...In which our heroine is quite the domestic.

After nearly two months here, the role set in our room has become apparent. This means I cook the majority of the time. As it turns out, I find myself really enjoying cooking on a regular basis.

I haven't been doing a lot of fancy stuff, but it's better than Ramen. This weekend I made barbeque chicken and garlic potatoes Friday night, enchiladas Saturday night, and the one I'm most proud of, my very first batch of biscuits and gravy Sunday morning. I do have some Kentucky blood in me, as my Sunday brunch turned out better than expected.

When I was at home, my mom always did all the cooking, no questions or hesitations. She enjoyed doing it, and I would mostly just watch. Now that I'm forced to make stuff on my own, I've found that I retained a lot more of her methods than I would've ever thought. Okay...so I guess she does know what she's talking about in the kitchen.

Cooking is calming for me. Whenever we roommates cook, it's an adventure. Motown, Micheal Jackson, and dancing are absolute musts. We've been trying to teach the boys how to cook, but I think its hopeless. (Kris wanted to cook individual portions of spaghetti for the five of us in a sauce pan.)

The only original thing I've come up with is a variation on something that Cassie's boyfriend JR made back in the summer. It's called Hot Apple Pie:


1 gallon of apple cider
1 gallon of apple juice
2 cups sugar
1 cup brown sugar
A jar of cinnamon sticks
A sliced orange
Cinnamon to taste
1 bottle everclear (optional of course, but hey, I'm in college. You can use vodka or rum also.)

Bring apple juice, cider, all sugar, cinnamon, and cinnamon sticks to a boil in a large pot. Once boiling, reduce heat and skim off impurities. Keep the mixture on low and drop sliced oranges on top to infuse. When ready to drink, add alcohol. Recipe can be halved or drank cold.

Hot Apple Pie was a big hit Friday evening and is a good fall/holiday punch. The kids around here enjoyed it quite a bit and the full recipe makes lots of leftovers.