NEW TUMBLR
For all of you Project Lemonade followers - we thank you! And we want to let you know that we will now be blogging from Quarterlette. So please follow us at www.quarterlette.tumblr.com
See you there.
So Muddy & So Cool
So, I don’t exactly think that I’m cut out for this Tough Mudder competition thing, but I absolutely love the concept and the fact that in just two short years, the company has been so successful, with events taking place all over the world. The founder took such as simple concept (a race) and tweaked it to create a completely unique (and somewhat crazy) experience, giving hardcore athletes something that they may not have realized they wanted, but that they now can’t seem to get enough of. That’s definitely something that we hope to achieve with our business as well. After reading the article, check out their website. They not only developed a cool event, but have also established a strong brand…everything from the name Tough Mudder, to the sizzle reel on the site…it just works: www.toughmudder.com
As for us, we’re meeting with the designer/developer tomorrow to start transferring all of the designs onto the actual site. We’re getting there!
-RG
* If you are a girl who has completed Tough Mudder (or at least attempted to complete the race), let us know! We would love to highlight you on our site.
** Also, if you are familiar with Tumblr and can tell me why my posts never allow me to have space in between paragraphs, please share. Thanks.
An Unlikely Thanksgiving Speech
Last night during Thanksgiving dinner, my 23-year-old brother gave a speech. Let me give you some background information first. Usually, my brother is either a) not present because he is off somewhere working, like in St. Thomas or b) sitting on his phone trying to make plans for after dinner with one of his many friends. But last night was different.
Recently returning from St. Thomas, my brother is in the midst of job searching and “finding himself” and, as part of that search, he decided that he was going to give a speech to the family last night.
Right before eating, my Mom asked if anyone wanted to share what they are thankful for and the one person who stood up was my brother. Instantly I thought that he was going to make some joke, but he did not. He stood there and gave a really nice speech about how lucky we all are, and that even if we all have little things that are bothering us or that we’re struggling with right now, in the grand scheme of things, it’s not all that bad.
Sometimes you just need someone to remind you of that. Everyone is allowed to have struggles that they’re facing but the most important thing is to try and keep them in perspective. And sometimes, the one who does remind you of that is the person that you least expect. (Nice job, AG).
Hope everyone had a nice Holiday.
P.S.- The photo is of my cousin falling asleep on the Pitbull after dinner. Unrelated to the speech, but I couldn’t resist using that photo.
xo RFG
The Toy Kitchen Bakery: Apple Crisp
The older we get the higher the expectation is to help out with holiday meals (boys and girls included, though my brother’s sitting on the couch all afternoon is a poor example). My mother started dishing responsibility my way a few years back once I proved my worth in learning how to bake my grandmother’s biscuits - a key ingredient to her third generation “dressing” (stuffing to most). However, this does not mean I have picked up on how to plan ahead quite yet.
Thanksgiving, as always, snuck up on me this year; and after running around the East Coast for the past week, I hardly had a moment to think about what I was going to contribute for dessert. Luckily, when my mom kindly asked what she needed pick up at the store I automatically fired back my safety pick - apple crisp. Not having a recipe on hand, she did her best to get what she thought we’d need and just assumed she’d have the rest (amazingly enough, she always does).
After some searching around this morning, I combined the best of two recipes based on our cabinet inventory and decided to share it below for others to put to good use. Apple Crisp is generally an easy, fool-proof contribution (as crust is making not required) that goes above and beyond running to your local bakery (and for travelers - it saves you the trouble of adding a bakery box to your luggage as long as your host/ess is gracious enough to give up some oven space).
Apple Crisp with Old-Fashion Crumb Topping
Filling Ingredients:
Source: FoodNetwork.com
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/neelys/apple-crisp-recipe/index.html
5 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, chopped small
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar (light or dark, take your pick)
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon lemon juice
I added Pumpkin Pie spice (because every dessert could benefit from it) and extra apples.
Topping Ingredients:
Source: FoodNetwork.com
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/old-fashioned-apple-crisp-recipe/index.html
1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup oatmeal
1/2 pound cold unsalted butter, diced
I also added pumpkin pie spice to this as well. Can’t hurt.
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9 by 14 by 2-inch oval baking dish.
To make the Filling:
Mix all the ingredients together. Place into baking dish.
To make the Topping:
Combine the flour, sugars (I added more brown sugar for good luck), salt, oatmeal, and cold butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the mixture is crumbly and the butter is the size of peas. On the other hand, if you’re willing to get a little messy, turn your hands into spoons and start pressing and mushing the ingredients together until combined and crumbly (less clean up/more hand washing). Mix a portion of the topping into the apple filling and then scatter the rest evenly over the apples.
Stick it in the oven, entertain yourself for an hour, take it out and divvy up amongst the guests. For standing ovation level results, serve warm and top with (vanilla) ice cream.
Juice Heads.
I devoted my mornings to sneakers and the running path.
We spent nights and weekends taking over tables at any coffee shop offering free internet.
I spent 18 weeks putting my body through grueling long runs only to end up injured weeks before the marathon.
We have put in 11 months of meeting, talking, researching, building and searching only to hit roadblocks.
26 miles.
A site built with ambition.
My friends cheered.
Our fans supported.
I crossed the finish line.
We have a homepage.
Yes, the juice is worth the squeeze
