My One Year Anniversary

Can you believe it? It has been a full year since I moved back to the USA. I don't know if it feels like I just moved back yesterday, or if it feels as though I have been back in the States for years.

In one year my sister was accepted to Alvin Ailey (her audition was on 12/12), moved to New York City, got her learner's permit, transferred to Joffrey Ballet School and moved into a dorm room (without parental supervision) in Greenwich Village.

In one year my brother graduated from college, got an awesome job, moved to Wyoming and somehow became a grown-up.

My other brother, in one year, worked his tail off, spent his 13th summer at camp as a counselor and started going back to school.

My father moved to Abu Dhabi.

My mother has cleaned out the basement and the attic, replaced the roof, visited her three children in new homes and I'm sure I'm missing things...

Wilbur lost 7 pounds.

Tupper started eating a new brand of dog food.

As for me, I have lived in NYC, Saratoga Springs, and Madison. I worked in an amazing bakery and as a cabbie for models in Manhattan. I dabbled in online dating and snagged myself a fantastic boyfriend. Yes, friends I have boyfriend. I have a wonderful job that I am enjoying more and more every single day. I ran two half-marathons, raised a lot of money for Crohn's and Colitis Foundation, turned 25 and got bangs.

As I mentioned earlier, on one hand I think oh my gosh, has it already been one year? But on the other hand I can't help but think, all of this stuff... it's only been one year?

Happy 12/12/12!

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Happy Aaron Rodgers Day!

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Happy Hump Day!

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Happy Anniversary!

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Whatever you are celebrating, happy day to you!

 

Me? I'm celebrating wonderful memories from abroad, great opportunities in the US, and fantastic friends all over the world.

Out of Retirement

Those of you that keep up with my twitter feed (it's on the right side of the page) may have read that I have come out of retirement. Yes, as of today, I am no longer retired. I am back in New York City and back at Hot Blondies Bakery. We are Going to be featured on Good Morning America on Friday with gilt.com, and things are crazy. Everything in Saratoga is packed and ready to go, so I don't have much of anything to do there! Having time off sounded like fun, but I get bored too easily. All of my friends are working every day, including my sister and my mother, leaving me without much to bide my time.  I had discussed the possibility of this happening with Laura and Lorin before I left, but I wasn't sure how busy I would be and how feasible it may actually be.  When I received an email from them last week asking me if it would be possible, the wheels were set in motion.  This morning I left my house at 6:15 to drive to Albany. From there I jumped on the Megabus without working wifi and fell back to sleep. When I woke up we were about an hour outside of the city and it was pouring rain. Shoot! I forgot my umbrella!  There was lots of traffic going through the tunnel, and the rain seemed to slow us down, so we arrived about 30 minutes late. I grabbed my bag, rolled up my pants, and I started walking. The bus stop is only about 15 blocks from the bakery, so I put my hood up, my head down, and I walked.  I arrived at the bakery, keys in hand, to find that the door was being propped open by a delivery man. I snuck in behind him, walked up the stairs and into the disaster zone. I gave Laura and Lorin quick hugs and spun around in a daze. Boxes we piled higher than I am tall. There was only a small path from the door to the front of the shop where I was going to leave my bags. There were hundreds of pounds of flour, sugar and brown sugar leaning against itself in the corner. Billions of calories of butter were stacked near the door.  "Holy smokes! This is crazy!" "Haha.  Welcome back. This is nothing!" I didn't think they were serious when they said that it was nothing. Boy, oh boy, was I wrong! About two hours later, or 400 blondies and brownies later in bakery time, the bell rang. The delivery man on the other end asked Lorin to go downstairs. All of thirty seconds later she was back upstairs in a rage.  "He's refusing to bring it upstairs. There are too many pallets. We have to bring it up ourselves." And so, the bakery that I thought was packed to the brim when I arrived, was about to become a lot more cozy. 17,000 units more cozy, to be exact. We ordered boxes like you wouldn't believe.  For the Gilt sale Laura and Lorin had to agree to be prepared to ship 5,000 shipments within three days. 5,000 shipments means: - 5000 box bottoms - 5000 box tops - 5000 shipping boxes - ridiculous amounts of tape - multiple humongous rolls of paper for stuffing - more red ribbon than Santa and his elves could ever imagine And that is just the packaging materials! I took a brief break from baking peanut butter chocolate chunk blondies to organize the 17,000 new additions to the bakery. I felt like I was playing Tetris. But losing this game of Tetris would be a problem. I wasn't going to get a "new game" option when I accidentally boxed myself in. Or boxed us out of the bathroom, for that matter!   Miraculously, we made it happen, and I hit the ovens.  Now, at 8:15 pm, I am on the train to Garden City. Aunt Jane just called to tell me she is taping The Bachelorette and has spaghetti waiting for me! Dinner, trashy television and an early bedtime are on the agenda for the evening. Tomorrow morning, I'm back to baking. Gosh, I just love this!

I don't get it...

This is what $8 of the most delicious cookies you will ever eat in your life looks like.

And this is what $10 in baked goods from Babycakes looks like.

(Okay, the photos aren't so great... and my mom and I couldn't wait for the photo to start eating the cookies from Levain Bakery!)

Unimpressed?  So was I.  And I don't get it.

When Nicole and Laura Beth were in town, Nicole recommended we take a trip to BabyCakes.  It is a vegan and gluten free bakery.  I was a little confused by the recommendation, but Laura Beth jumped at the offer and it is just around the block from my apartment, so I went along for the ride.  Now if Laura Beth or Nicole followed a vegan or a gluten-free diet I may have understood the excitement, but neither does, and I did my best to hide my confusion behind my smile.

All three of us chose different items from the display case and paid a near fortune for our treats.  I chose a cupcake and a cookie sandwich.  As I continue to plan for my "someday bakery" I try to eat a variety of things, at each bakery I go to.  The cupcake was an obvious choice.  And without any plain cookies to choose from, I was forced to buy the cookie-wich.

The three of us took our desserts out of the shop and started walking back to my apartment.  On the walk Nicole mentioned that a friend of ours from high school had asked her to make vegan scones, and she had yet to perfect the recipe.  I immediately responded with what I thought was a completely logical next question: "is Katherine a vegan?"  Nicole's response had me even more confused in this already tricky world of eating.  Nicole said, "no."

I couldn't contain my confusion any longer.  It was as though they were all tuned into something that I had missed.  What memo went out to all young girls saying that eating vegan and gluten-free stuff is cool and better than just eating normal food?

I asked, "if she isn't a vegan, then why does she want vegan scones?"
"Because she wants to try them.  Someday she wants to open a holistic cafe, and she asked me to try to make them."
"Ohhh- kay."

I shut my mouth on the subject and we chatted about other things on the way home.

When we got back to the apartment and settled in after our long day of sightseeing we broke into our bake goods.

They were fine.

And for anyone who is vegan or eats gluten-free, then they are probably really good!  But, I still don't get it.

When Nicole watched me take a bite she waited.... waited.... waited and then asked, "so?  What do you think?!"

I was completely honest.

"It's fine.  Well, okay, it's good for what it is.  But, I just don't get it.  If neither of you follows a vegan diet or needs to follow a gluten-free diet, why do you both like these so much?"

Laura Beth responded by saying, "because it's healthier!"

Hold the phone.

Our conversation ended there.

Healthier?  Just because there isn't gluten does not mean it is healthy.  And just because there isn't butter in it does not make it calorie-free!  Baked goods are a science, requiring precise measurements of fat, flour, sugar, liquid, salt, leavening agents, and in most cases, eggs.  Not using butter does not make the baked good less fattening, it just has a different kind of fat!  And "gluten-free" does not mean "flour-free," but "different kind of flour!"

Here is an excerpt from an article I found on gluten-free foods.

Don’t assume it’s healthier. If you’re shelling out extra dough to get gluten-free processed foods without a diagnosis of celiac disease, you might be wasting your money. They are more expensive than standard foods, and as Sandquist says, there isn’t any scientific proof that they’re healthier for the general population. Gluten-free diets tend to contain more fruits and vegetables than the average American diet does, says Sandquist, so that may be why some people report feeling better after cutting back on gluten-containing foods.

So, what is it with these bizarre ideas with food?  There is nothing wrong with having a cupcake for dessert.  And if that cupcake is gluten-free or vegan does not mean you can eat more of them, or eat them more often!  Since when are eggs and gluten unhealthy?!

I'm sorry, but I just don't understand.  Therefore, I'm sticking with the most delicious baked goods I can get my hands on, butter and all.  Heck, if I'm going to consume those calories, they are going to be worth it!