Baby it's cold outside
{aka: How to Hunker Down -or- Get Warm, Girl!}
Exactly a week ago, I was down in Georgia looking at this...
and this...
This weekend I am back in New York preparing for this....
I am so not into this weather. I am NOT a cold weather girl! I like sun, tank tops, sunscreen and little floaty dresses with strappy sandals...I have no interest in snow shoes, cross country skis, or anything cold weather related.
Introducing Hibernation Mode...
Unfortunately, I live in a city that is cold until May, so I've had to learn how to cope with the cold. Over time I have created a special way to deal with the cold weather: I stay inside! Revoluntionary? No. But when you do it my way, it's a pretty good time. Here are a few of my tips for hibernating like a pro on a wintery weekend...
Candles are everything.
After the sun sets, we turn the lights down low and rely on candles for our evening lighting. The warm glow of candle light is so comforting and relaxing...sometimes I forget that I'm actually trapped inside for the night.
I put flowers everywhere.
I mean, everywhere. The more the better! It helps bring a little life into the house while everything is under snow outside. I like to put them in jars, coffee mugs, and tea pitchers in every corner of the house. It looks like a deranged greenhouse in our apartment but I love it! (Sidebar: Can you believe I fond peonies in the dead of winter? I was totally pumped!)
I make special snacks.
When it gets cold I bake. I'm not really sure why, but with the first dip in temperature I'm in the kitchen. So far this year has been no different. Actually, it has been worse. I seem to be making some sort of baked good every weekend and now they are popping up during the week too...so not good for bathing suit season. Recently one of our favorite hibernating menus looked like this:
Cranberry-Orange Bread with Warmed Brie
Mulled Wine
Cranberry-Orange Bread
2 cups flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup orange juice
1 tbsp grated orange zest
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp milk
1 cup chopped cranberries (plus a few whole berries for garnish)
1 cup chopped walnuts (reserve a few halves for garnish)
---
Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. Combine sugar, butter, orange juice, orange zest, milk and egg. Add the sugar mixture to the flour mix and stir until well incorporated. Fold in Chopped cranberries and walnuts. Spoon batter into a greased 8.5x4.5 inch loaf pan and sprinkle the top with the remaining cranberries and nuts.
Bake in preheated oven at 350 degrees until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 60 to 75 minutes. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.
Simple Mulled Wine
4 cups apple cider
1 (750-ml) bottle red wine (syrah or malbec are my favorites)
1/4 cup honey
3 cinnamon sticks
1 1/2 oranges, zested and juiced
4 whole cloves
2 star anise
Combine the cider, wine, honey, cinnamon sticks, zest, juice, cloves and star anise in a large saucepan, bring to a boil and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Pour into mugs. Garnish with a slice of orange, an orange peel or cinnamon stick.
For the warmed brie, place a wedge of brie in a ceramic casserole dish and warm in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for about ten to fifteen minutes depending on size. The brie should be warm and spreadable, but not so hot that the oil has begun to separate.
I Cozy up...
After the scene has been set, there nothing left to do but enjoy! Time to get under the covers in my favorite chair and settle in for the evening. (another sidebar: Yes, that's a book on etiquette in the picture...I thought it was kind of funny. I probably need to read it after twelve years in NYC. I'm pretty sure that the debutante has been smacked right out of me at this point.)
And now it is officially time to hunker down. It might be cold outside, but baby, it's warm in here!
Stay warm ladies and gents.
xo...
ki