A List

1. Twenty-four hours from now, I will be in the air, on my way across the country to visit my sister in Los Angeles for spring break. To say I'm excited would be an understatement. I am so looking forward to seeing her and this new city. It's sure to be a fun (and relaxing!) few days with lots of yummy, California food.

2. I am continually amazed by the food blogosphere. I'm relatively new to the whole thing. I've been reading many blogs for years (like Smitten Kitchen and The Girl Who Ate Everything), but I've only recently started to read dozens of them. I (naively) thought that after Christmas and New Year's the content would become a bit less dense.  It seems that food bloggers make holidays out of just about everything. Super Bowl Sunday was a major event. The fervor around Valentine's Day was to be expected. I didn't think there were any major holidays coming up in March, but apparently Mardi Gras and St. Patrick's Day are calls for celebration. I wonder if April Fool's will be celebrated, as well. [Edited to add: I recently saw a recipe for Daylight Savings Time. Do people actually celebrate losing an hour of sleep?]

3. Speaking of strange "holidays," the new "trend" seems to be National [Insert Random Food Item Here] Day. Today is actually National Corned Beef and Cabbage Day (how appropriate). Yesterday was National Artichoke Hearts Day. July 30 is actually National Cheesecake Day. Needless to say I'll be happily celebrating that day.

4. I recently received a fantastic (and fantastically heavy!) package from my friend Lisa, whom my mom met through Ravelry. Through her job, Lisa has access to shelves of books of all kinds. I'm predictably interested in only the cookbooks, and I am so excited to dig into these new titles. The package contained In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite, Molto Mario, Heart of the Artichoke, The Perfect Finish, and Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home. (There was also a bonus Vogue Knitting Shawls and Wraps book for my mom.) It's official: Best. Mail. Ever.

Gorgeous figs from a page of Heart of the Artichoke by David Tanis

5. Last week I finally ate all of my raw almonds. I remembered seeing some roasted almonds at the convenience-type store behind my dorm and went to pick some up. Unfortunately, they didn't have plain roasted almonds, but there were two rather unusual flavors: Smoked Jalapeno and Soy Wasabi. I went with Soy Wasabi for... absolutely no reason at all. These almonds are addictive. They're not outrageously spicy - the heat lasts for about five seconds and then you want another one. Yep, highly addictive. Who knew these types of crazy flavors even existed?

6. I'm getting into new music again. Thankfully, my playlists are no longer exclusively songs from The O.C. Progress. Now most of them are from Grey's Anatomy. But they're not all like the typical "Grey's"-y songs, I promise! (You know the kind - a precocious indie woman, with a melody that's either wholly depressing or annoyingly upbeat? Yeah, none of that.) I am currently loving everything by Mumford & Sons, "Off I Go" by Greg Laswell, and "Little Bit" by Lykke Li (pronounced "leek-y lee"; love that music video, too). Give them a listen; you won't be disappointed.

7. Speaking of The O.C., do you remember when I mentioned my idea to write about the show for my English class's blog? Well, I went through with it and it was the most self-indulgent yet fun writing assignment I've ever done for an academic class. I'm continually grateful for this show; it never stops paying it forward. You can check out the blog entry here.

8. Last weekend my friend Catherine and I went to Octane, a "coffee bar and lounge" near campus. When I was in high school, I really took for granted the caliber of coffee that we have at our house. It's surprisingly hard to find "good coffee" (how Ina of me) here, but this was really good. They give you your very own French press when you order, too. The space feels very urban and bohemian. Catherine said that she felt like the guys there were "my type." Hmm... now what's that supposed to mean? 

French press and mug from Octane

9. I baked this week for my hall. Recipe and post forthcoming. I can't wait to share what I made; it was insanely delicious.

10. Happy (almost) Friday!