Foodie Penpals

Clearly I have been in a blogging rut.

It is not so much that I have nothing to write about it; in fact I have plenty of stories about late night Gossip Girl-watching sessions to visits to U-Street to free Sprinkles Cupcakes (actually all stories from just one night!). Unfortunately, however, since coming back from spring break I have been swamped with more time sensitive and, arguably, more important priorities (i.e. homework) that has kept me from posting. And while I did promise once again to make a conscious effort to blog, things like my thesis proposal, papers about Kant and newspaper production have kept me a little preoccupied.

Recognizing a need for some motivation and commitment to lure me back into the blogosphere, I stumbled upon the Foodie Penpals program. The brainchild of Lindsay Livingston at The Lean Green Bean, the project aims to connect food bloggers and readers beyond the World Wide Web through the exchange of food-filled care packages.

The Italians’ Day for Celebration

In honor of today being March 19th, I thought I would re-post and updated version of one of my earlier blogs about the (delicious) traditions associated in Italian culture with the celebration of St. Joseph’s Day.

Saint Joseph’s Day is to the Italians what Saint Patrick’s Day is to the Irish. Just two days after the Irish deck themselves in green and enjoy cold pints of Guinness, Italians celebrate the feast of Saint Joseph. Though the husband of Mary, Joseph is an important figure in the history of Christianity, thereby March 19th is now dedicated to his remembrance. Rather than wearing green, Italians typically celebrate by dressing in red.

Readying for Iced Coffee Weather

When I left Florida yesterday afternoon, it was 75 degrees in Orlando. According to this Website, the warm, comfortable air temperatures made it ideal iced coffee weather.

When I arrived in D.C. last night, it was a cool, jacket-required 48 degrees —definitely not iced coffee weather.

A Week in Review

Can you tell I’m back at school already?

Admittedly, I did try to post this earlier today while waiting at the airport for nearly three hours, but the poor Internet connection prohibited me from getting a signal strong enough to save a post.

Considering that it is currently 11:47 p.m., or 12:47 a.m. if you have already sprung the clocks forward, I thought I would keep this post short and sweet. I know I have been promising a recap of Seaworld, but there are too many fishy puns and Finding Nemo references to write, so that post will, again, have to be pushed back at least another day.

However, I will include some pictures from the day exploring the deep blue sea, as well as lots of other snapshots from my week in paradise.

       

   

Recreating Memories in the Kitchen

I can’t remember exactly when it was, but recently I learned an Italian phrase that I had never heard before: “fare la scarpetta.” Roughly translated “to do the little shoe,” the terms refer to the act of taking a piece …

An Old-School Italian Cook

My aunt is a stereotypical, older Italian lady. She won’t leave the house without lipstick. She yells at her husband whenever she teases him. And of course, she can cook a mean gravy. Most of my memories with my aunt …

A Well-Rounded Diet

I have to admit: going into this week I anticipated that my diet would be on carb-overload. Staying with my Italian relatives, I figured that most of my meals would consist of oversized portions of bread and pasta. Although I have nothing against these food items, especially since I shun the pasta bar at the school dining hall and D.C.’s Italian food scene is nothing like that grandma used to make, a part of me was relieved to see some diversity in my diet during my first few days of vacation.

Like most foodies, I go through periods of food obsessions, and right now my obsession is grapefruit. In the drawer of my aunt’s freezer is nearly half a dozen plump grapefruit waiting to be segmented and juiced. For the past few days, my morning meal has been as simple as cutting up the citrus, sprinkling with sugar and finished with a couple of slices of jam-slathered toast. Even if grapefruit has a reputation as a diet food, I don’t see anything wrong with enjoying it all the time.

Just What the Doctor Ordered

If you know me, then you know that I hate doing nothing. Although I might complain about my long to-do list with classes, meetings and homework, I would rather have lots to do than nothing to keep me occupied. I have an unhealthy obsession with checking for the blinking red light on my blackberry and keeping my Ical updated with everything from my workouts to nights out on the town; busy could be my middle name.

A Vacation Long Overdue

Of late, it seems that any break on the academic calendar could not come soon enough. Last winter, I had five papers and one sit-down exam standing between me and winter break, and this past week I had a to-do with countless things tasks and lots of added stresses making me extremely anxious for a vacation.

So Long Since Last We Met

“It’s been so long since last we met…”

While some readers might not get the reference in the opening sentence, I thought that the Georgetown’s Fight Song fit well in these circumstances. Yes, readers, it has been a very long time since last we met.

In my last post, nearly a month and a half ago, I wrote about my gelatin-wrecked vegetarian diet and my resolution to start anew. Since that time much has happened.

Like the fall semester, the spring term has been equally, if not more, busy. Once again taking a full courseload, I am also working my job at school, commuting to an internship and juggling various extracurricular activities. In light of this, I have come to the realization that 24 hours in a day are just not enough. WIth so much on plate, my resolution for weekly blogging became like the decadent dessert calling my name on the counter. Unfortunately, with so much else weighing me down, giving in to the temptation of blogging would have only put me behind on the things I actually needed to do.