Left my heart in San Francisco

I got back from San Francisco and Macworld yesterday and basically slept all day yesterday. I'm still delirious — mostly from sleeping so much, but also from the dizzying array of products geared toward a single company — yet made by completely different people. I mean, just the fact that there's an entire fan convention for one company shows just how powerful Apple, Inc. has become. Any public relations or sales strategist would kill for this kind of market power -- people seriously came from all over and paid lots of money just to be sold to.

Macworld itself was incredible in a lot of ways. I was there to spread the word about an iOS app called CineX Player — a video player app that allows you organize your videos, watch any 2D in 3D (yeah, for serious. I think it's black magic), and very soon will let you watch movies in Dolby surround sound — even in the poor-quality headphones you get with an iPod. It's the most insane thing I've ever heard. (On a side note, it's way easier to sell things when they're actually really cool. Someday I'm going to have to sell something that isn't as awesome as CineX Player or Girl Scout cookies and it's going to suck.)

While the CineX Player booth was clearly the best because I was there, the number of booths was incredible. There were booths for apps and booths for products. People have taken Apple to a whole new level. They also took their booth displays to a whole new level — most were just a table with a fancy iPad display, but some people tried extra hard to get attention. One booth selling sports-quality earbuds had a giant trampoline — to prove the earbuds would stay put. My favorite booth was this one:

I have no idea how a protective iPad/iPod case is related to a van with flamingoes... but I love it. And of course, no gathering of tech fans would be complete without a booth showing silly videos of cats (for no reason I could discern):

Even though I was in San Francisco to staff the Macworld booth, I also got to see my dear friend and mentor Autumn. I spent the night with her, her hubby, and her adorable puppy who loves cuddling up and hugging.

 

We got up early-ish on Friday morning and went for a walk along Valencia Street, starting at Ritual Coffee — the definition of coffee snobbery.

Tasty snobbery.

We giggled our way through the line at the coffee shop, and then were off for our walk. As we strolled we swapped PR and Girl Scout stories, discussed our dreams and plans, and marveled in all the city had to offer.

Clockwise from top left: Apparently wizardry is a concern in SF, art on a construction wall, a stuffed unicorn in the creepiest children's shop ever, dancing skeletons on Valencia, best license plate ever, and an anti-littering campaign.

I love San Francisco. The entire city feels alive and jubilant. It's a city that is living in the future, but it never forgets its past. Skyscrapers range from Victorian-inspired beauties with amazing details all over to glass-encased structures that cut through the fog. I also love San Francisco because even though the entire city is covered in art, from graffiti to city-sponsored sculptures, there are always more little jokes and things to spot. You can be there your whole life and never see them all — and that's why I will always want to go back the second I leave.

Triple geek-out

Quick blog post today on three marvelous geek moments I had today:

1. I got to use some magnificent (and expensive) headphones at my internship today. These are the kind of headphones that DJs and sound mixers use. I listened to "Resistance" by Muse (among other songs) and realized there are entire lines and chords I've never heard before. It was beautiful. I need $200 to drop on headphones so I can feel like I'm inside the song whenever I listen to music.

2. I'm going to staff a booth at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco for my internship. It's the largest conference/exhibition on Apple products in the world, where all the newest and best products are shown off by developers. It's going to be exhausting and I'm going to love it. I'm ridiculously excited.

3. On a completely separate note, LEGO is going to start selling Lord of the Rings mini-figs this summer. Today they released a picture of the Fellowship mini-figs, and they are adorable and I want them now.

That's all for now. Check back soon for the good stories from Macworld and the fashionable life of Autumn and Rob!

Veggie chili night

rLast weekend my friends and I met up at the Davis Farmers' Market (which I've raved about before) to shop, talk, and eat freshly-baked naan. I had just downloaded the Instagram app, so we took a few hipster pics, bought some carrots, and one of us learned to slackline:

It was a clear day, but very, very windy. Eventually the cold drove us inside and I decided it was the perfect weather for chili, so I invited my friend Jessica over and we got to work.

I got this chili recipe from my mom, which means that it's vegetarian, but even my meat-loving boyfriend devours it and asks for seconds. The best part about this recipe is that it's incredibly flexible — I've left out a few ingredients with no sacrifice in taste, but you can also add in whatever you like (and you can probably even add ground beef or what have you). It's also quite simple -- my best friend even made it in Germany the other day -- but it does take at least an hour and a half to cook, so plan ahead.

First up? Sauté a diced onion in olive oil until it begins to soften, then add garlic and cook it a bit longer. Stir frequently and don't burn it.

Earlier in the day I baked 160 cookies. Never. Again.

We chopped up some carrots, a red bell pepper, and a zucchini and threw them in and let them cook again. We added our spices (plus a little bit of cayenne pepper to give it some kick) and some rice and let it cook just a little bit.

I love all the colors!

Then we added water in because I didn't have any broth, and then we dumped in a can of diced tomatoes. We brought all this to a boil...

... and let it simmer for 40 minutes or so while we watched Top Gear (British men blowing things up and driving fast in sexy cars? Yes please).

After simmering the chili was much thicker and the rice was cooked. We added beans and corn and let it cook for another 10 minutes. I feel like at this point I should note that some people are of the belief that chili isn't chili if it has beans in it. To those people I say: Enjoy this delicious vegetable stew!

We devoured massive bowls of this topped with cheddar and jack cheese with a side of freshly-made buttermilk cornbread. I've also had it with sour cream on top, guacamole (and sliced avocado), salsa — the options are limitless.

Dee-licious.

Chili just sort of cuddles up in your stomach. It's the perfect cold-weather recipe! Oh, and one of my favorite parts about chili night? (Other than eating chili, of course.) Cornbread slathered with butter and maple syrup the next day for breakfast:

I made this a week ago and now that I've typed up this blog entry, I'm definitely craving it again! A week between chili nights isn't too short a time ... right?

Enjoy!

Vegetarian Chili
Ingredients:
The ingredients in this chili are incredibly flexible. Add whatever you have in your kitchen.
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 to three tablespoons olive oil
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 large carrot, chopped
1 zucchini, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
3 cloves of garlic
0.5 teaspoon oregano
0.5 teaspoon cumin
2 teaspoon chili powder (or to taste)
0.5 cup rice
2 cups of vegetable broth or water (with rice — 0.5 cups without)
15 ounces diced tomatoes (one can)
30 ounces of beans (two cans — I prefer black beans, but any kind is okay)
1 cup frozen corn
Veggie taco filling
Dollop of tomato paste

To make:
1. Let the onion sauté for a bit in the olive oil on medium/medium-low.
2. Add the celery, carrots, and garlic. Stir occasionally so the bottom doesn't burn. Let sauté for a minute or two.
3. Add the zucchini and bell pepper.
4. Add spices.
5. Add rice, if you're adding it.
6. Add vegetable broth, bullion cubes, or water. Add more than listed in the ingredients if you want it to be soupy, add less if you want it to be stewy.
7. Add diced tomatoes (including liquid).
8. Crank the heat up and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat, put the lid on, and let it simmer for a half an hour to 45 minutes (with the rice, cook for longer).
9. Add beans.
10. Add corn.
11. Add veggie/soy taco filling and...
12. Add more vegetable broth/water if needed.
13. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes more to make sure the beans are cooked.

Serve with cheese, sour cream, salsa or hot sauce, cornbread, avocado — whatever you like — or nothing!

Seriously sinful gooey oatmeal bars

Side note: I took all the pictures for this when I was at my parents' and never got around to publishing them. Anyway, here's the post, a little belated but just as delicious!

Side note, part deux: If your New Year's resolution was to lose weight, back away from this blog post immediately. I won't even be hurt. Leave now before I introduce you to the most gloriously delicious bar cookie in my repetoire.

What's that, you're staying? Good.

While I was home my dad decided that he wanted to bake, then after I told him about these bar cookies, he basically cleared out and let me handle things. They're wonderful. I frequently make double or triple batches for events at Boyfriend's fraternity, and they go so fast you'd think I never made any at all.

The fun thing about cooking at home is that my mom has basically every cooking and baking tool you could think of, including (among other things) a strawberry corer and these adorable measuring spoons:

Precious! Mom found them at a garage sale, and I want to steal them. Anyway, down to business.

Mix brown sugar, oats, butter (lots of butter), baking soda, and flour together in a bowl:

Apply some dad-magic (or just stir it, if no dad is on hand):

And finally, use your fingers to press half the mixture into the bottom of a 9 by 13 inch pan:

There's no precision required here (or anywhere in this recipe), but it does help to make sure there are no cracks along the bottom. I didn't get all the corners covered (see the bottom left?), but that's okay.

Pop this in the oven for 10 minutes. When you pull it out, sprinkle anywhere between a cup and two cups of chocolate chips across the bottom, again trying to cover it as evenly as you can without stressing, then cover the entire thing with a cup of caramel sauce.

Have you had a heart attack yet?

Take the remaining oat mix and sprinkle it on top, then stick it back in the oven for 15 minutes. At this point it might be a little poofy, but just pull it out and don't worry about it.

My mother thinks this picture looks like a litter box. But I promise it's 10 ^1'000 more delicious than cat litter.

Now comes the hard part: Wait until the bars have cooled all the way until you slice them up and eat them. I tend to stick them in the freezer if I have space. It's probably not good for the chocolate, but then again, these bars don't last long — not even long enough for me to take a fancy picture of them to show off with. In any case, the bars should look like stratified, with a layer of cookie, a layer of chocolate and caramel, and another layer of cookie on top.

UPDATE: I found a picture of an old batch I made. And now I want more.

Enjoy.

Sinful Gooey Oatmeal Bars

Ingredients:

1.5 cups butter

1.5 cups brown sugar

2 cups oats

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

0.5 teaspoon salt

1 to 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup caramel sauce

To make:

1. Preheat oven to 350F. 

2. Combine butter, brown sugar, oats, flour, baking soda, and salt.

3. Press half this mixture into a 9 by 13 inch pan. Bake for 10 minutes. Cool slightly.

4. Sprinkle chocolate chips over crust.

5. Drizzle caramel sauce over chocolate chips and crust.

6. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture on top and bake for 15 minutes.

7. Allow bars to cool before you scarf them, or stick them in the refrigerator to allow them to harden.