hi there

so, hi. It's been awhile. Don't get too excited, but I'm back. kinda. I don't know what I want this to turn into, but it won't be the same vegan recipe site it has been (though all the recipes will be staying online). Life is in a bit of a transition period at the moment. Since we last talked, I've gone back to school, and this time I'm working on my Master's of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University. It is a whole different ball of wax than baking! I'm really enjoying the discovery and learning process at the moment, and I suspect I will share some of that here.

So we will see. Bear with me. Talk to me about how you've been and what you might want to hear. I've added to my arsenal of social media, so if you're into that kind of thing, I'd love to connect with you there!

Like a Horse and Carriage

Obama's declaration today got me thinking about marriage. There's an old adage about how you can't really know a marriage or judge a marriage without being inside that marriage; every marriage is different.

I totally agree.

But.

There are some things common to every good marriage. The obvious one is, of course, love. So it follows, who are we to judge another's love? How can we possibly be in another couple's love? There are other commonalities as well. Who vowed to hate? To deny? To judge? To persecute?

How many of you out there had Corinthians read at your wedding? Where in that passage does it say to tear down other peoples' love, hope, and faith?

I'm glad Obama came out and made his statement today, and I'm glad to see to much support for marriage equality online. I'm glad to see celebrations on tumblr and friends posting on Facebook. I'm glad not all North Carolinians agree with the vote there. I just wish it wasn't an issue at all.

I know that marriage equality is a hot button issue for many Americans, and, frankly, I don't know why. Someone else's marriage? None of my damn business, and, really none of yours. As long as you let them have one.

Moved

I apologize for the kinda-crappy cell phone photos here, but they're rather illustrative, don't you think?

As I mentioned, Mr Official Taster and I found a place to live, and over the weekend we moved in and made a large dent in the unpacking process with a lot of help from my parents. They just happened to be visiting this weekend, and I'm pretty sure seeing our move-in made them never, ever want to move out of their house.

The kitchen took some serious organizational work. I just did a rough calculation, and the kitchen (optimistically called a "galley kitchen") is about 30 square feet. When I figure out how to take pictures of it without renting a wide-angle lens, I will post some. Two people who like each other can be in there at the same time, but there's going to be a learning curve for those two people to figure out how to maneuver around together.

These guys have had quite a month, and, except for a couple vomit incidents, have done pretty well with all the changes. I have cooked two dinners now, and I went and got myself a library card today. I figured out that this is my fourth library card in five years. Mom, this is why I can never remember my account number.

All in all, this apartment is starting to be home, and I'll have a new recipe for you tomorrow.

I have one final appeal for you to please, take my survey! I really want to know what you think. It's anonymous, easy, and fast, and I dearly want to know what you like, don't like, want to see more of, and the like. So, go. Survey aweigh.

Year in Review

2011 has been quite a year. I became a barista, went to Hawaii, got a "real" job in the tech industry, acclimatized to a new city, got married, updated this blog, opened an Amazon shop, bought a new camera, threw a second party to celebrate the marriage, went on a honeymoon, moved to a new house, completed a 5K, and hosted Christmas for eight. oh yeah, and made cupcakes, admitted to using boxes occasionally, celebrated birthdays, canned, baked my way through 20 lbs of peaches, learned how to roast beets and make ice cream, had all sorts of pumpkin hijinks, and generally went through a lot of flour.

2012 is shaping up to be pretty eventful as well. Mr Official Taster has accepted a new job that's moving us to the San Francisco Bay Area. He starts on Tuesday, and we'll both be down there in a couple weeks. As an unabashed nester, moving is not how I want to start the year. Unfortunately, I'll also be moving away from two of my favorite people in the world.

In my head, I know this is the right choice- we're moving to a wonderful city, for a good and stable job, and closer to family (well, some of them. we have a lot). But the rest of me is less than thrilled with the decision. I worry about finding a place we love, find a job I at least like and will pay some bills, being lonely, getting lost, and finding a good dog park.

So thank you, dear readers, for providing a (usually) silent constant and pushing me to take on seemingly insurmountable tasks (see paragraph 1). Posting may be slim in early 2012, but I will try to both keep my chin up and provide you with some deliciousness.

Best wishes to you and yours for a wonderful 2012!

Our fabulous photographer, Riz, is a former colleague of Mr Official Taster and I can not say enough good things about him (and his wife! she helped too). See more of his work here.

The Wedding - Part I

I know I promised some stories of my busy October, but in order to do that, I have to first start in July. On July 22, 2011 Mr. Official Taster and I got married (yay!) on the beach in Southern California. It was an intimate affair- only immediate family attended (if you don't count the strangers on the beach!) -and it certainly fit the definition of "short and sweet."

The ceremony was really, really short. But I loved it. We wrote the whole thing ourselves, and a good friend officiated. What I remember is that he basically said "welcome" and "you may now kiss the bride." He said some other stuff, too, but I couldn't tell you what. Although I can tell you that I vetoed the whole "does anyone object?" part, not because I thought someone would, but because I just don't like it.

We promised, of course, to love each other, but also to fill our shelves with books, buy flowers, hold hands and be nice to each other. We also promised to have and to hold each other much the same way people have been doing for hundreds of years all over the globe. Having that feeling of continuity within our unique ceremony was really important to me. We laughed, he cried, but I didn't, much to my surprise.

Following our ceremony, and some pictures, we had dinner at one of our favorite restaurants with about 25 friends and family followed by delicious local pie and adorably delectable cupcakes from a a local bakery.

It was wonderful to catch up with friends we hadn't seen since we moved, and, frankly, to celebrate us. Dinner was a relaxed, couple-hour-long affair. We tried to talk with all of our guests, but, inevitably, felt like we didn't have enough time with any one individual. I'm pretty certain that's normal.

Finally, after the ceremony, photos, dinner, and drinks at a couple of bars, a friend drove us back to our B&B. After a wonderful, joyful, important day, we were able to relax and just be alone with each other. We talked about who we chatted with and how things went, and generally reveled in the beautiful day. I felt so lucky to have family (immediate and extended) who put up with our non-traditional wedding day and friends who came to dinner to celebrate with us.

You may be wondering why I titled this post "the" instead of "our." In the past year or so, I've become a devoted reader of A Practical Wedding (and I think you should be too, even if you're not planning a wedding), and one of its (many good) messages is that your wedding is not just about you. Not only do I think that's true, I think it's not talked about enough on most traditional wedding blogs. 

Anyway, all weddings, and, I think, especially weddings that don't follow a "traditional" or the "Wedding Industrial Complex's"idea of normal, require a little extra give from those we love. I know that we hurt some people with our choices, but we tried our best to balance what we wanted, what we needed, and what others wanted or expected. So while it was technically OT+my wedding, it was also our parents' and siblings' and friends' etc. etc. etc. "Our" just seems like too little of a word to encompass the community that it refers to here. 

Several of my (unmarried) friends have asked me if it felt any different to be married. At first, I didn't think so. But their queries made me think about it, and my answer changed to "yes." It seems like a little thing: I like having a respectable title for this other person in my life. I've never liked the term "boyfriend,"and "fiance" never really grew on me. I'm not comfortable yet with "husband," but it's a handy term. It sounds right to plead out of a social event because you need to spend time with your husband, or leave early from work to pick up your husband from the airport/doctor/county fair. Saying those same things about your boyfriend just doesn't sound as legitimate. In the general public eye, a "boyfriend" is just not as important or worth scheduling around as a husband. 

That may seem like a silly benefit at first. But consider all the other people who don't get to have that official spousal term to use. I've always been pro-marriage equality or gay marriage or however you phrase it. But getting married actually made me feel more strongly about it because I got to get married. I'm glad to see the tide seems to be turning, but there's still miles to go before we sleep.

What did this day in July have to do with a busy October?  Here's a hint: lots of flights were involved. and more friends, family, love, and mimosas.

For those of you who care about these things:

I put the flowers together at the local farmers' market a few days before the wedding. That's where the henna came from too.

My dress came from Ann Taylor.

We got our rings from the wonderful people at Minter & Richter.

Our fabulous photographer, Riz, is a former colleague of Mr Official Taster and I can not say enough good things about him (and his wife! she helped too). See more of his work here.

Sunday Flowers

I have been away. awhile. whoops

I mentioned a couple weeks ago a month ago (where did the time go?!) that there were some big events in October that were making my brain track lots of details. Well, they were great, and I promise some more details and lots of photos soon. However, this past week Mr. Official Taster and I moved apartments, so it's been continuously a little crazy for a month now, and we still don't have internet in our new place, which makes talking to all you lovely people slightly more challenging. We get it on Wednesday (fingers crossed!), so at that point, I will be out of excuses, and hopefully in possession of some of the photos I want to share.

So you'll just have to be patient a little longer. thank you :)

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend!

Short & Sweets on Amazon

You may have checked out the Contact tab when I did the big reveal a few weeks ago. And while you were there, you may have noticed the nifty graphic and link to my Amazon store - Make your own Sweet Life.  It contains both items I have and love as well as items I want or think are somehow fabulous.

When you purchase something thru my store, I get a small commission. If you start in my store and find other products you then purchase thru links within Amazon, those commissions will also be included in my account. I'm not going to make millions with this, and that's ok. But I wanted to be able to share with you some of my favorite things as well as maybe buy a stick or two of vegan butter.



I'm really telling you about all this in the interest of full disclosure. I think it's important.

Do you know about Pinterest?

Have you heard of Pinterest? I'd read about it on a few blogs and had the idea of joining percolating in the back of my mind for a while, but what spurred me to act was wedding planning. It is a great way of visually keeping track of ideas and inspiration. This may sound a little redundant, but it's perfect for visual things you see online - decor, food, gift ideas, style, DIY, etc - because Pinterest allows you to organize your finds on virtual bulletin boards. You create, name, and categorize the boards however your little heart desires. In addition, you can see what other users like, too, and you can "repin" their finds to your board. You can also "follow" people to keep up-to-date on their pins. It's pretty fun.

Anyway, this little plug is to let you know you can follow me on Pinterest! (this is the same info as you may found in the Contact tab at the top) There is obviously some mouth-watering food-related boards (read: category), but I have a few others going as well. If you're not already a Pinterest member, you do need to join. You can request an invite from the home page, or you can ask me and I'll send you one.

What great stuff have you found?

Ch-ch-ch-changes

Change is hard. I get that. But I think this one is all for the better! Thanks for your patience this week while this blog-o-mine was kind of broken. Blame Google.

So...you may have noticed that this looks different. Here's a handy guide:

1. A new web address! www.KatesShortandSweets.com is the new domain name, but don't worry, you can keep your old bookmark with "blogger" in there and you'll just get redirected to the new site
2. New header! Mr Official Taster helped me put this together. I think it's pretty snazzy.
3. Tabs! Check out all new information as well as a handy-dandy recipe index organized by type as well as a DIY project list.
4. Subscribe! Whether you want to follow by email, add Short & Sweets to your Google reader, or other organizer, there are new buttons to help. 

There's also a new overall look and layout. 

What do you think? Love it? Hate it? Notice any glaring errors? Have suggestions? Let me know in the comments!

Easy Upgrade

A couple weeks ago, I read this post over at Whisk Kid, and it made me smile. When Official Taster asked for an explanation, I complied, and his response gave me an idea for a future present. "I love ugly cookies!" Wouldn't that be great on a tshirt? Maybe with a heart between I and ugly? Boys like tshirts.

I'm somewhat of a perfectionist about the treats I mail to my Etsy customers, and when I take pictures for blog posts, I'm also picky about which cupcakes have perfectly swirled frosting or which waffles look the most waffley. So OT has learned to lurk, or, when he runs out of patience, start reaching for one so that I hand him a different one to eat instead. He's smart like that.

I guess my point is a) for most people, it doesn't matter what a cookie looks like and b) there are quick and easy ways to make imperfect cookies fancier/better looking. Another theory of mine? Frosting makes up for a lot. The more the merrier.

This week, I had extra chocolate cookies, extra sugar cookies, and extra filling. My solution? Combine them and make cute and delicious sandwiches (mini always adds to the cuteness factors). Some of the leftover chocolate cookies are kind of falling apart, but frosting acts kind of like glue, and since it looks impressive and tastes delicious, no one cares.

So if your oatmeal cookies don't turn out quite the way you wanted, add some frosting, serve, and enjoy. Powdered sugar or drizzled chocolate also works wonders.

In other news, and this is important, Facebook has changed everyone's options. again. sigh. So if you're not seeing Short & Sweets' posts in your feed anymore, scroll down to the bottom of your home page, click "Edit Options," and then choose "Show Posts From All Friends And Family" instead of just those friends you interact with most often. That way you won't miss any of my brilliant thoughts.

Finally, I wanted to link you over to Cooks Illustrated's article about dark chocolate. It's got good information and ratings for several brands of chocolate to help you make decisions when you're standing with glazed eyes in the baking aisle.

Fun Facts: The First Year

In honor of One Year of Kate's Short and Sweets, here are some numbers you may or may not find as interesting as I do:

26 - the number of blog followers
48 - total facebook fans
129 - number of total posts
168 - total number of comments on those posts
12 - my average number of posts/month

4144 - number of pageviews
Most of those came from the US, but Canada, the UK, Vietnam, Australia, Japan, France, India, Malaysia, and Russia are also represented.

36 - number of posts tagged "new recipes"
11 - number tagged "chocolate"
9 - number tagged "cake"
3 - total posts tagged "pie"

3 - sets of measuring spoons I have
10 - number of kitchen towels I own and use. What? You think that's a lot?
10 - cups of flour used to make challah. That is a lot.
2 - number of layers in the picake Official Taster got for his birthday, unless you count pie and cake separately and come up with 4.
1400 - miles OT and I drove on our move from sunny Southern CA to rainy Seattle

4 - days you have left (including today) to enter to win a pound of fudge. 

Sunday Flowers

Happy New Year! This post opens with pineapples, traditionally a symbol of welcome, and, in this case, a fitting way to bring in the new year and a new year of posts from yours truly.

That's right- today is the one year anniversary of my first post. For those of you who've been loyal ever since, thank you! Those of you who are newer to Short & Sweets, you get no less of my gratitude. I still get excited every time I get a new follower or a new fan on facebook.

Sometimes, I admit, having the pressure to create posts can be irritating. But, for the most part, I really enjoy the chance to write, create, and push myself to come up with fun new recipes. I think having this stage actually forces me to be more creative and more willing to try new things.

I'm not really one for New Year's resolutions, but I do want to continue this, improve it, and, hopefully, gain new followers. So, I'm asking you, dear reader, to help me. Let me know what you like, what you don't, what you want to see more of, what you're tired of. Really, any thoughts are welcome. Please leave a comment below, and, as always, feel free to email or convo me via Etsy. You can also still take the handy, 10 second survey I whipped up last month.

Stay tuned for more blogiversary excitement throughout the week! Hint: there's a giveaway coming!

I wish you and yours all the best in 2011 and beyond. Have a happy and healthy New Year!

I Say Goodbye, and I Say Hello

I must (again) apologize for my long absence, but I do come bearing big news. On Saturday morning, Official Taster and I will begin the three day journey to our new home. We bid adieu to San Diego and greet Seattle with open arms. Official Taster has gotten himself a new job, and, since I seem to like him, I'm going with him.

Southern California is picture perfect, and a couple times in the past week, I've asked myself if we are crazy to be leaving Paradise for Seattle, whether or not it's rainy rap is justified. Each time, thankfully, my answer is "yes." If it wasn't, we'd have problems. I'm looking forward to a fresh start, seasons, learning to ski, and living in the same place as two of my best friends.

Since it's November, America's month to express gratitude, I wanted to tell you that I'm grateful to each of you for reading all (or some) of these posts, especially when you comment. I love having mini-conversations with you.

My Etsy shop is currently on hold, but I'm hoping to have it up and running again within 2 weeks. I will be getting a few posts up in the near future, but it's really hard to do new recipes when all my cooking supplies are in boxes or on a truck. I do have a vegan banana bread recipe almost ready. I want to make a few tweaks and try again, so that's something for you to look for. As always, I'm interested in any questions, suggestions, or comments you may have.

Finally, this photo was taken four years ago from my first apartment in San Diego. Claire Bletz deserves the photo credit, along with credit for putting up with me in all of our apartments.