I must have been French in a past life

If there's one thing I love, it's homemade baked goods. I made my own french bread the other day and it was amazing! It takes forever to make, but I strongly suggest you buy this book: Artisan Bread Everyday (that's where I got the recipe) and use it.

Here's the very basic rundown (I don't have permission to give you the recipe, you can buy the book for that):

You make the dough and stick it in the refrigerator:


You take it out, preheat the oven, and shape the dough,


and you bake it.


(this all takes days, btw-you refrigerate overnight, set out for two hours, cook for an hour, etc. etc. and it's gone in 15 minutes)

One of these days, I will be one of those people that only eats homemade bread. Until then, every once in a great while, I will make some to counterbalance the store-bought stuff.

Enjoy!

Rachel May

Halloween!

How was your Halloween? Mine was just dandy. Boyfriend and I went for a walk in the morning and found a lovely breakfast diner/cafe and enjoyed a delicious and inexpensive breakfast. After that, we ventured to a cigar shop (for the boy) and to a thrift store (for me). The thrift store was filled with goodies-and we walked out with two Halloween costumes, a book and a magazine for a whopping $3.97.

I can't wait to go back and look through the books again-I've been on a reading binge for awhile now. I just finished Jemima Jones by Jane Green and now I'm reading The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. My reading interests range widely, obviously.

Halloween was nice-we had a few trick-or-treaters before we left for our costume party, and I made some Tortilla soup for dinner beforehand that turned out delicious.

Unfortunately, we still have two uncarved pumpkins sitting in our living room, which I plan to plunder today for seeds-my favorite part. We were a little behind on the spirit of Halloween, but for good reason-lots of work to do (for me) and homework (for the boy). But I also just got back from a trip to Baltimore and DC! I will posts pics very soon, I promise.

As for today, Sunday is catch-up day, so I'm cooking, cleaning, and of course reading and watching movies (got to catch up on entertainment as well, of course!). After the delicious tortilla soup, I'm back in cooking mode, so I made some yummy delicata squash (pictured), and roasted the seeds. So delicious!

I hope you had a fantastic weekend! Is anyone else freaked out by how quickly Christmas is coming? I've got to get my gifts started!


Rachel May

Salsa!

We made some wonderful salsa this summer. I'm not much of a cook, but sometimes I just want to feel cute and look like I know what I'm doing in the kitchen (Note: my salsa does not require cooking whatsoever...just chopping and the use of the blender). The great thing about making salsa is that you can have all of these great ingredients out, be chopping away, and it looks really advanced-it's totally an excuse to wear an apron.



I'm sure there are better recipes out there, but this is how I made it:

Salsa!
3-4ish Red tomatoes
2 Green tomatoes
1 Red onion
2 Jalapeno peppers
salt
pepper
cilantro
(we got our ingredients at our local farmer's market-you will not get great tasting tomatoes like these at a store!)

Chop up all ingredients and add salt and pepper until it's to your liking. There's no exact science in this recipe.



When boyfriend comes into the kitchen and complains about the consistency of your chopping-throw it in the blender and ask him if that's to his liking:)

Dump in jar, refrigerate and consume later, if you can wait that long.

Enjoy!
Rachel May

Apartment Therapy

So, I haven't been around very often because I've been busy working on The Cure. I've recenly gotten really into Apartment Therapy, and I'm trying to do the cure in my own apartment. If you want to check out their blog, it's http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/ It's a really cool blog with great ideas.

I'm on week two of the Cure and I'm getting really into it. However, this all will have to change soon because I really need to be focusing on my grad project. I have a lot to do, but then I will be finished.

I have had the time to shop on the internet, though! Check out dennisanderson's soap on etsy, it's amazing! My new love is handmade soap.

Anyhow, I've been cleaning, organizing, and assessing my apartment situation. Now I am cooking, which is no easy task...at all. It aint easy, folks. Last night, I made chicken cordon bleu, and it turned out amazing! I made it with some mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans. See the picture for the yumminess (oh, and ignore the stray green bean that fell on the table...lol).

On the craft front, I haven't been doing too much except for starting my graduation announcements. Those really need to get finished soon too.

Hope all is well with everyone!
Rachel May
check out my etsy site! http://www.rachelmaydesigns.etsy.com/