Brown Sugar Cookies

There have been some amazing things happening around these parts since entering Funemployment.

One such thing?  I've started cooking and baking.  While I understand that these two skills are the norm for most people living in
Americathe world, I'm more than happy to order takeout from Thelonious Monkfish  4 days out of the week and subsist on ice cream from Toscanini's for the other three.

I kid, I do.  A few months ago I was able to hide behind the excuse that I was "too busy to cook", but I have a lot of time on my hands now and frankly, it was about time that I stopped being lazy and started taking action.

I'm getting there, sloooowly.  One of my biggest successes so far happened last Friday.  My mother hitched a ride with a family friend and made a last minute trip up to Cambridge to visit me and my brother.  As (my) family gatherings are wont to do, it expanded to include my cousin, husband, husband's friend, and husband's friend's girlfriend.  I love that I, along with John, have created an atmosphere where folks feel absolutely comfortable popping in for a visit.  I don't love that I never seem to have enough food on hand to feed them.

Tea time is a pretty big tradition for my family, and when 4pm rolls around if I don't have tea and a biscuit, there's hell to pay.  Tea is never lacking in our household, but I didn't feel like serving my guests store-bought treats from the bodega across the street.  For the first time since moving into our house (a year and two months ago), I had flour, butter, sugar, eggs, spices, and baking powder in large enough quantities to attempt to make cookies.  WELL, they weren't a disaster.  In fact, they were pretty delicious, and all 24 cookies were gone by the end of the night.

Because the cookies were such a success, I'd love to share the recipe with you.  It's fast and foolproof, but I was pretty proud :

Brown Sugar Cookies 
(You can find the recipe here)

You will need:
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 

How to Prepare:

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle and beat until smooth and creamy. Add the egg and beat well. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. 

Place the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices in a separate bowl and mix well. Add to the butter mixture and beat until everything is well incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat again.

Drop large teaspoonfuls of dough onto an unbuttered cookie sheet about 2 inches apart and bake until the edges are just brown, 8 to 12 minutes.

Let cookies cool, then serve with some tea or a glass of cold milk.  Success!

I hope you enjoy. xxxx

Belated New Years Resolutions!

For ALL of 2010, I have been the most sporadic blogger ever. I would like to blame it on law school, and planning a wedding, then HAVING a wedding, but honestly, that would be a lie. I'm just crazy...and by crazy, I meant to say LAZY. Plus, I'm still trying to show my husband my commitment to this blog- he dared me way back in 2008 to start a blog and keep it up--or rather, he said he didn't believe I could keep a blog up, so naturally, challenge accepted.

Anyway, my New Year's Resolution is to post on this blog more than 29 times in a year. And to take more pictures. There's nothing like shameless promotion! Plus, my Mom really likes them.

I love reading other people's personal blogs--and stalking all of their lovely photos. Some examples? Aura Joon, Taza + Husband, Marvelous Kiddo, A Cup of Jo, and Honestly...WTF. All so different, but so wonderful and joyful!

Further New Year's Resolutions:

Live life freely
Do more yoga
Eat less candy

Try to cry only 5 times a week .

And, in the spirit of shameless self-promotion, I posted some wedding photos that I received last weekend (yes, instead of New Year pictures). Because honestly, this is what I want my life to be like every day.

Happy 2011!

<3

My fiance deserves a post because he has been so wonderful putting up with my nervous nellie ways for the past few weeks. I started law school today, but not without some serious doubts. John held my hand, laughed at me, and told me it would be okay. And today it was.

So John, thank you for believing in me and being proud of me. It means more than you know.

{All pictures taken by my father in Tobago 3 weeks ago}

Weekend Recap

There's nothing better than blended families and warm, sunny weekends.

I saw no fireworks and wore no patriotic colors, but it didn't rain, I made fried chicken, and managed to get a nice tan.

And I got to spend the weekend with a certain person, one who still gives me butterflies every time he looks at me.

Katie and Ben's gorgeous Great Gatsby inspired wedding.

{Photos: Katie's Color Board from 100 Layer Cake; Save the date cards by Lucky Luxe}

I'm going to brag on behalf of John's lovely sister Katie who is getting married on September 12, 2009. Her wonderful design aesthetic got her on True & Wesson's blog!

"Katie loves the romanticism and elegance of the Great Gatsby, and the flair and sophistication of French fashion and European style, combined with the modern elegance and whimsy of the Art Deco movement, all of which have been sources of inspiration as we are starting to design this incredible affair."

I cannot wait for this wedding. It's going to be so beautiful.