I totally meant to post this on September 2nd, but here I am... Eight days later. Finally getting to the blog post about the Great Minnesota Get Together. Someday I'll be on track, but until that day comes I'm just going to apologize a ton. My best friend, Jia and I went to the State Fair over Labor Day weekend and got into some serious shenanigans. We ate fried food, drank beer, and made friends with all of the animals. Jia was licked by a cow while she tried to take a selfie with it and named every single pig in the swine barn, while I continued my annual series of selfies with goats. I did my duty as a citizen to give the finger to the MN GOP booth: ..... Aaaaand I ate pie with booze in it. For those of you who aren't familiar with the Minnesota State Fair, just know it's the second largest of its kind in the country (we are only beat by Texas and I think like five Minnesotas could fit inside of Texas) and it continually breaks attendance records year by year.
Whether you want to watch butter sculpting, buy a hot tub, or eat your weight in fried food, the fair has something for everyone. The MN State Fair is a way of living here and I have only missed a couple of years of the fair in my lifetime. The State Fair signifies the end of Minnesota summer, with snow and cold to be back before we know it. Until next year, MN.
0 Comments
Hello friends!
I know it's been over a year since I've posted anything on this blog, but I'm back this time and I mean it. I created a poll on Instagram asking y'all if you'd follow my blog if I came back! The results were unanimous -- apparently you guys are down to read my weird writing and see what crap I come up with and post. It's going to be a gradual project. I have a lot of ideas I want to test out, but first! I'm thinking about changing the blog name. I've been C Blake Bakes for quite awhile now, but am toying around with the idea of calling this blog/changing the site to Bitter Bitch Baking/Bakery. I really like to swear and assonance is my friend. The term bitter bitch comes from my jerk of an uncle who referred to my mom and some of my aunts as bitter bitches. I've decided to reclaim that for the women in my family and would like to pay homage to them. What do you think? Comment below, write on my Facebook page, or connect with me on Twitter or Instagram at @cblakebakes. That's all I've got for today! I'm working on editing photos of the strawberry shortcake ice cream I made this week. It will be up soon. I cannot promise that anything I have to say tonight will be unspeakably profound or something no one else has heard before. However, I feel compelled to share my heartbreak and my thoughts with you all this evening.
I am absolutely and entirely devastated by the death of Anthony Bourdain. I can paraphrase a man I follow on Instagram (@fictionphantom): Today the noodles are a bit more limp, the broth a little less spicy, and the beer is not as cold. I never expected to wake up on a Friday morning to the news that my idol had committed suicide. I'm not sure how to process this. Anthony Bourdain was the most snarky, curious, and genuine person I had ever seen enter the public sphere. The pressure of celebrity never seemed to lead him astray from his true thoughts and feelings. I first fell in love with this man after watching a few episodes of No Reservations as a young teenager. Immediately I was attached to his tenacity of life and every adventures he sought. I consumed Kitchen Confidential in mere hours after purchasing it. I obsessed over the Persol sunglasses he always seemed to sport. I felt free when I swore like a sailor in my writing: something I knew he would appreciate. I fell in love with writing about food and the meaning of community through his works. Bourdain never seemed to fear being himself. He was candid about his encounters with addiction and depression. As someone who suffers from mental illness, I found comfort in his words, and how he seemed to overcome even the worst of circumstances. He lived all 61 years of his life to its fullest, yet I hoped he would live so many more. He wasn't just a chef or a TV personality. Bourdain was a hero. He was a fierce ally to women and victim-survivors of sexual assault. As he began his relationship with Asia Argento, he became stronger. He never made Argento's narrative about himself. He was outspoken, but only to make a safe platform to women who have faced abuse. He was forthright about the parts he had played in the production of toxic masculinity. I have been in my darkest hours before, where suicide seemed to be the only option. After facing rape myself, I never thought I would dig myself out of the quicksand of PTSD and clinical depression. I have loathed every single post on social media pleading that those who suffer from mental illness to call a hotline or to see suicide as a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Life and death are never as simple as they seem. I will spend my weekend wallowing and grieving for my hero, Anthony Bourdain. I will drink copious amounts of beer, I will cry, and I will create dishes from his cookbooks, and I will re-watch episodes of No Reservations, The Layover, and Parks Unknown. I have never felt such sorrow for someone I have never known. He was an incredible writer, explorer, and human. I am sending all of my love to Asia Argento, his best friend Eric Ripert, his young daughter, and the rest of his family & friends. We lost one of the greats today. My heart feels so hollow. It's hard to believe I haven't touched my blog in almost exactly seven months and for that, I apologize. Winter, spring, and most of summer have flown by so quickly. I've dealt with a variety of personal issues in 2017 that have held me back, but I am beginning to feel like an adult human again. I would love to get back into the swing of things with posting two blog posts a week: one with a recipe and the other with a variety of links. Today I don't have a recipe for you. I moved into a new apartment with my boyfriend about a month ago, and since a majority of my belongings remain in storage and we're in tight circumstances financially, I don't have much for furniture or in the grand scheme of things kitchen ware. That will hopefully be remedied soon. Like I said, I'm beginning to feel like myself again and I'm beginning to like the person I am becoming. I'm one cool chick, right? Today I'm going to share some links with you all of recipes I've been dying to try along with other things I've liked around the internet. Welcome back, everyone!
It looks like I'm back in business, kids! Please follow me on Facebook and share some of your favorite links with me in the comments. Let's see what the future holds. We are only one day away from the apocalypse that will be Donald Trump's inauguration. This may be a food blog, but I have always been an advocate for women, for people of color, and for the underrepresented and forgotten of this country. My political ideology has never been hidden, and I don't intend hide it now. I will spend the next four years actively resisting the Trump administration; I refuse to normalize his presidency. In between links of beautiful food, I will share responsible journalistic pieces and essays that aim to demolish Trump. This is my choice.
Enough ranting. Onto links. I'm currently digging... 22 Things to do instead of watching Trump's inauguration - Sure, this is Minneapolis based, but I'm positive there are a million things to do around this country instead of watching Cinnamon Hitler become POTUS; for instance... being hit by a truck full of hot garbage juice. Orange Chicken Meatballs - Sure, the orangeness of these might remind you of Trump's face, but how satisfied will you be when you crush them in your mouth? Four Cheese Lasagna with Butternut Squash, Sausage, and Kale - If I didn't want to each all of these, I'd throw them at Trump's face: flaming cheese and all. Obama Commutes Chelsea Manning's Sentence - One thing Trump can't fuck up. OBAMA PLEASE DON'T LEAVE US!!!! WE'RE ALL GOING TO DIE! Moussaka Lasagna Roll Ups - Make America Great Again, with tasty food, and no Donald J Trump. Warm and Cozy Beef Bourguignon - This dish might be warm & cozy, but under no circumstances must we get comfortable with the idea of Trump's policies. Butter Onion Tomato Soup - Soup to get you big and strong enough to smash the hetero-patriarchy with intersectionality. The Women's March Platform - I'll be marching on Saturday in Saint Paul. Trump is a sexual assailant, a racist, an Islamophobe, and a monster. Where will you be on Saturday? Betsy DeVos' Hearing Was a Disgrace to Democracy - Let us not forget that Trump appointed the most incompetent swamp monsters to his cabinet. 27 Books Every Woman In America Should Read - Knowledge is power. Cinnamon Roll Bundt Cake - Probably more qualified to be president than Donald Trump. Mac and Cheese with Eggs and Bacon - The Trump administration wants to control reproductive rights of people with uteruses. We have the right to choose what we do with our eggs, fertilized or not. What Joe Biden Has Meant to Me As A Survivor of Sexual Violence - I'm 22 years old, and I've been raped twice in my lifetime. Barack Obama and Joe Biden have begun to make the world safer for victim-survivors with their compassion and position as allies. In the next four years that will be reversed by one man who believes he can grab women by the pussy, and the other who believes you can electroshock the gay away. This is a disgrace. Blood Orange Tequila Fizz - It is okay to grieve tomorrow and maybe get drunk (not that I'm advocating for self-medicating), but starting Saturday, it's our time to fight for our lives against the Trump administration. It's going to be a long four years. I have a fever and the only cure is brown butter. I'm sure you have all begun to notice my obsession. Brown butter is featured in most of my recipes. There's just something about cooking down butter into a caramely nutty liquid of awesome. Brown butter smells like my childhood, even though I'm pretty sure no one in my house understood the concept. It's just so warm and sweet; it transports me back to playing with my grandma's pots and pans while she made cakes and cookies. It's special. It makes all the difference.
Then there's cheesecake. Do you ever dream about it? That's just me? Oh. Right. I honestly couldn't remember the last time I'd eaten cheesecake and I certainly hadn't made one in years. I was gifted a springform pan for Christmas this past year, and my sister shared my craving and was willing to go pick up some ingredients for me. I made my cheesecake a little lemony to offset the super sweet and dense graham cracker crust. We totally ate takeout for dinner and cheesecake for dessert while binge watching episodes of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I don't know how our bodies haven't killed us yet, but I'm grateful. Cheesecake yields 1 10" round cheesecake For the crust:
For the cheesecake:
-Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Combine graham crackers, sugar, salt, and melted brown butter in a bowl. Press into bottom of a springform pan; bake for 12-15 minutes. Let cool completely. -It's really important to keep your cheesecake ingredients at room temperature! They'll combine easeir to make a beautiful, smooth cheesecake rather than a lumpy one. -Mix cream cheese, sugar, and salt together, scraping the sides of the bowl frequently to make sure everything is combined evenly. Add in vanilla and beat. -Add sour cream and lemon zest and mix. Add eggs one at a time, gently beating until combined. -Pour into springform pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the sides of the cheesecake are mostly firm, and the middle wobbles only a little bit whenmoved. Transfer to wire rack to cool completely then chill for at least 2 hours before serving. |
MeJust a broke millennial ruining the baking industry along with everything else. Archives
August 2019
Categories |