Old Dog, New Tricks

Once upon a time, my friend Kat(i)e said to me, "Emily, I got new mixing bowls, and I don't need the ones I have. They're perfectly good, do you want them?"

"Sure!" I said, not really knowing what on earth I would ever need mixing bowls for. I figured that at worst they would be a couple more things to throw on my Goodwill pile. At best, I might use them for....something. When I saw the mixing bowls (as she threw them in my trunk when I left her apartment after a fun weekend together) I noted that one of them was the perfect size for eating popcorn, so I was at peace with my decision to take the bowls.*

I later found out though the bowl was the perfect size for popcorn, it had these rubber things on the bottom that were somewhat heavy and awkward when sitting the bowl on your lap. So the bowls were relegated to a high shelf in my cupboard where I rarely (if ever) reached for them.

Last Tuesday night (in my new "baked goods as presents" idea for Christmas on a student-making-soul-sucking-tuition-payments budget) I decided to make biscotti from this recipe. Yum. I exchanged the pistachios for almonds, but otherwise left the recipe intact. And the instructions on that recipe are AWESOME. They spell out absolutely everything, so I followed them to the letter (and the biscotti turned out awesome. Funny how that happens.) I was pretty psyched to get started, but I will admit that I almost didn't when the first step referenced a hand mixer. Though I have one, I don't have an outlet in my kitchen to plug it into. (My kitchen is TINY.) I mentioned this issue to the boy and he said, "Do you have an extension cord?" And just like that, my problem was solved. (I have no excuse for not realizing this myself except that I was getting sick.)

So to use the hand mixer, I decided to pull out one of my mixing bowls. I was feeling pretty proud of myself for even remembering that I had them. And then I congratulated myself on my incredible intelligence when, while beating together the eggs and sugar, the necessity of the rubber feet on the bottom of the bowl immediately became apparent. Look at me! I'm a real baker!! I made biscotti and I used a hand mixer and a mixing bowl to do it! I rock!

And then last night, reality reasserted itself when I made key lime bars out of a mix that comes in a box. They were burned so badly they are inedible save for the three in the middle that I was able to salvage. Merry Christmas zlionsfan!! (Round two will be delivered - hopefully unburned - after the holidays.)

*And this is a big deal. Seriously. I am a black belt in popcorn eating. I take my popcorn very very seriously with a sprinkling of parmesan cheese. Finding the perfectly sized bowl to eat popcorn out of is my life long quest. It can't be too big, or it's too cumbersome. It can't be too small or you have popcorn spillage. It can't be too deep or you can't get the parmesan cheese out of the bottom when you're done. My parents have one that is absolutely perfect, but refuse to part with it because, let's face it, I didn't just pick this popcorn insanity up on the street. My father is also a popcorn fanatic, and no amount of pleading by his only daughter will make him give up the sacred bowl.