The Closing of the Olympics

I wasn't going to let the Olympic Closing Ceremonies pass without making something to celebrate.  Plus, I'll use any excuse to make some tea and scones.  I love tea so much, sometimes I think I'm British.  Anytime I feel a bit down, a cup of tea will always make me feel better.  To set  up a bit of a atmosphere, I laid out a nice little selection of teas complete with cream and sugar.  I have to say, it was certainly a bitter sweet moment.  Obviously, I love watching the Olympics and am always sad when they end.  And yes, I did cry.  But the Olympics wouldn't be so special if they were always going, so it's good to have a break.  And now, on to the pictures!

PS
I moved back to college today! I'm sitting here writing in my little apartment.  I'll post more about that later.

"If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing."
1 Corinthians 13:2

College Kitchen Essentials

Long time, no see!

I thought I’d post a bit about what I’ve been doing to prepare for college.  My roommate and I decided to rent an apartment on campus that has a kitchen so we don’t have to eat at the cafeteria all the time.  While our college’s cafeteria is fairly good, it’s still a cafeteria.   I love to cook and bake so this should be exciting to have my own (tiny) kitchen.   This past week I’ve been making a list of kitchen essentials and food to stock my bare cabinets.  I looked at a few kitchen essential lists online and tailored it to my tastes.  Like all of my lists, I’m updating it all of the time.  I even just updated it now.  I’ll post in here in case anyone is interested in reading it.  Feel free to copy it for your own use if you feel so inclined.  Also, if you have anything to add, whether it’s to my shopping list or menu list, tell me in the comments!  I’m quite sure there things I’ve forgotten.  There I go and add another item to my list.  A kitchen cannot go without toothpicks!  The items on my menu list are just off the top of my head.  I just bought a new cook book that has a whole lot more menu ideas. 

It’s exciting to get ready for a new apartment.  I’m buying so many new things (not exciting for my wallet!) and I’ll get to decorate my own little place in a few days.  While I’m not going to have the amenities of living in my parents’ house, there is just something thrilling about living on my own with a friend.  At the same time, it is a bit scary.  When I first started my kitchen essentials list, my Mom had to remind me that I don’t need to plan every single meal I have and it’s okay if I have to go to the store to get one ingredient.  I tend to over-plan things and worry that I won’t have everything that I need.  It’s something I’ve been working on.  So here is my imperfect shopping list.  I know I’m not going to buy everything I need on here right away, and maybe I won’t need some items at all.  And of course, there will be items I will forget about and it won’t be the end of the world. 

Breakfast Items	Frozen Food
Milk	Berries
Granola	Peas
Vanilla yogurt (Greek or regular)	Green beans
Eggs	Green pepper
Ham	Veggie mix
Steel cut oats	Broccoli
Craisins, walnuts	Frozen dinners (2 per week)
Coffee creamer
Coffee	Vegetables/Fruits
Lunch	Whatever looks good!
	Cucumbers
Peanut Butter	Nectarines
Honey	Lettuce
Bread/sandwich rounds/tortillas	Tomatoes
Lunch meat	Green pepper
Cheddar cheese	Apples
Tuna	Bananas
Mac ’n’cheese
Spices/Seasonings	Dinner
Parsley flakes	Pesto
Italian seasonings	Garlic
Taco seasoning	Rice
Basil	Beans –kidney/black
Salt	Spaghetti sauce
Pepper	Spaghetti/pasta noodles
Cinnamon	Olive/vegetable oil
Nutmeg	Onions
Cloves	Diced tomatoes
All-spice	Tomato paste
Paprika	Balsamic vinegar
Oregano	White vinegar
Chili powder	Garlic
Garlic powder	Worcestershire sauce
Chicken/beef bouillon	Salsa
Magic meat stuff	Corn
Onion powder	Soy sauce
Kitchen supplies	Baking
Mixing bowls	Butter
Measuring spoons/cups/liquid	Vanilla
Rubber spatulas	Baking powder
Cookie sheets	Baking soda
Blender	Chocolate Chips
Can opener	Flour
Cutting boards	Sugar (white, brown, powdered)
Knives	Cooking spray
Silverware drawer	Lemon Juice
Whisks	Toothpicks
Grater
Muffin tins	Meats
9*9 Pan
9*13 pan	Sausage/brats
Timer	Ground Beef
Foil	Chicken
Plastic wrap
Cups
Scissors
Colander
Spatulas
Wooden spoon
Vegetable peeler
garlic press

Menu Ideas

Spaghetti –premade sauce (add oregano, basil, Worcestershire sauce, garlic) ground beef or sausage, pasta, bread

Black beans and cheese – Rice, black beans, cheddar cheese, salt, corn, salsa

Pesto Chicken Sandwich – Pesto, chicken, bread crumbs (pre-make some at home), lettuce, tomato, olive oil, deli sandwich round

Macaroni and cheese – peas/frozen veggies, Smokies sausage

Spicy lettuce wraps (check cook book)

Tacos –ground beef, taco seasoning, lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, tortillas, cheese

Monterey Rice Beans and Cheese – kidney beans (1), diced tomatoes (1), beef bouillon (1 t), green pepper (1/4 cup), onions (1/4 cup), bacon (four slices), chili powder, cheese

Frozen dinners

Canned tuna or chicken – basil, mayo, salt, pepper, relish, celery

Burgers – ground hamburger, red onion, 2 cloves garlic, fresh (or dried) parsley, salt, pepper, deli mustard, cheese, condiments

Summer torn chicken salad – garlic, cucumber, tomatoes, red onion, capers, stale bread, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, fresh basil, chicken

Later:

I just got back from shopping!  Whew, 6 hours of shopping (including a lunch break) can really wear a person out.  But I sure got a great haul!  My mom, Sarah, and I went to Khols, Subway, Sherwin-Williams, TJ Maxx and Target.  A trip to the Starbucks in Target was certainly a necessity!  While it was exhausting, it still was fun and we found several great deals. Mrs. Davis would be proud.  We’re heading home right now to watch the closing ceremonies of the Olympics.  I’ll probably post about that later!

"I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile."
Romans 1:16

Olympic Spirit

So, I finally remembered that I have a blog.  Well, I didn’t forget, I’ve just been busy!  I finished my summer college classes last week so now I have a short break before starting the fall classes.

My family isn’t huge on watching sports, but when the Olympics come on, things get serious.  And wet.  My sister Carol and I always tear up when watching the Olympics.  I’ve been a fan of the Olympics ever since I was a little girl.  I remember writing in my diary about Michelle Kwan and my other favorite Olympians during the Salt Lake City 2002.  Admittedly, I was a pretty bad speller back then. 

As I’m sitting here typing this, my family and I are watching the 2012 London Olympics.  The ages and abilities of some of the athletes amaze me.  We just watched Missy Franklin in her first Olympic final win the gold medal about an hour ago.  Not only is it incredible that she won the gold for the 100m backstroke at age 17, she had just raced in a semi-final 10 minutes before.  I love it when the gold medalist comes from behind to win the gold medal.  My eyes were glued to the TV as I watched Missy down the final stretch.  It looked like she wasn't going to win, then she started to gain speed.  Everyone was cheering, at home and on TV, and I couldn't catch my breath.  Then at the last second, Missy pulled from behind and won her first Olympic gold!  Just now, we watched the medal ceremony for Missy.  Every time I hear our national anthem playing at the Olympics I tear up.  How amazing for those athletes who get to stand on the podium hearing the national anthem playing because of them!   In Missy’s face, you could see the emotions, chin quivering, shinning eyes, and her contagious smile.   

We always watch the opening ceremonies and this year I decided to up the notch a bit.  I made an Olympic themed fruit pizza!  Baking is fun, but it’s even more fun to do themed baking!  I’ve never made a fruit pizza before, but I’ll definitely have to try this again; it was delicious.  Carol and I also painted our nails in the British style with miniature flags.  My fingernails have suffered an attack from the home improvement project upstairs, but my toes are still okay. I thought I should show some of my American pride as well to prove that I'm not a traitor.  Go Team USA!!  Carol's nail-painting ability surpasses my own however, because they look ridiculously good.  

(Thanks for taking some of the pictures, Glynne!)

Here is the recipe I used for the fruit pizza:

(I doubled it for my Olympic pizza/cake/thing)

Fruit Pizza

Ingredients

•             1/2 cup butter, softened

•             3/4 cup white sugar

•             1 egg

•             1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

•             1 teaspoon cream of tartar

•             1/2 teaspoon baking soda

•             1/4 teaspoon salt

•             1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese

•             1/2 cup white sugar

•             2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

1.            Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

2.            In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 3/4 cup sugar until smooth. Mix in egg. combine the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt; stir into the creamed mixture until just blended. Press dough into an ungreased pizza pan.

3.            Bake in preheated oven for 8 to 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Cool.

4.            In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla until light. Spread on cooled crust.

5.            Arrange desired fruit on top of filling, and chill.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/fruit-pizza-i/ 

Yep.  I totally copied and pasted this recipe.  What can I say, sometimes I'm lazy.


"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize."
1 Corinthians 9:24

The Begining

Hello World!

It’s always difficult to write the first post of a blog. What to say? Do I say what I’m going to be writing about, or just let you guess? How do I introduce myself? I need to think of something interesting if I want anyone to read these blogs. What is a good length for a blog? So, I thought I’d just start with my thoughts and an introduction.

My name is Katherine Gardner, but most people call me Katie. I am going into my sophomore year of college in a small town in Kansas. Right now I’m taking all of my prerequisites for nursing school. The Gardner family is very musical, so I grew up singing (mostly in choirs) and playing the piano. Not one to play the “popular” pieces, I love to play “classical” music, anything from Bach to Barber. My hobbies include photography,cooking/baking/trying out new recipes, reading, watching movies, YouTube(watching and sometimes making videos), and soap making. Yes, I make soap. You can decide if that is cool or just plain weird. Those are all of the hobbies I can think of presently. In this blog,I’ll be including some my favorite recipes as well as new one’s I’ll tryout. These recipes may or may not include my favorite soap recipes.

Speaking of recipes, I made some muffins this morning before church. I've tweaked the original recipe, mostly by adding more flour to make them fluffier. I’m still in the process of tweaking the recipe, but I’ll post the one I used this morning. The original recipe came from Sorted Food who is based in the UK, so you’ll need to use a scale if you don’t want to convert to the American measuring cups.

Slimmers’ Breakfast Muffins

butter, melted (100g) (it’s about a half tablespoon less than a stick of butter)

2 eggs

2 tbsp of yogurt (I used vanilla)

1 tsp of vanilla

brown sugar (135g)

wholemeal self raising flour (90g)

All-purpose flour (90g)

handful of porridge oats (30g)

1 tsp of ground cinnamon

pinch of salt

1 large carrot

2 green apples

craisins (50 g)

zest of a small orange

1/8 tsp of orange flavoring (optional, you can use it to replace the zest as well)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Peel and grate the carrot and apples.

Beat the eggs into the melted butter.

Add vanilla and yogurt to the egg mix.

Mix sugar, flour, oats, cinnamon, salt, carrots, apple, craisins, and zest into the wet ingredients and stir together thoroughly.

Pour into 8 muffin cases.

Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes until risen and golden.

Makes 12

As I said, I’m still tweaking this recipe, so I may post it again later. Who knows, I might convert it to American measurements as well! If you want to try out the original recipe(which is delicious, just very moist) you can go to http://sortedfood.com/#!/breakfastmuffins/ . Sorted Food has a lot of other great recipes that are fairly quick and easy, so go check them out at SortedFood.com! You can even make your own cookbook on the website.

Today’s Bible verse:

Psalm 16:11

You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence with eternal pleasures at your right hand.