My Bestie

This is a response to the Nobody’s Cuter Than You request by Big Mama. Without further ado, here’s how J.L.W. entered my life for good.

My family had recently uprooted our stable, homogenous Midwestern selves from Kansas City, Kansas to a much smaller Blythewood, South Carolina. In dire need of local friends, I joined the high school cross country team. I spent August, September, and October—the entire season—running mostly alone, hoping someday one of my teammates would materialize into a friend, a “replacement(s) not replacement(s)” for the friend(s) I’d left behind. After the state meet, I had the opportunity to run one more race in Charlotte, North Carolina with a select group of runners from the team. This was going to be fun, I’d hoped. I roomed with two girls, both a year younger than me. This having been the Friday after Thanksgiving, I was wired. Hi, my name is S and I love dessert. Hello, holidays. Bring on the apple pie, cranberries cupcakes, pumpkin spice cookies, etcetera ad nauseam—I will eat you all. J.L.W., my friend-to-be, humored herself with my antics. I’m not sure if she was laughing with or at me. I do remember we didn’t get much sleep that night. So desperate for a friend, it—the laughing and sleep—truthfully didn’t matter.

The trip ended, yet our friendship grew and grew and grew into the big, mighty awesome gift that it is today. There was the brilliant idea to consume a gallon of McAlister's beverages--lemonade for me, sweet tea for her--before a mile run at an invitational track meet. There were countless "locker room parties" on cold (and windy!) South Carolina days. And then there was college. J.L.W. “followed” me to Clemson University—Go Tigers!—during my sophomore year where there were football games galore and a few too many late nights. We also managed plenty of early mornings camping out for football (or basketball) tickets. When ESPN’s College GameDay came to town, we were there at 5:00 am to begin cheering. And we kept on cheering until the conclusion of the 8:00 pm game… at midnight. There was also a camping trip we survived in the sub-freezing temperatures in the Blue Ridge Mountains. We concluded my junior year with a twenty-hour round trip drive to Cleveland, Ohio—for the weekend—where we insisted on listening to J.L.W.’s iPod in A to Z order. In the following year, we implemented a Tuesday night dinner club, where it was understood she would cook and I would consume.

 

Those four years had to come to an end, and when they did, I left for Peace Corps. We remained equally close, though we were limited to expensive, monthly phone calls. I returned to Northern Virginia while she had long settled in Columbia, SC. Having already mastered long distance friendship, we’ve maintained friendship just the same. We sometimes meet for incredible two-week adventures in the Pacific Northwest, other times we take unplanned long weekend trips to a random meeting places, like the most recent Asheville, North Carolina outing.

We have a big milestone ahead: J.L.W. is getting hitched, while I stand right beside her. Her second best friend, D.P.C, of oh so many years, but not as many years, recently proposed! I like him because he respects (and accepts?) my competitive personality. I’ll always be her first place friend; I’ve known her the longest. And I might love her the most.

What Came Out of My Kitchen

I'm going through a phase of exhaustion. I'm not here to point fingers at the marathon or anything, but I desperately need to get myself back in the kitchen on a regular basis. I'm just lacking motivation and creativity and care and everything else that might include cooking regular meals again to do so. When the wave of motivation does hit, I run with it full force. And though I'm not going to say today was one of those days--I wasn't totally motivated--I had enough to carry me through what I needed to finish. This started with going grocery shopping at Costco, Giant, Target, and Whole Foods before even stepping foot in my kitchen. Do away with me now. I may have found a place for myself in the kitchen, but I still hate grocery shopping with every part of my being. Approximately $300 later, I found myself whipping up a variety of things.

Mexican-Style Brown Rice Casserole. This has become somewhat of a staple in our home, after the recommendation of a coworker. I actually froze this dish for a later date in time. Because, again, exhaustion. Chef's Notes: I don't believe in the fat free or low fat this and that; I substitute those items with the full fat equivalent. I also make my own refried beans using the black beans I crockpot on a near weekly basis. Though canned refried beans are smooth and wonderful, I only enjoy them when my mom hides the sliminess that sends those bean sliding right out of the can. Nasty.

Pumpkin Butter. My mom introduced me to Oh She Glows during my wannabe vegan days. I've followed this blog for years now, and I've never been let down. That being said, the pumpkin butter might be the best thing I've made to date. I've added it to oatmeal. I've slathered apples in it. I've made Pumpkin Oat Squares with Candied Pecans (from Angela's blog as well). This goodness is what heaven must taste like. Chef's Notes: This recipe is rather time consuming when roasting the sugar pumpkin(s) is factored in. On the upside, I learned how to roast a sugar pumpkin... and I'm looking forward to trying a "from scratch" pumpkin pie here soon.

Apple Rutabaga Soup. Who doesn't like a million fall vegetables tossed in a pot with butter? Also, a recipe that uses one of the thousands of apples I picked that is not a dessert? This recipe was provided by another coworker. And I knew it'd be delicious after I learned the recipe came from The Inn at Little Washington. This restaurant is continually rated among the best "in" Washington, D.C. In being in quotes because it's quite a ways outside of the city. It's also quite a ways from my paycheck, if you're curious. Chef's Notes: I cut the cream in half. And next time I would consider further reducing the amount by another half (i.e., half of a cup instead of the suggested two cups).

Apple Pie. This pie is no product of my own; it's the most beautiful pie I've laid eyes on. I imagine much effort and patience behind this work of art, which has never been my cup of kitchen tea. Chef's Note: This pie was crafted entirely from scratch in our kitchen with apples picked by us, per my insistence; ya, we're crunchy. I have no idea what recipe was used and therefore cannot provide notes, regardless of my repeated requests (to Boyfriend). An equally tasty, though not nearly as pretty, pie can be found at mine (and Barack Obama's) favorite stop in Northern Virginia--Mom's Apple Pie, for those local to the area.

Vegetable Lasagna. Are you familiar with Cooks Illustrated? If not, it's time you are. Their vegetable lasagna is the best on the planet, despite the amount of work required to whip it up. Also, this recipe does away with ricotta in favor of cottage cheese. That alone makes me obsessed. (I absolutely hate ricotta and am addicted to cottage cheese.) Chef's Note: I mentioned this is a product that requires work, however, the rewards are endless. This lasagna served us twelve sizable meals--away with portion control. When the labor is divided across the number of meals, we have an equation that isn't terrible. This is a definite Sunday activity where I don't feel rushed to immediately follow up with the insane amount of dishes produced by this dish. (That part of the equation is not--I repeat: not--pretty.) By serving this on Sunday night, I've littered the rest of the week with leftover lunch and dinner.

Let's eat.

Apples picked. Pumpkins patched.

This last weekend was the Washington, D.C. area''s first fall-like weekend. The mornings were crisp with an almost winter scent. As the days wore on and the sun to rose, the earth was heated to give us comfortable, warm afternoons. And with that, Boyfriend and I partook in the quintessential fall activity: apple picking. I have only picked apples two other times in my life, and the first time, I don’t actually remember picking a whole lot of apples from trees so much as purchasing pre-picked apples from barrels. Regardless, visiting apple orchards has recently become the thing I look forward to most about fall, more so than even football and pumpkin-spiced everything. With at least eight varieties to pick from, caramel apple rewards, and cider - heavenly cider - it's hard not to anticipate this outing. 

Is it gorgeous everywhere apples grow?

We’ve found our apple picking home at Hartland Orchard, in the not so distant Markham, Virginia, where the trees are already turning. And the drive there is littered with fall colors, which is simply delightful.

We couldn't leave without bringing home our pumpkin, from the conveniently attached patch. This year there wasn’t a bad pumpkin in sight, which made it tough to find a pumpkin with the character, necessary in the likely event our pumpkin is gutted for seeds and left uncarved; he needs to stand alone.

It’s actually fun to pluck the perfect apple from each tree (and a pumpkin from the patch). All the while dreaming of the delicious goods that will come. We brought home a bushel of apples, a gallon and a half of cider, and a pumpkin for seeding. The caramel apples didn't survive the trip out of the parking lot. We demolished them while an elderly man and his grandson pressed apples into our cider. Since this weekend, I’ve made a delicious apple fritter cake and a batch of applesauce. I've also consumed a good many apples smothered in almond butter.

An apple a day keeps the doctor at bay. 

Team Mathias Walk-A-Thon

On Sunday, a walk-a-thon was held to raise continued awareness of childhood cancer and above-all support Mathias in his personal fight. The pictures speak for themselves. This community is fighting for Team Mathias. It was a moving event--SO many people showed up, from infants to teenagers, adults to grandparents; we walked for Mathias. 

The neighbor streets and driveways were littered with Team Mathias emblems.

There were motivational signs standing along with half-mile loop.

People set up water stations in their front yards to quench the thirsty of sweaty walkers.

Mailboxes were strung with gold balloons.

There was a quilt signed by all the walkers for Team Mathias.

The neighbor club house was filled with festivity--a DJ, food, games, a silent auction, and decorations galore.

Ike Hilliard even joined in on the fun!

And the late September heat stopped no one, hundreds of people walked lap after lap with smiles on their faces.

To make this day possible, dozens volunteered. I'm grateful for today. We love Team Mathias.