mean to show up?  I have learned that, for me, this means to be fully present, to commit with integrity. In yoga (and almost any other physical activity I can think of) we experience that shaky feeling when we lean into a new pose, use a new muscle, or hold a stengthening position for an extended time. So often I shy away from that shaking assuming it is my bodys cry for a break. When this yoga teacher encouraged us to "show up" into that shaking, to feel strength developing as you breath through it, I felt empowered. Making the commitment to show up through the shakiness both in new (and sometimes scary) poses and life sittuations is a choice, which brings me to my second discovery. This podcast on The Smart Passive Income Blog is amazing and I highly recommend that you listen to it. I won't waste time recapping what this interview so perfectly describes, just listen. And while you listen, bake. Each time that I am really missing one of my dear friends, I have decided to bake or cook something that reminds me of them. These delicious chocolate cupcakes are an ode to endless nights walking 10 blocks in -10 degree weather for Sprinkles and speeding down Webster in Lincoln Park to arrive at Sweet Mandy B's a mere two minutes before they locked the door to get our fix. 

Chocolate Cupcakes

These amazing little packages of chocolate goodness were adapted from this Barefoot Contessa, Beatty's Chocolate Cake recipe and this chocolate fudge frosting recipe from Baker By Nature. Simply adapt the baking time (15-18 minutes for large cupcakes, 10-14 minutes for mini cupcakes) and halve the frosting recipe. 

Additonal informaiton: for this insanely simple frosting technique, I used this piping bag set from Crate and Barrel. I also picked-up these spring mini cupcake papers and these Easter cupcake papers at Crate and Barrel. Finally, I discovered the Smart Passive Income Blog podcast after reading about it on The Golden Girl Blog. Click here to read the complete list of her favorite sources for creativity and motivation!

What to Make: Pulled Pork

This Sunday is Super Bowl Sunday so it's all about football and fingerfood today. Let's be honest, my favorite part about football is sitting next to my husband, on the couch, uninterrupted for three or more hours. I will focus on fingerfood; what should you take (or make if you're hosting)? Pulled pork. It's easy, can be made in advance, and makes for a consistent crowd pleaser. 

I picked up this piece of boneless pork butt at whole foods (on sale at the Southpark location this weekend for $3.99/lb). 

What you need:

2 lb boneless pork butt/shoulder

For the rub:

1/2 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp pepper

3 turns of salt (adjust to preference)

1 cup of your favorite barbeque sauce (we used Trader Joes organic siracha and roasted garlic BBQ sauce - product review here)

1 cup of water

What to do:

Mix all the ingredients for your rub in a ramekin. Rub the rub into your pork. Remove any twine used to tie-up the meat when you purchased it. Heat a large frying pan over high heat. Once the pan is hot, sear all sides of the meat (30-60 seconds per side) to create a light crust. Meanwhile in your crockpot, whisk together the equal parts barbeque sauce and water. When the pork has been seared on all sides, place it in the crockpot with the sauce/water mix. Cover and cook on HIGH heat for 1 hour. *After 1 hour, turn the heat to LOW*, cooking for an additional 7 hours, turning over once throughout cooking. After 8 hours, remove the pork and place on a plate or plastic cutting board. Use two forks to shred the meat and then place back into the crockpot. Serve on buns with a side of coleslaw or macaroni and cheese! I served these with naked coleslaw and a side of NumNum sauce (mustard based BBQ sauce). 

*NOTE: if you are taking this to a large gathering, I recommend doubling the recipe. We got two large sandwiches and about 6 sliders out of this recipe. You can definitiely make this a day in advance, it tastes better the second day after the meat has really absorbed all the liquid. 

*Adjustment: if you are not available to reduce the heat after one hour, cook on LOW heat for all 8 hours.

The Breakfast Series: Part One

The Medium-Boiled Egg

Eggs are such a simple and delicious staple but learning to turn out a consistently, perfectly cooked egg is an art. This is the start of a short series on breakfast eggs; medium-boiled, poached, and scrambled. I am sure that many well-trained chefs would disagree with me and argue that there is in fact a point at which the egg is "perfectly cooked" but I prefer my eggs to be a tad more on the solid side than they are often served. This is my take on the "perfectly" cooked medium-boiled egg. 

Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil. Remove from heat and place egg into the water so that the egg is fully submersed. Place back on the heat and boil over medium heat for seven minutes. If the boil is too strong, your egg will be overcooked. Using a spoon, remove from the boiling water and place under cold running water. Using the spoon tap a crack around the center of the egg shell. Carefully, slide the spoon under the egg shell, separating the egg itself from the shell. Rinse under cold water to remove any small excess pieces of shell. Salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy with toast! 

Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes

        

  

Earlier this week I tried my first attempt at homemade cinnamon rolls (more on that later in a separate post). The recipe required buttermilk so I trekked out into the freezing michigan weather to pick up the smallest quantity of buttermilk I could find. Two days and two servings of incredible cinnamon rolls later, I had nearly half a gallon of buttermilk sitting unused in my refrigerator. What does one use buttermilk for? Fried Chicken? Waffles? I settled on this Cookworks recipe for blueberry buttermilk pancakes. They were fluffy and delicious and I highly recommend them if you ever find yourself with a small amount (2 cups) of unused buttermilk sitting in your fridge! 

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Chocolate chip cookies are a real challenge for me. My husbands grandmother has a reputation for making the best chocolate chip cookies in town (A reputation I have to admit she has earned, they really are the amazing). Unfortunately, each time we have tried to recreate her famous recipe the cookies come out wrong; too flat, too puffy, cake-like, or dry. As a result, I have been trying my own recipes out to come up with a completely different type of chocolate chip cookie that won't have to live in the forever shadows when compared to the famous "grandma's cookies". 

This recipe was not one that I created myself. It came from Sarah Copeland's The Newlywed Cookbook available here and in Crate & Barrel stores.  

Thousand-Layer Chocolate Chip Cookies (click for recipe) 

This cookie is crispy and rich with decadent specks of dark chocolate all over! 

Secondary to the decadent chocolate, Fleur De Sel is a star component of this crunchy cookie

It's Officialy Soup Season

Nothing puts me in the mood for soup quite like visiting the farmers market while the first cold front of the year pushes through. This past weekend I was lucky enough to visit the Green City Market in Lincoln Park while visiting my mom and sister in Chicago. I would absolutely argue that this is the best farmers market I have attended, especially during the summer months when local vendors setup tent upon tent of fresh tomatoes, mushrooms, herbs, lettuce and anything else you can dream of! As I walked around the city and watched the first snow of the season floating through the buildings, I knew I wanted one thing: soup. 

Over the next two months I will be sharing some of my favorite soup recipes with you. To kick-off this soup season I decided to go with an all time favorite...mushroom barley. In an attempt to ease my husband into this ongoing broth-based period of time, I decided to add some chicken and make the soup a bit more substantial. The final result turned out to be amazing! This soup is not too heavy, contains no dairy but maintains that smooth and creamy texture and provides enough protein to serve as both a lunch and dinner dish!

Ingredients:
1.5 cups finely chopped carrots
1 medium onion, finely diced
1/2 box crimini mushrooms
1 larget portabello OR 3 mini portabello stuffing mushrooms
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp salt + to taste
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp fine herb blend (I am a fan of The Fresh Market blend)
48oz vegetable broth (I absolutely recommend Whole Foods 365 brand "value size")
2 cups of water
1/2 cup of organic pearled barley
1 full chicken breast (typically sold after being separated we often buy 1/2 a breast when we order "1" chicken breast - if that's the case with your butcher you will need two chicken breasts)

Directions:
Dice the onion. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large, heavy pan. Add the onions and allow to sauté while you chop the remaining vegetables. Thinly slice the carrots into small rounds. Cut the mushrooms into equally sized small blocks (not long strips). Add the mushrooms, allow to cook 2-4 minutes. Add the carrots. Add the garlic powder, salt, pepper, and herb blend. Allow to cook over medium heat until the vegetables are fragrant (approximately an additional 2-4 minutes). Add the vegetable broth and water. Cover and bring to a boil. As soon as the liquid is boiling, add the barley, reduce heat to medium and cover. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add the raw chicken, return to a boil and boil (over medium heat) covered for an additional 30 minutes. Remove the chicken breast and place on a plate. Note: If the chicken is still visibly raw at this point, return to the pan until just cooked throughout. Using two forks, shred the chicken before returning to the pan. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes.

Hope you all enjoy this cozy and chunky soup as the temperatures continue to fall reminding us that the holidays are quickly approaching!

Fall Footwear: The Essentials

               

Zara Pump, Joie Bootie, Tory Burch Flat, Stuart Weitzman Over-the-Knee Boot

Transitioning your closet for fall can be an exciting but daunting process. Here in North Carolina, the weather is just starting to cool off enough to really pull out those quintessential fall pieces and finally pack away the shorts, maxi dresses, and wedges. This year I have decided to slim down my fall closet and focus on a few really essential pieces. 

In order to be prepared for a wide variety of fall activities it's necessary to make sure you have covered the basics. Here are my picks for fall essentials; the classic pump with an edgy and updated twist, a great pair or booties that you can pair with a casual sweater and jeans for the daytime or dress up with a great blouse or dress in the evening, a staple pair of black flats, and an easy go-to pair of over the knee boots. 

While we are well into October we are still experiencing 70 to 75 degree days here. This was one of the toughest adjustments for me last year after living in Chicago where you can pull your heaviest sweaters and riding boots out around September 15th without looking too enthusiastic. This year I am slowing it down and appreciating the opportunity to wear my fall favorites without feeling compelled to grab my floor-length down parka.