For My Wonderfully Supportive Brothers: Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Posted on June 1, 2013 by chezsylvia

Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies

Let me start off by saying I have two wonderfully supportive brothers who love to show said support by constantly giving me a hard time about everything possible.  To the general public, they can sound harsh and mean as they tease me to make me a better person.  It works and I do have to say, it did build my character and has molded me into the woman I have become: one not afraid to constantly challenge traditional gender norms, be fiercely independent, able to lift heavy things, out run boys and be proud of it, all while not taking myself so seriously.  I think it’s a good thing.

Let me share an example of this rather odd dynamic we have:

On a recent sibling shopping trip to Lowe’s, I had to get a new water filter for my fridge.  It has been two years since I moved in, and I thought it would be a good idea to change it (I don’t drink water from my fridge, I just use the ice from it).  However, I’ve been having a lot of trouble unscrewing the filter housing inside the fridge to access the filter itself.

photo

While I was looking up the model number of the filter that I needed, I noticed that a particular part was offered along side with the filter.  A silly plastic wrench that you could slip around the filter housing with a handle that would allow you some extra leaverage to apply some additional torque if needed.  So, after the sales guy showed me where to find the filters and locate the right one, I ask him about this wrench and this is the conversation that happened (paraphrased):

Me:  So, is there a wrench part that I can also get to help me unscrew the filter housing?

Sales Guy:  No.  All you need to do is reach in and unscrew it.

Me:  Oh, okay, but what if I’m having trouble unscrewing it?  Because I think mine is stuck.

Sales Guy:  Well, I don’t know, I mean, you should be able to use just a hand to unscrew it.

My brother (very loudly and matter of factly):  Sylvia.  You just need a man!

Now, while anyone listening in would be shocked (I’m sure the sales guy wasn’t sure how to react) and expect me to be offended.  Instead loud hearty laughter then filled the appliance section of Lowe’s.  To me, I understood his point…I needed to stop whining and just figure out how to do it myself.  I love my brothers…and that is how we roll…

Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies

And now for some Bourbon Chocolate Chip Cookies…

Continue reading →

Posted in Cookies, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Friday Off Leads to Trouble: Bourbon Bacon Cookies

Posted on May 24, 2013 by chezsylvia

Bourbon Bacon Cookies

It has been awhile since I took a flex day.  I decided at the 11th hour to take a day off and treated myself to a four day weekend.  Was I going to do anything exciting?  No.  Was I going anywhere?  Not so much.  So why take the day off?  Cause I can, I guess (I tend to work enough hours to cover the flex day, even if I’m not flexing).

Honestly, I had no idea why I took the day off.  It was a rainy day, I had nothing to do.  Even so, it probably was a good thing to do, mental wise anyway.

With an unexpected Friday off, what is a girl to do?  Sleep in till 7:30am (that’s right, that’s me sleeping in!), go run a route through Rockefeller Preserve I haven’t done in forever, but love, grab some coffee at a coffee shop I haven’t been to in forever (Coffee Labs), and then go home and hunker down for the day.

Well not totally.  I did some much needed cleaning and home maintenance (sinks don’t unclog themselves!), and made some cookies.

A friend of mine is currently in Kentucky touring the Bourbon trail.  Inspired by her trip, I thought I’d make some cookies with Bourbon and maybe throw some bacon in.

Bourbon

Bourbon Bacon Cookies

Continue reading →

Posted in Cookies, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Night Photography Workshop: Brooklyn

Posted on May 19, 2013 by chezsylvia

DSC_0215

This week has been pretty exciting.  Filled with three nights that had me out and about way past my bedtime!  It’s a record for a girl like me!

One of those nights were spent in the lovely boro of Brookyln.  Growing up, I spent a considerable amount of time in Brooklyn, but mostly in the Sunset Park area.  That area is way on the other side of Brooklyn, and the location of the Brooklyn Chinatown located along 8th Ave.  So, for the longest time, that was all I knew, and therefore until a couple of years ago, didn’t think much of Brooklyn.

Then I discovered the charm of Park Slope, then slowly, Williamsburg and Greenpoint.  This week, I explored a bit and sampled parts of the Brooklyn Bridge Park, DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, Williamsburg, Fort Greene and Cobble Hill.  Four of those places were done in one day (on another adventure)!

My first adventure in Brooklyn for the week was on Thursday night.  I ditched my kickball team again (They tend to win when I’m not there anyway), and took a Night Photography workshop with Remember Forever.  A great outfit that offeres more specialized classes that are really good.  I do highly recommend checking them out!

As always, check out my Flickr page for all pictures!

Continue reading →

Posted in Photography, Uncategorized, Weekend Adventure | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Following Mom’s Orders: Stay Home, Take it Easy, and Bake me Two Cakes Please

Posted on May 12, 2013 by chezsylvia

Waiting on the Platform

In my continuing quest to have every letter of the alphabet represented in my name, last week, I gave myself a week off from physical exercise to focus on exercising my brain.

That exercise came in the form of the 5 day training crash course for a Certified Energy Manager (CEM) certification.  It was actually 4 and a half days of lecture followed by a 4 hour exam during the last half of the fifth day.  If I pass, I can then add the letters CEM to the other two sets of initials already following my name (and the count is up to 14 letters).  It’s a measure of ambition if you will (or another example of over educating myself out of a husband…as per my very loving mother).

Early morning train

Early Morning on the 7 train

With a week off from physical exercise, my body, being ever so efficient, took this opportunity to also come down with a cold.  5 days of commuting two hours via train, sitting in a terribly conditioned room for 9 hours of constant lectures, commuting another two hours home to “study” for a couple of hours before going to bed to repeat again, while sick is not pleasant.  For me or anyone around me for that matter.

So by the time the exam was declared over (4 hours goes by fast) that Friday, and papers were handed in, I was finally able to breathe (in between the horrible coughing that was my lungs attempt to jump ship) and was promptly ordered by my mother to take Saturday off and just take it easy at home.

What she really meant was she wanted me to bake her two cakes for Mother’s day.

Continue reading →

Posted in Cake, Dessert, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Easy Breakfast: Banana Oatmeal

Posted on May 5, 2013 by chezsylvia

Bike

I rode 50 miles today.  It’s been a long time since I’ve ridden 50 miles, and I had fun!

It was the Go the Distance for Autism ride I was doing as part of my co-workers team.

It was an absolutely gorgeous spring day out.  Mid-50’s, sunny and a slight breeze.  It was a bit cooler in the morning, and I ended up wearing two jerseys (I bought the event jersey) and my arm warmers the entire time.  This lead to some rather interesting tan lines at the gap between my jersey sleeve and the arm warmers.  Thank goodness for cardigans at work!

Bike Helmet

The ride was great.  Good company to help keep me going, very well marked course, and although there were a few challenging climbs, they were not constant nor impossible.  I hit a bit of a brief wall around mile 42, where all I wanted to do was stop and just throw my bike away, but after a forced stop at a busy intersection, I found another wind (my 5th or 6th or 100th wind at this point), and was able to rock it up all the hills to the finish!  Thank you bag of potato chips I wolfed down at the last rest stop!

Now that it’s over the last thing I want to do is prep any form of food.  Which is why I am so glad I made some banana oatmeal the day before.  Wholesome foods are easy!

The best thing about oatmeal is that it is a blank slate.  As long as you know how to cook the oatmeal base, the combinations of mix ins are endless.

Mash Bananas

This time I added the following:  mashed ripe bananas, a little unsweetened cocoa powder, cinnamon and nutmeg.  When it comes time to enjoy (I always make a huge batch so I have breakfast for the rest of the week), I also like to thin it out (it thickens a lot over time) with some unsweetened almond milk and sweeten it up with a drizzle of pure maple syrup.

Banana Chocolate Oatmeal with Almond Milk and Walnuts

Easy, delicious and reheatable.  Just the way I like it!

Now I need a nap.

You are amazing

Posted in Biking, Breakfast | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Birthday Cake, ChezSylvia Style: Chocolate Stout Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

Posted on April 29, 2013 by chezsylvia

Chocolate Stout Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

It was my birthday!  And yes, I made my own cake.  To my likeness as well!

And by that I mean, it wasn’t much to look at, sounds really good on paper, and was delicious once you cut it up and gave it a try.  That’s me in a nutshell!

I have been toying around with making a Chocolate Guiniess Cake for a long time.  However, during all of my research, I couldn’t find a recipe I liked.  Finally, one day at work, I was approached by a co-worker for a dessert idea for some party she was going to.  I had this Red Wine Chocolate Cake from Smitten Kitchen that I’ve made a bunch of times on the brain.  I then tried to find it on my own blog, and even though, I could have sworn I’ve talked about it, it seems that I never did!  Strange.  Nevertheless, I pointed her in that general direction.

Next time I saw her she raved about the cake, and offered up a tidbit.  If I substitute beer for the red wine, it totally works too.  Done and Done!

Rockies Run

Now, I made this the morning of my birthday.  I went out on a very early morning run on one of my favorite loops round the Rockefeller Preserve, then came home, showered, and made a cake before heading off to brunch with friends.  So, not all of my ingredients that needed to be at room temperature really were (20 minutes on the counter does not mean room temperature).  It worked anyway.  This also explains the horrid lack of pictures….sorry kids!

Birthday Run

Coffee Stout Cake with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting (Cake adapted from Smitten Kitchen, Frosting adapted from Joy The Baker’s Cookbook)

For the cake:

I basically followed her recipe to the letter except for the following notes:

I used what was left of my Kerrygold Irish butter and a small stub of Land O Lakes butter.

Even though I usually skimp on the sugar significantly, this time I only did by a few grams.  Since I was using a beer, I think if you skimp on the sugar, then the bitterness of the beer comes through even more.  So keep all the sugar in.  I also used a light brown sugar since that is what I usually have on hand.

I used a Wolaver’s Alta Gracia Coffee Porter.  It’s an Ale with Coffee and Vanilla Beans, and it tastes so good.

For the Frosting:

I totally eyeballed this one after reading through the general ingrediant list for peanut butter cream cheese frosting.

In my mixer bowl, I threw in a stub of butter (maybe 1/4 of a stick), and maybe 1/4 of an 8 oz package of cream cheese and with the paddle attachement beat the two until light and fluffy.  Then I added maybe a little less than a tablespoon of natural unsalted peanut butter and beat until combined.  Then I added a touch of vanilla extract and maybe three tablespoons of powdered sugar and just kept the mixer going until the frosting looked combined and smooth.  I turned off the mixer every now and then to scrape down the sides of the bowl and check on consistancy.

Once it’s all done, and the cake is cooled, spread the frosting on top.  I made barely enough to cover the top of the cake, but the good thing is, the frosting added an extra dimension without overwhelming the cake.

The cake came out super chocolatly and a great mix of cake like and fudgy without being dense.  It tastes like there’s beer in there, but I feel like the beer helped boost the chocolate flavor even more than shine as a main ingredient (might have been the coffee).

Chocolate + Beer + Peanut Butter = My kind of birthday cake!

Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Ice S’mores Sandwiches

Posted on April 24, 2013 by chezsylvia

S'mores Ice Cream Sandwich

I begrudgingly became captain of this kickball team I play with at work.  I mean, Begrudgingly with a super capital B.  I don’t know how to play kickball plus I can barely get my dog to listen to me, how was I supposed to be a captain?  However, the only thing I had going for me was my knack for administrative efficiency (or my control freak tendencies ..but that doesn’t sound so nice).

Administratively efficient.  A term someone came up with as a nice way to say I’m really good at paperwork.  Which is true.  Growing up I aspired to be a great secretary (much to the dismay of my father), because I was good at organizing things and thrived in the supportive role.  Which is still very much true today, but as an engineer (dad is much more at peace with this).

So I did it.  I pulled a team together, hassled people for money (working on my loan sharking skills), got us registered, paid up and picked a team name and color, all in the nick of time.  Administrative efficiency…hard at work.

I hope they appreciate this…..

And I hope you guys appreciate a good ice cream sandwich (I know I always do!)!

Continue reading →

Posted in Dessert, Sandwich, snack, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Race Report: George Wodicka Hook Mountain Half Marathon 2013

Posted on April 21, 2013 by chezsylvia

First half of the 2013 season is done!

All I have to say about the George Wodicka Hook Mountain Half Marathon is that it is very very hilly.  Ridiculously so.

Leading up to the race, I wasn’t really looking forward to it.  Undertrained and not taking it seriously made me feel wholly unprepared.  The only thing I was excited about was having the opportunity to whip out the neon pink compression socks once again.  These super awesome socks only get used for long runs over 15 miles, and races over 10 miles only…so this was a special occasion!

CEP Compression Socks

Just a word of advice.  Don’t go on an “easy” 14 mile bike ride with your two brothers the day before.  These usually turn into a race to see who won’t finish last.  Usually it’s not me, but this time it was, but not without some considerable effort to out bike a stranger I was “racing” on the way back.  I am not in my 20’s anymore…these shenanigans just won’t fly anymore.

This will make your legs feel like two lead weights.  Not a good thing to feel when prancing around at the start trying to stay warm in the crisp 34 degF morning.  There were only a handful of women dressed in shorts and a t-shirt (in my case, running skirt, t-shirt), the rest were smart.

The race has both the 5K and the half marathon runners starting together.  It was a nice medium-small crowd, although I overheard one runner comment that it was a bit more crowded this year.  So, it was a bit tight for the first two miles as we all jockeyed for space on the path that ran around Rockland Lake.  The views were pretty in the morning sun.

After 2 miles, the crowd is split with the half marathoners veering off to climb the hills to the outer road.  The hill climbs start.

The Hook is pretty epic.  On my way down, the thought of having to climb back up later made me feel even more tired.

This year, due to Sandy damage, we were re-routed North, more rolling hills to Haverstraw….yay!  Dirt trail speckled with rocks with some incredible views of the Hudson.

Hook Half Elevation

I am a bit ashamed to admit, I walked up the Hook.  Two miles to go in the race, I ran up as far as I could before I just ran out of steam.  Although, I made sure I passed the photographer on course before I walked.  At that point it was just faster to walk.

Overall, I think it was a great race.  A good small local crowd, no frills, just a pure challenging half marathon.  Maybe next year I’ll take it more seriously and actually train for it!

My race…according to my Forerunner 10!

Posted in Running | Tagged , | 2 Comments

I Will Ride For Coconut Oat Macaroons With Ginger

Posted on April 14, 2013 by chezsylvia

DSC_0035

It’s been a very active weekend for me.  I finally got my pull up bar installed!  And now, I have no more excuses to avoid practicing my dreaded pull ups and toes to bars (which I just did my first of during the Crossfit Open!!)!

DSC_0049

DSC_0053

It’s also been a long time since I have done a bike and run weekend, and this one made me miss them!

On Saturday I took the Leeroy monster out for my last long run before my first half marathon of the season.  I have not been really training much for this one.  I can give you a bunch of excuses, weather, timing etc, but really, I just didn’t.  But, experience assures me that, as long as I make one 10 mile long run, I should be fine…right?

I made it through 10.75 miles through the hills of Rockefeller (I did one of them twice!) while first getting dragged by the dog, then me dragging the dog.

On Sunday, I went on my second bike ride of the season.  My relationship with my bike is a tenuous one.  I am not a biker, it’s just something that I’ve never developed the strength and affinity for.  It just stresses me out.  But since triathlons not only require a bike segment, it’s also the longest segment, I had to learn to love.

Ever since the Toughman, I have slowly gone into a reitrement of sorts.  Only to be brought back out of retirement by agreeing to participate in the Go the Distance for Autism as part of my co-workers team.  We were going to do a 50 mile ride, and I had just over a month to train up for it.

photo_1

So, today, our team went out for a 30 mile ride.  The group consisted of six of us.  Me, my brother, and four people from work.  It was a nice ride through the roads of Northern Westchester, up and down all of those hills.  Thank goodness we took multiple breaks, cause my legs were pretty darn tired.

photo

So, what does a girl get after spending the weekend running and riding long?  Besides a post ride chicken cutlet sandwich from Rocky’s in Millwood?  How about some Coconut Oat Macaroons with a little Ginger?

My friend Liz has been after me to make these Coconut Oat Macaroons from Prevention RD, and I finally did it.

Continue reading →

Posted in Biking, Cookies, Running, Weekend Adventure | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Weekend Adventures: Quebec City Part 2: The short short short short version….

Posted on April 4, 2013 by chezsylvia

Quebec City

I know, it has been a little longer than necessary for me to post Part 2 of my Quebec City adventures but life got a bit busy.  I don’t think I’ve actually had a moment to sit still since I got back!

Now, I find myself in a hotel (work trip), away from home, alone and unable to stand up straight.  I thought it would be fun to visit another box for crossfit while I was in town.  However, I must have done something stupid, or just too much because as I was walking home from dinner, I was definitely shuffling down the sidewalk like a little old lady, eyes to the ground.  So, I guess I have some time to finally make this post happen!

Continue reading →

Posted in Beer, Bread, Photography, Travel, Uncategorized, Weekend Adventure | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment