Elsweyr Fondue, Grilled Leeks, and Black-Briar Mead

So much has been going on lately!  I've been taking all kinds of trips all over the country and am planning more soon.  I wish I could talk about all of them in detail, but I will just say that I'm preparing for something, and I'm very excited about it.  After traveling to different states, I've been daydreaming about traveling to different states and different countries almost constantly, and I've been trying to come up with a Travel Bucket List.  Here's what I have so far:

1. England.  Not just London either, but Oxford, the Cotswolds, the Yorkshire Dales, Birmingham, and many other places I haven't even realized are there yet.  I've been to England twice already, but I need to take Kyle with me this next time.  I just love being there.  Having lots and lots of ancestors that are from there, I feel like I'm making a pilgrimage to the Motherland each time I go.

2. Argentina.  I have been infatuated with South America ever since I got the Amazon Trail CD-ROM game in like, 1996.  Argentina has always held a sense of mystery and exoticism that I've always been attracted to.  So much so that I did my 5th grade project on it.  I secretly want to hang with South American natives, drinking maté and dancing the tango.

3. Prince Edward Island, Canada.  If only because Anne of Green Gables was set there, and it looks gooorgeous.  My trip would, of course, be during the summer and not during the butt-ass-cold of winter.  And then I could pretend I'm Anne Shirley, traipsing about the countryside and getting into Scooby-Doo scrapes, turn-of-the-century style.

4. Washington State, USA.  I never had a huge burning desire to go there until Kyle's mom and brother moved out to Puyallup, WA, and I started to see pictures of lush, green forests and majestic mountains.  It looks like a beautiful place to be (almost reminds me of the Alps), and it has an alternative side, too - with lots of unique shops and cool, organic and ethnic restaurants - which is right up my alley.

5. Iceland.  Maybe it was seeing it from an aerial view as we came into the airport for our flight connection, but there's something other-worldly about Iceland.  It actually looked a lot like Mars from my IcelandAir jet.  And their language!  So alien and beautiful to my ears.  I want to hear moar.  Also, they have crazy Northern Lights, as seen in this picture.

 

6. Arizona, USA.  I went once in elementary school, and absolutely loved it.  There is a very quiet, serene beauty in the deserts of Arizona.  Once again, it appeals to my sense of mystery and exoticism, and I don't even need a passport to feel like I'm in a different world.

7. Cairo, Egypt.  Another childhood fascination of mine was ancient Egypt and its culture.  Seeing the pyramids at Giza and experiencing that culture firsthand would be an experience I don't want to miss.




These are just a few places, of course.  There are many others that are on my much longer list.  But one of these days, when I have the time and the financial resources, I will get on a plane and go!

Anyway, back to food!  In this entry, you will find the bulk of the Skyrim meal I made.  Not featured here are the Sweet Rolls I made to go along with it.  All the recipes are from the same lovely blog as last time, Gourmet Gaming, and all the food is inspired by the video game Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and is reminiscent of something a Viking would have eaten long ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

Skyrim Sweet Rolls

A while back, I discovered a wonderful fantastic blog called Gourmet Gaming.  The girl who runs it posts a recipe every Wednesday.  Unlike most food blogs, each recipe must be for a food featured in a video game.  Every recipe is an original creation by her because, with very few exceptions, video games don't include nutrition facts and ingredients.  She does a phenomenal job recreating foods no one has ever seen before, let alone tasted.  Personally, my favorite part of each entry is seeing the side-by-side comparison of her food with a screenshot from the game, such as:

Kingdom Hearts: Birth By Sleep - Spark Lemon

Yoshi's Cookie - Yoshi Cookies

And of course...

Portal - The Cake Is A Lie

But the food that I was most excited to make was from Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.  Mainly because I had fallen in love with the Elder Scrolls universe when Kyle and Wil had me make a character in Oblivion a few years ago and roam around the gorgeous scenery and meet all the fantastic creatures.  It's like WoW on steroids, with prettier graphics and more features.  And then Kyle got Skyrim when it came out in November, and I fell in love all over again.  With the sweeping mountainous scenery, the animation and interactions with the people, and the food!  Food fit for a viking, which Kyle loved.  So I was joyfully overwhelmed when Gourmet Gaming posted Skyrim recipes.  And not just the sweet rolls, but an entire Skyrim meal!  I had to save up my gold to get all the fixin's for it, but I ended up making it just before Christmas. (Yes, I'm aware that Christmas was many days ago.  But I'm actually, legitimately going to try to post once a week again, yay!)

But let's start out with the sweet rolls.  This was dessert, but I made them first, because, as I suspected, they took the longest to make.  Many steps.  None of which I had ever really done before.  But so worth it.

Catch Up With Kale Chips

As the title of this post suggests, I'm playing "catch up" now that I have a leeeettle bit more free time.  As of right now, there is only a very small amount of work left to do on my grad school applications before I just sit, wait, and relax.

I say "relax," but it's actually quite nerve-wracking to have absolutely no idea where you're going to be in six months, and how things are going to play out during that time.  When will I move?  To where?  When will I start school?  How much financial aid will I get?  What will the area be like?  How will I get to visit someplace far away like Texas or Indiana?

These are the kinds of things that are always picking at my head like an angry bird.  No, not the kind on your cell phone.  Maybe more like an annoying bird.

But in the mean time, I'm still cooking, trying to save money and eat healthy at the same time, which is a large feat in and of itself.  Most days I'm not doing either particularly well!  But I try.  And I exercise!  Zumba is so. much. fun.  It gets me home late, which is the only reason why it's hard to make myself go, but once I get there, I have a blast!  There's no way the chicks on the ellipticals look forward to working out as much as I do.

Without further ado, I made kale chips a while ago now.  They came out a little oily, and very fragile, but for the price of 1 bunch of kale, I made the equivalent of like, 10 of those $5 bags of kale chips you see at health food stores.  AND Kyle and Jim, who are normally averse to eating healthy food, like them too.  Whoo!

Shrimp Scampi Pasta

This post is long overdue.  I know the one hard and fast rule of blogging is like the most important rule of poop: stay regular.

But, I do have a fairly good excuse.  I've been applying to grad schools for the past two months or so.  To Masters programs in French education, to be specific.  I'm applying to five schools, in all different states across the eastern half of the country, so I have no idea where I might be this time next year, and that's quite scary and exciting!

In the past two months or so, I've taken the GRE, the OPI, and the PRAXIS tests, all of which are either long, exhausting, or, as Kyle would say, a super-special combination of the two.  And then I've been editing my entrance essay, my personal statement, saying why I would be an awesome candidate and teacher and outlining my unique and interesting journey to where I am today.  And then getting together the mounds of extra paperwork to send to the various schools.  Honestly, with grad school applications AND Christmas gifts, I don't think my mailbox has had this much activity since... ever.  So.  That's what I've been up to.

How about you?  What are you up to?  What did you do (and eat!) for the holidays?

Tuna Salad Stuffed Tomatoes and Couscous Salad

First of all, I apologize for the hiatus.  There has been some stress in my life that has made time for blogging scarce.  That is hardly an excuse, I know, because well... when isn't there stress in one's life?  But I have to say, the past couple weeks have certainly taken the cake for this year so far.  I won't get into the details, but my job was at stake, and there was a brief period where I was sure I would have to look for another one.  All is resolved and I do not have to look for another job, thank goodness, but I found it hard to be productive when all that was going on as well.

How do you deal with stress?  I find that I do any one of a number of things, which are both productive and counterproductive.

1. I get irritable.  Now I am normally a pretty easygoing person, but when I feel overwhelmed, the people living with me know it.  I try not to take things out on people, but it's hard not to let a little spilt milk bother you when you already have so many pots boiling over on the back burners.

2. I take baths.  Even without the bubbles, sometimes it's very therapeutic to allow your muscles to relax while they soak in hot water.

3. I drink.  I'm not proud of this, but occasionally I do find solace in a bottle of 2/$10 Flip Flop Chardonnay and a bag of Doritos.

4. I cry.  This may seem counterproductive, but it's one of the easiest and most cathartic ways to let out your emotions.  Holding it in is never the answer.

5. I treat myself to things.  Like food.  And... well, mostly food.  But I don't overdo it.  Usually, it's small amounts of chocolate, or sushi, or a nice meal out.  Fast food does not bring me joy like it used to.  It's gotta be good food.

I probably did all five of these things during the past two weeks.  Another thing I did was let myself not be productive.  I knew I was too distracted to get much done, so I allowed myself to relax and have a week where I mostly watched movies and ate.  It really helped to decide to slack off for a little while, without the pressure of a to-do list looming overhead.

So for the next time I get stressed out (and I'm sure there will be a next time eventually), what are your best recommendations for de-stressing?  What works for you?

Cilantro Pesto Pizza Bread

Can we talk about birthdays for a moment?  Mine was this weekend, and it was good, but strange.  I guess when we talk about birthdays, for a lot of us, that means talking about expectations.  I know I'm guilty of having a lot of expectations for what that day will be like.  I expect cake, I expect cards, I expect presents, and now that I'm older I expect some booze...  But I try my hardest to be flexible so that if things aren't perfect, I'm not disappointed.  It's hard, though, when a birthday is celebrated without your family, without most of your friends.

I will say that my coworkers really helped make that day special with all the decorations, gifts, and sweets they presented me with - I was really touched by all their efforts.  And all the cards and gifts I received in the mail, all the calls, texts, and Facebook posts reminded me that there are people all over the country (and the world!) who love me and who were thinking about me that day.  For all of you I am deeply and humbly thankful.  And, of course, my wonderful and doting boyfriend wanted to make my day as special as he could, and we did have a fun, special night out eating my favorite food, pad thai noodles.

It's hard to reconcile your expectations with reality sometimes.  And not just on birthdays either.  That's actually one of my biggest flaws - inflexibility.  Wanting things to be just so.  But I have been working on this for years, and I've gotten much, much better than I was when I was young.  It always helps to remind myself how things DID go my way, and to relive the moments when I felt on top of the world.  Like when you come in to work to find presents, cake, and a card waiting on your desk... or when you come home to find two packages waiting on your doorstep for you to open.  Even though you're 24 and not a kid anymore, these are the moments when the magic is still alive.

Brown Sugar Turkey Burgers

I cannot claim credit for this recipe.  This was all the idea of my new and dear friend Rose, who is among one of my favorite people I've met while living here in Georgia.  A little background, in case you do not know me personally (rare at this nascent stage of my blogging exposure, but hey you never know), or in case you do know me personally, but not as well as all that.

I was born in Maine.  Yup, like land of the lobster, and of saying "wicked," and of Whoopie Pies.  Oh God, Whoopie Pies... I'm thinking of trying to make those, just as a heads-up, guys.  Anyway, I am a proud native Mainer.  Ayuh.

I was raised in New Jersey, from age 3 to 22.  I lived about 45 minutes outside NYC, just close enough that a day trip into the city is easy, but just far enough away that I could get to nature and greenery very easily.  I was actually one of the few in my town who was fortunate enough to live across from woods.

I went to college in New York state.  Not to be confused with New York City, this area (called the Southern Tier of New York) is highly rural, sometimes isolated, definitely different from any New York you'd think of if you're not from there.  But beautiful.  Even in the cold-ass winter.

I moved to Georgia, about 1 1/2 years ago.  Why, you ask?  Partially because my boyfriend's family was here, and they let us live with them in my transitional period between college and grad school, and partially because I was ready to try someplace new for a while.  It's lovely, marshy, and palmy here, even through all the humidity.

Who knows if I would've gotten so into cooking, food blogs, and food in general if it hadn't been for Kyle's talented mother getting me started with her repertoire of recipes.  So that's my journey so far, in a nutshell.  I'm sure you'll hear about parts of it at a later date, but for now, enjoy these burgers that Rose whipped up one night and made me drool over when she told me about them the next day.