baking

Shanghai Lockdown 2022: I Survived

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Appropriate photo for the time-a cross stitch I did while locked in my apartment

This global historical event seems like it was in another lifetime, when it only “ended” a few months ago. Living through an entire city being locked down (and I mean locked down) was a wild experience that I feel like I can talk about now that it’s over (mostly). Mid-March during a staff meeting on a Friday, everyone’s phone started pinging with the news that all schools in Shanghai would close and move online starting the next week. No one could imagine the following few months…

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Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

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“I am grateful for what I am and have. My thanksgiving is perpetual.”

-Henry David Thoreau

I can’t promise that this will be the last pumpkin recipe (I still have some saved in my freezer)…but it certainly is one of the best! In the last years, Friendsgiving, has become increasingly more popular. A time before Thanksgiving, typically spent with family, to gather friends and throw down in an epic potluck. Mostly an excuse to eat more pie. I look it was a way to prepare my stomach for the main day! Or at least that is what I tell myself.

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No-Bake Vegan “Cheesecake” – Gluten-free + Refined Sugar-free

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“Good things come to those who bake”

Even though it isn’t Fourth of July, I thought that this morning I would share one of my favorite recipes that EVERYONE can eat. It seems like in Boulder that everyone has some sort of food allergy and this recipe for a yummy dessert is accessible to everyone and very easy to make! It is also incredibly yummy, healthy and can be made for any holiday based on the fruit decorations on top!

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Fall Feels: Pumpkin Baking

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(Photo is of some chocolate chip oatmeal pumpkin cookies that I made…will post the recipe soon)

“I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion” 
-Henry David Thoreau

Hey ya’ll!

I just got back from a trip to New York City (will share later) and had a great time soaking in the East Coast and hanging out with some of the absolute best friends in the world. It was a wonderful few days of break and I am happy to be back in Boulder and in my cozy apartment. Being in New York made me miss my kitchen (as NYC kitchens are basically like a mini cubicle) and reminded me of all the delicious pumpkin baking I have been doing and can’t wait to keep doing! Baking is so much more simple than people make it and as long as you have the basics down, some intuition and put lots of joy (and sugar and butter) into whatever you make…it usually turns out. And if doesn’t, you still give it to your friends and they still smile. Or don’t have tastebuds.

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Turning Over a New Leaf

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“I am so glad that I live in a world with Octobers”

-Anne of Green Gables 

I will keep repeating this for a long time…but October is my absolute favorite month and fall is my favorite time of the year. It is filled with pumpkin spice and everything nice and has some of the most gorgeous scenery. It is a very nurturing time of the year that I like to especially spend with friends and family, soaking in the fall leaves and new cycle as everything turns over. There is also something that seems to be in the air; a magical and whimsical wind that brings a smile to my face. This summer has been magical in its own right; starting off with such a personal transformation that was the best possible thing to happen to me. It transitioned to a fun month of new people, places and experiences that gave me lots of perspective on not only my life, but the infinite world we all live in. And as August crept up on me, I returned to school. This year had a very special energy like no other and set the tone for what I hope to be the best year yet. And as the weeks have gone and time has passed, I feel at peace more than I have in a while. Despite the ups and downs, the doubts and revelations we all have, I feel settled and am relishing in the ability to stay somewhere.

It turns out that staying is quite the adventure…

Happy October!

-Kaila

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Palisade Peach Crostata

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There is nothing like having good friends over for some delicious food and great conversation. Life often gets super chaotic, with everyone going a million miles an hour that its easy to forget to take time for yourself and those you love the most. My family, especially my grandma installed a love for baking in me from a very young age. One of my fondest memories is making biscotti at my grandmas house. The tradition of making many different types of cookies for the holidays and giving them to friends and family in cute christmas tins has been passed onto me and my aunt has assigned me the official role of holiday cookie baker.

Family, Food and Friends. Doesn’t get much better than that. 

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